What military role did August Zang have before founding Boulangerie Viennoise?

Before founding Boulangerie Viennoise, August Zang had been an artillery officer.

Zang was an Austrian entrepreneur who moved from military service into baking and publishing. After leaving the army, he went to Paris and established the Boulangerie Viennoise, generally dated to 1838 or 1839, at 92 rue de Richelieu. The bakery introduced Parisian customers to Viennese specialties, including the kipferl and Vienna-style bread.

His artillery background is a specific biographical detail, not a description of his later occupation. He was not chiefly known as an infantry colonel, naval officer, or cavalry captain. Later in life, Zang became especially prominent as a newspaper publisher: he founded the Viennese daily Die Presse.

The bakery’s influence helped popularize Viennese baking methods in France and contributed to the story of how the croissant became associated with French pastry culture. The exact opening year is sometimes given as 1838 and sometimes 1839, but the military role itself is consistently identified as artillery officer.