The Second Battle of Zurich was a key victory by the Republican French army in Switzerland led by André Masséna over a Russian force commanded by Alexander Korsakov near Zürich. It broke the stalemate that had resulted from the First Battle of Zurich three months earlier and led to the withdrawal of Russia from the Second Coalition. Most of the fighting took place on both banks of the river Limmat up to the gates of Zürich, and within the city itself. The same days saw a battle between Hotze's Austrians and Soult's French at the River Linth. It was arguably the most significant French victory of 1799–1800.
The Battle of Zurich, 25 September 1799, showing André Masséna on horseback, by François Bouchot
Contemporary drawing of the battle by Siméon Fort.
Memorial on Limmat river in Dietikon
André Masséna, Prince of Essling, Duke of Rivoli, was a French military commander during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was one of the original 18 Marshals of the Empire created by Napoleon I. He was nicknamed l'Enfant chéri de la Victoire. He is considered to be one of the greatest generals of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.
Portrait of Masséna made c. 1853 after an 1814 original by Antoine-Jean Gros
Masséna as a general of the French Revolutionary Army, 1796
Masséna at the Second Battle of Zurich
Masséna by Louis Hersent