Battle of Fraustadt
Encyclopedia : B : BA : BAT : Battle of Fraustadt
| Great Northern War |
|---|
| Narva – Kliszów – Fraustadt – Holowczyn – Lesnaya – Poltava – Gadebusch – Gangut – Dynekilen – Oesel – Grengam |
The Battle of Fraustadt was fought on February 3 1706 between Swedish and Saxon-Russian forces near Fraustadt (present-day Wschowa) in Poland.
The battle
The Saxons took a defensive position between the villages of Geyersdorf and Röhrsdorf. In their front were frozen lakes and marshes.
Rehnskiöld placed his infantry in the center and his cavalry on both flanks. On his right flank, von Krassow with 12 dragoon squadrons passed outside the left russian flank, by the village of Rörsdorf and then routed the saxon cavalry. On the left flank, the swedish cavalry had som trouble passing a frozen swamp, but the saxon cavalry did not use that advantage and was therefor also routed after four swedish attacks. On the saxon left flank, facing Rhenskiöld himself, the russians were deployed with their uniforms inside-out to conceil their lesser quality (the saxons had red uniforms, the russians had (at this time) outside-green, inside-red uniforms). These were attacked in the back by the dragoons, in front by Rhenskiöld after some three firings with artillery, and soon surrounded. The saxon middle then was in danger in flank and rear and soon also broke up. The saxon right remained to the last, inflicting some damage to the swedes before the cavalry on the swamp-ice succeded to attack their rear. The main part of the saxon army fled to the south, but the swedish cavalry on the left, previously so clumsy, now got away in advance of them and succeded to stop them until the swedish infantry got there and had them surrounded.
In the end 7,300 Saxons were taken prisoner and more were killed in the battle. The captured Russians (some 500) were all executed by an order, probably from Rehnskiöld.
Aftermath
King August II of Poland gave up his claim on the Polish crown, although he remained Elector Frederick Augustus I of Saxony. He would later regain the Polish throne in 1709.
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