Battle of Dennewitz

Overview

The Battle of Dennewitz took place on 6 September 1813 between French forces commanded by Marshal Michel Ney and the Sixth Coalition's Allied Army of the North commanded by Crown Prince Charles John of Sweden, Friedrich Wilhelm von Bülow and Bogislav von Tauentzien. It occurred in Dennewitz, a village in the Prussian province of Brandenburg, near Jüterbog, 40 kilometres (25 mi) southwest of Berlin. The battle marked a turning point in the German Campaign of 1813 as not only did the Allied victory end Napoleon's hopes of capturing Berlin and knocking Prussia out of the war, but the severity of the French defeat, inflicted by a primarily Prussian force, also led to the erosion of fidelity of German allies to the Napoleonic cause. The French losses, and consequent diplomatic reverses, that resulted from Dennewitz contributed greatly to Napoleon's defeat a month later at the Battle of Leipzig.

Overview adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Significance

The Battle of Dennewitz, fought near Jüterbog in the Prussian province of Brandenburg roughly 40 kilometres southwest of Berlin, marked a turning point in the German Campaign of 1813. The Allied victory under Crown Prince Charles John of Sweden, Bülow, and Tauentzien ended Napoleon's bid to capture Berlin and remove Prussia from the war. The defeat was inflicted primarily by Prussian forces, and its severity accelerated the erosion of loyalty among Napoleon's German allies to the Napoleonic cause. The French losses and the diplomatic reverses that followed contributed directly to Napoleon's defeat at the Battle of Leipzig one month later, making Dennewitz a critical link in the chain of reverses that unraveled French dominance in central Europe during the autumn of 1813.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (5)