Johann Gottfried Piefke

Johann Gottfried Piefke (pronounced "peefke") (September 9, 1815 - January 25, 1884) was a German conductor, Kapellmeister and composer of military music. His famous marches include "Preußens Gloria" ("Prussia's Glory") and the "Königgrätzer Marsch" (composed after the Battle of Königgratz, 1866).

Reportedly, during a parade near Vienna on July 31, 1866 held by the victorious Prussians, Piefke and his brother Rudolf were conducting a marching band, to which the defeated Austrians responded by shouting, "The Piefkes are coming!" Subsequently, the word Piefke became a synonym for a German (excluding German citizens of the Southern Bundesländer such as Bavaria).

The term is still widely used by Austrians to express their love-hate relationship with the Germans, who are an important factor in tourism. In 1990, Austrian playwright Felix Mitterer wrote and co-directed a TV mini-series, Die Piefke-Saga, about Germans on holiday in Tirol.

See also: Kraut.