Field Marshal Gerhard von Blücher, Prussian hero of the Napoleonic Wars, urges his army across the Rhine on a pontoon bridge as they harry the enemy back towards France. Detail of 1894 full length bronze statue by Fritz Schaper in riverside gardens below Burg Gutenfels at Kaub am Rhein, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany.
Kaub am Rhein, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany: Field Marshal Gerhard Leberecht von Blücher(1742-1819), Prussian hero of the Napoleonic Wars, was portrayed by German artist Fritz Schaper in accordance with his “Marshal Vorwärts” (Marshal Forward) nickname when, in 1894, he sculpted a full-length bronze statue to stand beside the River Rhine and below the Burg Gutenfels castle. Field Marshal Blücher (or Bluecher), famed for his bravery and fearless determination in battle, was shown by Schaper urging his joint Prussian and Russian army forward across the Rhine as they relentlessly pursued the weakened forces of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Blücher’s Rhine Crossing, today marked by annual celebrations in Kaub am Rhein and with its story told by the town’s Blüchermuseum, took place on New Year’s Night: 31 December and 1 January 1813-14. On Blücher’s orders, some 50,000 soldiers, 15,000 horses and 182 guns of the Silesian Army crossed on a pontoon bridge and then harried Napoleon’s troops further and further back towards France. Prussia was among the victors when the fighting ended with Napoleon’s downfall - but although Blücher was made a prince by his grateful king, his military service was still not done. After Napoleon escaped from exile on the island of Elba, he was called back to command the Army of the Lower Rhine. On 16 June 1815, at the Battle of Ligny, Blücher somehow survived his horse being killed under him and lying trapped beneath its body for several hours as cavalry rode overhead. Just two days later, on 18 June, the 72-year-old Field Marshal played a decisive role at the Battle of Waterloo. His army intervened as the conflict hung in the balance, with his vanguard drawing Napoleon’s reserve forces away as his main army crushed remaining French resistance.
Size: 3008px × 2000px
Location: Kaub am Rhein, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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