This article is about the specific polity Electorate of Saxony (Albertines) and therefore only includes events related to its territory and not to its possessions or colonies. If you are interested in the possession, this is the link to the article about the nation which includes all possessions as well as all the different incarnations of the nation.
If you are looking for the page with the statistics about this polity you can find it here:All Statistics
The Capitulation of Wittenberg was a treaty on 19 May 1547 by which John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, was compelled to resign the title of elector. The Electorate of Saxony and most of his territory, including Wittenberg, passed from the elder Ernestine line to the cadet Albertine line of the House of Wettin.
Establishment
May 1547: In 1547, in the Wittenberg capitulation, the electoral district and electoral dignity fell to Duke Moritz of the Albertine line. This event marked a significant shift in power within the Electorate of Saxony, as Duke Moritz took control from the Ernestine line of the Wettin dynasty.
May 1547: Capitulation of Wittenberg: John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, was compelled to resign the title of elector. The Electorate of Saxony and most of his territory, including Wittenberg, passed from the elder Ernestine line to the cadet Albertine line.
Chronology
Interactive Chronologies with maps are available in the section Changes Navigation
Were a series of wars in Europe (and the overseas possessions of European countries) the 16th, 17th and early 18th that started after the Protestant Reformation. Although the immediate causes of the wars were religious, the motives were complex and also included territorial ambitions.
1.1.Schmalkaldic War
Was a war between the Holy Roman Empire and the Schmalkaldic League, an alliance of Lutheran states of the Holy Roman Empire itself.
1.2.Thirty Years' War
Was a war that took place mainly in central Europe between 1618 and 1648. The war began as a religious conflict between Catholics and Protestant in the Holy Roman Empire but then escalated into a conflict for the hegemony in Europe between Habsburg Spain and Austria, Sweden and France.
1.2.1.Swedish Period
Was the third main period of the Thirty Years' War. It started with the intervention of the Kingdom of Sweden.
May 1631: After the Swedish occupation of Frankfurt an der Oder in April 1631, Pomerania, Mecklenburg, Brandenburg and Saxony signed alliance treaties with Sweden.
September 1631: The Catholic League led by General Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly, captured the fortress of Pleißenberg near Leipzig.
September 1631: On September 17, 1631, the Swedish army under Gustav Adolf met the troops of the Catholic League under Tilly in the Battle of Breitenfeld north of Leipzig.
November 1632: Withdrawal of the Wallenstein army to winter quarters in Saxony, Gustav Adolf was forced to stand by the allied Saxons.
1.2.1.1.Peace of Prague
Was a treaty during the Thirt Years' War that ended the war between Catholics and Protestants.
May 1635: In 1635, during the Thirty Years' War, Electoral Saxony (ruled by the Albertines) gained control of four administrative offices in the territory of Magdeburg. This transfer of power was part of the territorial realignment that occurred as a result of the war.
May 1635: According to the 1635 Peace of Prague, most of Lusatia became a province of the Electorate of Saxony, except for the region around Cottbus possessed by Brandenburg.
1.2.2.Franco-Swedish Period
Was the fourth main period of the Thirty Years' War. It started with the intervention of the Kingdom of France.
1.2.2.1.North German Front (Sweden)
Was the north German front during the Franco-Swedish period of the Thirty Years' War.
November 1637: After the death of Swedish King Ferdinand II, his son and successor Ferdinand III brought the Swedish troops back to Pomerania, leaving the territories occupied by Sweden in Germany.
April 1639: The Battle of Chemnitz took place during the Thirty Years' War, with the Swedes led by Field Marshal Johan Banér. Pirna, a town in Saxony, was occupied by the Swedish forces after their victory.
August 1640: In 1640, the Swedes led by field marshal Banér moved through Thuringia via Saalfeld into Hesse and further near the town of Fritzlar, which was reached on August 31, 1640.
October 1640: When 14 regiments arrived to reinforce the imperial army at the end of September 1640, the Swedish army left the territories it occupied in Germany (with the exception of Pomerania).
December 1643: In 1643 Swedish general Torstensson invaded Moravia for the second time.
January 1644: In 1643, when the Torstensson War broke out, the Swedish military focused entirely on Denmark and thus enabled an imperial offensive to Jutland.
November 1644: In 1644 Swedish field marshal Torstenson led his army for the third time into the heart of Germany and routed the imperials at the battle of Jüterbog.
January 1645: At the beginning of January 1645 the Swedes broke into Bohemia.
July 1647: The Imperial Army liberated the fortress of Egra (today known as Cheb in the Czech Republic) from Swedish occupation.
June 1648: In May 1648, there was the last major field battle of the Thirty Years' War between French-Swedish and Imperial-Bavarian armies near Augsburg.
July 1648: Swedish Siege of Prague from July 25, 1648.
1.2.3.Peace of Westphalia
Were a series of treaties that ended the Thirty Years' War. Catholics and Protestants were redefined as equal in the territories of the Holy Roman Empire. There were major territorial adjustments. In particular, France, Sweden and Brandenburg had major territorial gains, and several religious territories of the Holy Roman Empire were secularized.
October 1648: With the Peace of Westphalia Sweden received Western Pomerania (henceforth Swedish Pomerania), Wismar, and the Prince-Bishoprics of Bremen and Verden as hereditary fiefs. Sweden evacuated the remnant territories it had occupied in the Holy Roman Empire.
January 1649: In the 18th century, the Counts of Stolberg-Wernigerode, who were directly under the Empire, had to subordinate their territories to the Kingdom of Prussia and the Electorate of Hanover, while the Counts of Stolberg-Stolberg and the Counts of Stolberg-Roßla had to subordinate the County of Stolberg, which was divided between them, to the Electorate of Saxony.
A series of wars fought in northern and northeastern Europe from the 16th to the 18th century.
2.1.Great Northern War
Was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe.
2.1.1.Phase 1: Swedish Dominance
Was the first phase of the Great Northern War, characterized by Swedish victories.
2.1.1.1.War against Augustus II
Was a military campaign initiated by Sweden during the Great Northern war. The goal of the campaign was the overthrow of Augustus II the Strong, who was at the same the Elector fo Saxony and the King of Poland-Lithuania.
September 1706: In the summer of 1706, Charles XII of Sweden with his troops from eastern Poland, on August via Silesia into the Electorate of Saxony. The Swedes conquered the electorate step by step and crushed all resistance.
September 1706: Having pursued Augustus of Saxony in his homeland, the Swedish King forced Augustus to sign the Altranstadt Peace Treaty on 24 september 1706. The Elector of Saxony renounced the Polish crown "forever" and dissolved the alliance with Russia.
Were a series of wars between the Habsburg Domains and Prussia for the control of Silesia. The war started during the War of the Austrian Succession, when Frederick the Great of Prussia invaded Habsburg-held Silesia.
3.1.Second Silesian War
Was the second of three wars between Austria and Prussia for the control of Silesia. It was part of the War of the Austrian Succession.
3.1.1.Silesian Theatre (Second War)
Was the Silesian theatre of the Second Silesian War.
November 1745: Frederick the Great won the actions of Katholisch-Hennersdorf on 24 November and Görlitz on 25 November.
November 1745: Leopold I was the Duke of Anhalt-Dessau and a Prussian general during the War of the Austrian Succession. His army's advance into Leipzig in 1745 marked a significant military occupation by Prussia in the region.
December 1745: The armies of King Charles VII of Bavaria and King Frederick II of Prussia converged toward Dresden in early December 1745.
December 1745: Leopold's force attacked and destroyed Rutowsky's army in the Battle of Kesselsdorf.
December 1745: The Prussians occupied Dresden on 18 December.
December 1745: This Treaty of Dresden ended the Second Silesian War between Austria, Saxony, and Prussia.
Was a global conflict that involved most of the European great powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. At the end of the war the main winner was Great Britain, that obtained territories in North America, the Caribbean and India, becoming the most powerful maritime and colonial of the European powers.
4.1.Third Silesian War
Was the last of three wars between Austria and Prussia for the control of Silesia. It was also part of the Seven Years' War.
4.1.1.Saxon Theatre (Polish-Soviet War)
Was the theatre of War in the Electorate of Saxony, which was invaded by Prussia, during the Third Silesian War.
September 1756: Prussians occupied Dresden against little resistance.
October 1756: The Saxon army was briefly besieged at Pirna and surrendered on 14 October, after which its men were forcibly incorporated into the Prussian army under Prussian officers.
September 1757: The Austrians under Daun and Prince Charles, advancing into Upper Lusatia, defeated a Prussian force under Bevern and Hans Karl von Winterfeldt at the Battle of Moys.
October 1757: In late October 1757, during the Seven Years' War, the Prussian army under King Frederick II retreated from Dresden to Leipzig to defend against the advancing Austrian and Saxon forces. This strategic move was crucial in protecting Prussia's heartland from potential invasion.
November 1757: After this series of manoeuvres, on 5 November, a Prussian corps under Frederick located and engaged Soubise's much larger force near the village of Rossbach in Saxony. The ensuing Battle of Rossbach ended in a stunning Prussian victory, in which Frederick lost fewer than 1,000 men, while the Franco-German force under Soubise lost around 10,000.This victory secured Prussia's control of Saxony for a time.
September 1758: In 1758, during the Seven Years' War, Austrian forces led by Field Marshal Daun captured Dresden, the capital of Saxony, from the Prussian army. The surrender of Dresden on 4 September was a significant blow to the Prussian forces, who had been preparing for a major battle at Kunersdorf.
September 1758: And quickly occupying most of the electorate.
July 1760: Frederick the Great of Prussia led his army back into Saxony and besieged Dresden.
July 1760: Daun's army marched westward and forced the Prussians to lift the siege and withdraw.
October 1762: After the Battle of Freiberg it controlled most of Saxony outside of Dresden. Austria still held Dresden and the southeastern edge of Saxony.
4.1.2.Treaty of Hubertusburg
Was the treaty that ended the Third Silesian War, and, together with the Treaty of Paris (1763) it ended also the Seven Years' War.
February 1763: At the end of the Third Silesian War, the warring parties agreed restore the status quo ante bellum. Austria withdrew from Glatz, restoring full Prussian control of Silesia, in exchange for Prussia's evacuation of Saxony.
4.2.Central German Theatre
Was the theatre of war in central Germany of the Seven Years' War.
4.2.1.French Invasion (German Theatre of the Seven Years' War)
Was a French large-scale invasion of Germany during the Seven Years' War.
November 1757: The Prussian army leaves Rossbach.
Were a series of conflicts between France and several European monarchies between 1792 and 1815. They encompass first the French Revolutionary Wars against the newly declared French Republic and from 1803 onwards the Napoleonic Wars against First Consul and later Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. They include the Coalition Wars as a subset: seven wars waged by various military alliances of great European powers, known as Coalitions, against Revolutionary France - later the First French Empire - and its allies.
5.1.War of the Fourth Coalition
Was a war between the French Empire and a coalition of European monarchies, mainly Prussia and Russia.
5.1.1.Prussian Campaign (War of the Fourth Coalition)
Was a French military campaign in Prussia during the War of the Fourth Coalition.
October 1806: French Marshal Lannes crushed a Prussian division at Saalfeld.
October 1806: At the double Battle of Jena-Auerstedt on 14 October, Napoleon defeated a Prussian army led by Frederick Louis.
October 1806: French Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte defeated Eugene Frederick Henry, Duke of Württemberg, at the Battle of Halle and chased his forces across the Elbe River.
October 1806: Napoleon entered Berlin on 27 October 1806.
December 1806: The Albertines remained electors until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and then attained the Saxon royal dignity through an alliance with Napoleon.
January 1555: Territorial change based on available maps.
January 1564: After the death of Henry IV his sons Henry V and Henry VI pledged ownership of the Meissen Burgraviate to Elector Augustus of Saxony, who finally acquired the area in 1563.
January 1565: The Naumburg Prince-Bishopric is acquired by the Electorate of Saxony (Albertines).
January 1566: The Merseburg Prince-Bishopric is acquired by the Electorate of Saxony (Albertines).
January 1569: Ziegenrück came into full ownership of the Albertine electorate.
January 1660: After the death of the last Count of Barby in 1659, Barby fell to Duke August of Sachsen-Weißenfels,.
January 1661: In 1660, the county of Henneberg was partitioned among various lines of the Wettin family.
January 1667: The Meissen Prince-Bishopric is acquired by the Electorate of Saxony (Albertines).
January 1741: Only after the recession with the Elector of Saxony in 1740 was the Waldenburg lordship gradually absorbed into the Saxon state as part of the Schönburg Recession dominions.
January 1781: In 1780, the dynasty of Mansfeld became extinct. The Saxon portion of Mansfeld went to the Electorate of Saxony (Albertines), while the Magdeburgian portion went to Magdeburg (which was part of Prussia).
Disestablishment
October 1806: French Marshal Lannes crushed a Prussian division at Saalfeld.
October 1806: French Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte defeated Eugene Frederick Henry, Duke of Württemberg, at the Battle of Halle and chased his forces across the Elbe River.
October 1806: At the double Battle of Jena-Auerstedt on 14 October, Napoleon defeated a Prussian army led by Frederick Louis.
October 1806: Napoleon entered Berlin on 27 October 1806.
December 1806: The Albertines remained electors until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and then attained the Saxon royal dignity through an alliance with Napoleon.
Selected Sources
Bradford, J.C. (2004): International Encyclopedia of Military History, Routledge, p. 554
Dreißigjähriger Krieg. Austria Forum. Retrieved on 30 march 2024 on https://austria-forum.org/af/AustriaWiki/Drei%C3%9Figj%C3%A4hriger_Krieg
Droysen, G. (1886): Historischer Handatlas, Bielefeld and Leipzig (Germany), p. 26-49
Poten, B. (1879): Handwörterbuch der gesamten Militärwissenschaften, Velhagen & Klasing, p. 197
Schmidt, G. (2006): Der Dreißigjährige Krieg, Munich (Germany), p. 65
Spindler, M. (2017): Geschichte Schwabens bis zum Ausgang des 18. Jahrhunderts, Munich (Germany), p. 266
Tucker, S.C. (2011) Battles that changed History - An Encyclopedia of World Conflict, ABC-CLIO, p.230
Tucker, S.C. (2011) Battles that changed History - An Encyclopedia of World Conflict, ABC-CLIO, p.287
Tucker, S.C. (2011) Battles that changed History - An Encyclopedia of World Conflict, ABC-CLIO, pp.191-195
Westfälischer Friede - Vertrag von Osnabrück, https://de.wikisource.org/wiki/Westf%C3%A4lischer_Friede_%E2%80%93_Vertrag_von_Osnabr%C3%BCck
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Electorate of Saxony (Albertines)
