SAXE, MAURICE, a celebrated general, was born at Goslar, on the 13th Oct. 1696, and was the natural son of Frederick II. Elector of Saxony, and King of Po land, and of the Countess of Konigsmar, a Swedish lady, distinguished by her beauty and accomplish ments.
His passion for a military life displayed itself at a very early period, and it was with the greatest difficul ty that he could be taught to read and write. At the early age of twelve, he served in the allied army under the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene. In 1708, he accompanied the same troops at the siege of Lisle. He distinguished himself at the sieges of Tour nay and Mons; and at the memorable battle of Mal plaquet, and on various occasions, he received the highest eulogiums from the allied generals. In 1711, our young warrior accompanied the king of Poland to the siege of Stralsund, where he swam across the river in sight of the enemy with a pistol in his hand. In consequence of the courage which he displayed on that occasion, a regiment of cavalry was raised for him, at the head of which he fought against the Swedes at the bloody battle of Gadebusch, where he had a horse killed under him, after he had thrice rallied his regi ment, and led them on to the charge.
When this campaign was finished, his mother pre vailed upon him to marry the Countess of Loben, a lady of wealth and beauty. This union, however, was not a happy one, and was dissolved in 1721. Their only child died in infancy; and the licentious habits of Count Saxe unfitted him for the enjoyments of do mestic life.
In the war against the Turks, he accompanied Prince Eugene into Hungary, with 15,000 men. He was pre sent at the siege of Belgrade, and at another battle gained over the Turks; and on his return to Poland in 1718, he was decorated with the golden eagle.
After the general pacification of Europe, he took up his residence in France, where the Duke of Orleans, then regent of the kingdom, honoured him with a bre vet of Marcchal de Camp. Resolved to devote himself to the study of his profession, he resumed with ardour his mathematical pursuits, and made himself master of the various improvements in military tactics. Hav ing got the command of a German regiment in France, he drilled them in a new kind of exercise, which was considered a favourable presage of his fu ture greatness.
When the dukedom of Courland became vacant in 1725, the states of Courland chose Marshal Saxe for their sovereign; but his election was opposed both by Russia and Poland. Prince Menzikoff, the Russian candidate, sent 800 Russians to Mittau, where he be sieged the Marshal in his palace; but such was the in trepidity with which he defended himself with only sixty men, that the Russians were obliged to abandon their scheme of taking him prisoner. Finding it in vain to contend alone with such powerful enemies, he applied to France for men and money. The cele brated actress, Mademoiselle de Couvreur, pawned her jewels and plate, in order that she might send him 40,000 livres; but this assistance was inadequate to his wants, and he was therefore obliged to quit Cour land, and return to France. The Duchess of Courland, who afterwards sat on the Russian throne, flattered him with the hopes of her hand, but finding herself unable to fix his affections, then under the dominion of Mademoiselle de Couvreur, she abandoned all thoughts of the match.
In the interval which succeeded these disappoint ments, Marshal Saxe again devoted himself to literary pursuits. He not oily resumed his mathematical stu dies, but in the course of thirteen nights, during the intervals of an ague, he composed his " Reveries;" a work containing many new ideas on military sub jects.
Upon the death of his father, the king of Poland, in 1733, the talents of our hero were again called into action. From a partiality for the French service, he declined the command of the Saxon troops, which had been offered him by his brother; and he joined the Duke de Berwick's army, which was then encamped on the Rhine. The general, who was at this moment preparing to attack the enemy's entrenchments at Et linghen, exclaimed, on the count's arrival, " I was about to send for 3000 men, but your arrival is of more value than them." This compliment was not mis placed. At the head of a regiment of grenadiers he penetrated the enemy's ranks, and decided the fate of the day. At the siege of Philipsburg he exhibited equal valour; and from his great merits, he was rais ed to the rank of lieutenant-general in 1734.