page_title: Battle of Győr
section_title: Battle
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Győr / Battle
caption_attribution_description: English: Battle of Győr 28 June 1848 by Vinzenz Katzler. Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria enters in Győr leading the Austrian troops.
context_page_description: The Battle of Győr was a battle in the Summer Campaign of the Hungarian War of Independence from 1848 to 1849, fought on 28 June 1849 between the Hungarian Revolutionary Army led by General Ernő Poletenberg and General Artúr Görgei, and the army of the Austrian Empire led by Julius Jacob von Haynau, supplemented with a Russian division led by Feodor Sergeyevich Panyutyin, in and around the Hungarian city of Győr. After the Battle of Pered Haynau's army, joined by the Habsburg emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria, crossed the Danube to the southern bank of the river, without being noticed by the Hungarian troops, and attacked the Hungarian units displaced around Győr, placed to Árpás, Marcaltő and Ihász, cutting György Kmety's division from the main troops and forcing them to retreat towards Southern Hungary. The imperials, now were more than five times numerous than the Hungarian troops when they started the attack against Győr.
context_section_description: On 28 June at mourning the battle started among the units led by Lieutenant Colonel Hümér Kupa and the Austrian III. corps. Other enemy troops crossed the Rába river at Babót marching towards Ménfő, which forced the division led by Lieutenant Colonel Ferenc Liptay to retreat, in continuous fighting, to the positions between Ménfő and Csanak, in order not to be cut from the Hungarian troops which defended Győr. Poeltenberg sent Liptay and important cavalry units, in order to secure Kupa's division from being cut from Győr by the enemy, but with this move, he weakened his defence around the city, and because of this he had insufficient troops to secure the Győr-Kismegyer-Nagymegyer-Nagybaráti line, which could have been a very good defensive position. Győr and its fortifications were too large for Poeltenberg's troops, this is why he decided to slowly retreat them. First he gave away the first defensive line which lied to West from Győr, and to retreat in the smaller second line. Then at 9 o'clock he charged Lieutenant Colonel Sándor Kossuth with the defence of the city, and then he rushed towards Ménfő. Kossuth had to dispose with his infantry division, the smaller part of the cavalry division, the reserve and the reinforcements sent by General György Klapka.
  On the enemy side, the IV (or reserve) corps led by Lieutenant-general Ludwig von Wohlgemuth tried unsuccessfully to cross the Rába by Rábapatona. Then Haynau ordered him to attack Győr at its Vienna-suburb, bordered by the Rába and the Rábca rivers. In the same time the I. corps led by Franz Schlik attacked, between the Little Danube and the Rábca rivers, through Abda against Győrsziget (Győr island). The first Hungarian defensive position was at the bridge from Abda, from where, after a short fight, the Hungarians retreated, knowing that Wohlgemuth's troops could attack them from the rear after they occupied the Vienna-suburb. The Austrian I. and the IV. corps followed the retreating Hungarian troops from Abda.
  Görgei departed from Tata at 28 June early in the morning, first to Gőnyű, to observe the crossing from there, then he continued his way towards Győr. At Szentjánospuszta he met with the II. corps which was marching towards Győr, and ordered to József Kászonyi to go towards Koroncó. When Görgei arrived to Győr, he learned that the battle was already going strong, Poeltenberg already gave up the first defensive line West of the city, and that the main fights were around Ménfő. Görgei went over there, and in the way he met Poeltenberg, and ordered him to turn back in the city, while he continued his way towards Ménfő, to take over the command of the troops from there. He knew that his troops could only keep Győr, if they can withstand to the enemy until the next day, when he expected the II. corps to arrive, and the key of holding Győr until then was to hold Ménfő at all costs. But even before he arrived there, he received Liptay's report that he cannot keep his position, and he is forced to retreat to Szabadhegy.
  In the meanwhile, at 1 o'clock in the afternoon, the imperials started their attack against the city of Győr. Görgei knew that if Poeltenberg would try to hold on for a too long time, his troops could be encircled, so he ordered to the corps commander to retreat from Győr, and to retreat to the Galamb-tavern. At the same time he ordered to Liptay to retreat from Szabadhegy to Hecsepuszta.
  After they occupied the bridge from Abda, the Bianchi-brigade of the imperial troops advanced towards Győrsziget, while the Sartori-brigade against the Vienna suburb. Right to them the Benedek-brigade was advancing. Franz Schlik took over the leadership of the troops which attacked the Vienna-suburb, concentrating 42 cannons in this region, and ordered them to shoot the Hungarian positions for two hours. The Hungarians lost 4 carriages with ammunition, but resisted the attacks.
  In the region between the Rábca and the Little Danube Haynau's troops were more successful. The Bianchi-brigade led in person by Prince Franz de Paula of Liechtenstein entered in the Sziget-s
caption: Battle of Győr 28 June 1848 by Vinzenz Katzler. Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria enters in Győr leading the Austrian troops.
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