Battle of Bornhöved (1813)
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Battle of Bornhöved | |
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Part of the Bornhöft, Schleswig-Holstein, present-day Germany 54°4′N 10°12′E / 54.067°N 10.200°E | |
Result | Swedish victory |
Bror Cederström
2,000–3,000 infantry[1]
3 guns[2]
55 wounded
128 horses[3]
The Battle of Bornhöved or Bornhöft took place on 7 December 1813 between a
Background
Crown prince
Battle
Charles John had been very economical with Swedish forces throughout the war and deliberately held back to allow the allies to take huge losses whilst he held onto the Swedish forces for future use. The Swedish cavalry thus felt left out of all the war's previous major battles. This, in addition to their regiment not seeing combat in the 1808–09 war that lost
This force consisted of between 5,000 and 8,000 men, of which 1,000 cavalry and 2,000 to 3,000 infantry would take part in the fighting.[1][2]
It would not normally have considered the advance guard of the Swedish cavalry as a major threat (since in such difficult terrain and so close to nightfall a frontal cavalry assault on the massed infantry with artillery support would be pure folly), but since their rearguard was still embroiled in fighting with Swedish patrols the Danes formed up in ranks and waited.
The Swedish cavalry force consisted of 1,200 men, of which 900 would be engaged.[1][2]
First came the Danish rearguard, still harried by some Swedish squadrons under major Fritz von der Lancken and finally dispersed by the Swedish assault. The attackers then turned on the main Danish force and the Danes staked all their forces at once, with a Swedish reconnaissance beaten off and von der Lancken in retreat. In the meantime the main Swedish force began to form up. With seven squadrons totalling 471 men, commanded by Colonel Bror Cederström, the Swedish cavalry immediately moved to the attack, broke up the Danish formations and drove them into retreat. The Swedish victory at Bornhöved came to be an important step towards Sweden's goal of taking Norway from Denmark, ultimately achieved in the Treaty of Kiel.
The Danish losses in the battle are unknown; the official Danish report admitted to 11 killed, 35 wounded and 75 missing.[3] A subsequent Danish bulletin, on the other hand, attested to 200 killed.[1] The Swedes claimed to have captured 200[2] to 300 Danes,[3] and killed and wounded many more. Two cannons and one howitzer were also captured. Some 400 Danes were captured in the following days as the Swedes pursued.[2] The Swedish losses were 21 men killed, 55 wounded, and 128 horses killed or wounded.[3]
Citations
Bibliography
- Glenthøj, R.; Ottosen, M. (2014). Experiences of War and Nationality in Denmark and Norway, 1807-1815. Springer. p. 203. ISBN 978-1137313898.
- Griese, Volker (2012). Schleswig-Holstein - Denkwürdigkeiten der Geschichte Historische Miniaturen (in German). ISBN 9783844812831.
- Palmblad, Vilhelm Fredrik; Wieselgren, Peter (1847). Biographiskt Lexicon öfver namnkunnige Svenska Män (in Swedish). Vol. 14. OCLC 470641899.
- OCLC 185616922.
External links
- Media related to Battle of Bornhöved (1813) at Wikimedia Commons
Preceded by Battle of Nivelle |
Napoleonic Wars Battle of Bornhöved (1813) |
Succeeded by Battle of Sehested |