Random Facts #6: The Madness of Marshal Blücher?

This is a topic I've wanted to cover for a little while, but never seemed to find the time. Every time I started to write the post it quickly spiraled out of control in terms of length, so I'm going to try something a bit different and do this as a "micro post" of only a few paragraphs. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn't!

If you've ever learned anything about Napoleon, you've probably heard of Generalfeldmarschall Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Fürst von Wahlstatt, normally known in English simply as Marshal Blücher. If you haven't a quick summary; Blücher served as a Prussian general during the Napoleonic Wars. After Prussia's defeat in the early part of the Napoleonic Wars, Blücher remained vehemently anti-French, and in 1813 assumed a command at the age of 71 to take the fight to Napoleon. He was instrumental in the Battle of the Nations which defeated Napoleon the first time. He became legendary during the Battle of Waterloo, when he led the Prussian forces which relieved the British under the Duke of Wellington to win the battle and defeat Napoleon for the final time.

Blücher is a favorite figure of many Napoleonic enthusiasts because he was, to put it mildly, a bit of an eccentric. After an uprising by Poles living in Prussian-occupied Poland, Blücher staged a mock execution of a priest for supporting the rebellion. This caused a public scandal, and officer was passed over for promotion. This prompted Blücher to write a nasty letter to the king, Frederick the Great (yes, THAT Frederick the Great), who in turn responded "Captain Blücher can take himself to the devil!" Blücher was nicknamed "Marshal Forwards" for his aggressive attacking style, and was no less interesting in his personal and civilian life. He was a notorious womanizer and gambler, in a country known for its austere sensibilities. In his later years he would write:

In my youth I cared for nothing except having fun; instead of studying, I gambled, drank, caroused with the ladies, hunted, and pulled hilarious pranks on my friends. That is why I now know nothing. Indeed, otherwise I would be a very different Chap!

In the 1970 film Waterloo, he was portrayed as a bit, let's say,
unhinged. 

Most famously though, are claims that in his later years he was actually mad, suffering from some sort of dementia or delusions, and it is this claim that this post addresses. These mostly seem to revolve around an anecdote which is popular among amateur historians, and I have seen it pop up in a number of those articles you see online discussing funny or weird historical curiosities. The problem though, is that it's based on a simple error translation and a cultural misunderstanding from the champions of such misunderstandings, the British.



Before the Waterloo campaign, after the Prussians' humiliating defeat to the French in 1806, Blücher suffered what we might now term as a breakdown or a panic attack. He held himself at least partially personally responsible for the Prussian defeat, and spent long hours alone in silence, but he would later recover and come to be a vocal critic of the peace with France. Then after his heroic effort in the winter of 1813-1814 he suffered another breakdown, this time related to exhaustion and stress, in the aftermath of his victory at the Battle of Laon. He was nearly catatonic for a week, but again would recover and come back to lead the Prussian forces to victory. It's clear Blücher was sensitive to stress and possibly suffered from depression, but given the difficult circumstances he faced one can understand this. Nonetheless, at the time these breakdowns, coupled with Blücher's general eccentricity, combined to give him a reputation for madness or dementia.

Blücher with his broken army shortly before his first breakdown

Things came to a head in the most famous case of Blücher's "madness" and one that is a popular anecdote to this day. I've seen this story repeated by history professors, in popular history books, and often online in articles discussing amusing historical events. Of course, it wasn't proof of madness, though on the surface it could certainly seem like that.

During the Waterloo campaign the elderly Blücher once again led his men against the hated French. Outside of Ligny they suffered a serious defeat, and his men broke in panic. Blücher was trapped under his dying horse, and he was run over by his own men and cavalry, and only avoided capture after an aide hid him under a coat. He was badly battered, and because they were in the field and time was of the essence (Napoleon was preparing to engage Wellington, who badly needed Blücher's help) the old field marshal couldn't recieve proper medical attention. An herbal remedy was applied to his wounds, and he fortified himself with liberal drinks of Schnapps. He then led his army in a torturous march towards the field at Waterloo.

Blücher defended by his aide after his horse was shot from under him at Ligny. 

The army followed muddy roads, and as they arrived late in the day Blücher was a site to behold. He was as animated as always while leading his men, referring to them as his children. He was dirty, covered in mud and his own blood, and still reeked of schnapps. The British leadership was, as you might expect, highly amused by the "mad" old Prussian general who had just helped them win the battle.

After the war, things were compounded in the most famous incident, as recorded by by Philip Henry, 5th Early of Stanhope who wrote a book of anecdotes and conversations the author had had with an older Duke of Wellington between 1831 and 1851. In it, Stanhope records a story which had already become somewhat notorious, presumably because it was a favorite of Wellington's. According to Wellington, during their last meeting in Paris in 1815 Blücher had completely lost it. He had been showing off for a group of English ladies (as he was wont to do) and had fallen from his horse, hitting his head. Later , before they parted, Wellington claimed that Blücher believed he was pregnant with an elephant! The specific passage can be found here.

A reserved Wellington meets a hilariously flamboyant Blücher in the aftermath of Waterloo

As a result, the story that Blücher believed he had been impregnated with an elephant by a French soldier became famous. The problem is, Blücher wasn't being literal and had simply directly translated a common German idiom into French. The fact that this was a metaphorical way of speaking was lost on the Duke, and most other English speakers at the time, and was taken at face value.

You see, the phrase "to be pregnant with an elephant by X" in German at the time simply meant that "X" was giving a person a problem, difficulty, or headache. What Blücher had done was made a joke; he had essentially said, "The French gave me such a headache. Can you believe it, French soldiers giving ME a headache?!"  This anecdote, shared by Britain's greatest living national hero, combined with Blücher's eccentric behavior, history of depressive breakdowns, and bedraggled and excited appearance on the field at Waterloo combined to give the old Field Marshal a reputation for madness that simply wasn't true.

Then again, without that reputation we probably wouldn't have gotten great cartoons like this, of Blücher viciously caning a tiny Napoleon. 

To learn more about Blücher, check out the the biography Blücher: Scourge of Napoleon by Michael Leggiere, probably the best single English source on the man today.

If you liked this format, or if you thought it was too short, please let me know! See you next time!