In mid-May Frederick (49SP) felt Koniggratz was threatened and moved his armyV to NE Bohemia. At this time General Brunswick (12SP) was detached and sent marching to W Pommerania. Frederick reached Koniggratz and added part of the garrison to his field army. (lSP) Lascy, seeing Frederick and Brunswick marching off, decided to leave Prague and force march to join Browne. This would give Browne a slight advantage in strength in any up coming battle. (Aus 44SP vs Pr 38SP)
Cumberland (24SP) finished his depot but instead of marching to Frankfurt right away decided to wait and see what actions the French took. French reaction was to hold in Frankfurt with Contades (21 SP) while De'Estrees (30S P) forced marched to Kleves, leaving a garrison in Roermond (lSP), and then continued on to the Palatinate. When Cumberland heard of this he destroyed his depot and marched to Munster, joining part of its garrison (2SP) to his field army. (26SP)
In W Pommerania the Swedish General Hamilton (10SP) started building a depot to besiege Stettin and capture it before Brunswick arrived. Brunswick mean while was force marching into Brandenburg, moving northward as fast as possible.
Joined by Lascy, Browne decided build a depot and summon up his siege train to invest Koniggratz. While waiting for his trains he attempted to maneuver Frederick into battle in an unfavorable position but Frederick managed to evade these attempts and decided to return to NW Bohemia and threaten Prague. Frederick believed he could afford to lose Koniggratz more than the Austrians could atford the loss of Prague And started building a depot to put the fortress under siege.
Frederick had been correct. As soon as Browne heard of the preparations to besiege Prague he issued orders to destroy any siege works started and to force march to NW Bohemia and Prague's relief. This hard marching caused some straggling (-l SP) but it had to be accepted to save Prague. Luck seemed to be with Browne (43SP) as he marched to offer Frederick battle. The Prussian pickets barely gave the king enough warning to leave his camps and form up the army to receive another Austrian attack.
The Battle at Prague
The battlefield of Prague was very much like the one at the Battle of Eger. Very flat, its main feature was a lake near the center of the battlefield into which, on the Austrian left, flowed a steep sided stream. Frederick used the lake to cover the right flank of his infantry line. He knew the stream would give him time to react if the Austrians crossed it. Left of his infantry were two cavalry commands. The closer one was made up of all the heavy cavalry. The further one was all of the hussars. Fredericks plan was to stand with his infantry and use his cavalry to outflank and eliminate any enemy cavalry on his left and then threaten the center.
Browne's plan and deployment was simple. Masses of infantry opposite the Prussian infantry to grind them down and use his cavalry to cover their right flank. Browne outnumbered Frederick in infantry by two to one but was himself outnumbered in cavalry by three to two. This would force him to be defensive on his flank but thought if needed he could support his cavalry with a few infantry battalions. Neither side deployed past the lake, each intending to use it to guard their flank.
From the start things did not go well for the Austrians. Their infantry was slow to get moving and engage the Prussians. On their right however their cavalry advanced to far and was quickly destroyed. The Prussian heavy cavalry hit the Austrians frontally while their hussars turned the Austrians and rode them down in a series of deadly flank attacks. The Austrian infantry detached to help their cavalry arrived to late and were themselves quickly overrun.
The battle was only four hours old and it was already over. Browne to himself about incompetent subordinates, courtiers in the army, and " The Lords will be done." Browne signaled a retreat to Prague. He knew the Prussians would gather in hordes of his stragglers with their overwhelming cavalry superiority but nothing could be done about it. Yet another letter of bad news to be written for the Empress.
Frederick was elated. A sharp easy victory. The Austrians had taken punishing losses with only minimal casualties to his own army. (Aus 6SP elim, 5SP cap vs Pr 1SP elim) Frederick realized his own army now outnumbered that of the Austrians. "That will make a siege of Prague much easier." he thought to himself, as he watched his hussars starting to bring in Austrian prisoners.
In the North, Brunswick (12SP) entered W Pornmerania and immediately marched for the Swedes under Hamilton. (10SP) Both Hamilton and Brunswick could not afford heavy losses if they planned on conducting any siege operations. Hamilton was willing to accept heavier losses if it would damage the Prussians enough to stop a siege of Stralsund in Swedish Pommerania.
The Battle of Stettin
The low hills and sandy soil of W Pommerania provided little terrain advantage to Hamilton as he drew up his army. He centered his army on a small hill. near the center of the battlefield, in a double line that bent back. His cavalry was all placed on [its right. Brunswick deployed all his heavy cavalry, supported by some infantry, on his left, facing the Swedish cavalry. Separated by a wood, the best of his infantry was in the center facing the enemy infantry and on his right were some hussars.
In the opening hours of the battle the Prussians showed their fatigue from their long march northward as they moved very slowly towards the Swedes. The Swedes however were very energetic and Hamilton, noticing the distance between the enemy left and right, set off a bold plan. He ordered his cavalry to cross from right to left between the two armies! This would seriously expose them to a possible flank attack but Hamilton was counting on the enemy being surprised and slow to react. This would give his cavalry the chance to crush the Prussian hussars and turn their right flank.
Just as Hamilton planned it is how it unfolded. The Prussian cavalry on their left took over an hour to deploy against an opponent who had left. When the orders came to shift to their own right finally came, the Swedes had to much of a lead for them to save the hussars. The Prussian infantry center seemed to stand in place, transfixed by the sight of all the Swedes passing in front of them out of musket range, but not so far that the cavalry couldn't wheel and charge them. The hussars saw what was coming but also were stunned by the sight. Outnumbered two to one they were quickly driven off. The only part of Hamilton's plan that didn't work out was the appearance of the Prussian heavy cavalry to prevent the armies flank being completely turned.
As Brunswick watched the battle develop and his hussars perish, he saw a glimmer of hope. While the Swedish cavalry was attacking his right their center was standing still, while some infantry of their second line extended their right slightly. Brunswick saw that this would give him a breathing space and issued new orders. The infantry was to move forward while obliquing to the left so as to at least line up with or possibly overlap the Swedish right. The heavy cavalry now on the right, and deployed, was to attack and destroy the Swedish cavalry and then swing in on their left.
The time spent watching the Swedish cavalry pass in front of them certainly seemed to give the Prussian infantry a second wind. They rushed towards file Swedes whom they soon engaged in a sharp musket duel. At this point the Swedish infantry attacked, driving back some Prussians but at a heavy cost to themselves as the Prussian supporting line launched a strong counterattack. Holes soon started appearing in the Swedish battle line.
On the Prussian right their heavy cavalry duly attacked the outnumbered and tired Swedes. Within two hours they destroyed all but one regiment which escaped with Hamilton behind the Swedish infantry line.
After returning to his armies main position, Hamilton realized it was time to leave. His right and center infantry were spent and giving ground and his cavalry was mostly gone. "Well" thought Hamilton "we held them for almost eight hours, were outnumbered, and inflicted some losses while not taking to many ourselves. (Pr -1SP vs Swd -2SP) A little more whittling and they won't have enough men to besiege Stralsund."
Brunswick watched the Swedes marching off for Swedish Pommerania and was glad to see them go. "The men need a rest" said General Finck, Brunswick's second in command. "It will give Hamilton time to reorganize and mean another battle, but you're right Finck." A few days later Brunswick (11 SP) moved the army north into Swedish Pommerania wondering where Hamilton (9SP) would make a stand.
More Great Saxon War 1756
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© Copyright 2000 Hal Thinglum
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