Battle of Stralsund (1809)
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Stralsund on 31 May 1809 was a battle
during the War of the Fifth Coalition
, part of the Napoleonic Wars
, between Ferdinand von Schill
's freikorps
and Napoleonic forces in Stralsund
. In a "vicious street battle", the freikorps was defeated and Schill killed in action.
, a port at the Baltic Sea
in Swedish Pomerania
, was surrendered to France
after the siege of 1807 during the War of the Fourth Coalition
. During this war, Prussia
n captain Ferdinand von Schill
distinguished himself by cutting off French supply lines using guerrilla tactics in 1806. In 1807, he raised a freikorps
and successfully fought the French forces in what he intended to become a patriotic insurrection. When his corps was disbanded after the Peace of Tilsit on 9 July 1807, Schill was promoted to the rank of a major, decorated with the Pour le Mérite
, and became a hero of German resistance and patriotic movements.
In January and February 1809, the German resistance in French-held Westphalia
invited Schill to lead an uprising. He agreed in April and drafted a proclamation which however was intercepted by the French, and left Berlin
on 27 April when he was threatened with arrest. With a freikorps
of 100 hussar
s, Schill headed southwest towards Westphalia
to stir up an anti-French rebellion, but news of the French victory in the Battle of Ratisbon
made him change his plans. Schill turned northwards to secure a port, hoping for relief by the British
navy.
on 25 May with 2,000 men. The freikorps was pursued by a French-led force of 6,000 Danes
, Holstein
ers, Dutch and French, who confronted Schill on 31 May inside of the town.
The Dutch auxiliaries, about 4,000 troops, were commanded by Pierre Guillaume Gratien, another 1,500 Danish troops were under general Johann von Ewald's command. Garnier's Dutch forces included the 6th and 9th infantry, 2nd kurassier and two horse artillery batteries. They entered the town after storming the Tribseer Tor gate, and engaged Schill's freikorps in street fights. Schill was killed, and the survivors of his freikorps dispersed or captured.
, and later executed in Wesel
following an order of Napoleon Bonaparte. More than five hundred of Schill's men went into captivity. Schill's head was sent to The Netherlands for display in Leyden's public library, and only in 1837 the head was buried in Brunswick.
Schill was not alone with his plans to stir up an insurrection of the Prussian people against the French occupation. Other prominent plotters were Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick and Kasper von Dörnberg. All of them saw the Austrian resistance and the resulting War of the Fifth Coalition
as a chance to expel Napoleon Bonaparte from Northern Germany as well. France however proved to be the stronger party, and Schill's defeat in the streets of Stralsund put a definite end to all plans for a popular uprising.
Battle
Generally, a battle is a conceptual component in the hierarchy of combat in warfare between two or more armed forces, or combatants. In a battle, each combatant will seek to defeat the others, with defeat determined by the conditions of a military campaign...
during the War of the Fifth Coalition
War of the Fifth Coalition
The War of the Fifth Coalition, fought in the year 1809, pitted a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and Bavaria. Major engagements between France and Austria, the main participants, unfolded over much of Central Europe from April to July, with...
, part of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, between Ferdinand von Schill
Ferdinand von Schill
Ferdinand Baptista von Schill was a Prussian officer who revolted unsuccessfully against French domination in May 1809.-Life:...
's freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
and Napoleonic forces in Stralsund
Stralsund
- Main sights :* The Brick Gothic historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.* The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square , with the Gothic Town Hall . Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche , built in 1270-1360...
. In a "vicious street battle", the freikorps was defeated and Schill killed in action.
Prelude
StralsundStralsund
- Main sights :* The Brick Gothic historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.* The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square , with the Gothic Town Hall . Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche , built in 1270-1360...
, a port at the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
in Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania
Swedish Pomerania was a Dominion under the Swedish Crown from 1630 to 1815, situated on what is now the Baltic coast of Germany and Poland. Following the Polish War and the Thirty Years' War, Sweden held extensive control over the lands on the southern Baltic coast, including Pomerania and parts...
, was surrendered to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
after the siege of 1807 during the War of the Fourth Coalition
War of the Fourth Coalition
The Fourth Coalition against Napoleon's French Empire was defeated in a war spanning 1806–1807. Coalition partners included Prussia, Russia, Saxony, Sweden, and the United Kingdom....
. During this war, Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n captain Ferdinand von Schill
Ferdinand von Schill
Ferdinand Baptista von Schill was a Prussian officer who revolted unsuccessfully against French domination in May 1809.-Life:...
distinguished himself by cutting off French supply lines using guerrilla tactics in 1806. In 1807, he raised a freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
and successfully fought the French forces in what he intended to become a patriotic insurrection. When his corps was disbanded after the Peace of Tilsit on 9 July 1807, Schill was promoted to the rank of a major, decorated with the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
, and became a hero of German resistance and patriotic movements.
In January and February 1809, the German resistance in French-held Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
invited Schill to lead an uprising. He agreed in April and drafted a proclamation which however was intercepted by the French, and left Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
on 27 April when he was threatened with arrest. With a freikorps
Freikorps
Freikorps are German volunteer military or paramilitary units. The term was originally applied to voluntary armies formed in German lands from the middle of the 18th century onwards. Between World War I and World War II the term was also used for the paramilitary organizations that arose during...
of 100 hussar
Hussar
Hussar refers to a number of types of light cavalry which originated in Hungary in the 14th century, tracing its roots from Serbian medieval cavalry tradition, brought to Hungary in the course of the Serb migrations, which began in the late 14th century....
s, Schill headed southwest towards Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
to stir up an anti-French rebellion, but news of the French victory in the Battle of Ratisbon
Battle of Ratisbon
The Battle of Ratisbon, also called the Battle of Regensburg, of the Napoleonic Wars was fought on the 23 April 1809 between the army of the First French Empire, led by Napoleon I, and that of the Austrian Empire, led by Archduke Charles...
made him change his plans. Schill turned northwards to secure a port, hoping for relief by the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
navy.
Battle
Schill entered StralsundStralsund
- Main sights :* The Brick Gothic historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.* The heart of the old town is the Old Market Square , with the Gothic Town Hall . Behind the town hall stands the imposing Nikolaikirche , built in 1270-1360...
on 25 May with 2,000 men. The freikorps was pursued by a French-led force of 6,000 Danes
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Holstein
Holstein
Holstein is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is part of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany....
ers, Dutch and French, who confronted Schill on 31 May inside of the town.
The Dutch auxiliaries, about 4,000 troops, were commanded by Pierre Guillaume Gratien, another 1,500 Danish troops were under general Johann von Ewald's command. Garnier's Dutch forces included the 6th and 9th infantry, 2nd kurassier and two horse artillery batteries. They entered the town after storming the Tribseer Tor gate, and engaged Schill's freikorps in street fights. Schill was killed, and the survivors of his freikorps dispersed or captured.
Aftermath
Eleven of Schill's officers were taken to BrunswickBraunschweig
Braunschweig , is a city of 247,400 people, located in the federal-state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is located north of the Harz mountains at the farthest navigable point of the Oker river, which connects to the North Sea via the rivers Aller and Weser....
, and later executed in Wesel
Wesel
Wesel is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the capital of the Wesel district.-Division of the town:Suburbs of Wesel include Lackhausen, Obrighoven, Ginderich, Feldmark,Fusternberg, Büderich, Flüren and Blumenkamp.-History:...
following an order of Napoleon Bonaparte. More than five hundred of Schill's men went into captivity. Schill's head was sent to The Netherlands for display in Leyden's public library, and only in 1837 the head was buried in Brunswick.
Schill was not alone with his plans to stir up an insurrection of the Prussian people against the French occupation. Other prominent plotters were Frederick William, Duke of Brunswick and Kasper von Dörnberg. All of them saw the Austrian resistance and the resulting War of the Fifth Coalition
War of the Fifth Coalition
The War of the Fifth Coalition, fought in the year 1809, pitted a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and Bavaria. Major engagements between France and Austria, the main participants, unfolded over much of Central Europe from April to July, with...
as a chance to expel Napoleon Bonaparte from Northern Germany as well. France however proved to be the stronger party, and Schill's defeat in the streets of Stralsund put a definite end to all plans for a popular uprising.