France's decisive victory at Hohenlinden effectively ended the War of the Second Coalition and led Austria to accept French dominance in the Treaty of Lunéville.
Key Facts
- Date
- 3 December 1800
- French force size
- 56,000 troops
- Austrian-Bavarian force size
- 64,000 troops
- Distance from Munich
- 33 km east of Munich
- Age of Austrian commander
- Archduke John was 18 years old
- Treaty signed
- Treaty of Lunéville, February 1801
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
During the War of the Second Coalition, Austrian and Bavarian forces believed they were pursuing a retreating French army under General Moreau. Overconfident, they advanced through heavily wooded terrain near Hohenlinden in four disconnected columns, leaving themselves vulnerable to a coordinated counterattack.
On 3 December 1800, Moreau's 56,000-strong army ambushed roughly 64,000 Austro-Bavarian troops as they emerged from the Ebersberg forest. Antoine Richepanse's division executed a surprise flanking maneuver against the Austrian left, while Moreau's generals showed individual initiative to encircle and destroy the largest Austrian column, inflicting a decisive defeat.
The crushing defeat forced the Austrians into a disastrous retreat and compelled them to seek an armistice, ending the War of the Second Coalition. In February 1801, Austria signed the Treaty of Lunéville, accepting French control to the Rhine and French-aligned republics in Italy and the Netherlands. The ensuing Treaty of Amiens with Britain created the longest peace interval of the Napoleonic Wars.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Jean Victor Marie Moreau, Antoine Richepanse.
Side B
1 belligerent
Archduke John of Austria.