Battle of Halmstad

The Battle of Halmstad (also known as the Battle at Fyllebro) was fought at Fyllebro, approximately five kilometers south of the town Halmstad in southwest Sweden on August 17, 1676. It was the last battle in Halland between Denmark and Sweden.

Prelude

The Danish army that landed at Helsingborg in Scania in late June 1676 managed to conquer almost the whole province in less than a month. The Swedish army had to retreat north to Växjö.

In early August, General Jakob Duncan with about 4,000 Danish troops was sent north, to the province of Halland, to take Halmstad and if possible advance further north to join General Ulrik Frederick Gyldenløve, who had reached Gothenburg with a Norwegian army and was threatening to besiege the city.

On August 11, King Charles XI and his small army headed west to intercept Duncan. At noon August 17 the Swedish army had reached the only road from Scania to Halmstad and Duncan was trapped. The Swedes torched the bridge leading south and headed north.

The day before the battle, Duncan had been informed about Swedish troops heading in his direction but as he assumed that it was just a smaller unit under General Ascheberg, he made no haste when he decided to leave Halmstad and return south to Scania.

The battle

After just a few kilometres the Swedish vanguard under command of Ascheberg encountered a small Danish unit that was beaten and effectively routed back north. After a short chase Ascheberg suddenly found himself face to face with Duncan...
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