Anton Freiherr von Zach () (14 June 1747 – 22 November 1826) was an Austrian General with Hungarian ancestors, who enlisted in the army of Habsburg Austria and fought against the First French Republic. In the French Revolutionary Wars, he gained prominence as a staff officer. Still on active service during the Napoleonic Wars, he fought in the 1805 and 1809 wars. He was not given combat assignments after 1809.
Zach held the office of army chief of staff during the 1796, 1799, and 1800 campaigns. In the latter year, he played an important role at the Battle of Marengo, where he was captured. During the Napoleonic Wars he was again chief of staff of the Army of Italy in 1805. In 1809 he commanded a division in the Italian theatre. After 1809, the Austrian military employed him as a fortress commandant. He was Proprietor (Inhaber) of an Austrian infantry regiment from 1807 until his death.
Early career
Born at Pest, Hungary, Anton Zach became a petty nobleman when his father Josef Zach (Olomuc, 4 November 1714 – Pest 16 July 1792), a medical doctor who was in charge of the house of invalids in Pest – an institution founded by Maria Theresia to accommodate the many disabled soldiers who survived the War of the Austrian Succession – was elevated to Hungarian Nobility on 8 October 1765. He married Anna Freiin von Moltke (1759–1832) in Wiener Neustadt on 29 June 1779. Their daughter Theresa married Auguste Milliet de Faverges et de Challes (1780–1854).
Entering the Austrian military service, Zach became a Major in 1788, an Oberstleutnant in 1793, and an Oberst in 1795. He served as Chief of the Quartermaster General Staff (chief of staff) to Johann Peter Beaulieu from 8 April to June 1796 during the Montenotte Campaign, the Battle of Lodi, and the Battle of Borghetto. In June he was succeeded by Franz von Lauer when Dagobert Sigmund von Wurmser replaced Beaulieu. Subsequently, he served on Paul Davidovich's staff during the Battle of Rovereto on 4 September. In 1797, Zach served on a commission to analyze the reasons for Austria's defeat. He noted that lower-ranking generals displayed little initiative because there were too many regulations. He found that regimental officers showed more interest in pay and privilege and drill than in learning how to make fighting units more efficient. He saw that officers were indifferent toward the rank and file, and that the lower ranks had little trust or enthusiasm for their leaders.
From January 1798 to March 1799, Zach was chief of staff of the Armee von Italien. He assumed the chief of staff role again from July 1799 to June 1800. On 9 June 1799 he received promotion to General-major. In a private letter to the Russian ambassador that was opened by the Austrian government, the army commander Alexander Suvorov described Zach as "sound, discreet and professional, but a great deviser of Unterkunft (logistics) just when I want to burst into flaming action." Though Suvorov used Unterkunft as a pejorative, Zach was tickled rather than insulted when shown the letter. Zach performed capably at the Battle of Novi on 15 August. For his actions, a grateful emperor awarded him the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa on 13 October 1799. A skilled mathematician, Zach was more at home in the field of military engineering than he was at combat leadership or in an operational role.
Marengo
At the Battle of Marengo on 14 June 1800, Zach was chief of staff to Michael von Melas, the Austrian army commander. Late in the afternoon when victory seemed assured, Melas retired to the rear. Two horses had been killed under him, leaving the elderly general's left arm with a severe contusion. He instructed Konrad Valentin von Kaim to direct the pursuit of Napoleon Bonaparte's apparently defeated army. Instead of advising Kaim, Zach rode off to join the advance elements. Historian David G. Chandler asserts that Melas handed tactical control of the pursuit to Zach and does not mention Kaim's role.
The advancing Austrians instead encountered Louis Desaix with Jean Boudet's fresh French division. Desaix attacked and defeated the Michael Wallis Infantry Regiment Nr. 11, which retired behind a brigade of grenadiers. As the elite Austrian infantry pressed forward, Desaix attacked again with artillery support from Auguste Marmont's battery. At that moment, an Austrian artillery caisson detonated in a huge explosion and François Etienne de Kellermann's heavy cavalry crashed into the Austrian left flank. These shocks completely unnerved three grenadier battalions and triggered a mass surrender. In the midst of the rout, Trooper Riche of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment grabbed Zach by the throat and secured his surrender.