Prussia Resurgent

The defeats at Hochkirk and Kunersdorf had shattered Prussian morale and it appeared only a matter of time before either Russia or Austria dealt the crippling blow. At Liegnitz, Daun and Lacy tried to do just that. They had Ernst …

1760-08-15

FW08

The defeats at Hochkirk and Kunersdorf had shattered Prussian morale and it appeared only a matter of time before either Russia or Austria dealt the crippling blow. At Liegnitz, Daun and Lacy tried to do just that. They had Ernst von Loudon, perhaps Austria’s finest tactician, engage Frederick while their forces came from the rear and trapped the Prussians. However, Daun and Lacy were late and Loudon’s men were cut up in vicious fighting. Daun arrived but he decided not to attack. It was the greatest blunder of his career. The battle restored faith in Frederick and proved that he was a capable on the defensive as on the offensive. The battle also wrecked relations within the Austrian high command. Loudon accused Lacy and Daun of abandoning him. Daun’s defeat at Torgau months later led to a split between him and Lacy, while Daun’s wounding took him out of action. The collapse within the Austrian high command made coherent action difficult in 1761, when Prussia was on verge of collapse. Any of the three Austrian commanders at Liegnitz might have won Freiberg in 1762 and kept Silesia in Austria’s hands.

Liegnitz, Prussian Silesia

The Battle of Liegnitz on 15 August 1760 saw Frederick the Great's Prussian Army defeat the Austrian army under Ernst von Laudon during the Third Silesian War (part of the Seven Years' War). The armies collided around the town of Liegnitz (now Legnica, Poland) in Lower Silesia. Laudon's Austrian cavalry attacked the Prussian position in the early morning but were beaten back by General Zieten's Hussars. An artillery duel emerged which was eventually won for the Prussians when a shell hit an Austrian powder wagon. The Austrian infantry then proceeded to attack the Prussian line, but was met with concentrated artillery fire. A Prussian infantry counter-attack led by the Regiment Anhalt-Bernburg on the left forced the Austrians into retreat. Notably, the Anhalt-Bernburgers charged Austrian cavalry with bayonets, a rare example of infantry assaulting cavalry.

Wikipedia: Battle of Liegnitz (1760)

Prussian

Austrian