- Battle of Drakenburg
Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Drakenburg
partof=theSchmalkaldic War
caption=1607 etching of the battle
date=May 23 ,1547
place=nearDrakenburg
casus=
territory=
result=Protestant victory
combatant1=Protestant Schmalkaldic troops
combatant2=Catholic Imperial troops
combatant3=
commander1=
commander2=
commander3=
strength1=6,500 infantry, 1,400 cavalry, 24 cannons
strength2=6,000 infantry, unknown number of cavalry, 17 cannons
strength3=
casualties1=200 dead, 400 wounded
casualties2=2,500 dead, 2,500 captured
casualties3=
notes=In the Battle of Drakenburg ( _de. Schlacht bei Drakenburg), which took place onMay 23 ,1547 to the north of Nienburg, the Protestant army of theSchmalkaldic League defeated the imperial troops ofEric II, Duke of Calenberg , who was forced to swim over theWeser River in order to save his own life. As a consequence of the Battle of Drakenburg, the imperial troops left northernGermany , contributing tofreedom of religion for Lutherans and Catholics in northern Germany.Context
The Schmalkaldic League had already been defeated in the
Schmalkaldic War by losing theBattle of Mühlberg onApril 24 ,1547 . The signing of theWittenberg Capitulation onMay 19 virtually dissolved the league. Nonetheless, the northern German members of the Schmalkaldic League still resisted the Catholic Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.iege of Bremen
In January 1547, the imperial colonel and mercenary leader
Christoph von Wrisberg recruited men inMünsterland . Via thePrince-Bishopric of Osnabrück andMinden , which were still loyal to the emperor, Wrisberg's army marched toBremen to begin besieging the city. In April the 19-year old Duke Eric II joined the besieging army, which numbered 12,000 men with Eric's reinforcements. In May, Eric was informed that a Protestant army was pillaging and plundering his Duchy ofCalenberg and that this army was on its way to Bremen in order to liberate the city. Because the unsuccessful siege had taken months, using up the supplies, killing a quarter of his "Landsknechte ", and creating the danger of amutiny , Eric decided to abandon the siege.Deployment
Imperial troops
The imperial troops left Bremen on
May 22 , marching rapidly in order to attack the Protestant army. The units of the two military leaders Eric and Christoph von Wrisberg travelled along the Weser separately, one on each bank; they wanted to re-unite at a river crossing. Wrisberg's troops lagged behind, however, because the sand paths caused problems. The young and ambitious duke did not wait for the latecomers and had his mercenaries march more quickly. After Eric was informed of the approach of the enemy nearDrakenburg , he ordered his soldiers to get into battle formation. He had about 6,000 "Landsknechte", an unknown number of horsemen, and seventeen cannons at his disposal. He positioned them east of Drakenburg towardsHeemsen on an open field. He chose a corrugated terrain withsand dune s of up to fifteen meters in height. He regarded the terrain as ideal in order to meet the enemy from a secure position. His cannons would have an open field of fire as a result of their more elevated position. Additionally, his troops had the advantage of having both the sun and the wind behind them. His troops did not, however, have any avenue for evasion or retreat, since the battlefield was bordered by swamps, wetlands, and the Weser River.Protestants
Elector John Frederick I of Saxony had led the Protestant army shortly before his capture in the
Battle of Mühlberg . Originally, the army had only consisted of several "Fähnlein " of "Landsknechte" led byAlbrecht VII, Count of Mansfeld . It had marched from Saxony viaNordhausen ,Northeim , andBraunschweig in order to aid the besieged city of Bremen. Troops from Braunschweig,Hildesheim ,Hamburg , andMagdeburg had joined the army. Thus, the army consisted of a total of 26 "Fähnlein", or approximately 6,500 men, giving them a slight numeric advantage.Battle
The Protestant troops came from the east and reached Eric's troops, who were entrenched on the dunes. The Schmalkaldic attackers availed themselves of a tactic attributed to
Brun von Bothmer , acaptain from Brunswick. He knew the area well as he lived there as a child and proposed apincer movement with a second offensive at the Catholics' rear. Bothmer led about one thousand mountedarquebus iers to attack from the north covertly. Both parties began the battle with simultaneous shelling and assaults. In doing so, Eric's battle formation faltered. Additionally, the Protestant cavalry divided the imperial forces by riding in between the hills. In the chaos, Eric's cavalry fled, inflicting losses upon their own infantry. The Catholic forces' escape route had been cut off by the Schmalkaldic forces as well as the nearby swampland. The only escape was the Weser River, which was flooded with spring runoff. Approximately 1,000 imperial mercenaries drowned while looking for a ford. Duke Eric II swam across the river with great difficulty, but survived.Rearguard action
The units under the command of Wrisberg reached the battlefield on
May 23 , but the battle was already over. Because of their numeric inferiority they retreated towards Verden. About ten kilometers north of the battlefield, the soldiers encountered theTross of the Protestants near Hassel. It was only protected by a few soldiers, equivalent to about one "Fähnlein". The imperial forces overpowered the weak Schmalkaldic forces, attaining theirwar chest containing about 100,000 goldguilder , which would eventually be added to the funds of Emperor Charles V.Consequences
As a result of the Battle of Drakenberg, the imperial army of Eric II virtually ceased to exist; Wrisberg's troops escaped to the Netherlands and disbanded. The Protestant victory contributed to the stability and freedom of religion for Lutherans and Catholics in northern Germany. The two surviving leaders Christoph von Wrisberg and Eric II would despise each other for the rest of their lives, accusing each other of being responsible for the defeat.
References
*Drakenburg: Heimatverein (ed.): "Geschichte des Fleckens Drakenburg". 1997. ISBN 3-9802780-8-5
*Freiherr Karl von Bothmer: "Die Schlacht vor der Drakenburg am 23. Mai 1547, ein historisch militärische Studie", 1938, Hildesheim
*" [http://www.erichshagen-woelpe.de/geschichte/drakenburgschlacht.htm Vor über 450 Jahren am 23. Mai 1547: Die Schlacht bei Drakenburg] "
*de|Schlacht bei Drakenburg
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