Battle of Winterthur facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Battle of Winterthur |
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| Part of the War of the Second Coalition | |||||||
 Topographic map of the battle |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Austria |
 France |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Friedrich von Hotze Friedrich Joseph |
Michel Ney |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 8,000 | 7,000 | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 1,000 killed, wounded or missing | 800 killed, wounded or missing | ||||||
The Battle of Winterthur happened on May 27, 1799. It was a key fight between the French army and the Austrian army, led by Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze. This battle was part of the War of the Second Coalition, which was a bigger conflict during the French Revolutionary Wars.
Winterthur is a small town in Switzerland, about 18 kilometers (11 miles) northeast of Zürich. It was very important because seven roads met there. The army that controlled Winterthur could control access to most of Switzerland and routes into southern Germany. Even though not many soldiers were involved, the Austrians fought for 11 hours straight. Their victory allowed three Austrian armies to join up near Zürich. This led to the French losing the First Battle of Zurich a few days later.
By mid-May 1799, the Austrians had taken back parts of Switzerland from the French. Austrian forces under Hotze and Count Heinrich von Bellegarde pushed the French out of the Grison Alps. The main Austrian army, led by Archduke Charles, had already beaten the French Army of the Danube in earlier battles. Charles then crossed the Rhine River into Switzerland. He planned to meet up with Hotze's army and another Austrian force led by Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf near Zürich.
The French armies, now all under the command of André Masséna, wanted to stop the Austrians from joining forces. Masséna sent Michel Ney and a small group of soldiers from Zürich to block Hotze's army at Winterthur. The battle was tough, but the Austrians managed to push the French away from the Winterthur highlands. Both sides lost many soldiers. After the Austrian armies joined together in early June, Archduke Charles attacked the French near Zürich. He forced them to retreat across the Limmat River.
Contents
Why the Battle Happened
Europe at War
In the late 1700s, many European rulers were worried about the French Revolution. They saw it as a threat to their own power. In 1792, France declared war on Austria. This started the War of the First Coalition. France fought against many countries, including Austria, Britain, and others.
Even though the Coalition forces won some battles, the French army, especially under Napoleon Bonaparte, pushed the Austrians back. This led to a peace agreement called the Treaty of Campo Formio in 1797. However, this peace did not last long.
New War Begins in 1799
The peace treaty didn't solve all the problems. France and Austria still argued over land. Other countries like Russia and Britain started to support Austria. Russia even sent 60,000 soldiers to help Austria. This led to the start of the War of the Second Coalition.
In March 1799, the French army, led by General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, crossed the Rhine River. This was a clear sign that the war had started again. The French wanted to attack on many fronts. Meanwhile, Austrian forces were spread out from the Tyrol region to the Danube River.
The main Austrian army, with about 80,000 soldiers, was led by Archduke Charles. They defeated the French in earlier battles, pushing them back. Charles planned to cross the Rhine into Switzerland. Two other Austrian forces, one led by Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze and another by Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf, were also moving towards Switzerland. Their goal was to join with Charles's main army near Zürich.
By May, the French soldiers were tired and losing hope. They had suffered many losses. Their commander, André Masséna, was in a difficult spot. The Swiss people also started to rebel against the French. Zürich became the last strong place for Masséna to defend.
Winterthur's Location
Winterthur is in a valley about 31 kilometers (19 miles) northeast of Zürich. It's surrounded by hills. The Töss River flows nearby. This area was important because it was a crossroads where seven roads met. Controlling Winterthur meant controlling travel and communication in northern Switzerland.
Who Led the Armies
After the French lost some battles, André Masséna was put in charge of both French armies in the area. He gathered some of his best commanders to defend Zürich. Many of them would later become famous leaders.
The French were in a tough situation. The Austrians were winning, and a famous Russian general, Alexander Suvorov, was coming with 60,000 Russian soldiers to help Austria. Archduke Charles's large army was very close to Zürich. If Charles's forces joined with Hotze's and Nauendorf's, they could easily defeat the French.
To stop the Austrian armies from joining, Masséna set up a defensive line at Winterthur. This line was commanded by Jean Victor Tharreau. The most important part of this line was at Winterthur itself. If it fell, the French flanks would be in danger. Masséna sent Michel Ney, a newly promoted general, to take command of the center at Winterthur on May 27, 1799. Ney was known for being brave, but he didn't have much experience leading mixed groups of soldiers.
The French forces at Winterthur included brigades led by Dominique Mansuy Roget, Théodore Maxime Gazan, and a cavalry group led by Frédéric Henri Walther.
The Austrian commander, Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze, was also a cavalry officer, but he had a lot more experience than Ney. Hotze had fought in several wars and was trusted by Archduke Charles.
The Battle Begins
Setting the Stage
On May 22, 1799, Friedrich Joseph, Count of Nauendorf, led a large Austrian group across the Rhine River. Hotze's army had already crossed the Rhine further east and was moving towards Zürich.
Masséna wanted to stop these two Austrian forces from joining with Archduke Charles's huge army. So, on May 22, Masséna marched with 23,000 French soldiers towards Winterthur. On May 25, the French and Hotze's army fought at Frauenfeld. Hotze's force was much smaller and suffered heavy losses. But Hotze managed to escape and move towards Winterthur.
By May 26, Nauendorf's army had set up camp near Andelfingen and was in contact with Archduke Charles's main army. Charles was waiting for Hotze's force to arrive from the east before attacking the French at Zürich. Hotze's advance troops were very close to Winterthur.
The Fight
On the morning of May 27, Hotze divided his 8,000 soldiers into three groups and marched towards Winterthur. On the other side, Michel Ney had about 3,000 French soldiers. He placed them on the hills north of the city.
Ney planned to pull his soldiers back to Winterthur because the Austrian force was so large. But Jean Victor Tharreau, the overall commander of the French front line, told Ney that he would send Jean-de-Dieu Soult's division to help him. Ney thought this meant he should hold his ground. So, he sent Gazan's weaker group towards Frauenfeld and Roget's group to the right to stop the Austrians from going around them.
By mid-morning, Hotze's leading soldiers met French resistance. The Austrians quickly pushed back Gazan's group and took control of the woods around Islikon. Hotze then sent two of his groups to face the French head-on, while a third group moved to the French right side, just as Ney had expected.
Ney moved to the front with Gazan's group. He saw the enemy coming and still expected Soult's help. He thought it would be an easy win. He didn't realize that Hotze had 8,000 soldiers to take the crossroads. Ney brought more of his men forward and attacked the Austrian left. During an Austrian attack, Ney's horse was killed, and he was injured in the knee. He got a new horse and kept fighting.
Ney now had two problems: Soult's help wasn't coming, and the Austrians were much stronger than he thought. Gazan's group was too weak to hold back the growing Austrian force.
Finally, Ney realized Soult wasn't coming. He knew he couldn't hold his position. He decided they had to retreat to Winterthur. To cover the retreat, he told Frédéric Henri Walther and his cavalry to defend a bridge over the Töss River. From there, the cavalry could protect the French as they pulled back. Ney also placed some cannons on a ridge to fire at the advancing Austrians.
Walther's cavalry fought bravely at the bridge for 90 minutes, but the Austrian attack was too strong. Hotze's men forced Walther's soldiers from the bridge. However, the Austrians couldn't cross the bridge easily. Ney's rear guard kept firing cannons at anyone who tried to cross. Hotze saw that sending his men directly into cannon fire was pointless. Instead, he ordered a steady rifle attack. This worked, and Ney was injured again, this time in his left hand. His second horse was killed. He gave command to Gazan, who organized the rest of the retreat.
When Archduke Charles heard that Hotze had taken the Winterthur crossroads, he sent his troops to join Nauendorf's. They took the village of Neftenbach, which was west-northwest of Winterthur. The French commander, Nicolas Oudinot, held Neftenbach for most of the day but was forced to retreat towards Zürich. By taking Neftenbach, Charles placed a strong group of soldiers between Ney's force and Hotze's army. This forced the French to retreat unevenly towards Zürich. Tharreau tried to set up a new defensive line, but Masséna didn't want a big battle there. His armies were not ready to face Charles's entire force. He needed the defenses of Zürich to prepare for the Austrian attack. In the end, the entire French front line retreated to Zürich. The battle lasted 11 hours.
What Happened Next
Hotze's army had many losses, about 1,000 soldiers killed, wounded, or missing out of 8,000. Ney's force also lost about 800 soldiers out of 7,000. But Hotze's victory was important because he pushed the French back from Winterthur and successfully joined his army with Nauendorf's and Charles's. The combined Austrian force now surrounded Masséna's positions at Zürich.
For the French, the battle was a setback. Ney was badly wounded and couldn't fight again until July. The battle also showed problems in the French command. Some high-ranking officers, like Soult, refused to follow orders and help Ney. This hurt the French war effort.
The French also kept underestimating the Austrians. They thought the "white coats" (as they called the Austrians) were not as good as their own soldiers. This idea didn't change until 1809, when Napoleon himself realized how strong the Austrian army was after big battles like Battle of Aspern-Essling and Battle of Wagram.
Finally, the Battle of Winterthur made the Austrian victory at Zürich possible. Once the Austrian armies were united around Zürich, Charles had a much larger force. At the First Battle of Zürich (June 4–7, 1799), the Austrian army forced the French to leave Zürich. Masséna retreated across the Limmat River and set up new defenses, waiting for a chance to take the city back.
Armies in the Battle
Austrian Army
- Lieutenant Field Marshal Friedrich Freiherr von Hotze:
- 12th Infantry Regiment Manfredini (3 groups)
- 21st Infantry Regiment Gemmingen (2 companies)
- 41st Infantry Regiment Bender (3 groups)
- 1st Light Infantry Regiment Strozzi (1 group)
- 7th Dragoon Regiment Waldeck (6 cavalry groups)
- First Battalion, Hungarian-Banat Border Regiment
- Total: About 8,000 soldiers
French Army
- General of Division Michel Ney:
- Honoré Théodore Maxime Gazan de la Peyrière's group (4 groups)
- Dominique Mansuy Roget's group (2 groups)
- Frédéric Henri Walther's cavalry (3 cavalry groups)
- Total: 7,000 soldiers
Images for kids
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At Elgg, Hotze set up his forward posts. The ground was still soggy from melted winter snows.
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Part of Nauendorf's army crossed the Rhine at Stein on the Rhine (foreground) and Eglisau. By May 26, they reached Andelfingen, connecting with Charles's main army.
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The Töss River, which flows into the Rhine, ran through the main part of the battleground. The French couldn't hold a bridge across it, but their cannons stopped the Austrians from crossing.
