Joining Prussian Service
Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher (1742 – 1819) was born in northern Germany, in the Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, into an aristocratic family whose roots went back to the thirteenth century. When he was sixteen years old, he went off to soldier, and became a hussar in the Swedish Army. Sweden fought against Prussia in the Seven Years War (1756 – 1763), and in a 1760 skirmish, Blucher was captured by the Prussians. Luckily for him, the colonel of the Prussian regiment that took him prisoner was a distant relative. Impressed by Blucher, he invited the young man to join his regiment.
Blucher accepted the offer, switched teams, and fought the rest of the war on the Prussian side. He remained in Prussian service – with one long spell of forced retirement between duty stints, caused by the fact that he was a hothead – for the rest of his life. Blucher gained significant experience as a cavalry officer in the Seven Years War. He had an abundance of wild courage and an aggressive way about him. Those traits made him a great combat leader.