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The battle was Frederick's first defeat in this war. This disaster forced him to abandon his intended march on Vienna

Wien

Wien is the German language name for Vienna, the city and federal state in Austria.* Wien , in Vienna, Austria* Theater an der Wien, a theater in Vienna located at the former river WienWien may also refer to:...

, raise his siege of Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, and fall back on Litoměřice

Litomerice

Litoměřice is a town at the junction of the rivers Elbe and Ohře in the north part of the Czech Republic, approximately 64 km northwest of Prague....

. The Austrians, reinforced by the 48,000 troops in Prague, followed them, 100,000 strong, and, falling on Prince August Wilhelm of Prussia, who was retreating eccentrically (for commissariat reasons) at Zittau

Zittau

Zittau is a city in the south east of the Free State of Saxony, Germany, close to the border tripoint of Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic. , there are 28,638 people in the city. It is part of the Görlitz district....

, inflicted a severe check upon him.
The king was compelled to abandon Bohemia.

Frederick blamed his defeat on his generals, such as Prince Moritz von Anhalt-Dessau

Moritz of Anhalt-Dessau

Maurice of Anhalt-Dessau , was a German prince of the House of Ascania from the Anhalt-Dessau branch...

, but the greatest blame must be laid in Frederick himself. He opted for an assault against a numerically superior opponent and chose a risky strategy. In other battles Fredrick won with the same flanking strategy, but the Austrian army under Daun not only withstood the Prussian assaults but also selected the correct moment for a careful counter-attack.