Battle of Feldkirch

Battles of Feldkirch
	Part of War of the Second Coalition
	; Contemporary map of the second battle of Feldkirch
Date	7 March 1799 (1st); 23 March 1799 (2nd)
Location	Feldkirch, Vorarlberg, Austria47°14′17″N 9°35′54″E / 47.23806°N 9.59833°E
Result	French victory (1st); Austrian victory (2nd)
Belligerents
Austria	France
Commanders and leaders
1st Feldkirch:; Friedrich von Hotze; 2nd Feldkirch:; Franz Jelačić	1st Feldkirch:; Nicolas Oudinot; André Masséna; 2nd Feldkirch:; André Masséna
Strength
1st Feldkirch:; 6,000; 2nd Feldkirch:; 5,500 regular infantry, ; 2 squadrons, ; unknown number of militia ; or: ; 4,500 regular army,; 3,000 militia	1st Feldkirch:; 9,000; 2nd Feldkirch:; 12,000–13,000 regular infantry
Casualties and losses
1st Feldkirch:; 1,100; 2nd Feldkirch:; 900	1st Feldkirch:; 200; 2nd Feldkirch:; 1,500–3,000

War of the Second Coalition:
Austria

190km
118miles

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Zurich

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The color black indicates the current battle.

The Battle of Feldkirch (23 March 1799) saw some French corps led by André Masséna attack a weaker Austrian force under Franz Jellacic. Defending fortified positions, the Austrians repulsed all of the French columns, though the struggle lasted until nightfall. This and other French setbacks in southern Germany soon caused Masséna to go on the defensive. The War of the Second Coalition combat occurred at the Austrian town of Feldkirch, Vorarlberg, located 158 kilometres (98 mi) west of Innsbruck.

On a flimsy pretext, a French army invaded Switzerland in January 1798 and forced the country into an uneasy alliance marked by occasional revolts. By the start of hostilities with Austria in early 1799, Masséna was in command of the Army of Helvetia. Going on the offensive, the French, having a numerical advantage, inflicted defeats on the Austrians at Maienfeld, Chur and Feldkirch on 6 and 7 March. Ordered to attack Feldkirch in late March by his superior Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, Masséna attacked with troops under Nicolas Oudinot. Jourdan's defeats at Ostrach and Stockach soon forced the French to recoil.