John Baptiste de Barth Walbach, Baron de Walbach, (3 October 1766 Münster - 10 June 1857 Baltimore, Maryland) was a career soldier who worked his way up to brigadier general in the early years of the United States Army.
Contents |
Walbach was the third son of Count Joseph de Barth, and received his military education at Strasbourg. He was a lieutenant in the Lauzun hussars 1786-1792. He returned to his native land to join the army of the Comte d'Artois, brother of Louis XVI. He was present during the campaign of 1792 in Champagne in the advance of the Prussian army until it was disbanded at Maestricht, on 6 January 1793, participated in the attack on Frankfurt, and subsequently served during the campaign of 1793 in attacks on the French lines at Germersheim, Langenkandel, and Weissenburg. In October 1793, he accepted a captaincy in the Hussars de Rohan in the German service, and took part in covering the retreat of the Duke of York upon Holland and Germany.
In 1798 he obtained a six months' leave of absence, with a view of visiting his father, who had come to the United States at the opening of the French Revolution. But the father had died in Philadelphia, and his estate had been sold by the sheriff. Walbach resigned his commission in the Hussars de Rohan in April 1798, and was appointed aide-de-camp to Gen. William Macpherson.
He became 1st lieutenant of U. S. cavalry and adjutant on 10 January 1799, was aide-de-camp to Gen. Alexander Hamilton in May, assistant adjutant-general to Gen. William North in September, and in December was assigned to the staff of Gen. Charles C. Pinckney, whom he assisted in preparing regulations for the cavalry. In February 1801, he was made 1st lieutenant in the regiment of artillerists and engineers, and on 25 October following he was appointed aide-de-camp to Gen. James Wilkinson. He was retained in April 1802 as 1st lieutenant of artillery, and became adjutant 1 December 1804. He was promoted captain 31 January 1806, made assistant deputy quartermaster general in March 1812, assistant adjutant general, with the rank of major, in June 1813, and on 6 August 1813 adjutant general.
He took part in the Battle of Crysler's Farm, Canada, 11 November 1813. Gen. George W. Cullum, in his Campaigns and Engineers of the War of 1812-1815 says that the enemy, “discovering our disorder and slackened fire, pushed vigorously forward and endeavored by a flank movement to capture our cannon, when Adjutant-General Walbach, a German veteran in our army who had seen much foreign service, gave the order to 'charge mit de dragoons,' and thus saved the pieces.” On 1 May 1815, he received the brevet of lieutenant-colonel “for meritorious services.”
He became major of artillery, 25 April 1818, brevet colonel for “ten years' favorable service,” 1 May 1825, lieutenant colonel in the 1st regiment of artillery, 30 May 1832, and colonel of the 4th artillery, 19 March, 1842. In May 1850, he received the brevet of brigadier general, to date from 11 November 1823.
Walbach possessed mental and physical vigor until an advanced age.
He married in Philadelphia in 1807, and had two sons, John de Barth, who entered the United States Navy, and Louis Augustus de Barth, who was graduated at West Point Military Academy in 1834, and died a captain of ordnance, 26 June 1853.
This article incorporates text from the public domain Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography.