Battle of Ortenbach

Battle of Ortenbach
Part of Franco-Dutch War
The Barrage Vauban across the Rhine at Strasbourg; the 1678 campaign ensured French control
Date 23 July 1678 Location Near Offenburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany Result French victory
Belligerents
France	Holy Roman Empire
Commanders and leaders
de Créquy Comte de Choiseul Schomberg	Charles of Lorraine Aeneas de Caprara Margrave of Baden Starhemberg
Strength
15,000–18,000	20,000–30,000 (maximum)
Casualties and losses
minimal	minimal
The precise derivation of 'Ortenbach' is unclear but is the title given by historian John Lynn and others.

The Battle of Ortenbach, also known as the Battle of Gengenbach, took place on 23 July 1678 during the closing stages of the 1672-1678 Franco-Dutch War, in the modern German state of Baden-Württemberg. It featured a French army commanded by François de Créquy and an Imperial force under Charles V, Duke of Lorraine.

While in reality a skirmish, rather than a battle, Ortenbach was part of a series of events that enabled the French to secure Alsace and capture both Kehl and the crossing over the Rhine near the Imperial city of Strasbourg. The war ended in January 1679 when France and the Holy Roman Empire signed the Treaty of Nijmegen; Strasbourg was annexed by France in 1681.