In 1748 he came to the notice of Prince Henry, and enter Prussian service for the Seven Years' War, where he led an autonomous corps in many raids and skirmishes that wrought havoc on the Austrian forces.

[3] He received schooling locally, and on his eighteenth year, his father sent him to Officer Cadet training in the Duke of Württemberg's Regiment.

[3] Upon the death of Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor, the new Duke of Bavaria, Maximilian III Joseph, agreed to forgo any imperial aspirations.

[3] At the conclusion of the war in 1749, Rittmeister Wunsch acquired a staff position and a pension and remained in the Netherlands with his wife and son.

[3] His unit came under the command of Prince Henry of Prussia, an officer who understood the value of the new military formation of light troops for skirmishing and raids.

[6] The subsequent Prussian successes at the battles of Breslau and Leuthen led to his promotion, this time by Frederick himself, to lieutenant colonel.

Wunsch's raids were so successful that, in July 1759, Frederick promoted him to the rank of colonel and gave him his own regiment of light troops to command.

He successfully raided various towns and cities held by Austria and her allies in Franconia, Saxony, and Bohemia, capturing supplies and cannons and frequently taking many prisoners.

Prince Henry, in overall command of the army, surprised von Daun at Hoyerswerda by punching a hole in the Austrian defensive line.

[1] Wunsch used the ensuing years of peace in garrison at Prenzlau to reorganize the light corps of Frederick's army.

[10] After his initial foray at the Silesia border, he and his command remained at the County of Glatz, guarding the military commissary and the bakery.

Its inscription reads: Johann Jakob von Wunsch, the son of Heidenheim, the splendid monument which the Prussian people have established on behalf of their King, Frederick The Great.