Battle of Torgau

{{Short description|Battle of the Seven Years War}} {{Infobox military conflict |conflict=Battle of Torgau |partof=the [[Third Silesian War]] ([[Seven Years' War]]) |image=Friedrich der Große nach der Schlacht bei Torgau (wohl 1793).jpg |image_size= 300 |caption= ''Frederick the Great after Torgau'', by [[Bernhard Rode]] |date=3 November 1760 |place= Süptitzer Höhen, near [[Torgau]], [[Electorate of Saxony|Saxony]], [[Holy Roman Empire]] |coordinates= {{coord|51|34|30|N|12|55|30|E|region:DE-SN_type:event_scale:50000|display=inline,title}} |result=Prussian victory{{sfn|Bond|1998|p=22}}{{sfn|Nolan|2017|p=193}} |combatant1={{flagicon|Prussia|1750}} [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]] |combatant2={{flagicon|Holy Roman Empire}} [[Habsburg monarchy|Austria]] |commander1=[[Frederick the Great]]{{WIA}} |commander2=[[Leopold Josef Graf Daun|Leopold von Daun]]{{WIA}} |strength1=48,500<br>309 guns<ref>Duffy, Army, p 235. Duffy gives all strengths and losses.</ref> |strength2=52,000<br>275 guns |casualties1=13,120{{sfn|Clodfelter|2017|p=82}}–16,670<ref name="Duffy, Military Life, p. 217">Duffy, Military Life, p. 217</ref> |casualties2=11,260{{sfn|Clodfelter|2017|p=82}}{{sfn|Nolan|2017|p=193}}–15,897<ref name="Duffy, Military Life, p. 217">Duffy, Military Life, p. 217</ref> |campaignbox={{Campaignbox Seven Years' War: European}} {{Campaignbox Silesian Wars}} }} {{OSM Location map | coord = {{coord|51|15}} | zoom = 5 | float = right | nolabels = 1 | width = 304 | height = 160 | title = [[Frederick the Great]] | caption = {{legend|black|current battle}}{{legend|olive|[[First Silesian War]]}}{{legend|maroon|[[Second Silesian War]]}}{{legend|navy|[[Third Silesian War]]}}

| label1 = | mark-coord1 = {{coord|50.85|17.41}} | mark-title1 = [[Battle of Mollwitz]] on 10 April 1741 | mark-description1 = [[Małujowice]] | shape-color1 = olive | label-color1 = olive

| label2 = | mark-coord2 = {{coord|49.95|15.39}} | mark-title2 = [[Battle of Chotusitz]] on 17 May 1742 | mark-description2 = [[Chotusice]] | shape-color2 = olive | label-color2 = olive

| label3 = | mark-coord3 = {{coord|50.96|16.34}} | mark-title3 = [[Battle of Hohenfriedberg]] on 4 June 1745 | mark-description3 = [[Strzegom]] | shape-color3 = maroon | label-color3 = maroon

| label4 = | mark-coord4 = {{coord|51.17|15.27}} | mark-title4 = [[Battle of Hennersdorf]] on 23 November 1745 | mark-description4 = [[Henryków Lubański]] | shape-color4 = maroon | label-color4 = maroon

| label5 = | mark-coord5 = {{coord|50.51|14.03}} | mark-title5 = [[Battle of Lobositz]] on 1 October 1756 | mark-description5 = [[Lovosice]]

| label6 = | mark-coord6 = {{coord|50.97|13.93}} | mark-title6 = [[Siege of Pirna]] from 10 September to 14 October 1756 | mark-description6 = [[Pirna]]

| label7 = Prague | mark-coord7 = {{coord|50.08|14.55}} | mark-title7 = [[Battle of Prague (1757)]] on 6 May 1757 | mark-description7 = [[Prague]]

| label8 = | mark-coord8 = {{coord|50.03|15.12}} | mark-title8 = [[Battle of Kolín]] on 18 June 1757 | mark-description8 = [[Kolín]]

| label9 = | mark-coord9 = {{coord|51.27|11.89}} | mark-title9 = [[Battle of Rossbach]] on 5 November 1757 | mark-description9 = [[Braunsbedra]]

| label10 = | mark-coord10 = {{coord|51.15|16.75}} | mark-title10 = [[Battle of Leuthen]] on 5 December 1757 | mark-description10 = [[Lutynia, Środa Śląska County]]

| label11 = | mark-coord11 = {{coord|51.12|17.03}} | mark-title11 = [[Siege of Breslau (1757)]] from 7 December 1757 to 20 December 1757 | mark-description11 = [[Wrocław]]

| label12 = | mark-coord12 = {{coord|49.6|17.25}} | mark-title12 = [[Siege of Olomouc]] from 4 May to 2 July 1758 | mark-description12 = [[Olomouc]]

| label13 = | mark-coord13 = {{coord|52.66|14.68}} | mark-title13 = [[Battle of Zorndorf]] on 25 August 1758 | mark-description13 = [[Sarbinowo, Gmina Dębno]]

| label14 = | mark-coord14 = {{coord|51.15|14.57}} | mark-title14 = [[Battle of Hochkirch]] on 14 October 1758 | mark-description14 = [[Hochkirch]]

| label15 = | mark-coord15 = {{coord|52.35|14.61}} | mark-title15 = [[Battle of Kunersdorf]] on 12 August 1759 | mark-description15 = [[Kunowice]]

| label16 = Dresden | mark-coord16 = {{coord|51.05|13.73}} | mark-title16 = [[Siege of Dresden]] from 13 to 22 July 1760 | mark-description16 = [[Dresden]] | label-offset-x16 = 5 | label-offset-y16 = 5

| label17 = | mark-coord17 = {{coord|51.23|16.19}} | mark-title17 = [[Battle of Liegnitz (1760)]] on 15 August 1760 | mark-description17 = [[Legnica]]

| label18 = | mark-coord18 = {{coord|51.58|12.93}} | mark-title18 = Battle of Torgau on 3 November 1760 | mark-description18 = [[Torgau]] | shape-color18 = black | label-color18 = black

| label19 = | mark-coord19 = {{coord|50.79|16.47}} | mark-title19 = [[Battle of Burkersdorf (1762)]] on 21 July 1762 | mark-description19 = [[Burkatów]]

| label20 = | mark-coord20 = {{coord|50.85|16.48}} | mark-title20 = [[Siege of Schweidnitz (1762)]] from 7 August to 9 October 1762 | mark-description20 = [[Świdnica]] }} In the '''Battle of Torgau''' on 3 November 1760, King [[Frederick II of Prussia|Frederick the Great]]'s Prussian army fought an Austrian army under the command of [[Field Marshal]] [[Leopold Josef Graf Daun]]. The Prussians won a costly victory in one of the bloodiest battles of the [[Third Silesian War]] (part of the [[Seven Years' War]]).

==Background==

In August, Daun missed an opportunity to destroy the main Prussian army in [[Silesia]]. Outnumbered three-to-one, Frederick escaped the Austrian trap by smashing the corps of [[Feldzeugmeister]] [[Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon]] at the [[Battle of Liegnitz (1760)|Battle of Liegnitz]]. When the Prussians lingered in Silesia, their more numerous enemies attacked. Feldzeugmeister [[Franz Moritz Graf von Lacy]]'s 18,000 Austrians joined with General Tottleben's Russian force near [[Berlin]], making a total of 35,000 allies. While 13,000 Prussians took refuge in the [[Spandau Citadel|Spandau fortress]], Lacy and Tottleben captured 3,000 Prussians in Berlin on 9 October.<ref>Duffy, Army, p 194</ref>

==Plans== In late October, Daun slipped out of Silesia and moved west to [[Saxony]] where Lacy joined him with his corps. When his government ordered him to stand and fight the Prussians, Daun selected a position on the Süptitzer Höhen (Heights) just west of [[Torgau]].

The plateau had been used by [[Prince Henry of Prussia (1726–1802)|Prince Henry of Prussia]] in 1759 and was protected on the west by [[abatis]] and on the south by a small stream. The Austrians faced south with Lacy's corps nearest Torgau and Daun's army further west.<ref>Duffy, Army, p 194-195</ref> Altogether, Daun and Lacy marshalled 42,000 infantry, 10,000 cavalry, and 275 cannons.<ref name="Duffy, Army, p 235">Duffy, Army, p 235</ref>

Frederick determined to send General [[Hans Joachim von Zieten]] to hold Daun's attention from the south, while his main effort circled around the western end of the Austrian line to attack from the north.

Zieten's corps comprised 21 infantry [[battalion]]s and 54 cavalry [[squadron (army)|squadron]]s, while Frederick's main army deployed 41 battalions and 48 squadrons.

In total, the Prussians had 35,000 infantry, 13,500 cavalry, and 309 artillery pieces.<ref name="Duffy, Army, p 235"/>

==Battle== [[Image:Schlacht bei Torgau.jpg|thumb|Map of the battle]] [[Image:Friedrich der Grosse vor der Schlacht bei Torgau.jpg|thumb|Frederick before the Battle of Torgau]] [[File:Berlin Ruhmeshalle Wandbild Schlacht bei Torgau 1760.jpg|thumb|Frederick embracing Zieten after the battle. Ruhmeshalle Berlin, wallpainting by Peter Janssen.]]

Noon found Frederick's main army floundering in the woods to the north of Daun's position. At this time, Zieten's advance guard became embroiled with the [[Croats|Croatian]] [[Grenz infantry|light infantry]] belonging to Lacy's corps. Daun alertly detected the Prussian maneuver and he shifted his first line to the north side of the heights. Soon an artillery duel erupted between Lacy and Zieten. Hearing the cannon fire and fearing that Zieten was being mauled, the Prussian king decided to launch his attack prematurely, with ten battalions of grenadiers. Concentrated Austrian cannon fire and musketry caused the loss of 5,000 Prussians in the span of one half-hour.<ref>Duffy, Army, p 195</ref>

When the main body of infantry arrived on the scene, it was also sent into the uphill assault. Daun was forced to commit his reserves to defeat the second attack. The Prussian cavalry led by [[Prince Georg Ludwig of Holstein-Gottorp]] tried to break the Austrian line, but it also failed. A spent canister round hit Frederick in the chest and he withdrew to the village of [[Elsnig]] in considerable distress. The king spent the night sitting on the bottom step of the church altar waiting for news from the battlefield. Daun had been wounded in the foot and around sunset went to Torgau to have his wound dressed.<ref>Duffy, Army, p 195-196</ref> The Austrian commander sent General [[Charles Flynn (general)|Charles Flynn]] to deliver a preliminary victory [[:wikt:dispatch|dispatch]] to [[Empress]] [[Maria Theresa of Austria]] in [[Vienna]].

The tide of the battle turned at dusk, when Zieten's columns, who had been engaged pointlessly with Lacy, finally launched a major assault. Shifting his corps to the west, he found an unguarded causeway between two ponds and threw five battalions into the gap. Zieten followed up the initial breach with the balance of his infantry and soon his corps gained a foothold on the heights. Hearing Zieten's battle, [[Lieutenant General]] [[Johann Dietrich von Hülsen|J. D. von Hülsen]] led the survivors of the main army in a final attack. Taken from the north and south, the Austrian lines finally began to crumble.<ref name="Duffy, Army, p 196">Duffy, Army, p 196</ref>

Zieten's men captured the Austrian gun battery and turned the cannons on their former owners, who twice tried unsuccessfully to regain the lost battery. By 9:00 p.m. the battle wound down with the Prussians still in control of the heights.

==Results== The Prussians won the battle but at a heavy cost. They admitted losses of 16,670, while the Austrians lost 15,897, including some 10,000 men and 49 guns captured.<ref name="Duffy, Army, p 235"/><ref>Szabo, p. 322.</ref> One authority writes, <blockquote>Even after all this bloodletting the battle of Torgau decided little in strategic terms, for Daun still held [[Dresden]] and southern Saxony, while the troublesome Laudon was free to take up winter quarters in Silesia.<ref name="Duffy, Army, p 196"/></blockquote>

The battle left both sides exhausted. After losing as much if not more men than its enemy, Prussia was again severely weakened. However, without the prospect of a decisive victory against the Prussians, and with dwindling financial resources, Austria was also losing much of its offensive power.<ref>Frederick II, Jean-Paul Bled</ref> After the campaign of 1760, it had to reduce the size of its army, which left little hope of crushing Prussia without the help of Russia, which withdrew in 1762.<ref>idem</ref>{{Citation needed|date=January 2026|reason=what does "idem" mean?}} For the Austrians, the battle was hence a severe psychological blow that decreased their hope of winning a decisive victory.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Sources== * Duffy, Christopher. ''The Army of Frederick the Great''. NY: Hippocrene Books, 1974. {{ISBN|0-88254-277-X}} * Duffy, Christopher. ''The Military Life of Frederick the Great''. Atheneum, 1986. {{ISBN|0-689-11548-2}} * Szabo, Franz. ''The Seven Years War in Europe: 1756–1763.'' Routledge, 2013, {{ISBN|978-1-317-88696-9}}. * {{cite book|last=Clodfelter|first=M.|title=Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492-2015|publisher=McFarland|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|year=2017|edition=4th|isbn=978-0-7864-7470-7}} * {{cite book |last1=Bond |first1=Brian |title=The pursuit of victory : from Napoleon to Saddam Hussein |date=1998 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0198207351}} * {{cite book |last1=Nolan |first1=Cathal J. |title=The allure of battle : a history of how wars have been won and lost |date=2017 |location=Oxford, UK |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0195383782}}

==External links== * {{Commons category-inline}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torgau 1760, Battle Of}} [[Category:Conflicts in 1760]] [[Category:Battles of the Seven Years' War]] [[Category:Battles involving Austria]] [[Category:Battles involving the Kingdom of Prussia]] [[Category:1760 in the Holy Roman Empire|Battle of Torgau]] [[Category:Torgau|Battle of Torgau]] [[Category:18th century in Saxony]] [[Category:Military of Saxony]] [[Category:Battles of Frederick the Great]] [[Category:Battles of the Silesian Wars]]