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Battle of Lauffeld
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| War of the Austrian Succession |
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| Mollwitz – Chotusitz – Dettingen – Toulon – Fontenoy – Hohenfriedberg – Soor – Kesselsdorf – Rocoux – 1st Finisterre – Lauffeld – 2nd Finisterre – Havana |
The Battle of Lauffeld (a.k.a. Battle of Lafelt or Battle of Maastricht) took place on July 2, 1747, during the French invasion of the Netherlands (part of the War of the Austrian Succession). Marshall Saxe led the French forces against the combined forces of the Scots Guards under the banner of the Duke of Cumberland, and the Dutch Republic, fighting under the Prince of Orange, at Lauffeld (or Lafelt, now part of Riemst), just west of Maastricht.
Although celebrated by the French as a victory, the Allied army was not defeated. It had retreated in an orderly fashion, leaving the French - who had suffered more casualties - the battlefield, but stopping them from successfully besieging Maastricht, which was the Allied aim of the battle. In other words, it was a tactical victory for the French but an operational / strategic victory for the Allies.
A year later, the French tried again to capture Maastricht and this time, after a prolonged siege, they were successful. The city's capture started the peace process that ended this war, and so nine months later, the French left the city again.
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