 His father, Karl Friedrich von Kruse (1737–1806), a state official in the service of Nassau-Usingen, wrote several books on husbandry and household management, including "Lehrbegriffs der Landwirtschaft und Haushaltungskunste" for the Naussau schools in 1780, and "Wahren Darstellung der grossen französichen Staatsrevolutions" in 1790, which entered into several printings.His mother was Philippina Catherina von Bitburg; he was their only son.Against the wishes of his father, at the age of 17 he joined the military.