Karl Philip Freiherr von Wrede was born in Heidelberg in 1767. On joining the Elector's army he rose to colonel in 1795. Fighting under the orders of the Austrian Erzherzog Karl, he covered the retreat of the defeated Austrian army after Hohenlinden (3 December, 1800). When Bavaria entered into an alliance with the French, he was made Général de division in charge of the advanced guard of the Corps Bavarois in 1805, becoming later general of the 2nd division of the 7th corps (under Marshal Lefebvre) in 1809, and of the 20th division (6th corps – Gouvion Saint-Cyr) in 1812. In 1813, he negotiated the Peace of Ried between Bavaria and Austria, and as a result finding himself fighting against the French after the Battle of Leipzig (16-19 October, 1813). At the Battle of Hanau (30-31 October), he commanded five infantry divisions (three Bavarian and two Austrian) and two cavalry divisions (one Bavarian and one Austrian) totalling about 45,000 men. Despite numerical superiority, the sluggish action of his troops and his poor tactical decisions made it impossible for him to stop the retreating French army.
Napoleon was to say of him: “I may have made Wrede a baron, but I couldn't make him a good general.” Wrede was later to be present at the combat at La Rothière (1 February, 1814) and at Bar-sur-Aube (27 February, 1814). In 1815, he represented Bavarian interests at the Congress of Vienna. In 1818, he participated in the writing of the Bavarian constitution, and in the same year became the first president of the Bavarian Upper Chamber (Ständekammer). In 1822, he was appointed head of the Bavarian armed forces. He died in the Bavarian town of Ellingen.
Jacques Garnier in Dictionnaire Napoléon Fayard 1999, ed./tr. P.H. July 2009