The Austro-Prussian War: The Battle of Langensalza, 1866 (Part 1)

In the Battle of Langensalza on June 27, 1866, during the Austro-Prussian War, the Kingdom of Hanover fought against the Kingdom of Prussia near Bad Langensalza, Germany. Despite winning the battle, the Hanoverians were eventually surrounded by a larger and strengthened Prussian army. Unable to join forces with their Bavarian allies in the south, the Hanoverians were forced to surrender. This event led to the downfall of the Hanoverian Army and the incorporation of Hanover into an expanding Prussia, ultimately leading to the formation of a unified Germany.
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🧾 Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
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[@guycalabrese4040]

Funny name for being a battlefield. Sounds almost like something you can eat:"One Langensalza and a beer, please!"

[@Hambie76]

That does sound delicious! In fact that sounds as good as a mug of Kvass and a strip of Bacon!

[@darrenwang8879]

Then we can say that the Prussians bit off more than what they can chew on in this place.

[@c.t.1755]

@@darrenwang8879Flies (probably): "Yes i would like the party platter for myself please, thank you very much!" *realizes its way to big for him* *faints*

[@thereub8166]

Langensalza does kinda have a beer & salsa ring to it...

[@mysterio619rey2]

😂 I live near Langensalza and it's the first time I mention it as a meal name. Maybe I'm going to make a proposal for the local restaurants there 😂😂😂

[@hallelbimpong1901]

I'm a teenager in Ghana , and I love your videos ❤ 😅 thank you so much, you deserve more subscribers and views

[@martinahager4931]

The Prussians did have breech-loading rifles while the Hanoveranis did have muzzleloaders.

[@Syrinx11]

This period of history is overlooked by most channels. I appreciate you covering it. You slipped up with some of the German pronunciations but I will forgive you given how long of a video this is 😅

[@ofallmyintention9496]

It's much better than most of us. lol. I know about five words in German.

[@Syrinx11]

@@ofallmyintention9496 It is small things such as saying "von Bismark" instead of "fon". He also switched between Holstein and Holsteen several times. These mistakes were less frequent in the past and I find it takes away from what is otherwise great content.

[@chrisbarnes1523]

​@@Syrinx11please refer to text bubble at 5.37 for the collective thoughts on how much everyone else cares about the pronunciation

[@Precooledtrout]

⁠@@Syrinx11quick everyone point and laugh at this guy!

[@fabrizioruffo1799]

Famously towards the end of the battle the Hanoverian cavalry led by the Cambridge dragoons charged and actually broke two Prussian infantry squares while capturing six artillery pieces.

[@gundricsgamesandhistory.9450]

I love your videos mate especially about this much underrepresented conflict. Would really love to see you do a series on the War of the Austrian Succession, huge, convoluted and far more interesting than the later, much more publicised Seven Years war!

[@norbertblackrain2379]

Great presentation of this often overlooked front of this nearly forgotten war.

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

The brothers war! Been waiting for this one! You're the best man!

[@WarriorsTale88]

Too bad this war isn't talked about as much. It helped create Germany. The Wars of German Unification were world changing wars.

[@loisbrock1044]

Awesome I have been waiting for this

[@KHK001]

Great video as always!

[@cuakarakakara]

Ohhh I visited Langensalza last weekend :) There's very little info about this battle. Nice work!

[@monm11]

Thank you for your great video! Are you doing a bit about the Battle of Kissingen (my hometown :) too?

[@pdenn1s]

You're a good narrator bro and you obviously put in the research on the material, well done.

[@chungus1219]

Another great video 👍🏼 keep it up.

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

It was informative and an excellent introduction...I appreciate your hard work 👍🏻....thank you for sharing.....house of history channel 21:55

[@TheAustrianAnimations87]

To be honest, for its small size, the Hanoverians actually performed better than most of Austria's other German allies (considering how doomed they were geographically) who failed to work properly together.

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

RIP Hanover, at least George V's grandson was given a Duchy and an Imperial German Princess as compensation later.

[@c.t.1755]

yeah though Georg V. himself did remain stubborn in denying his loss and thus lost compensation for himself. Even tried to establish a hanovarian "legion" after the fact to fight prussia.

[@frederickthegreat1352]

He wasnt really “given” the Duchy. It was his by birthright. The Hohenzollerns were in fact blocking the succession of the Duchy of Brunswick to the Hanoverians for 30 years. The marriage helped to reconcile the two houses and thus the succession was allowed to go through.

[@chrisdale77]

Great video! Keep up the 1866 coverage please!

[@MulleDullen]

Just here to leave a comment so you guys get more views. Keep up the good work

[@HoH]

Thanks!

[@notthefbi7932]

It's a grand day when you release a new video 😁

[@danalden1112]

Some of the finest looking maps I’ve seen on this site. Kudos to the cartographers! 👏

[@robertmier2217]

Well and thoughtfully done

[@collintrytsman3353]

look forward to next

[@w.l.6258]

a very intresting story. thank you for telling the long prussian history.

[@brokenbridge6316]

This is getting interesting so far

[@paulceglinski7172]

The Iron Chancellor at his "best." Note to Molke: Let's build an empire.

[@lucastark1784]

A great example of winning the battle but losing the war.

[@kalterverwalter4516]

Verry great Video Dude. The Evolution you and your content Took IS remarkable. Tiny correction thougth you call it Jüdenhügel Hill which would translate to Jüdenhill Hill. Hügel already means Hill. So really tiny mistake nothing Important. But I think its Funny. 😂

[@bennylarsson4654]

In Sweden this history is sadly missed,,,love this Chanel👍

[@AdityaSingh-iz5zs]

Brother's war. Great documentary

[@personnelente]

Your videos are informative, but please lose the distracting floating spots. It looks like there is a snowstorm or a fire nearby.

[@frederickthegreat1352]

George V made pretty stupid decission by joining the war on the side of Austria. I mean had he joined Prussia, even if Prussia had lost the war, the Hanoverian Kingdom would be likely to survive without much, if any, loss of land, as Austria was in no possition to annex Hanoverian territory, and in any case, was happy to preserve the sovereignty of smaller German states, as a limit to Prussian power. On the other hand, Prussia was salivating to annex the Hanoverian kingdom, in order to connect their Westphalian possesions with Prussia proper.

[@maltemeyer3171]

Given the historical precedent, the more amasing thing is that the Prussians couldn't convince the Hannoveranians to beat up the Austrians together.

[@michelwardynski6498]

These maps are fantastic! Have you considered producing/selling wall sized art versions?

[@HoH]

That's an interesting idea! I am not yet sure how to make that a reality, though... I'll look into it and keep it in mind.

[@1987MartinT]

The Hanoverians could win the battle, but not the war. Their army was too small. They were fortunate to only face a small part of the Prussian forces in the region during the battle. But 19.000 men against 41.800 men? Those are not good odds. Their best options were attempting to link up with their allies or trying to defeat the Prussian forces in detail.

[@cavalr1002]

Little thing I want to add Doing this of war. The Austrians offered an alliance between Denmark and Austria and asked Denmark to invade Slesvig. But the Danish Prime Minister said no. Politically, Denmark and Austria had nothing against each other Before the wars or after. Even during the war, the Austrians were treating Danish war prisoners very well and the same for the Austrian prisoners.

[@bcvetkov8534]

Why did they say no?

[@cavalr1002]

@@bcvetkov8534 They said no because they wanted to wait and see how the battle went. So let's say if the Austrians was winning the war, then Denmark would maybe have joined in on their side. It's the same with the French. They also offered an alliance to Denmark when Prussia invaded France. But the Danish Prime Minister said the same thing again.

[@alannolan5126]

can u Make a Videos of Garibaldi Campaigns, the Italian Re-unification and when he went too South America

[@christianschrader5927]

My veins are going dry waiting for your vid’s to come out😩😩

[@jonathanwilliams1065]

That first quote is also why “a well regulated militia” is “necessary to the security of a free state” with the militia being “the whole body of the people”

[@Guy-the-egg]

When will you do the battle of minden

[@vihaanshrivastava7470]

Can you do the War of the Spanish Succession

[@notnaanton630]

As a Hannoverian, thanks for making the video :D

[@blecao]

I honestly think that the pop sound effect of the diplomatic emisaries may be too loud in comparison to the general volume of the video

[@HoH]

Thanks, I'll make sure I'll fix it!

[@RonSommar]

Hannover had to disappear as it was long linked to the UK - Hannover could once again staff the English throne then preventing a Prussian-German unification

[@Ugly_German_Truths]

For the Hannoverians having the better starting positions and almost twice as many troops chasing the Prussians away while suffering 1400 dead and wounded to 900 for Prussia seems not like a glorious win. 3 such battles and the 17,000 army wouldn't have been field effective anymore with almost 1/3 gone.

[@Elsneakakaze]

Imagine being General Flies "me and 7000 guys are guna walk across an open field towards an enemy posted behind a river on top of a hill-line and then just bum rush them." "oh by the way there is more than twice our number worth of enemies in those hills" "lmao its too hot in central germany im having a heat stroke" This guy was 100% paid off or senile. Nobody can be that shit at their job.

[@vojtechposselt2371]

Can I ask you about the sources. I'm just curious and looking for some new books :D .

[@christophsimon-cq9qb]

If you speak German, than you can find the book from Theodor Fontane, Der deutsche Krieg von 1866. It gives a contemporary overview of the war, the battles against the Austria / Saxonia leading to the final battle in Königsgrätz and the battles against the allies Hannover, Bavaria, and others like Langensalza

[@fabrizioruffo1799]

Try the The Road to Königgrätz: Helmuth von Moltke and the Austro-Prussian War 1866 its fairly good

[@TheHypnogog]

I can see how fainting during a battle is generally not what one looks for in a good leader.

[@practicing1]

Why dont you do Irish British conflicts?

[@1987MartinT]

I wasn't sure about calling Bismarck a cunning strategist. A cunning POLITICAL strategist/politician? Absolutely. But a cunning strategist? I wasn't sure. But then I thought about it some more. He was able to see the military risk of having parts of or all of Schleswig-Holstein come under Austrian rule or become independent. Austria was Prussia's traditional enemy, so letting them gain any more territory from which to threaten Prussia with invasion would be dangerous. And letting either a part of or all of Schleswig-Holstein gain independence was not the solution either, as most of the other German states were, as was proven by the Austro-Prussian War, more likely to side with Austria than with Prussia. Letting the Austrians and their allies have another front from which to attack Prussia was a danger. And he was also smart enough to attack before this danger become a reality. So, yes, Bismarck was indeed a cunning strategist. I guess the reason for my uncertainty was that I'm used to thinking of Bismarck as a politician. Not a military commander. But he did have good military skill to be able to see that danger and find a way to deal with it.

[@hengthelotharin]

Moltke : Damm Falckenstein!! Don't let me send your eighth order

[@JoeyC777]

Great video. I miss your natural voice though.

[@giod6266]

What I want to know now, and very much, is why Bavaria didnt supported Hanoverians during these days? I asume they had enough time to get to Hanover and join armies..

[@MrMyers758]

War was all but inevitable? But then war happened. So it wasn't all but inevitable, it was inevitable. All but means everything except, if it was everything except inevitable that that means the ONE thing it was not, was inevitable.

[@janlindtner305]

👍

[@aquilarossa5191]

The mentioned faction of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha is also the surname of the English royal family who were Hanoverians. They changed their name to Windsor during WWI when the UK was at war with Germany. The royals were so German that Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert communicated in German during their day to day life. Then during WWI King George V and the German Kaiser were first cousins, as was the Russian Tsar. Millions died in an inbred family feud by the look of it. P.S. It's not the first time England's royals spoke a foreign language. They spoke French exclusively for about three hundred years after the 1066ad Norman conquest. Then again, English itself is a foreign language in a way. It is a mixture of the languages of the many invaders and conquerors. Romans conquered the Britons and formed a hybrid culture known now as the Romano British. Then came the Anglo-Saxons who invaded from Europe and eventually formed the nation of Angle Land, i.e., England. Danes and Norse ruled for a time too, i.e., Vikings who briefly conquered and ruled England under the kings Sven Forkbeard and Cnut the Great. Then a brief Anglo-Saxon restoration was conquered by the Norman French. Less than ten words remain in modern English from the Celtic Brythonic language of the ancient Britons who built Stonehenge etc. In that sense the Welsh are far, far more British than the English. :P (Welsh is a Brythonic language, as is Cornish)

[@c.t.1755]

well lets face it. with the hanovarian king not allying with prussia or at least staying neutral plus the hanovarian army being "underprepared" to say the least, it was really predeterment that hanover would lose. Though as a hanovarian myself i cant help myself but to laugh at the prospect that our backward army was able to beat the prussians this one time though it was a pyrrhic Victory. It cant be left unmentioned though that the hanovarians were helped by ineptitute of the local prussian command. Moltke would have wiped the floor with us if he had his will :D Also as backwards as i regard the Kingdom of Hanover (truly it was high time we modernized at least SOMEWHERE, but NO) i do wonder what an hanovarian alt-hist woul look like. thanks for covering this Battle

[@ryanjuguilon213]

Hey dont be too hard on yourself. Lower Saxony was the heart of the Saxon people, and thos "Prussians" or east elbian germans came from Saxon colonies during Henry the lions Ostsiedlung

[@c.t.1755]

@@ryanjuguilon213 though i would argue that the hanovarians and prussians were at most distant descendants of the saxon people, this is still an interesting thought. thank you for the comment. Also good to know, good ol' henry the lion is given his acknowledgement in regards to his involvement. Had an assignment on him during my studies on the middleages and i thoroughly believe that he was ahead of his time and its a shame hes got almost no recognition for his deeds during his lifetime. Then again he DID piss a lot of people of. :D

[@ryanjuguilon213]

@@c.t.1755 though called "Prussia" the hearland is brandenburg and the Ostmark. Its oldest region the Altmark is part of old Saxony. I'd say Prussia and Hannover is closer than "Saxony" is to the real Saxons. Pissing one of the greatest German emperor was stupid. He could just given a few knight to accompany Barbarossa to Italy would not have hurt. At that time Henry was the duke of Saxony and Bavaria and would have likely establish his dynasty as the next emperors had he stayed on Barbarossa's good side and the Hohenstaufen dynasty became extinct

[@c.t.1755]

@@ryanjuguilon213 i thought more along the passage of time and the change in identity of the peoples. But territorily speeking you are right. Also what is and isnt Saxon or Saxony is so wierd to me ever since i learned germany in finnish is saksa. Not to forget the Anglo-Saxons of Britain. At this point im wondering if "Saxon" was just as much an collecting overarching naming convention as with "Germanic". But this ethnic division inside the german people of the past and present isnt my forté so im glad to learn or see a new angle. :) also on why Henry was exiled: I think Barbarossa was forced into punishing him. Sure Henry made it easy to hate him but Barbarossa if sufficiently powerful could have easily been more lenient on him if it hadnt been for the strain of italian and papal defiance or for the pressure of the saxon clerics and aristocracy. In the end this is one of the reasons why the HRE became so fragmented. that and the voting on "the office" of emperor.

[@notnaanton630]

It's always a funny part of history as a hanoverian myself :'D Victory against the mighty Prussians...

[@murda9324]

Bismarck was really a fox...or a snake (it depends on which side you stand. La dépêche d'Ems amongst others tricks and traps). It is really because of him that German Empire will rise.

[@zulfihuzaimi]

I make videos like you, but in Indonesian. thank you for inspiring ☺️

[@reallionking7825]

was hanover under british monarcy? , why britain didnt defend hanover

[@c.t.1755]

You are right, hanover and great britain were ruled in personal union. This ended however with the death of William IV and the ascenion of Queen Victoria. As Hanover still held on to salic law she was inelligible to ascend the hanovarian throne and her uncle Ernst August became King. Georg V. depicted in this video was the son of Ernst August. So at this point Hanover wasnt part of the british empire (so roughly 29 years had passed at that point). Also from what i could gather, although hanovarian Royalty became more british the hanovarians stayed hanovarian. British politics were more liberal generally and hanovers more conservative. There was no high identification with britain in hanover i believe. I also believe the feeling was mutiual for the british. (So everyone was glad to get rid of eachother.) Though i do wonder how it would have all gone if hanover had stayed with the british. I hope this was helpful.

[@reallionking7825]

@@c.t.1755 thanks

[@beepboop204]

😃😃😀😃😃😀

[@grahamward3504]

Not a generous peace treaty at all !

[@NR-rv8rz]

Excuse my ignorance but you often refer to the German state/ German diet in this video, but there is no Germany yet. Doe it mean all the German states formed some kind of loose cooperation union while still being independent states/countries?

[@blecao]

After the napoleonic wars due to the disolution of the Holy Roman empire (technically in place before 1805) the german states created the german confederation

[@AtlanisKarne]

Heil dir Hannover heil, Freude wird dir zu teil....the defeat in Langensalza was th reason Prussia annexed the liberal kingdom of hannover😢

[@nightrunner3701]

A comb mint four duh all gore I thumb.

[@Raphael-pt7rx]

gg

[@Platanis2008]

The Prussian casualties at 1800 were "staggering", while the Hanoverian casualties at 1430 were not...😂 I don't get it with these Prussian-Austrian "battles", tens of thousand fighting for hours and the casualties are extremely low...

[@Dorkeus82]

The Prussian force present here was only 9000 strong, so 1800 is 20% (half of them PoW, though), and enough to rest of force to disperse in disorder... few such battles and army is no more; 4 years later 20 times more numerous Prussian/German force will confront French near Gravelotte/St. Privat to achieve strategic victory, being considered as 'phyrric' and definitely unnecesarily costly when losing "only" around 10% - same as "losing" Frenchmen (I hope will have these events covered on that great channel, soon), and 3 years before at Gettysburg loosing side lost c.a. 1/3 in 3-day battle, so these are relatively high losses for such secondary engagement

[@Platanis2008]

@@Dorkeus82 One should expect more casualties, since the Prussians were on the offence even though they were outnumbered 2:1. Also, I've watched battles of the Silesian Wars and casualties are low there, too. In the middle, we have Napoleonic battles with proper casualties...

[@ryanjuguilon213]

​@@Platanis2008because the musket were innaccurate as hell. These are not modern firearms that are so accurate. Also, human beings are like rats. Very hard to kill

[@Platanis2008]

@@ryanjuguilon213Muskets were used in other battles also, in which casualties were high, so not very hard to kill...

[@ryanjuguilon213]

​@@Platanis2008unlikely. You would rarely have casualties of more than 20%. That is very bloody! Most casualties at this era were from diseases and desertion

[@eardwulf785]

Now I understand why there was bad blood in WW1 between units of Saxons and Prussians

[@christophsimon-cq9qb]

The bad blood between them dates back much longer. The war 1756-1763 destroyed a lot in Saxony. Nonetheless the 12th Corps (Saxony) fought valiantly in the German-French War of 1870/71

[@eardwulf785]

@@christophsimon-cq9qb I wonder if Saxon v Anglo Saxon at football in no mans land at Xmas during the Great War holds any truth? And was it the Prussians who brought an end to the truce by opening fire?

[@christophsimon-cq9qb]

@@eardwulf785 Honestly I do not know. I never came across any literature giving details about the incident

[@ryanjuguilon213]

The Saxons are not true Saxons anyway. They are not decended from low saxon speaking people. They just usurped the title Saxony from modern lower saxony

[@ElBandito]

Austrians were idiots to think that they could ever have a chance to hold onto Holstein. They should have made a pact to give both Holstein and Schleswig to Prussia in exchange for some territory around Silesia, or somewhere close, as a condition for fighting against the Danes. Instead they made such an offer after the war.

[@timfirth977]

Bismark would've just laughed in their faces! And he would've to, he was a bastard like that. Give up the Silesia coal fields during Germany's industrial revolution? What? How long do you think his government would've lasted if he had conceded that? His approach was Blood and Iron , give the Austrians a kick in the head for Prussian dominance and industrial expansion.

[@ElBandito]

@@timfirth977 If Bismark refused, then Prussia possibly would not have been able to have enough support to finish the Second Schleswig War just by itself. Contrary to what people think, Austria's contribution was just as vital as that of Prussia, in that war. And not just militarily, but politically, as well.

[@ryanjuguilon213]

​@@ElBanditoaustrian army was not needed against Denmark, only politically and diplomatically. Besides, it was the German confederation who declared war on Denmark, how would that affect Austria's bid to german leadership if it refuse to defend a geman conferderstion member in Holstein?

[@thanhhoangnguyen4754]

​@@ElBanditoTrust me if Bismarck refuses they still able have enough influence and might to finish the war with the Danes. What you think the Danes gonna last long against Prussia military might. Whether Austria political movement in that war have to offer if their might is not projected. It be meaningless. Beside pretty from the beginning Bismarck intention was to take all and remove Austria influence. Bismarck was intentional was too clear and will not allowed any compromise.

[@thanhhoangnguyen4754]

​​​@@ElBandito sorry to break it to you my friend i respected and admired his strength and cunning enough to know that his assurance to keep his deal of the pact is very untrustworthy. Especially if it come to his plan and vision for a Germany rule by Prussia. That his strength he maneuver everyone in Europe. Everyone from French, Russia, Italy to Austria. That have to be the most iron boldness politican in the 19th Germany.

[@ZoSoPage1977]

Hard to listen to with your dominant 's' annunciation.

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

Bismarck's manoeuvres makes German aggression all the more an appropriate cause for both wars.

[@marctempler3250]

The childish unfunny little placards that spring up from time to time undermines the seriousness of the topic. Not everything is a joke and war is certainly not one of them.

[@Thomas_Name]

7:14 "Most of the northern German states..." I've always heard this, but when you really look at it, it was Prussia and two hangers-on against practically the entire german-speaking world.