Battle of Zorndorf

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Battle of Zorndorf

Painting by Alexander Kotzebue

Date	August 25, 1758
Location	Zorndorf, present-day Poland
Result	Inconclusive; both sides claim victory.

Belligerents

Prussia

Russia

Commanders

Frederick the Great

Count William Fermor

Strength

36,000
167 guns

43,500
210 guns

Casualties and losses

12,797 & 26 cannon

18,500

v • d • e

Seven Years' War:

European theatre

Minorca – Lobositz – Reichenberg – Prague – Kolín – Hastenbeck – Gross-Jägersdorf – Moys – Rossbach – Breslau – Leuthen – Krefeld – Domstadtl – Zorndorf – Saint Cast – Tornow – Hochkirch – Bergen – Kay – Minden – Kunersdorf – Hoyerswerda – Maxen – Meissen – Landeshut – Emsdorf – Warburg – Liegnitz – Kloster Kampen – Torgau – Villinghausen – Kolberg – Wilhelmstahl - Burkersdorf – Lutterberg – Freiberg

The Battle of Zorndorf was a battle fought on August 25, 1758 during the Seven Years' War. The site of the battle was the Prussian village Zorndorf (now Sarbinowo, Poland).

In August 1758, 43,000 Russian troops under William Fermor advanced within 100 km from Berlin and were poised to join the Austrians under Field Marshal Daun. King Frederick II of Prussia understood that the meeting of his enemies would spell the fall of Berlin and, deciding to forestall their plans, moved into the Russian rear. Fermor, who was then besieging Küstrin, learned about his manoeuvre from a Cossack sortie. He lifted the siege and occupied an advantageous position at Zorndorf, 10 km southeast of Küstrin.

On August 25, Frederick's infantry attacked a Russian "observation corps", which consisted of young conscripts only. The Russians managed to hold their own, until the famed cavalry of Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz struck against them. The Russian cavalry clashed with the Prussians but was routed and had to flee towards the lines of the Russian infantrymen but these, confused by clouds of dust and gun smoke, mistook them for the Prussians and opened artillery fire. In the meantime, Frederick's infantry fell upon the left wing of the Russian army.

During the ensuing battle, both sides quickly ran out of powder and engaged in hand-to-hand fighting. One Russian detachment was said to take hold of a supply of wine barrels and drink themselves to stupefaction. When some of the Prussian battalions showed signs of tiring, Frederick himself led them in an attack. The battle was described by contemporaries as the bloodiest in the 18th century. One Prussian officer reported that "bodies of Russians covered the field row by row; they kissed their cannons while their bodies were cut to pieces by our sabers, but still they would not retreat". After the battle, Frederick famously declared that "it's easier to kill the Russians than to win over them".

Murderous fighting continued until nightfall, by which time 80% of the observation corps was dead. Casualties of both sides are estimated at 32%: the Prussians lost 12,800 men, the Russians lost over 18,000 men. The battle appeared inconclusive, however. Although the Russians kept the battlefield on the following day, Fermor was the first to retreat towards Landsberg. His retreat prevented the Russians from reaching their Austrian allies and allowed Frederick to claim the battle as his victory, although some Russian historians still dispute the outcome.

[edit] Further reading

Koch, H.W. A History of Prussia. Barnes & Noble, Inc., 1993. ISBN 0-88029-158-3
Konstam, Angus. Russian Army of the Seven Years War, Part 1. Osprey Publishing, 1996. ISBN 1-85532-585-3.
Millar, Simon. Zorndorf 1758. Osprey Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-84176-696-8.