"Die Erstürmung von Frankfurt durch die Hessen am 2. Dezember 1792" by Maximilian Joseph Carl von Ditfurth is a 19th-century historical account (published 1842) describing the Hessian military operation against Frankfurt during the early phase of the French Revolutionary Wars.
The work focuses on the military action of 2 December 1792, when forces from the Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel participated in the seizure or occupation of Frankfurt in the context of coalition operations against Revolutionary France. Ditfurth reconstructs the event in a narrative military style, emphasizing troop movements, command decisions, and the sequence of the assault.
A central element of the book is its operational description of the Hessian troops involved, likely including infantry formations and supporting units engaged in urban or semi-urban combat conditions. The account typically highlights discipline, coordination, and the tactical execution of the operation, reflecting the author’s broader interest in Hessian military history.
Written several decades after the event, the work is shaped by 19th-century historiographical methods, combining archival knowledge, regimental tradition, and narrative reconstruction. It reflects both historical documentation and a commemorative perspective on Hessian military actions during the Revolutionary Wars.
The book also situates the Frankfurt operation within the broader coalition campaigns of 1792, when German states and their allies were responding to the expansion of revolutionary France. This contextual framing helps explain the strategic importance of Frankfurt as a contested urban center in the Rhineland theater.
