The Battle of Prague (in the Czech Republic known as the Battle of Štěrboholy) was a battle fought on May 6, 1757 during the Seven Years' War. A Prussia army of 65,000 men fought an Austrian army of 62,000 men. The Prussians lost 14,300 men, the Austrians lost about 13,400 men. The battle ended with an Austrian retreat, but the Prussian King and commander Frederick the Great decided he was not in a strong enough position to proceed with an attack on the city of Prague. May 6 is the 126th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (127th in leap years). ... 1757 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Prague (Czech: Praha (IPA: ), see also other names) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. ... Flag of Prussia (1894 - 1918) The Kingdom of Prussia existed from 1701 until 1918, and from 1871 was the leading kingdom of the German Empire, comprising in its last form almost two-thirds of the area of the Empire. ... Frederick II of Prussia (German: ; January 24, 1712 – August 17, 1786) of Hohenzollern dynasty, ruled the Kingdom of Prussia from 1740 to 1786. ... Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine (December 12, 1712 – July 4, 1780) was the son of Leopold Joseph, Duke of Lorraine. ... Maximilian Ulysses, Reichsgraf von Browne, Baron de Camus and Mountany (23 October 1705 – 26 June 1757) was an Austrian military leader during the middle of the 18th century. ... Combatants Prussia Great Britain Hanover Ireland Portugal Brunswick Hesse-Kassel Austria France Russia Sweden Spain Saxony The Seven Years War (1754 and 1756–1763), some of the theatres of which are called the Pomeranian War and the French and Indian War (see below), was a war in the mid-18th... The naval Battle of Minorca took place on May 20, 1756, at the opening of the Seven Years War in the European theatre, shortly after the Kingdom of Great Britain had declared war on the House of Bourbon, off the Mediterranean island of Minorca between British and French squadrons. ... The Battle of Lobositz was a battle fought on October 1, 1756 during the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Reichenberg was a battle of the Seven Years War, fought on April 21, 1757 near the village of Liberec (German Reichenberg) in Bohemia. ... The Battle of Kolin was a battle fought on June 18, 1757 during the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Hastenbeck took place during the Seven Years War on July 26, 1757, near the village of Hastenbeck (close to Hamelin). ... The Battle of Gross-Jägersdorf was a battle fought on August 30, 1757 during the Seven Years War. ... The battle of Moys was a battle fought on September 7, 1757 during the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Rossbach (November 5, 1757) took place during the Seven Years War (1756 - 1763) near the village of Rossbach, then in Prussian Saxony. ... Combatants Prussia Austria Commanders August Wilhelm, Duke of Brunswick-Bevern Prince Charles of Lorraine Strength 28,000 men 84,000 men Casualties 6,000 men 5,000 men The Battle of Breslau was a battle fought on November 22, 1757 during the Seven Years War. ... Combatants Prussia Austria Commanders Frederick the Great Charles of Lorraine Strength 39,000 167 guns 58,500 210 guns Casualties 1,141 dead 5118 wounded 85 captured 3000 dead 7,000 wounded 12,000 captured 51 flags 116 cannons The Battle of Leuthen was a battle fought on December 5... {{Battlebox|campaign=Seven Years War: European |image= |caption= |battle_name=Battle of Krefeld |colour_scheme=background:#cccccc |conflict=Seven Years War |date=June 23, 1758 |place=Krefeld |result=Hessian / Brunswicker / Hanoverian victory |combatant1=[[Hesse-kassel], [Brunswick] and Hanover |combatant2=France |commander1=Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick |commander2=Le Comte de Clermont |strength1=ca... Combatants Prussia Austria Commanders Hans Joachim von Zieten Ernst Gideon von Laudon and Joseph von Siskovits Strength 30,000 12,000 Casualties 2,000 dead, wounded or missing, 1,450 captured 600 dead or wounded The Battle of Domstadtl (DomaÅ¡ov) was a battle between Austrian and Prussian troops at... The Battle of Zorndorf was a battle fought on August 25, 1758 during the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Hochkirch was a battle fought on October 14, 1758 during the Seven Years War. ... Combatants Great Britain, Hesse-Kassel, Brunswick and Hanover France Commanders Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick Victor-François, 2nd duc de Broglie Strength ca 32,000 men ca 25,900 men Casualties ca 1,800 men ca 2,400 men The Battle of Bergen was a battle of the Seven Years... The Battle of Kay was a battle fought on July 23, 1759 during the Seven Years War. ... Combatants Great Britain, Hanover, Kingdom of Prussia France Commanders Prince Ferdinand Louis Georges Érasme de Contades Strength 60,500 56,000 Casualties 2,800 10,000-11,000 The Battle of Minden was a battle fought on August 1, 1759 during the Seven Years War. ... The battle of Kunersdorf was fought on August 23, 1759 during the Seven Years War near Kunersdorf, east of Frankfurt an der Oder. ... Combatants Prussia Austria Commanders Prince Henry of Prussia General Wehla Strength ? 3,000 Casualties minimal 600 dead 1,800 captured The Battle of Hoyerswerda was a minor encounter of the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Maxen was a battle fought on November 21, 1759 during the Seven Years War. ... The battle of Meissen was an engagement fought on December 4, 1759 during the Seven Years War between a Prussian and an Austrian army. ... The Battle of Landesschut or Battle of Landshut was an engagement fought on June 23, 1760 during the Seven Years War. ... The battle of Warburg was a battle fought on August 1, 1760 during the Seven Years War. ... The Battle of Leignitz was fought in the early hours of August 15, 1760. ... The Battle of Torgau (Germany) was a battle fought on November 3, 1760 during the Seven Years War on the Süptitzer Höhen. ... Combatants Great Britain, Hanover, Prussia France Commanders Prince Ferdinand of Brunswick Duc de Broglie and Prince de Soubise Strength ~100,000 ~80,000 Casualties 1,400 5,000 (Broglie 4,700, Soubise 300) The Battle of Villinghausen (or Vellinghausen) was fought in 1761 between a large French army and a... The Battle of Burkersdorf was a battle fought on July 21, 1762 during the Seven Years War. ... May 6 is the 126th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (127th in leap years). ... 1757 was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar). ... Combatants Prussia Great Britain Hanover Ireland Portugal Brunswick Hesse-Kassel Austria France Russia Sweden Spain Saxony The Seven Years War (1754 and 1756–1763), some of the theatres of which are called the Pomeranian War and the French and Indian War (see below), was a war in the mid-18th... Flag of Prussia (1894 - 1918) The Kingdom of Prussia existed from 1701 until 1918, and from 1871 was the leading kingdom of the German Empire, comprising in its last form almost two-thirds of the area of the Empire. ... Frederick II of Prussia (German: ; January 24, 1712 – August 17, 1786) of Hohenzollern dynasty, ruled the Kingdom of Prussia from 1740 to 1786. ... Prague (Czech: Praha (IPA: ), see also other names) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. ...

Prelude

After Frederick had forced the surrender of Saxony in the 1756 campaign, he spent the winter devising new plans for a defense of his small kingdom. It was not in his character simply to sit back and defend. The Free State of Saxony (German: Freistaat Sachsen; Sorbian: Swobodny Stata Sakska) is at a land area of 18,413 km² and a population of 4. ... 1756 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

In early spring the Prussian army marched in four columns over the mountain passes separating Saxony and Silesia from Bohemia. The four corps would unite at the Bohemian capital of Prague. Though risky, because it exposed the Prussian army to a defeat in detail, the plan succeeded. After Frederick's corps united with a corps under Prince Moritz, and General Bevern joined up with Schwerin, both armies converged near Prague. A military column is a formation of soldiers, marching together single file, one behind another. ... Prussian Silesia, 1871, outlined in yellow; Silesia at the close of the Seven Years War in 1763, outlined in cyan (areas now in the Czech Republic were Austrian-ruled at that time) Silesia (Czech: ; German: ; Polish: ; Silesian: Ślonsk / Ślónsk) is a historical region in central Europe. ... Flag of Bohemia Bohemia (Czech: ; German: ) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. ... Prague (Czech: Praha (IPA: ), see also other names) is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. ... Prince Moritz of Anhalt-Dessau (1712-1760) was a Prussian soldier. ... Kurt Christoph Graf von Schwerin (26 October 1684 - 6 May 1757) was a Prussian generalfeldmarschall, one of the leading commanders under Frederick the Great. ...

Meanwhile the Austrians had not been idle. Though initially surprised by the early Prussian attack, the able Austrian Marshall von Browne had been retreating skilfully and concentrating his armed forces towards Prague. Here he established a fortified position to the east of the town, and an additional army under Prince Charles of Lorraine arrived swelling the Austrian numbers to 60,000. The prince now took command. Maximilian Ulysses, Reichsgraf von Browne, Baron de Camus and Mountany (23 October 1705 – 26 June 1757) was an Austrian military leader during the middle of the 18th century. ... Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine (December 12, 1712 – July 4, 1780) was the son of Leopold Joseph, Duke of Lorraine. ...

The Austrian army under von Browne had taken up a near invincible position on the Ziska- and the Tabor mountains. The town was on their left flank, with a steep gorge to the north, and to the west by a marshy slope with a brook at the bottom. The two Austrian commanders are in disagreement about the course of action: von Browne wants to attack, but Charles decides to wait for Konigseck, who was defeated at the Battle of Reichenberg but is known to be retreating towards Prague, and possibly even for the arrival of Daun. The Battle of Reichenberg was a battle of the Seven Years War, fought on April 21, 1757 near the village of Liberec (German Reichenberg) in Bohemia. ...

On the 6th of May, around 5 a.m., the Prussian army assembled to the north on the Prosek heights, 115,000 men strong, and Frederick sent Keith with 30,000 to the west of the town to cut off any Austrian retreat. The Austrians drew up for battle facing north and east. Francis Edward James Keith (June 11, 1696 - October 14, 1758), Scottish soldier and Prussian field marshal, was the second son of William, 9th Earl Marischal of Scotland, and was born at the castle of Inverugie near Peterhead. ...

The battle

Frederick ordered an immediate assault, but Schwerin convinced him to make a reconnaissance around the Austrian right flank. He returned with the information that gradually sloping green meadows offered a better chance for attack at the Austrian rear. The Prussian army started marching around 7 a.m., and succeeded in staying largely out of sight till the Austrian generals noticed the movements around 10 a.m. Field Marshal von Browne shifted six infantry regiments to take up position to the south east. sketch of battle, handmade File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ...

Schwerin, accompanied by General Winterfeldt, was finally prepared to attack. The attack was led by the infantry of Winterfeldt. The Prussian infantry soon found themselves not in meadows, but in the remains of fish ponds. While they struggled through, Winterfeldt was hit by a musketball. The Prussian infantry wavered and Schwerin rallied them, leading them from the front. He was hit several times by Austrian canister. Frederick, when he heard the news, ordered to press on with the assault. Hans Karl von Winterfeldt (1707-1757), Prussian general, was born on the 4th of April 1707 at Vanselow Castle in Pomerania. ...

The Austrian infantry smelled the Prussian confusion and started to press the Prussians back down the slope, opening a gap between themselves and the remainder of the Austrian line still facing north. At this time von Browne was mortally wounded by Prussian infantry fire and carried into Prague.

While King Frederick and General von Zieten reorganised the Prussian infantry in the south for another attack, the generals Hautcharmoy and Bevern spotted the gap in the Austrian line and started to filter infantry into the gap. Austrian Croats had engaged Prussians to the north of the Austrian left flank, but with the gap in the Austrian line being exploited by a steady stream of Prussians he pulled back and formed a new line running south from the west end of the Tabor mountain. Hans Joachim von Zieten Hans Joachim von Zieten (May 14, 1699 – January 26, 1786). ...

The final phase of the battle started around 3 p.m., with Prussians engaging the still-forming Austrian line and outflanking them from the south. Charles withdrew into the town, the retreat being covered by his cavalry.

Aftermath

The Austrians had lost 8,800 men and 4,500 prisoners. Having suffered over 14,000 casualties in his own army, losses hard to replace for the small Prussia, Frederick decided not to assault the city walls of Prague. He calculated that 40,000 soldiers in addition to 75,000 inhabitants would soon consume the city stores.

His calculation, however, did not take into account the relief army Austria managed to field against him at the Battle of Kolin. The Battle of Kolin was a battle fought on June 18, 1757 during the Seven Years War. ...