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Battle of Tourcoing (1794)
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Tourcoing was fought near the town of Tourcoing
, just north of Lille
in northeastern France on 18 May 1794 and resulted in the victory of the French under Major-Generals Joseph Souham
and Jean Moreau
over the British
under the Duke of York
and the Austrians under General the Prince of Saxe-Coburg
. It is sometimes referred to the Battle of Turcoine, as a gesture towards the British pronunciation of the town.
's Army of the North (Armée du Nord) encountered an Austro-British-German force at Tourcoing. Despite a slight advantage in numbers, the 74,000 Allied troops under Saxe-Coburg were out-led and out-fought by Souham's 70,000 French troops. (However, one authority gives the French total as 82,000.)
Souham devised a strategic pincer movement consisting of his division attacking southwards from Kortrijk (Courtrai)
and Maj-Gen Bonnaud's division northeastwards from Lille, thus catching the separated allied columns of Von dem Bussche, Rudolf Ritter von Otto
and the Duke of York between them. Meanwhile part of Moreau's command held off the assault of the Count of Clerfayt
from the north. It was a sprawling engagement fought out over many square miles of countryside just west of the Scheldt River in Flanders. Together with Maj-Gen Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
's victory at the Battle of Fleurus
on 16 June, Tourcoing marked the start of the allied evacuation of its forces from Flanders and French supremacy in Western Europe.
(18½ battalions, 6 squadrons), the Count of Clerfayt and Franz Josef von Kinsky. Von dem Bussche commanded the Hanoverians (5 bns, 8 sqdns). The Duke of York led the English (8 bns, 6 sqdns), Hessen-Darmstadt (3 bns, 4 sqdns) and Hessen-Kassel (4 bns, 8 sqdns) contingents.
between Courtrai and Aalbeke
. Bonnaud held the center with units at Lannoy
, Tressin
and Sainghin. In addition, Compère's brigade held Tourcoing and Thierry's brigade held Mouscron. Osten's division defended Pont-à-Marcq
on the right (south) flank. These dispositions straddle the current French-Belgian border.
Saxe-Coburg's chief-of-staff, General Karl Mack von Leiberich proposed enveloping and annihilating the 50,000-strong mass formed by Souham and Moreau. Clerfayt's detached corps was to march along the north bank of the Lys from Tielt
through Menin
. At Werwick
, Clerfayt would force a crossing to the south bank, placing him well behind the French left flank. The Duke of York's three columns would advance to the northwest from Tournai
toward Tourcoing. This force would pin the divisions of Souham and Moreau against the Lys. To the south, Archduke Charles and Kinsky would brush Osten and Bonnaud aside and wheel northwest, linking with Clerfayt and trapping the French left flank. The movement began on 16 May.
, who had a brigade of Moreau's division. The Duke of York's right column under Bussche captured Mouscron, but it was driven out again and mauled by a French brigade. The center column led by Otto seized Tourcoing. With the British Guards brigade leading the attack, the Duke of York's left column under Ralph Abercromby
, stormed into Lannoy, Willems and Mouvaux
. Kinsky's column crossed the Marque River
at Bouvines
but made little progress beyond there. Archduke Charles' column got a late start and barely made it to Pont-à-Marcq. Only the columns of Abercromby and Otto had reached their assigned positions by evening.
On 18 May, Souham determined to hurl 40,000 men at the Duke of York's three columns, while holding Kinsky, Charles and Clerfayt off with secondary forces. During the night, Clerfayt managed to cross to the south bank of the Lys. His 21,000 men drove back Vandamme's 12,000, but he was unable to advance south beyond Linselles
. Shaken by his defeat the day before, Bussche retreated to the Scheldt. In the south, Charles and Kinsky remained almost completely inert, despite Mack's frantic orders for them to march to Lannoy. Instead, Charles became obsessed with protecting his left flank and rear from French incursions.
At dawn, Brig-Gen Étienne MacDonald
's brigade of Souham's division rushed and recaptured Tourcoing from Otto. Malbrancq's brigade attacked Mouvaux from the north while Bonnaud applied pressure from the west. At first, Otto held firm on a line south of Tourcoing, but he was slowly driven back. At 11:30 am, the Duke of York and Abercromby, now isolated and under heavy attack, retreated from Mouvaux toward the southeast. This ended the battle. Souham immediately faced his tired troops about and prepared to attack Clerfayt. That general, realizing he was now alone, recrossed to the north bank of the Lys and retreated to the northeast.
Tourcoing
Tourcoing is a city in northern France. It is designated municipally as a commune within the département of Nord.Tourcoing is situated near the cities of Lille and Roubaix and the Belgian border.-Main sights:...
, just north of Lille
Lille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
in northeastern France on 18 May 1794 and resulted in the victory of the French under Major-Generals Joseph Souham
Joseph Souham
Joseph Souham was a French general who fought in the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was born at Lubersac and died at Versailles.-French revolutionary years:...
and Jean Moreau
Jean Victor Marie Moreau
Jean Victor Marie Moreau was a French general who helped Napoleon Bonaparte to power, but later became a rival and was banished to the United States.- Early life :Moreau was born at Morlaix in Brittany...
over the British
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
under the Duke of York
Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany
The Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany was a member of the Hanoverian and British Royal Family, the second eldest child, and second son, of King George III...
and the Austrians under General the Prince of Saxe-Coburg
Prince Josias of Coburg
Prince Frederick Josias of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld was a general in the Austrian service.-Biography:...
. It is sometimes referred to the Battle of Turcoine, as a gesture towards the British pronunciation of the town.
Battle in a nutshell
Under the temporary leadership of Souham, Maj-Gen Charles PichegruCharles Pichegru
Jean-Charles Pichegru was a French general and political figure of the French Revolution and Revolutionary Wars.-Early life and career:...
's Army of the North (Armée du Nord) encountered an Austro-British-German force at Tourcoing. Despite a slight advantage in numbers, the 74,000 Allied troops under Saxe-Coburg were out-led and out-fought by Souham's 70,000 French troops. (However, one authority gives the French total as 82,000.)
Souham devised a strategic pincer movement consisting of his division attacking southwards from Kortrijk (Courtrai)
Kortrijk
Kortrijk ; , ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province West Flanders...
and Maj-Gen Bonnaud's division northeastwards from Lille, thus catching the separated allied columns of Von dem Bussche, Rudolf Ritter von Otto
Rudolf Ritter von Otto
Rudolf Ritter von Otto began his military career in the army of the Kingdom of Saxony, transferred to the Austrian army and had a distinguished combat record during the Seven Years War and the French Revolutionary Wars.-Early career:...
and the Duke of York between them. Meanwhile part of Moreau's command held off the assault of the Count of Clerfayt
François Sebastien Charles Joseph de Croix, Count of Clerfayt
François Sebastien Charles Joseph de Croix, Count of Clerfayt , a Walloon, joined the army of the Habsburg Monarchy and soon fought in the Seven Years War. Later in his military career, he led Austrian troops in the war against Ottoman Turkey...
from the north. It was a sprawling engagement fought out over many square miles of countryside just west of the Scheldt River in Flanders. Together with Maj-Gen Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan
Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, 1st Comte Jourdan , enlisted as a private in the French royal army and rose to command armies during the French Revolutionary Wars. Emperor Napoleon I of France named him a Marshal of France in 1804 and he also fought in the Napoleonic Wars. After 1815, he became reconciled...
's victory at the Battle of Fleurus
Battle of Fleurus (1794)
In the Battle of Fleurus on 26 June 1794, the army of the First French Republic under General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan faced the Coalition Army commanded by Prince Josias of Coburg in the most decisive battle of the Flanders Campaign in the Low Countries during the French Revolutionary Wars...
on 16 June, Tourcoing marked the start of the allied evacuation of its forces from Flanders and French supremacy in Western Europe.
Forces
The Army of the North included the divisions of Souham (28,000), Moreau (22,000), Bonnaud (20,000) and Osten (10,000). Saxe-Coburg's army consisted of three Austrian columns commanded by Archduke CharlesArchduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
Archduke Charles of Austria, Duke of Teschen was an Austrian field-marshal, the third son of emperor Leopold II and his wife Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain...
(18½ battalions, 6 squadrons), the Count of Clerfayt and Franz Josef von Kinsky. Von dem Bussche commanded the Hanoverians (5 bns, 8 sqdns). The Duke of York led the English (8 bns, 6 sqdns), Hessen-Darmstadt (3 bns, 4 sqdns) and Hessen-Kassel (4 bns, 8 sqdns) contingents.
Background
The Army of the North had thrust eastward so that the divisions of Souham and Moreau, which formed the left (north) flank, stood on the south bank of the Lys RiverLys River
The Leie or Lys is a river in France and Belgium, and a left tributary of the Scheldt. Its source is in Pas-de-Calais, France, and it flows into the river Scheldt in Ghent, Belgium. Its total length is ....
between Courtrai and Aalbeke
Aalbeke
"Aalbeke" is a village in the Belgian province of West Flanders and since 1977 a district of Kortrijk. Aalbeke has postal code 8511 and covers an area of 717 ha. The district had 2,953 inhabitants on December 31, 2007. Aalbeke is located 6 km southwest of Kortrijk and is surrounded by...
. Bonnaud held the center with units at Lannoy
Lannoy, Nord
Lannoy is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.-Heraldry:-Geography:With a land area of only , it is the fourth-smallest French commune by surface area and the smallest chef-lieu of a canton...
, Tressin
Tressin
-References:*...
and Sainghin. In addition, Compère's brigade held Tourcoing and Thierry's brigade held Mouscron. Osten's division defended Pont-à-Marcq
Pont-à-Marcq
-References:**...
on the right (south) flank. These dispositions straddle the current French-Belgian border.
Saxe-Coburg's chief-of-staff, General Karl Mack von Leiberich proposed enveloping and annihilating the 50,000-strong mass formed by Souham and Moreau. Clerfayt's detached corps was to march along the north bank of the Lys from Tielt
Tielt
Tielt is a Belgian municipality in the province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Tielt proper and the towns of Aarsele, Kanegem, and Schuiferskapelle.-History:Some traces of Gallo-Roman occupation have been found in this area...
through Menin
Menen
Menen is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Menen proper and the towns of Lauwe and Rekkem. The city is situated on the French/Belgian border. On January 1, 2006, Menen had a total population of 32,413...
. At Werwick
Wervik
Wervik is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Wervik and the town of Geluwe. On January 1, 2006 Wervik had a total population of 17,607. The total area is 43.61 km² which gives a population density of 404 inhabitants per km²....
, Clerfayt would force a crossing to the south bank, placing him well behind the French left flank. The Duke of York's three columns would advance to the northwest from Tournai
Tournai
Tournai is a Walloon city and municipality of Belgium located 85 kilometres southwest of Brussels, on the river Scheldt, in the province of Hainaut....
toward Tourcoing. This force would pin the divisions of Souham and Moreau against the Lys. To the south, Archduke Charles and Kinsky would brush Osten and Bonnaud aside and wheel northwest, linking with Clerfayt and trapping the French left flank. The movement began on 16 May.
Battle
On 17 May, Clerfayt found his crossing resisted by Brig-Gen Dominique VandammeDominique Vandamme
General Dominique-Joseph René Vandamme, Count of Unseburg was a French military officer, who fought in the Napoleonic Wars....
, who had a brigade of Moreau's division. The Duke of York's right column under Bussche captured Mouscron, but it was driven out again and mauled by a French brigade. The center column led by Otto seized Tourcoing. With the British Guards brigade leading the attack, the Duke of York's left column under Ralph Abercromby
Ralph Abercromby
Sir Ralph Abercromby was a Scottish soldier and politician. He rose to the rank of lieutenant-general in the British Army, was noted for his services during the Napoleonic Wars, and served as Commander-in-Chief, Ireland.He twice served as MP for Clackmannanshire and Kinross-shire, and was...
, stormed into Lannoy, Willems and Mouvaux
Mouvaux
-References:*...
. Kinsky's column crossed the Marque River
Marque River
The Marque is a 32 km long river in France, right tributary of the Deûle. Its source is near the village Mons-en-Pévèle. Its course crosses the Nord département, notably the eastern part of the agglomeration of Lille...
at Bouvines
Bouvines
Bouvines is a commune in the Nord department in northern France.It was the site of the Battle of Bouvines, on 27 July 1214.-Heraldry:-References:*...
but made little progress beyond there. Archduke Charles' column got a late start and barely made it to Pont-à-Marcq. Only the columns of Abercromby and Otto had reached their assigned positions by evening.
On 18 May, Souham determined to hurl 40,000 men at the Duke of York's three columns, while holding Kinsky, Charles and Clerfayt off with secondary forces. During the night, Clerfayt managed to cross to the south bank of the Lys. His 21,000 men drove back Vandamme's 12,000, but he was unable to advance south beyond Linselles
Linselles
-References:*...
. Shaken by his defeat the day before, Bussche retreated to the Scheldt. In the south, Charles and Kinsky remained almost completely inert, despite Mack's frantic orders for them to march to Lannoy. Instead, Charles became obsessed with protecting his left flank and rear from French incursions.
At dawn, Brig-Gen Étienne MacDonald
Étienne-Jacques-Joseph-Alexandre MacDonald
Étienne Jacques Joseph Alexandre MacDonald, 1st duke of Taranto was a Marshal of France and military leader during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.-Family background:...
's brigade of Souham's division rushed and recaptured Tourcoing from Otto. Malbrancq's brigade attacked Mouvaux from the north while Bonnaud applied pressure from the west. At first, Otto held firm on a line south of Tourcoing, but he was slowly driven back. At 11:30 am, the Duke of York and Abercromby, now isolated and under heavy attack, retreated from Mouvaux toward the southeast. This ended the battle. Souham immediately faced his tired troops about and prepared to attack Clerfayt. That general, realizing he was now alone, recrossed to the north bank of the Lys and retreated to the northeast.