Here they learned that Henry, at the head of twelve thousand effective troops, was advancing upon Suabia through Ratisbon.

Rodolph soon heard of the atrocities of his rival, who abandoned the country to fire, sword, and rapine.

Old men and women, pale with fear, came crowding into camp with thrilling tales of the brutality of the Bohemians and their associates.

The war had begun; and Henry was devastating the region bordering on the Danube and the Rhine, from Esslingen to Ulm.
Though his force did not amount to half that of his opponent, Rodolph, enraged by the crimes he could not prevent, would have gone to meet his competitor, but for the unanimous opposition of his nobles.

While the Suabian party were deliberating upon the best course to pursue, Henry, by a forced march, fell unexpectedly upon their rear.