1678 battle during the Swedish-Brandenburg War where Swedish forces defeated an allied army composed mainly of Danes
A Swedish victory that effectively neutralized the allied Danish-Brandenburg force on Rügen, with over 3,600 enemy troops captured in a single engagement.
Key Facts
- Date (N.S.)
- 18 January 1678
- Swedish forces
- ~3,500 men, including 2,000 cavalry
- Allied forces
- ~4,670 men, including 1,770 cavalry and 16 cannon
- Swedish casualties
- 170 killed
- Allied casualties
- 400 killed, 3,600+ captured
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
During the Swedish-Brandenburg War, allied Danish, Brandenburg, and Hesse-Cassel forces occupied the Baltic island of Rügen, prompting a Swedish military response. The Swedes assembled a force of approximately 3,500 men, including a strong cavalry contingent, to confront the numerically superior allied army of around 4,670 men.
On 18 January 1678 (N.S.), Swedish forces engaged the allied army at Warksow on the island of Rügen. Despite being outnumbered, the Swedes defeated the coalition, killing approximately 400 enemy soldiers and capturing more than 3,600 during the battle and the pursuit that followed, while sustaining only 170 killed themselves.
Following the battle, the entire allied force on Rügen was either captured or compelled to serve under the Swedish flag in the subsequent days. This decisive outcome eliminated the Danish-led allied presence on Rügen and significantly shifted the balance of the Swedish-Brandenburg War in Sweden's favor in the region.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
3 belligerents