Heros von Borcke served in the Confederate army and participated in numerous battles before being wounded at the beginning of the Gettysburg Campaign. Prevented by injury from continuing in active service, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel and sent by the Confederate Congress on a diplomatic mission to England. When the war ended in 1865 he remained abroad and returned to his native Prussia, where he later served with distinction in the Franco-Prussian War.
