1756 - Prussian invasion of Saxony – Saxon OOB

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Description

In September 1756, the Saxon Army was entrenched in a very strong position at Pirna.

Commander-in-chief: Count Rutowsky

Summary: 24 infantry bns, 7 grenadier bns, 28 cuirassier sqns, 4 light dragoon sqns, 97 artillery pieces, 50 pontoons, for a total of some 20,000 men (excluding generals, adjutants and noncombattants).

Grenadiers	Infantry	Cavalry under the Chevalier de Saxe
Right Wing Grenadiers 1st Grenadier Brigade under von Crousaz 7th Kurprinzessin (539 men in 1 bn) 1st Bennigsen (2 coys Garde & 2 coys Graf Brühl) 2nd Kavannagh (2 coys Prinz Friedrich August & 2 coys Lubomirsky) 3rd Pforte (2 coys Prinz Xaver & 2 coys Gotha)	Right Wing Infantry under von Rochow assisted by von Minckwitz 1st Infantry Brigade under von Stolberg Leibgrenadiergarde (2 bns) Königin (2 bns) Prinz Maximilian (2 bns) 3rd Infantry Brigade under von Bolderitz Prinz Clemenz (2 bns) Fürst Lubomirsky (2 bns) Minckwitz (2 bns)	Right Wing of Cavalry under Fürst von Arnim assisted by von Vitzthum 1st Cavalry Brigade under von Rechenberg Gardedukorps (649 men in 4 sqns) Graf Rutowsky Light Dragoons (514 men in 4 sqns) 2nd Cavalry Brigade under von Weissenstein Königlicher Prinz Cuirassiers (4 sqns) Fürst von Anhalt-Dessau Cuirassiers (4 sqns)
Left Wing Grenadiers 2nd Grenadier Brigade under von Dieden 4th Götze (2 coys Prinz Maximilian & 2 coys Minckwitz) 5th Milkau (2 coys Königin & 2 coys Rochow) 6th Pfundheller (2 coys Prinz Clemenz & 2 coys 'flanc grenadiers' of the Leibgrenadiergarde)	Left Wing Infantry under von Hardthausen assisted by von Meagher 4th Infantry Brigade under von Minchwitz Prinz Gotha (2 bns) Rochow Fusiliers (2 bns) Graf Brühl (2 bns) 2nd Infantry Brigade under von Gerdhorf Prinz Xaver (2 bns) Prinz Friedrich August (2 bns) Garde zu Fuss (2 bns)	Left Wing of Cavalry under the Fürst von Anhalt assisted by von Plötz 4th Cavalry Brigade under von Ronnow Vitzthum Cuirassiers (4 sqns) Plötz Cuirassiers (4 sqns) 2nd Cavalry Brigade under von Vitzthum Leibregiment Cuirassiers (4 sqns) Arnim Cuirassiers (4 sqns)

Artillery park (in the middle of the second line) under von Wilster:

• Artillery (489 men in 4 coys)
• Hauss-Artillerie (119 in 1 coy)
• Miners (12 men)
• Pontoniers (8 men)
• Ingenieurkorps (55 men)
• 12 x 24-pdr guns
• 27 x 12-pdr guns
• 4 x 6-pdr guns
• 4 x 24-pdr howitzers
• 50 x 6-pdr battalion guns
• 50 tin pontoons

The Fortress of Sonnenstein was occupied by 125 men under the command of Lieutenant-General von Rochow.

The Town of Pirna was occupied by the garrison companies of Wittenberg (354 men in 4 coys), Pleissenburg (115 men in 1 coy), Waldheim (176 men in 1 coy) and Sonnenstein (125 men in 1 coy); totalling 770 men.

Lieutenant-General von Pirch commanded the garrison of the Fortress of Königstein, consisting of 195 men (mostly picked grenadiers).

Unrecorded: Cadets (155 men in 1 coy)

References

Großer Generalstab, Die Kriege Friedrichs des Großen. Dritter Teil: Der Siebenjährige Krieg 1756–1763, Vol. 5, Kriegsgeschichtliche Abteilung II, Berlin, 1901-1914

Grosser Generalstab Kriegsgeschichtliche Abteilung II: Die Kriege Friedrichs des Grossen, Part 3 Der siebenjährige Krieg 1756-1763, Vol. 1 Pirna und Lobositz, Berlin, 1901, pp. 219-220, Appendix 8 and 9