1705 – Uprising in Bavaria
Hierarchical Path: War of the Spanish Succession (Main Page) >> Campaigns >> 1705 – Uprising in Bavaria
The campaign lasted from November 1705 to January 1706
Introduction
After the unfortunate outcome of the campaign of 1704 for the Franco-Bavarian army, Elector Max Emanuel crossed the Rhine to France with most of the Bavarian Army which was placed in French pay.
On 7 November 1704, the wife of the Elector of Bavaria concluded the Treaty of Ilbesheim with Emperor Leopold I, according to which all of Bavaria, with the exception of Munich, came under Imperial administration. The Imperial administrator was Karl Count von Löwenstein. All Bavarian troops still in the electorate were disbanded.
Description
The population of Bavaria suffered greatly under the strict Imperial administration, and a conspiracy developed. Insurgents arrested the Hofkammerrat von Lier. That was the reason for the occupation of Munich.
At the end of April 1705, several Palatine regiments (Isselbach Infantry, Sachsen-Meiningen Infantry, Hatzfeld Cavalry and Vehlen Dragoons), which had initially been destined for Italy, were ordered to march to Bavaria and to join the troops assembling to suppress the uprising.
On 14 May, Count Gronsfeld reached Dachau with the 4 Palatine rgts and 6 Imperial rgts.
On 15 May, Gronsfeld threatened to bombard Munich and the city opened its gates. Gronsfeld's troops occupied Munich.
On 18 May, the 4 Palatine rgts left Munich and proceeded to Italy.
Nevertheless, in November, a popular uprising, which had begun in Lower Bavaria, the Innviertel and eastern Bavaria, rapidly spread to the Bavarian Forest, parts of the Upper Palatinate and Kelheim on the Danube.
The rebels vainly tried to capture Munich.
On 21 December, a meeting of the Parliament in Braunau (then belonging to Bavaria) was held in an inn belonging to the Baron von Paumgarten. There were representatives from the aristocracy, the clergy, the burghers and the peasants.
On 24 December, a force of 16,000 armed men with some artillery pieces assembled under the leadership of Bavarian aristocrats and advanced to Ebersberg near Munich.
On 25 December, near Sendling outside of Munich, an Austrian force engaged and defeated the peasants of the Bavarian Oberland, who had advanced from the south. In this affair, the Bavarians lost around 1,100 men, and the Austrians only about 40. Some of the insurgents were killed after they had already surrendered. This forced the Bavarian troops gathered at Ebersberg to retreat before effecting a junction with the insurgents of the In Valley..
In January 1706, the Elector of Palatinate sent Efferen Infantry and Wittgenstein Dragoons to Bavaria to reinforce Imperial troops trying to quench the uprising. Efferen Infantry joined the corps of the Duke of Württemberg, while the Wittgenstein Dragoons (372 men under Lieutenant-Colonel Baron von Mirbach) advanced against the Insurgents in Cham. The Wittgenstein Dragoons joined Colonel d'Arnan and marched to Amberg. Reinforced by some hussars, the Imperial Wolfenbüttel rgt and 6 guns, d'Arnan then marched to Cham.
On 8 January, the Imperialists defeated the Bavarian insurgents (approx. 5,000 badly armed peasants) in the Battle of Aidenbach, where the insurgents lost about 2,500 men killed or wounded.
On 11 January, the Bavarian insurgents sent a delegation to Salzburg for peace negotiations. The delegation included Mayor Dürnhardt, Baron von Paumgarten, Baron von Prielmayr, Mayor Georg Ludwig Harter of Burghausen and the farmer Franz Nagelstätter.
On 13 January, the city of Schärding surrendered to the Imperialists.
On 16 January, d'Arnan cannonaded the city gates of Cham. Around 400 insurgents tried to escape during the following night, but they were driven back. After that, the garrison surrendered, but the population was subjected to depredations because of the resistance of the place.
After the successes of the Imperialist forces, the uprising collapsed.
On 17 January, Braunau surrendered to the Imperialists.
On 18 January, Burghausen, the last stronghold of the Bavarian insurgents, surrendered to the Imperialists.
References
This article incorporates texts from the following books, which are now in the public domain:
- Bezzel, O.: Geschichte des Kurpfälzischen Heeres, Bayrisches Kriegsarchiv, IV. File, part 1 and 2, Munich 1925
Other sources
Wikipedia
- English Edition – Bavarian uprising of 1705–1706
- German Edition – Bayerische Volkserhebung]
Acknowledgement
Harald Skala for the initial version of this article
