The Battle of Burkersdorf was fought on June 28, 1866, during the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

. It featured the Austrian X Corps against the Prussian

Guard Corps The Guards Corps/GK (german: Gardekorps) was a corps level command of the Prussian and then the Imperial German Armies from the 19th century to World War I. The Corps was headquartered in Berlin, with its units garrisoned in the city and nea ...

and ended in a Prussian victory.

Burkersdorf (Střítež)

After having beaten back Bonin's I Corps at

Trautenau Trutnov (; german: Trautenau) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 29,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Administrative parts Trutnov is ...

in the only Austrian victory against the Prussians, Glabenz's position became untenable due to the Austrian loss at Nachod and the Prussian Guard Corps' advance towards Eipel (Upice), and he was ordered to retreat towards Prausnitz
Brusnice
to block the Prussian Guards. At 9:00 AM Prussian hussars scouted X Corps decamping from the heights near Trautenau, and the Prussian Guard commander ordered an advance towards Deutsch-Prausnitz, south of Trautenau. Meanwhile, having received his marching orders at 7:00 AM, Glabenz lost time in ordering the retreat and he decided to send his Grivicic brigade to Radec to hit the Prussian Guard in the flank. At 8:00 near Burkersdorf Glabenz marching columns encountered the 2nd Prussian Guard brigade. Glabenz deployed his Knebel and Mondel brigades in a defensive semi-circle. The Austrian 64 gun main battery was able to hold the Prussians for an hour but at 9:30 AM they broke through to Burkersdorf (Střítež). Having been able to shift the majority of his Corps westwards to Pilnikau (Pilnikov), Glabenz left a regiment from Knebel's brigade behind as rear guard to hold up the Prussians at Burkersdorf. By 10:00 AM the town was taken by the Prussians Guards only after heavy fighting which cost them 500 men. The Austrian rear guard then joined Glabenz's retreat.

Rudersdorf (Rubínovice)

Having been ordered by Glabenz to march towards Radec and not knowing the outcome of the fighting at Burkersdorf (Střítež), Colonel Grivicic at 12:00 AM reached the town of Rudersdorf
Rubínovice
, where he stood poised between the 1st and 2nd Prussian Guard Divisions. At Rudersdorf Grivicic encountered a Prussian battalion which had been detached as flank protection. Assuming he was faced by an entire division, Grivicic took up a defensive position against the Prussian battalion. By 1:00 PM, having understood his mistake, Grivicic restarted a cautious advance against the Prussian line, which had been reinforced by a second battalion and later by the 4th Guards Brigade. Failing to make headway against the

Dreyse needle gun Dreyse may refer to: * Johann Nicolaus von Dreyse (1787–1867), German firearms inventor * Hitch Dreyse, a fictional character in '' Attack on Titan'' (''Shingeki no Kyojin'') series who serves in the military police. * Dreyse needle gun, a German ...

, Grivicic halted the advance and then retreated towards the town, which was then fought over house-to-house. As three new Prussian Guard battalions appeared and turned his right flank, making the brigade collapse and disperse. In all, Grivicic brigade lost 2512 men and was effectively destroyed.

Geoffrey Wawro Geoffrey Wawro (born 1960) is an American Professor of Military History at the University of North Texas, and Director of the UNT Military History Center. His primary area of emphasis is modern and contemporary military history, from the French Re ...

, ''The Austro-Prussian War. Austria's war with Prussia and Italy in 1866'' (New York 2007), p 163-165

References

Literature

: ''The Austro-Prussian War: Austria’s War with Prussia and Italy in 1866'', Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 1997 {{coord missing, Czech Republic Burkersdorf Burkersdorf Burkersdorf Burkersdorf 1866 in the Austrian Empire 19th century in Bohemia June 1866 events 1866 in Germany Frederick III, German Emperor History of the Hradec Králové Region