Battle of Montmirail

Battle of Montmirail
Part of the Campaign of France of the Sixth Coalition

Battle of Montmirail by Horace Vernet
Date11 February 1814[1]
Location48°53′45″N 3°28′51″E / 48.8958°N 3.4807°E / 48.8958; 3.4807
Result French victory[1]
Belligerents
First French Empire France Russian Empire Russia
Kingdom of Prussia Prussia
Commanders and leaders
First French Empire Napoleon Bonaparte Russian Empire Fabian Osten-Sacken
Kingdom of Prussia Ludwig von Yorck
Strength
20,000–25,000[1] Russia: 18,000, 90 guns
Prussia: 9,000, 16 guns
Total: 27,000–39,000[1]
106 guns
Casualties and losses
2,000–2,100[1] Russia: 2,800, 9–26 guns
Prussia: 900
Total casualties: 3,700–4,000,[1] 9–26 guns
Battle of Montmirail is located in France
Battle of Montmirail
Location within France
Map
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200km
125miles
Paris
22
Battle of Paris (1814) from 30 to 31 March 1814
21
Battle of Saint-Dizier on 26 March 1814
20
Battle of Fère-Champenoise on 25 March 1814
19
Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube from 20 to 21 March 1814
18
Battle of Limonest on 20 March 1814
17
Battle of Reims (1814) from 12 to 13 March 1814
16
Battle of Mâcon (1814) on 11 March 1814
15
Battle of Laon from 9 to 10 March 1814
14
Battle of Craonne on 7 March 1814
13
Battle of Laubressel on 3 March 1814
12
Battle of Saint-Julien (1814) on 1 March 1814
11
Battle of Gué-à-Tresmes on 28 February 1814
10
Battle of Montereau on 18 February 1814
9
Battle of Mormant on 17 February 1814
8
Battle of Vauchamps on 14 February 1814
7
Battle of Château-Thierry (1814) on 12 February 1814
6
5
Battle of Champaubert on 10 February 1814
4
Battle of Lesmont on 2 February 1814
3
Battle of La Rothière on 1 February 1814
2
Battle of Brienne on 29 January 1814
Bar-sur-Aube
1
First Battle of Bar-sur-Aube on 24 January 1814 Second Battle of Bar-sur-Aube on 27 February 1814
  current battle
  Napoleon in command
  Napoleon not in command

The Battle of Montmirail (11 February 1814) was fought between a French force led by Emperor Napoleon and two Allied corps commanded by Fabian Wilhelm von Osten-Sacken and Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg. In hard fighting that lasted until evening, French troops including the Imperial Guard defeated Sacken's Russian soldiers and compelled them to retreat to the north. Part of Yorck's Prussian I Corps tried to intervene in the struggle but it was also driven off. The battle occurred near Montmirail, France, during the Six Days Campaign of the Napoleonic Wars. Montmirail is located 51 kilometres (32 mi) east of Meaux.

After Napoleon crushed Zakhar Dmitrievich Olsufiev's small isolated corps in the Battle of Champaubert on 10 February, he found himself in the midst of Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher's widely-spread Army of Silesia. Leaving a small force in the east to watch Blücher, Napoleon turned the bulk of his army to the west in an attempt to destroy Sacken. Unaware of the size of Napoleon's army, Sacken tried to smash his way east to join Blücher. The Russians managed to hold their ground for several hours, but were forced back as more and more French soldiers appeared on the battlefield. Yorck's troops belatedly arrived only to be repulsed, but the Prussians distracted the French long enough to allow Sacken's Russians to join them in a withdrawal to the north. The following day would see the Battle of Château-Thierry as Napoleon launched an all-out pursuit.

  1. ^ a b c d e f Bodart 1908, p. 471.