Battle of Krabbendam facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Krabbendam |
|||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland | |||||||
|
|||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 France Batavian Republic |
 Great Britain |
||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Guillaume Marie Anne Brune Herman Willem Daendels |
Ralph Abercromby |
||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 25,000 | 23,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 1,876 dead and wounded | 37 dead 147 wounded |
||||||
The Battle of Krabbendam (also known as the Battle of Zijpedijk) happened on September 10, 1799. It was part of the Anglo-Russian invasion of Holland. In this battle, the forces of France and their allies, the Batavian Republic (which was a bit like a French-influenced Netherlands), fought against British soldiers.
The French and Batavian troops were led by General Guillaume Marie Anne Brune. The British side was commanded by General Sir Ralph Abercromby. The British had set up a strong defensive position, called a bridgehead, in the northern part of the North-Holland area. They had just won the Battle of Callantsoog (1799). General Brune wanted to push the British out before more British and Russian soldiers could arrive. But the British won the battle. This victory allowed the British and their Russian allies to land more troops. It also helped them break out of their defensive area later during the Battle of Bergen (1799).
Why the Battle Happened
After the Battle of Callantsoog, General Herman Willem Daendels and his Batavian soldiers moved back to the Schermer polder. A polder is a piece of low-lying land, usually reclaimed from the sea or a lake, protected by dikes. Daendels thought the Zijpe polder couldn't be defended well. He worried the British could easily land more troops behind him near Petten.
The Zijpe polder was once a marsh. It had been turned into rich farmland in the 1500s by building dikes. This polder was a natural strong point, almost like a fort. It had a high southern dike with a deep circular drainage canal. This canal acted like a moat around a castle. The dike was high enough to see far across the land. It also had curves and corners, like an old-fashioned star-shaped fort. This design allowed defenders to fire along the length of any attacking enemy line, making it very dangerous for attackers. General Abercromby used these natural features. He built artillery positions and earth walls at key spots.
His defenses stretched from the sea dike at Petten on the right. They then ran east along the dike of the Zijpe polder. He added extra defenses at the villages of Krabbendam, Eenigenburg, and Sint Maarten. The line ended at the Oude Sluys on the coast of what was then the Zuyder Zee. Villages like Schagen in front of this line were used as outposts.
Meanwhile, the French and Batavians quickly brought in more soldiers. A French division under General Dominique Vandamme arrived and took positions between Alkmaar and the sea. General Brune told Daendels to move his troops to Oudkarspel and Sint Pancras. General Jean-Baptiste Dumonceau marched two-thirds of his Batavian division from Friesland. He arrived on September 8 and took a position in the middle of the French-Batavian front, near Alkmaar. He was then joined by more troops from Daendels' division.
By September 9, General Brune had more soldiers than General Abercromby. Brune had about 25,000 troops, while Abercromby had about 23,000. Abercromby had only received about 500 extra soldiers. Since Brune knew that strong Russian and British reinforcements would soon arrive, he decided to attack on September 10. He wanted to use his advantage in numbers while he still had it.
The Battle Begins
General Brune's battle plan was simple. He wanted the Batavian divisions to attack the villages of Eenigenburg and Krabbendam. These villages controlled two main roads leading into the Zijpe polder. The main attack would come from the French division under General Vandamme. He would try to go around Abercromby's right side by moving along the dike near Petten. This plan was a type of "pincer movement" where one side tries to surround the enemy.
However, the preparations for the attack were rushed and messy. The maps used by Brune's staff were not read correctly. They mistook a canal for a road. This meant that the march routes for Daendels' soldiers and one of Dumonceau's groups were assigned to the same path. This mistake happened because they didn't properly check the area first. Because of this, Daendels had to take a different route further east. He ended up attacking and capturing the village of Sint Maarten instead.
Dumonceau's right-hand group, led by General Bonhomme, then attacked Daendels' original target, the village of Eenigenburg. But the British defenses were too strong. The circular canal in front of the dike and the accurate firing from the defenders stopped them. A second attempt also failed. Bonhomme stayed in his position until he and Daendels retreated later that evening.
Bonhomme's attack was supposed to help another group under Colonel Bruce, who was aiming for Krabbendam. Bruce was supposed to come from Alkmaar. But he was delayed because many farmer's carts going to market blocked the city gate he needed to use. So, he only reached his starting point at 7 AM. Meanwhile, General Dumonceau, who was impatient, borrowed about 100 grenadiers from Bonhomme's group. With this small force, he attacked the British strong point at Krabbendam. Surprisingly, he succeeded. He even managed to drive the British out when he got more soldiers from Bruce's group, which had finally arrived. This happened despite heavy fire from two British cannons at the village entrance. However, these troops suddenly panicked and ran away for unknown reasons.
After getting his troops back together, Dumonceau tried a new attack and again took Krabbendam. But two British battalions attacked them and drove them out of the village. Seeing that his efforts were not working, Dumonceau decided to pull back to Schoorldam at 3 PM.
The French attack on the left side also failed. The French soldiers advanced along the sea dike and a smaller dike near Petten. At the end of these dikes, Abercromby had built a small fort called a sconce. This fort was defended by two brigades of British soldiers. Even so, French grenadiers managed to reach the dike of the Zijpe polder. But the ring canal here was too difficult to cross. Many French soldiers drowned trying to get across this deep water. One of the French generals, David, was among those who died. When four British gunboats came close to shore and started firing on his side, General Vandamme had to retreat to where he started.
The French and Batavian forces had many more losses than the British. They had 1,876 soldiers dead and wounded, compared to only 184 for the British. This defeat really affected the morale of the Batavian troops. During the night, a false rumor of a British attack caused panic among Daendels' soldiers. Their flight was stopped at Daendels' headquarters, but some fleeing soldiers reached Alkmaar and caused more panic there. Some even ran all the way to Haarlem. General Brune was not happy about this.
What Happened Next
After the battle, more Russian and British soldiers arrived in Den Helder. The Anglo-Russian forces soon grew to 40,000 men. The Duke of York, who was now in charge of the Anglo-Russian army, decided to use his larger numbers. He tried to break out of his defensive position in the Zijpe polder on September 19. This led to the Battle of Bergen (1799). Even though that battle ended in a draw, the British didn't achieve their goals.
It wasn't until October that he managed to force the French and Batavian forces to retreat in the Battle of Alkmaar (1799). A few days later, at the Battle of Castricum, the French and Batavian forces won again. The Duke of York had to go back to the Zijpe polder. His difficult situation then forced him to ask for an honorable surrender. This agreement was called the Convention of Alkmaar.
Images for kids
-
Map of the current Zijpe-polder area
