Atlas of Battles

battle, major, early modern

Battle of Rocroi

Battle of Rocroi was a battle fought on 19 May 1643 at Rocroi, in what is now France. It was part of the Franco-Spanish War, which ran from 1635 to 1659. The recorded result: French victory. Recorded strength: 23,000; 16,000 infantry; 7,000 cavalry; 12 guns against 23,000–26,000; 15,000–19,000 infantry; 8,000 cavalry; 18 guns.

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Peinture du peintre Sauveur Le Conte, représentant la victoire du Grand Condé lors de la bataille de Rocroi en 1643.
Peinture du peintre Sauveur Le Conte, représentant la victoire du Grand Condé lors de la bataille de Rocroi en 1643.. Sauveur Lecomte, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Fought19 May 1643
WhereRocroi, France49.919N, 4.528E
OutcomeFrench victory
BelligerentsKingdom of FranceagainstSpanish Empire
Casualties and losses4,000and7,300–15,000 dead, wounded or captured; 18 guns
Part ofFranco-Spanish War1635 to 1659

Where it sits in the Franco-Spanish War

Siege of Hirson, 1636Siege of Le Catelet, 1636Siege of La Capelle, 1636Crossing of the Somme, 1636First siege of Corbie, 1636Siege of Leucate, 1637Battle of Mombaldone, 1637Siege of Breme, 1638Siege of Fuenterrabía, 1638Battle of Getaria, 1638Battle of Vado, 1638Battle of Santoña Bay, 1639Battle of Cádiz, 1640Sieges of Aire-sur-la-Lys, 1641Battle of La Marfée, 1641Battle of Honnecourt, 1642Battle of Barcelona, 1642Battle of Rocroi, 1643Siege of Thionville, 1643Siege of Cartagena, 1643Battle of Cartagena, 1643Siege of Roses, 1645Battle of Orbetello, 1646Battle of Charenton, 1649Action of 23 November 1650, 1650Bataille de Rethel-Beaulieu, 1650Capture of the galleon Lion Couronné, 1651Siege of Conhac, 1651Siege of Étampes, 1652Battle of the Faubourg St Antoine, 1652Siege of Mouzon, 1653Battle of Bordeaux, 1653Battle of Bordils, 1653Capture of Fort Rocher, 1654Battle of Arras, 1654Siege of Pavia, 1655Battle of Valenciennes, 1656Siege of Alessandria (1657), 1657Siege of Dunkirk, 1658Siege of Bergues, 165816361658Battle of Rocroi, 1643
40 placed engagements of the Franco-Spanish War in time order; taller ticks are more widely documented. Each tick is a link.

Record

Date19 May 1643
PlaceRocroi, France
49.919N, 4.528E
KindBattle, early modern
Strength23,000; 16,000 infantry; 7,000 cavalry; 12 guns23,000–26,000; 15,000–19,000 infantry; 8,000 cavalry; 18 guns
Casualties and losses4,0007,300–15,000 dead, wounded or captured; 18 guns
Commanders
  • Francisco de Melo
  • Francisco Fernández de la Cueva, 8th Duke of Alburquerque
  • Paul-Bernard de Fontaines
  • Ernst Graf von Isenburg
Battle of RocroiBattle of RocroiSiege of MézièresSiege of GivetBattle of La HorgneBattle of WalcourtBattle of La MarféeSiege of MézièresSiege of GivetBattle of La HorgneBattle of WalcourtBattle of La MarféeBrusselsLilleCologneSaarbrückenMetzCharleroiReimsAmiens100 km49.919N, 4.528E
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 Rocroi
Relief within about 10.0 km of the site, contours every 25 m. Copernicus DEM GLO-30, ESA.
Satellite view of the site of Battle of Rocroi today
The same ground from Sentinel-2 on 2023-09-07. Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2023.

The recorded site stands at about 381 m; within 10.0 km the ground runs from 170 to 403 m, 233 m of relief, hilly country and today it is 53% grassland, 43% tree cover, 3% built-up.

grassland: 53%tree cover: 43%built-up: 3%grassland 53%tree cover 43%built-up 3%
west to east, 10.0 km191 to 388 mnorth to south, 10.0 km304 to 393 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 1643

Combat data (CDB90)

Attacker: FR ARMYDefender: SP NETHERLANDS ARMY
Strength23,00026,000
Casualties4,000 (17.4%)14,000 (53.8%)
Mission accomplishment, 1 to 1083
Outcomeattacker won
Duration1 day
Front width2.4 km1.8 km
Attacker advanced1 km

From the US Army Concepts Analysis Agency Database of Battles (CDB90, battle 13), 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 Rocroi is one of 1,553 engagements of the 17th century in the atlas and one of 1,495 in present-day France.

Sources

Identity, coordinates, dates and the war from Wikidata Q728480, released under CC0. Result, belligerents, commanders, strength and casualties from the infobox of the English Wikipedia article Battle of Rocroi, revision 1384692878, 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.