La Bataille de Berlin 1813

Trachenberg Plan, Ensnaring Napoleon, Had Roots At Small Silesian Town

Nowadays, it is not unusual for diplomatic groups to meet frequently—often annually— to get together and discuss subjects of mutual concern and to set the groundwork for working in concert over the forseeable future. Headlines proclaiming “NATO Leaders To Plan For War At Toney Spanish Beach Resorts” or “Axis Of Evil Gather At Morder’s Mount Doom For Annual Mischief Planning” are not unusual, in fact, they are rather commonplace. This type of meeting was frequent enough during World War II at such places as Tehran and Yalta. However, these diplomatic gatherings that are now commonplace were rare or non- existent until the crucial and critical Sixth Coalition meeting at Trachenberg July 9 through July 12, 1813. Trachenberg was a small Silesian town just north of Breslau in what was then Prussia. Today it is called Zmigrod and is part of the Wroclaw (Breslau) metropolitan area. Whether in German or Polish, its name means Dragon’s Castle, and there was a palace there where the conference was held. Called the Hatzfeld Palace, that

Ruins of Hatzfeld Palace Where Trachenberg Conference Was Held in 1813

palace survived until the very end of World War II, when it was destroyed in a battle between Soviet troops and the German garrison. Shortly afterwards, the German

Marshal Enterprises

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