Battle of Tuttlingen
| Battle of Tuttlingen | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Thirty Years' War and the Franco-Spanish War (1635–59) | |||||||
Johann de Werth's Überfall bei Tuttlingen by Karl von Blaas (oil on canvas, 1866) | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
|
Holy Roman Empire Electorate of Bavaria Spanish Empire Duchy of Lorraine | Kingdom of France | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Melchior von Hatzfeldt Franz von Mercy Johann von Werth Juan de Vivero Charles of Lorraine |
Josias Rantzau Reinhold von Rosen | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 15,000–22,000 |
15,000–18,000 10 guns | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 1,000 |
7,000–10,500 10 guns | ||||||
The Battle of Tuttlingen was part of the Thirty Years' War and was fought in Tuttlingen on 24 November 1643 between a French-led army under Marshal Josias Rantzau and the forces of the Holy Roman Empire, Bavaria, Spain, and the exiled Duke of Lorraine, all led by Franz von Mercy. The French army—including the so-called Weimarans or Bernhardines, German troops once in service of Bernard of Saxe-Weimar—was wiped out in a surprise attack in heavy snowfall, reversing French strategic gains since 1638. The French court suppressed news of the defeat and it remains largely unknown today, even among historians of the war.