Atlas of Battles

battle, major, medieval

Battle of Morgarten

Battle of Morgarten was a battle fought on 15 November 1315 at Oberägeri, in what is now Switzerland. It was part of the War between Switzerland and the House of Habsburg, which ran from 1291 to 1499. The recorded result: Swiss victory. Recorded strength: ~1,000 (Schwyz) against ~2,000–3,000.

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The Battle of Morgarten on 15 November 1315 (with a depiction of the court jester Kuony von Stocken).
The Battle of Morgarten on 15 November 1315 (with a depiction of the court jester Kuony von Stocken).. Bendicht Tschachtlan., Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought15 November 1315
WhereOberägeri, Switzerland47.090N, 8.633E
OutcomeSwiss victory
BelligerentsForest Cantons (Swiss Confederacy): Schwyz; Uri; UnterwaldenagainstDuchy of Austria
Casualties and lossesMinimalandHundreds
Part ofWar between Switzerland and the House of Habsburg1291 to 1499

Where it sits in the War between Switzerland and the House of Habsburg

Battle of Saint George, 1292Battle of Dornbühl, 1298Battle of Morgarten, 1315Battle of Laupen, 1339Battle of Sempach, 138612921386Battle of Morgarten, 1315
5 placed engagements of the War between Switzerland and the House of Habsburg in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date15 November 1315
PlaceOberägeri, Switzerland
47.090N, 8.633E
KindBattle, medieval
Strength~1,000 (Schwyz)~2,000–3,000
Casualties and lossesMinimalHundreds
Commanders
  • Werner Stauffacher
  • Leopold I, Duke of Austria
Battle of MorgartenBattle of MorgartenBattle of SchwyzBattle of GubelBattle of KappelSiege of RapperswilSiege of GrüningenBattle of SchwyzBattle of KappelSiege of GrüningenBernBaselLausanneFreiburgLuzernMulhouseLuganoChur100 km47.090N, 8.633E
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 Morgarten
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 50 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Morgarten today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2025-08-08. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2025.

The recorded site stands at about 764 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 446 to 1,574 m, 1,128 m of relief, mountainous country and today it is 46% tree cover, 46% grassland, 5% water.

tree cover: 46%grassland: 46%water: 5%built-up: 2%tree cover 46%grassland 46%water 5%built-up 2%
west to east, 10.0 km759 to 1,507 mnorth to south, 10.0 km638 to 961 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

In the same war

Elsewhere in 1315

Battle of Morgarten is one of 600 engagements of the 14th century in the atlas and one of 73 in present-day Switzerland.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q326989, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Morgarten, revision 1370450499, 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.