Siege of Danzig (1734)

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Siege of Danzig


caption=
partof=the War of the Polish Succession
date=February 22 - June 30 1734
place=Danzig, Poland
result=Russian-Saxon victory
combatant1=flag|Russia
combatant2=
commander1=Peter Lacy,
Burkhard Christoph von Munnich,
Thomas Gordon
commander2=Stanislas Leszczynski,
La Motte (French fleet),
Count Plélo (French-Swedish volunteers)
strength1=20,000
strength2=2,400 French,
Unknown Poles,
Unknown Swedes.
casualties1=8,000
casualties2=Unknown
Fall of the city

The Siege of Danzig of 1734 was the Russian encirclement (February 22 - June 30) and capture of the city of Danzig (Gdańsk) during the War of Polish Succession. This was the first time that France and Russia had met as foes in the field. [ [http://www.uni-mannheim.de/mateo/camenaref/cmh/cmh607.html#197 The History of Poland] ]

The Polish king Stanislas Leszczynski had fled after the Russian capture of Warsaw, and after failing to find support in Poland. Stanisław entrenched with his partisans (including the Primate of Poland Teodor Potocki and the French and Swedish ministers) to await the relief that had been promised by France.

Nevertheless, cardinal de Fleury (Louis XV's chancellor) to avoid further confrontations with neutral European powers sent only a small fleet under marshal de La Motte. [French Wikipedia: ] On February 22, 1734, a Russian army of 20,000 under Peter Lacy, after proclaiming August III the Saxon at Warsaw, proceeded to besiege Danzig.

On March 17, 1734, Marshal Münnich superseded Peter Lacy, and on May 20 the long-expected French fleet appeared, consisting of three ships of the line and two frigates, including the 60-gun "Fleuron" and the 46-gun "Gloire". The fleet went on to disembark 2,400 men on Westerplatte. [ [http://www.neva.ru/EXPO96/book/chap3-2.html Russian Military History, "From Danzig to Kolberg"] This website about Russian events lists the number of French troops as 1,800] A week later, this force attempted to storm the Russian entrenchments, but failing to do so, and following the arrival of a Russian fleet under admiral Thomas Gordon on June 1, and knowing also that the town was so well encircled by the Russians, the French fleet sail to Copenhague.

Besides a small group of Swedish volunteers, only two thousand French soldiers under Count Plélo [Louis Robert Hyppolite de Bréhan (1699-1734), ambassador to Denmark, Colonel of a regiment named after him] tried to rescue the king, but they were thrown back and their heroic commander was killed in action on May 27, 1734. Count Plélo did this by his own, with his personal raised brigade. The French fleet of La Motte returned just to save the survivors. [warandgame.blogspot.com: [http://warandgame.blogspot.com/2008/05/east-central-europe-during-polish-and.html East-central Europe during the Polish and Austrian successions wars] ]

The Russian fleet, consisting of the 100-gun ship "Peter I and II" and the 32-gun frigates "Russia" and "Mitau" had had a previous encounter with the French ships, in which the "Mitau" was captured. Anyway, La Motte was compelled to surrender finally.

Danzig capitulated unconditionally on June 30, after sustaining a siege of 135 days, which cost the Russians 8,000 men. [ [http://www.uni-mannheim.de/mateo/camenaref/cmh/cmh607.html#197 The History of Poland] ] Danzig had suffered considerable damage and had to pay reparations.

Disguised as a peasant, Stanisław had contrived to escape two days before to save the city from destruction. He reappeared at Königsberg, whence he issued a manifesto to his partisans which resulted in the formation of a confederation on his behalf, and the dispatch of a Polish envoy to Paris to urge France to invade Saxony with at least 40,000 men. In the Ukraine, Count Nicholas Potocki hoped to support Stanisław by joining up with a force of some 50,000 guerillas operating in the countryside around Danzig. However they were ultimately scattered by the Russians.

References

External links

* [http://www.zum.de/whkmla/region/eceurope/danzig16601793.html KMLA, History of Danzig: Danzig, 1660-1793]