his-name-was-writ-in-water:4 June 1745 - The Battle of Hohenfriedberg is fought.Today marks the 270t
his-name-was-writ-in-water:4 June 1745 - The Battle of Hohenfriedberg is fought.Today marks the 270th anniversary of the Prussian king Frederick the Great’s most celebrated victory. In modern-day Dobromierz, Poland, the Prussian army under the King himself successfully fought a combined Austro-Saxon army under the Austrian Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine and the Johann Adolf II, Duke of Saxe-Weissenfels.At the Battle of Mollwitz 4 years prior, Austria had lost the rich province of Silesia, in modern-day Poland, to the Prussians. Seeking to regain the territory, famed for its industrial and mining potential, the Austrian army of about 62,500 marched, with its Saxon allies, into the province with Prince Charles at its head. Hans Joachim von Zieten, commanding the famous Zieten Hussars, shadowed the Austrian army and kept Frederick II informed of their movements. Counting on Charles to enter Silesia via the Riesengebirge mountains that separated Bohemia from Silesia, Frederick intended to crush him with a swift and decisive blow. When the time finally came in early June, Frederick saw his opportunity to attack.Having crossed the Riesengebirge, Charles marched 50km northeast towards Striegau (modern-day Strzegom) where the Austrians made camp, their Saxon allies further northwest at Pilgrimshain. The Austrians spread themselves to the west and south of the small village of Hohenfriedberg, their front covered by the Striegau River. With this information coming to Frederick from his scouts, the king decided to march in front of the Austrians; crossing the Striegau by a bridge to the northwest to attack the Saxons before engaging the Austrians from the east. Moving by nightfall, the Prussian army marched with General Richard de Moulin at its head. To maximise the element of surprise, Frederick left his camp with fires still burning and tents pitched, and forbade his army from talking or smoking during their march.Upon reaching the bridge over the Striegau, Frederick’s army was bottlenecked as there wasn’t enough space for the entire army to cross. As a result, only limited forces were able to make it over. Nevertheless, the Prussian vanguard soon took their first objective; two small hills ahead of the enemy line fortified by the Saxons the day prior. Although the attack was successful, it also alerted the Saxons to their presence and thus prevented Frederick’s planned surprise. General de Moulin decided to march directly on the Saxon camp before they could deploy against him, and the few units that did manage to leave camp were quickly routed, with the rest of the encamped Saxon army falling soon after to the Prussian infantry. By the first dawn’s light, the entire left flank of the enemy army had been destroyed.The Austrians, now alerted to the Prussian attack, left the protection of their camp and took positions. The portion of the Prussian army that hadn’t made it over the Striegau wheeled westward to face them, fording the river. The Austrian cavalry, first to deploy, was soon routed by the Prussian cavalry, while the infantry formed two lines facing eastward to meet the oncoming Prussians. While they were outnumbered, the Austrians fought staunchly and exchanged many volleys at close range - and at this point, the Bayreuth Cavalry, an oversized unit of about 1,500 men, saw on opportunity. A gust of wind blew the smoke away to reveal a small gap in the Austrian line, through which the intrepid dragoons charged. Routing the entire front line, the Bayreuth dragoons prompty charged the second, overrunning twenty battalions, taking 2,500 prisoners, capturing 67 flags and standards, and four cannon in what is considered one of the finest cavalry charges in military history. The Austrians and Saxons lost almost 9,000 killed and wounded, about 5,000 prisoners, including four generals, and 66 guns. The Prussians lost around 5,000. After this decisive victory, Frederick II of Prussia was soon celebrated as Frederick the Great, writing with delight that “there has not been so decisive a victory since Blenheim.” -- source link