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George (Henry)

He was born in 1766 or 1767 in Hanover, Germany, at that time the Kingdom of Hanover
on May 8th, 1813 he married (as a widower) Francis (n. Patin) (spinster) in St. George, Hanover Square, London, England

Aliases of the name (outside of the army) can be: Counts or Kauntza, which actually makes it more plausible, that the final "e" was added after his move to England.

Transcription made by Sally Edwards:

Coldstream Orderly Room
Horse Guards 10 April 1819

I certify that George Henry Kauntze, formerly a private in the Coldstream Regt. of Foot Guards served therein from 16 May 1785 to the 25 November 1789 when he was discharged - and that he was eighteen years old at Establishment.
4yrs 191           Signature (illegible)

He was a musician and played the violoncello and the clarinet. He also worked as a music seller, composer, publisher and music teacher. He performed among other places at the Apollo Gardens.

There are four "books" mentioned at amazon.com, with a George Kauntze as author, but they are unavailable. Actually I think that those are notes to compositions by George himself:
- Troop of the West Lowland Fencibles ... Composed and Adapted for the Piano Forte, harp, Two flutes or Clarinet... by George Kauntze (1796)
- Crazy Jane. The Words by M. Lewis, etc by George Kauntze (1800)
- The Downfal* of Paris ... Quick Step ... [Composed by J. Jouve.] Adapted for the harp, Piano Forte, Two Clarinets... by George Kauntze (1800) *(Spelling by George)
- Six easy Duetts, for two Violins. [Parts.] by George Kauntze (1805)

He ran his business alone between about 1795-1800
as Kauntze and Hyatt 1800-02
as Kauntze and Co. 1802

There are several addresses connected to him:
9, opposite Admiralty buildings in Whitehall, London about 1795-1800
376, Strand 1800-01
2, James Street 1802
34, Charles Street, Westminster

Transcription made by Sally Edwards:

2nd Life Guards B..
10 April 1819

I hereby certify that Geo. Kauntze served as Private in the 2nd Life Guards from the 7th Dec 1805 till 24 Sept 1812
6 - 290           T Smith
                        Rank illegible, 2 Life Guards

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It is interesting to see, that - for what reason ever - the dates in this document are written in a different handwriting. It is also interesting, that the first two documents are issued on the same day, April 10th, 1819 - two months after the third one.
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Transcription made by Sally Edwards:

His Majesty's Ninety-third Regt.of Foot
General William Wemyss is Colonel

THESE ARE TO CERTIFY,
THAT Sergeant George Kauntze born in the Parish of Hanover in or near the Town of Hanover in the County of Hanover was enlisted for the aforesaid Regiment at Athlone in the County of Rofscommon on the Nineteenth Day of September 1815 at the age of 45 years for limited service.
That he hath served in the Army for the space of Three years and One Hundred and forty-five days, after the Age of Eighteen, according to the subjoined
STATEMENT OF SERVCE
93rd Highlanders from 19 Sept 1815 to 10 Febr 1819 Serjeant 3 yrs 139 days
Private 6 days
Total Service 3yrs 145 days

Certificate of the Cause of Discharge; THAT in consequence of his Service as Master of the Band being no longer required
HE IS HEREBY DISCHARGED

His general conduct as a Soldier has been Good

THAT he has received all just demands of Pay, Clothing, &c. from his Entry into Service to the date of this Discharge, as appears by his Receipt underneath.
I, George Kauntze do hereby acknowledge that I have received all my Clothing, Pay, Arrears of Pay, and all just Demands whatsoever, from the time of my Entry into the Service to the date of this Discharge.

Witnessed by (illegible)                         Signature of the Soldier


To prevent any improper use being made of this Discharge, by its falling into other Hands, the following of the said Sergt. George Kauntze. He is about forty-eight years of age, is five Feet, three Inches in height, brown Hair, grey Eyes, brown Complexion; and by Trade or Occupation a Musician.
Signed by my hand and the seal of the Regiment at Dublin, this Tenth Day of February 1819
Signature of Commanding Officer (illegible)

This document was written in Dublin, on February 10th, 1819 and stamped 'Royal Hospital Kilmainham 28 Apr 19
To see a larger image of this document, click here.

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There must be a mistake in one of the documents, though. The first one states, that George was 18 years old, when he in 1785 joined the Coldstream Regiment. That means, that he was born in 1766 ord 1767. The last document, on the other hand, notes his age as 48 in 1819, which means that he would have been born in 1770 or 1771.

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There are quite some snippets to be found on the internet about George. In "Music Entered at Stationers' Hall 1710-1818" it is stated on page 35:
"Troop of the West Lowland Fencibles, commanded by His Grace the Duke of Gordon, and now performed by the Band of the Third Regiment of Foot Guards. Composed and adapted for the piano, harp, two flutes or clarinet, by George Kauntze, late of His Highness the Duke of York's Band."

In the Library of Congress, US, you find the following entries:
Type of Material: Book (Print, Microform, Electronic, etc.)
Main Title: Kauntze’s collection of original & selected music.
Published/Created: London, G. Kauntze, [ca. 1800]

Type of Material: Book (Print, Microform, Electronic, etc.)
Personal Name: Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeus, 1756-1791.
Uniform Title: Zauberflöte. Selections; arr. [from old catalog]
Main Title: Seventeen duetts for two violins or flutes, arr. from the celebrated opera Zauberflöte.
Published/Created: London, Kauntze [between 1795-1800]

Type of Material: Book (Print, Microform, Electronic, etc.)
Main Title: Three favorite marches: The Downshire quick step, General Wurmser's, and March of the 28th Regiment, arr. for the piano forte or harp.
Published/Created: London, Printed & sold by Preston [178-?]
Related Names: Kauntze, George, General Wurmser of Austria's march. [from old catalog]

The last opus he obviously wrote before he became a publisher himself.
General Wurmser or Würmser was a general in the army of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation and fought successfully against the French.

In the program sheet(?) for a performance in Zoellner Arts Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, US, given on February 21st, 2010, titled: "The Duke of York's Band", there is some information about the history of the band. It says:
"Prince Frederick, Duke of York (1763-1827), could not have imagined the impact on the history of military music in England when he hired a new band for the Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards in 1785. For the first time a regiment of Foot Guards had a band of musicians who were attested (that is, members of the regiment) and performing under the orders of the officers. This band was to become the model for other bands and raise the standard to which other bands aspired.
After the Duke of York was installed as the Colonel-in-Chief of the Coldstream Regiment in 1784, the officers under the leadership of Lord Cathcart petitioned the Duke to create a military band that would be under the control of the officers of the regiment. The Duke of York was at that time in Hanover, Germany (his ancestral home), studying military procedures, and in response to the request hired Christopher F. Eley as Music-Major and eleven other German musicians to become the Regimental Band, with the official beginning date of 16 May 1785."

And, last not least, there is a table, giving the names of the members of the band:
Name Instruments Date of Release
Christopher Frederick Eley, Bandmaster Clarinet, Bassoon, Violoncello Feb. 25th, 1793
Johann Ernest Franke   abt Jan. 1794
Johann Nikolaus George   Died - Aug. 9th, 1787
Gottfried Hagemann Clarinet, Violin, Violoncello Discharged - Dec. 24th, 1792
Johann Christopher Hommann   Discharged - June 7th, 1792
George Henry Kauntze Clarinet, Violoncello Discharged - Nov 26th, 1789
Johann Frederick Peterzen   Discharged - Jan. 29th, 1792
Johann Frederick Richter   Died - Sep. 3rd, 1789
Augustus Christian Rupert   Discharged - Mar. 29th, 1792
Rudolphe Christopher Sickell Serpent, Double Bass Discharged - Dec. 27th, 1810
Gottlieb Weberstedt   Discharged - June 7th, 1792
Johann Nikolaus Zwinkmann Trombone, Violin, Violoncello Discharged - June 7th, 1792

The "Daily Universal Register" in London, notes on May 20th, 1785:
"This day the new musical band belonging to the Coldstream regiment of Guards will mount guard for the first time on the Parade in St. James.s Park, they are young lads from Germany, with a captain, who is their master of music, making in the whole, eleven in number, they have enlisted for eight years, are to be under the same martial law as a private man; their pay is nine shillings per week per man, and one guinea per week to the captain."


source: Sally Edwards (National Archives WO 119/56/177), Harry Kauntze, div. internet
Back to: Kauntz-Online

last update 2011.02.04