Alessandro, Marquis de Maffei

Alessandro Scipione, Marquis de Maffei, (3 October 1662, Verona – January 1730, Munich) was an Italian Lieutenant General of Infantry in Bavarian service. He was the brother of the Italian writer and archaeologist Francesco Scipione.

Alessandro, Marquis de Maffei
Native name	Alessandro Scipione
Born	October 3, 1662
Died	January 1, 1730 (aged 67)
Allegiance	Holy Roman Empire
Rank	Field marshal

Biography

De Maffei was born at Verona. After entering the army of Bavaria in 1683 he was wounded at the Siege of Mongatz in 1687; he was later promoted to Colonel in 1696.[1]

During the War of the Spanish Succession he served as the second in command at the Battle of Schellenberg in 1704. In 1706 he led a brigade at Ramillies against the Allied forces under the command of the Duke of Marlborough. After being taken prisoner, he became involved in abortive negotiations for peace.

In 1717 he contributed to the victory over the Turks at the Siege of Belgrade in the Austro-Turkish War and was subsequently made Field Marshal of the Empire. He died in Munich in 1730.[1]

The Maffei family

Plaques commemorating the house in Munich where Alessandro Maffei died.

The Maffei family is of ancient German origin and, more precisely, in the eighth century A.D. derived from the Germanic tribe of the Franks. The surname von Maffei or De Maffei or Maffei is a patronymic name, derived from the personal name Matthäus (German).

Works

• Maffei, A. (1740). Memoires: Contenant Une exacte Description de plusieurs des plus fameuses Expeditions militaires de notre Siécle. 1. Memoires: Contenant Une exacte Description de plusieurs des plus fameuses Expeditions militaires de notre Siécle (in French). Neaulme.

References

• Bekh, W.J. (1982). Alexander von Maffei, der bayerische Prinz Eugen: historische Biographie (in German). Ludwig. ISBN 978-3-7787-3206-9.
• Crescenzio, Daniela. Italienische Spaziergänge in München. Band 2: Dynastien aus Italien. 1. Auflage. IT-INERARIO, Unterhaching 2009, ISBN 978-3-9813046-1-9.
• Falkner, James. Ramillies 1706: Year of Miracles. Pen & Sword Books Ltd, (2006). ISBN 1-84415-379-7.
• Fricke, Gustav. Der bayerische Feldmarschall Alessandro Marchese Maffei. Ein Beitrag zur Geschichtsschreibung und zur Geschichte der Türkenkriege und des spanischen Erbfolgekrieges. In: Jahres-Bericht über das Königliche Friedrich-Wilhelms-Gymnasium und die Königliche Vorschule zu Berlin Ostern 1891, ZDB-ID 890587-3, pages 3–54.
• Kroener, Bernard R. (1987), "Maffei, Alexander v. (Marchese di)", Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB) (in German), 15, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, pp. 648–649; (full text online)

1. Bekh 1982.