It was around 6 AM, as a thick layer of mist covered the Elbe plain that morning of October
1, 1756.
Frederick the Great's army marched onwards between the hills.
Neither the King nor his generals could make out what awaited them behind the fog and marshes.
All they knew was that the enemy was close.
Unbeknownst to them, Austrian Field Marshal Maximilian Ulysses Browne had deployed his
numerically superior army much earlier, fully expecting to meet the Prussians here.
He had enough time to deploy his army, proven by the rustling of leaves on the hill next
to Frederick's army.
Little did the Prussians know that General Franz Moritz von Lacy and 2000 hidden irregular
troops were more than ready for the battle about to commence.
[Background]
Tensions between Prussia and other European Great Powers remained high after the minor
Kingdom's stunning victories of the First and Second Silesian War.
A decade of international developments detailed in my video dedicated to the so-called Diplomatic
Revolution followed.
By 1756, Frederick learned of an anti-Prussian alliance against him.
He tried his best to navigate the muddled geopolitical waters.
Then, on a whim, he decided to sign a treaty with Britain, the arch-enemy of his main ally
in continental Europe, France.
Perhaps ironically, this treaty, meant to guarantee its safety, led to the rapid deterioration
of Prussia's situation.
In response, France moved into Austria's embrace, and Russia was already preparing a war against
the Kingdom.
In the months following the treaty's signing, France and Austria concluded the defensive
First Treaty of Versailles.
Austrian minister Kaunitz, the chief architect of rapprochement with their arch-enemy France,
also established an alliance with Sweden by promising them to return Pomerania upon Prussia's
defeat.
Three Great Powers all vying to destroy his Kingdom rightly unnerved Frederick.
At first, he tried to use diplomacy to determine their exact plans, but none of the courts
even pretended to assure him they would not attack him.
So finally, Frederick decided to use his trusted recipe, which granted him success in the first
two Silesian Wars: he decided to strike first.
He set his eyes on Saxony.
Why Saxony?
Well, once again, the policy was based on Frederick's mistaken assumptions.
He thought Saxony joined the anti-Prussian alliance (which they had not).
However, whether it was justified, his invasion provided him with a strategic advantage.
None of his primary adversaries had mobilised close to his borders.
By conquering Saxony, he prevented Austria, France and Russia from establishing a springboard
only 80 kilometres from his capital.
After conquering the electorate, he wanted to cross into Bohemia and capture Prague before
winter fell.
Thanks to Saxony's abundance of resources and decent economic infrastructure, Frederick
would be able to subsidise a significant portion of the upcoming war through Saxony.
It would turn out to be true - during the entire Seven Years' War Saxony funded up to
one-third of Prussia's expenses.
In August 1756, Frederick deployed his army on the Saxon border.
On that misty morning, he marched into the unsuspecting electorate.
Immediately, things did not go the way Frederick anticipated.
Whereas he expected a quick victory, the Saxons evaded the invading Prussian army.
They took up their positions in the fortress of Pirna - described as 'one of the most tactically
strong positions in Central Europe'.
The Saxons' resistance was significant enough to delay Frederick's timetable.
On September 9, he finally captured Dresden but was already behind schedule.
The international response to, and the surprise by his illegitimate, sudden invasion was not
mild.
To show how unexpected the invasion was: Maria Theresa was at her country retreat at Holitsch
when news of the advancing Prussian army reached her.
She immediately returned to Vienna and coordinated a surprisingly swift response.
Eleven days later, Field Marshal Maximilian Ulysses von Browne, commanding the main Austrian
army, reached Budin in northern Bohemia.
His objective was to relieve the Saxons at Pirna.
However meanwhile, Frederick advanced his main army into Bohemia, leaving a Prussian
garrison to keep Pirna under siege.
Near the village of Lobositz, in the valley of the River Elbe, Browne and Frederick's
main armies ran into each other.
At 6 AM in the early morning of October 1, 1756, Frederick's army marched into the Elbe
plain.
Browne had chosen this location to halt the Prussian advance.
He fielded 34,000 troops.
26.500 infantry in 15 regiments, four Croat battalions, 7500 cavalries in 12 regiments
and 94 guns.
He deployed his Austrian army from the north to the south of Lobositz.
The central part of his infantry was situated behind the Mödlbach, with infantry and cavalry
deployed relatively scattered between the Elbe and the stream.
In the village of Sullowitz lay several hidden infantry units and artillery pieces.
Finally, in front of Lobositz stood Austrian artillery.
These artillery units had received a massive overhaul during the interbellum, and this
battle was the first time Prussia faced them.
They would definitely notice.
the river protected Browne's left flank.
The Lobosch protected his right.
He had the strategic high ground for sure.
Frederick initially believed he was only facing a minor Austrian rearguard, covering their
crossing of the Elbe.
Frederick commanded around 28,500 soldiers.
17,500 infantry in 25 battalions, 10,500 horses in 59 squadrons, 97 artillery guns and a small
force of 300 hussars.
Frederick and Brunswick and about ten artillery guns seized the Homolka - an excellent observation
point to direct the battle.
It is uncertain at which stage Frederick realised he faced the main army.
Many sources indicate he was unaware of his foe's superior numbers until after the battle
commenced.
As the Prussians arrived, General Lacy, commanding around 2000 Hungarian and Croat irregulars,
made his way around the Lobosch, intending to fall onto the Prussian army from an elevated
position.
[Battle sequence]
As soon as the Prussian infantry entered the Elbe valley, the Austrian artillery positioned
in front of Lobositz opened fire on them.
The Prussian artillery returned fire in response.
Though unknown whether Frederick noticed Lacy's outflanking manoeuvre, he ordered August Wilhelm,
Duke of Brunswick-Bevern and his entire Prussian left flank, to seize the Lobosch hill.
The infantry began the climb.
They ran into Lacy's irregulars on top, and heavy combat ensued.
Due to the uneven terrain, the combat was not orderly, and infantry was scattered around,
fighting for their lives.
Frederick ordered Lieutenant General Friedrich Wilhelm von Kyau's cuirassiers to scout the
valley and expose Browne's centre and left positions.
Frederick still considered the army he faced a minor force, although Kyau warned the King
that the "fog may hold more than the King imagined".
Kyau split up his cavalry, with part moving against Sullowitz and its infantry, part against
Lobositz.
Skirmishes erupted in front of Sullowitz while Kyau continued towards Lobositz.
Austrian dragoons exploited the emerging gap by flanking Kyau's cavalry.
A savage skirmish evolved, slowly moving towards Lobositz.
Then suddenly, the Austrian cavalry commander ordered to disengage.
The Prussians found themselves close to ditches from which Croat irregulars emerged.
These opened fire against the surprised cavalry.
Strategically hidden artillery to their west joined the murderous fire.
Then, the dragoons re-engaged, crashing into Kyau.
The Prussian cavalry deteriorated in a chaotic and unorganised rout.
At a terrible cost, the cavalry at Sullowitz tried to protect them.
As they fell back, the fog cleared and for the first time, Frederick saw the extent of
his enemy, stretched from the Modlbach to Welhoten.
He ordered the remainder of the cavalry to link up but hold off their second charge.
Combined, they numbered approximately 10.000.
Despite their orders to wait, the continuous shelling by the Austrian artillery caused
its commanders to become impatient and unnerved.
This culminated in an uncoordinated charge by the Prussian cavalry.
They charged towards Lobositz, uncertain where the enemy was positioned and how many there
were.
But, again, soldiers behind the Modlbach, hidden artillery in Sullowitz and irregulars
around the ditches picked them off as they clashed with the Austrian Dragoons.
Still, the impact and their advance unnerved Browne.
He ordered the cavalry behind the Modlbach to charge the flank of the Prussians - which
they did.
They caught them hard.
Within minutes most regiments lost over 100 men, including dozens of officers.
When Austrian infantry around Lobositz opened fire, the horsemen fortunate enough to survive
until now realised their efforts would bear no result and fell back to the infantry line.
During all this, the fight on the Lobosch against Lacy was still ongoing.
Despite outnumbering the Austrians, Bevern required multiple reinforcements.
Due to the lack of ammunition, soldiers on the hill resorted to looting fallen comrades
to continue firing.
The rest of the infantry had remained relatively dormant throughout the entire battle, similarly
to Browne's main army behind the Modl-bach.
But in the background, Browne had been frantically preparing his infantry to move onto Sullowitz.
Then, with a large part of the army already drawn up, the Prussian artillery on top of
the Homolka unleashed hell on them.
The village was reduced to a burning pile of rubble, and the army was pushed back.
Regardless of fending off the main army's attack, trouble brewed behind the Prussian
front lines.
The howitzers on the Homolka were running low on ammo, and the battle on the hill was
costly but stagnant.
Around this moment, Frederick handed over command to Field Marshal James Keith and ordered
him to consider retreat as he left the battlefield.
Frankly, Prussia's prospects were not good.
The scene was slightly reminiscent of the Battle of Mollwitz, 15 years before, when
Frederick abandoned the battlefield after the Austrians routed his cavalry.
But then, Prussia's fortune changed.
On top of the Lobosch, fighting had deteriorated to savage hand-to-hand, musket butt and bayonet-fighting.
The slopes were covered with corpses.
But Bevern came out on top.
He pushed Lacy's irregulars off the hill.
Exhausted, they fled towards Welhoten and Lobositz.
The subsequent interplay was nothing short of exquisite.
Keith ordered the Prussian left to charge in Lobositz's direction.
The right was to defend the Homolka in case of a counterattack.
He also sent a messenger to Frederick to inform him of their change in fortune.
The Prussian infantry put up a brutal fight against the Austrians between Lobositz and
Welhoten.
The fighting was fierce and ruthless, but they soon pushed through as their artillery
lit up Lobositz.
The Prussians advancing picked off whatever infantry remained in the burning village.
All houses were on fire, as the infantry moved from house to house.
Most Habsburg troops jumped in the Elbe in the hopes of escaping.
Some fled to the west towards the other side of the Morellenbach.
Pursuing them was impossible, for the fresh Austrian infantry on the other side launched
volleys against the Prussians.
It showed the Prussians hadn’t decisively won, but they certainly hadn’t lost.
Understanding his precarious position, Browne ordered the general retreat for the main army
behind the Modl-bach.
The battle had lasted over nine hours.
Once again the artillery and cavalry combat proved inconclusive.
It was the Prussian infantry saving the day.
The Prussians suffered 2906 casualties, whereas the Austrians suffered 3291.
The Prussian army camped on the field of battle.
In his letters after the battle, Frederick recounted how the Prussians routed the over
twice more numerous Austrian army.
But, of course, this was not the truth.
In fact, despite perhaps traditionally emerging victorious, perhaps Browne has to be credited
with at least fighting to a draw.
He voluntarily withdrew, and suffered a similar number of casualties but had commanded a larger
force.
And perhaps most importantly: the Habsburg army was not as easily defeated as had been
the case during the two Silesian Wars beforehand.
Frederick realised the army he faced was wildly different from that a decade earlier, writing
in a report detailing the battle that "the Austrians are more cunning than formerly and
you can take it from me that if we cannot put much heavier cannon against them it would
cost innumerable lives to beat them."
The taking of the Lobosch was reminiscent of the assault against the Graner Koppe, back
in 1745 at Frederick's Battle of Soor.
This was an incredibly costly affair but ultimately proved crucial in securing a victory.
A few days later, Browne personally commanded 8000 Austrian soldiers pushing north towards
the region where he agreed to meet the Saxon garrison.
They were supposed to break out.
However, the Saxons were unable to do so, and on October 14, they surrendered to the
Prussians.
Despite this setback for the Austrians, the six-week delay meant Browne and his army quartered
in Prague for the winter while Frederick was stuck in Dresden.
A surviving from one of the Prussian officers participating in the battle reveals a lot
about what Prussia and Frederick were up against:
"On this occasion, Frederick did not come up against the same kind of Austrians he had
beaten in four battles in a row.
He was not dealing with people like Neipperg or the blustering Prince Charles of Lorraine.
He faced FieldMarshal Browne, who had grown grey in the service, and whose talent and
experience had raised him to be one of the heroes of his time.
He faced artillery which Prince Liechtenstein had brought to perfection at his own expense.
He faced an army which during ten years of peace had attained a greater mastery of the
arts of war, and had striven to adopt the methods of its former victors and shape itself
according to their discipline."
As for the Saxons - Frederick conscripted all of them into the Prussian army.
Ten entire new regiments were formed.
But, perhaps unexpectedly, the desertion among these troops was incredibly high.
Within a few months, two regiments already were disbanded because of their rebellious
nature.
Not to mention individual desertions.
For now, it was winter.
But as both sides knew, the new year would be filled with combat and warfare.
Thank you for watching this video.