On the outbreak of the Thirty Years' War he made a vigorous campaign in the Lower Palatinate which included the sacking of many towns and villages, including Drais, and was rewarded by the grade of Captain-General.
The eponymous term is derived from German Baron Karl Christian Ludwig Drais von Sauerbronn, who invented his Laufmaschine (German for "running machine") in 1817, that was called Draisine (German) or Draisienne (French) by the press.