Battle of La Rothière

Overview

The Battle of La Rothière saw the Coalition forces of the Austrian Empire, Russian Empire, Kingdom of Prussia, Kingdom of Bavaria, and Kingdom of Württemberg attack a French army led by Emperor Napoleon. The main Coalition army was under the command of Field Marshal Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg but Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher was given tactical control of the fighting. The Allies defeated the outnumbered and overextended French during a snowfall.

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

Significance

La Rothière was one of the opening engagements of the allied invasion of France in early 1814, pitting a combined Coalition force drawn from Austria, Russia, Prussia, Bavaria, and Württemberg against Napoleon's army on French soil. The Coalition held a substantial numerical advantage, with French strength estimated at roughly half or less of the allied total. The allied victory, achieved despite snowfall conditions, demonstrated that Napoleon could be defeated even when commanding on the defensive in his own territory. The result reinforced Coalition cohesion and momentum at a critical phase of the campaign, when the question of whether the war could be carried directly to France remained unresolved. Coming early in the 1814 campaign, the outcome at La Rothière increased pressure on Napoleon and contributed to the broader allied drive toward Paris that would ultimately end the war.

Tactics

Forces & casualties

Commanders (2)