Map of the major actions of the Franco Prussian War

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July28,1870 Napoleon III left Paris for Metz with the Army of the Rhine, some 202,448 strong Prussian First Army with 50,000 men Prussian Second Army with 134,000 men commanded by Prince Friedrich Karl Prussian Third Army with 120,000 men commanded by Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm Battle of Spicheren August 6, 1870 German victory compelled the French to withdraw to the defenses of Metz. Battle of Wörth August 6, 1870 Germany commanded by Crown Prince Frederick defeat the French commanded by Marshal MacMahon. Battle of Mars-La-Tour or Rezonville August 16, 1870 Two Prussian corps encountered the entire French Army of the Rhine under Bazaine, and successfully forced the Army of the Rhine to retreat into the fortresses of Metz. Generals Rhetz and von Alvensleben deceived Bazaine as to their real strength.Germany victory. Battle of Gravelotte August 18, 1870 The largest battle of the Franco Prussian War. The combined German armies under Field Marshal von Moltke with 188,332 men fought The French Army of the Rhine under Marshal Bazaine with about 113,000 men. The Germans lost around 20,000, most to the Chassepots and mitrailleuses and the French around 7,800 to Krupp guns. Bazaine was blocked from going to the fortress of Verdun and retreated to Metz, where he was besieged Siege of Metz September 3 – October 23, 1870 With the defeat of Marshal Bazaine's Army of the Rhine at Gravelotte, the French were forced to retire to Metz where they were besieged by over 150,000 Prussian troops of the First and Second Armies. The further crushing French loss was sealed when he surrendered 180,000 soldiers and 6,000 officers on October 27. Bazaine and his army marched off into captivity and a new Prussian army was now free to besiege Paris. Battle of Sedan September 1, 1870 The battle resulted in the capture of Napoleon III and his entire army and decided the war for Prussia. A new French republic continued to fight after the capture and exile of Napoleon III. The French had 17,000 casualties and 21,000 captured and the surrender gave the Germans 83,000 more .The German suffered only 9,000 killed and wounded. The high French casualties were due to the German artillery . Nov 9, 1870 The Battle of Coulmiers One of the few French victories of the war for the French was at the Battle of Coulmiers, west of Orleans on Nov 9, 1870. Here, one of Gambetta's newly created armies,the French Army of the Loire under General D'Aurelle de Paladines surprised a Barvarian army under the command of Ludwig Freiherr von und zu der Tann at the village of Coulmiers west of Orleans. Siege of Paris September 19, 1870 – January 28, 1871 18 January the new German Empire was proclaimed at the Palace of Versailles. 18 January the new German Empire was proclaimed at the Palace of Versailles. Prussian HQ The Battle of Villiers Nov 29 - Dec 3 1870 One of the fiercest battles of the siege of Paris was the Battle of Villiers, a sortie against the Prussian forces besieging Paris On November 30 Auguste-Alexandre Ducrot led 80,000 men towards the villages of Champigny and Brie on the east bank of the Marne River. This section of the German lines was held by the Württemberg Division of the Prussian 3rd Army. On the 29th the Marne had flooded and a French reconnaissance attack turned into a disaster when 1,300 troops were lost. The main attack was to come the next day followed by a series of diversionary attacks. French artillery drove German advance units from the villages of Brie and Champigny and allowed Ducrot's troops to cross the Marne on pontoon bridges. Ducrot established a bridgehead on the opposite bank of the river at the two villages and advanced up a plateau towards Villiers. The Württemberg Division was so well entrenched that the French artillery did little to dislodge them and the attack stalled. Battle of Buzenval 19-20 January 1871 The Battle of Buzenval, also known as the Battle of Mont Valerien was part of the siege of Paris during the Franco-Prussian War. On January 19, the day after Wilhelm I was crowned German Emperor, Louis Jules Trochu attacked the Germans west of Paris in Buzenval Park. The attackers seized the town of Saint-Cloud coming close to the new Emperor's headquarters at Versailles. Trochu was able to maintain his position at St. Cloud for most of the day but the failure of other French forces to hold their positions left him isolated and the Crown Prince's army was able to force Trochu's salient back into Paris by the next day. This was the last effort to break out of Paris. Trochu turned over command of the Paris defenses to Joseph Vinoy who surrendered the city 10 days later. Battle of Le Mans January 10 – 12 1871 The Battle of Le Mans was a German victory during the Franco-Prussian War which ended French resistance in western France. Antoine Chanzy had under his command about 150,000 soldiers stationed in Le Mans. The bulk of the pre-war professional French army had either been captured at the battle of Sedan and the siege of Metz or were bottled up in the siege of Paris. Thus Chanzy's Battle of St. Quentin January 19, 1871 The Battle of St. Quentin was a battle during the Franco-Prussian War which defeated French attempts to relieve the besieged city of Paris. While the Prussian Armies under Wilhelm I besieged Paris, the Prussian I Army, now under the command of August Karl von Goeben was sent to deal with French forces north of Paris. After a first attempt to relieve Paris had been checked at the battle of Bapaume, the French were planning another relief effort. Von Goeben marched his army north and met the irregular French army under General Louis Faidherbe near Saint Quentin. On January 19 the Prussians attacked and decisively defeated the French forces. The same day General Trochu attempted a breakout of Paris but it too was defeated. No other significant attempts would be made to lift the siege of Paris. Battle of the Lisaine January 15 - January 28, 1871 The Battle of the Lisaine was fought from January 15 to January 17 of 1871 between Prussian and French forces. The French were led by Charles Denis Bourbaki, and were attempting to relieve the Siege of Belfort. Their efforts failed, and they were forced to flee into Switzerland. Siege of Belfort 3 November 1870-18 February 1871 The Siege of Belfort was a lengthy siege during the Franco-Prussian War. The garrison held out until the armistice between France and the German Empire. The fall of Strasbourg on September 28 allowed the German army under August von Werder to move south against the city Belfort. Upon hearing of the approaching German army, Pierre Philippe Denfert-Rochereau, commander of Belfort, began constructing fortifications around the city. Werder's forces reached Belfort and invested the city on November 3. The French offered stubborn resistance and the Germans could not complete an effective encirclement of the city. General Charles Denis Bourbaki assembled an army intending to relieve Belfort. On January 15, 1871 Bourbaki attacked Werder along the Lisaine River and after a three day battle was repulsed and his army retreated into Switzerland. German forces grew impatient with the length of the siege and on January 27 General von Tresckow launched an attack on Siege of Strasbourg The Siege of Strasbourg took place during the Franco-Prussian War, and resulted in the French surrender of the fortress on 28 September 1870. The fall of Strasbourg freed Werder's forces for further operations in northeastern France. His next move was against the city of Belfort, which was invested in November. Siege of Toul 16 August to 23 September 1870 The Siege of Toul was the siege of the French town of Toul from 16 August to 23 September 1870 by Prussian, Bavarian and Württemberg forces during the Franco-Prussian War. 64 guns opened fire at 6am on September 23, and the fortress surrendered at 3pm after 2,433 shells had been fired. Battle of Loigny-Poupry December 2, 1870 The Battle of Loigny-Poupry was a battle of the Franco-Prussian War. It took place on December 2, 1870 during the Loire Campaign near the town of Loigny. An army detachment (Armee-Abteilung) under the command of Friedrich Franz II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, engaged the French Army of the Loire and defeated them. Orleans was occupied by the Prussians on 13 October that year. The armée de la Loire was formed under the orders of général d'Aurelle de Paladines and based itself not far from Orléans at Beauce. Gambetta sails on balloon from Paris to Tours on Oct 8 to organize the provinces to fight the Prussians. After the French defeat near Orléans early in December the seat of government was transferred to Bordeaux Battle of Le Mans January 10 – 12 1871 The Battle of Le Mans was a German victory during the Franco-Prussian War which ended French resistance in western France. kiiop test bb Battle of St. Quentin January 19, 1871 The Battle of St. Quentin was a battle during the Franco-Prussian War which defeated French attempts to relieve the besieged city of Paris. While the Prussian Armies under Wilhelm I besieged Paris, the Prussian I Army, now under the command of August Karl von Goeben was sent to deal with French forces north of Paris. After a first attempt to relieve Paris had been checked at the battle of Bapaume, the French were planning another relief effort. Von Goeben marched his army north and met the irregular French army under General Louis Faidherbe near Saint Quentin. On January 19 the Prussians attacked and decisively defeated the French forces. The same day General Trochu attempted a breakout of Paris but it too was defeated. No other significant attempts would be made to lift the siege of Paris. pop pop