Landshut, Battle of

(1809)

   Fought northeast of Munich in Bavaria on April 21, 1809, the Battle of Landshut was a French victory in the War of the Fifth Coalition over Austrian General Johann Hiller. After his defeat at Abensberg, Hiller withdrew his 35,000 men to Landshut, on the River Isar, pursued by Marshal Jean Lannes. Napoleon had sent Marshal André Masséna to cut them off, but delays allowed Hiller to occupy the town and the bridge. Lannes efforts to dislodge him failed and it took Napoleon’s arrival to change things. Napoleon’s forces quickly occupied the suburbs and then dispatched troops to capture the bridge. The Austrians put up stiff resistance, but with Masséna threatening his line of retreat, Hiller withdrew toward Neumarkt. Napoleon then sent Marshal Jean Baptiste Bessières after the Austrian with 20,000 men and led the rest of his army toward Eckmühl, determined to crush Archduke Charles ’s forces. The action at Landshut further split the Austrian army and inflicted heavy losses, including 10,000 men and many guns and supplies.

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   FURTHER READING:

    Rothenberg, Gunther Erich. The Napoleonic Wars. London: Cassell, 2000.

   J. DAVID MARKHAM