First Battle of Breitenfeld

Timeline

1. 1631the Leipzig area of Saxony · SaxonyAfter the catastrophe at Magdeburg, Saxon elector John George I was forced to ally with Gustavus Adolphus. Their combined force of about forty thousand faced Tilly's imperial army of some thirty-five thousand on the plain of Breitenfeld, completing their pre-battle deployments.
2. 1631the battlefield of Breitenfeld · SaxonyOne Saxon wing was overrun by imperial cavalry, but Gustavus Adolphus quickly adjusted his formation, using linear tactics and mobile artillery to suppress the enemy lines. Caught in confusion and attacked on both sides by Swedish infantry and cavalry, the imperial formation gradually collapsed, and Tilly himself was wounded.
3. 1631Breitenfeld and its surroundings · SaxonyThe imperial army retreated in full rout, with about fifteen thousand killed or captured and all its artillery lost. The Swedish-Saxon allied casualties numbered about four thousand. The battle was later hailed as the finest proof of Gustavus Adolphus's military genius and established Sweden's decisive role in the Thirty Years' War.