Battle of Dessau Bridge

Battle of Dessau Bridge
Part of the Thirty Years' War
Battle of Dessau Bridge, etching by F. Hogenberg's workshop
Date 25 April 1626 Location Dessau, Duchy of Anhalt-Dessau present-day Saxony-Anhalt, Germany Result Catholic victory
Belligerents
Denmark–Norway	Holy Roman Empire Catholic League
Commanders and leaders
Ernst von Mansfeld Christian William of Brandenburg	Albrecht von Wallenstein Torquato Conti
Strength
12,000	20,000
Casualties and losses
4,000 dead, wounded, or captured	2,000

The Battle of Dessau Bridge (German: Schlacht bei Dessau) was a significant battle of the Thirty Years' War between Danish Protestants and the Imperial German Catholic forces on the Elbe River outside Dessau, Germany on 25 April 1626.

This battle was an attempt by Ernst von Mansfeld to cross the Dessau bridge [de] in order to invade the headquarters of the Imperial Army in Magdeburg, Germany. The Dessau bridge was the only land access between Magdeburg and Dresden, which made it difficult for the Danes to advance. The Count of Tilly wanted control of the bridge in order to prevent King Christian IV of Denmark from having access to Kassel and to protect the Lower Saxon Circle.^[1] The Imperial German forces of Albrecht von Wallenstein handily defeated the Protestant forces of Ernst von Mansfeld in this battle.