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Interesting pair of battle maps, showing the Siege of Prague in 1742.
The Siege of Prague was an extended blockade of Prague by the Austrian Army, during the War of the Austrian Succession. Under the command of de Broglie, the French forces in control of Prague were surrounded by a large Austrian army in June 1742. A French relief column forced the Austrians to partially lift the siege in September, which allowed de Broglie to escape, leaving the French occupying force under the command of Belle-Isle.
When the Austrians renewed the siege, conditions in the city became quite difficult, but the Austrians failed to maintain a tight cordon around the city. On December 16, 1742, Belle-Isle led 14,000 troops out of the city on a ten-day march to the French-held city of Cheb. Belle-Isle's forces reached the Bohemian Forest 4 days later.
When the Austrian command learned of the French departure on December 18, 1742, they mistakenly believed their force controlled the escape routes escape, but Belle-Isle was able to lead his army off the road and into the mountains and on to Cheb, reaching the city of December 26, 1742.
Homann Heirs was a German publishing firm that enjoyed a major place in the European map market throughout the eighteenth century. Founded in 1702 by Johann Baptist Homann, the business passed to his son, Christoph, upon Johann’s death in 1724. Christoph died in 1730, aged only 27, and the firm was inherited by subsequent Homann heirs. This altered the name of the company, which was known as Homann Erben, or Homann heirs. The firm continued in business until 1848.
