The battle of Prague (1741) was a successful French capture of the Austrian city

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

Background

In continuance of the policy of his father, Charles of Bavaria aspired to an even higher rank. As son-in-law of

Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor , father = Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor , mother = Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg , birth_date = , birth_place = Vienna, Austria , death_date = , death_place = Vienna, Austria , burial_place = Imperial Crypt, Vienna , r ...

, Charles rejected the

Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 The Pragmatic Sanction ( la, Sanctio Pragmatica, german: Pragmatische Sanktion) was an edict issued by Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, on 19 April 1713 to ensure that the Habsburg hereditary possessions, which included the Archduchy of Austria ...

and claimed the German territories of the Habsburg dynasty after the death of emperor Charles VI in 1740. By the

Treaty of Nymphenburg The Treaty of Nymphenburg was a treaty between Bavaria and Spain that was concluded on May 28, 1741 at the Nymphenburg Palace in Munich. It was the first formal pact of a series of French-sponsored alliances against the Habsburg Monarch, Maria ...

, which was concluded in July 1741, Charles became allied with France and Spain against Austria. During the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession () was a European conflict that took place between 1740 and 1748. Fought primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italy, the Atlantic and Mediterranean, related conflicts included King George's ...

, Charles invaded

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...

in 1741 and planned to conquer

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, but his allied French troops under the Duc de Belle-Isle were instead redirected to Bohemia.

Battle

Maurice de Saxe, an experienced commander renowned for his intellectual grasp of the principles of war, discreetly went forward to reconnoiter the walled city's defenses in person and launched a surprise operation. With help of Colonel François de Chevert, he outlined a plan for a body of grenadiers to assault the walls by night. In order to avoid alerting the small Prague garrison, the assault would be made without firing muskets; only bayonets were used to dispatch the soldiers on guard duty. On the night of 25 to 26 November, the Franco-Bavarian-Saxon climbed onto the parapet of a poorly defended section of the walls and had taken possession before the garrison realized what was afoot. The city gate was opened, and Saxe's cavalry rode in, leaving Prague's defenders no choice but to surrender.

Aftermath

Charles Albert was crowned

King of Bohemia The Duchy of Bohemia was established in 870 and raised to the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198. Several Bohemian monarchs ruled as non-hereditary kings beforehand, first gaining the title in 1085. From 1004 to 1806, Bohemia was part of the Holy Roman E ...

the following day and later also briefly held the title of Holy Roman Emperor. Despite the capture of Prague, the strategic decision didn't change. In December 1741 Austrian general Ludwig Andreas von Khevenhüller launched a winter counter-offensive, reversing most of the enemy's gains. Prague would be liberated by the Austrians again in December 1742.

References

{{Reflist War of the Austrian Succession 1740s conflicts 18th-century conflicts