Battle of Altenheim facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Battle of Altenheim
Part of Franco-Dutch War
Jean Beaurain: Map of the battle of Altenheim
Date 1 August 1675 Location Altenheim, Neuried, Baden-Württemberg Result Inconclusive
Belligerents
France	Holy Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
de Lorges de Vaubrun  †	Montecuccoli Bournonville Aeneas de Caprara
Strength
20,000	22,000
Casualties and losses
3,000–4000	3,000–4,500

The Battle of Altenheim was a big fight that happened on August 1, 1675. It was part of the Franco-Dutch War, which lasted from 1672 to 1678. The battle took place near a town called Altenheim, in what is now Germany.

Around 20,000 French soldiers, led by the Marquis de Vaubrun and the Comte de Lorges, fought against about 22,000 Imperial soldiers. The Imperial army was commanded by Raimondo Montecuccoli.

Before the battle, the French commander, Marshall Turenne, had found a good chance to attack. But on July 27, he was sadly killed by a cannon shot. This left the French army without a clear leader. De Lorges and Vaubrun argued about who should take charge.

On July 31, the French army started to cross the Rhine river using a bridge at Altenheim. But only some of them made it across. The rest were still on the German side. On August 1, as they continued to cross, the Imperial army attacked. They even managed to cut off the French retreat by taking Altenheim.

French cavalry (soldiers on horseback) bravely charged many times to get the bridge back. During one of these charges, Vaubrun was killed. The battle lasted until late in the day. Both sides lost many soldiers. The French army managed to escape, but they lost the advantage Turenne had created.

Why the Battle Happened

Comte de Lorges; his arguments with Vaubrun made it harder for the French army.

The Spanish Netherlands (which is now Belgium and parts of the Netherlands) was a very important area. Both France and the Dutch Republic wanted control of it for safety and trade. This led to many conflicts in the 1600s.

France took over much of this area in a war from 1667 to 1668. But they gave it back to Spain in a peace treaty in 1668. After this, King Louis XIV of France decided the best way to get what he wanted from the Dutch was to defeat them first.

The Franco-Dutch War started in May 1672. French troops quickly took over many parts of the Netherlands. But by July, the Dutch started to fight back better. King Louis XIV became too demanding because of his early success. Other countries became worried about France getting too powerful. So, the Dutch got help from Brandenburg-Prussia, the Holy Roman Emperor, and Charles II of Spain.

In August 1673, an Imperial army (from the Holy Roman Empire) entered the Rhineland. France was now fighting on many fronts. They had to give up most of the land they had taken earlier.

Imperial commander, Raimondo Montecuccoli, Duke of Melfi

In January 1674, Denmark also joined the countries fighting France. Then, in February, a treaty ended the Third Anglo-Dutch War. The countries allied against France decided to focus on pushing France out of the Netherlands. An Imperial army also opened a new fighting area in Alsace.

Turenne, the French commander in the Rhineland, was ordered to stop them. He had to prevent the Imperial army from entering Eastern France or joining up with the Dutch.

Turenne was a very skilled general. In 1673, he won many battles against the Imperialists, even though his army was smaller. The campaign that started in June 1674 and ended with his death in July 1675 was one of his most famous. He fought Bournonville to a standstill at Entzheim in October. Then he launched a surprise winter attack, winning the Battle of Turckheim in January 1675. Turenne was so good that he made Bournonville afraid to fight him. He also stopped Bournonville from invading Alsace.

In the spring, Bournonville's army got stronger with 25,000 new soldiers. These soldiers were led by Raimondo Montecuccoli. Montecuccoli was one of the few generals who was considered as good as Turenne. By late May, the Imperial army was moving. They wanted to connect with the city of Strasburg.

The next two months were spent with armies marching back and forth. Turenne always tried to stay close to the Imperialists. There were also some small fights. Vaubrun was even wounded in one of these fights on July 24.

The area where they were fighting was narrow. It was between the Rhine river and the Black Forest. Heavy rain in June made it very hard to move. Armies also had to stay near rivers for supplies. There was also not enough food for the horses. By the end of July, Montecuccoli reached Großweier. He stopped there and waited for Aeneas de Caprara to join him. Turenne decided to attack. On July 27, he was looking for good spots for his cannons when he was killed by a random cannonball.

The Battle of Altenheim

At first, Turenne's death was kept a secret from the soldiers. But soon, everyone knew. This made the French soldiers very sad and worried. Turenne had not chosen a new leader. His main officers were his nephew, the Comte de Lorges, and the Marquis de Vaubrun. Vaubrun was the older and more experienced officer.

According to a writer named Marquis de Feuquières, de Lorges and Vaubrun spent three days arguing about who should be in charge. They even pulled out their swords at one point!

Because of this, the French army just stayed in place. The two armies spent three days shooting cannons at each other. On July 29, Imperial cavalry attacked a nearby village called Willstätt. They hoped to capture the French supplies and connect with Strasburg. The French fought them off. But the danger of their position forced de Lorges and Vaubrun to agree on something. They decided to take turns being in command each day.

On July 31, the French army started moving towards the bridge over the Rhine river at Altenheim. As they moved, Montecuccoli tried to attack Willstätt again.

With the enemy so close, de Lorges and Vaubrun argued again. Should they get their soldiers across the Rhine as fast as possible and leave their supplies behind? Or should they save the supplies and risk their army being split up? They chose to save the supplies. The soldiers did not want to leave their personal belongings. But when night came on July 31, Vaubrun and the first part of the army were on the French side of the Rhine. The main part of the army, led by de Lorges, was still on the other side.

De Lorges started crossing early on the morning of August 1. But to reach the bridge at Altenheim, they first had to cross a smaller river called the Schutter. This caused a delay. It gave Montecuccoli a chance to try and destroy most of the French army.

The French rearguard (the soldiers protecting the back of the army) was made up of the Brigade de Champagne and two British regiments. One of these British regiments had many Irish Catholic soldiers. It was led by George Hamilton. One of his younger officers was Patrick Sarsfield. Sarsfield wrote a letter soon after the battle, giving details. He said that around 10:00 am, the main Imperial army attacked them. At the same time, Croatian light cavalry cut off their escape by taking the bridge at Altenheim.

The French were in a very dangerous spot. But they fought back and recaptured Altenheim after many brave cavalry charges. Vaubrun was killed in one of these charges. According to Sarsfield, the fighting continued until 6:30 pm. The French rearguard kept fighting off attacks on the bridge. The Imperialists lost over 4,500 soldiers. The French lost about 3,000, with 1,200 killed. The two British regiments lost 700 soldiers killed or wounded out of 1,400.

What Happened Next

The French army moved back to Sélestat. Then, Condé took over as commander. He was a famous general, but he was not in good health. This would be his last military campaign.

On August 11, a French force of 15,000 soldiers was sent to help the city of Trier. But they were defeated at the Konzer Brücke. Trier surrendered in September. Condé thought the Imperial army had over 30,000 soldiers. He did not want to risk losing the only French army left in the Rhineland. So, he moved his army to the strong town of Châtenois.

Montecuccoli tried to trick Condé into coming out to fight. But French cavalry kept attacking Montecuccoli's supply lines. Also, winter was coming. So, Montecuccoli gave up. In the first week of November, his army crossed back over the Rhine river. They then went into their winter camps.

Images for kids

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  Map of the battle of Altenheim

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  Comte de Lorges

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  Imperial commander, Raimondo Montecuccoli