Franco-Prussian War

July 19, 1870 – January 28, 1871 · Sedan and northern France

Result German victory

Conflict of 19 July 1870 to 28 January 1871 between France and the Prussian-led North German Confederation, triggered by France's determination to reassert continental dominance and Bismarck's edited publication of the Ems Dispatch. German victories culminated in the Siege of Metz and the Battle of Sedan, where Emperor Napoleon III was captured; after a four-month siege Paris fell on 28 January 1871. The war proclaimed the German Empire under Wilhelm I, ceded Alsace-Lorraine to Germany under the Treaty of Frankfurt, and established the French Third Republic, soon shaken by the Paris Commune.

On the map Overview Contemporaries

France

Germany

Other

France

Redshirts

North German Confederation North German Confederation led by Prussia

Kingdom of Bavaria

Kingdom of Prussia

Kingdom of Saxony

Grand Duchy of Hesse

German Empire

Grand Duchy of Baden

Napoleon III Emperor of the French, Declared war; captured at Sedan

Patrice de MacMahon military commander

Giuseppe Garibaldi belligerent leader

François Achille Bazaine Marshal, Commanded the Army of the Rhine; surrendered at Metz

Louis-Jules Trochu belligerent leader

François Certain de Canrobert military commander

Abel Douay military commander

Charles Auguste Frossard military commander

Otto von Bismarck

Wilhelm I King of Prussia, Proclaimed German Emperor at Versailles

Frederick III, German Emperor belligerent leader

Helmuth von Moltke the Elder Chief of the Prussian General Staff, Planned and led the German campaign

Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia military commander

Karl Friedrich von Steinmetz military commander

Strength and losses

France Killed c. 152,000

Casualties: 144,642
Deaths: 44,781
Wounded: 89,732
Missing: 10,129

Grand Duchy of Baden Killed c. 956

Kingdom of Bavaria Killed c. 5,600

Killed: c. 204,313

Units

Army of Châlons Army of the Loire Army of the North (1870–1871) Army of the Rhine (1870) French I Corps (1870) French II Corps (1870) Army of the Vosges Bourbaki's Army of the East (1870–1871) French Army 12th Army Corps (France) 2nd Infantry Division (France) French Foreign Legion 1st Infantry Division (France) Belfort garrison (1870–1871)

1st Division (German Empire)

Battles 42

Key events

Battle of Wissembourg (1870) August 4, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Wörth August 6, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Spicheren August 6, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Mars-la-Tour August 16, 1870 · French victory
Siege of Strasbourg August 16 – September 28, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Gravelotte August 18, 1870 · Prussian strategic victory
Siege of Metz August 20 – October 27, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Beaumont (1870) August 30, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Sedan September 1, 1870 · German victory
Siege of Paris (1870–1871) September 19, 1870 – January 28, 1871 · German victory
Battle of Amiens (1870) November 27, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Le Mans January 10–12, 1871 · German victory

1870 36 events

Battle of Saarbrücken August 2, 1870 · French victory
Battle of Wissembourg (1870) August 4, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Wörth August 6, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Spicheren August 6, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Borny–Colombey August 14, 1870 · French victory
Battle of Mars-la-Tour August 16, 1870 · French victory
Siege of Strasbourg August 16 – September 28, 1870 · German victory
Siege of Toul August 16 – September 23, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Gravelotte August 18, 1870 · Prussian strategic victory
Siege of Metz August 20 – October 27, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Beaumont (1870) August 30, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Noisseville August 31, 1870 · Prussian victory
Battle of Bazeilles August 31 – September 1, 1870 · Bavarian victory
Battle of Sedan September 1, 1870 · German victory
Siege of Montmédy September 4 – December 14, 1870 · German victory
Siege of Paris (1870–1871) September 19, 1870 – January 28, 1871 · German victory
Battle of Le Bourget September 27–30, 1870
Battle of Chevilly September 30, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Artenay October 10, 1870 · German victory
Siege of Verdun (1870) October 13 – November 8, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Châtillon October 13, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Bellevue October 18, 1870 · Prussian victory
Battle of Châteaudun October 18, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Buzenval (1870) October 21, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Dijon (1870) October 29, 1870 – January 23, 1871 · 1st: Prussian victory
Siege of Belfort November 3, 1870 – February 18, 1871 · Inconclusive; Germany fails to capture Belfort
Battle of Coulmiers November 9, 1870 · French victory
Battle of Havana (1870) November 9, 1870 · Indecisive
Battle of Amiens (1870) November 27, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Beaune-la-Rolande November 28, 1870 · Prussian victory
Battle of Villiers November 29 – December 3, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Villepion December 1, 1870 · French victory
Battle of Loigny–Poupry December 2, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Orléans (December 1870) December 3–4, 1870 · German victory
Battle of Beaugency (1870) December 8–10, 1870 · Prussian victory
Battle of Hallue December 23–24, 1870 · Inconclusive