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| Battle of Neustadt | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of theThird Silesian War (Seven Years' War) | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Prussia |  Austria | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Lt. Gen. Goltze Capt. Blumenthal Capt. Zittzwitz | Ernst von Laudon Gen. Jacquemin | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 35 dead 65 wounded 70 missing | 300 dead 500 wounded 25 captured | ||||||
 | |||||||
TheBattle of Neustadt on 15 March 1760 saw thePrussian army engaged with the Austrian army underErnst von Laudon during theThird Silesian War (part of theSeven Years' War). Although the Austrians were left in possession of the town, their losses were much greater than those of the Prussians.
The attempt of General Laudon, to surprise the Prussian troops at Neustadt (nowPrudnik,Poland), though attended with greater loss, did not satisfy the enemy's wishes.
On 15 March 1760,Lieutenant general Baron Goltze, having received intelligence of General Laudon's assembling his troops, and of the enemy's cavalry and infantry having moved behind theOpava towardsHotzenplotz andJohannisthal, recalled all his detachments, and began his march towardsNeisse on the 15th instant, with his whole force. In the meantime General Laudon, who had few out from his quarters on the 14th, with Palsy's regiment of cuirassiers, Löwenstein's dragoons, 500hussars of Nadaski, 500 of Kalnocki, 2,000Croats, and 14 companies ofgrenadiers, marched all night, with a view to surprise the Prussian troops at Neustadt. The latter were scarce out of the gates, when they were surrounded by those of the enemy. General Jacquemin was posted with the regiment of Löwenstein nearBuchelsdorf on the road toSteinau, General Laudon followed, with the regiment of Palfy, and 2,000 Croats, supported by fourteen companies of grenadiers, 1,000 of their hussars were upon the right flank of the Prussians, the advanced guard of which consisted of 100 men, under CaptainBlumenthal. Captain Zittzwitz commanded the rear guard, consisting of the same number; and the rest of the aforesaid regiment, with a squadron of dragoons of Bareith, under Captain Chambaud, followed with the baggage.
General Laudon summoned the Prussians twice, by the sound of thetrumpet, to lay down their arms; which they not complying with, he ordered all his cavalry to advance. General Jacquemin fell upon the advanced guard, while General Laudon himself attacked the rear, and the hussars, in platoons,flanked the baggage. The Captains Blumenthal and Zittzwitz formed their small force in a kind of square, from whence they kept a continual fire. The Austrian cavalry nevertheless advanced six times on a gallop, to within ten paces of the Prussians; but perceiving many fall on their side, among whom were several officers, they retreated in great disorder. Afterwards the Croats having taken possession of a wood, between Siebenhausen and Steinau, through which the roads were very bad, and by the rains rendered almost impassable for carriages, they there attacked the Prussians on all sides. Unfortunately a wagon broke down in a defile, and as the Prussians did not think proper to stay to repair it, they were obligated to abandon all that was behind it. By which five covered wagons, laden with baggage, and eighteen carts with meal andoats, fell into the hands of the enemy, who harassed the Prussians as far as Steinau, and were constantly engaged with the rear guard.
The loss of the Austrians greatly exceeded the Prussians; they buried above 300 men in different places, and sent 500 wounded to Neustadt. Besides which, the Prussians took 25 prisoners, among whom were several officers. They had 35 men killed, and 4 officers, and 69 private men wounded, in Mantueffel's regiment; as also one lieutenant, with three dragoons, in Bareith's. The enemy made a subaltern officer, two drummers, and 35 private man prisoners; so that the loss of the Prussians, in the whole, including the missing, amounts to about 170 men; which was not much, considering the great superiority of the enemy.
And though General Laudon so far succeeded by this accident, as to make himself master of Neustadt, he found himself in no condition to maintain his ground; but on the 17th, at break of day, he abandoned his acquisition, and retreated toJägerndorf, with 14 companies of grenadiers, having ordered the Austrian cavalry to march toFreiwaldau.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Entick, John (1763). "The general history of the late war: containing it’s rise, progress, and event, in Europe, Asia, Africa, and America".