NORDLINGEN, BATTLE OF

(Sept. 56, 1634), battle fought near Nrdlingen in southern Germany in the Thirty Years' War. Ending in a decisive victory for the forces of the Holy Roman Empire and Spain over the Swedes, it led to the dissolution of the Heilbronn alliance (1633), ended Swedish domination in southern Germany, and forced Cardinal de Richelieu to bring France into active participation in the war. Led by Matthias Gallas, the combined imperial and Spanish forces fought the Swedish army, which, under the dual command of Gustav Karlsson Horn and Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar, was weakened by the absence of large contingents that had been sent to fight the Poles. Although the Swedes gained an advantage on the first day of the battle, they could not overcome the incompatibility of their two leaders; Horn was captured, and the Swedish army was completely routed.