September 25–26, 1799 · Switzerland Theater
September 25–26, 1799
In the most dramatic battle of the Second Coalition's Swiss campaign, General Masséna faced two separate allied armies — Korsakov's Russians near Zurich and Suvorov's Russians approaching through the Alps — that threatened to combine and overwhelm French forces. Masséna struck first: he crossed the Limmat River above Zurich in a pre-dawn assault, trapped Korsakov's force in the city, and destroyed it before Suvorov could arrive. Korsakov lost 8,000 men and 100 guns. Suvorov arrived days later to find Switzerland lost, fought his way out through the Alpine passes in appalling conditions, and withdrew Russia from the war. Tsar Paul I, furious with Austrian incompetence, withdrew Russia from the coalition.
Commanders