Battle of Kunersdorf

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Battle of Kunersdorf
Part of the Seven Years' War
Date 12 August 1759 Location Kunersdorf, present-day Poland Result Prussian army destroyed
Combatants
Prussia	Russia, Austria
Commanders
Frederick the Great	Pyotr Saltykov Ernst von Laudon
Strength
50,900	59,500
Casualties
6,000 killed 13,000 wounded	5,000 killed 10,000 wounded

Seven Years' War: European theatre
Minorca – Lobositz – Reichenberg – Prague – Kolin – Hastenbeck – Gross-Jägersdorf – Moys – Rossbach – Breslau – Leuthen – Krefeld – Domstadtl – Zorndorf – Tornow – Hochkirch – Bergen – Kay – Minden – Kunersdorf – Hoyerswerda – Maxen – Meissen – Landshut – Warburg – Liegnitz – Kloster Kampen – Torgau – Villinghausen – Kolberg – Burkersdorf – Lutterberg – Freiberg

The Battle of Kunersdorf was Frederick the Great's most devastating defeat. On August 12, 1759, near Kunersdorf (today Kunowice in Poland), east of Frankfurt (Oder), 50,900 Prussians were defeated by a combined and army of 41,000 Russians and 18,500 Austrians under Pyotr Saltykov (Laudon commanded Austrian cavalry). Only 3,000 soldiers from original 50,900 Prussian army returned to Berlin after the battle.

The battle started with a Prussian attack on the flank of the Russian positions. This attack was successful and if Frederick had stopped there (as his brother demanded) Kunersdorf would have been a Prussian victory. But the Prussian leader wanted to take advantage of the initial success and decided to continue the fight. While the power of the Prussian attack faded, the Austrian cavalry (so far kept in reserve) entered the battle. However, King Frederick II was able to re-group and kept pressure on the allies.

The battle culminated in the early evening hours with a massive Prussian cavalry charge under von Seydlitz upon Russian center and artillery positions. The Prussian cavalry suffered heavy losses and retreated in complete disorder. Von Seydlitz himself was gravely wounded. The allied cavalry counterattacked and scattered what was left of the Prussian Army. King Frederick II himself barely escaped capture. He stood alone on a small hill with his épée sticking in the ground before him - determined to either hold the line against the whole enemy army alone or to die. In this situation cavalry captain Prittwitz with his 200 strong squadron, came to the King's rescue and convinced Frederick to leave.

The Russians and Austrians lost less than 15,000 men (approx. 5,000 killed). The Prussians suffered a severe defeat losing 172 cannons, 6,000 killed, 13,000 wounded and 26,000 men that were scattered. Four days after the battle, most of the 26,000 scattered men had found their way back to their King and Frederick's army had recovered to a strength of 32,000 men and 50 cannon.

[edit] Frederick's note from Kunersdorf

The King wrote to Berlin on the evening after the battle:

This morning at 11 o'clock I have attacked the enemy. ... All my troops have worked wonders, but at a cost of innumberable losses. Our men got into confusion. I assembled them three times. In the end I was in danger of getting captured and had to retreat. My coat is perforated by bullets, two horses of mine have been shot dead. My misfortune is that I am still living ... Our defeat is very considerable: To me remains 3,000 men from an army of 48,000 men. At the moment in which I report all this, everyone is on the run; I am no more master of my troops. Thinking of the safety of anybody in Berlin is a good activity ... It is a cruel failure that I will not survive. The consequences of the battle will be worse than the battle itself. I do not have any more resources, and - frankly confessed - I believe that everything is lost. I will not survive the doom of my fatherland. Farewell forever!

[edit] References