First Battle of Steinau
The First battle of Steinau took place from August 29 to September 4, 1632, during the middle stages of the Swedish intervention in the Thirty Years’ War. An allied army of Saxons, Swedes, and Brandenburgers invaded Silesia with 21,000 troops, encountering an Imperial army of 20,000 at Ścinawa. The resulting battle was a major allied victory.
Background
Following the victory at Breitenfeld (1631)|Breitenfeld] the Saxons retook their territory and invaded Lusatia. The Swedish army took over large parts of Germany and won yet another victory at the Battle of Rain. To improve his own position in the alliance with Sweden, John [George I, Elector of Saxony|Johann Georg], the elector of Saxony, ordered to invade Silesia with 12,000 Saxons and 2,000 Brandenburgers under the command of Hans Georg von Arnim-Boitzenburg. Arnim's army was supported by 7,000 Swedish under the command of Jacob Duwall. The Imperials under the command of the elderly Spanish marshal Baltasar Marradas hurriedly gathered 20,000 men at Steinau, an important crossing on the Oder river.
Battle
Aftermath
Following the battle, Arnim pressed on and took Breslau and Schweidnitz where he reverted re-Catholicization measures. The Imperialists were driven into the mountains. Arnim had conquered Silesia with fewer men and against greater odds than Frederick the Great's celebrated invasion in 1740.
Wallenstein decided to punish Saxony, so he sent General Heinrich Holk with 10,000 men to ravage Saxony.