Emmendingen, Battle of

At the Battle of Emmendingen, on October 19, 1796, the French Army of Rhin-et-Moselle under Jean Victor Marie Moreau fights the First Coalition Army of the Upper Rhine commanded by Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen.

Emmendingen is located on the Elz River in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, nine miles (fourteen kilometers) north of Freiburg im Breisgau.

The action occurs during the War of the First Coalition, the first phase of the larger French Revolutionary Wars.

After a summer of parrying between the two sides, the French are already withdrawing through the Black Forest to the Rhine.

In close pursuit, the Austrians force the French commander to split his force so he can cross the Rhine at three points via the bridges at Kehl, Breisach, and Hüningen.

By mid-September, though, the Austrians control the approaches to the crossings at Breisach and Kehl.

Moreau still wants half his army to approach the Austrians at Kehl.

The rugged terrain at Emmendingen complicates fighting, making it possible for the Habsburg force to snipe at the French troops, and to block any passage toward Kehl; rainy and cold weather further hamper the efforts of both sides, turning streams and rivulets into rushing torrents of water, and making roadways slippery.

The fighting is fierce; two generals died in the battle, one from each side.

Habsburg success at Emmendingen forces the French to abandon their plans for a three-pronged, or even a two-pronged, withdrawal.

The French continue their retreat through the Black Forest mountain towns to the south, where the armies fight the Battle of Schliengen five days later.