Battle of Nördlingen (1634)

The Battle of Nördlingen, fought over two days from 5 to 6 September 1634, was a major battle of the Thirty Years' War. A Imperial-Spanish force led by the Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand and Ferdinand of Hungary inflicted a crushing defeat on the Swedish-German army led by Gustav Horn and Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar.

By 1634, the Swedes and their German allies occupied much of southern Germany. This allowed them to block the Spanish Road, an overland supply route running from Italy to Flanders, used to support Spain's war against the Dutch Republic. Seeking to re-open this, a Spanish army under the Cardinal-Infante linked up with Imperial forces near Nördlingen, which was held by a Swedish garrison.

Horn and Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar marched to its relief, but significantly underestimated the numbers they faced. After limited fighting on 5 September, on the 6th they launched a series of assaults south of Nördlingen, all of which were repulsed. Superior numbers allowed the Spanish-Imperial commanders to continually reinforce their positions, and Horn ordered his troops to withdraw. As they did so, they were outflanked by Imperial cavalry and retreat turned into a rout, with both Horn and his deputy Scharffenstein among those taken prisoner.

Defeat forced the Swedes to withdraw from Bavaria, while in May 1635 their major German allies signed the Peace of Prague with Emperor Ferdinand II. In response, France now intervened on behalf of Sweden and the Dutch Republic by declaring war on Spain, and entering the Thirty Years' War as an active belligerent. As a consequence, some suggest Nördlingen was the pivotal battle of the Thirty Years' War.