Atlas of Battles

battle, landmark, Revolutionary and Napoleonic

Battle of Leipzig

Battle of Leipzig was a battle fought on 16 October 1813 at Leipzig, in what is now Germany; it lasted 3 days. It was part of the War of the Sixth Coalition, which ran from 1813 to 1814. The recorded result: Coalition victory.

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Historic map of the battle of the nations by Leipzig (18.10.1813)
Historic map of the battle of the nations by Leipzig (18.10.1813). Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought16 October 1813lasted 3 days
WhereLeipzig, Germany51.312N, 12.413E
OutcomeCoalition victory
Part ofWar of the Sixth CoalitionGerman campaign of 1813

Where it sits in the War of the Sixth Coalition

German campaign of 1813, 1813Siege of Danzig, 1813Battle of Arnhem, 1813Siege of Erfurt, 1813Battle of Berlin (1813), 1813Battle of Möckern, 1813Battle of Lützen, 1813Battle of Halle, 1813Battle of Bautzen, 1813Battle of Reichenbach, 1813Battle of Haynau, 1813Battle of Halberstadt, 1813Battle of Luckau, 1813Italian campaign, 1813Battle of Großbeeren, 1813Battle of Dresden, 1813Battle of Katzbach, 1813Battle of Kulm, 1813Battle of Dennewitz, 1813Battle of Feistritz, 1813Siege of Magdeburg, 1813Battle of the Göhrde, 1813Göhrdeschlacht, 1813Battle of Altenburg, 1813Raid at Altenburg, 1813Battle of Wartenburg, 1813Battle of Leipzig, 1813Battle of Hanau, 1813Siege of Venice, 1813Siege of Deventer, 1813Siege of Delfzijl, 1813Battle of Caldiero, 1813Siege of Mainz, 1813Battle of Boden, 1813Battle of Bornhöved, 1813Battle of Sehested, 1813Siege of Breda, 1813Battle of Mâcon, 1814Siege of Juliers, 1814Siege of Metz, 1814Battle of Hoogstraten, 1814Battle of Épinal, 1814First Battle of Bar-sur-Aube, 1814Battle of Saint-Dizier (January 1814), 1814Battle of Brienne, 1814Battle of La Rothière, 1814Battle of Lesmont, 1814Battle of the Mincio River, 1814Battle of Champaubert, 1814Battle of Montmirail, 1814Battle of Château-Thierry, 1814Battle of Vauchamps, 1814Battle of Mormans, 1814Battle of Montereau, 1814Battle of Bar-sur-Aube, 1814Battle of Gué-à-Tresmes, 18141814 campaign in France, 1814Battle of Saint-Julien, 1814Siege of Soissons, 1814Battle of Craonne, 1814Battle of Laon, 1814Battle of Reims, 1814Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube, 1814Battle of Limonest, 1814Battle of Fère-Champenoise, 1814Capture of La Spezia, 1814Battle of Lerici, 1814Battle of Saint-Dizier, 1814Siege of the Santa Maria Fortress, 1814Battle of Paris, 1814Battle of Courtrai, 1814Siege of Genoa, 1814Battle of Taro, 181418131814Battle of Leipzig, 1813
73 placed engagements of the War of the Sixth Coalition in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date16 October 1813
to 19 October 1813
PlaceLeipzig, Germany
51.312N, 12.413E
KindBattle, Revolutionary and Napoleonic
Territorial changeDissolution of the Rhine Confederation; France loses complete control of all territories east of the Rhine
Battle of LeipzigBattle of LeipzigBombing of Leipzig in World War IIBattle of BreitenfeldBattle of BreitenfeldBattle of LützenBattle of LützenBattle of BreitenfeldBattle of LützenBattle of LützenBerlinDresdenMagdeburgCottbusJenaHofChemnitzBraunschweig100 km51.312N, 12.413E
The recorded site, with the nearest other engagements in the atlas. Present-day coastlines, rivers and borders; towns from Natural Earth.

The ground today

Relief of the ground around the site of Battle of Leipzig
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 10 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Leipzig today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2023-09-10. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2023.

The recorded site stands at about 158 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 82 to 175 m, 94 m of relief, gently rolling country and today it is 44% tree cover, 38% built-up, 12% grassland.

tree cover: 44%built-up: 38%grassland: 12%cropland: 6%tree cover 44%built-up 38%grassland 12%cropland 6%
west to east, 10.0 km98 to 155 mnorth to south, 10.0 km112 to 160 m
Elevation from the Copernicus DEM GLO-30 (ESA, Airbus); land cover from ESA WorldCover 2021 (CC BY 4.0), within about 5 km of the recorded site. Computed, not recorded.

Nearest engagements

Contested ground: this site was fought over 3 times between 1642 and 1943.

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1813

Combat data (CDB90)

Attacker: ALLIED (AUS, RUSS, PR, SW) ARMYDefender: FR ARMY
Strength365,000196,200
Casualties65,000 (17.8%)60,000 (30.6%)
Mission accomplishment, 1 to 1075
Outcomeattacker won
Duration4.1 days
Front width13.6 km20.8 km
Attacker advanced12 km

From the US Army Concepts Analysis Agency Database of Battles (CDB90, battle 138), public domain, in the CC0 tidy edition by Jeffrey B. Arnold. Figures are the database's estimates, compiled in 1990 from published histories, and may differ from the Wikipedia infobox above.

Battle of Leipzig is one of 3,694 engagements of the 19th century in the atlas and one of 668 in present-day Germany.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q151005, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Leipzig, revision 1384379305, read 2026-11-14, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0; the article's text is not reproduced here. Present-day country and state from Natural Earth. Dates before 1582 follow the Julian calendar as recorded.