 | This article includes a list ofgeneral references, butit lacks sufficient correspondinginline citations. Please help toimprove this article byintroducing more precise citations.(May 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
| Battle of Werbach | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofAustro-Prussian War | |||||||
 Fight at the bridge over the Tauber.Woodcut byLudwig Burger, 1871. | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Prussia Oldenburg Bremen |  Baden Württemberg | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 August von GoebenLudwig von Weltzien | Prince Wilhelm of BadenOskar von Hardegg | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| 13th Division | VIII Army Corps | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 5,000 soldiers | 5,000 soldiers | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 12 dead; 59 wounded | 7 dead; 60 wounded, 16 missing | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of Werbach took place during theAustro-Prussian War as part of theCampaign of the Main on 24 July 1866 between the Prussian Alliance and the German Federal Army.
After his march into Frankfurt (16 July), the commander of the Prussian Army on the Main,Eduard Vogel von Falckenstein, was recalled and replaced byEdwin von Manteuffel. The Prussian army was also increased to 60,000 men. From 21 July the Prussians marched fromFrankfurt towardsWürzburg to prevent the unification of the Federal Army. After crossing the Odenwald, there were a series of battles with Baden, Hessian and Württemberg units of theVIII Corps of the Federal Army on theTauber until 24 July.
The VII Army Corps of the Federal Army was formed by the Bavarian Army. This corps underPrince Karl of Bavaria was in the Würzburg area. Karl of Bavaria was also the commander-in-chief of the federal troops in southern Germany and the aim was to lead the two federal corps into battle against the Prussian Main Army.
In the Werbach area met on 24 July 1866 (three weeks after the decisive battle of Königgrätz) the 13th Prussian division with theOldenburg-Hanseatic Brigade under the command of Major General Ludwig von Weltzien, as well as the Baden division under the command of Prince Wilhelm of Baden.
The 8th Federal Corps, consisting of four divisions under the command of Alexander von Hessen-Darmstadt, was divided into the following places on 24 July:
The Prussian Main Army consisted of three divisions underEdwin von Manteuffel
The Order of Battle of the participating associations in a contemporary representation:
On the advance the Prussians advanced to three places on the Tauber: the Goeben division on the right wing to Tauberbischofsheim, the Beyer division in the center to Werbach and the Flies division on the left wing to Wertheim. On the Tauber, the Prussians first met the VIII. Corps, which was already planning to march towardsAschaffenburg . On 23 July, there was afirst battle near Hundheim, but the commander of the VIII Corps,Prince Alexander of Hesse, realized too late that he was facing the entire Army of the Main. Shortly after the Oldenburg Brigade arrived in front of Hochhausen, the Avantgarde of the 13th Prussian Infantry Division underAugust Karl von Goeben reached the Wrangel Brigade nearBischofsheim and began on 24 July the battle nearTauberbischofsheim with the Württemberg division of the VIII Army Corps under Lieutenant GeneralOskar von Hardegg.
The combined Prussian division Flies crossed theTauber nearWertheim without encountering any resistance . Prince Alexander assumed that this transition would be covered by the Bavarian army corps.
The Baden division stood on 24 July at 12 noon betweenWerbach andWerbachhausen on the right bank of the Tauber and also controlled the Tauber crossing atHochhausen, where 2 companies of the 2nd regiment were located. The 3rd regiment was in Werbach itself. The 2nd Infantry Brigade of the Baden Division was deployed with five battalions and two artillery detachments - a total of around 5,000 men.
At 12.30 p.m. the Oldenburg- Hanseatic Brigade under Major GeneralLudwig von Weltzien reached the heights southwest of Hochhausen. After artillery battles near Hochhausen and Werbach, the infantry attack by 3 battalions of the Oldenburg-Hanseatic Brigade on Hochhausen began at 3 p.m. The Oldenburg Brigade had threeOldenburg and oneBremen infantry battalions, as well as two artillery divisions. The brigade received support from the fusilier battalion of the 8th Rhenish Infantry Regiment No. 70 and two other artillery divisions of the combined Beyer division, so that around 5,000 men were deployed.
The avant-garde of the Beyer division also intervened in the battle with the fusilier battalion of the 8th Rhenish Infantry Regiment No. 70 and an artillery division. The Baden troops evacuated Hochhausen without any resistance worth mentioning. At 4 p.m. the infantry attack on Werbach began, where the Baden troops offered heavy resistance, but ultimately had to retreat in the Welzbach valley. A battery in Württemberg nearImpfingen set fire to Hochhausen, but was soon driven from its position. The Baden division withdrew to the BavarianUnteraltertheim, with the rearguard remaining withSteinbach with the Baden army was thus pushed out of the Grand Duchy of Baden.
Prince Alexander, the commander in chief of the VIII Army Corps, saw his right flank threatened by the withdrawal of the Baden division and sent the Hessian division fromGroßrinderfeld toWenkheim on 24 July.
The VIII Federal Corps united with the VII Army Corps advancing from Würzburg with the Bavarian troops. On 3 August 1866 an armistice was agreed between Baden and Prussia in Würzburg. Bavaria had already agreed an armistice on 28 July, Württemberg and Hesse on 1 August.
