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{{Short description|1618 battle of the Thirty Years' War}}
{{For|the 15th century siege of Pilsen|Siege of Pilsen (1433–34)}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Siege of Pilsen
| partof            = the [[Bohemian Revolt]] ([[Thirty Years' War]])
| image             = File:Siege of Pilsen, Start of the Thirty Years War.jpg
| image_size        = 300px
| caption           = Bohemian troops storming Pilsen
| date              = 19 September – 21 November 1618<br>({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=09|day1=19|year1=1618|month2=11|day2=21|year2=1618}})
| place             = [[Plzeň|Pilsen]], [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]]
| result            = Protestant victory
| combatant1        = {{Flagicon|Kingdom of Bohemia}} [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Protestant Bohemians]]<br>{{Flagicon image|Flag of The Electoral Palatinate (1604).svg}} [[Electoral Palatinate]]
| combatant2        = {{Flagicon|Kingdom of Bohemia}} [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemian royalists]]
| commander1        = {{Flagicon|Kingdom of Bohemia}} '''[[Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld|Ernst von Mansfeld]]'''
| commander2        = {{Flagicon|Kingdom of Bohemia}} '''[[Felix Dornheim]]'''
| strength1         = 20,000
| strength2         = 4,000 Burghers<br>158 cavalry
| casualties1       = 1,100
| casualties2       = 2,500|
}}
{{Campaignbox Bohemian Revolt}}

The '''siege of Pilsen''' (or '''Plzeň''') or '''Battle of Pilsen''' was a [[siege]] of the fortified city of [[Plzeň|Pilsen]] ({{langx|cs|Plzeň}}) in [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]] carried out by the forces of the Bohemian [[Protestant]]s led by [[Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld|Ernst von Mansfeld]]. It was the first major battle of the [[Thirty Years' War]]. The Protestant victory and subsequent capture of the city enlarged the [[Bohemian Revolt]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Grant |first1=R. G. |title=1001 battles that changed the course of history |date=2017 |publisher=Book Sales |isbn=978-0785835530 |page=317}}</ref>

== Eve of the battle ==
[[Image:Kurfürst Friedrich V. von der Pfalz als König von Böhmen.jpg|thumb|upright=0.6|left|[[Frederick V, Elector Palatine|Frederick V of Bohemia]], painting from 1634.]]
{{Campaignbox Thirty Years' War}}
On 23 May 1618 the Protestant [[nobility|nobles]] overthrew the rule of [[Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor|King Ferdinand II]] and threw the [[Roman Catholic]] governors of Bohemia from their office at Prague Castle in the [[Defenestrations of Prague|Defenestration]] of [[Prague]]. The new government formed of Protestant nobility and gentry gave [[Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld|Ernst von Mansfeld]] the command over all of its forces.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Gardiner |first1=Samuel Rawson |title=The Thirty Years' War, 1618-1648 |date=1874 |publisher=Scribner, Armstrong |page=33}}</ref> Meanwhile, Catholic nobles and priests started fleeing the country. Some of the monasteries as well as unfortified manors were evacuated and the Catholic refugees headed for the city of Pilsen, where they thought that a successful defence could be organised. The city was well-prepared for a lengthy siege, but the defences were undermanned and the defenders lacked enough [[gunpowder]] for their artillery. Mansfeld decided to capture the city before the Catholics were able to gain support from the outside.

== Siege ==

On 19 September 1618 Mansfeld's army reached the outskirts of the city. The defenders blocked two city gates and the third one was reinforced with additional guards. The Protestant army was too weak to start an all-out assault on the castle, so Mansfeld decided to take the city by hunger. On 2 October the Protestant artillery arrived, but the calibre and number of the cannons was small and the bombardment of the [[city walls]] brought little effect. The siege continued, with the Protestants receiving new supplies and recruits on a daily basis, while the defenders lacked food and munitions. Also, the main city well was destroyed and the stores of [[potable water]] soon depleted.

Finally, on 21 November, cracks were made in the walls and the Protestant soldiers poured into the city. After several hours of close hand-to-hand combat, all of the town was in Mansfeld's hands.

== Aftermath ==

After capturing the city, Mansfeld demanded 120,000 golden [[Goldgulden|guldens]] as [[war reparations]] and an additional 47,000 [[Florin (Italian coin)|florin]]s for sparing the city and not burning it to the ground. [Between the previous and next sentence, two years passed.] However, soon the [[Holy Roman Empire]], led by [[Bavaria]], gathered enough forces and crossed the border with Bohemia, heading towards Pilsen and [[Prague]].

The newly elected Bohemian king, [[Frederick V, Elector Palatine|Frederick V]] of the [[Rhine Palatinate|Palatinate]] was aware of the huge superiority of his enemies' forces and ordered his own army to regroup and attack each of the advancing armies separately. However, he was abandoned by most of his allies and his armies dispersed in the dense forests between Pilsen and Prague, which resulted in a decisive defeat in the [[Battle of White Mountain]].

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* [https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-siege-of-pilsen-the-thirty-years-war.html The Siege Of Pilsen: The Thirty Years' War], worldatlas

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Pilsen 1618}}
[[Category:1618 in the Habsburg monarchy]]
[[Category:Sieges of the Thirty Years' War]]
[[Category:Sieges involving Bohemia]]
[[Category:Bohemian Revolt]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1618]]
[[Category:Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving the Palatinate]]
[[Category:History of Plzeň]]
[[Category:17th century in Bohemia]]
[[Category:Battles of the Thirty Years' War involving Bohemia]]