Loigny–Poupry, Battle of

During the Franco-Prussian War, Prussian victory over the French 2 December 1870 at Loigny, 40 km/25 mi east of Chartres. After the Prussians besieged Paris, French military effort relied upon ‘Citizen's Armies’ raised in the provinces; in this battle the Prussians destroyed one of these Citizen's armies, the Army of the Loire.

The Army of the Loire, based on Orléans, set out toward Paris in the hope of meeting a sortie from the besieged city. A section of this army under General Antoine Chanzy attacked a Bavarian force near Loigny, taking them by surprise and driving them out of the village. Two battalions of Prussian troops were rushed up and halted the French attack, while Prussian cavalry swung round the French flank, forcing Chanzy's force to retire.

A new French division under General Paytavin arrived to threaten the Prussian left flank at the village of Poupry and a fresh battle broke out. Fighting raged for the rest of the day before the Prussians finally beat off the French, who lost about 6,500 casualties and 2,500 prisoners. The French commander, General Claude d'Aurelle de Paladines, ordered a retreat to Orléans, but the Prussian commander, Prince Frederick Charles, launched an attack on Orléans. The Army of the Loire was decimated and the survivors merged into other units.