burg was awaiting his final exam at the prussian academy of arts in berlin, when he volunteered on 14 february 1813 for the military service to fight for 'prussia's freedom and rebirth', as he put it. the troop of his choice was the guard infantry battalion (german: ') in breslau, an elite unit of the infantry. after only a few days, he was discharged from this unit on the grounds that jews were "under the existing laws and the prevailing circumstances" not allowed to serve in the guard. the rejection of jewish soldiers in the guard appears to have been a matter of course for the established circles. state chancellor karl august von hardenberg, usually a supporter of equal rights for the jews, left burg's two requests for re-enlistment in the guard unanswered. hereupon, burg decided to apply for the artillery, a branch of the service which was considered less prestigious by the prussian nobility and more suitable for the middle-classes. to avoid risking another discharge, burg applied to the service chief of the artillery (german: '), prince august of prussia, who secured for him an admission. since burg's accomplishments were widely recognized, the lieutenants of his unit recommended him after just nine months of service to become an officer. however, the promotion was vetoed by the base commander (german: "platzkommandant") captain karl moritz ferdinand von bardeleben, stating that "as long as (he) had something to say, no jew shall be officer in the artillery". consequently officer cadets, who had been trained by burg, were promoted before him. even his transfer to a combat unit did not help him to get promoted earlier. only a mention of bravery could have accelerated his promotion, but his unit was not deployed to the front.