Battle of Muottental

The Battle of (the) Muottental was fought in 1799, on 30 September and 1 October, during the Second Coalition war as part of Suvorov's Swiss campaign. The Russian troops of Rosenberg's rearguard, ordered by Suvorov, stood in the choke point of Muottental (a narrow valley, also referred to as the Muttental), now Muotatal, covering the march of the main force, and were attacked by outnumbered French troops under the overall command of Masséna. French troops were more than double that of the Russian forces, according to some statements. It ended in a decisive Russian victory.

The Russians' numerical inferiority was compensated by the battlefield that Suvorov had successfully chosen: the Muottental was narrow enough, and at the place of action with high ground on both flanks, which allowed Rosenberg to take a favorable disposition for his troops to confront the French, with Cossack cavalry on each flank, skirmishers ahead of all other troops, and line infantry in the center whilst another line of infantry in reserve (in case of support for any section, if there is a breakthrough). Masséna's French would not be able to outflank these forces and, accordingly, effectively use their superiority in numbers. The Russian historian Petrushevsky praised Rosenberg's behavior in this battle, noticing that he chose an "excellent disposition" and rode in the front ranks of the troops. The Muottental battle has analogies with the famous ancient Battle of Thermopylae.