Battle of Lübeck

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Lübeck
partof=the War of the Fourth Coalition
date=6 November, 1806
place=Lübeck, Germany
result=French victory
combatant1=flagicon|France French Empire
combatant2=flagicon|Prussia|1803 Prussia
commander1=Marshal Bernadotte
commander2=General Blücher
strength1=30,000 & 90 cannons
strength2=15,000 & 12 cannons
casualties1=Unknown, probably 1,000
casualties2=2,000 killed and wounded
4,000 capturedThe Battle of Lübeck took place on November 6, 1806 in Lübeck, Germany between French troops under Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte and Prussian forces under Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher. After the battle, the French forces occupied the neutral city of Lübeck.

Background

After Emperor Napoleon defeated the Prussian Army at the twin battles of Jena and Auerstädt on October 14, 1806, he launched the French army on a lightning pursuit. In the face of this threat, the Prussian army suffered a major collapse of morale. Relentlessly hounded by the French, some Prussian officers surrendered large field forces and well-supplied fortresses to numerically inferior units of cavalry and infantry. One of the few officers who did not lose his head during this crisis was Lieutenant-General Blücher. He gathered up his command and the Duke of Weimar's corps and tried to fight his way out to the northeast, closely pursued by Bernadotte's I Corps.

Battle

Blücher was forced farther and farther to the north by his pursuers. At last, he ran out of Prussian territory. On November 5, he marched into the neutral Hanseatic City-state of Lübeck, where he demanded money and food from the city authorities. The next day, Bernadotte's men attacked the walls. Marshal Nicolas Soult's IV Corps soon marched up to increase the odds. After tough and confused fighting, the French stormed into the city, forcing the Prussians to retreat. Blücher counterattacked, but the French held on to the city. In clashes near the city at Strecknitz, Krempelsdorf and Schwartau, the French cut off and captured detachments from the Prussian force. [Smith, p 231]

Results

French losses are not known, but due to the intensity of fighting, 1,000 is a conservative total. The Prussians lost 2,000 killed and wounded, plus a further 4,000 captured. General Scharnhorst, Blücher's chief-of-staff fell into French hands. [Chandler, p 501] The city of Lübeck was thoroughly plundered by the French troops.

On November 7 at Ratekau, Blücher surrendered with his remaining forces, 4,000 infantry and 3,800 cavalry. By this time, he was surrounded by 40,000 Frenchmen. The Prussian commander wrote in protest, "I capitulate because I have no bread and no ammunition - Blücher." [Smith, p 232]

In negotiations with some captured Swedes, Bernadotte first came to the attention of the Swedish authorities. In 1810 he was elected heir to the Swedish throne and later became King Charles XIV John of Sweden.

References

* Chandler, David. "The Campaigns of Napoleon." New York: Macmillan, 1966.
* Smith, Digby. "The Napoleonic Wars Data Book." London: Greenhill, 1993. ISBN 1-85367-276-9

Footnotes