Battle of Ostrach 1799
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 21 March 1799 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1799 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | Early modern (1500–1799) | derived from year |
| Location | Germany | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | War of the Second Coalition | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 47.9500, 9.3833 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Ostrach, also called the Battle by Ostrach, occurred on 20–21 March 1799. It was the first non-Italy-based battle of the War of the Second Coalition. The battle resulted in the victory of the Austrian forces, under the command of Archduke Charles, over the French forces, commanded by Jean-Baptiste Jourdan.
The battle occurred during Holy Week, 1799, amid rain and dense fog. Initially, the French were able to take, and hold, Ostrach and the nearby hamlet of Hoßkirch plus several strategic points on the Ostrach marsh. As the engagement began, Habsburg numerical superiority overwhelmed French defenses. By evening, the French left wing was flanked and Jourdan's men retreated from Ostrach to the Pfullendorf heights. On the next morning, as Jourdan considered a counter-attack, the weather broke, and he could look down on the Austrian battle array. The numbers and dispositions of the Austrians convinced him that any attack would be useless, and that he could not hope to maintain his position in the heights. As he withdrew, a portion of his right flank was cut off from the main force.
Although casualties appeared even on both sides, the Austrians had a significantly larger fighting force, both on the field at Ostrach, and stretched along a line between Lake Constance and Ulm.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Ostrach (revision 1370271312), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle of Messkirch 1800 · 21 km
- Battle of Biberach (1796) 1796 · 35 km
- Battle of Biberach (1800) 1800 · 35 km
- Battle of Messkirch 1800 · 37 km
- Battle of Wurzach 1525 · 38 km
- Battle of Lake Constance 15 BC · 40 km
Other battles of the War of the Second Coalition
- Battle of Nicopolis (1798) 1798
- Battle of St. George's Caye 1798
- Siege of Corfu (1798–1799) 1798
- Battle of Alkmaar (1799) 1799
- Battle of Cassano (1799) 1799
- Battle of Feldkirch 1799
- Battle of Genola 1799
- Battle of Gotthard Pass 1799
- Battle of Krabbendam 1799
- Battle of Magnano 1799
All 35 battles of the War of the Second Coalition →
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