Anton von Schönfeld

After graduating from the Theresian Military Academy in 1845, he entered the Imperial Austrian Army.^[1] He was assigned to the 42nd Infantry Regiment, with which he participated in suppressing unrest in Italy during the Revolutions of 1848. During the First Italian War of Independence, he participated as an Oberleutnant (first lieutenant) in the battles of Mortara and Novara. During the fighting, he was wounded when a bullet damaged his jaw and teeth.^[3] For his services during the conflict, he was awarded the Order of the Iron Crown, 3rd Class. He then served in the V Corps in Milan, where he rose to the rank of Hauptmann (captain).

During the Second Italian War of Independence, he served in the 33rd Infantry Regiment, but his unit did not see combat. In 1862, he was promoted to Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel), at which time he was assigned to the staff of the VII Corps. That same year, he became head of the Central Chancellery of the Ministry of War in Vienna. During the Second Schleswig War, he was seconded to the Prussian General Staff and subsequently participated in drafting the peace treaty that ended the conflict. During the Austro-Prussian War, he commanded the 63rd Infantry Regiment with the rank of Oberst (colonel).^[4] After being promoted to Generalmajor (major general) in 1870,^[5] he was entrusted with preparing military exercises for the coming year and amending military regulations. He also participated in the 1874 Brussels draft of the international law of war.^[3] From June 1875, with the rank of Feldmarschall-Leutant (lieutenant field marshal), he commanded the 5th Infantry Division in Olomouc.^[6]

Following the sudden death of the then Chief of the Imperial and Royal General Staff, Feldzeugmeister (general of the artillery) Franz von John, he succeeded him in this position in 1876.^[3] While he was Chief of Staff, Austro-Hungarian forces invaded Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878. During this time, he was also promoted to the rank of Feldzeugmeister. In June 1881, he resigned from his position due to health reasons.^[3] However, he did not retire but was sent to France as head of the military mission in that country. After returning to Vienna, he was appointed military commandant in Trieste. In 1883, he took over as head of the 12th Corps in Sibiu, and six years later, he became commander of the 2nd Corps in Vienna.^[1] After the death of Archduke Albrecht in 1894, he became one of inspectors general of the Army. He held this position until his death in 1898. From 1883 he was colonel-in-chief of the 82nd Infantry Regiment.^[2]