Battle of Tuttlingen
Part of theThirty Years' War and theFranco-Spanish War (1635–59)
Johann de Werth's Überfall bei Tuttlingen byKarl von Blaas (oil on canvas, 1866)
Date 24–25 November 1643 Location Tuttlingen (present-dayGermany) Result Imperial-Bavarian-Spanish victory
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[1]–22,000[2]	15,000[1]–18,000[2] 10 guns
Casualties and losses
1,000[2]	7,000[2]–10,500[1] 10 guns

TheBattle of Tuttlingen was fought inTuttlingen on 24 November 1643 between theFrench army in Germany led by MarshalJosias Rantzau, composed of French soldiers and the so-calledWeimarans orBernhardines, German troops once in service ofBernard of Saxe-Weimar. They were defeated by the forces of theHoly Roman Empire,Bavaria andSpain led byFranz von Mercy. Technically, Mercy led a military force composed of his Bavarian army, supported by Imperial, Spanish, andLorrainer troops. The French army was wiped out in a surprise attack in heavy snowfall along with French strategic gains since 1638. The French court suppressed the defeat and it remains largely unknown today, even among historians of the war.

In early November the French-Weimarian forces had besiegedRottweil to secure winter quarters along theDanube at Tuttlingen. They captured Rottweil on 18 November, but their commanderGuébriant was mortally wounded in the siege. His successor Rantzau who just had arrived with reinforcements fromLorraine was despised by officers who originated from the former German army ofBernard of Saxe-Weimar. Outlying detachments of the French were posted atMühlingen andMöhringen. With the French inactive and his own army reinforced by Imperial troops underHatzfeld and Lorrainer troops under the exiledDuke Charles, Mercy convinced the other generals to agree to a surprise attack on the French encampment. To maximize surprise, the Imperials approached from the south-east instead of further to the north, where the Danube and the Frenchgarrison at Rottweil blocked their way.^[1]

At mid-afternoon on 24 November,Johann von Werth led 2,000 cavalry in the first assault group against Möhringen and achieved instant success, wiping out a French infantry regiment of 500 men, including Spanish prisoners of war. The Bavariandragoons captured the French pickets posted near Tuttlingen, allowing the Imperials to seize with minimal opposition the lightly defended Frenchartillery park in the cemetery outside town. Heavy snowfall contributed to the surprise. The Weimarian cavalry inMühlheim underReinhold von Rosen attempted to reinforce the French at Tuttlingen but were intercepted and defeated by Mercy's brother Kaspar. Kaspar then destroyed the Weimarian infantry remaining at Mühlheim.^[1]

The French cavalry fled the scene. The captured guns were used to bombard the French infantry in Tuttlingen and Möhringen, who capitulated the next day along with their commander Rantzau without losing a single man killed.^[3] The fighting lasted for a day and a half, not so much due to the effectiveness of Franco-Weimarian resistance but because of the disorganized and isolated nature of their detachments. The 2,000-strong French garrison in Rottweil surrendered a week later.^[1]

Rantzau's army largely ceased to exist, with 4,500 survivors retreating back across theRhine River intoAlsace.^[4] Moreover, Mercy held Rantzau, seven other generals, 9 colonels, 10 guns, the baggage, the officer's wives, and seven thousand French troops captive. Among the prisoners was theDuke of Montausier. Another 4,000 lay dead or wounded. The Weimarian army was permanently crippled by this disaster and the French were reduced to the positions they had held five years earlier. The French court minimized the defeat and it has remained largely unknown ever since.^[5]

• List of battles

• Croxton, Derek. "The Prosperity of Arms Is Never Continual: Military Intelligence, Surprise, and Diplomacy in 1640s Germany."The Journal of Military History, Vol. 64, No. 4 (October 2000), pp. 981–1003.
• Wilson, Peter H. (2009).Europe's Tragedy: A History of the Thirty Years War. Allen Lane.ISBN 978-0-7139-9592-3.
• Bodart, Gaston (1908).Militär-historisches Kriegs-Lexikon (1618–1905). Retrieved4 February 2023.

47°59′07″N8°49′24″E / 47.9852°N 8.8234°E /47.9852; 8.8234

• Tuttlingen (district)
• Conflicts in 1643
• 1643 in the Holy Roman Empire
• Military history of Baden-Württemberg
• Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving Bavaria
• Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving France
• Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving Spain
• Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving the Holy Roman Empire
• Battles of the Franco-Spanish War (1635–1659)

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