About this time a friend of Struensee made his appearance at Copenhagen, whose cruel fate, after the catastrophe of 1772, will for ever remain a blot on Danish justice. SENECA OTHO VON FALCKENSKJOLD was descended from an old noble Danish family, and was born, in 1738, at Slagelse, on Seeland. Intended by his father, who held high rank in the army, for a military career, he entered the service in his thirteenth year. On leaving the cadet school four years later, when the Seven Years' War broke out, Falckenskjold, instead of intriguing at Copenhagen with women and valets, entered the service of France, served in Alsace, was slightly wounded at Bergen, but so severely at Clostercamp, where Maréchal de Castries defeated the Hanoverians, that he was rendered incapable of serving for some time. When his country was threatened with a Russian war in 1762, Falckenskjold returned home, and received a company in the Delmenhorst regiment, and afterwards a command in Norway. When his corps was disbanded, Falckenskjold resided for some time at Altona, where Rantzau inspired him with a taste for politics. Shortly after, being animated with a lively desire for information, he travelled through Sweden, Germany, France, and England, in order to become acquainted with the institutions of those countries and learn their language. On his return to Copenhagen he was appointed aide-de-camp and chamberlain to the king. When, in 1768, the war broke out between Russia and the Porte, he entered the Russian service, was appointed lieutenant-colonel in the engineers, served, in 1769, under Prince Galitzin, and was present at the capture of Khotzim. In the following year, being employed with the army of which Count Romanzow took the command, he distinguished himself at the battle of Larga, received the cross of St. George for being the first man to enter the Turkish entrenched camp, and was one of the first twelve knights of this order, which had been recently founded. He also distinguished himself at the battle of Kahul, and was appointed a full colonel, with the commission and rank of a brigadier. This was a man whom Struensee could employ, and therefore he recalled him, in order to entrust to him the reform of the Danish army, and employ him in the negotiations with Russia for the pestilent exchange of territory. Falckenskjold was reluctant to quit the Russian service, where he had the best prospects of speedy promotion; but he yielded to Struensee's wishes, as a speedy return to the Russian service was promised him, but chiefly that he might offer his assistance in the diplomatic negociations between the two kingdoms.