Battle of Kehl | |||||||
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Part of War of the First Coalition | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Republican France | Holy Roman Empire | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Jean Moreau Jean Abbatucci | Count Latour | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Army of Rhin-et-Moselle | Army of the Upper Rhine | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
10,065 | 7,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
150 | 700, 14 guns, 22 wagons |
The Battle of Kehl (23–24 June 1796) saw a Republican French force under the direction of Jean Charles Abbatucci mount an amphibious assault crossing of the Rhine River against a defending force of soldiers from the Swabian Circle. In the War of the First Coalition action, the French were successful in driving the Swabians from their positions and establishing a bridgehead. Kehl is located in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany just east of Strasbourg, France.
In June 1796, the French Army of Rhin-et-Moselle under Jean Victor Marie Moreau was opposed by Maximilian Anton Karl, Count Baillet de Latour's Army of the Upper Rhine composed of Austrians and their German allies. Latour was weakened by the sending of reinforcements to Italy and distracted by the Army of Sambre-et-Meuse crossing the Rhine far to the north. To mislead Latour, Moreau marched large forces in the direction of Mannheim, then swiftly shifted his strength toward Strasbourg. Four days after winning his bridgehead at Kehl, one of Moreau's columns defeated the Swabians and Austrians in the Battle of Renchen east of Kehl. The next major action was the Battle of Ettlingen on 9 July 1796.
References[]
- Dodge, Theodore Ayrault (2011). Warfare in the Age of Napoleon: The Revolutionary Wars Against the First Coalition in Northern Europe and the Italian Campaign, 1789-1797. USA: Leonaur Ltd. ISBN 978-0-85706-598-8.
- Nafziger, George. "French Troops Destined to Cross the Rhine, 24 June 1796". US Army Combined Arms Center. http://www.cgsc.edu/CARL/nafziger/796FAE.pdf. Retrieved 2 October 2014.
- Phipps, Ramsay Weston (2011). The Armies of the First French Republic: Volume II The Armées du Moselle, du Rhin, de Sambre-et-Meuse, de Rhin-et-Moselle. USA: Pickle Partners Publishing. ISBN 978-1-908692-25-2.
- Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.
Coordinates: 48°34′N 7°49′E / 48.567°N 7.817°E
The original article can be found at Battle of Kehl (1796) and the edit history here.