Battle of Nördlingen (1645)

This article is about the second Battle of Nördlingen fought in 1645 in Germany as part of the Thirty Years War. See also Battle of Nördlingen (1634)

The second Battle of Nördlingen was fought on August 3, 1645 between forces of the Holy Roman Empire and France. An Imperial army, led by Field Marshal Baron Franz von Mercy , were encamped around the village of Allerheim near Nördlingen in Bavaria. It was attacked by a French army under the command of Louis de Bourbon, Duc d'Enghien and Marshal Henri, Vicomte de Turenne. The French won the battle after a bloody struggle in which both sides lost virtually the same number of troops. Von Mercy himself was killed and the Bavarians driven from the field, but the heavy casualties had so weakened the French that they were unable to press home their advantage. In the wake of the battle, the exhausted Bavarians began peace negotiations that led to the Truce of Ulm two years later.