The Battle of Burkersdorf was a battle fought on 21 July 1762 during the

Third Silesian War The Third Silesian War () was a war between Kingdom of Prussia, Prussia and Archduchy of Austria, Austria (together with its allies) that lasted from 1756 to 1763 and confirmed Prussia's control of the region of Silesia (now in south-western Po ...

(part of the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754� ...

). A

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

n army of 40,000 men fought an

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n army of around 30,000 men. After the death of

Elizabeth of Russia Elizabeth Petrovna (russian: Елизаве́та (Елисаве́та) Петро́вна) (), also known as Yelisaveta or Elizaveta, reigned as Empress of Russia from 1741 until her death in 1762. She remains one of the most popular Russian ...

, czarina of Russia, her nephew Peter III came to the throne. Peter was a great admirer of

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the Sil ...

and all things Prussian, and Frederick used this to his advantage. Peter promptly withdrew his army from the war, abandoned Russian-occupied East Prussia, and signed a treaty of peace with Frederick. Peter then sent a force to aid the Prussian army in the campaign against the Austrians. Peter's reign was short-lived, however, as his wife

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

seized the throne, and he died shortly afterwards. Catherine withdrew from the war and sent orders for Count Zakhar Tchernyshov aiding the Prussians to withdraw. Seeing the necessity of quick action, Frederick convinced the Russian general to stay for a few more days, not to take part in the battle, but to be a force acting on the Austrian general's decisions. Frederick attacked and won, and the Russian force returned home. Catherine's attempts to resume the war against Prussia were in vain, as peace talks were already being initiated at Hubertsberg.

References

* http://www.britishbattles.com/frederick/battle-burkersdorf.htm ;Specific

External links

* Battle of Burkersdorf Battles of the Seven Years' War Battles involving Prussia Battles involving Austria 1762 in Austria Battles of Frederick the Great Battles of the Silesian Wars {{Austria-battle-stub