Great Sortie of Stralsund

Great Sortie of Stralsund
Part of the Franco-Swedish War and the War of the Fourth Coalition
Stralsund and nearabouts (Lüssow, Lüdershagen and Voigdehagen; bottom), by O.W. Smith
Date 1–3 April 1807 Location Swedish Pomerania; present-day Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany 54°18′33″N 13°04′55″E / 54.30917°N 13.08194°E / 54.30917; 13.08194 Result Swedish victory Territorial changes French army pushed out of Swedish Pomerania
Belligerents
French Empire Holland	Sweden
Commanders and leaders
Charles Louis Grandjean	Hans von Essen Gustaf Armfelt
Strength
5,000–6,000[1]	5,700[2]
Casualties and losses
1,300 killed, wounded or captured[3]	100 killed or wounded[4]

War of the Fourth Coalition

200km
125miles

Friedland

27

26

25

24

23

22

21

Eylau

20

19

18

17

16

15

14

13

12

11

10

9

8

Berlin

7

6

5

4

Jena–Auerstedt

3

2

1

  

⬤ current battle

⬤ Napoleon not in command

⬤ Napoleon in command

The Great Sortie of Stralsund (Swedish: Stora utfallet från Stralsund) was fought in the Franco-Swedish War (part of the War of the Fourth Coalition) on 1–3 April 1807, in Swedish Pomerania (present-day Germany). A French army under Édouard Mortier invaded Swedish Pomerania in early 1807 and initiated a blockade of the Swedish town of Stralsund, to secure the French rear from enemy attacks. After several smaller sorties and skirmishes around Stralsund, Mortier marched part of his army to support the ongoing Siege of Kolberg, leaving only a smaller force under Charles Louis Dieudonné Grandjean to keep the Swedes at check. The Swedish commander Hans Henric von Essen then commenced a great sortie to push the remaining French forces out of Swedish Pomerania. The French fought bravely on 1 April at Lüssow, Lüdershagen and Voigdehagen, but were eventually forced to withdraw; the Swedes captured Greifswald the next day, after a brief confrontation. The last day of fighting occurred at Demmin and Anklam, where the Swedes took many French prisoners of war, resulting in the complete French withdrawal out of Swedish Pomerania—while the Swedes continued their offensive into Prussia. After two weeks Mortier returned and pushed the Swedish forces back into Swedish Pomerania. After an armistice the French forces once again invaded, on 13 July, and laid siege to Stralsund, which they captured on 20 August; all of Swedish Pomerania was captured by 7 September, but the war between Sweden and France continued until January 6, 1810, when the Swedes were finally forced to sign the Treaty of Paris.