Campaign of the Main

Last updated
Campaign of the Main
Part of Austro-Prussian War of 1866
Main-Karte-160710 - Mainarmee.jpg
Way of the Prussian Army in the campaign of the Main
Date1 – 26 July 1866
(25 days)
Location
Hesse, Baden and Bavaria
Result Prussian victory
Belligerents
Commanders and leaders
Strength
3 divisions:
50,000 soldiers, thereof 41,000 infantry,
4,000 cavalry,
121 cannons		VIIth corps (Bavaria):
4 divisions and corps-reserve:
52,000 soldiers,
144 cannons

VIIIth corps:
4 divisions (Württemberg, Baden, Hesse-Darmstadt, Austria / Nassau / Hesse-Kassel):
48,000 soldiers, [1]
136 cannons
Casualties and losses
411 dead; 2,498 wounded; 153 missed [2]

VIIth corps: 339 dead; 2,114 wounded; 1,604 missed [3]

VIIIth Korps: 402 dead; 1,439 wounded; 2,444 missed

Contents

[4]

The Campaign of the Main (in German: Mainfeldzug) was a campaign of the Prussian Army in the area of the River Main against the allies of Austria in southern Germany during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866.

Preliminary campaign

While the greater part of the Prussian troops marched to Bohemia, where they defeated the Austrian and Saxon troops on 3 July 1866 at Königgrätz (Sadowa), another part of the Prussian troops invaded the Kingdom of Hanover. After the surrender of Hanover on June 29 these troops - including some small units of allies of Prussia - were grouped under the name Mainarmee (German for: Army of the Main) and pushed southward towards the River Main against the south German allies of Austria.

Course

The allies of Austria had formed the VIIth and VIIIth Federal Corps of the German Confederation. Both corps had advanced northward to support Hanover. When Hanover surprisingly surrendered the VIIth Corps, formed by the Bavarians, stood in Thuringia. The VIIIth Corps, composed of troops from Hesse, Baden and Wuerttemberg, stood north of Frankfurt. At first the Prussians attacked the VIIth Corps. The Bavarian troops lost battles at Hünfeld and Dermbach on 4 July and withdrew to the Franconian Saale river. [5] But the Prussians followed quickly across the mountains of the Rhön and beat the Bavarians in the battle of Kissingen and Hammelburg on 10 July. [6] [7] [8]

Now the Bavarians retreated to Würzburg while the Prussians turned westward against the VIIIth Corps which protected Frankfurt. The Prussians crossed the Spessart, defeated the Hessians at Laufach/Frohnhofen on 13 July and the Austrian and Hessian troops at Aschaffenburg on 14 July. The Federal troops had to withdraw westward to the left bank of the Main. After the Prussians had conquered Aschaffenburg and crossed the Main the way to Frankfurt and Darmstadt was open. Now the VIIIth Corps abandoned Frankfurt, moved south across the Odenwald and then turned eastward to meet the Bavarians at the River Tauber. The Prussians occupied the now undefended Frankfurt on 16 July and then followed the VIIIth Corps along the left bank of the Main. [9] [10] In the combat of Hundheim (23 July), the battles of Werbach, Tauberbischofsheim (both 24 July) and Gerchsheim (25 July) the VIIIth Corps was defeated by the Prussians. [11] [12] At 25 July the Prussians also clashed with the Bavarians again at Helmstadt and the following day at Roßbrunn. These battles were also won by the Prussians. [13] The allied troops retreated to Würzburg. The Prussians followed and began to bombard the Marienberg Fortress in Würzburg on 26 July. But soon a truce was negotiated after the news had reached the Bavarian headquarters, that the Prussians and the Austrians had signed their Armistice of Nikolsburg at the same day. At last Würzburg was occupied by the Prussians. [14] [15] [16]

In a separate operation the 2nd Prussian reserve corps marched into Bavaria at the north-east on 23 July and occupied Hof, Bayreuth (28 July) and at last Nuremberg (31 July). [17] [18]

Reasons for the Prussian victory

The Prussian victory is more the result of better organization than of the technical superiority of the Prussian weapons like the needle gun (Zündnadelgewehr). [19] Helmut von Moltke, the chief of the Prussian general staff, had planned an offensive war to beat the federal troops before they could unite and fully use their superiority in men and equipment. The plan was successful because the untrained federal armies needed a long time for mobilization which the Prussians had prepared well. Furthermore the Prussians had one unified command which the federal side had not. Formally Prince Karl Theodor of Bavaria, the commander of the VIIth corps, was supreme commander of all the federal troops, but Prince Alexander of Hesse and by Rhine, the chief of the VIIIth corps, also received orders from the Federal Convention (Bundestag) in Frankfurt and the governments of the states which had sent troops. The communication between the federal troops was as insufficient as their reconnaissance so that they often had to react instead of acting initiatively. [20]

Consequences

The German Confederation was abolished. Prussia annexed Hannover, Nassau, Hesse-Kassel and Frankfurt and small parts of Hesse-Darmstadt and Bavaria. Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden and Hesse-Darmstadt remained independent, but had to sign military alliances with Prussia. In Bavaria a fundamental army reform followed in 1868.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ludwig Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen</span> 19th-century Bavarian general

Ludwig Samson Heinrich Arthur Freiherr von und zu der Tann-Rathsamhausen was a Bavarian general.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Großrinderfeld</span> Municipality in Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Großrinderfeld is a municipality in southwestern Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located between Tauberbischofsheim and Würzburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grand Duchy of Hesse</span> German state (1806–1918)

The Grand Duchy of Hesse and by Rhine was a grand duchy in western Germany that existed from 1806 to 1918. The grand duchy originally formed from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1806 as the Grand Duchy of Hesse. It assumed the name Hesse und bei Rhein in 1816 to distinguish itself from the Electorate of Hesse, which had formed from neighbouring Hesse-Kassel. Colloquially, the grand duchy continued to be known by its former name of Hesse-Darmstadt.

The Battle of Châtillon, also known as the Battle of Châtillon-sous-Bagneux, was a skirmish in the Siege of Paris between France and North German Confederation in the Franco-Prussian War, took place on 13 October 1870. This is also considered the first battle in the history of the French Third Republic. In this fierce battle – occurred at Châtillon and Sceaux, Corps V of the Prussian army under the command of Lieutenant General Infantry Hugo von Kirchbach, along with the II Corps of the Kingdom of Bavaria by the Supreme Minister infantry Jakob von Hartmann which were the forces of the army Group 3 of Prussia by Prince Friedrich Wilhelm as General command., won a victory against an attack by the XIV Corps under General Renault - of the French army under General Auguste-Alexandre Ducrot. Although some soldiers under Ducrot fought well, the majority of his army became agitated. The French were forced to flee to Paris, losing the Châtillon Plateau - a very favorable defensive position overlooking the fortresses south of Paris - to the Germans. This was a disaster for the "justice" of the French army during the war, although the French reported that they suffered only minor losses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palatine uprising</span>

The Palatine uprising was a rebellion that took place in May and June 1849 in the Rhenish Palatinate, then an exclave territory of the Kingdom of Bavaria. Related to uprisings across the Rhine river in Baden, it was part of the widespread Imperial Constitution Campaign (Reichsverfassungskampagne). Revolutionaries worked to defend the Constitution as well as to secede from the Kingdom of Bavaria.

The VIII Army Corps was a mixed corps of the army of the German Confederation, which was made up of contingents from Württemberg, Baden and Hesse. Until 1830 contingents from Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Hohenzollern-Hechingen and Liechtenstein also belonged to this corps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Tauberbischofsheim</span>

The Battle of Tauberbischofsheim was an engagement of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, on the 24 July at Tauberbischofsheim in the Grand Duchy of Baden between troops of the German Confederation and the Kingdom of Prussia. It was part of the campaign of the Main and ended with a Prussian victory.

The Kaiserbrief, is the letter to the German Federal princes signed by North German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck on 27 November 1870 and Bavarian King Ludwig II on 30 November 1870. Ludwig's uncle, Prince Luitpold of Bavaria, the later Prince Regent (1886–1912), on 3 December 1870 personally handed over the Imperial Letter to the Prussian king.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Kissingen</span> Battle between Bavarian and Prussian troops in the Austrian-Prussian War

The Battle of Kissingen was a battle between Bavarian and Prussian troops on 10 July 1866 during the Austrian-Prussian War in and around the town of Kissingen in Bavaria. It was part of the campaign of the Main and ended with a victory of the Prussians.

The Podewils gun was a 13.9mm calibre rifle used in the Bavarian army since 1858. It was the most common infantry weapon of the Bavarian army in the Austro-Prussian war of 1866 and the Franco-Prussian war of 1870/71. Theodor Fontane called it an "excellent" weapon of the Austro-Prussian war due to its long range. Originally a muzzleloader, it was converted to breechloading in 1867, the so-called Lindner conversion. In 1869 the Bavarian army started to replace it with the Werder breechloader, but due to budgetary constrains by 1870 most Bavarian troops still used the Podewils while only four infantry battalions had received the Werder. Even the Lindner conversion was inferior to both the Prussian Dreyse needle gun and the French Chassepot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Frohnhofen</span>

The Battle of Frohnhofen or Battle of Laufach took place on 13 July 1866 as part of the Main Campaign of the Prussian Army in the Austro-Prussian War. In a battle lasting several hours, the Prussian 26th Infantry Brigade repulsed attacks by the 3rd (Hessian) Division of the VIII. Corps of the North German Confederation, with the Hessians suffering heavy losses. It thus secured the Spessart crossings and created favorable conditions for the Battle of Aschaffenburg around the Main crossing the next day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Aschaffenburg (1866)</span>

The Battle of Aschaffenburg, sometimes also called The Skirmishes Near Aschaffenburg, was a battle of the Austro-Prussian War on 14 July 1866 between pitting the armies of Prussia on the one hand and parts of the VIII Corps of the German Federal Army on the other side which primarily consisted of soldiers from the Austrian Empire, Hesse-Darmstadt and Hesse-Kassel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Helmstadt</span>

The Battle of Helmstadt was a battle in the Main Campaign of the Austro-Prussian War on 25 July 1866, between the Prussian Main Army and the VIII Corps of the German Federal Army which consisted of soldiers from the Kingdom of Bavaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Roßbrunn</span>

The Battle of Roßbrunn was the last battle of the Main Campaign in the Austro-Prussian War. It took place on 26 July 1866 near Roßbrunn, Uettingen and Hettstadt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Dermbach</span>

The Battle of Dermbach was the first clash between Prussian and Bavarian troops in the Austro-Prussian War near Dermbach, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach in modern-day Thuringia on 4 July 1866.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Hundheim</span> 1866 battle between Prussia and Baden

The Battle of Hundheim took place during the Austro-Prussian War as part of the Campaign of the Main on 23 July 1866 between the combined forces of the Prussia and Saxe-Coburg and Gotha against the armies of Baden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Werbach</span>

The Battle of Werbach took place during the Austro-Prussian War as part of the Campaign of the Main on 24 July 1866 between the Prussian Alliance and the German Federal Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Gerchsheim</span> Battle of the Austro-Prussian War

The Battle of Gerchsheim was an artillery battle during the Austro-Prussian War as part of the Campaign of the Main on July 25, 1866, between the Prussian Alliance and the German Federal Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leopold Gondrecourt</span> Austro-Hungarian general

Count Leopold Gondrecourt was a Austro-Hungarian general of French origin most notable for his service in the Battle for Königshügel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oskar von Zoller</span> Bavarian general (1809–1866)

Oskar Freiherr von Zoller was a Bavarian Lieutenant general who was known for serving at the Battle of Kissingen during the Austro-Prussian War, being killed during the fighting.

References

  1. ↑ Alexander von Hessen-Darmstadt: Feldzugs-Journal des Oberbefehlshabers des 8ten deutschen Bundes-Armee-Corps im Feldzuge des Jahres 1866 in Westdeutschland, Eduard Zernin, Darmstadt & Leipzig 1867, p. 39 (Stand am 24. Juli 1866) online
  2. ↑ Österreichs Kämpfe im Jahre 1866. Nach Feldacten bearbeitet durch das k.k. Generalstabs-Bureau für Kriegsgeschichte. Fünfter Band (Vol. 5), Vienna 1869, chapter: Die Kriegsereignisse in Westdeutschland im Jahre 1866, p. 32-174 (scan p. 206-348) digitalised; compiled from the tables of losses
  3. ↑ Antheil der königlich bayerischen Armee am Kriege des Jahres 1866, bearbeitet vom Generalquartiermeister-Stabe, München 1868, Beilage III, S. XVIII/XIX digitalised. This are the official figures. According to recent research, they are incomplete. Considerably higher numbers of victims are assumed in: Walter Hamm: Die Toten der bayerischen Armee des Jahres 1866. In: Dieter Storz, Daniel Hohrath (Ed.): Nord gegen Süd. Der Deutsche Krieg 1866 (= Kataloge des Bayerischen Armeemuseums. Band 13). Bayerisches Armeemuseum, Ingolstadt 2016, ISBN   978-3-00-053589-5. p. 77-83. available online
  4. ↑ s. Alexander von Hessen
  5. ↑ Michael Embree: Too Little, Too Late: The Campaign in West and South Germany, June–July 1866. Published by Helion & Company, Solihull, West Midlands, England, 2015, ISBN   978-1-909384-50-7. pp. 68–88.
  6. ↑ Theodor Fontane: Der deutsche Krieg von 1866. Der Feldzug in West- und Mitteldeutschland. Berlin 1871. pp. 41–154 digitalised
  7. ↑ Antheil der königlich bayerischen Armee am Kriege des Jahres 1866. München 1868. p. 26-140 digitalised
  8. ↑ s. Embree pp. 89–124.
  9. ↑ s. Fontane p. 155-200
  10. ↑ s. Embree p.125-154
  11. ↑ s. Fontane 201-254
  12. ↑ s. Embree p. 154-186
  13. ↑ s. Antheil p. 140-159
  14. ↑ s. Antheil p. 159-208
  15. ↑ s. Fontane p. 255-265
  16. ↑ s. Embree 187-194
  17. ↑ s. Antheil p. 209-223
  18. ↑ s. Fontane p. 266-287
  19. ↑ Dieter Storz: Die Bewaffnung. In: Dieter Storz, Daniel Hohrath (Ed.): Nord gegen Süd. Der Deutsche Krieg 1866. p. 47-51
  20. ↑ Dieter Storz: Der Feldzug. In: Dieter Storz, Daniel Hohrath (Ed.): Nord gegen Süd. Der Deutsche Krieg 1866. p. 57-59
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.