Siege of Toruń (1658)

Siege of Toruń
Part of the Second Northern War / The Deluge
Date July 2 - December 30, 1658 Location Toruń, (Poland) 53°00′40″N 18°36′25″E / 53.01111°N 18.60694°E / 53.01111; 18.60694Coordinates: 53°00′40″N 18°36′25″E / 53.01111°N 18.60694°E / 53.01111; 18.60694 Result Polish–Lithuanian victory
Belligerents
Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Holy Roman Empire	Swedish Empire
Commanders and leaders
Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski Jan Fryderyk Sapieha Krzysztof Grodzicki Ludwig de Souches	Barthold Hartwig von Bülow Anders Sinclair
Strength
18,700 Polish soldiers (including about 500 Tatars) 4,600 Imperial soldiers 40 guns	2,420 Swedish soldiers and several hundred townspeople
Casualties and losses
1,800 killed	1,200 killed

The Siege of Toruń was one of the battles during the Swedish invasion of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Second Northern War / Deluge). It started on 2 July 1658 and ended on 30 December 1658. Swedish garrison capitulated and Toruń returned to Polish hands.

In mid- September 1657, after the Siege of Krakow (1657), the Holy Roman Empire army of 15,000, allied to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, marched northwards. In late September, the Austrians concentrated near Plock. Polish King Jan Kazimierz wanted to use them to capture the fortified city of Toruń, but Austrian preparations for the siege were very slow and not completed before winter. Due to weather conditions, all military activities were postponed until spring 1658, and the Austrians spent the winter in Greater Poland.

Polish plans for 1658 were concentrated on gradual recapture of the province of Royal Prussia. First objective was Toruń, a strategically located Vistula river port, with modern fortifications. Due to Dano-Swedish War, most Austrians, under Field Marshal Raimondo Montecuccoli, left Poland and marched to Jutland.

On July 2, 1658, Austrian division of 4,000, under General Jean-Louis Raduit de Souches began the siege of Toruń. The Austrians were reinforced by Polish infantry, while the city was defended by a Swedish garrison of 2,400, commanded by General Barthold Hartwig von Bulow. Swedes were supported by German-speaking, Protestant residents of Toruń.

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Wikipedia