Franz August von Etzel (July 19, 1784 - December 25, 1850) was a Prussian military officer and the first 'Royal Prussian Telegraph Director'. He was born in Bremen to an Irish immigrant family of noble lineage. He initially applied to the Königlichen Ingenieurakademie in Potsdam, but was declined as his Irish noble heritage was not recognized. Instead, he studied pharmaceuticals, but retained a lifelong passion for technology and geography. He traveled to Paris to extend his studied in geography and mining engineering. It was there that he befriended Alexander von Humboldt (1769 - 1859), with whom he maintained a lifelong correspondence. From 1808 to 1810 he ran the 'Zum krönten Schwarzen Adler' pharmacy in Berlin. He joined the Prussian Army in 1810, taking part in the battles of Ligny and Waterloo. His superiors became aware of his geographical interests and assigned him to compile a military-topographical survey of the Rhine Province, which he worked on from 1816 - 1820. He then served as a geodesist. In 1831, back in Berlin, he was appointed to the 'Immediate Commission for the Establishment of the Telegraph'. He was commissioned to build a 550 km long optical telegraph line from Berlin to the Rhine Province. He also developed the code system and the procedural instructions for the operation of the telegraph and managed the entire system from 1835 as 'Royal Prussian Telegraph Director'. As such, he dealt intensively with the emerging electromechanical telegraphy, developed the corresponding equipment himself and carried out preparatory work for the introduction of the system in Prussia, which took place while he was still in office. His noble heritage was finally recognized on June 25, 1846, and he changed his name to 'von Etzel'. Unfortunately, in that same year he suffered a stroke, from which he never recovered. He was promoted to Major General before retiring, but died shortly thereafter.