First Silesian War
First Silesian War | |||||||||
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Part of the War of the Austrian Succession and the Silesian Wars | |||||||||
Prussian and Austrian cavalry fighting at the Battle of Mollwitz, by August Heinrich Ferdinand Tegetmeyer | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
Prussia | Habsburg monarchy | ||||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
The First Silesian War (German: Erster Schlesischer Krieg) was a war between
No particular triggering event started the war. Prussia cited its centuries-old dynastic claims on parts of Silesia as a casus belli, but Realpolitik and geostrategic factors also played a role in provoking the conflict. Maria Theresa's contested succession to the Habsburg monarchy provided an opportunity for Prussia to strengthen itself relative to regional rivals such as Saxony and Bavaria.
The war began with a Prussian invasion of Habsburg Silesia in late 1740, and it ended in a Prussian victory with the 1742
Context and causes
In the early 18th century,
Brandenburg–Prussia's claims
Prussia's claims in Silesia were based, in part, on a 1537 inheritance treaty between the
In the 1618
In 1685, when Austria was engaged in the
Austrian succession
Two generations later, the newly crowned Hohenzollern King
An opportunity arose for Prussia to press its claims when Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick saw in Austria's female succession an opportune moment for the seizure of Silesia, calling it "the signal for the complete transformation of the old political system" in a 1740 letter to
Meanwhile, Prince-Elector
Moves toward war
As Prussia reactivated its Silesian claims and prepared for war against Austria, several other European powers made similar moves. Charles Albert of Bavaria launched a claim to the imperial throne along with the Habsburg territories of Bohemia,
Austria was supported by Great Britain (in personal union with the
After Emperor Charles's death on 20 October, Frederick quickly resolved to strike first; on 8 November he ordered the mobilisation of the Prussian army, and on 11 December he issued an ultimatum to Maria Theresa demanding the cession of Silesia.[21] In return, he offered to guarantee all other Habsburg possessions against any attack, pay a large cash indemnity,[22] acknowledge the Pragmatic Sanction, and give his vote as elector of Brandenburg in the imperial election to Maria Theresa's husband. Not waiting for a response, he and his troops advanced into Silesia.[21]
Methods and technologies
European warfare in the
The Silesian Wars, like most European wars of the 18th century, were fought as so-called
Course
Silesian campaign of 1740–41
The Prussian army had massed quietly along the Oder during early December 1740, and on 16 December, without a declaration of war, Frederick moved his troops across the frontier into Silesia.
After leaving winter quarters in early 1741, the Prussian forces began a spring campaign, and on 9 March Prince Leopold II of Anhalt-Dessau took Glogau by storm. In late March, an Austrian force of around 20,000 under the command of Wilhelm Reinhard von Neipperg crossed the Sudetes mountains from Moravia and broke the siege of Neisse on 5 April,[33] after which the main Prussian force manoeuvred to oppose its advance.[34][35] The two armies engaged each other near the village of Mollwitz on 10 April, where the Prussians under Marshal Kurt von Schwerin successfully stopped the Austrian advance in the Battle of Mollwitz. Neither army acquitted itself well at Mollwitz, and Frederick at one point fled (on Schwerin's advice) to avoid capture, but the Prussians held the field and subsequently portrayed the battle as a victory.[36] Brieg surrendered to the Prussians on 4 May,[37] after which the main Prussian force encamped through the succeeding months near Neisse, facing off against Neipperg's Austrians but fighting little.[38]
Negotiations of Mid-1741
After Austria's failure at Mollwitz to repel the Prussian invasion, other powers were emboldened to attack the beleaguered monarchy, widening the conflict into what would become the
Faced with the prospect of a total
Although Prussia was allied with the French, the idea of France or Bavaria becoming the dominant power in Germany through Austria's destruction did not appeal to Frederick.[48] With British urging and mediation,[19] on 9 October Austria and Prussia agreed to a secret armistice known as the Convention of Klein Schnellendorf, under which both belligerents would cease hostilities in Silesia (though maintaining their appearance), and Austria would eventually concede Lower Silesia in return for a final peace to be negotiated before the end of the year.[49] Neipperg's Austrian forces were then recalled from Silesia to defend Austria against the western invaders, abandoning Neisse after a sham siege in early November and leaving the whole of Silesia under Prussian control.[50][51][52]
Bohemia–Moravia campaign of 1741–42
In mid-October, Charles Albert of Bavaria and his French allies were encamped near Vienna, ready to besiege it, but he became concerned that Saxony and Prussia would seize parts of Bohemia, which he had also claimed.[19] The French also deprecated a decisive move on Vienna, wishing to see Austria reduced rather than destroyed.[53] So, on 24 October their forces turned north to march instead on Prague. The Bavarian, French and Saxon armies converged in November, besieging it and ultimately storming it on 26 November; Charles Albert went on to proclaim himself King of Bohemia on 7 December.[19] Meanwhile, in early November Frederick negotiated the border between putative territories of Prussian Silesia and Saxon Moravia with Frederick Augustus of Saxony,[54] also securing French and Bavarian support for his seizure of the entirety of Silesia, along with the Bohemian County of Glatz.[55]
As the Franco-Bavarian allies made territorial gains, Frederick became concerned that Prussia might be sidelined in the eventual peace agreement, so he repudiated the Convention of Klein Schnellendorf, accusing the Austrians of violating its secrecy, and joined the general advance southward into Bohemia and Moravia.
In early 1742 Frederick organised a joint advance through Moravia toward Vienna with the Saxons and French, which began after their forces met on 5 February at
As the Moravian advance collapsed,
Treaties of Breslau and Berlin
In the aftermath of Chotusitz, Prussia intensified its efforts to reach a separate peace with Austria, and negotiators from the two belligerents met again in Breslau in late May.[65] Frederick now demanded almost the whole of Silesia, as well as the County of Glatz; Maria Theresa was reluctant to make such concessions, but the British envoy, Lord Hyndford, pressed her to make peace with Prussia and concentrate her forces against the French.[49] The British treasury had financed much of Austria's war effort through cash subsidies meant to weaken France, and Hyndford threatened to withdraw Britain's support if Maria Theresa refused to concede Silesia. The two belligerents eventually reached an agreement in the 11 June Treaty of Breslau, which ended the First Silesian War.[66]
Under this treaty, Austria conceded to Prussia the large majority of Silesia along with the Bohemian County of Glatz, territories which would later be consolidated to form the Prussian
Outcomes
The First Silesian War ended in a clear victory for Prussia, which secured some 35,000 square kilometres (14,000 sq mi) of new territory and around a million new subjects,[60] greatly enhancing its resources and prestige. However, by twice making a separate peace while the War of the Austrian Succession raged on, Frederick abandoned his erstwhile allies in the League of Nymphenburg and earned a reputation for diplomatic unreliability and double-dealing.[40][49] With Prussia removed from the wider war, Austria launched a major counter-attack and began regaining lost ground on other fronts, and the diplomatic situation shifted in Austria's favour.[68]
Prussia's seizure of Silesia also ensured continuing conflict with Austria and Saxony.[69][70] Maria Theresa's determination to recover Silesia would lead to renewed conflict with Prussia in the Second Silesian War only two years later, with a Third Silesian War to follow after another decade;[71] Saxony would take Austria's side in both future conflicts.[72][73]
Prussia
In the territorial settlement that ended the war, Prussia gained control of extensive new lands in Glatz and Silesia,[67] a populous and densely industrialised region that would contribute substantial manpower and taxes to the Prussian state.[74][75] The small kingdom's unexpected victory over the Habsburg monarchy set it apart from German rivals such as Bavaria and Saxony, marking the beginning of Prussia's rise toward the status of a European great power.[76][77]
The seizure of Silesia made Prussia and Austria into lasting and determined enemies, beginning the
Austria
The Treaties of Breslau and Berlin cost the Habsburg monarchy its wealthiest province,[76] and capitulating to a lesser German prince significantly dented the Habsburg Monarchy's prestige.[69] The House of Habsburg was also defeated in the Imperial election, calling into question its pre-eminence within Germany. The Austrian army had found itself outmatched by the more disciplined Prussians,[81] and in late 1741 the Nymphenburg alliance had threatened the Habsburg monarchy with disaster.[82]
However, peace in the Silesian theatre gave the Austrian forces a free hand to reverse the gains made by the French and Bavarians the previous year. The western invaders were driven back up the Danube Valley in early 1742,[83] and Saxony withdrew its forces from Bohemia after the Treaty of Berlin, making peace with Austria near the end of the year.[67] The Franco-Bavarian forces occupying Prague were isolated and besieged, eventually giving up the city in December.[84] By mid-1743, Austria would recover control of Bohemia, drive the French back across the Rhine into Alsace, and occupy Bavaria, exiling Emperor Charles VII to Frankfurt.[85]
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- Hannay, David McDowall (1911). . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.