Career
He entered the military service of Habsburg Austria at an early age and trained as an engineer at the Ingenieurakademie in Vienna. In the War of the First Coalition against the First French Republic he served as an Engineer on the Rhine, distinguishing himself at Mainz in 1795. Promoted to General officer in 1796 he served under the Archduke Charles in Germany.
Serving at the Battle of Cassano 27 April, he invested Tortona in May, but was wounded at Alessandria, 16 July.
At the opening of the War of the Third Coalition, in 1805 he was appointed to lead an advance guard division in the Tyrol, where he successfully covered the retreat of the Archduke John, notably at the Strub Pass. The Hofkriegsrat appointed Chasteler to lead the VIII Armeekorps in Archduke John"s Army of Inner Austria at the beginning of the War of the Fifth Coalition.
Immediately, he was detached with 10,000 troops and sent to assist the revolt in the Tyrol and Albert Gyulay took his place as corps commander. On 13 May he was badly beaten at the Battle of Wörgl by Lefebvre"s Bavarian VII Corps.
Repeatedly prevented from rejoining John"s forces his command ended the campaign at Lake Balaton in July.
After the peace he was appointed Military Commander of the Austrian Silesia. In he commanded the defences of Prague, then commanded a Corps of the Army of Bohemia under Schwarzenberg, serving at Kulm and Tortona 16 May. Nominated Governor of the Theresienstadt Fortifications, after Leipzig he was given the command of Klenau’s Army Corps.
In 1814 after the establishment of the new Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom, Chasteler was in charge of the Venetian defences.
He was the Proprietor (Inhaber) of an Austrian infantry regiment on three different occasions. Chasteler was regarded as a competent professional, representing "the last generation of the talented and lively southern Netherlanders in the Austrian Army.
Bowden, Scotty & Tarbox, Charlie. Armies on the Danube Arlington, Texas: Empire Games Press, 1980.
Schneid, Frederick C. Napoleon"s Italian Campaigns: 1805-1815.
Westport, Connecticut: Praeger Publishers, 2002. Smith, Digby. The Data Book. London: Greenhill, 1998.