View source for Battle of Wallhof

{{Short description|Battle of the 1626 Polish-Swedish war}}
{{Use British English|date = January 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Battle of Wallhof
| partof            = the [[Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)]]
| date              = 17 January 1626
| place             = {{ill|Valle, Latvia|de|Valle (Lettland)}} (German: Wallhof), (present-day [[Valle Parish]], [[Bauska Municipality]], [[Latvia]])
| coordinates       = {{coord|56|31|00|N|24|44|00|E|type:landmark_region:LV|display=inline,title}}
| result            = Swedish victory
| combatant1        = {{flagicon|Swedish Empire}} [[Swedish Empire]]
| combatant2        = {{flagicon|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth}} [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]
| commander1        = {{flagicon|Swedish Empire}} [[Gustavus Adolphus]]
| commander2        = {{flagicon|Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth}} [[Jan Stanisław Sapieha]]
| strength1         = 2,800 infantry,<br>2,100 cavalry,<br>6 cannons<ref>twojahistoria.pl</ref>
| strength2         = Between 2,000 and 7,000 men (infantry & cavalry)<br>5 cannons
| casualties1       = Very light, some sources claim not a single man dead or missing
| casualties2       = 1,000 killed or wounded<br>150 men captured along with 3 cannons<ref>Leszek Podhorodecki, "Rapier i koncerz", Warszawa 1985, {{ISBN|83-05-11452-X}}, pp. 142–144</ref>
}}
{{Campaignbox Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)}}

'''Battle of Wallhof''' ({{langx|lv|Valles kauja}}, also known as '''Battle of Walmojza''') was fought between Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth on 17 January 1626.

== History ==
Swedish forces consisting of 4,900 men (2,100 of them cavalry) with six guns under [[Gustavus II Adolphus]] ambushed and took by surprise a Polish-Lithuanian force of 2,000–7,000 men (sources differ) with three guns under [[Jan Stanisław Sapieha]]. Polish-Lithuanian casualties amounted to between 500 and 1,000 or between 1,000 and 2,300 killed, wounded, or captured;<ref name="ReferenceA">Wallhof i Nordisk familjebok (2:a upplagan, 1921)</ref><ref name="Podhorodecki">{{cite book|first=Leszek |last=Podhorodecki |title=Rapier i koncerz |location=Warsaw |year=1985 |isbn=83-05-11452-X}}</ref> their commander collapsed from mental illness after this defeat.<ref name="Podhorodecki"/><br>The Swedish king Gustav claimed: "not a single man is missing; everyone is where they should be" which is hard to believe, but to have suffered very small casualties is most likely true.

In the battle Gustavus Adolphus' reformed tactics, utilising close cooperation between infantry and cavalry, were tried for the first time. It was also the first time the [[Swedish cavalry]] successfully withstood the [[Polish cavalry]].

The Swedes attacked the Lithuanian camp at dawn and, since the camp was located between two woods, the Lithuanian cavalry could not outflank the Swedes. Instead, the Swedes used the woods to fire upon the Lithuanian cavalry charge.<ref name=Frost>Frost, R.I., 2000, The Northern Wars, 1558-1721, Harlow: Pearson Education Limited, {{ISBN|9780582064294}}</ref>{{rp|106}}

<gallery mode="packed" widths="" heights="250px">
file:Slaget vid Wallhof 1628 SP230.jpg|The battle depicted on a contemporary engraving with the format 290&nbsp;mm x 1070&nbsp;mm.
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* [https://runeberg.org/nfck/0270.html]
* https://twojahistoria.pl/encyklopedia/leksykon-bitew/bitwa-pod-walmojzami-16-stycznia-1626/
* "Wallhof" in ''[[Nordisk familjebok]]'' (2nd edition, 1921)
* Sundberg, Ulf: {{Lang|sv|Svenska krig 1521–1814}}, pp.&nbsp;109–112, Hjalmarson & Högberg Bokförlag, Stockholm 2002, {{ISBN|91-89660-10-2}}
* Gullberg, Tom: {{Lang|sv|Krigen kring Östersjön – Lejonet vaknar 1611–1660}}, pp.&nbsp;50–52, [[Schildts|Schildts Förlags AB]], Helsinki 2008, {{ISBN|978-951-50-1822-9}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1626 in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]
[[Category:Battles involving the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Wallhof 1626]]
[[Category:Battles involving Sweden|Wallhof 1626]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1626|Wallhof]]
[[Category:17th century in Latvia]]
[[Category:Gustavus Adolphus]]
[[Category:Military history of Latvia|Valle, Battle of]]
[[Category:Bauska Municipality]]


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