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Battle of Abensberg

The Battle of Abensberg took place on 20 April 1809 between a Franco-German force under the command of Emperor Napoleon I of France and a reinforced Austrian corps led by Feldmarschall-Leutnant Archduke Louis of Austria. As the day wore on, Feldmarschall-Leutnant Johann von Hiller arrived with reinforcements to take command of the three corps that formed the Austrian left wing. The action ended in a complete Franco-German victory. The battlefield was southeast of Abensberg and included clashes at Offenstetten, Biburg-Siegenburg, Rohr in Niederbayern, and Rottenburg an der Laaber. On the same day, the French garrison of Regensburg capitulated.

Battle of Abensberg
Part of the War of the Fifth Coalition

Napoleon addressing Bavarian and Württemberg troops at Abensberg, by Jean-Baptiste Debret (1810)
Date20 April 1809[1]
Location48°48′N 11°51′E / 48.800°N 11.850°E / 48.800; 11.850
Result French victory[1]
Belligerents
First French Empire
Kingdom of Bavaria
Württemberg
Austrian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Napoleon I
Jean Lannes
François Lefebvre
Karl von Wrede
Dominique Vandamme
Archduke Charles
Johann von Hiller
Archduke Louis
Michael Kienmayer
Strength
55,000[2] 42,000[2]
Casualties and losses
1,000[3] 7,200,[3] 12 guns[3]
class=notpageimage|
Location within Europe
  current battle
  Napoleon in command
  Napoleon not in command

After Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout's hard-fought victory at Battle of Teugen-Hausen the previous day, Napoleon determined to break through the Austrian defenses behind the Abens River. The emperor assembled a provisional corps consisting of part of Davout's corps plus cavalry and gave Marshal Jean Lannes command over it. Napoleon directed his German allies from the Kingdom of Bavaria and the Kingdom of Württemberg to attack across the Abens from the west, while Lannes thrust from the north toward Rohr. While the Austrians initially held the river line, Lannes' strike force crashed through Louis' defenses farther east. On the left, the Austrians managed to conduct a capable rear guard action, but during the day the French smashed their opponents' right flank and captured thousands of soldiers. The day ended with the Austrians barely holding onto a line behind the Große Laber River.

The next day, Hiller withdrew to Landshut, separating the left wing from the main army under Generalissimo Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen near Regensburg (Ratisbon). The French surrender of Regensburg on 20 April allowed Charles' army a retreat route to the north bank of the Danube. The Battle of Landshut was fought on 21 April.

Background edit

Operations edit

Archduke Charles stole a march on Napoleon when his army invaded the Kingdom of Bavaria on 10 April 1809. Even though the Austrian army took six days to slowly march from the Inn River at the frontier to the Isar River, the move placed the army of France and their German allies in grave danger.[4] Napoleon's deputy commander Marshal Louis Alexandre Berthier mismanaged the Grande Armée's concentration, leaving its units scattered across a broad front in a confused state.[5]

 
Archduke Charles

The central mass of Archduke Charles' 209,600-man host[6] crossed the Isar at Landshut on 16 April, but the next day Emperor Napoleon arrived at the front from Paris. Desperately trying to wrest the initiative back from the archduke, Napoleon consolidated his forces and ordered Marshal André Masséna's IV Corps and General of Division Nicolas Oudinot's II Corps on the right flank to march on Landshut to cut the Austrian line of communications. He planned for Marshal François Joseph Lefebvre's Bavarian VII Corps to hold in the center at Abensberg while Davout's left flank III Corps withdrew west to escape being trapped between Charles' main body and the Danube.[7]

On 19 April, Charles realized he had an opportunity to destroy Davout. He launched 65,000 troops in three powerful columns northwest as Davout attempted a flank march across his front. Luckily for the French, General of Cavalry Johann I Joseph, Prince of Liechtenstein's 20,000 troops found no opposition on the Austrian right.[8] In the center, General of Division Louis-Pierre Montbrun's 3,800 cavalry and infantry skilfully held off Feldmarschall-Leutnant Prince Franz Seraph of Rosenberg-Orsini's much stronger IV Armeekorps for most of the day.[9]

On the left flank, Feldmarschall-Leutnant Prince Friedrich Franz Xaver of Hohenzollern-Hechingen's III Armeekorps crashed into General of Division Louis Vincent Le Blond de Saint-Hilaire's division and a terrific fight blazed up. Both sides fed in reinforcements as the infantry battled over a pair of parallel ridges in the Battle of Teugen-Hausen. Ultimately, Davout brought superior forces to bear in the late afternoon and pushed back the Austrians a short ways. That night, Charles ordered Hohenzollern to withdraw a little to the east, closer to his main body.[10]

On the morning of 19 April, Archduke Charles requested that Hohenzollern provide a link between the III and V Armeekorps. Accordingly, the III Armeekorps commander detached General-Major Ludwig Thierry's 6,000-man infantry brigade to his left. As an additional link between Thierry and III Armeekorps, Hohenzollern detached General-Major Joseph Freiherr von Pfanzelter with a Grenz infantry battalion and two squadrons of hussars, about 1,000 men.[11] While the Battle of Teugen-Hausen raged, Thierry clashed with Bavarian troops near Arnhofen and fell back to Offenstetten.[12]

Austrian deployment edit

 
Johann Kollowrat

On 20 April, Archduke Charles' main body consisted of the III, IV, and I Reserve Armeekorps. These were arrayed near Dünzling and Eckmühl.[13] Feldzeugmeister Johann Kollowrat's II Armeekorps spent 19 April attacking Regensburg from north of the Danube. While successfully defending the city, Colonel Louis Coutard's 2,000-man 65th Line Infantry Regiment ran dangerously low on small-arms ammunition.[14] General of Cavalry Count Heinrich von Bellegarde's I Armeekorps also remained north of the Danube.[15]

Archduke Louis spread out his V Armeekorps behind the Abens River, facing west.[16] Having detached Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl Friedrich von Lindenau's division to Liechtenstein,[17] only the divisions of Feldmarschall-Leutnants Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss-Plauen and Vincenz Freiherr von Schustekh-Herve remained under Louis' command.[18] Feldmarschall-Leutnant Michael von Kienmayer's II Reserve Armeekorps, nominally 7,975-strong, waited in support at Ludmannsdorf.[16][19] Kienmayer's cuirassier brigade under General-Major Andreas von Schneller was serving with Liechtenstein[20] and four dragoon squadrons were attached to Thierry's brigade. On the evening of the 19th, the bulk of Hiller's VI Armeekorps reached Mainburg to the south.[16] Like V and II Reserve Armeekorps, the VI suffered from detachments. At the beginning of the war, Charles sent the division of Feldmarschall-Leutnant Franz Jellacic to hold Munich, the Bavarian capital, where it remained.[21] Hiller also posted General-Major Armand von Nordmann with a small force at Moosburg an der Isar to watch his south flank.[22] The official returns of Hiller's three corps totalled 75,880 troops,[19] but after detachments, the left wing numbered only 42,000.[2]

French deployment edit

 
Siegenburg from a c. 1700 woodcut

When Lannes arrived at the front, Napoleon immediately placed him in command of a provisional corps. This ad hoc formation consisted largely of III Corps units that escaped Archduke Charles' trap the day before, namely General of Division Charles Antoine Morand's 1st Division, General of Division Charles-Étienne Gudin de La Sablonnière's 3rd Division, General of Division Raymond-Gaspard de Bonardi de Saint-Sulpice's 2nd Heavy Cavalry Division, and General of Brigade Charles Claude Jacquinot's light cavalry brigade of Montbrun's division. Also added was General of Division Etienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty's 1st Heavy Cavalry Division from the cavalry reserve.[23] One of Saint-Sulpice's brigades was detailed to guard Saal an der Donau, a defile between Lannes and Davout.[24]

On the morning of 20 April, Napoleon mistakenly assumed that the bulk of Archduke Charles' army lay in front of him. Accordingly, he gave orders for a drive southeast in the direction of Landshut. Lannes' mission was to turn the Austrian right flank by pushing south toward Rohr. General of Division Dominique Vandamme would attack Siegenburg with his small Kingdom of Württemberg corps. Lefebvre's other VII Corps divisions, together with General of Division Joseph Laurent Demont's Reserve Division of the III Corps, would link Lannes and Vandamme. Napoleon ordered Masséna's IV Corps to capture Landshut and the Isar River crossings, cutting the Austrian line of communications.[25]

Battle edit

Abensberg edit

Archduke Charles sent orders to his brother Archduke Louis at 7:30 AM on 20 April. He instructed Louis to fall back to Rottenburg and defend behind the Große Laber. Charles intended Hiller to take position on Louis' left at Pfeffenhausen. Charles erred in sending the orders so late and in not informing Louis of Hohenzollern's withdrawal to the east. The latter move left the V Armeekorps' right flank exposed.[15]

Pfanzelter held Bachl on the extreme right flank. To the west of Bachl, Thierry held Offenstetten with three and one-third battalions. His other two and two-thirds battalions had become separated the previous day and joined General-Major Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza who had six battalions near Biburg. Louis posted Schustekh with four squadrons of hussars and one and one-third battalions at Rohr.[26] Schustekh's infantry had just rejoined V Armeekorps after marching from Mainburg with General-Major Joseph, Baron von Mesko de Felsö-Kubiny's detachment.[27]

 
Battle of Abensberg map showing Lannes breakthrough at Bachl and Rohr

In one account, Lannes' advance guard approached Bachl in the late morning of 20 April, forcing Pfanzelter's small detachment from the Austrian III Armeekorps eastward. The 1st Bavarian Division under Lieutenant General Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and the 3rd Bavarian Division led by Lieutenant General Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy, together with Demont's III Corps Division advanced on Offenstetten. Around 10:00 AM, they defeated Thierry's brigade, forcing him back on Bachl as Lannes approached from the north. Thierry hastily withdrew to Rohr, which he reached at 2:00 PM.[28]

Historian James R. Arnold offers a different narrative. He writes that Pfanzelter's command was withdrawn on the III Armeekorps commander Hohenzollern's orders, leaving the north–south road through Bachl wide open. Meanwhile, Thierry's attached dragoons discovered that Abensberg and its nearby roads were alive with moving columns of enemy troops. Around 8:00 AM, Thierry fell back on Bachl and found to his dismay that French cavalry already occupied the village. Having become separated from his supporting dragoons, Thierry's men were chased into the woods by Jacquinot's horsemen. From there the Austrians hiked cross-country toward Rohr.[23]

Author Francis Loraine Petre states that Gudin encountered Pfanzelter north of Bachl and brushed him aside about 9:00 AM. The 1st Bavarian division and General-Major Hügel's Württemberg brigade drove Thierry from Offenstetten around 10:00 AM. When the Austrians reached Bachl they stumbled upon Jacquinot who attacked and they "scattered through the woods".[29] Pfanzelter marched east to Langquaid where he rejoined Hohenzollern's corps.

Because he feared that the woods to his left might contain Austrians, Lannes slowed his march so he could scout the terrain to the east. Even so, his column arrived at Rohr before Thierry's infantry. Without Pfanzelter's detachment to warn him, the arrival of Lannes' column surprised Schustekh. The Austrian commander gamely threw four squadrons of hussars at Jacquinot's advance guard. Eventually, Jacquinot got his entire brigade into action and pressed the Austrian hussars back on the supporting battalion and one-third of Grenz infantry south of Rohr. At this time, Thierry's winded infantry appeared on the scene. With the help of Gudin's 17th Light Infantry and a battery of artillery, Jacquinot's chasseurs broke Thierry's foot soldiers and hounded them into the woods again.[30]

 
French Cuirassier in 1809

To take the pressure off the infantry, Schustekh charged again, just as Thierry's lost dragoons showed up. At first, the attack went well, but then the Austrian horsemen came up against a mass of cuirassiers. The result was a rout of the Habsburg cavalry, who rode through the ranks of their own foot soldiers. The French chasseurs and cuirassiers rode roughshod over the troops of Thierry and Mesko, cutting down the fugitives. Over 3,000 Austrians became prisoners, including Thierry, and four cannon were lost.[31]

The previous evening, Hiller's VI Armeekorps bivouacked at Mainburg. Though a road ran directly from Mainburg to Louis' left flank at Siegenburg, a distance of only 13 kilometers, Hiller elected to join his colleague by a roundabout march via Pfeffenhausen. Once he arrived, Hiller was authorized to take command of all three left wing corps.[32] Hiller personally arrived in Siegenburg to confer with Archduke Louis around midday. Hearing troubling reports from the right flank, he sent Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl von Vincent toward Rottenburg with the line brigades of Generals-Major Josef Hoffmeister and Nikolaus Weissenwolf, plus four squadrons of the Rosenberg Chevauxlegers Regiment # 6.[33] Petre names the two line infantry brigade commanders.[34]

Archduke Louis posted Prince Reuss and General-Major Joseph Radetzky von Radetz with four battalions and 12 cavalry squadrons at Siegenburg. Bianchi held the east bank of the Abens opposite Biburg. Lieutenant-General Karl Philipp von Wrede probed at Siegenburg but his 2nd Bavarian Division was easily fended off by Radetzky and a battery of 12-pdr cannon. At this time, Louis heard that the French attacked Thierry, so he ordered Radetzky to send two battalions to the right flank and called up Kienmayer's command from Ludmannsdorf.[35]

Wrede moved north to Biburg, where he tried to get across the Abens again. At first he was not successful, but Bianchi withdrew to Kirchdorf, allowing the 2nd Bavarian Division to cross to the east bank of the stream. Meanwhile, General of Division Dominique Vandamme's Württemberg contingent (later known as the VIII Corps) replaced Wrede in front of Siegenburg. Vandamme soon realized that crossing at Siegenburg was futile, so he too marched north, crossed the river at Abensberg and moved south to Kirchdorf. Here the Bavarians and Württembergers found Bianchi with his reinforced brigade and a cavalry squadron.[36] Reuss soon arrived with Radetzky's two battalions.[37] Around 2:00 PM a sharp combat took place after which the Austrians retreated to the southeast.[38] According to one account, General of Division Jean Victor Tharreau's cavalry of the II Corps also became involved at Kirchdorf.[39]

Pressed by Wrede's 7th Bavarian Infantry Regiment, plus two of Hügel's Württemberg battalions,[37] Radetzky conducted an orderly retreat on the Siegenburg road, covered by the grenzers and Kienmayer's grenadiers under General-Major Konstantin Ghilian Karl d'Aspré. He managed to shepherd the V Armeekorps trains safely through Pfeffenhausen before the Bavarians cut him off. Wrede pursued aggressively and scooped up many prisoners but failed to capture the bridge, which the Austrians burned.[40] Even so, the Bavarians kept up the pressure, crossing the shallow Große Laber at 11:00 PM to attack. Radetzky fell back to a hill called the Hornbach where his rear guard skirmished with the Bavarians into the early morning hours.[41]

When Vincent's column neared Rottenburg, he found the road jammed with the III Armeekorps trains. A charge by the Rosenberg Chevauxlegers halted the French cuirassiers long enough for his infantry to gain solid positions on the east side of the Große Laber. Hiller arrived at Rottenburg in the late afternoon and ordered a counterattack at 7:00 PM. Vincent swung his left brigade forward and quickly overran a Bavarian unit, capturing 300 troops. Soon after, the Deutschmeister Infantry Regiment # 4 got into a vicious firefight with Bavarian and French infantry. In the twilight, the Austrians were forced back by superior numbers with 600 casualties, but they had finally stopped their enemies.[42]

Regensburg edit

 
Prince Liechtenstein

On 20 April, the Austrian II Armeekorps continued attacking Colonel Louis Coutard's 65th Line Infantry Regiment at Regensburg. A French convoy sent to replenish the critically low ammunition supply was ambushed by Austrian cavalry at 8:00 AM.[43] The French troops finally ran out of ammunition and Coutard asked Kollowrat for a 24-hour truce after which he promised to surrender if not relieved. The Austrian commander foolishly agreed to the terms.[44]

However, Liechtenstein's column soon appeared from the south. Liechtenstein pointed out that the existing truce did not apply to him and demanded an immediate surrender. Coutard thereupon capitulated at 5:00 PM.[44] The French sappers had found it impossible to demolish the sturdily-built Regensburg bridge. The intact bridge later played a key factor in the escape of Charles' army.[45] In two days of fighting, the French lost 11 officers and about 200 soldiers killed and wounded, plus 1,988 captured. Austrian losses were 73 dead, 220 wounded, and 85 missing for a total of 378 casualties. During the struggle the French captured 75 troops and one color, all of which were recovered.[46]

When Kollowrat finally reported the II Armeekorps available for duty that evening, the headquarters ordered his troops to make an overnight march west to Hemau on the north bank of the Danube. In the morning, the tired troops were recalled to Regensburg from their pointless ramble.[47]

Aftermath edit

Arnold lists 1,107 Allied casualties, including 746 Bavarians. He gives Austrian losses as 492 killed, 2,219 wounded, and nearly 4,000 captured, or a total of 6,711. The French also captured eight colors and 12 cannons.[48] Digby Smith notes Allied casualties as 34 dead and 438 wounded, but this seems to count only the German allied troops. Austrian total losses are given as 6,872, including 3,000 to 4,000 captured. The 2nd battalion of the Broder Grenz (Mesko's brigade) was annihilated, with 18 officers and 1,040 rank and file counted as lost. Smith gives killed, wounded, captured, and missing, but the numbers only add up to 5,824 so they are not listed.[49] Petre lists 2,710 Austrians killed and wounded, plus about 4,000 captured. Altogether, the 42,000 troops of Hiller's three-corps left wing faced 55,000 French and their German allies. Only about 25,000 Austrians and an equal number of Allies were engaged in action.[2] More recent scholarship by John H. Gill attributes losses of 7,200 men and 12 guns to Austrian forces, and 1,000 to French and French-allied forces.[3]

 
Davout was not disturbed on 20 April.

That evening, as the extent of Thierry and Schustekh's disaster became known, Hiller resolved to pull his three corps behind the Isar at Landshut. In this decision, he was also influenced by Masséna's move against his left rear and unfavorable reports from Archduke Louis. This crucial decision meant that the Austrian left wing would in the near future operate independently from Archduke Charles' main body. Hiller would only reunite with his army commander on 15 May north of Vienna.[50]

While Napoleon savaged his left wing, Archduke Charles remained amazingly inert.[51] At 6:00 AM, the archduke was with Prince Rosenberg and at 7:30 AM he sent orders to Archduke Louis and then wrote a letter to Emperor Francis I of Austria. But from 11:00 AM until 6:30 PM, the Austrian generalissimo failed to issue any orders. He either became obsessed with capturing Regensburg or he had an epileptic seizure during which he is supposed to have locked himself in his quarters.[52] The epileptic attack is probable, but there is a possibility it may be a cover story for Charles' failure to exercise command.[53] What is known is that the Austrian III, IV, and I Reserve Armeekorps did not disturb Davout's remaining three divisions under Generals of Division Louis Friant, Saint-Hilaire, and Montbrun on 20 April.[51]

Despite being outnumbered, Napoleon's 113,000 troops split the 161,000 strung-out Austrians into two forces. Charles five corps, including 48,000 additional troops of the I and II Armeekorps north of Regensburg, lay to the north while Hiller's three corps fell back to Landshut. (Massena and Oudinot's 57,000 soldiers are not counted in Napoleon's total.)[54] Both Austrian forces had to fight a second major battle each. Hiller fought the Battle of Landshut on 21 April, while Charles engaged in the Battle of Eckmühl on the 22nd.[55]

Order of battle edit

The following is an abbreviated order of battle. Complete orders of battle are found in the Abensberg 1809 Order of Battle.

Austrian forces edit

 
Johann von Hiller

Left Wing: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Johann von Hiller

  • VI Armeekorps: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Johann von Hiller (35,639) Strength only.[19] Order of battle.[56]
    • Reserve Artillery: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl von Rouvroy (24 guns)
    • Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Friedrich Kottulinsky
      • Brigade: General-Major Otto Hohenfeld (6 battalions, 8 guns)
      • Brigade: General-Major Nikolaus Weissenwolf (6 battalions, 8 guns)
      • Divisional Artillery: (6 guns)
    • Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Franz Jellacic (Jellacic detached at Munich)
      • Brigade: General-Major Konstantin Ettingshausen (6 battalions, 8 guns) (Detached at Munich)
      • Brigade: General-Major Karl Dollmayer von Provenchères (5 battalions, 8 squadrons, 14 guns) (Detached at Munich) Hoffmeister's brigade belonged to Jellacic, but it was exchanged for Dollmayer von Provenchères' brigade of the Light Division at the beginning of the conflict.[57]
      • Divisional Artillery: (6 guns)
    • Light Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl von Vincent
      • Brigade: General-Major Josef Hoffmeister (6 battalions, 8 guns)[57]
      • Brigade: General-Major Armand von Nordmann (2 battalions, 16 squadrons, 14 guns) (Detached at Moosburg)
 
Archduke Louis
  • V Armeekorps: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Archduke Louis (32,266) Strength only[9][18]
    • Reserve Artillery: Major Adam Pfefferkorn (18 guns)
    • Brigade: General-Major Ludwig Thierry (6 battalions, 8 guns) (Attached from III Armeekorps)
    • Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl Friedrich von Lindenau (Detached to I Reserve Armeekorps)
      • Brigade: General-Major Anton Mayer von Heldensfeld (6 battalions, 8 guns)
      • Brigade: General-Major Ignaz Buol von Berenburg (6 battalions, 8 guns)
      • Divisional Artillery: (6 guns)
    • Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss-Plauen
      • Brigade: General-Major Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza (6 battalions, 8 guns)
      • Brigade: General-Major Franz Johann Schulz von Rothacker (6 battalions)
      • Divisional Artillery: (6 guns)
    • Light Division: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Emmanuel von Schustekh-Herve
  • II Reserve Armeekorps: Feldmarschall-Leutnant Michael von Kienmayer (7,975) Strength only[19] Order of battle.[58]
    • Brigade: General-Major Konstantin Ghilian Karl d'Aspré (5 grenadier battalions, 8 guns)
    • Brigade: General-Major Andreas von Schneller (12 squadrons, 6 guns) (Detached to I Reserve Armeekorps)
    • Brigade: General-Major Josef von Clary (12 squadrons, 6 guns) (4 squadrons attached to Thierry)

French-Allied forces edit

Grande Armée: Napoleon I of France

 
Jean Lannes
 
François Lefebvre
  • VII (Bavarian) Corps: Marshal François Joseph Lefebvre[61]
    • Artillery Reserve: Colonel Calonge (18 guns)
    • 1st Bavarian Division: Lieutenant-General Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria
      • Brigade: General-Major Rechberg (5 battalions)
      • Brigade: General-Major Stengel (4 battalions)
      • Cavalry Brigade: General-Major Zandt (6 squadrons)
      • Divisional Artillery: (18 guns)
    • 2nd Bavarian Division: Lieutenant-General Karl Philipp von Wrede
      • Brigade: General-Major Minuzzi (5 battalions)
      • Brigade: General-Major Beckers (4 battalions)
      • Cavalry Brigade: General-Major Preysing (8 squadrons)
      • Divisional Artillery: (18 guns)
    • 3rd Bavarian Division: Lieutenant-General Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy (Not engaged)
      • Brigade: General-Major Siebein (5 battalions)
      • Brigade: General-Major Vincenti (5 battalions)
      • Cavalry Brigade: General-Major Seydewitz (8 squadrons)
      • Divisional Artillery: (18 guns)
 
Vandamme
  • Württemberg (later VIII) Corps: General of Division Dominique Vandamme[62]
    • Reserve Artillery: Colonel Schnadow (22 guns)
    • Württemberg Division: Lieutenant General Neubronn
      • Brigade: General-Major Friedrich von Franquemont (5 battalions)
      • Brigade: General-Major Scharfenstein (5 battalions)
      • Light Brigade: General-Major Hügel (3 battalions)
    • Württemberg Cavalry Division: Lieutenant General Wöllwarth
      • Brigade: General-Major Roeder (8 squadrons)
      • Brigade: General-Major Stettner (8 squadrons)

See also edit

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b Bodart 1908, p. 398.
  2. ^ a b c d Petre 1976, p. 139.
  3. ^ a b c d Gill 2014, p. 235.
  4. ^ Chandler 1966, p. 677.
  5. ^ Chandler 1966, pp. 678–679.
  6. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, p. 73.
  7. ^ Chandler 1966, pp. 682–683.
  8. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 83–84.
  9. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 90.
  10. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 85–93.
  11. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 84.
  12. ^ Smith 1998, p. 289.
  13. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 105, map.
  14. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 101.
  15. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 104.
  16. ^ a b c Arnold 1990, p. 107.
  17. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 74.
  18. ^ a b Bowden & Tarbox 1989, pp. 69–70.
  19. ^ a b c d Arnold 1990, p. 235.
  20. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 175.
  21. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 78.
  22. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 105.
  23. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 110.
  24. ^ Petre 1976, p. 133n.
  25. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 104–105.
  26. ^ Petre 1976, p. 134.
  27. ^ Petre 1976, p. 136.
  28. ^ Castle 1998, p. 41.
  29. ^ Petre 1976, pp. 134–135.
  30. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 110–111.
  31. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 111–112.
  32. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 108.
  33. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 112.
  34. ^ Petre 1976, p. 137.
  35. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 107–108.
  36. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 114–115.
  37. ^ a b Petre 1976, p. 138.
  38. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 115.
  39. ^ Castle 1998, p. 46.
  40. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 116.
  41. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 137.
  42. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 113–114.
  43. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 119–120.
  44. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 119.
  45. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 100.
  46. ^ Smith 1998, pp. 288–289.
  47. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 125.
  48. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 120.
  49. ^ Smith 1998, p. 290.
  50. ^ Arnold 1990, pp. 116–117.
  51. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 118.
  52. ^ Petre 1976, pp. 143–144.
  53. ^ Arnold 1990, p. 213.
  54. ^ Chandler 1966, p. 685, map.
  55. ^ Smith 1998, pp. 290–291.
  56. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, pp. 70–71.
  57. ^ a b Arnold 1990, p. 260.
  58. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, p. 72.
  59. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, pp. 57–59.
  60. ^ Petre 1976, p. 133.
  61. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, pp. 61–62.
  62. ^ Bowden & Tarbox 1989, p. 62.

References edit

  • Arnold, James R. (1990). Crisis on the Danube: Napoleon's Austrian Campaign of 1809. New York: Paragon House. ISBN 1-55778-137-0.
  • Bodart, Gaston (1908). Militär-historisches Kriegs-Lexikon (1618–1905). Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  • Bowden, Scotty; Tarbox, Charlie (1989). Armies on the Danube 1809. Arlington, Texas: The Emperor's Press. ISBN 0-913037-08-7.
  • Castle, Ian (1998). Eggmühl 1809: Storm over Bavaria. Oxford: Osprey.
  • Chandler, David (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York: Macmillan.
  • Gill, John H. (2014). 1809: Thunder on the Danube – Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs, Vol. 1. London: Frontline Books. ISBN 978-184415-713-6.
  • Petre, F. Loraine (1976). Napoleon and the Archduke Charles. New York: Hippocrene Books.
  • Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.

Further reading edit

  • Acton, Lord (1906). The Cambridge Modern History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Arnold, James R. (1995). Napoleon Conquers Austria. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-94694-0.
  • Baker, Ralph (2006). Gregory Fremont-Barnes (ed.). The Encyclopedia of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO.
  • Barton, D. Plunket (1921). Bernadotte and Napoleon: 1763–1810. London: John Murray. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  • Bourienne, M. de. (1836). Memoires of Napoleon Bonaparte. Vol. II. London.
  • Castle, Ian (1994). Chandler, David G (ed.). Aspern and Wagram 1809. Osprey Military, Campaign Series 33. ISBN 1-85532-366-4.
  • Chandler, David (1979). Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. London : Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 9780853683537. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  • Chandler, David (1979). Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. New York: Macmillan. ISBN 0-02-523670-9.
  • Chandler, David (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. ISBN 9780025236608. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  • Chandler, David (1998). Napoleon's Marshals. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
  • Chandler, David (1993). Jena 1806: Napoleon destroys Prussia. Bloomsbury.
  • Chandler, David (2005). Jena 1806: Napoleon destroys Prussia. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-98612-8.
  • Dunn-Pattinson, R.P. (1909). Napoleon's Marshals. London: Methuen & Co.
  • Eggenberger, David (1985). An Encyclopedia of Battles: Accounts of Over 1,560 Battles from 1479 B.C. to the Present. New York: Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-24913-1.
  • Epstein, Robert M. (1994). Napoleon's Last Victory and the Emergence of Modern War. Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-0664-5.
  • Esposito, Vincent J.; Elting, John R. (1964). A Military History and Atlas of the Napoleonic Wars. New York: Praeger.
  • Gallaher, John G. (2000). The Iron Marshal: A Biography of Louis N. Davout. Barnsley: Frontline. ISBN 978-1526796998.
  • Gill, John H. (1992). With Eagles to Glory: Napoleon and His German Allies in the 1809 Campaign. Greenhill Books.
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  • Kagan, Frederick W. (2006). The End of the Old Order: Napoleon and Europe, 1801-1805. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-81137-5.
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  • Petre, F. Loraine (1993) [1907]. Napoleon's Conquest of Prussia 1806. London: Lionel Leventhal Ltd. ISBN 1-85367-145-2.
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  • Pigeard, Alain (2004). Dictionnaire des batailles de Napoléon (in French). Tallandier, Bibliothèque Napoléonienne. ISBN 2-84734-073-4.
  • Rothenberg, Gunther E. (1995). Napoleon's Great Adversary: Archduke Charles and the Austrian Army 1792–1814. Sarpedon. ISBN 1-885119-21-6.
  • Rothenberg, Gunther E. (2004). The Emperor's Last Victory. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. ISBN 0-297-84672-8.
  • Rothenberg, Gunther E. (1982). Napoleon's Great Adversaries, The Archduke Charles and the Austrian Army, 1792–1814. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-33969-3.
  • Rothenberg, Gunther E. (1980). The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-31076-8.
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External links edit

The following two websites are excellent sources for the full names of French and Austrian generals.
  • French Wikipedia, Liste des généraux de la Révolution et du Premier Empire
  • napoleon-series.org Austrian Generals: 1792–1815 by Digby Smith, compiled by Leopold Kudrna
  •   Media related to Battle of Abensberg at Wikimedia Commons
Preceded by
Battle of Raszyn (1809)
Napoleonic Wars
Battle of Abensberg
Succeeded by
Battle of Landshut (1809)

battle, abensberg, took, place, april, 1809, between, franco, german, force, under, command, emperor, napoleon, france, reinforced, austrian, corps, feldmarschall, leutnant, archduke, louis, austria, wore, feldmarschall, leutnant, johann, hiller, arrived, with. The Battle of Abensberg took place on 20 April 1809 between a Franco German force under the command of Emperor Napoleon I of France and a reinforced Austrian corps led by Feldmarschall Leutnant Archduke Louis of Austria As the day wore on Feldmarschall Leutnant Johann von Hiller arrived with reinforcements to take command of the three corps that formed the Austrian left wing The action ended in a complete Franco German victory The battlefield was southeast of Abensberg and included clashes at Offenstetten Biburg Siegenburg Rohr in Niederbayern and Rottenburg an der Laaber On the same day the French garrison of Regensburg capitulated Battle of AbensbergPart of the War of the Fifth CoalitionNapoleon addressing Bavarian and Wurttemberg troops at Abensberg by Jean Baptiste Debret 1810 Date20 April 1809 1 LocationAbensberg Bavaria Germany48 48 N 11 51 E 48 800 N 11 850 E 48 800 11 850ResultFrench victory 1 BelligerentsFirst French Empire Kingdom of Bavaria WurttembergAustrian EmpireCommanders and leadersNapoleon I Jean Lannes Francois Lefebvre Karl von Wrede Dominique VandammeArchduke Charles Johann von Hiller Archduke Louis Michael KienmayerStrength55 000 2 42 000 2 Casualties and losses1 000 3 7 200 3 12 guns 3 class notpageimage Location within Europe War of the Fifth Coalition Interactive fullscreen map nearby articles current battle Napoleon in command Napoleon not in command After Marshal Louis Nicolas Davout s hard fought victory at Battle of Teugen Hausen the previous day Napoleon determined to break through the Austrian defenses behind the Abens River The emperor assembled a provisional corps consisting of part of Davout s corps plus cavalry and gave Marshal Jean Lannes command over it Napoleon directed his German allies from the Kingdom of Bavaria and the Kingdom of Wurttemberg to attack across the Abens from the west while Lannes thrust from the north toward Rohr While the Austrians initially held the river line Lannes strike force crashed through Louis defenses farther east On the left the Austrians managed to conduct a capable rear guard action but during the day the French smashed their opponents right flank and captured thousands of soldiers The day ended with the Austrians barely holding onto a line behind the Grosse Laber River The next day Hiller withdrew to Landshut separating the left wing from the main army under Generalissimo Archduke Charles Duke of Teschen near Regensburg Ratisbon The French surrender of Regensburg on 20 April allowed Charles army a retreat route to the north bank of the Danube The Battle of Landshut was fought on 21 April Contents 1 Background 1 1 Operations 1 2 Austrian deployment 1 3 French deployment 2 Battle 2 1 Abensberg 2 2 Regensburg 3 Aftermath 4 Order of battle 4 1 Austrian forces 4 2 French Allied forces 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External linksBackground editOperations edit Archduke Charles stole a march on Napoleon when his army invaded the Kingdom of Bavaria on 10 April 1809 Even though the Austrian army took six days to slowly march from the Inn River at the frontier to the Isar River the move placed the army of France and their German allies in grave danger 4 Napoleon s deputy commander Marshal Louis Alexandre Berthier mismanaged the Grande Armee s concentration leaving its units scattered across a broad front in a confused state 5 nbsp Archduke CharlesThe central mass of Archduke Charles 209 600 man host 6 crossed the Isar at Landshut on 16 April but the next day Emperor Napoleon arrived at the front from Paris Desperately trying to wrest the initiative back from the archduke Napoleon consolidated his forces and ordered Marshal Andre Massena s IV Corps and General of Division Nicolas Oudinot s II Corps on the right flank to march on Landshut to cut the Austrian line of communications He planned for Marshal Francois Joseph Lefebvre s Bavarian VII Corps to hold in the center at Abensberg while Davout s left flank III Corps withdrew west to escape being trapped between Charles main body and the Danube 7 On 19 April Charles realized he had an opportunity to destroy Davout He launched 65 000 troops in three powerful columns northwest as Davout attempted a flank march across his front Luckily for the French General of Cavalry Johann I Joseph Prince of Liechtenstein s 20 000 troops found no opposition on the Austrian right 8 In the center General of Division Louis Pierre Montbrun s 3 800 cavalry and infantry skilfully held off Feldmarschall Leutnant Prince Franz Seraph of Rosenberg Orsini s much stronger IV Armeekorps for most of the day 9 On the left flank Feldmarschall Leutnant Prince Friedrich Franz Xaver of Hohenzollern Hechingen s III Armeekorps crashed into General of Division Louis Vincent Le Blond de Saint Hilaire s division and a terrific fight blazed up Both sides fed in reinforcements as the infantry battled over a pair of parallel ridges in the Battle of Teugen Hausen Ultimately Davout brought superior forces to bear in the late afternoon and pushed back the Austrians a short ways That night Charles ordered Hohenzollern to withdraw a little to the east closer to his main body 10 On the morning of 19 April Archduke Charles requested that Hohenzollern provide a link between the III and V Armeekorps Accordingly the III Armeekorps commander detached General Major Ludwig Thierry s 6 000 man infantry brigade to his left As an additional link between Thierry and III Armeekorps Hohenzollern detached General Major Joseph Freiherr von Pfanzelter with a Grenz infantry battalion and two squadrons of hussars about 1 000 men 11 While the Battle of Teugen Hausen raged Thierry clashed with Bavarian troops near Arnhofen and fell back to Offenstetten 12 Austrian deployment edit nbsp Johann KollowratOn 20 April Archduke Charles main body consisted of the III IV and I Reserve Armeekorps These were arrayed near Dunzling and Eckmuhl 13 Feldzeugmeister Johann Kollowrat s II Armeekorps spent 19 April attacking Regensburg from north of the Danube While successfully defending the city Colonel Louis Coutard s 2 000 man 65th Line Infantry Regiment ran dangerously low on small arms ammunition 14 General of Cavalry Count Heinrich von Bellegarde s I Armeekorps also remained north of the Danube 15 Archduke Louis spread out his V Armeekorps behind the Abens River facing west 16 Having detached Feldmarschall Leutnant Karl Friedrich von Lindenau s division to Liechtenstein 17 only the divisions of Feldmarschall Leutnants Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss Plauen and Vincenz Freiherr von Schustekh Herve remained under Louis command 18 Feldmarschall Leutnant Michael von Kienmayer s II Reserve Armeekorps nominally 7 975 strong waited in support at Ludmannsdorf 16 19 Kienmayer s cuirassier brigade under General Major Andreas von Schneller was serving with Liechtenstein 20 and four dragoon squadrons were attached to Thierry s brigade On the evening of the 19th the bulk of Hiller s VI Armeekorps reached Mainburg to the south 16 Like V and II Reserve Armeekorps the VI suffered from detachments At the beginning of the war Charles sent the division of Feldmarschall Leutnant Franz Jellacic to hold Munich the Bavarian capital where it remained 21 Hiller also posted General Major Armand von Nordmann with a small force at Moosburg an der Isar to watch his south flank 22 The official returns of Hiller s three corps totalled 75 880 troops 19 but after detachments the left wing numbered only 42 000 2 French deployment edit nbsp Siegenburg from a c 1700 woodcutWhen Lannes arrived at the front Napoleon immediately placed him in command of a provisional corps This ad hoc formation consisted largely of III Corps units that escaped Archduke Charles trap the day before namely General of Division Charles Antoine Morand s 1st Division General of Division Charles Etienne Gudin de La Sablonniere s 3rd Division General of Division Raymond Gaspard de Bonardi de Saint Sulpice s 2nd Heavy Cavalry Division and General of Brigade Charles Claude Jacquinot s light cavalry brigade of Montbrun s division Also added was General of Division Etienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty s 1st Heavy Cavalry Division from the cavalry reserve 23 One of Saint Sulpice s brigades was detailed to guard Saal an der Donau a defile between Lannes and Davout 24 On the morning of 20 April Napoleon mistakenly assumed that the bulk of Archduke Charles army lay in front of him Accordingly he gave orders for a drive southeast in the direction of Landshut Lannes mission was to turn the Austrian right flank by pushing south toward Rohr General of Division Dominique Vandamme would attack Siegenburg with his small Kingdom of Wurttemberg corps Lefebvre s other VII Corps divisions together with General of Division Joseph Laurent Demont s Reserve Division of the III Corps would link Lannes and Vandamme Napoleon ordered Massena s IV Corps to capture Landshut and the Isar River crossings cutting the Austrian line of communications 25 Battle editAbensberg edit Archduke Charles sent orders to his brother Archduke Louis at 7 30 AM on 20 April He instructed Louis to fall back to Rottenburg and defend behind the Grosse Laber Charles intended Hiller to take position on Louis left at Pfeffenhausen Charles erred in sending the orders so late and in not informing Louis of Hohenzollern s withdrawal to the east The latter move left the V Armeekorps right flank exposed 15 Pfanzelter held Bachl on the extreme right flank To the west of Bachl Thierry held Offenstetten with three and one third battalions His other two and two thirds battalions had become separated the previous day and joined General Major Frederick Bianchi Duke of Casalanza who had six battalions near Biburg Louis posted Schustekh with four squadrons of hussars and one and one third battalions at Rohr 26 Schustekh s infantry had just rejoined V Armeekorps after marching from Mainburg with General Major Joseph Baron von Mesko de Felso Kubiny s detachment 27 nbsp Battle of Abensberg map showing Lannes breakthrough at Bachl and RohrIn one account Lannes advance guard approached Bachl in the late morning of 20 April forcing Pfanzelter s small detachment from the Austrian III Armeekorps eastward The 1st Bavarian Division under Lieutenant General Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria and the 3rd Bavarian Division led by Lieutenant General Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy together with Demont s III Corps Division advanced on Offenstetten Around 10 00 AM they defeated Thierry s brigade forcing him back on Bachl as Lannes approached from the north Thierry hastily withdrew to Rohr which he reached at 2 00 PM 28 Historian James R Arnold offers a different narrative He writes that Pfanzelter s command was withdrawn on the III Armeekorps commander Hohenzollern s orders leaving the north south road through Bachl wide open Meanwhile Thierry s attached dragoons discovered that Abensberg and its nearby roads were alive with moving columns of enemy troops Around 8 00 AM Thierry fell back on Bachl and found to his dismay that French cavalry already occupied the village Having become separated from his supporting dragoons Thierry s men were chased into the woods by Jacquinot s horsemen From there the Austrians hiked cross country toward Rohr 23 Author Francis Loraine Petre states that Gudin encountered Pfanzelter north of Bachl and brushed him aside about 9 00 AM The 1st Bavarian division and General Major Hugel s Wurttemberg brigade drove Thierry from Offenstetten around 10 00 AM When the Austrians reached Bachl they stumbled upon Jacquinot who attacked and they scattered through the woods 29 Pfanzelter marched east to Langquaid where he rejoined Hohenzollern s corps Because he feared that the woods to his left might contain Austrians Lannes slowed his march so he could scout the terrain to the east Even so his column arrived at Rohr before Thierry s infantry Without Pfanzelter s detachment to warn him the arrival of Lannes column surprised Schustekh The Austrian commander gamely threw four squadrons of hussars at Jacquinot s advance guard Eventually Jacquinot got his entire brigade into action and pressed the Austrian hussars back on the supporting battalion and one third of Grenz infantry south of Rohr At this time Thierry s winded infantry appeared on the scene With the help of Gudin s 17th Light Infantry and a battery of artillery Jacquinot s chasseurs broke Thierry s foot soldiers and hounded them into the woods again 30 nbsp French Cuirassier in 1809To take the pressure off the infantry Schustekh charged again just as Thierry s lost dragoons showed up At first the attack went well but then the Austrian horsemen came up against a mass of cuirassiers The result was a rout of the Habsburg cavalry who rode through the ranks of their own foot soldiers The French chasseurs and cuirassiers rode roughshod over the troops of Thierry and Mesko cutting down the fugitives Over 3 000 Austrians became prisoners including Thierry and four cannon were lost 31 The previous evening Hiller s VI Armeekorps bivouacked at Mainburg Though a road ran directly from Mainburg to Louis left flank at Siegenburg a distance of only 13 kilometers Hiller elected to join his colleague by a roundabout march via Pfeffenhausen Once he arrived Hiller was authorized to take command of all three left wing corps 32 Hiller personally arrived in Siegenburg to confer with Archduke Louis around midday Hearing troubling reports from the right flank he sent Feldmarschall Leutnant Karl von Vincent toward Rottenburg with the line brigades of Generals Major Josef Hoffmeister and Nikolaus Weissenwolf plus four squadrons of the Rosenberg Chevauxlegers Regiment 6 33 Petre names the two line infantry brigade commanders 34 Archduke Louis posted Prince Reuss and General Major Joseph Radetzky von Radetz with four battalions and 12 cavalry squadrons at Siegenburg Bianchi held the east bank of the Abens opposite Biburg Lieutenant General Karl Philipp von Wrede probed at Siegenburg but his 2nd Bavarian Division was easily fended off by Radetzky and a battery of 12 pdr cannon At this time Louis heard that the French attacked Thierry so he ordered Radetzky to send two battalions to the right flank and called up Kienmayer s command from Ludmannsdorf 35 Wrede moved north to Biburg where he tried to get across the Abens again At first he was not successful but Bianchi withdrew to Kirchdorf allowing the 2nd Bavarian Division to cross to the east bank of the stream Meanwhile General of Division Dominique Vandamme s Wurttemberg contingent later known as the VIII Corps replaced Wrede in front of Siegenburg Vandamme soon realized that crossing at Siegenburg was futile so he too marched north crossed the river at Abensberg and moved south to Kirchdorf Here the Bavarians and Wurttembergers found Bianchi with his reinforced brigade and a cavalry squadron 36 Reuss soon arrived with Radetzky s two battalions 37 Around 2 00 PM a sharp combat took place after which the Austrians retreated to the southeast 38 According to one account General of Division Jean Victor Tharreau s cavalry of the II Corps also became involved at Kirchdorf 39 Pressed by Wrede s 7th Bavarian Infantry Regiment plus two of Hugel s Wurttemberg battalions 37 Radetzky conducted an orderly retreat on the Siegenburg road covered by the grenzers and Kienmayer s grenadiers under General Major Konstantin Ghilian Karl d Aspre He managed to shepherd the V Armeekorps trains safely through Pfeffenhausen before the Bavarians cut him off Wrede pursued aggressively and scooped up many prisoners but failed to capture the bridge which the Austrians burned 40 Even so the Bavarians kept up the pressure crossing the shallow Grosse Laber at 11 00 PM to attack Radetzky fell back to a hill called the Hornbach where his rear guard skirmished with the Bavarians into the early morning hours 41 When Vincent s column neared Rottenburg he found the road jammed with the III Armeekorps trains A charge by the Rosenberg Chevauxlegers halted the French cuirassiers long enough for his infantry to gain solid positions on the east side of the Grosse Laber Hiller arrived at Rottenburg in the late afternoon and ordered a counterattack at 7 00 PM Vincent swung his left brigade forward and quickly overran a Bavarian unit capturing 300 troops Soon after the Deutschmeister Infantry Regiment 4 got into a vicious firefight with Bavarian and French infantry In the twilight the Austrians were forced back by superior numbers with 600 casualties but they had finally stopped their enemies 42 Regensburg edit nbsp Prince LiechtensteinOn 20 April the Austrian II Armeekorps continued attacking Colonel Louis Coutard s 65th Line Infantry Regiment at Regensburg A French convoy sent to replenish the critically low ammunition supply was ambushed by Austrian cavalry at 8 00 AM 43 The French troops finally ran out of ammunition and Coutard asked Kollowrat for a 24 hour truce after which he promised to surrender if not relieved The Austrian commander foolishly agreed to the terms 44 However Liechtenstein s column soon appeared from the south Liechtenstein pointed out that the existing truce did not apply to him and demanded an immediate surrender Coutard thereupon capitulated at 5 00 PM 44 The French sappers had found it impossible to demolish the sturdily built Regensburg bridge The intact bridge later played a key factor in the escape of Charles army 45 In two days of fighting the French lost 11 officers and about 200 soldiers killed and wounded plus 1 988 captured Austrian losses were 73 dead 220 wounded and 85 missing for a total of 378 casualties During the struggle the French captured 75 troops and one color all of which were recovered 46 When Kollowrat finally reported the II Armeekorps available for duty that evening the headquarters ordered his troops to make an overnight march west to Hemau on the north bank of the Danube In the morning the tired troops were recalled to Regensburg from their pointless ramble 47 Aftermath editArnold lists 1 107 Allied casualties including 746 Bavarians He gives Austrian losses as 492 killed 2 219 wounded and nearly 4 000 captured or a total of 6 711 The French also captured eight colors and 12 cannons 48 Digby Smith notes Allied casualties as 34 dead and 438 wounded but this seems to count only the German allied troops Austrian total losses are given as 6 872 including 3 000 to 4 000 captured The 2nd battalion of the Broder Grenz Mesko s brigade was annihilated with 18 officers and 1 040 rank and file counted as lost Smith gives killed wounded captured and missing but the numbers only add up to 5 824 so they are not listed 49 Petre lists 2 710 Austrians killed and wounded plus about 4 000 captured Altogether the 42 000 troops of Hiller s three corps left wing faced 55 000 French and their German allies Only about 25 000 Austrians and an equal number of Allies were engaged in action 2 More recent scholarship by John H Gill attributes losses of 7 200 men and 12 guns to Austrian forces and 1 000 to French and French allied forces 3 nbsp Davout was not disturbed on 20 April That evening as the extent of Thierry and Schustekh s disaster became known Hiller resolved to pull his three corps behind the Isar at Landshut In this decision he was also influenced by Massena s move against his left rear and unfavorable reports from Archduke Louis This crucial decision meant that the Austrian left wing would in the near future operate independently from Archduke Charles main body Hiller would only reunite with his army commander on 15 May north of Vienna 50 While Napoleon savaged his left wing Archduke Charles remained amazingly inert 51 At 6 00 AM the archduke was with Prince Rosenberg and at 7 30 AM he sent orders to Archduke Louis and then wrote a letter to Emperor Francis I of Austria But from 11 00 AM until 6 30 PM the Austrian generalissimo failed to issue any orders He either became obsessed with capturing Regensburg or he had an epileptic seizure during which he is supposed to have locked himself in his quarters 52 The epileptic attack is probable but there is a possibility it may be a cover story for Charles failure to exercise command 53 What is known is that the Austrian III IV and I Reserve Armeekorps did not disturb Davout s remaining three divisions under Generals of Division Louis Friant Saint Hilaire and Montbrun on 20 April 51 Despite being outnumbered Napoleon s 113 000 troops split the 161 000 strung out Austrians into two forces Charles five corps including 48 000 additional troops of the I and II Armeekorps north of Regensburg lay to the north while Hiller s three corps fell back to Landshut Massena and Oudinot s 57 000 soldiers are not counted in Napoleon s total 54 Both Austrian forces had to fight a second major battle each Hiller fought the Battle of Landshut on 21 April while Charles engaged in the Battle of Eckmuhl on the 22nd 55 Order of battle editThe following is an abbreviated order of battle Complete orders of battle are found in the Abensberg 1809 Order of Battle Austrian forces edit nbsp Johann von HillerLeft Wing Feldmarschall Leutnant Johann von Hiller VI Armeekorps Feldmarschall Leutnant Johann von Hiller 35 639 Strength only 19 Order of battle 56 Reserve Artillery Feldmarschall Leutnant Karl von Rouvroy 24 guns Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Friedrich Kottulinsky Brigade General Major Otto Hohenfeld 6 battalions 8 guns Brigade General Major Nikolaus Weissenwolf 6 battalions 8 guns Divisional Artillery 6 guns Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Franz Jellacic Jellacic detached at Munich Brigade General Major Konstantin Ettingshausen 6 battalions 8 guns Detached at Munich Brigade General Major Karl Dollmayer von Provencheres 5 battalions 8 squadrons 14 guns Detached at Munich Hoffmeister s brigade belonged to Jellacic but it was exchanged for Dollmayer von Provencheres brigade of the Light Division at the beginning of the conflict 57 Divisional Artillery 6 guns Light Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Karl von Vincent Brigade General Major Josef Hoffmeister 6 battalions 8 guns 57 Brigade General Major Armand von Nordmann 2 battalions 16 squadrons 14 guns Detached at Moosburg nbsp Archduke LouisV Armeekorps Feldmarschall Leutnant Archduke Louis 32 266 Strength only 9 18 Reserve Artillery Major Adam Pfefferkorn 18 guns Brigade General Major Ludwig Thierry 6 battalions 8 guns Attached from III Armeekorps Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Karl Friedrich von Lindenau Detached to I Reserve Armeekorps Brigade General Major Anton Mayer von Heldensfeld 6 battalions 8 guns Brigade General Major Ignaz Buol von Berenburg 6 battalions 8 guns Divisional Artillery 6 guns Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss Plauen Brigade General Major Frederick Bianchi Duke of Casalanza 6 battalions 8 guns Brigade General Major Franz Johann Schulz von Rothacker 6 battalions Divisional Artillery 6 guns Light Division Feldmarschall Leutnant Emmanuel von Schustekh Herve Brigade General Major Joseph Baron von Mesko de Felso Kubiny 2 battalions 8 squadrons 8 guns Brigade General Major Joseph Radetzky von Radetz 2 battalions 8 squadrons 6 guns II Reserve Armeekorps Feldmarschall Leutnant Michael von Kienmayer 7 975 Strength only 19 Order of battle 58 Brigade General Major Konstantin Ghilian Karl d Aspre 5 grenadier battalions 8 guns Brigade General Major Andreas von Schneller 12 squadrons 6 guns Detached to I Reserve Armeekorps Brigade General Major Josef von Clary 12 squadrons 6 guns 4 squadrons attached to Thierry French Allied forces edit Grande Armee Napoleon I of France nbsp Jean LannesProvisional Corps Marshal Jean Lannes 59 Cavalry Brigade General of Brigade Charles Claude Jacquinot 9 squadrons Attached from Montbrun 1st Division General of Division Charles Antoine Morand 11 065 Attached from III Corps Brigade General of Brigade Nicolas Bernard Guiot de Lacour 9 battalions Brigade General of Brigade Francois l Huillier de Hoff 61st Line Infantry Regiment 3 battalions 65th Line Infantry Regiment 3 battalions Regiment detached at Regensburg Divisional Artillery 12 guns 3rd Division General of Division Charles Etienne Gudin de La Sablonniere 11 440 Attached from III Corps Brigade General of Brigade Claude Petit 3 battalions Brigade General of Brigade Pierre Boyer 6 battalions Brigade General of Brigade Jean Duppelin 6 battalions Divisional Artillery 12 guns 1st Heavy Cavalry Division General of Division Etienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty 5 337 Attached from Reserve Brigade General of Brigade Jean Marie Defrance 8 squadrons Brigade General of Brigade Jean Pierre Doumerc 8 squadrons Brigade General of Brigade Antoine Louis Decrest de Saint Germain 8 squadrons Divisional Artillery 12 guns 2nd Heavy Cavalry Division General of Division Raymond Gaspard de Bonardi de Saint Sulpice 3 411 Attached from III Corps Brigade General of Brigade Francois Marie Clement de la Ronciere 8 squadrons One brigade guarding Saal It is not known which brigade was detached 60 Brigade General of Brigade Marie Adrien Francois Guiton 8 squadrons Divisional Artillery 6 guns nbsp Francois LefebvreVII Bavarian Corps Marshal Francois Joseph Lefebvre 61 Artillery Reserve Colonel Calonge 18 guns 1st Bavarian Division Lieutenant General Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria Brigade General Major Rechberg 5 battalions Brigade General Major Stengel 4 battalions Cavalry Brigade General Major Zandt 6 squadrons Divisional Artillery 18 guns 2nd Bavarian Division Lieutenant General Karl Philipp von Wrede Brigade General Major Minuzzi 5 battalions Brigade General Major Beckers 4 battalions Cavalry Brigade General Major Preysing 8 squadrons Divisional Artillery 18 guns 3rd Bavarian Division Lieutenant General Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy Not engaged Brigade General Major Siebein 5 battalions Brigade General Major Vincenti 5 battalions Cavalry Brigade General Major Seydewitz 8 squadrons Divisional Artillery 18 guns nbsp VandammeWurttemberg later VIII Corps General of Division Dominique Vandamme 62 Reserve Artillery Colonel Schnadow 22 guns Wurttemberg Division Lieutenant General Neubronn Brigade General Major Friedrich von Franquemont 5 battalions Brigade General Major Scharfenstein 5 battalions Light Brigade General Major Hugel 3 battalions Wurttemberg Cavalry Division Lieutenant General Wollwarth Brigade General Major Roeder 8 squadrons Brigade General Major Stettner 8 squadrons See also editBattle of Teugen Hausen 19 April 1809 Battle of Landshut 21 April 1809 Battle of Eckmuhl 21 22 April 1809 Battle of Ratisbon 23 April 1809 Battle of Neumarkt Sankt Veit 24 April 1809Notes edit a b Bodart 1908 p 398 a b c d Petre 1976 p 139 a b c d Gill 2014 p 235 Chandler 1966 p 677 Chandler 1966 pp 678 679 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 p 73 Chandler 1966 pp 682 683 Arnold 1990 pp 83 84 a b Arnold 1990 p 90 Arnold 1990 pp 85 93 Arnold 1990 p 84 Smith 1998 p 289 Arnold 1990 p 105 map Arnold 1990 p 101 a b Arnold 1990 p 104 a b c Arnold 1990 p 107 Arnold 1990 p 74 a b Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 pp 69 70 a b c d Arnold 1990 p 235 Arnold 1990 p 175 Arnold 1990 p 78 Arnold 1990 p 105 a b Arnold 1990 p 110 Petre 1976 p 133n Arnold 1990 pp 104 105 Petre 1976 p 134 Petre 1976 p 136 Castle 1998 p 41 Petre 1976 pp 134 135 Arnold 1990 pp 110 111 Arnold 1990 pp 111 112 Arnold 1990 p 108 Arnold 1990 p 112 Petre 1976 p 137 Arnold 1990 pp 107 108 Arnold 1990 pp 114 115 a b Petre 1976 p 138 Arnold 1990 p 115 Castle 1998 p 46 Arnold 1990 p 116 Arnold 1990 p 137 Arnold 1990 pp 113 114 Arnold 1990 pp 119 120 a b Arnold 1990 p 119 Arnold 1990 p 100 Smith 1998 pp 288 289 Arnold 1990 p 125 Arnold 1990 p 120 Smith 1998 p 290 Arnold 1990 pp 116 117 a b Arnold 1990 p 118 Petre 1976 pp 143 144 Arnold 1990 p 213 Chandler 1966 p 685 map Smith 1998 pp 290 291 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 pp 70 71 a b Arnold 1990 p 260 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 p 72 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 pp 57 59 Petre 1976 p 133 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 pp 61 62 Bowden amp Tarbox 1989 p 62 References editArnold James R 1990 Crisis on the Danube Napoleon s Austrian Campaign of 1809 New York Paragon House ISBN 1 55778 137 0 Bodart Gaston 1908 Militar historisches Kriegs Lexikon 1618 1905 Retrieved 12 June 2021 Bowden Scotty Tarbox Charlie 1989 Armies on the Danube 1809 Arlington Texas The Emperor s Press ISBN 0 913037 08 7 Castle Ian 1998 Eggmuhl 1809 Storm over Bavaria Oxford Osprey Chandler David 1966 The Campaigns of Napoleon New York Macmillan Gill John H 2014 1809 Thunder on the Danube Napoleon s Defeat of the Habsburgs Vol 1 London Frontline Books ISBN 978 184415 713 6 Petre F Loraine 1976 Napoleon and the Archduke Charles New York Hippocrene Books Smith Digby 1998 The Napoleonic Wars Data Book London Greenhill ISBN 1 85367 276 9 Further reading editActon Lord 1906 The Cambridge Modern History Cambridge Cambridge University Press Arnold James R 1995 Napoleon Conquers Austria Westport Conn Praeger Publishers ISBN 0 275 94694 0 Baker Ralph 2006 Gregory Fremont Barnes ed The Encyclopedia of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars Santa Barbara ABC CLIO Barton D Plunket 1921 Bernadotte and Napoleon 1763 1810 London John Murray Retrieved 17 June 2021 Bourienne M de 1836 Memoires of Napoleon Bonaparte Vol II London Castle Ian 1994 Chandler David G ed Aspern and Wagram 1809 Osprey Military Campaign Series 33 ISBN 1 85532 366 4 Chandler David 1979 Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars London Arms and Armour Press ISBN 9780853683537 Retrieved 12 June 2021 Chandler David 1979 Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars New York Macmillan ISBN 0 02 523670 9 Chandler David 1966 The Campaigns of Napoleon Weidenfeld and Nicolson ISBN 9780025236608 Retrieved 13 June 2021 Chandler David 1998 Napoleon s Marshals London Weidenfeld and Nicolson Chandler David 1993 Jena 1806 Napoleon destroys Prussia Bloomsbury Chandler David 2005 Jena 1806 Napoleon destroys Prussia Westport Conn Praeger Publishers ISBN 0 275 98612 8 Dunn Pattinson R P 1909 Napoleon s Marshals London Methuen amp Co Eggenberger David 1985 An Encyclopedia of Battles Accounts of Over 1 560 Battles from 1479 B C to the Present New York Dover Publications ISBN 0 486 24913 1 Epstein Robert M 1994 Napoleon s Last Victory and the Emergence of Modern War Lawrence Kansas University Press of Kansas ISBN 0 7006 0664 5 Esposito Vincent J Elting John R 1964 A Military History and Atlas of the Napoleonic Wars New York Praeger Gallaher John G 2000 The Iron Marshal A Biography of Louis N Davout Barnsley Frontline ISBN 978 1526796998 Gill John H 1992 With Eagles to Glory Napoleon and His German Allies in the 1809 Campaign Greenhill Books Haythornthwaite Philip J 1990 The Napoleonic Source Book Guild Publishing ISBN 978 1854092878 Herold J Christopher 1963 The Age of Napoleon New York American Heritage Publishing Co Hollins David 2006 Fremont Barnes ed The Encyclopedia of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars Santa Barbara ABC CLIO ISBN 1 85109 646 9 Kagan Frederick W 2006 The End of the Old Order Napoleon and Europe 1801 1805 Cambridge Massachusetts Da Capo Press ISBN 0 306 81137 5 Leggiere Michael V 2002 Napoleon and Berlin The Franco Prussian War in North Germany 1813 University of Oklahoma Press Petre F Loraine 1993 1907 Napoleon s Conquest of Prussia 1806 London Lionel Leventhal Ltd ISBN 1 85367 145 2 Petre F Loraine 1914 Napoleon s Conquest of Prussia 1806 John Lane company Retrieved 17 June 2021 Petre F Loraine 1976 1907 Napoleon s Campaign in Poland 1806 1807 London Lionel Leventhal Ltd Pigeard Alain 2004 Dictionnaire des batailles de Napoleon in French Tallandier Bibliotheque Napoleonienne ISBN 2 84734 073 4 Rothenberg Gunther E 1995 Napoleon s Great Adversary Archduke Charles and the Austrian Army 1792 1814 Sarpedon ISBN 1 885119 21 6 Rothenberg Gunther E 2004 The Emperor s Last Victory Weidenfeld amp Nicolson ISBN 0 297 84672 8 Rothenberg Gunther E 1982 Napoleon s Great Adversaries The Archduke Charles and the Austrian Army 1792 1814 Bloomington Ind Indiana University Press ISBN 0 253 33969 3 Rothenberg Gunther E 1980 The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon Bloomington Ind Indiana University Press ISBN 0 253 31076 8 Russell Lord of Liverpool 1981 Bernadotte London Ascent Schneid Frederick C 1995 Napoleon s Italian Campaigns 1805 1815 Westport Conn Praeger Publishers ISBN 0 275 96875 8 Tulard Jean 1999 Dictionnaire Napoleon in French Vol II Librairie Arteme Fayard ISBN 2 213 60485 1 External links editThe following two websites are excellent sources for the full names of French and Austrian generals French Wikipedia Liste des generaux de la Revolution et du Premier Empire napoleon series org Austrian Generals 1792 1815 by Digby Smith compiled by Leopold Kudrna nbsp Media related to Battle of Abensberg at Wikimedia CommonsPreceded byBattle of Raszyn 1809 Napoleonic WarsBattle of Abensberg Succeeded byBattle of Landshut 1809 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Battle of Abensberg amp oldid 1150874976, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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