10 June 1807
Battle of Heilsberg
After several months of recuperating from Eylau, Napoleon ordered the Grande Armee on the move once again.
Historical place archive
Browse historical events and people recorded at Heilsberg in Germany. The records below are rendered directly from the World History Database into this page's initial HTML.
After several months of recuperating from Eylau, Napoleon ordered the Grande Armee on the move once again.
In fact, the French ran into the entire Russian army of over 50,000 men and 150 artillery guns.
Learning that the Russians had encamped at their operational base in the town of Heilsberg, by the Alle River, Napoleon decided to conduct a general assault in the hopes of dislodging what he thought was the rearguard of the Russian army.
Repeated and determined attacks by the French failed to dislocate the Russians, who were fighting inside elaborate earthworks designed to prevent precisely the kind of river crossing Napoleon was attempting. French casualties soared to 10,000 while the Russians lost about 6,000.
The Russians eventually withdrew from Heilsberg as their position became untenable, prompting Napoleon to chase after them once again
Provenance
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