During the Seven Years' War. The Seven Years' War - briefly

Kingdom of Naples
Sardinian Kingdom Commanders Frederick II
F. W. Seydlitz
George II
George III
Robert Clive
Ferdinand of Brunswick Earl of Down
Count Lassi
Prince of Lorraine
Ernst Gideon Loudon
Louis XV
Louis-Joseph de Montcalm
Empress Elizabeth
P. S. Saltykov
Charles III
August III Strengths of the parties

• 1756 - 250 000 soldier: Prussia 200,000, Hanover 50,000
• 1759 - 220 000 Prussian soldiers
• 1760 - 120 000 Prussian soldiers

• 1756 - 419 000 soldier: Russian Empire 100,000 soldiers
• 1759 - 391 000 soldiers: France 125,000, Holy Roman Empire 45,000, Austria 155,000, Sweden 16,000, Russian Empire 50,000
• 1760 - 220 000 soldier

Losses see below see below

The main confrontation in Europe was between Austria and Prussia over Silesia, which Austria had lost in the previous Silesian Wars. That's why the Seven Years' War is also called third Silesian war. The First (-) and Second (-) Silesian Wars are part of the War of the Austrian Succession. In Swedish historiography the war is known as Pomeranian War(Swede. Pommerska kriget), in Canada - like "War of Conquest"(English) The War of the Conquest) and in India as "Third Karnatic War"(English) The Third Carnatic War). The North American Theater of War is called French and Indian War.

The designation “Seven Years’ War” was given in the eighties of the eighteenth century; before that it was referred to as a “recent war.”

Causes of the war

Opposing coalitions in Europe in 1756

The first shots of the Seven Years' War rang out long before its official announcement, and not in Europe, but overseas. In - gg. Anglo-French colonial rivalry in North America led to border skirmishes between English and French colonists. By the summer of 1755, the clashes resulted in an open armed conflict, in which both allied Indians and regular military units began to participate (see French and Indian War). In 1756, Great Britain officially declared war on France.

"Reversing Alliances"

This conflict disrupted the established system of military-political alliances in Europe and caused a foreign policy reorientation of a number of European powers, known as the “reversal of alliances.” The traditional rivalry between Austria and France for hegemony on the continent was weakened by the emergence of a third power: Prussia, after Frederick II came to power in 1740, began to claim a leading role in European politics. Having won the Silesian Wars, Frederick took Silesia, one of the richest Austrian provinces, from Austria, as a result increasing the territory of Prussia from 118.9 thousand to 194.8 thousand square kilometers, and the population from 2,240,000 to 5,430,000 people. It is clear that Austria could not easily accept the loss of Silesia.

Having started a war with France, Great Britain entered into a treaty of alliance with Prussia in January 1756, thereby wanting to protect Hanover, the hereditary possession of the English king on the continent, from the threat of a French attack. Frederick, considering a war with Austria inevitable and realizing the limitations of his resources, relied on “English gold”, as well as on the traditional influence of England on Russia, hoping to keep Russia from participating in the upcoming war and thereby avoid a war on two fronts . Having overestimated England's influence on Russia, he, at the same time, clearly underestimated the indignation caused by his agreement with the British in France. As a result, Frederick will have to fight a coalition of the three strongest continental powers and their allies, which he dubbed the “union of three women” (Maria Theresa, Elizabeth and Madame Pompadour). However, behind the jokes of the Prussian king in relation to his opponents lies a lack of confidence in his own strength: the forces in the war on the continent are too unequal, England, which does not have a strong land army, except for subsidies, can do little to help him.

The conclusion of the Anglo-Prussian alliance pushed Austria, thirsting for revenge, to move closer to its old enemy - France, for which Prussia also became an enemy from now on (France, which supported Frederick in the first Silesian wars and saw in Prussia only an obedient instrument for crushing Austrian power, was able to make sure that Friedrich did not even think about taking into account the role assigned to him). The author of the new foreign policy course was the famous Austrian diplomat of that time, Count Kaunitz. A defensive alliance was signed between France and Austria at Versailles, to which Russia joined at the end of 1756.

In Russia, the strengthening of Prussia was perceived as a real threat to its western borders and interests in the Baltic states and northern Europe. Close ties with Austria, a treaty of union with which was signed back in 1746, also influenced Russia’s position in the brewing European conflict. Traditionally close ties also existed with England. It is curious that, having broken diplomatic relations with Prussia long before the start of the war, Russia, nevertheless, did not break diplomatic relations with England throughout the war.

None of the countries participating in the coalition was interested in the complete destruction of Prussia, hoping to use it in the future for their own interests, but all were interested in weakening Prussia, in returning it to the borders that existed before the Silesian Wars. That. The coalition participants fought for the restoration of the old system of political relations on the continent, disrupted by the results of the War of the Austrian Succession. Having united against a common enemy, the participants in the anti-Prussian coalition did not even think of forgetting about their traditional differences. Disagreement in the enemy’s camp, caused by conflicting interests and having a detrimental effect on the conduct of the war, was, in the end, one of the main reasons that allowed Prussia to resist the confrontation.

Until the end of 1757, when the successes of the newly-minted David in the fight against the “Goliath” of the anti-Prussian coalition created a club of admirers for the king in Germany and beyond, it did not occur to anyone in Europe to seriously consider Frederick “the Great”: at that time, most Europeans saw He is an impudent upstart who is long overdue for being put in his place. To achieve this goal, the Allies fielded a huge army of 419,000 soldiers against Prussia. Frederick II had at his disposal only 200,000 soldiers plus 50,000 defenders of Hanover, hired with English money.

Characters

Russian autocrat Elizaveta Petrovna

Austrian Empress Maria Theresa

Prussian King Frederick II

Louis XV, King of France

George II, King of England

European theater of war

Eastern European Theater of Operations Seven Years' War

Lobositz – Reichenberg – Prague – Kolin – Hastenbeck – Gross-Jägersdorf – Berlin (1757) – Moys – Rosbach – Breslau – Leuthen – Olmütz – Krefeld – Domstadl – Küstrin – Zorndorf – Tarmow – Loutherberg (1758) – Fehrbellin – Hochkirch – Bergen – Palzig – Minden – Kunersdorf – Hoyerswerda – Maxen – Meissen – Landeshut – Emsdorf – Warburg – Liegnitz – Klosterkampen – Berlin (1760) – Torgau – Fehlinghausen – Kolberg – Wilhelmsthal – Burkersdorf – Luterberg (1762) – Reichenbach – Freiberg

1756: attack on Saxony

Military operations in Europe in 1756

Without waiting for Prussia's opponents to deploy their forces, Frederick II was the first to begin military operations on August 28, 1756, suddenly invading Saxony, allied with Austria, and occupying it. On September 1, 1756, Elizaveta Petrovna declared war on Prussia. On September 9, the Prussians surrounded the Saxon army encamped near Pirna. On October 1, going to the rescue of the Saxons, the 33.5 thousand army of the Austrian Field Marshal Brown was defeated at Lobositz. Finding itself in a hopeless situation, the eighteen-thousand-strong army of Saxony capitulated on October 16. Captured, the Saxon soldiers were forced into the Prussian army. Later they would “thank” Frederick by running over to the enemy in entire battalions.

Seven Years' War in Europe

Saxony, which had armed forces the size of an average army corps and, moreover, was bound by eternal troubles in Poland (the Saxon elector was also the Polish king), did not, of course, pose any military threat to Prussia. The aggression against Saxony was caused by Frederick's intentions:

• use Saxony as a convenient base of operations for the invasion of Austrian Bohemia and Moravia, the supply of Prussian troops here could be organized by waterways along the Elbe and Oder, while the Austrians would have to use inconvenient mountain roads;
• transfer the war to the territory of the enemy, thus forcing him to pay for it and, finally,
• use the human and material resources of prosperous Saxony for their own strengthening. Subsequently, he carried out his plan to rob this country so successfully that some Saxons still dislike the inhabitants of Berlin and Brandenburg.

Despite this, in German (not Austrian!) historiography it is still customary to consider the war, on the part of Prussia, to be a defensive war. The reasoning is that the war would still have been started by Austria and its allies, regardless of whether Frederick attacked Saxony or not. Opponents of this point of view object: the war began, not least because of the Prussian conquests, and its first act was aggression against a defenseless neighbor.

1757: Battles of Kolin, Rosbach and Leuthen, Russia begins hostilities

Bohemia, Silesia

Operations in Saxony and Silesia in 1757

Having strengthened himself by absorbing Saxony, Frederick, at the same time, achieved the opposite effect, spurring his opponents to active offensive actions. Now he had no choice but, to use the German expression, “running forward” (German. Flucht nach vorne). Counting on the fact that France and Russia will not be able to enter the war before the summer, Frederick intends to defeat Austria before that time. Early in 1757, the Prussian army, moving in four columns, entered Austrian territory in Bohemia. The Austrian army under the command of the Prince of Lorraine numbered 60,000 soldiers. On May 6, the Prussians defeated the Austrians and blocked them in Prague. Having taken Prague, Frederick plans to march on Vienna without delay. However, the blitzkrieg plans were dealt a blow: a 54,000-strong Austrian army under the command of Field Marshal L. Down came to the aid of the besieged. On June 18, 1757, in the vicinity of the city of Kolin, a 34,000-strong Prussian army entered into battle with the Austrians. Frederick II lost this battle, losing 14,000 men and 45 guns. The heavy defeat not only destroyed the myth of the invincibility of the Prussian commander, but also, more importantly, forced Frederick II to lift the blockade of Prague and hastily retreat to Saxony. Soon, the threat that arose in Thuringia from the French and the Imperial Army (“the Tsars”) forced him to leave there with the main forces. Having from this moment on a significant numerical superiority, the Austrians win a series of victories over Frederick's generals (at Moise on September 7, at Breslau on November 22), and the key Silesian fortresses of Schweidnitz (now Świdnica, Poland) and Breslau (now Wroclaw, Poland) are in their hands. In October 1757, the Austrian general Hadik managed to briefly capture the capital of Prussia, the city of Berlin, with a sudden raid of a flying detachment. Having warded off the threat from the French and the “Caesars,” Frederick II transferred an army of forty thousand to Silesia and on December 5 won a decisive victory over the Austrian army at Leuthen. As a result of this victory, the situation that existed at the beginning of the year was restored. Thus, the result of the campaign was a “combat draw.”

Central Germany

1758: The battles of Zorndorf and Hochkirch do not bring decisive success to either side

The new commander-in-chief of the Russians was General-in-Chief Willim Fermor, famous for the capture of Memel in the previous campaign. At the beginning of 1758, he occupied, without meeting resistance, all of East Prussia, including its capital, the city of Königsberg, then heading towards Brandenburg. In August he besieged Küstrin, a key fortress on the road to Berlin. Frederick immediately moved towards him. The battle took place on August 14 near the village of Zorndorf and was notable for its stunning bloodshed. The Russians had 42,000 soldiers in the army with 240 guns, and Frederick had 33,000 soldiers with 116 guns. The battle revealed several big problems in the Russian army - insufficient interaction between individual units, poor moral training of the observation corps (the so-called “Shuvalovites”), and finally called into question the competence of the commander-in-chief himself. At a critical moment in the battle, Fermor left the army, did not direct the course of the battle for some time, and appeared only towards the denouement. Clausewitz later called the Battle of Zorndorf the strangest battle of the Seven Years' War, referring to its chaotic, unpredictable course. Having started “according to the rules,” it eventually resulted in a great massacre, breaking up into many separate battles, in which the Russian soldiers showed unsurpassed tenacity; according to Friedrich, it was not enough to kill them, they also had to be knocked down. Both sides fought until exhaustion and suffered huge losses. The Russian army lost 16,000 people, the Prussians 11,000. The opponents spent the night on the battlefield, the next day Fermor was the first to withdraw his troops, thereby giving Frederick a reason to attribute the victory to himself. However, he did not dare to pursue the Russians. Russian troops retreated to the Vistula. General Palmbach, sent by Fermor to besiege Kolberg, stood for a long time under the walls of the fortress without accomplishing anything.

On October 14, the Austrians operating in South Saxony managed to defeat Frederick at Hochkirch, however, without any special consequences. Having won the battle, the Austrian commander Daun led his troops back to Bohemia.

The war with the French was more successful for the Prussians; they beat them three times in a year: at Rheinberg, at Krefeld and at Mer. In general, although the campaign of 1758 ended more or less successfully for the Prussians, it further weakened the Prussian troops, who suffered significant, irreplaceable losses for Frederick during the three years of the war: from 1756 to 1758 he lost, not counting those captured, 43 the general was killed or died from wounds received in battle, among them, his best military leaders, such as Keith, Winterfeld, Schwerin, Moritz von Dessau and others.

1759: Defeat of the Prussians at Kunersdorf, “miracle of the House of Brandenburg”

On May 8 (19), 1759, Chief General P. S. Saltykov was unexpectedly appointed commander-in-chief of the Russian army, concentrated at that time in Poznan, instead of V. V. Fermor. (The reasons for Fermor’s resignation are not entirely clear; however, it is known that the St. Petersburg Conference repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with Fermor’s reports, their irregularity and confusion; Fermor could not account for spending significant sums on the maintenance of the army. Perhaps the decision to resign was also influenced by the indecisive the outcome of the battle of Zorndorf and the unsuccessful sieges of Küstrin and Kolberg). On July 7, 1759, a forty-thousand-strong Russian army marched west to the Oder River, in the direction of the city of Krosen, intending to link up with Austrian troops there. The debut of the new commander-in-chief was successful: on July 23, in the battle of Palzig (Kai), he completely defeated the twenty-eight thousandth corps of the Prussian General Wedel. On August 3, 1759, the allies met in the city of Frankfurt an der Oder, which had been occupied by Russian troops three days before.

At this time, the Prussian king with an army of 48,000 people, possessing 200 guns, was moving towards the enemy from the south. On August 10, he crossed to the right bank of the Oder River and took a position east of the village of Kunersdorf. On August 12, 1759, the famous battle of the Seven Years' War took place - the Battle of Kunersdorf. Frederick was completely defeated; out of an army of 48 thousand, by his own admission, he did not have even 3 thousand soldiers left. “To tell the truth,” he wrote to his minister after the battle, “I believe that everything is lost. I will not survive the death of my Fatherland. Goodbye forever". After the victory at Kunersdorf, the Allies could only deliver the final blow, take Berlin, the road to which was clear, and thereby force Prussia to capitulate, however, disagreements in their camp did not allow them to use the victory and end the war. Instead of advancing to Berlin, they withdrew their troops away, accusing each other of violating allied obligations. Frederick himself called his unexpected salvation “the miracle of the House of Brandenburg.” Frederick escaped, but setbacks continued to haunt him until the end of the year: on November 20, the Austrians, together with imperial troops, managed to encircle and force the 15,000-strong corps of the Prussian General Finck to surrender without a fight at Maxen.

The severe defeats of 1759 prompted Frederick to turn to England with the initiative to convene a peace congress. The British supported it all the more willingly because they, for their part, considered the main goals in this war to be achieved. On November 25, 1759, 5 days after Maxen, representatives of Russia, Austria and France were sent an invitation to a peace congress in Rysvik. France signaled its participation, however, the matter ended in nothing due to the irreconcilable position taken by Russia and Austria, who hoped to use the victories of 1759 to deal the final blow to Prussia in the following year's campaign.

Nicholas Pocock. "Battle of the Gulf of Quiberon" (1812)

Meanwhile, England defeated the French fleet at sea in the Gulf of Quiberon.

1760: Frederick's Pyrrhic victory at Torgau

The war thus continued. In 1760, Frederick had difficulty raising the size of his army to 120,000 soldiers. The Franco-Austro-Russian troops by this time numbered up to 220,000 soldiers. However, as in previous years, the Allies' numerical superiority was negated by the lack of a unified plan and inconsistency in actions. The Prussian king, trying to impede the actions of the Austrians in Silesia, on August 1, 1760, transported his thirty thousand army across the Elbe and, with passive pursuit of the Austrians, arrived in the Liegnitz area by August 7. Misleading the stronger enemy (Field Marshal Daun had about 90,000 soldiers by this time), Frederick II first actively maneuvered and then decided to break through to Breslau. While Frederick and Daun were mutually exhausting the troops with their marches and countermarches, the Austrian corps of General Laudon on August 15 in the Liegnitz area suddenly collided with Prussian troops. Frederick II unexpectedly attacked and defeated Laudon's corps. The Austrians lost up to 10,000 killed and 6,000 captured. Frederick, who lost about 2,000 people killed and wounded in this battle, managed to escape from the encirclement.

Having barely escaped encirclement, the Prussian king almost lost his own capital. On October 3 (September 22), 1760, Major General Totleben’s detachment stormed Berlin. The assault was repulsed and Totleben had to retreat to Köpenick, where he waited for the corps of Lieutenant General Z. G. Chernyshev (reinforced by Panin’s 8,000-strong corps) and the Austrian corps of General Lassi, appointed as reinforcements. On the evening of October 8, at a military council in Berlin, due to the overwhelming numerical superiority of the enemy, a decision was made to retreat, and that same night the Prussian troops defending the city left for Spandau, leaving a garrison in the city as an “object” of surrender. The garrison brings surrender to Totleben, as the general who first besieged Berlin. Panin's corps and Krasnoshchekov's Cossacks take over the pursuit of the enemy; they manage to defeat the Prussian rearguard and capture more than a thousand prisoners. On the morning of October 9, 1760, Totleben's Russian detachment and the Austrians (the latter in violation of the terms of surrender) entered Berlin. In the city, guns and rifles were captured, gunpowder and weapons warehouses were blown up. An indemnity was imposed on the population. Upon news of the approach of Frederick with the main forces of the Prussians, the allies, by order of the command, leave the capital of Prussia.

Having received news on the way that the Russians had abandoned Berlin, Frederick turned to Saxony. While he was conducting military operations in Silesia, the Imperial Army (“the Tsars”) managed to oust the weak Prussian forces left in Saxony to screen, Saxony was lost to Frederick. He cannot allow this in any way: he desperately needs the human and material resources of Saxony to continue the war. On November 3, 1760, the last major battle of the Seven Years' War took place near Torgau. He is distinguished by incredible fierceness, victory leans first to one side, then to the other several times during the day. The Austrian commander Daun manages to send a messenger to Vienna with the news of the defeat of the Prussians, and only by 9 pm it becomes clear that he was in a hurry. Frederick emerges victorious, however, it is a Pyrrhic victory: in one day he loses 40% of his army. He is no longer able to make up for such losses; in the last period of the war he is forced to abandon offensive actions and give the initiative to his opponents in the hope that they, due to their indecisiveness and slowness, will not be able to take advantage of it properly.

In the secondary theaters of war, Frederick's opponents had some successes: the Swedes managed to establish themselves in Pomerania, the French in Hesse.

1761-1763: the second “miracle of the Brandenburg House”

In 1761, no significant clashes occur: the war is waged mainly by maneuvering. The Austrians manage to recapture Schweidnitz, Russian troops under the command of General Rumyantsev take Kolberg (now Kolobrzeg). The capture of Kolberg would be the only major event of the 1761 campaign in Europe.

No one in Europe, not excluding Frederick himself, at this time believes that Prussia will be able to avoid defeat: the resources of a small country are incommensurate with the power of its opponents, and the further the war continues, the more important this factor becomes. And then, when Frederick was already actively probing through intermediaries for the possibility of starting peace negotiations, his irreconcilable opponent, Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, dies, having once declared her determination to continue the war to the victorious end, even if she had to sell half of her dresses to do so. On January 5, 1762, Peter III ascended the Russian throne, who saved Prussia from defeat by concluding the Peace of St. Petersburg with Frederick, his longtime idol. As a result, Russia voluntarily abandoned all its acquisitions in this war (East Prussia with Königsberg, the inhabitants of which, including Immanuel Kant, had already sworn allegiance to the Russian crown) and provided Frederick with a corps under the command of Count Z. G. Chernyshev for the war against Austrians, their recent allies. It is understandable that Friedrich ingratiated himself so much with his Russian admirer as never before with anyone else in his life. The latter, however, needed little: the eccentric Peter was prouder of the title of Prussian colonel, granted to him by Frederick, than of the Russian imperial crown.

Asian theater of war

Indian campaign

Main article: Indian Campaign of the Seven Years' War

British landing in the Philippines

Main article: Philippine Campaign

Central American Theater of War

Main articles: Guadalupe Campaign , Dominican Campaign , Martinique Campaign , Cuban campaign

South American theater of war

European politics and the Seven Years' War. Chronological table

Year, date	Event
June 2, 1746
October 18, 1748	Aachen world. End of the War of the Austrian Succession
January 16, 1756	Westminster Convention between Prussia and England
May 1, 1756	Defensive alliance between France and Austria at Versailles
May 17, 1756	England declares war on France
January 11, 1757	Russia joins the Treaty of Versailles
January 22, 1757	Union Treaty between Russia and Austria
January 29, 1757	The Holy Roman Empire declares war on Prussia
May 1, 1757	Offensive alliance between France and Austria at Versailles
January 22, 1758	Estates of East Prussia swear allegiance to the Russian crown
April 11, 1758	Subsidy Treaty between Prussia and England
April 13, 1758	Subsidy treaty between Sweden and France
May 4, 1758	Treaty of Union between France and Denmark
January 7, 1758	Extension of the subsidy agreement between Prussia and England
January 30-31, 1758	Subsidy Treaty between France and Austria
November 25, 1759	Declaration of Prussia and England on the convening of a peace congress
April 1, 1760	Extension of the union treaty between Russia and Austria
January 12, 1760	Latest extension of the subsidy treaty between Prussia and England
April 2, 1761	Treaty of Friendship and Trade between Prussia and Turkey
June-July 1761	Separate peace negotiations between France and England
August 8, 1761	Convention between France and Spain concerning the war with England
January 4, 1762	England declares war on Spain
January 5, 1762	Death of Elizaveta Petrovna
February 4, 1762	Pact of Alliance between France and Spain
May 5, 1762

The outcome of the war for Austrian inheritance(1740–1748) turned Prussia into a great European power.

Main reasons for the war:

1) aggressive plans of Frederick II to conquer political hegemony in Central Europe and acquire neighboring territories;

2) the clash of Prussia’s aggressive policy with the interests of Austria, France and Russia; they wanted the weakening of Prussia, its return to the borders that existed before the Silesian Wars. Thus, the coalition participants fought the war for the restoration of the old system of political relations on the continent, disrupted by the results of the War of the Austrian Succession;

3) intensification of the Anglo-French struggle for colonies.

Opposing parties:

1) anti-Prussian coalition– Austria, France, Russia, Spain, Saxony, Sweden;

2) Prussian supporters– Great Britain and Portugal.

Frederick II began a preventive war with an attack 29 August 1756 to Saxony, borrowed and ruined it. Thus began the second largest war of the era - Seven Years' War 1756–1763 The victories of the Prussian army of Frederick II in 1757 at Rosbach and Leuthen were nullified by the victory of Russian-Austrian troops in the Battle of Kunersdorf in 1759. Frederick II even intended to abdicate the throne, but the situation changed dramatically due to the death of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna (1762) . Her successor was Peter III, an enthusiastic admirer of Frederick II, who renounced all claims to Prussia. In 1762 he entered into an alliance with Prussia and withdrew from the war. Catherine II terminated it, but resumed the war. The two main conflict lines of the Seven Years' War - colonial And European- the two peace treaties concluded in 1763 also corresponded. On February 15, 1763, the Peace of Hubertusburg was concluded Austria and Saxony with Prussia based on the status quo. The borders of states in Europe remained unchanged. On November 10, 1763, the Peace of Paris was concluded at Versailles. between England, on the one hand, and France and Spain, on the other. The Peace of Paris confirmed all treaties between countries since the Peace of Westphalia. The Peace of Paris, along with the Peace of Hubertusburg, ended the Seven Years' War.

Main results of the war:

1. Great Britain's victory over France, because overseas England took possession of the richest colonies of France and became the largest colonial power.

2. The decline in the prestige and actual role of France in European affairs, which led to its complete neglect in deciding the fate of one of its main satellites – Poland.

The Seven Years' War (1756-1763) got its name from its length in time. This was the largest conflict of the 18th century. It took place not only in Europe, but also in North America, India, and the Caribbean. At one time, Churchill called it the “First World War.” In history, this conflict is referred to as the third Silesian, Pomeranian, Carnatic, French-Indian, and Recent War.

Causes

The main reasons for the Seven Years' War were hidden behind the confrontation between world powers over colonies in North America. Military clashes there began two years before the declaration of war. The main rivals were England and France. Colonists from these countries started an armed conflict. Allied Indians also took part in it. Another reason was the strengthening of Prussia in Europe. Many developed countries did not like this.

Other countries joined coalitions for their own benefit:

• Austria wanted to return Silesia.
• Prussia hoped to capture Saxony.
• Sweden sought to reconquer Stettin and a number of other lands.
• Russia fought for East Prussia.

Countries united in coalitions. One included England, Prussia, Hanover, the other - France, Austria, Russia, Spain. This was quite unusual, since France and Austria had been fighting each other for hegemony in Europe for a long time.

Opponents

The main states that participated in the Seven Years' War (opponents) and their commanders-in-chief:

• Prussia was ruled by Frederick II. He was the emperor and commander-in-chief rolled into one, so he didn't have to answer to anyone.
• England - King George II was the king.
• Austria - Maria Theresa was at the head of the state, Karl Alexander was appointed commander. But after the unsuccessful Battle of Leuthen, he resigned and command passed to Leopold Joseph.
• Russia - Elizaveta Petrovna ruled the country, the commander-in-chief was first Apraksin, he was replaced by Fermor, then Saltykov and Buturlin. They were subordinate to the St. Petersburg Conference. Later Peter the Third became emperor.
• France - Louis the Fifteenth was the emperor, commanders replaced each other as a result of intrigues and frequent defeats. Le Tellier was appointed first, then Richelieu, de Bourbon-Condé, Erasmus, Victor-François, de Rohan.

Invasion of Saxony

Officially, the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) began with the Prussian invasion of Saxony. Frederick II entered its territory on August 28, 1756. A couple of days later, Russia declared war on Prussia.

The thirty-three thousand army of Austria came to the aid of Saxony. But she was broken. Saxony had only eighteen thousand soldiers. They could not resist the two hundred thousand Prussian army, so they capitulated. Frederick II forced the Saxons into his army, and in vain. Throughout the war they ran over to the enemy in battalions.

It was important for Frederick the Second to capture these lands in order to transfer the fighting to the enemy’s side. He was also able to use the human and material resources of wealthy Saxony.

Major battles in Europe

During such a long period of the war, many battles were fought. Main battles of the Seven Years' War:

• Under Colin - took place on June 18, 1757. The battle lasted six hours. Austria had fifty-four thousand troops, and Prussia had thirty-five thousand. Frederick II was intoxicated by success, but miscalculated his strength and lost.
• Under Leuthen - happened on December 5, 1757. Thirty-two thousand soldiers came from Prussia, and Austria had eighty thousand soldiers. Despite this numerical superiority, the army under the command of Prince Charles Alexander lost.
• Under Rosbach - took place on November 5, 1757. French troops of forty-three thousand people were unable to invade Prussia, because they were defeated by twenty-two thousand soldiers of Frederick the Second.
• Zorndorf - occurred on August 25, 1758. Russian forces (forty-two thousand soldiers) clashed with Frederick the Second (thirty-three thousand). The battle was bloody. Russian troops lost sixteen thousand, and Prussian troops lost eleven thousand. The battle ended in nothing.
• Kunersdorf - took place on August 12, 1759. Frederick II with thirty-five thousand troops opposed forty-one thousand Russian soldiers under the command of Semenovich. The Prussian army was defeated.
• Under Torgai - happened on November 3, 1760. It is considered the last major battle of the war. The forces of Prussia (forty-four thousand) and Austria (fifty-three thousand) collided. The losses of both sides were colossal - sixteen thousand soldiers on each side. Victory was for Frederick the Second.

Having lost a significant part of his army in battles, the Prussian ruler began to protect it from bloody battles. The war continued for another three years, but everything was limited to maneuvers and marches. The main battles of the Seven Years' War were fought only in the first years.

North American Front

Events in North America began back in 1754, when a skirmish occurred at Great Meadows between colonists from England and France. At first the French lost ground, but united with the Indians and were able to win the Battle of Monongahela in 1755. After a series of battles on May 17, 1756, England declared war on Louis the Fifteenth.

The decisive battle took place in 1759 near Quebec. The French outnumbered the British. The difference was four thousand soldiers. However, the English subjects were better prepared and won. Quebec was taken, and a year later Montreal was captured. The result of the Seven Years' War was the ousting of the French from Canada.

Asian front

In 1757, the British and French captured land from each other in Bengal and India. There was also a struggle for dominance in the Indian Ocean between the two fleets. In 1759, French ships left the Indian coast.

The ground forces of Louis the Fifteenth were also not up to par. In 1760 they were defeated at Vandivash, and a year later the British achieved the surrender of the enemy from the capital of French India. Such results of the Seven Years' War suited George II quite well.

The British carried out military operations in the Philippines in 1762 against Spain. However, they could not stay there for long and in 1765 they completed the evacuation from the islands. The result of the Seven Years' War in the Philippines was the impetus for new anti-Spanish uprisings of the local population. However, they cannot be called successful. The Philippines remained under Spanish rule until 1898, when it was ceded to the United States.

Losses

Losses among the warring states:

• Austria - four hundred thousand soldiers;
• Prussia - about two hundred thousand;
• France - up to two hundred thousand;
• Russia – about one hundred and forty thousand;
• England - twenty thousand.

No one can name the number of indigenous people killed in North America, India and other colonies for which the war was fought. What were the results of the Seven Years' War? Were they worth such sacrifices? Did the war resolve the contradictions between the strongest powers of Europe at that time?

Results of the Seven Years' War

Four peace treaties were signed between the warring countries. Each of them had its own characteristics:

• Petersburg - it was already signed by Peter the Third. According to the agreement, Russia withdrew from the conflict and voluntarily transferred its lands to Prussia, which were occupied by Russian soldiers. Subsequently, these actions of Peter the Third became one of the reasons for the coup and the accession to the throne of Catherine the Second.
• Hamburg - concluded between Sweden and Prussia. Peace was established on the terms of the withdrawal of Swedish troops from the occupied territories. The parties released prisoners without ransom.
• The Paris Agreement was concluded by four states at once. England and Portugal negotiated with France and Spain. Louis the Fifteenth renounced Canada, Nova Scotia, the Gulf of St. Lawrence Islands, and the Ohio Valley. Spain received Havana from England, but ceded Florida. England received Puerto Rico, Minorca was returned to her, but she gave Martinique and Guadeloupe to France. Spain received Louisiana, but undertook to withdraw troops from Portugal. France had to leave Hanover, Senegal. The state of Louis XV was allowed to engage in fishing near Newfoundland, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
• Hubertusburg - ended the war. Was signed between Austria, Prussia, Saxony. Maria Theresa renounced Silesia and Graudenz, and Frederick II did not demand compensation for damages. Troops were withdrawn from foreign lands, prisoners of war were freed or demobilized. By secret agreement, Prussia was going to vote for the son of Maria Theresa in the election of the head of the Holy Roman Empire.

Many contemporaries were perplexed about the peace treaty between European states. So much blood was shed, and as a result, the pre-war status quo was restored. However, this is not quite true.

Consequences

Prussia became the leading state in Europe. The preconditions were laid for the unification of German territories under Prussian hegemony.

England did not have its own regular army. To resolve military conflicts, she used mercenary troops that she had all over the world. The prolonged war doubled the national debt. To extinguish it, Great Britain began to intensively exploit its American colonies. This led to the Revolutionary War. So we can say that the consequences of the Seven Years' War for England were extremely negative.

In the 18th century, a serious military conflict called the Seven Years' War broke out. The largest European states, including Russia, were involved in it. You can learn about the causes and consequences of this war from our article.

Decisive reasons

The military conflict, which turned into the Seven Years' War of 1756-1763, was not unexpected. It has been brewing for a long time. On the one hand, it was strengthened by the constant clashes of interests between England and France, and on the other, by Austria, which did not want to come to terms with the victory of Prussia in the Silesian Wars. But the confrontations might not have become so large-scale if two new political unions had not formed in Europe - the Anglo-Prussian and the Franco-Austrian. England feared that Prussia would seize Hanover, which belonged to the English king, so it decided on an agreement. The second alliance was the result of the conclusion of the first. Other countries took part in the war under the influence of these states, also pursuing their own goals.

The following are the significant reasons for the Seven Years' War:

• Constant competition between England and France, especially for the possession of the Indian and American colonies, intensified in 1755;
• Prussia's desire to seize new territories and significantly influence European politics;
• Austria's desire to regain Silesia, lost in the last war;
• Russia's dissatisfaction with the increased influence of Prussia and plans to take over the eastern part of Prussian lands;
• Sweden's thirst to take Pomerania from Prussia.

Rice. 1. Map of the Seven Years' War.

Important events

England was the first to officially announce the start of hostilities against France in May 1756. In August of the same year, Prussia, without warning, attacked Saxony, which was bound by an alliance with Austria and belonged to Poland. The battles unfolded rapidly. Spain joined France, and Austria won over not only France itself, but also Russia, Poland, and Sweden. Thus, France fought on two fronts at once. Battles took place actively both on land and on water. The course of events is reflected in the chronological table on the history of the Seven Years' War:

date	Event that happened
	England declares war on France
	Naval battle of the English and French fleets near Minorca
	France captured Minorca
August 1756	Prussian attack on Saxony
	The Saxon army surrendered to Prussia
November 1756	France captured Corsica
January 1757	Union Treaty of Russia and Austria
	The defeat of Frederick II in Bohemia
	Treaty between France and Austria at Versailles
	Russia officially entered the war
	Victory of Russian troops at Groß-Jägersdorf
October 1757	French defeat at Rosbach
December 1757	Prussia completely occupied Silesia
beginning 1758	Russia occupied East Prussia, incl. Koenigsberg
August 1758	Bloody Battle of Zorndorf
	Victory of Russian troops at Palzig
August 1759	Battle of Kunersdorf, won by Russia
September 1760	England captured Montreal - France lost Canada completely
August 1761	Convention between France and Spain on the Second Entry into the War
early December 1761	Russian troops captured the Prussian fortress of Kolberg
	Empress of Russia Elizaveta Petrovna died
	England declared war on Spain
	The agreement between Peter ΙΙΙ, who ascended the Russian throne, and Frederick ΙΙ; Sweden signed an agreement with Prussia in Hamburg
	Overthrow of Peter II. Catherine ΙΙ began to rule, breaking the treaty with Prussia
February 1763	Signing of the Paris and Hubertusburg Peace Treaties

After the death of Empress Elizabeth, the new Emperor Peter ΙΙΙ, who supported the policy of the Prussian king, concluded the St. Petersburg Peace and Treaty of Alliance with Prussia in 1762. According to the first, Russia ceased hostilities and renounced all occupied lands, and according to the second, it was supposed to provide military support to the Prussian army.

Rice. 2. Russia's participation in the Seven Years' War.

Consequences of the war

The war was over due to the depletion of military resources in both allied armies, but the advantage was on the side of the Anglo-Prussian coalition. The result of this in 1763 was the signing of the Paris Peace Treaty of England and Portugal with France and Spain, as well as the Treaty of Hubertusburg - Austria and Saxony with Prussia. The concluded agreements summed up the results of military operations:

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• France lost a large number of colonies, giving England Canada, part of the Indian lands, East Louisiana, and islands in the Caribbean. Western Louisiana had to be given to Spain, in return for what was promised at the conclusion of the Union of Minorca;
• Spain returned Florida to England and ceded Minorca;
• England gave Havana to Spain and several important islands to France;
• Austria lost its rights to Silesia and neighboring lands. They became part of Prussia;
• Russia did not lose or gain any land, but showed Europe its military capabilities, increasing its influence there.

So Prussia became one of the leading European states. England, having supplanted France, became the largest colonial empire.

King Frederick II of Prussia proved himself to be a competent military leader. Unlike other rulers, he personally took charge of the army. In other states, commanders changed quite often and did not have the opportunity to make completely independent decisions.

Rice. 3. King of Prussia Frederick ΙΙ the Great.

What have we learned?

After reading a history article for grade 7, which briefly talks about the Seven Years' War, which lasted from 1756 to 1763, we learned the main facts. We met the main participants: England, Prussia, France, Austria, Russia, and examined important dates, causes and results of the war. We remember under which ruler Russia lost its position in the war.

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Progress of the Seven Years' War

The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a war between two coalitions for hegemony in Europe, as well as for colonial possessions in North America and India.

General political situation. Causes

One coalition included England and Prussia, the other included France, Austria and Russia. There was a struggle between England and France for colonies in North America. Clashes there began as early as 1754, and in 1756 England declared war on France. 1756, January - the Anglo-Prussian alliance was concluded. In response, Prussia's main rival, Austria, decided to make peace with its longtime enemy France.

The Austrians wanted to regain Silesia, while the Prussians hoped to conquer Saxony. Sweden joined the Austro-French defensive alliance, hoping to recapture Stettin and other territories that were lost during the Great Northern War from Prussia. By the end of the year, Russia joined the Anglo-French coalition, hoping to conquer East Prussia in order to later transfer it to Poland in exchange for Courland and Zemgale. Prussia was supported by Hanover and several small North German states.

Progress of hostilities

1756 - invasion of Saxony

The King of Prussia had a well-trained army of 150 thousand, at that time the best in Europe. 1756, August - he invaded Saxony with an army of 95 thousand people and inflicted a series of defeats on the Austrian army, which came to the aid of the Saxon elector. On October 15, the 20,000-strong Saxon army capitulated at Pirna, and its soldiers joined the ranks of the Prussian army. After this, the 50 thousand Austrian army left Saxony.

Attack on Bohemia, Silesia

1757, spring - the Prussian king invaded Bohemia with an army of 121.5 thousand people. At this time, the Russian army had not yet begun its invasion of East Prussia, and France was about to act against Magdeburg and Hanover. On May 6, near Prague, 64 thousand Prussians defeated 61 thousand Austrians. Both sides in this battle lost 31.5 thousand killed and wounded, and the Austrian troops also lost 60 guns. As a result, 50 thousand Austrians were blocked in the capital of the Czech Republic by the 60 thousand Prussian army. To relieve the blockade of Prague, the Austrians gathered from Colin a 54,000-strong army of General Down with 60 guns. She moved towards Prague. Frederick fielded 33 thousand people with 28 heavy guns against the Austrian troops.

Battles of Kolin, Rosbach and Leuthen

1757, June 17 - Prussian troops began to bypass the right flank of the Austrian position at Kolin from the north, but Daun was able to notice this maneuver in a timely manner and deployed his forces to the north. When the next day the Prussians launched an attack, delivering the main blow against the enemy's right flank, they were met with heavy fire. General Gülsen's Prussian infantry was able to occupy the village of Krzegory, but the tactically important oak grove behind it remained in Austrian hands.

Daun moved his reserve here. Finally, the main forces of the Prussians, concentrated on the left flank, could not withstand the rapid fire of enemy artillery, which fired grapeshot, and fled. Here the Austrian troops of the left flank went on the attack. Daun's cavalry pursued the defeated enemy for several kilometers. The remnants of the Prussian army retreated to Nimburg.

Down's victory was the result of a one-and-a-half-fold superiority of the Austrians in men and a two-fold superiority in artillery. Frederick's army lost 14 thousand killed, wounded and prisoners and almost all artillery, and the Austrians - 8 thousand people. The Prussian king was forced to lift the siege of Prague and retreat to the Prussian border.

Clockwise from top left: Battle of Plasse (23 June 1757); Battle of Carillon (July 6-8, 1758); Battle of Zorndorf (25 August 1758); Battle of Kunersdorf (12 August 1759)

Prussia's strategic position seemed critical. Allied forces of up to 300 thousand people were deployed against the Prussian army. Frederick 2 decided to first defeat the French army, reinforced by the troops of the principalities allied with Austria, and then again invade Silesia.

The 45,000-strong Allied army took a position at Mücheln. Frederick, who had only 24 thousand soldiers, was able to lure the enemy out of the fortifications with a false retreat to the village of Rosbach. The French hoped to cut off the Prussian army from crossing the Saale River and defeat it.

1757, November 5, morning - the allies set out in three columns to bypass the enemy left flank. This maneuver was covered by an 8,000-strong detachment, which began a firefight with the Prussian vanguard. Frederick was able to unravel the enemy's plan and at half past three in the afternoon he ordered to break camp and simulate a retreat to Merseburg. The Allies attempted to intercept the escape route by sending their cavalry around Janus Hill. But it was unexpectedly attacked and defeated by the Prussian cavalry under the command of General Seydlitz.

At this time, under the cover of heavy fire from 18 artillery batteries, the Prussian infantry went on the offensive. The Allied infantry had to line up in battle formation under the enemy cannonballs. Soon she found herself under the threat of a flank attack from Seydlitz's squadrons, she wavered and ran. The French and their allies lost 7 thousand killed, wounded and prisoners and all their artillery - 67 guns and a convoy. The losses of the Prussian army were insignificant - only 540 killed and wounded. This affected both the qualitative superiority of the Prussian cavalry and artillery, as well as the mistakes of the allied command. The French commander-in-chief started a complex maneuver; as a result, most of the army was in marching columns and did not have the opportunity to take part in the battle. Frederick was given the opportunity to beat the enemy piece by piece.

Meanwhile, the Prussian army in Silesia was defeated. Frederick rushed to their aid with 21 thousand infantry, 11 thousand cavalry and 167 guns. The Austrians settled near the village of Leuthen on the banks of the Weistrica River. They had 59 thousand infantry, 15 thousand cavalry and 300 guns. 1757, December 5, morning - the Prussian cavalry drove back the Austrian vanguard, depriving the enemy of the opportunity to observe Frederick's army. Therefore, the attack by the main forces of the Prussian army came as a complete surprise to the Austrian commander-in-chief, Duke Charles of Lorraine.

The Prussian king, as always, delivered the main blow on his right flank, but by the actions of the vanguard he attracted the enemy’s attention to the opposite wing. When Charles realized his true intentions and began to rebuild his army, the Austrian battle order was disrupted. Friedrich took advantage of this for a flank attack. The Prussian cavalry defeated the Austrian cavalry on the right flank and put it to flight. Seydlitz then attacked the Austrian infantry, which had previously been pushed back beyond Leuthen by the Prussian infantry. Only darkness saved the remnants of the Austrian army from complete destruction. The Austrians lost 6.5 thousand people killed and wounded and 21.5 thousand prisoners, as well as all the artillery and convoys. The losses of the Prussian army did not exceed 6 thousand people. Silesia was again under Prussian control.

Frederick II the Great

East Prussia

Meanwhile, Russian troops began active hostilities. Back in the summer of 1757, a 65,000-strong Russian army under the command of Field Marshal S.F. Apraksin moved to Lithuania, intending to capture East Prussia. In August, the Russian army approached Koenigsberg.

On August 19, a 22,000-strong detachment of the Prussian general Lewald attacked the Russian army near the village of Gross-Jägersdorf, having no idea of ​​the true number of the enemy, who was almost three times larger than him, or of his location. Instead of the left flank, Lewald found himself in front of the center of the Russian position. The regrouping of Prussian forces during the battle only worsened the situation. Lewald's right flank was overturned, which could not be compensated by the success of the left-flank Prussian troops, who captured the enemy battery, but did not have the opportunity to build on the success. Prussian losses amounted to 5 thousand killed and wounded and 29 guns, Russian losses reached 5.5 thousand people. Russian troops did not pursue the retreating enemy, and the battle at Gross-Jägersdorf was not decisive.

Unexpectedly, Apraksin gave the order to retreat, citing a lack of supplies and the separation of the army from its bases. The field marshal was accused of treason and put on trial. The only success was the capture of Memel by 9,000 Russian troops. This port was turned into the main base of the Russian fleet during the war.

1758 - the new commander-in-chief, Count V.V. Fermor, with an army of 70 thousand and 245 guns, was able to easily occupy East Prussia, captured Koenigsberg and continued the offensive to the west.

Battle of Zorndorf

In August, a general battle between Russian and Prussian troops took place near the village of Zorndorf. On the 14th, the Prussian king, who had 32 thousand soldiers and 116 guns, attacked Fermor’s army here, which had 42 thousand people and 240 guns. The Prussians managed to push back the Russian army, which retreated to Kalisz. Fermor lost 7 thousand killed, 10 thousand wounded, 2 thousand prisoners and 60 guns. Frederick's losses reached 4 thousand killed, more than 6 thousand wounded, 1.5 thousand prisoners. Frederick did not pursue Fermor's defeated army, but headed to Saxony.

Map of the Seven Years' War

1759 - Battle of Kunersdorf

1759 - Fermor was replaced by Field Marshal General Count P.S. Saltykov. By this time, the Allies had fielded 440 thousand people against Prussia, whom the Prussian king could oppose only 220 thousand. On June 26, the Russian army set out from Poznan to the Oder River. On July 23, in Frankfurt an der Oder, she united with the Austrian army. On July 31, the King of Prussia with a 48,000-strong army took a position near the village of Kunersdorf, expecting to meet here the combined Austro-Russian forces, which largely outnumbered his troops.

Saltykov's army numbered 41 thousand people, and the Austrian army of General Down - 18.5 thousand people. On August 1, the Prussians attacked the left flank of the Allied forces. Prussian troops managed to capture an important height here and set up a battery there, which rained fire on the center of the Russian army. The Prussians pressed the center and right flank of the Russians. But Saltykov was able to create a new front and launch a general counteroffensive. After a 7-hour battle, the Prussian army retreated across the Oder in disarray. Immediately after the battle, Frederick had only 3 thousand soldiers at hand, since the rest were scattered in the surrounding villages, and they had to be collected under the banners over the course of several days.

Frederick's army lost 18 thousand people killed and wounded, the Russians - 13 thousand, and the Austrians - 2 thousand. Due to large losses and fatigue of the soldiers, the Allies were unable to organize pursuit, which saved the Prussians from final defeat. After Kunersdorf, the Russian army, at the request of the Austrian emperor, was transferred to Silesia, where the Prussian army also suffered a number of defeats.

1760-1761

The campaign of 1760 proceeded sluggishly. It was not until the end of September that the raid on Berlin was launched. The first assault on the city, undertaken on the 22nd–23rd of the 5th thousand. by the detachment of General Totleben, ended in failure. Only with the approach of the 12 thousandth corps of General Chernyshev and the detachment of the Austrian General Lassi to the city, the Prussian capital was besieged by the 38 thousandth allied army (of which 24 thousand were Russian), which was 2.5 times larger than the number of the Prussian army concentrated near Berlin. The Prussians chose to leave the city without a fight. On September 28, the 4,000-strong garrison covering the retreat capitulated. In the city, 57 guns were captured and gunpowder factories and an arsenal were blown up. Because Frederick was in a hurry to Berlin with the main forces of the army, Field Marshal Saltykov gave the order to Chernyshev’s corps and other detachments to retreat. Berlin itself had no strategic significance.

The campaign of 1761 proceeded just as sluggishly as the previous one. In December, Rumyantsev's corps was captured by Kolberg.

The final stage. Results

The position of the Prussian king seemed hopeless, but the emperor who replaced the Russian throne at the beginning of 1762, who admired the military genius of Frederick II, stopped the war and even concluded an alliance with Prussia on May 5. At the same time, after the destruction of its fleet by the British, France withdrew from the war, having suffered a number of defeats from the British in North America and India. True, in July 1762 Peter was overthrown on the orders of his wife. She terminated the Russian-Prussian alliance, but did not continue the war. Excessive weakening of Prussia was not in Russia's interests, as it could lead to Austrian hegemony in Central Europe.

Austria was forced to conclude peace with Prussia on February 15, 1763. The King of Prussia was forced to renounce his claims to Saxony, but retained Silesia. Five days earlier, peace was concluded in Paris between England and France. The French lost their possessions in Canada and India, retaining only 5 Indian cities in their hands. The left bank of the Mississippi also passed from France to England, and the French were forced to cede the right bank of this river to the Spaniards, and they also had to pay compensation to the latter for Florida ceded to the British.