User:Gvssy/Bavarian campaign (1646–1647)

The Bavarian campaign (Swedish: Bayerska fälttåget; French: Campagne de Bavière) was a Franco–Swedish campaign into Bavaria in 1646 to 1647 in an attempt to remove Bavaria as an active belligerent in the ongoing Thirty Years' War.

Background
In late July or early August, letters arrived to Carl Gustaf Wrangel from Stockholm telling him of the Queen's promotion of him to field marshal and overall command of all Swedish forces in Germany. Wrangel had finally achieved undisputed authority to function as the overall commander of the Swedish army in Germany, replacing Lennart Torstensson. At the same time, Torstensson had been allowed to return home, but not retirement, as several senior leaders along with Axel Oxenstierna and the Queen regularly spoke to him about German affairs.

Wrangel also received a letter from Torstensson himself, instructing him to move into Bavaria and ravage it, preferably with Turenne, and then turn to the ancestral Habsburg lands, so that they could no longer supply further Imperial operations. Sieges were also to be avoided, as they were to time consuming and also created difficulties in supplying the army.

Later in the year, Wrangel marched with 15,000 infantry and 8,000 cavalry to unite with Turenne in Hesse–Kessel. However, the Frenchmen are slow to arrive, and while Wrangel was waiting for them to arrive, his position became at risk due to an Imperial army of 30,000 men was on its way towards him. Instead of risking battle, Wrangel decided to entrench his troops outside of Marburg. Seeing this, the Imperial troops did not risk to storm the Swedish position and quickly pulled back.

Campaign
Unable to initiate battle with any chance of success, the Imperial army was forced to pull back into Bohemia. The Franco–Swedish army then began its march into Bavaria, which, as said before, Wrangel had orders to ravage thourougly, in order to force Bavaria to cease hostilites. In late August, the two armies united at Donau.

The Franco–Swedish cooperation suffered some difficulties, but it was mostly solved by Wrangel and Turenne agreeing that they would command the united army on alternating weeks. They first took Rain-am-Lech in early October. Wrangel hoped that Augsburg would surrender to him, as they had previously surrendered to Gustavus Adolphus several years prior. However, Augsburg refused to surrender to either Wrangel or Turenne, who both had seperately approached the town. Because of the refusal, the united army was forced to besiege the city. However, with news of an approaching Imperial army under the command of the Archduke Leopold William reaching both Wrangel and Turenne, they quickly decided to abandon the siege after a failed storm.

The allies pulled back into Swabia, being chased by the Imperial army. After some manouvers, the allies had managed to get away from the Imperials and once more invaded Bavaria, which had become defenseless. The countryside was completely destroyed all the way to Munich.

Wrangel wished to take up winter quarters deep in Bavaria, but the Frenchmen now refused to continue the campaign. Unfortunately for the Swedes, news later arrived that France had made a truce with the Bavarians, which meant that Turenne was no longer allowed to move further into Bavaria. This is due to the French concluding that the joint operation had the risk of making Sweden too powerful.

Fearing a peasants' revolt more than the Swedish army, Maximillian of Bavaria refused to arm his subjects, instead ordering a scorched earth policy which included the destruction of mills and storehouses to starve the Swedes, and coincidentally, his own subjects.

Turenne and the French army would then depart and establish winter quarters around Donau in Swabia, with Wrangel going to the lands around Lake Constance on the Swiss border, who's countryside had not been plundered yet.

Attack on Bregenz
Swedish patrols had told Wrangel about the vulnerability of the city of Bregenz at the eastern end of the lake where the surrounding population had put their valuables. On January 4, Wrangel appeared outside of the pass with 8,000 men and 24 guns. The defile by the lake shore was the only viable route over the forest along the Tyrolean border. This route was blocked by three fortified gates, along with a line of palisades up towards the hillside to the east. It was maned by 2,200 Tyrolean soldiers and militia who had been shivering at their posts during heavy snowfall. The defenders kept the Swedes back until a Swedish detachment went along a mountain path and overran the palisades, turning the positions along the roads. In a panic, the defenders joined the civilian population and began fleeing.

The city fell to the Swedes, and the Swedes destroyed all of the fortifications. The plunder taken from the city was very rich, amounting to 40 barrels of gold. The amount taken was also "more than the Swedish army had taken before." The reason for there being so many valuables is mainly because many nobles and bishops throughout upper Swabia had sought refuge in the city and took their valuables with them. Wrangel would then claim the title "Admiral of Lake Constance" which was likely a mocking retalitation for the appointment of Wallenstein as "General of the Oceanic and Baltic Seas" in 1628. However, there was some substance to the title, as Wrangel had captured 13 ships that were stationed in Bregenz, which he rearmed for operations on the Lake Constance. With this new fleet, Wrangel managed to capture the island of Mainau in February 1647. He also attempted, but ultimately failed, to capture Lindau. In opposition to the Swedish fleet on Lake Constance, Imperial vessels also sailed in it, actively engaging in fighting with the Swedes throughout 1647.

Aftermath
In spring of 1647, Maximilian of Bavaria asked for a truce, and in March he signed together with the Elector of Cologne, the Truce of Ulm between him and Sweden, France, and Hesse–Kessel. Wrangel and Turenne would then suspend their operations in Bavaria.