Battle of Rossbach

The Battle of Rossbach was a 1757 battle in Saxony in which Frederick the Great’s Prussian army defeated a larger French and Imperial force through rapid maneuver and concentrated fire.

Frederickian oblique order: A battlefield formation that concentrates force against one part of an enemy line while limiting exposure elsewhere. Rossbach is often associated with Frederick’s ability to strike the Allied flank with concentrated force.
Diplomatic Revolution: The mid-eighteenth-century realignment in which Austria and France became allies while Britain and Prussia drew closer. This alliance reversal placed France and Austria’s German allies against Prussia in 1757.
Battle of Leuthen: A 1757 battle in which Frederick the Great’s Prussian army defeated a larger Austrian force in Silesia. The victory followed Rossbach weeks later and secured a major Prussian success against Austria.
Rossbach: A village in Saxony near the site of the 1757 battle between Prussian and Allied forces. The engagement takes its name from this village.
Prussian Army: The armed forces of the Kingdom of Prussia, known in the eighteenth century for disciplined infantry and effective administration. Its speed, discipline, and artillery helped turn a smaller force into the victor at Rossbach.
Treaty of Versailles (1756): An agreement that allied France and Austria during the Diplomatic Revolution. The treaty helped bring French forces into the coalition fighting Prussia.
Prussia: A European kingdom that became a major power under the Hohenzollern dynasty and later helped unify Germany. Rossbach strengthened the military standing of the kingdom whose army won the battle.
Seydlitz: A village in Saxony near the battlefield where the main fighting at Rossbach took place. The decisive cavalry action unfolded near this settlement.
Cavalry charge: A mounted attack intended to disrupt or break an enemy formation. Prussian cavalry under Friedrich Wilhelm von Seydlitz struck the Allied troops during their deployment.
French Army: The land forces of the Kingdom of France, organized under the monarchy and its military administration. French troops formed the principal contingent of the larger Allied force at Rossbach.

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