fbpx
Wikipedia

VI Corps (Grande Armée)

March 10, 2023

The VI Corps of the Grande Armée was a French military unit that existed during the Napoleonic Wars. It was formed at the Camp de Boulogne and assigned to Marshal Michel Ney. From 1805 to 1811, the VI Corps fought under Ney's command in the 1805 Austrian Campaign: War of the Third Coalition, Prussian Campaign of 1806 and Polish Campaign of 1807 of the War of the Fourth Coalition. General Jean Gabriel Marchand was in charge of the corps for a period when Ney went on leave. The VI Corps was revived in 1812 for the French invasion of Russia and placed under Marshal Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr. It consisted entirely of Bavarian soldiers at that time. During the disastrous retreat from Moscow, the corps was virtually destroyed. In 1813, during the War of the Sixth Coalition, it was rebuilt and reorganized with French troops. Marshal Auguste de Marmont took command of the corps and managed it until Napoleon's abdication in 1814. It took part in many battles including Dresden and Leipzig in 1813. During the War of the Seventh Coalition, General Georges Mouton commanded the VI Corps at the Battle of Waterloo.

History

1805–1807

 
The Battle of Elchingen, engraving by Johann Lorenz Rugendas

Under the command of Ney, the VI Corps crossed the Rhine near Karlsruhe on the evening of 24–25 September, 1805 at the start of the War of the Third Coalition. On 2 October, Napoleon's advancing Grande Armée began to wheel to the right, aiming for the Danube River, with Ney's corps on the right as the pivot. The army reached the Danube near Donauwörth and the troops began to cross to the south bank on 7 October. However, the VI Corps remained on the north bank.[1] On 9 October, Ney's 3rd Division under General Malher defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Günzburg. Two days later, General Pierre Dupont's 1st Division found itself facing 25,000 Austrians in the Battle of Haslach-Jungingen. Surprisingly, the badly outnumbered French fended off the enemy all day, before the discouraged Austrians finally retreated. On 14 October, Ney fought General Johann Sigismund Riesch's small corps at the Battle of Elchingen. Using General Loison's 2nd Division, supported by Malher, Ney crushed Riesch's troops with heavy losses.[2]

 
The Battle of Jena, by Carle Vernet

Thereafter, Dupont's division and Jacques Louis François Delaistre de Tilly's VI Corps cavalry assisted Marshal Joachim Murat in the destruction of General Franz von Werneck's Austrian corps.[3] Later, Dupont's division was detached from the corps and fought at the Battle of Dürrenstein on 11 November.[4] With the other two divisions, Ney marched into the Tyrol where one column was repulsed at Scharnitz but a second column captured 900 Austrians at Leutasch. Both actions occurred on 4 November 1805.[5]

The corps fought at the Battle of Jena on 14 October 1806 during the War of the Fourth Coalition.[6] Ney's troops were engaged in the Siege of Magdeburg beginning on 22 October. General Franz Kasimir von Kleist surrendered on 11 November with 22,000 Prussian soldiers, 800 officers, 20 generals, and 700 artillery pieces.[7] On 25 December, Marchand, with 6,000 men and 12 guns, defeated 3,000 Prussians at the Battle of Soldau.[8] The corps arrived at 7:15 PM on 8 February 1807 at the Battle of Eylau.[9] Ney's 17,000 men held off 63,000 Russians in a brilliant rear guard action in the Battle of Guttstadt-Deppen on 5 and 6 June.[10] The corps led the successful counterattack at the Battle of Friedland on 14 June 1807.[11]

1812–1814

 
The Battle of Polotsk, 18 August 1812

The VI Corps was reconstituted for the invasion of Russia and placed under the command of General Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr. The corps was composed entirely of Bavarian soldiers.[12] At the First Battle of Polotsk on 16 to 18 August 1812, the Bavarians and the French II Corps together suffered 6,000 casualties, including Bavarian Generals Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy and Siebein killed, and Vincenti and Raglowitsch wounded.[13] Saint-Cyr won his marshal's baton for this costly victory.[14] The corps fought in the Second Battle of Polotsk on 18 to 20 October. This time, the combined Bavarian and French forces sustained 8,000 to 9,000 casualties before withdrawing to the southwest.[15] A body of 2,100 surviving Bavarians was captured at Thorn on 16 April 1813 after a two-month siege.[16]

The corps was rebuilt as a French formation in the spring of 1813. Under Marshal Marmont, the corps fought at the Battle of Lützen on 2 May. The 20th Division under General Compans and the 21st Division under General Jean Pierre François Bonet participated in the engagement.[17] On 20 and 21 May, Marmont led the VI Corps at the Battle of Bautzen. On this occasion, General Friedrichs' 22nd Division joined the other two divisions in the fighting.[18] After the summer armistice expired, the corps fought at the Battle of Dresden on 26 and 27 August. Lagrange replaced Bonet as commander of the 21st Division.[19] During the Battle of Leipzig, Marmont defended the northern sector against Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher's Prussian forces. After bitter fighting on 16 October, the VI Corps was defeated when the Prussians launched a massed cavalry charge. Two days later, the Württemberger cavalry belonging to the corps defected to the Allies.[20] The formation fought against the Bavarians at the Battle of Hanau on 30 and 31 October.[21]

 
The Battle of Paris, 30 March 1814, by Horace Vernet

The following spring, Marmont led the VI Corps during the Six Days' Campaign. At the Battle of Champaubert on 10 February 1814, they destroyed an understrength Russian corps and captured its commander. Marmont was left to observe part of Blücher's army while Napoleon fell upon the rest.[22] While Marmont capably held off Blücher's advance, Napoleon concentrated his forces behind him. At the Battle of Vauchamps on 14 February, Napoleon attacked Blücher and drove him from the field.[23] In these engagements, Lagrange led the 3rd Division while General Étienne Pierre Sylvestre Ricard directed the 8th Division.[24] Marmont led his men in a minor victory at Gué-à-Tresmes on 28 February.[25] The corps fought again in the Battle of Craonne on 7 March.[26]

 
Fighting at Plancenoit during the Battle of Waterloo, 18 June 1815, by Ludwig Elsholtz

At the Battle of Laon on 9 March, the 10,000 troops of the corps arrived in the early afternoon and captured some positions east of Laon. Satisfied, Marmont called off the attack and the troops went into bivouac. Without warning, Blücher launched an attack in the evening, routing the VI Corps. Two pieces of luck allowed Marmont and his men to escape. General Charles Nicolas Fabvier, sent on a mission with 1,000 men, returned to keep the road open. Meanwhile, 125 soldiers of the Old Guard held off waves of Allied cavalry to hold the Festieux defile.[27] At the Battle of Reims on 13 March, Marmont's corps helped recapture the city.[28] At the Battle of Fère-Champenoise on 25 March, the VI Corps and other troops proved unable to stop the advance of the Coalition armies.[29] After the Battle of Paris, the French abandoned the capital to the Allies. By this time, the VI Corps was a mere shadow of its former self. It went into action with Lagrange's 1,395 troops, Ricard's 726 men, and General Jean-Toussaint Arrighi de Casanova's 1,250 soldiers. As a result of the loss of Paris, Napoleon abdicated on 6 April 1814.[30]

1815

During the Hundred Days, Napoleon reconstituted the corps and appointed Mouton as its commander. The corps arrived in the evening after the Battle of Ligny on 16 June 1815 and camped close to the Prussian outposts.[31] The next day, Napoleon ordered Mouton to march his corps west to a position where it could attack Wellington's British army and attached General Subervie's light cavalry division. At the same time, General Teste's division was detached from the corps to operate with Marshal Emmanuel de Grouchy's right wing.[32]

On the morning of the 18th at the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon placed the VI Corps in the second line, with the divisions of Generals Simmer and Jeanin one behind the other just to the west of the Charleroi to Brussels highway.[33] When the approach of the Prussian Army was detected, Lobau's two divisions were moved to the east flank, behind the division of General Durutte and facing east.[34] At about 4:00 PM, General von Bülow gave the order to attack and Lobau found himself outnumbered three-to-one by the Prussians. He quickly shifted his position to occupy Plancenoit with his right flank brigade while the rest of his infantry and the light cavalry divisions of Generals Subervie and Domon covered the left flank. This was the start of a brutal fight for the village.[35] When the Prussians began to overrun the village, the 4,200-strong Young Guard arrived and drove them out.[36] As the reinforced Prussians again began to press forward, 1,100 soldiers of the Old Guard attacked and recaptured Plancenoit. This triumph helped Lobau's troops hold the line north of the village.[37] Eventually, the Prussians cleared the village in vicious no-quarter fighting that went on into the evening.[38] Unaware that Napoleon's army was routed at Waterloo, Teste's detached division attacked and captured the hamlet of Bierges on the morning of the 19th during the Battle of Wavre. This local success forced the Prussian III Corps to retreat.[39]

Order of battle

Ulm: September 1805

 
Marshal Michel Ney commanded the VI Corps from 1805 to 1811.

Marshal Michel Ney

Source: Smith (1998, pp. 203–204)

Jena: October 1806

VI Corps Commander: Marshal Michel Ney (19,267 men, 24 guns), Chief of Staff: General of Brigade Adrien Jean Baptiste Dutaillis
Division Brigade Regiment Btns/Sqdns/Comps
1st Division:
General of Division Jean Gabriel Marchand 		Brigade:
General of Brigade Eugène-Casimir Villatte 		6th Light Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
Brigade:
General of Brigade François Roguet 		39th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
69th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
76th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
2nd Division:
General of Division Gaspard Amédée Gardanne 		Brigade:
General of Brigade Pierre-Louis Binet de Marcognet 		25th Light Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
Brigade:
General of Brigade Mathieu Delabassé 		27th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
50th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
59th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd
Corps Cavalry Brigade:
General of Brigade Auguste François-Marie de Colbert-Chabanais 		10th Chasseurs à Cheval Regiment 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
3rd Hussar Regiment 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
Corps Artillery
1,323 gunners and train 		Artillery:
4 12-pound cannons
12 8-pound cannons
4 4-pound cannons
4 6-inch howitzers 		1st Foot Artillery Regiment 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th
2nd Horse Artillery Regiment 1st and 5th

Source: Chandler (2005, p. 36)

Polotsk: August 1812

 
Marshal Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr commanded the corps in Russia.

General of Division Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr (23,228 infantry in 28 battalions)

  • 19th (Bavarian) Division: General-Leutnant Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy †
    • 1st Light Infantry Battalion
    • 1st Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 9th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 3rd Light Infantry Battalion
    • 4th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 10th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 6th Light Infantry Battalion
    • 8th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
  • 20th (Bavarian) Division: General-Leutnant Karl Philipp von Wrede
    • 2nd Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 6th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 4th Light Infantry Battalion
    • 3rd Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 7th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 5th Light Infantry Battalion
    • 5th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
    • 11th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
  • Cavalry: (1,906 in 16 squadrons)
  • Artillery: (55 guns)

Source: Chandler (1966, p. 1111); Smith (1998, p. 386)

Leipzig: October 1813

 
Marshal Auguste Marmont led the VI Corps in 1813 and 1814.

Marshal Auguste de Marmont

  • 20th Division: General of Division Jean Dominique Compans (5,079)
    • Brigade: General of Brigade Pierre Pelleport
      • 32nd Light Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
      • 1st Naval Artillery Regiment (Imperial Naval Corps) (5 battalions)
    • Brigade: Joseph-Antoine-René Joubert
      • 3rd Naval Artillery Regiment (Imperial Naval Corps) (3 battalions)
      • 20th Provisional Demi-Brigade (2 battalions)
      • 25th Provisional Demi-Brigade (2 battalions)
    • Artillery: Two foot artillery batteries (16 guns)
  • 21st Division: General of Division Joseph Lagrange (5,543)
    • Brigade: Charles-Joseph Buquet
      • 2nd Naval Artillery Regiment (Imperial Naval Corps) (6 battalions)
    • Brigade: Jean Baptiste Jamin
      • 37th Light Infantry Regiment (4 battalions)
      • 4th Naval Artillery Regiment (Imperial Naval Corps) (3 battalions)
      • Joseph Napoleon's Regiment (1 battalion)
    • Artillery: Two foot artillery batteries (16 guns)
  • 22nd Division: General of Division Jean Parfait Friedrichs (4,720)
    • Brigade: Claude Gabriel de Choisy
      • 70th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
      • 121st Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
      • 16th Provisional Demi-Brigade (2 battalions)
    • Brigade: Louis Jacques de Coehorn
      • 23rd Light Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
      • 15th Line Infantry Regiment (2 battalions)
      • 11th Provisional Demi-Brigade (2 battalions)
      • 13th Provisional Demi-Brigade (2 battalions)
    • Artillery: Two foot artillery batteries (16 guns)
  • 25th Cavalry Brigade: General-Major von Normann (935) – Kingdom of Württemberg
    • Life Light Horse Regiment Nr. 2 (4 squadrons)
    • King's Mounted Jägers Nr. 4 (4 squadrons)
    • Artillery: One horse artillery battery (6 guns)
  • Artillery reserve: General of Division Louis François Foucher de Careil
    • 16 x 12-pounder guns in two foot artillery batteries
    • 12 x 6-pounder guns in one horse and one foot artillery batteries

Source: Operational Studies Group (1979); Smith (1998, p. 463)

Waterloo: June 1815

 
General Georges Mouton commanded the VI Corps at Waterloo.

General of Division Georges Mouton, Count of Lobau

  • 19th Division: General of Division François Martin Valentin Simmer
    • 1st Brigade: General of Brigade Antoine Alexandre Julienne de Bellair
      • 5th Line Infantry Regiment
      • 11th Line Infantry Regiment
    • 2nd Brigade: General of Brigade Jean Baptiste Auguste Marie Jamin de Bermuy †
  • 20th Division: General of Brigade Jean-Baptiste Jeanin
    • 1st Brigade: General of Brigade François Bony
      • 5th Light Infantry Regiment
      • 10th Line Infantry Regiment
    • 2nd Brigade: General of Brigade Jacques Jean Marie François Boudin Tromelin
      • 107th Line Infantry Regiment
  • 21st Division: General of Division François Antoine Teste
    • 1st Brigade: General of Brigade Michel-Pascal Lafitte
      • 8th Light Infantry Regiment
    • 2nd Brigade: General of Brigade Raymond-Pierre Penne †
      • 65th Line Infantry Regiment
      • 75th Line Infantry Regiment
  • Artillery: General of Division Henri Marie Lenoury
    • Four foot artillery batteries
    • One horse artillery battery

Footnotes

  1. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 390–395
  2. ^ Smith 203–204
  3. ^ Smith, 205–206
  4. ^ Smith, 213
  5. ^ Smith, 211
  6. ^ Smith, 223–224
  7. ^ Smith, 232
  8. ^ Smith, 235
  9. ^ Smith, 241
  10. ^ Smith, 246–247
  11. ^ Smith, 249
  12. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 1111
  13. ^ Smith, 386
  14. ^ Chandler Marshals, 128
  15. ^ Smith, 396
  16. ^ Smith, 415
  17. ^ Smith, 417
  18. ^ Smith, 420
  19. ^ Smith, 444
  20. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 931
  21. ^ Smith, 474
  22. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 969–970
  23. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 974–975
  24. ^ Smith, 496
  25. ^ Smith, 505
  26. ^ Smith, 507–508
  27. ^ Chandler Campaigns, 989–990
  28. ^ Smith, 511
  29. ^ Smith, 513–514
  30. ^ Smith, 515–517
  31. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 232
  32. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 245
  33. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 267
  34. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 283
  35. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 327–328
  36. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 335–336
  37. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 338
  38. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 338
  39. ^ Hamilton-Williams, 352–354

References

  • Chandler, David G. (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan.
  • Chandler, David G. (2005). Jena 1806: Napoleon Destroys Prussia. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-98612-8.
  • Chandler, David G., ed. (1987). Napoleon's Marshals. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan. ISBN 0-02-905930-5.
  • 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.
  • Haythornthwaite, Philip (1974). Uniforms of Waterloo. New York, NY: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-283-4.
  • Operational Studies Group (1979). Napoleon at Leipzig war game study folder.
  • Schneid, Frederick C. (2002). Napoleon's Italian Campaigns: 1805-1815. Westport, Conn.: Praeger Publishers. ISBN 0-275-96875-8.
  • Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.

March 10, 2023
corps, grande, armée, corps, grande, armée, french, military, unit, that, existed, during, napoleonic, wars, formed, camp, boulogne, assigned, marshal, michel, from, 1805, 1811, corps, fought, under, command, 1805, austrian, campaign, third, coalition, prussia. The VI Corps of the Grande Armee was a French military unit that existed during the Napoleonic Wars It was formed at the Camp de Boulogne and assigned to Marshal Michel Ney From 1805 to 1811 the VI Corps fought under Ney s command in the 1805 Austrian Campaign War of the Third Coalition Prussian Campaign of 1806 and Polish Campaign of 1807 of the War of the Fourth Coalition General Jean Gabriel Marchand was in charge of the corps for a period when Ney went on leave The VI Corps was revived in 1812 for the French invasion of Russia and placed under Marshal Laurent Gouvion Saint Cyr It consisted entirely of Bavarian soldiers at that time During the disastrous retreat from Moscow the corps was virtually destroyed In 1813 during the War of the Sixth Coalition it was rebuilt and reorganized with French troops Marshal Auguste de Marmont took command of the corps and managed it until Napoleon s abdication in 1814 It took part in many battles including Dresden and Leipzig in 1813 During the War of the Seventh Coalition General Georges Mouton commanded the VI Corps at the Battle of Waterloo VI CorpsActive1805 18071812 18141815Country First French EmpireBranch French Imperial ArmySizeCorpsPart ofGrande ArmeeEngagementsWar of the Third CoalitionWar of the Fourth CoalitionWar of the Fifth CoalitionRussian CampaignWar of the Sixth CoalitionWar of the Seventh CoalitionCommandersNotablecommandersAuguste de MarmontGeorges MoutonMichel NeyLaurent Gouvion Saint Cyr Contents 1 History 1 1 1805 1807 1 2 1812 1814 1 3 1815 2 Order of battle 2 1 Ulm September 1805 2 2 Jena October 1806 2 3 Polotsk August 1812 2 4 Leipzig October 1813 2 5 Waterloo June 1815 3 Footnotes 4 ReferencesHistory Edit1805 1807 Edit The Battle of Elchingen engraving by Johann Lorenz Rugendas Under the command of Ney the VI Corps crossed the Rhine near Karlsruhe on the evening of 24 25 September 1805 at the start of the War of the Third Coalition On 2 October Napoleon s advancing Grande Armee began to wheel to the right aiming for the Danube River with Ney s corps on the right as the pivot The army reached the Danube near Donauworth and the troops began to cross to the south bank on 7 October However the VI Corps remained on the north bank 1 On 9 October Ney s 3rd Division under General Malher defeated the Austrians at the Battle of Gunzburg Two days later General Pierre Dupont s 1st Division found itself facing 25 000 Austrians in the Battle of Haslach Jungingen Surprisingly the badly outnumbered French fended off the enemy all day before the discouraged Austrians finally retreated On 14 October Ney fought General Johann Sigismund Riesch s small corps at the Battle of Elchingen Using General Loison s 2nd Division supported by Malher Ney crushed Riesch s troops with heavy losses 2 The Battle of Jena by Carle Vernet Thereafter Dupont s division and Jacques Louis Francois Delaistre de Tilly s VI Corps cavalry assisted Marshal Joachim Murat in the destruction of General Franz von Werneck s Austrian corps 3 Later Dupont s division was detached from the corps and fought at the Battle of Durrenstein on 11 November 4 With the other two divisions Ney marched into the Tyrol where one column was repulsed at Scharnitz but a second column captured 900 Austrians at Leutasch Both actions occurred on 4 November 1805 5 The corps fought at the Battle of Jena on 14 October 1806 during the War of the Fourth Coalition 6 Ney s troops were engaged in the Siege of Magdeburg beginning on 22 October General Franz Kasimir von Kleist surrendered on 11 November with 22 000 Prussian soldiers 800 officers 20 generals and 700 artillery pieces 7 On 25 December Marchand with 6 000 men and 12 guns defeated 3 000 Prussians at the Battle of Soldau 8 The corps arrived at 7 15 PM on 8 February 1807 at the Battle of Eylau 9 Ney s 17 000 men held off 63 000 Russians in a brilliant rear guard action in the Battle of Guttstadt Deppen on 5 and 6 June 10 The corps led the successful counterattack at the Battle of Friedland on 14 June 1807 11 1812 1814 Edit The Battle of Polotsk 18 August 1812 The VI Corps was reconstituted for the invasion of Russia and placed under the command of General Laurent de Gouvion Saint Cyr The corps was composed entirely of Bavarian soldiers 12 At the First Battle of Polotsk on 16 to 18 August 1812 the Bavarians and the French II Corps together suffered 6 000 casualties including Bavarian Generals Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy and Siebein killed and Vincenti and Raglowitsch wounded 13 Saint Cyr won his marshal s baton for this costly victory 14 The corps fought in the Second Battle of Polotsk on 18 to 20 October This time the combined Bavarian and French forces sustained 8 000 to 9 000 casualties before withdrawing to the southwest 15 A body of 2 100 surviving Bavarians was captured at Thorn on 16 April 1813 after a two month siege 16 The corps was rebuilt as a French formation in the spring of 1813 Under Marshal Marmont the corps fought at the Battle of Lutzen on 2 May The 20th Division under General Compans and the 21st Division under General Jean Pierre Francois Bonet participated in the engagement 17 On 20 and 21 May Marmont led the VI Corps at the Battle of Bautzen On this occasion General Friedrichs 22nd Division joined the other two divisions in the fighting 18 After the summer armistice expired the corps fought at the Battle of Dresden on 26 and 27 August Lagrange replaced Bonet as commander of the 21st Division 19 During the Battle of Leipzig Marmont defended the northern sector against Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher s Prussian forces After bitter fighting on 16 October the VI Corps was defeated when the Prussians launched a massed cavalry charge Two days later the Wurttemberger cavalry belonging to the corps defected to the Allies 20 The formation fought against the Bavarians at the Battle of Hanau on 30 and 31 October 21 The Battle of Paris 30 March 1814 by Horace Vernet The following spring Marmont led the VI Corps during the Six Days Campaign At the Battle of Champaubert on 10 February 1814 they destroyed an understrength Russian corps and captured its commander Marmont was left to observe part of Blucher s army while Napoleon fell upon the rest 22 While Marmont capably held off Blucher s advance Napoleon concentrated his forces behind him At the Battle of Vauchamps on 14 February Napoleon attacked Blucher and drove him from the field 23 In these engagements Lagrange led the 3rd Division while General Etienne Pierre Sylvestre Ricard directed the 8th Division 24 Marmont led his men in a minor victory at Gue a Tresmes on 28 February 25 The corps fought again in the Battle of Craonne on 7 March 26 Fighting at Plancenoit during the Battle of Waterloo 18 June 1815 by Ludwig Elsholtz At the Battle of Laon on 9 March the 10 000 troops of the corps arrived in the early afternoon and captured some positions east of Laon Satisfied Marmont called off the attack and the troops went into bivouac Without warning Blucher launched an attack in the evening routing the VI Corps Two pieces of luck allowed Marmont and his men to escape General Charles Nicolas Fabvier sent on a mission with 1 000 men returned to keep the road open Meanwhile 125 soldiers of the Old Guard held off waves of Allied cavalry to hold the Festieux defile 27 At the Battle of Reims on 13 March Marmont s corps helped recapture the city 28 At the Battle of Fere Champenoise on 25 March the VI Corps and other troops proved unable to stop the advance of the Coalition armies 29 After the Battle of Paris the French abandoned the capital to the Allies By this time the VI Corps was a mere shadow of its former self It went into action with Lagrange s 1 395 troops Ricard s 726 men and General Jean Toussaint Arrighi de Casanova s 1 250 soldiers As a result of the loss of Paris Napoleon abdicated on 6 April 1814 30 1815 Edit During the Hundred Days Napoleon reconstituted the corps and appointed Mouton as its commander The corps arrived in the evening after the Battle of Ligny on 16 June 1815 and camped close to the Prussian outposts 31 The next day Napoleon ordered Mouton to march his corps west to a position where it could attack Wellington s British army and attached General Subervie s light cavalry division At the same time General Teste s division was detached from the corps to operate with Marshal Emmanuel de Grouchy s right wing 32 On the morning of the 18th at the Battle of Waterloo Napoleon placed the VI Corps in the second line with the divisions of Generals Simmer and Jeanin one behind the other just to the west of the Charleroi to Brussels highway 33 When the approach of the Prussian Army was detected Lobau s two divisions were moved to the east flank behind the division of General Durutte and facing east 34 At about 4 00 PM General von Bulow gave the order to attack and Lobau found himself outnumbered three to one by the Prussians He quickly shifted his position to occupy Plancenoit with his right flank brigade while the rest of his infantry and the light cavalry divisions of Generals Subervie and Domon covered the left flank This was the start of a brutal fight for the village 35 When the Prussians began to overrun the village the 4 200 strong Young Guard arrived and drove them out 36 As the reinforced Prussians again began to press forward 1 100 soldiers of the Old Guard attacked and recaptured Plancenoit This triumph helped Lobau s troops hold the line north of the village 37 Eventually the Prussians cleared the village in vicious no quarter fighting that went on into the evening 38 Unaware that Napoleon s army was routed at Waterloo Teste s detached division attacked and captured the hamlet of Bierges on the morning of the 19th during the Battle of Wavre This local success forced the Prussian III Corps to retreat 39 Order of battle EditUlm September 1805 Edit Marshal Michel Ney commanded the VI Corps from 1805 to 1811 Marshal Michel Ney 1st Division General of Division Pierre Dupont de l Etang Brigadiers Generals of Brigade Marie Francois Rouyer Jean Gabriel Marchand 9th Light Infantry Regiment 3 battalions 32nd Line Infantry Regiment 4 battalions 96th Line Infantry Regiment 4 battalions 2nd Division General of Division Louis Henri Loison Brigadiers Generals of Brigade Eugene Casimir Villatte Francois Roguet 6th Light Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 39th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 69th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 76th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 3rd Division General of Division Jean Pierre Firmin Malher Brigadiers Generals of Brigade Mathieu Delabasse Pierre Louis Binet de Marcognet 25th Light Infantry Regiment 3 battalions 27th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 50th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 59th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions Cavalry Brigade General of Division Jacques Louis Francois Delaistre de Tilly 1st Hussar Regiment 3 squadrons 26th Chasseurs a Cheval Regiment 3 squadrons Corps Artillery unknown commanderSource Smith 1998 pp 203 204 Jena October 1806 Edit VI Corps Commander Marshal Michel Ney 19 267 men 24 guns Chief of Staff General of Brigade Adrien Jean Baptiste Dutaillis Division Brigade Regiment Btns Sqdns Comps1st Division General of Division Jean Gabriel Marchand Brigade General of Brigade Eugene Casimir Villatte 6th Light Infantry Regiment 1st and 2ndBrigade General of Brigade Francois Roguet 39th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd69th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd76th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd2nd Division General of Division Gaspard Amedee Gardanne Brigade General of Brigade Pierre Louis Binet de Marcognet 25th Light Infantry Regiment 1st and 2ndBrigade General of Brigade Mathieu Delabasse 27th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd50th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2nd59th Line Infantry Regiment 1st and 2ndCorps Cavalry Brigade General of Brigade Auguste Francois Marie de Colbert Chabanais 10th Chasseurs a Cheval Regiment 1st 2nd 3rd 4th3rd Hussar Regiment 1st 2nd 3rd 4thCorps Artillery1 323 gunners and train Artillery 4 12 pound cannons12 8 pound cannons4 4 pound cannons4 6 inch howitzers 1st Foot Artillery Regiment 9th 10th 11th 12th2nd Horse Artillery Regiment 1st and 5thSource Chandler 2005 p 36 Polotsk August 1812 Edit Marshal Laurent de Gouvion Saint Cyr commanded the corps in Russia General of Division Laurent de Gouvion Saint Cyr 23 228 infantry in 28 battalions 19th Bavarian Division General Leutnant Bernhard Erasmus von Deroy 1st Light Infantry Battalion 1st Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 9th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 3rd Light Infantry Battalion 4th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 10th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 6th Light Infantry Battalion 8th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 20th Bavarian Division General Leutnant Karl Philipp von Wrede 2nd Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 6th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 4th Light Infantry Battalion 3rd Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 7th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 5th Light Infantry Battalion 5th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 11th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions Cavalry 1 906 in 16 squadrons Artillery 55 guns Source Chandler 1966 p 1111 Smith 1998 p 386 Leipzig October 1813 Edit Marshal Auguste Marmont led the VI Corps in 1813 and 1814 Marshal Auguste de Marmont 20th Division General of Division Jean Dominique Compans 5 079 Brigade General of Brigade Pierre Pelleport 32nd Light Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 1st Naval Artillery Regiment Imperial Naval Corps 5 battalions Brigade Joseph Antoine Rene Joubert 3rd Naval Artillery Regiment Imperial Naval Corps 3 battalions 20th Provisional Demi Brigade 2 battalions 25th Provisional Demi Brigade 2 battalions Artillery Two foot artillery batteries 16 guns 21st Division General of Division Joseph Lagrange 5 543 Brigade Charles Joseph Buquet 2nd Naval Artillery Regiment Imperial Naval Corps 6 battalions Brigade Jean Baptiste Jamin 37th Light Infantry Regiment 4 battalions 4th Naval Artillery Regiment Imperial Naval Corps 3 battalions Joseph Napoleon s Regiment 1 battalion Artillery Two foot artillery batteries 16 guns 22nd Division General of Division Jean Parfait Friedrichs 4 720 Brigade Claude Gabriel de Choisy 70th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 121st Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 16th Provisional Demi Brigade 2 battalions Brigade Louis Jacques de Coehorn 23rd Light Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 15th Line Infantry Regiment 2 battalions 11th Provisional Demi Brigade 2 battalions 13th Provisional Demi Brigade 2 battalions Artillery Two foot artillery batteries 16 guns 25th Cavalry Brigade General Major von Normann 935 Kingdom of Wurttemberg Life Light Horse Regiment Nr 2 4 squadrons King s Mounted Jagers Nr 4 4 squadrons Artillery One horse artillery battery 6 guns Artillery reserve General of Division Louis Francois Foucher de Careil 16 x 12 pounder guns in two foot artillery batteries 12 x 6 pounder guns in one horse and one foot artillery batteriesSource Operational Studies Group 1979 Smith 1998 p 463 Waterloo June 1815 Edit General Georges Mouton commanded the VI Corps at Waterloo General of Division Georges Mouton Count of Lobau 19th Division General of Division Francois Martin Valentin Simmer 1st Brigade General of Brigade Antoine Alexandre Julienne de Bellair 5th Line Infantry Regiment 11th Line Infantry Regiment 2nd Brigade General of Brigade Jean Baptiste Auguste Marie Jamin de Bermuy 27th Line Infantry Regiment 84th Line Infantry Regiment 20th Division General of Brigade Jean Baptiste Jeanin 1st Brigade General of Brigade Francois Bony 5th Light Infantry Regiment 10th Line Infantry Regiment 2nd Brigade General of Brigade Jacques Jean Marie Francois Boudin Tromelin 107th Line Infantry Regiment 21st Division General of Division Francois Antoine Teste 1st Brigade General of Brigade Michel Pascal Lafitte 8th Light Infantry Regiment 2nd Brigade General of Brigade Raymond Pierre Penne 65th Line Infantry Regiment 75th Line Infantry Regiment Artillery General of Division Henri Marie Lenoury Four foot artillery batteries One horse artillery batteryFootnotes Edit Chandler Campaigns 390 395 Smith 203 204 Smith 205 206 Smith 213 Smith 211 Smith 223 224 Smith 232 Smith 235 Smith 241 Smith 246 247 Smith 249 Chandler Campaigns 1111 Smith 386 Chandler Marshals 128 Smith 396 Smith 415 Smith 417 Smith 420 Smith 444 Chandler Campaigns 931 Smith 474 Chandler Campaigns 969 970 Chandler Campaigns 974 975 Smith 496 Smith 505 Smith 507 508 Chandler Campaigns 989 990 Smith 511 Smith 513 514 Smith 515 517 Hamilton Williams 232 Hamilton Williams 245 Hamilton Williams 267 Hamilton Williams 283 Hamilton Williams 327 328 Hamilton Williams 335 336 Hamilton Williams 338 Hamilton Williams 338 Hamilton Williams 352 354References EditChandler David G 1966 The Campaigns of Napoleon New York N Y Macmillan Chandler David G 2005 Jena 1806 Napoleon Destroys Prussia Westport Conn Praeger Publishers ISBN 0 275 98612 8 Chandler David G ed 1987 Napoleon s Marshals New York N Y Macmillan ISBN 0 02 905930 5 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 Haythornthwaite Philip 1974 Uniforms of Waterloo New York NY Hippocrene Books ISBN 0 88254 283 4 Operational Studies Group 1979 Napoleon at Leipzig war game study folder Schneid Frederick C 2002 Napoleon s Italian Campaigns 1805 1815 Westport Conn Praeger Publishers ISBN 0 275 96875 8 Smith Digby 1998 The Napoleonic Wars Data Book London Greenhill ISBN 1 85367 276 9 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title VI Corps Grande Armee amp oldid 1061297634, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.