John Maurice von Hauke

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Maurice von Hauke (Polish: Maurycy Hauke) (26 October 1775, Seifersdorf – 29 November 1830, Warsaw, Poland) was a professional soldier.

Of German origin and from a family of soldiers, Moritz Haucke served in Napoleon's army in Austria, Italy, Germany and the Peninsular War, but later switched sides to join the Russian army. Recognizing his abilities, Tsar Nicholas I appointed him Deputy Minister of War of Congress Poland and elevated him to count.

In the uprising of 1830 led by revolutionary army cadets, the target was Grand Duke Constantine, Poland's Governor-General. Count Moritz von Haucke defended the Grand Duke who managed to escape, but von Haucke was shot to death by the cadets on the street of Warsaw before the eyes of his wife Sophie la Fontaine and his three children. His wife died of shock shortly afterwards, and their children were made wards of the Tsar.

On 28 October 1851, his daughter Julia von Hauke, then lady-in-waiting to the Empress, married Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine (Hesse-Darmstadt), brother of the Empress. Elevated by Alexander's brother, Grand Duke Ludwig III of Hesse-Darmstadt, to Countess of Battenberg and in December 1858 to Princess of Battenberg, she became ancestor of the house of Mountbatten and the British Royal House of Windsor.