Jemima Fawr's Miniature Wargames Blog

“I am resolved today or at the latest tomorrow to annihilate the army of Archduke Charles” – Napoleon to Marshal Davout, 22nd April 1809

Following our recent refights of Raab, Neumarkt and Teugn-Hausen, we’re continuing with the 1809 Napoleonic theme this month, as we build up to our planned and long-awaited re-fight later this year, of the Battle of Aspern-Essling.  This week therefore, we decided to have a crack at the Battle of Eggmühl (known to the French as Eckmühl).

(Had this been a planned exercise, I’d have played the 1809 battles in historical order and perhaps included a linked campaign element, but maybe that’s an option for the future…)

Eggmühl is a battle I’ve played before ‘in the Grand Manner’ at 1:20 ratio, using General de Brigade rules.  That was when I ran it for Mike Hickling as the first ‘AB Figures Wargames Weekend’ mega-game, waaaaay back in 1999.  My surviving reader might remember that it appeared in Wargames Illustrated shortly afterwards, together with some lovely photos by the much-missed Duncan MacFarlane.  This is NOT one of Duncan’s photos…

I’ve never played Eggmühl using my own collection, though my Württembergers were painted for that game and were featured in the Wargames Illustrated article (in fact, Tony Barton sculpted the entire AB Figures Württemberg range specifically for that game).  I’ve also never played Eggmühl using Napoleon’s Battles rules, chiefly as I didn’t have enough Bavarian troops.  However, I’ve just painted a new Bavarian Corps, so it’s time to play the battle!

It does have to be said however, that the battle is a very tough challenge for the Austrians to win.  I’ll present it here as a ‘straight’ historical version, though I will then add some suggested ‘balancing options’ to make it a bit more fun for the poor Austrians… Or not… 😉

The Aftermath of the Battle of Teugn-Hausen

Having evaded Archduke Charles’ trap and defeated Hohenzollern’s III. Korps at the battle of Teugn-Hausen on 19th April, the wily Marshal Davout managed to link up with Marshal Lefebvre’s VII (Bavarian) Corps, thus saving his III Corps for the Emperor.

The initiative now passed to the French.  Napoleon himself had now arrived and had taken command of the Army of Germany from a relieved Marshal Berthier.  The Emperor launched his counter-offensive on 20th April, seizing bridgeheads over the River Abens at Abensberg and Biburg, before engaging in a running battle against Archduke Louis’ scattered V. Korps and flank-guard elements of III. Korps.  Louis’ shattered brigades rapidly fell back toward the River Isar at Landshut, though Hiller’s VI. Korps was able to check the French pursuit for a time at Pfeffenhausen.

With hindsight, the situation now looked grave for the Austrian army.  Hiller’s left wing (V. Korps, VI. Korps and II. Reserve-Korps) was retiring with all haste across the Isar at Landshut with the French in hot pursuit and Napoleon had therefore driven a huge wedge into the heart of the Austrian Hauptarmee, dividing it in two.  Archduke Charles’ central wing (III. Korps, IV. Korps and I. Reserve-Korps) was now cut off from its line of communication through Landshut and was trapped with its back to the Danube at Regensburg (known as Ratisbon to the French).  The Austrian right wing (I. Korps & II. Korps) north of the Danube could do nothing to help unless Regensburg fell.

However, both commanders-in-chief were blissfully unaware of their opponent’s actual dispositions.  Napoleon thought that he was pursuing Archduke Charles’ main army to Landshut, while Charles was convinced that Napoleon’s main army was directly in front of him, forming up in the vicinity of Abensberg, behind the screen of Davout’s III Corps!  Somewhat astonishingly and despite the battle of the previous day at Teugn-Hausen, Davout was also of the opinion that he only faced a small portion of the Austrian army (this was reinforced by a report from Napoleon telling him as much).

Napoleon was so confident that it was he, not Davout who was facing Archduke Charles’ main army, that he actually reduced the strength of III Corps by 50%; taking Morand’s and Gudin’s divisions from Davout and forming them into a new Provisional Corps under the command of Marshal Lannes.  Napoleon also took Wrede’s 2nd Bavarian Division from Lefebvre, thereby reducing the strength of VII Corps by a third (though compensating Lefebvre with the addition of Demont’s tiny, inexperienced Reserve Division).

This situation continued to be unrecognised by either side and on the evening of the 20th, the opportunity for Napoleon to trap Archduke Charles against the Danube slipped away as the 65ème de Ligne, garrisoning Regensburg surrendered.  The capture of Regensburg now provided Charles with a back door across the Danube, through which to retreat or to bring up reinforcements as necessary.  At this moment, Archduke Charles believed that it presented him with new offensive options, allowing him to bring I. Korps and/or II. Korps across the river to attack Davout’s left flank.  However, this event had actually just saved his army from destruction.

Davout was now once again in a precarious position.  Archduke Charles was now manoeuvring five full army corps against Davout’s two weakened corps, in the belief that he was facing Napoleon’s main force.  Planning to launch a new attack on the 22nd, Archduke Charles needed to concentrate his main attack-force roughly half-way between Eggmühl and Regensburg.  To that end, he ordered Hohenzollern-Hechingen to withdraw his III. Korps from the left flank at Hausen and to march back via Schierling and Eggmühl to take position to the north of that town, near the village of Alteglofsheim.  Rosenberg’s IV. Korps would be the new flank-guard and would maintain its positions near Dünzling.  Kolowrat’s II. Korps meanwhile, would cross over the Danube at Regensburg, ready to fall upon the presumed French assembly area north of Teugn, while Bellegarde’s I. Korps would remain north of the Danube, aiming to seize the Danube bridge at Kelheim, thereby cutting the French line of retreat.  Prince Johann von Liechtenstein’s I. Reserve-Korps would form the ‘hinge’ of the flanking movement.

The Battle of Eggmühl, Day 1 – 21st April 1809

Davout and Lefebvre meanwhile, oblivious of the size of the force now assembling in front of them, had orders to clear away the ‘defeated wing’ from south of Regensburg and to pursue them over on to the north bank of the Danube.  Consequently, on 21st April Davout and Lefebvre launched an attack against Hohenzollern-Hechingen’s III. Korps, which was observed to be retiring along the valley of the Grosse-Laaber.

Although III. Korps managed to largely get away, Rosenberg’s IV. Korps was right in the path of Davout’s attack and concerned about his vulnerable left flank (now that III. Korps had withdrawn), Rosenberg ordered his corps to withdraw to a stronger defensive position just north of Eggmühl, centred on the villages of Obersanding, Oberlaiching and Unterlaiching.

With Charles’ plans for the concentration of the army already coming apart due to Davout’s unexpected attack and Rosenberg’s withdrawal, Charles ordered Hohenzollern-Hechingen to leave a strong force around Eggmühl to guard Rosenberg’s left flank.  However, order followed by counter-order is rarely a good recipe for success and Hohenzollern-Hechingen’s III. Korps was soon in utter confusion, with part of the corps already marching to form up on the right of IV. Korps, another part attempting to support IV. Korps, another attempting to establish defensive positions around Eggmühl and the corps’ rearguard already in action against the Bavarians at Schierling!

Rosenberg’s IV. Korps soon came under attack from Davout’s III Corps.  An uncoordinated attack by Saint-Hilaire’s Division against Unterlaiching was beaten off, but a more determined attack by Friant’s Division succeeded in reaching Obersanding, obliging Charles to personally lead his headquarters guard, the 3rd ‘Archduke Charles’ Infantry Regiment and Liechtenstein’s reserve grenadiers forward to blunt the French attack.

Archduke Charles also sent fresh letters to Kolowrat, ordering him to bring forward the timetable of the planned attack and to get his II. Korps across the Danube with immediate effect, as the decisive battle of the campaign was surely about to be fought to the south of Regensburg!

At Davout’s headquarters, reports began arriving from Friant of Austrian reserve grenadiers being committed to the battle.  Also Montbrun, commander of the supporting cavalry division on the left flank, was sending ominous reports of forces gathering on the left flank near Regensburg.  Davout suddenly came to the realisation that it was he who faced Archduke Charles, not the Emperor!  To make matters worse, rumours were also circulating that Regensburg had fallen to the Austrians (a rumour seemingly confirmed by Montbrun’s reports).  With the battle finally petering out, at 1900hrs Davout sent General Piré to seek out the Emperor in person and to plead with him to bring the army to Eggmühl!

Napoleon meanwhile, had been fully committed in a brutal struggle for the bridges at Landshut.  The Württembergers of Vandamme’s VIII Corps led the assault, closely supported by Wrede’s Bavarians and Lannes’ Provisional Corps, while Masséna’s IV Corps swung to the south, aiming to capture the bridges at Moosburg and Freising.  This was an exact reversal of the situation during the First Battle of Landshut a week earlier.  After a bloody frontal assault across the fiercely-defended bridges, the town fell at around 1300hrs and Hiller’s wing was soon retreating once again toward Neumarkt-St Veigt.

At 0200hrs on 22nd April, Napoleon received General Piré at his headquarters and, like Davout, was stunned by the realisation that he had been out-foxed (albeit accidentally, on Archduke Charles’ part).  However, he immediately realised that if he moved rapidly, he could not only save Davout, but could also destroy Archduke Charles, trapping his army against the Danube.  Writing to Davout at 0400hrs, he informed the Marshal that he would immediately bring his full weight to bear against Archduke Charles’ left flank at Eggmühl by mid-day and that his attack would commence at 1500hrs.  He further declared that he was, “…resolved today or at the very latest tomorrow to annihilate the army of Archduke Charles”.

In the very early hours of the morning Napoleon ordered General Vandamme, commanding VIII (Württemberg) Corps, to personally lead an advanced guard formed from Hügel’s Württemberg light infantry and Wöllwarth’s Württemberg cavalry and to clear the road to Eggmühl at once.  The Emperor also ordered Marshal Lannes’ Provisional Corps to follow Vandamme as closely as possible, while Napoleon himself would accompany the three reserve Cuirassier Divisions in Lannes’ wake.  Marshal Masséna’s IV Corps would halt its flank-march and would instead march north via Landshut to Eggmühl as the army reserve.  General Oudinot’s II Corps, at that moment at Pfaffenhofen in support of Masséna on the right flank, was ordered to change direction and march at once to Abensberg and from there to Eggmühl.

However, Hiller’s Austrians still needed to be pursued, so Marshal Bessières was ordered to take command of Wrede’s 2nd Bavarian Division, Molitor’s Division from Masséna’s IV Corps and elements of Marulaz’s Light Cavalry Division and Jacquinot’s Light Cavalry Brigade, with orders to maintain the pursuit of Hiller’s retreating column.

The Battle of Eggmühl, Day 2 – 22nd April 1809

As daylight broke on the second day of the battle, the valley of the Grosse-Laaber was blanketed in a thick fog, obscuring the view for both sides.  The Austrians immediately assumed defensive positions, expecting an escalation of the previous day’s battle.  However, as the fog cleared, there was no sign of the French!  Rosenberg was concerned and his nervousness grew as patrols reported contacts with French cavalry patrols coming up from the south.  He sent a report to Archduke Charles, including a request that four regiments of cuirassiers be deployed to the left flank as insurance against any nasty surprises, though as yet he had received neither reply or cuirassiers.

The remaining elements of III. Korps pulled back across the Grosse-Laaber as planned and Bieber’s infantry brigade took up its allotted defensive position on the Einsiedelberg, overlooking the bridges at Eggmühl and Rogging.  However, running fights were now occurring between Vukassovich’s III. Korps rearguard elements and Vandamme’s advance guard at Buchhausen, a short distance to the south of Eggmühl Bridge.

Davout meanwhile, had still not heard any word from the Emperor since the receipt of his 0400hrs letter, and had the Bavarian cavalry out scouting on his far right flank for any sign of a relief column.  On his left flank however, there was plenty of movement as Montbrun’s cavalry were trying to penetrate the heavy Austrian cavalry screens in this area, being repulsed each time.  It would seem to Davout that the only thing he could do with certainty, was to sit and wait until the Emperor’s column was sighted.

Archduke Charles for his part, was still fully expecting Napoleon’s main attack to develop from the west and was standing ready to strike its left flank from the north with II. Korps and elements of I. Korps, III. Korps and I. Reserve-Korps.  However, the lack of enemy activity to his front was deeply troubling.

However, the lack of French activity was not to last!  At around 1300hrs the skirmish at Buchhausen quickly escalated into an intense battle, as the green-coated Württemberg light infantry appeared in strength and attempted to envelop the heavily-outnumbered detachment of the 9th ‘Peterwardeiner’ Grenze Infantry Regiment.  Seeing the danger, Vukassovich immediately ordered the Grenzer to withdraw over the Grosse-Laaber and to take up defensive positions in Eggmühl itself.  The withdrawal was covered by the 3rd ‘Archduke Ferdinand’ Hussars and a cavalry battery.  The extraction of the Grenze proved successful and the hussars took up position on the high ground of the Bettelberg, alongside Stutterheim’s IV. Korps cavalry.  The cavalry battery unlimbered at the foot of the hill, in a position from which it could sweep the bridge with fire.

The sound of the clash at Buchhausen carried across the valley to Davout’s position, alerting him to the close proximity of the Emperor’s column! At around 1400hrs he ordered his divisions forward; Saint-Hilaire would initially assault Unterlaiching.  Friant would remain in position for the time being.  Deroy’s 3rd Bavarian Division meanwhile, would advance on Saint-Hilaire’s left, aiming for the high ground of the Vorberg.  Demont would cover the right flank against the Grosse-Laaber.

At Eggmühl meanwhile, the Württemberger General von Hügel led his light infantry forward to mount an immediate assault across the bridge.  On his right, General Gudin was about to do likewise on the small bridge over the weir at Stanglmühl.  Behind them, the rest of Napoleon’s army depended entirely upon these river crossings being open by the time they arrived…

Historical Eggmühl

As soon as the Württembergers appeared on the horizon, Davout launched his forces into the attack.  Avoiding the artillery-swept ‘killing ground’ in front of Oberlaiching, Davout ordered Saint-Hilaire’s division and Lefebvre’s VII Corps to attack Unterlaiching and the woods beyond, while Friant’s division was to attack through the northern woods and try to cut the Austrian line of communication at Ober-Sanding.  Seydewitz’s Bavarian cavalry were ordered to silence the grand battery on the Vorberg.

Vandamme meanwhile, finding the Grosse-Laaber to be deep and unfordable, ordered his Württembergers to storm the bridge at Eggmühl with all haste.  On Vandamme’s right, the advance guard of Lannes’ Provisional Corps was ordered to find crossing-points in the direction of Rogging, which Gudin’s division managed to do at Stanglmühl.

Friant’s attack on Obersanding soon stagnated, due mainly to the efforts of the experienced Grenze and the appearance of Austrian grenadiers in the distance on Friant’s left.  Likewise, Gudin, having crossed the river at Stanglmühl, found progress difficult against Bieber’s solid defence of the Einsiedelberg.  However, with the support of Morand’s newly-arrived division, Bieber was pushed steadily back off the escarpment and into the woods beyond.

Saint-Hilaire’s troops threw themselves at the enemy in Unterlaiching and the woods above, though the ‘White-Coats’ fought fiercely for every inch of ground.  However, with the commitment of Bavarian troops into the fight, the brave defenders of Unterlaiching churchyard were soon overwhelmed and were pushed back into the woods.  Nevertheless, the Franco-Bavarian infantry found their attack stalled at the top edge of the woods, where they ran into concentrated artillery fire and counter-attacks by Austrian infantry and cavalry.

The Württembergers meanwhile, were engaged in a bloody and desperate struggle for possession of the bridge at Eggmühl.  The first two assaults ran headlong into a firestorm of shot from the 9th ‘Peterwardeiner’ Grenze and the cavalry battery positioned at the foot of the Bettelberg.  Vandamme then dealt his trump card; the 1st ‘König’ Jäger Battalion, part of the King of Württemberg’s household brigade.  The Jäger charged across the bloody bridge and overran the Grenze, pursuing them through the village and up to the gates of the schloss, where they then proceeded to batter in the gates and to storm the strongpoint, forcing the garrison to surrender.  With the bridge taken, von Wöllwarth’s Württemberg cavalry surged across, followed by the cuirassiers and carabiniers of Saint-Sulpice’s and Nansouty’s divisions.

Seydewitz’s Bavarian cavalry, who had so bravely charged the Vorberg battery at the start of the battle, were by now starting to falter at the weight of the Austrian counter-attacks, led by the fearless General Stutterheim.  However, with the fall of the bridge, Napoleon’s entire cavalry reserve soon swarmed on to the plain to the West of Eggmühl.  No three cavalry regiments, no matter how brave, could possibly hold back this tide for long.

Even before the battle had started in earnest, Archduke Charles realised that he had been seriously wrong-footed and realised that there was a severe danger of being trapped with his back to the Danube.  He gave the order that the army should retreat at once across the Danube at Regensburg, and that Rosenberg’s IV. Korps was now to be the rearguard of the army.  The four kürassier regiments that Rosenberg had earlier requested would now be released to him.

Thanks to the bravery of Stutterheim and his superb cavalrymen, the retreat of IV.  Korps went relatively smoothly.  Eventually though, as night fell near the village of Alteglofsheim, the exhausted horsemen could hold back the enemy no longer.  However, the bold intervention of two brigades of kürassiere gave IV.  Korps more time to get away, and although the French pursuit continued on into the darkness, Archduke Charles had managed to rescue his army from the very jaws of death.

Scenario Outline

This scenario lasts for 13 turns, starting with the French 1300hrs turn and ending with the Austrian 1900hrs turn.

Each square on the map is 1′ square, so the table is 6′ x 5′, representing 6km x 5km (when we did this with Général de Brigade, it was 14′ x 12′, split over three tables!).

The scenario is very straightforward: The French must break the Austrian army’s morale to claim victory.

Each side may either deploy using the historical deployment shown on the map above, or may use a slightly more flexible deployment, within the ‘deployment boxes’ shown on the map below.  Units may be deployed in any formation:

Orders of Battle

Austrian IV. Armeekorps (+) – Feldmarschalleutnant Franz Seraph Fürst von Orsini-Rosenberg

12”G(10)+0 [5F] [12M]
(4 Free Rolls)

Division of Feldmarschalleutnant Dedovich                                         3”A(5)+0
Grenze-Infanterie-Regiment #12 ‘Deutsch-Banát’                                           16 AsGRZ [10D]
Grenze-Batterie (3pdr)                                                                                           As3#
Infanterie-Regiment #3 ‘Erzherzog Karl’ (attached from Army HQ)           24 AsLN [12D]

Division of Feldmarschalleutnant Hohenlohe-Bartenstein          3”G(6)+0
Infanterie-Regiment #8 ‘Erzherzog Ludwig’                                                     24 AsLN [12D]
Infanterie-Regiment #22 ‘Koburg’                                                                      24 AsLN [12D]
Infanterie-Regiment #46 ‘Chasteler’                                                                  20 AsLN [10D]

Division of Feldmarschalleutnant Sommariva                                    3”A(5)+1
Infanterie-Regiment #9 ‘Czartoryski’                                                                 20 AsLN [10D]
Infanterie-Regiment #44 ‘Bellegarde’                                                                20 AsLN [10D]
Infanterie-Regiment #55 ‘Reuss-Greitz’                                                            20 AsLN [10D]

Cavalry Brigade of Generalmajor Stutterheim                                    3”E(7)+1
Chevauxleger-Regiment #4 ‘Vincent’                                                                  16 AsLC [8D]
Husaren-Regiment #10 ‘Stipsicz’                                                                         12 AsLC [6D]
Kavallerie-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                      As6#

IV Korps Artillery Reserve
Position-Batterie (12pdr)                                                                                       As12#
Position-Batterie (12pdr)                                                                                       As12#
Kavallerie-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                      As6#

Elements, III. Armeekorps

Division of Feldmarschalleutnant Vukassovich                                  3”G(7)+0 [2F]
Grenze-Infanterie-Regiment #9 ‘Peterwardeiner’                                            16 AsGRZ [10D]
Husaren-Regiment #3 ‘Erzherzog Ferdinand’                                                   12 AsLC [6D]
Kavallerie-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                      As6#

Brigade of Generalmajor Bieber                                                                  3”A(5)+0 [1F]
Infanterie-Regiment #20 ‘Kaunitz’                                                                       20 AsLN [10D]
Infanterie-Regiment #38 ‘Württemberg’                                                             20 AsLN [10D]
Position-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                           As6#

Brigade of Generalmajor Kayser                                                                  3”A(4)+0 [1F]
Infanterie-Regiment #7 ‘Schröder’                                                                        20 AsLN [10D]
Infanterie-Regiment #56 ‘Wenzel Colloredo’                                                      20 AsLN [10D]

Elements, I. Reserve-Korps

Grenadier Reserve of Generalmajor Rohan                                           4”A(6)+1 [2F]
Steyrer’s Grenadier Brigade                                                                                    28 AsGN [11D]
Melgum’s Grenadier Brigade                                                                                  28 AsGN [11D]

Optional Forces:

Kürassier Reserve of Feldmarschalleutnant Hessen-Homburg    4”G(7)+1 [2F]
Schneller’s Kürassier Brigade                                                                                  16 AsHC [6D]
Lederer’s Kürassier Brigade                                                                                     16 AsHC [6D]
Kavallerie-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                        As6#
Kavallerie-Batterie (6pdr)                                                                                        As6#

Austrian Order of Battle Notes

1.  Infanterie-Regiment #3 ‘Erzherzog Karl’ was an independent regiment attached to Archduke Charles’ headquarters and took part in the fighting against Friant between Ober Sanding and Ober Laiching on the 21st.  It was shifted to the north by Archduke Charles on the morning of the 22nd to cover his move around Davout’s left, but I have included it in the scenario to cover Rosenberg’s exposed right flank.  It may be commanded by Dedovich, but may not be re-deployed if using flexible deployment.

2.  Rosenberg’s IV. Korps reserve batteries may be deployed as the Austrian commander sees fit, though they may only be commanded by IV. Korps formation commanders.

3.  I have boosted Stutterheim’s stats slightly, to reflect his dynamic and aggressive actions during this battle and immediately afterwards.  I’ve also added a combat bonus to Sommariva to reflect the energetic presence of Generalmajor Neustädter.

4.  I’ve no idea who, if anyone was in overall command of the two reserve cuirassier brigades.  It’s possible that Rohan was in command of both the grenadiers and cuirassiers, but for game purposes and to give the Austrians a fighting chance and some flexibility, I’ve included the reserve division commander, Hessen-Homburg.  Group them all under Rohan if you prefer to give the Austrians a greater command & control headache.

5.  Kayser’s Brigade from III. Korps became engaged in the northern sector as the battle developed, so I include them here as an independent reinforcement formation.  As with all formations in this scenario, it may be commanded by Rosenberg.

6.  The independent formations from III. Korps and I. Reserve-Korps may be commanded by Rosenberg, but they do not count toward IV. Korps’ fatigue total.  They each have their own individual fatigue rating. They do however, count toward the overall army morale total.

7.  Ordinarily in Napoleon’s Battles, light foot batteries are not represented on the table. However, this can lead to unhistorical situations, where one side has horse and heavy foot artillery, when the other side does not.  I’ve therefore added a 6pdr foot battery to Bieber’s command on the Einsiedelberg, as otherwise it will be a simple matter for the French to simply shoot Bieber out of his position without conducting an assault.  Use the same stats as 6pdr cavalry batteries, but do not allow it to perform evade actions.

8.  The Kürassier Reserve is included as a ‘balancing option’ for the Austrians and may be left out if preferred.  They were positioned very close to the battlefield, but Archduke Charles didn’t authorise their release until very late in the day and they only fought to cover the retreat at Alteglofsheim, a short distance to the north of our map.  I must admit that I included them in our early version of this scenario, though refused to allow them to be used until the situation was desperate.

French Army Of Germany
L’Empereur Napoléon

28”E(10)+3D (5 Free Rolls)

Left Wing – Maréchal Louis-Nicolas Davout, Duc d’Auerstädt

14”E(10)+1, reverting to 12”E(8)+1 when Napoleon arrives

III Corps d’Armée (Davout)

[4F] then [5F]

2nd Division – Général de Division Friant                                                 5”E(8)+2
Gilly’s Brigade (15ème Légère)                                                                         12 FrLT [6D/5D]
Grandeau’s Brigade (33ème & 48ème de Ligne)                                          28 FrVLN [11D/8D]
Gautier’s Brigade (108ème & 111ème de Ligne)                                           24 FrVLN [10D/7D]
2/5ème Artillerie à Cheval (4pdr)                                                                   Fr4#

4th Division – Général de Division Saint-Hilaire                                     4”E(8)+2
Lorencez’s Brigade #1 (10ème Légère)                                                           12 FrVLT [5D/4D]
Lorencez’s Brigade #2 (3ème & 57ème de Ligne)                                        28 FrVLN [11D/8D]
Destabenrath’s Brigade (72ème & 105ème de Ligne)                                  28 FrLN [14D/11D]
5/8ème Artillerie à Cheval (4pdr)                                                                   Fr4#

III Corps Cavalry Reserve – Général de Brigade Piré                          3”A(5)+0
Piré’s Brigade (8ème Hussards & 16ème Chasseurs à Cheval)                  12 FrLC [6D/5D]

VII Corps d’Armée – Maréchal François-Joseph Lefebvre, Duc de Danzig

9”E(5)+1D [5F] then [6F]

1st Bavarian Division – Generalleutnant Kronprinz Ludwig              3”G(5)+1D
Rechberg’s Brigade                                                                                             28 BvLN [17D/14D]
Stengel’s Brigade                                                                                                 28 BvLN [17D/14D]
Reserve Battery ‘Leiningen’ (12pdr)                                                               Bv12#

3rd Bavarian Division – Generalleutnant von Deroi                            4”A(6)+0
Vincenti’s Brigade                                                                                               28 BvLN [17D/14D]
Sieben’s Brigade                                                                                                  28 BvLN [17D/14D]
Massed Light Battalions                                                                                    12 BvLT [6D/5D]
Seydewitz’s Cavalry Brigade                                                                              12 BvLC [6D/5D]
Light Mounted Battery ‘Gotthardt’ (6pdr)                                                      Bv6#
Light Mounted Battery ‘Van Douwe’ (6pdr)                                                   Bv6#
Reserve Battery ‘Dietrich’ (12pdr)                                                                     Bv12#

Reserve Division – Général de Division Demont                                    4”A(6)+0
1st Reserve Brigade                                                                                             16 FrPLN [10D/8D]
3rd Reserve Brigade                                                                                           16 FrPLN [10D/8D]

Right Wing (Napoléon)

Imperial HQ Escort (elements, Marulaz’s Brigade)
14ème Chasseurs à Cheval & Baden Light Dragoons                                   12 BdLC [5D]

Elements, VIII Corps d’Armée – Général de Division Dominique Vandamme

5”E(5)+2 [2F] then [3F]

Württemberg Advance Guard – Generalmajor von Hügel                3”A(6)+1
Hügel’s Brigade                                                                                                   24 WtLT [12D/10D]
2nd Horse Battery (6pdr)                                                                                  Wt6#

Württemberg Cavalry Division – Generalleutnant von Wöllwarth 4”G(7)+1
Röder’s Chevauxleger Brigade                                                                          8 WtLC [4D/3D]
Stettner’s Jäger zu Pferde Brigade                                                                   12 WtLC [6D/5D]
1st Horse Battery (6pdr)                                                                                     Wt6#

Corps Provisoire – Maréchal Jean Lannes, Duc de Montebello

7”E(7)+2 [4F] then [5F]

1st Division (of III Corps d’Armée) – Général de Division Morand 5”E(8)+2
Lacour’s Brigade #1 (13ème Légère)                                                                 16 FrVLT [6D/5D]
Lacour’s Brigade #2 (17ème de Ligne)                                                             16 FrVLN [6D/5D]
Lacour’s Brigade #3 (30ème de Ligne)                                                            16 FrVLN [6D/5D]
L’Huillier’s Brigade (61ème de Ligne)                                                              16 FrVLN [6D/4D]
5/5ème Artillerie à Cheval (4pdr)                                                                     Fr4#

3rd Division (of III Corps d’Armée) – Général de Division Gudin 5”G(6)+1
Petit’s Brigade #1 (12ème de Ligne & 7ème Légère)                                    24 FrVLN [10D/7D]
Petit’s Brigade #2 (21ème de Ligne)                                                                20 FrVLN [8D/6D]
Duppelin’s Brigade (25ème & 85ème de Ligne)                                           28 FrVLN [11D/8D]
2/6ème Artillerie à Cheval (4pdr)                                                                   Fr4#

Cavalry Reserve (under the Emperor’s personal command) [4F]

1st Cuirassier Division – Général de Division Nansouty                     3”G(7)+1
Defrance’s Carabinier Brigade                                                                         20 FrHC [8D/6D]
Doumerc’s Cuirassier Brigade                                                                         20 FrHC [8D/6D]
St Germain’s Cuirassier Brigade                                                                      20 FrHC [8D/6D]
4/6ème Artillerie à Cheval (8pdr)                                                                   Fr8#
5/6ème Artillerie à Cheval (8pdr)                                                                   Fr8#

2nd Cuirassier Division – Général de Division Saint-Sulpice            3”A(6)+1
Clément’s Cuirassier Brigade                                                                           20 FrHC [8D/6D]
Guiton’s Cuirassier Brigade                                                                              20 FrHC [8D/6D]
3/5ème Artillerie à Cheval (8pdr)                                                                   Fr8#

French Order of Battle Notes

1.  I have only included those units that were on the battlefield at the start and those who arrived early enough to do some fighting.  Units that were following behind the units listed above include Montbrun’s Light Cavalry Division, d’Espagne’s 3rd Cuirassier Division, Masséna’s IV Corps and Claparède’s Division from II Corps.  There isn’t any point in representing these on table, but their proximity to the battlefield should be considered when assessing the overall situation during the post-game argument…

2.  Davout is the French C-in-C until Napoleon arrives on the table, whereupon he reverts to being a Wing Commander.  Davout’s ratings will therefore be 14”E(10)+1 until Napoleon arrives and 12”E(8)+1 thereafter.  Davout may not command any early-arriving elements of Napoleon’s Right Wing, though he may continue to function as a wing-commander, with Lefebvre’s VII Corps continuing to be subordinate.

3.  Although Vandamme is the commander of VIII Corps, he is here personally leading the advanced guard.  He has not therefore been given the 5” command-span bonus normally given to a French corps commander and has instead been given the 2” command-span bonus normally given to the commander of a temporary corps.  Lannes is also commanding a temporary corps and likewise has a reduced command-span.

4.  Units use their higher Dispersal numbers until Napoleon arrives on the battlefield, at which point they use the lower Dispersal numbers listed.

5.  Formations use their lower Fatigue numbers until Napoleon arrives on the battlefield, at which point they use their higher Fatigue numbers.

6.  The detachment from Marulaz’s Cavalry Brigade will immediately attach itself to Napoleon’s Headquarters at the earliest opportunity and will act as escort.  Napoleon will retain his command radius even when the escort unit is directly attached.  If the escort unit becomes unattached (e.g. due to Napoleon moving too fast or due to an uncontrolled pursuit), the unit will automatically count as being activated, but must at all times make best speed to re-attach to Napoleon and may not voluntarily make charge, evade or pursuit moves or place a React marker.

7.  Most sources show Vieregg’s Bavarian Cavalry Brigade as being present with Crown Prince Ludwig’s 1st Bavarian Division.  However, John H Gill in ‘Thunder on the Danube’ is quite emphatic about its absence and also comments that the divisional light mounted battery was probably attached to that brigade and also therefore absent.  I’ve therefore deleted these units.  Gill does however, mention additional Bavarian batteries with Deroi’s Division not mentioned elsewhere, so I’ve included these.

8.  The overwhelming majority of the French infantry regiments in both Davout’s III Corps and Lannes’ Provisional Corps are hardened veterans from Davout’s III Corps of previous campaigns.  They therefore use the 1805-1807 stats (‘FrVLN’ & ‘FrVLT’), while the more recently-added regiments use the slightly less-capable 1809-1812 stats (‘FrLN’ & ‘FrLT’).  See the Unit Information Card below.

9.  Demont’s Reserve Division had three very weak brigades; the 1st & 3rd Brigades each had four battalions, while the 2nd Brigade only had two.  The strength of the 2nd Brigade has therefore been absorbed into the other two.  These brigades consisted entirely of massed 4th Battalions comprising raw recruits, sent directly from regimental depots in France.  These are classed as ‘Provisional Line’ (‘FrPLN’) and are distinctly less capable than Davout’s veterans.

10.  Wöllwarth only had ten of his sixteen squadrons with him at Eggmühl (one complete regiment missing from Röder’s Brigade and half a regiment missing from Stettner’s).  At full strength they would both be 16 figure brigades, but are reduced here to 8 and 12 figures respectively.

11.  Note that the Cavalry Reserve has a fatigue rating.  Treat it as a corps for fatigue purposes, even though the two cuirassier divisions are operating as independent divisions under the Emperor’s direct control.

12.  Hügel seems rather underrated in the official ratings, so I’ve given his stats a little boost.

Reinforcement Schedule

All reinforcements arrive in March Column formation at the point specified, except for Kayser’s Brigade, which may arrive deployed in any formation, within 6 inches of point D.  I wouldn’t use the Variable Arrival Times rule for this scenario.

On table at start:

Rosenberg, with all formations listed except Kayser’s Brigade and the Reserves.
Davout with the French III Corps.
Lefebvre with the VII (Bavarian) Corps (minus 1st Division).
Gudin, with Petit’s Brigade #1 & his horse battery.
Vandamme, with Hügel and his light infantry brigade.

Turn 1 – 1300

Petit’s Brigade #2 of Gudin’s Division arrive at point A.
Hügel’s 2nd Horse Battery arrive at point B.

Turn 2 – 1330

The remainder of Gudin’s Division arrives at point A.

Turn 3 – 1400

Wöllwarth’s Württemberg Cavalry Division arrives at Point B.

Turn 4 – 1430

Lannes arrives at point A.
Morand’s Division arrives at point A.
Prinz Ludwig’s 1st Bavarian Division arrives at point C.

Turn 5 – 1500

Napoleon arrives at point B.
Saint-Sulpice’s 2nd Cuirassier Division arrives at point B.
Kayser’s Brigade arrives at point D.

Turn 6 – 1530

Rohan’s Grenadier-Reserve arrives at Point E.
Hessen-Homburg’s Kürassier-Reserve arrives at Point F (optional).
Wöllwarth’s scouts discover the ford at Schnitzlmühl.

Turn 7 – 1600

Nansouty’s 1st Cuirassier Division arrives at point B.

Turn 8 – 1630

The detachment from Marulaz’s Light Cavalry Brigade arrives at point B (and is immediately commandeered by Marshal Berthier to act as headquarters guard).

Turn 13 – 1900 (Nightfall)

Scenario ends at the end of this turn.

Terrain Effects

1.  The Grosse Laaber river is unfordable, except via the bridge at Eggmühl and the Stanglmühl.  Only infantry may cross at the Stanglmühl (via a footbridge), though only one unit may cross per turn.  Eggmühl bridge may be crossed by all troop-types at the normal Column or March Column rate.  Eggmühl village must be captured in order to control the bridge (i.e. unless they are assaulting Eggmühl, units may not cross the bridge while the town is still held by the Austrians).

2.  The small streams are passable to all troop types as 1 inch of Rough Terrain.  A unit defending the bank will gain a +1 defensive modifier.

3.  All villages have a defensive modifier of +2 (they weren’t particularly defensible), except for Eggmühl, which has a modifier of +3.

4.  All slopes provide a +1 defensive modifier to the defender, except for the southern slopes of the Einsiedelberg, which are particularly steep, counting as 2 inches of Rough Terrain and providing a +2 defensive modifier.

5.  Woods provide a -1 cover modifier, but no positive combat modifier, just the usual negative combat modifiers, depending on troop type.  Woods are classed as Rough Terrain for movement, though are not particularly dense and do not therefore disorder troops passing through them. Firing through woods is limited to 2 inches range.

6.  All Austrian units starting the scenario deployed in woods will have their frontage covered by abatis.  This will provide a +1 combat modifier, in addition to any modifier for defending a slope.  This modifier is lost if the unit moves from its original position and facing (the abatis is then removed from play).

7.  The water meadows bordering the Grosse Laaber are classed as Rough Terrain and are impassable to artillery.

8.  Umpire’s Eyes Only!  While waiting for the Eggmühl Bridge to be secured, Württemberger cavalry scouts located a deep ford at the Schnitzlmühl Mill, only a few hundred yards to the west of Eggmühl (one account mentions that the ford was created by opening the mill weir, thereby reducing the water-level), which was then used by some of the French cavalry brigades to cross the river.  Both Rosenberg and Vandamme had already reported the Grosse-Laaber to be impassable, so this came as a surprise to both sides!  In game terms, this ford will be discovered on Turn 6.  I suggest treating this ford as Rough Ground (like the surrounding soggy water-meadows) and passable only by cavalry units.  See the map below.

[I forgot to include the Napoleon’s Battles Unit Data Card and labels the first time around, so here they are:]

Anyway, that’s it for now!  Tune in next time for the thrilling game-report!  Please try to control your excitement.

A few weeks ago at W.A.S.P. we had planned to continue our Battle of Neumarkt 1809 game, which had ended on something of a cliff-hanger, with several turns still to play.  However, our Marshal Bessières sadly had a family tragedy to deal with and wasn’t available, so we needed to find an alternative scenario for our booked game-day (though we do hope to return to Neumarkt in the future).  Keeping with the 1809 theme, I decided to quickly knock up a scenario for the relatively small Battle of Teugn-Hausen.

I was rather expecting this game to be something of a walkover for Marshal Davout’s veteran III Corps, but it actually turned out to be a far more exiting game than I’d anticipated!

As usual, this scenario is designed for Napoleon’s Battles rules, which is a ‘grand-tactical’ ruleset, set at roughly 1:100 ratio, where every tactical unit represents a brigade or large regiment.

The Historical Guff

The War of the 5th Coalition – Opening Moves on the Danube

At the end of 1807, Napoleon was master of Europe.  Austria and Prussia had been crushed, Hanover was wiped from the map, Russia was forced to become a reluctant ally, Poland (in the limited form of the Duchy of Warsaw) arose from the ashes, Portugal was occupied and the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved and transformed into the Confederation of the Rhine.

However, the illusion of Napoleon’s invincibility was broken forever in 1808, with Spain in full revolt, the surrender of Dupont’s French army to Castaños’ Spanish army at Bailén, and the further defeat of Junot’s French Army of Portugal by Wellesley’s British army at Roliça and Vimeiro.  The rapidly-deteriorating situation in Spain therefore forced Napoleon in November to launch a full-scale invasion with a massive army of over 278,000 men, including 108,000 men withdrawn from Germany.

With Napoleon deeply committed in Spain and French forces in Germany greatly reduced in strength, Austria decided to take advantage of the situation.  Archduke Charles had been rebuilding, reforming and retraining the Austrian Army since the humiliating defeat of 1805 and it was probably in better shape than it had ever been.  However, with plenty still to do and with the average age of senior Austrian commanders being 63, Charles was pessimistic about their prospects in a new war against France.  Nevertheless, by December 1808 Austria was set on a course to war and having failed to win an alliance with Prussia, had at least reached a secret agreement with Russia that the Russian Army would only intervene in the war at a glacially slow pace and “avoid every collision and every act of hostility” (thus giving lip-service to their alliance with France).  Great Britain had also promised to keep the pressure on the French armies in Portugal and Spain.  To that end, a new 5th Coalition was formed against France, consisting of Austria, Great Britain, Portugal, Spain, Sardinia and Sicily.  Thus persuaded that Austria could win, Emperor Francis gave his assent to the plan and ordered Charles to mobilise the army for war.

As soon as the Austrians started to mobilise, French spies passed word back to Napoleon, who quickly realised that war was imminent.  He quit Spain for France in January 1809 and ordered that the infantry of the Imperial Guard be transported to Germany on carts, to save their strength for the campaign to come.  Marshal Davout’s III Corps in Bavaria was ordered to concentrate, along with Prince Eugène’s Army of Italy, Prince Poniatowski’s Army of the Duchy of Warsaw and Marshal Marmont’s Army of Dalmatia.  Marshal Murat’s Army of Naples meanwhile, would defend southern Italy against the ever-present threat of a British naval landing.  Napoleon further wrote to the monarchs of the Confederation of the Rhine, requesting that they mobilise their forces and form three new army corps; VII (Bavarian), VIII (Württemberg) and IX (Saxon), as well as number of smaller formations from the smaller states such as Baden and Hesse-Darmstädt.  While Napoleon attended to urgent matters in Paris, Marshal Berthier would take command of the newly-forming Army of Germany.

Napoleon may have been the greatest captain of the age, but he was also possibly the greatest micro-manager of all time and being in Paris didn’t stop him from sending a flurry of contradictory orders to Berthier based on out-of-date information, some of which then arrived in the wrong order!  Berthier was completely out his depth when Austrian forced crossed the border into Bavaria on 10th April.

As a consequence, Davout’s III Corps found itself isolated in a bend of the Danube, south of the city of Regensburg (Ratisbon to the French), out of contact with Marshal Lefebvre’s VII (Bavarian) Corps to the west and some 120km distant from the rest of the Army of Germany!

Davout was now faced by no fewer than eight Austrian army corps; I & II Korps were advancing on the north bank of the Danube, while III, IV, V, VI, I Reserve & II Reserve Korps were on the south bank.  However, the appalling weather was against the Austrians and on the 13th Archduke Charles had to call a halt to rest and reorganise his exhausted army.

As the advance resumed, the weather finally broke and the Austrians arrived at the Isar River in glorious sunshine, to find Deroy’s 3rd Bavarian Division waiting for them, defending the crossing at Landshut.  Considerably outnumbered and outgunned by the Austrian V Korps, the Bavarians made a brave stand, but were finally forced to withdraw when news reached them of Hiller’s VI Korps having made a crossing of the Isar at Moosburg, some 15km upstream.

As the Bavarians fell back toward the Danube at Abensberg, Charles did not set off in hot pursuit, but instead used the breathing-space to bring his entire army over the Isar, believing that the enemy army was concentrating at Abensberg and intending to defeat them there.  However, as he resumed the advance on 18th April, reconnaissance reports revealed that Davout’s III Corps was now isolated with his back to the Danube at Regensburg.  With his I & II Korps preventing any escape through Regensburg to the north bank of the Danube, Charles now had the perfect opportunity to destroy Davout in detail.  Ordering the V Korps and II Reserve Korps to maintain pressure on Lefebvre’s Bavarians and with VI Korps continuing its flank-guard role to the south, Charles ordered III, IV and I Reserve Korps to strike north, aiming to trap and destroy Davout.

In the meantime, Napoleon had arrived and taken command of the Army of Germany.  He was furious to discover the confused state of the army’s deployment, particularly the isolated position of Davout’s III Corps and sent orders for them to immediately withdraw up the Danube, to regain contact with Lefebvre’s VII (Bavarian) Corps (who were ordered to protect Davout’s line of retreat) and then to concentrate with the main army at Ingolstadt.  Davout received these orders on 18th April and ordered his divisions to be ready to march at first light on the 19th.  Despite Davout’s isolation, Napoleon still expected Archduke Charles’ main force to advance directly from Landshut to Ingolstadt, so was deploying the Army of Germany accordingly and had allocated no additional forces to march to Davout’s aid.

The Battle of Teugn-Hausen

Beginning his march at 0500hrs, Davout’s cavalry advance guard and corps train were soon well on their way to safety through the village of Teugn, followed by Morand’s and then Gudin’s Divisions.  Saint-Hilaire’s and Friant’s Divisions, the remainder of the cavalry and some light infantry from the other divisions brought up the rear, while the 65e de Ligne had been left to garrison Regensberg.

Hohenzollern-Hechingen’s Austrian III Korps meanwhile, had begun its march from Rohr at around 0700hrs and within a couple of hours had marched the 10km to the village of Hausen.  At Hausen, Vukassovich’s Advance Guard Division discovered and drove out French vedettes and foraging-parties before moving on up onto the wooded ridge of the Hausener-Berg, from where they would have an excellent view of the village of Teugn and Davout’s line of retreat.

At 1100hrs, Saint-Hilaire’s division was passing through Teugn when it suddenly came under fire from Austrian skirmishers posted on and around the Buchberg, a short distance to the south of the town.  The white-coated battalions of Kayser’s Brigade (Lusignan’s Division) were also starting to appear on the crest of the Hausener-Berg.  Immediately recognising the seriousness of the situation, Davout directly ordered the 3e de Ligne to mount an immediate attack on the Buchberg and sent orders to the 10e Légère, who had already passed through to the west, to immediately return to Teugn.

Rushing up the Buchberg at the double in loose order, the 3e de Ligne were already winded as they approached the crest and now ran into a wall of musketry from the skirmishers of the Peterwardeiner Grenzer.  The 3e de Ligne were easily repulsed, but they had bought time for the 57e de Ligne to organise a more deliberate assault.  This time the attack succeeded and the renowned 57e de Ligne (famously known as ‘Le Terrible’) successfully drove the Grenzer back from the Buchberg.  With the situation temporarily stabilised and with Saint-Hilaire organising the 72e & 105e de Ligne as a reserve near Teugn, Davout felt secure enough to ride off in search of Gudin’s and Morand’s Divisions, who had already marched away to the west.

However, Lusignan was now advancing on the 57e de Ligne with the six battalions of Kayser’s Brigade (three battalions each from IR 7 ‘Schröder’ and IR 56 ‘Wenzel Colloredo), supported by their brigade battery of 6-pounders and on the left flank by the resurgent Grenzer and the Waltrich Jäger Battalion (i.e. the 1st Battalion of the Archduke Charles Legion), who were now threatening to turn the right flank of the 57e de Ligne.

When word of the new Austrian attack reached Davout he turned about and rode hard back to Teugn.  Passing the 10e Légère also hurrying to the sound of the guns, he ordered them to climb the Buchberg at Roith and drive in the left flank of the Austrian light infantry.  Davout also then ordered two rallied battalions of the 3e de Ligne to advance back up the hill to shore up the right flank of the 57e de Ligne, while Saint-Hilaire brought up the 72e & 105e de Ligne to provide a second line behind the crest.  A third battalion of the 3e de Ligne was then ordered to hook around the flank at Roith and fall upon the rear of the Austrian light infantry in the woods.

The counter-attack was completely successful and the Austrian light infantry were thrown back in considerable disorder, with some being surrounded and captured in the woods near Roith.  The tables had now been turned on Lusignan, who now found himself outflanked.  His supporting brigade battery was also forced to withdraw as it came under fire from the skirmishers of the 10e Légère.  Lusignan was forced to fall back to the Hausener-Berg and with his situation becoming ever more desperate, requested urgent assistance from Hohenzollern-Hechingen and the rest of III. Korps.

Unsure of the situation beyond the wooded ridges, Hohenzollern had cautiously remained at Hausen and had deployed a 12-pounder position battery there to guard the bridge over the Feckingerbach stream.  He had also placed the bulk of the 3rd ‘Archduke Ferdinand’ Hussars and a cavalry battery (both from Vukassovich’s Division) on high ground near the village of Buch, watching the western approach to Hausen.  As St Julien’s Division began to arrive, he collected them together near Hausen.  Archduke Charles was feeling similarly cautious and had also halted the I Reserve Korps a short distance away to the east, while he waited for information to come in from the advance guard divisions of III & IV Korps.

However, as reports began to arrive from Lusignan, emphasising the increasingly serious situation on the Hausener-Berg, Hohenzollern-Hechingen ordered forward Alois Liechtenstein’s Brigade (consisting of three battalions, less two companies of IR 12 ‘Manfredini’ and two battalions of IR 23 ‘Würzburg’) from St Julien’s Division.  However, the situation had deteriorated even further on the Hausener-Berg.  The depleted 108e de Ligne and the massed Voltigeurs of the 33e de Ligne from Friant’s Division, reinforced by a battalion of the the 7e Légère detached from Gudin’s Division, had easily traversed the open woodland along the ridge and now fell upon Lusignan’s right flank!

With their position now completely compromised and Lusignan himself falling wounded, Kayser’s Brigade was driven back from the Hausener-Berg and out of the southern edge of the woods.  At this moment, the whitecoats of IR 12 ‘Manfredini’, advancing up the slope past the hamlet of Saladorf, were most disconcerted to see thousands of their comrades streaming out of the woods ahead of them.  They were even more disconcerted a short while later, as the French infantry also reached the edge of the woods and began pouring a withering fire into the approaching columns.  Seeing his men start to waver, Alois Liechtenstein rode over to the regiment and seizing a colour, personally led them forward.

The regiment, inspired by Liechtenstein’s example, surged forward and broke into the wood, being soon joined by IR 23 ‘Würzburg’ and rallied elements of Kayser’s Brigade.  However, with French artillery and further battalions from Friant’s Division joining the battle, the Austrians could make no further headway and soon fell back down the slope, carrying the severely-wounded Liechtenstein with them.

Hohenzollern himself now entered the fray, leading his last reserves, IR 20 ‘Kaunitz’ and IR 38 ‘Württemberg’ in fruitless counter-attacks before falling back to Hausen, where he had established a large battery.

The time was now around 1500hrs and at last, with a firm sense of where the main French effort was, Archduke Charles ordered Generals Rohan and Stutterheim forward, with four grenadier battalions, CR 4 ‘Vincent’ and a cavalry battery to stabilise the situation at Hausen.  However, this was all too little, too late and a violent thunderstorm erupted over the battlefield, dampening the powder and quickly turning the ground back to a quagmire.  With Gudin’s Division also now arriving in strength, the Austrians were forced to concede that the day, which had started with the promise of a victory, had ended in ignominious defeat.

Scenario Outline

The scenario lasts for 14 turns or until one side achieves victory or until a violent thunderstorm stops play (see weather rules below).  The scenario starts with the Austrian 1130hrs turn and ends with the French 1800hrs turn if victory conditions have not already been met or if the storm hasn’t already stopped play.

The Austrians have the first turn and control the Initiative Marker.

All units may deploy as per the deployment map above.  French units are all deployed in March Column formation, while Austrian units may be deployed in any formation.  Note that Vukassovich’s Advance Guard Division is split, with the light infantry brigade deployed well forward on the Buchberg and the 3rd Hussars left behind with the cavalry battery near the hamlet of Buch, covering the western approach to Hausen (only one squadron of the 3rd Hussars was historically deployed forward at the Buchberg).  Vukassovich can’t be in both places at once, so will need to carefully decide where he needs to be at the start of the scenario.

If the umpire is feeling generous, he can allow a slightly more free deployment, as per the map below.  All units may start in any formation, anywhere within their divisional box, though may not start the game occupying a village.  The Austrian position battery must remain in the marked starting position (in Unlimbered, Limbered or March Column formation).  The French deploy first.

Victory Conditions

Austrian Victory – The French army is ‘Hopelessly Broken’* OR the Austrians hold Teugn with at least one undisordered brigade at the end of the scenario.

French Victory – The Austrian Army is ‘Hopelessly Broken’* OR the French hold Hausen with at least one undisordered brigade at the end of the scenario AND Teugn is unoccupied by the Austrians.

Draw – Anything else.

* The Army Morale level will increase as reinforcements arrive on table.  The Austrian Army may therefore become temporarily ‘Broken’ and then recover when reinforcements arrive and push the Army Morale level up.  The army will normally only become ‘Hopelessly Broken’ if the maximum Army Morale level of 8 is breached (note that while Routed units may count towards an army becoming ‘Broken’, only eliminated units may count toward an army becoming ‘Hopelessly Broken’).

The Austrian III. Armeekorps

Feldmarschalleutnant (FML) Hohenzollern-Hechingen
8”G(10)+1D
[5 Free Rolls]

Advance Guard Division – FML Vukassovich      3”G(7)+0
Advance Guard Light Infantry Brigade      16 AsGRZ [10D]
Husaren-Regiment #3 ‘Erzherzog Ferdinand’      12 AsLC [6D]
6pdr Cavalry Battery As6#

1st Division – FML Lusignan      3”A(6)+0
Infanterie-Regiment #7 ‘Schröder’      24 AsLN [12D]
Infanterie-Regiment #56 ‘Wenzel Colloredo’      24 AsLN [12D]

2nd Division – FML Saint-Julien      3”P(4)+0
Infanterie-Regiment #12 ‘Manfredini’      24 AsLN [12D]
Infanterie-Regiment #23 ‘Würzburg’      16 AsLN [8D]
Infanterie-Regiment #20 ‘Kaunitz’      24 AsLN [12D]
Infanterie-Regiment #38 ‘Württemberg’      16 AsLN [8D]

Artillery Reserve – Oberst Smola
12pdr Position Battery      As12#
12pdr Position Battery      As12#

Grenadier Reserve – Generalmajor (GM) Rohan      4”A(6)+1
Grenadier Brigade #1      24 AsGN [10D]
Grenadier Brigade #2      24 AsGN [10D]

Cavalry Reserve – GM Stutterheim      3”G(5)+0
Chevauxleger-Regiment #4 ‘Vincent’      12 AsLC [6D]
6pdr Cavalry Battery      As6#

Austrian Notes

1.  Only the units actually present at the battle are shown here.  There were numerous detachments that were not engaged or which were engaged elsewhere and these are not listed.

2.  The Austrian army has a morale level of 2M until St Julien arrives, when it increases to 5M. It increases to 8M when the reserve brigades arrive.

3.  One of the two Reserve Position Batteries is on-table at the start.  The second will arrive as reinforcements at the rear of St Julien’s column.

4.  The Advance Guard Light Infantry Brigade consisted of the II./Grenze-Infanterie-Regiment #9 ‘Peterwardeiner’ and I./Erzherzog Karl Legion (Waltrich Jäger).

Austrian Order of Battle Reinforcements

1230hrs (Austrian Turn 3) – St Julien’s Division arrives at Point D.

1600hrs (Austrian Turn 10) – Rohan’s and Stutterheim’s Reserve Brigades arrive at Point E.

Use variable arrival times for each formation listed above, though not for each individual unit of the division.  In the Reinforcement phase, roll 1 D10 for each reinforcement formation: Two turns before its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1.  One turn before its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-3.  On its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-6.  After its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-8.

St Julien’s Division may only bring one unit on to table per turn and all units will arrive in March Column formation.  The supporting battery will arrive with the last unit.

All units of the Reserve Brigades may arrive on the same turn, up to 6 inches either side of the road at Point E, in any formation.

The French III Corps d’Armée

Maréchal Davout, Duc d’Auerstädt
11”E(10)+1
[6 Free Rolls]

2nd Division – Général de Division (GD) Friant      5”E(8)+2
33e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
108e Infanterie de Ligne (+)      24 FrVLT [10D]
111e Infanterie de Ligne      12 FrVLN [5D]
48e Infanterie de Ligne      20 FrVLN [8D]

3rd Division – GD Gudin      5”G(6)+1
12e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
21e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
25e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
85e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
2/6e Artillerie à Cheval      Fr4#

4th Division – GD Saint-Hilaire      4”E(8)+2
10e Infanterie Légère      20 FrVLT [8D]
3e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
57e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [6D]
72e Infanterie de Ligne      20 FrVLN [8D]
105e Infanterie de Ligne      16 FrVLN [8D]
5/8e Artillerie à Cheval      Fr6#

Reserve Artillery – GD Hanicque
Artillerie à Pied      Fr12#
Artillerie à Pied      Fr12#

French Order of Battle Notes

1.  Only the units actually present at the battle are shown here.  There were numerous detachments that were not engaged or which were engaged elsewhere and these are not listed.  In fact, most of Gudin’s Division did not historically fight, having already marched through Teugn.  However, they were ordered to return to Teugn and could easily have joined the battle had the fighting not moved south to Hausen, so are included here.  That said, if you’re short of troops they can happily be left out of the scenario, especially if they are too far away from the action to influence matters, though apply the increase in army morale for their arrival, as the other French troops will have their spirits boosted by the imminent arrival of reinforcements.

2.  The massed Voltigeur Companies of Friant’s Division and the III/7e Légère from Gudin’s Division were attached to the 108e de Ligne, hence its classification as Veteran Light Infantry (VLT) and its high strength, even though several companies had already been detached from the regiment.

3.  The French army has a Morale Level of 3M until Friant arrives, when it increases to 6M. When Gudin arrives it increases to 8M.

French Reinforcements

1130hrs (French Turn 1) – 10e Légère (Saint-Hilaire’s Division) arrives at Point C.

1300hrs (French Turn 4) – Friant’s Division arrives at Point B.

1400hrs (French Turn 6) – III Corps Artillery Reserve arrives at Point A.

1530hrs (French Turn 9) – Gudin’s Division arrives at Point C.

Use variable arrival times for each formation listed above, though not for each individual unit of the division.  In the Reinforcement phase, roll 1 D10 for each reinforcement formation: Two turns before its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1.  One turn before its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-3.  On its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-6.  After its scheduled arrival time, the formation will arrive on a roll of 1-8.

Each reinforcing formation may only bring one unit on to table per turn and all units will arrive in March Column formation.  Any supporting battery will arrive with the last unit in the division (the batteries of the Artillery Reserve may arrive on the same turn).

Terrain Notes

The map represents 5′ x 4′ on table, equivalent to 5km x 4km.  Each grid-square is a square foot/km.

All streams are very minor obstacles and are passable by all troop types as linear rough ground.

The woods are passable to all troop types and are very open, being completely cleared of underbrush.  Troops in March Column, Column or Limbered formation may therefore pass through at full speed, though lines of sight will still be obstructed and troops will still suffer combat penalties for fighting in woods.  Troops in Line, Unlimbered or Square formation will apply the Rough Terrain movement penalty.

The villages of Teugn and Hausen may each accommodate two brigades in defence.  All other villages and hamlets are only small affairs and may only accommodate a single brigade.  No villages prepared for defence and only carry a defensive modifier of +1 and a cover modifier of -2.

Hills provide the defender with a +1 combat modifier if they are uphill of the attacker.

Weather

Starting in the Weather Step of the Austrian 1600hrs turn and repeating in each Weather Step thereafter, roll a d10.  On a roll of 1, 2 or 3 the scenario is immediately ended prematurely by a violent thunderstorm.

Unit Labels

I’ll post the after-action report next time!  Continuing the current 1809 theme, we’ll be playing Eggmühl in early September, so I’m currently conducting a long-overdue expansion and improvement of my collection of Bavarians.  I’ve already added an extra corps to my Austrians since May and have been photographing those, so there’s lots more 1809 goodness to come.

Back in the mists of time, when dinosaurs roamed this blog (some say they still do), I posted a scenario for the Battle of Raab 1809, pitting Eugène de Beauharnais’ Army of Italy against Archduke John’s Army of Inner Austria in the heart of Hungary.  I also posted a game report from the time before this blog, when I refought the battle with my teenage Minions.

My original scenario was based largely on the account, orbat and map contained within Scott Bowden’s classic ‘Armies on the Danube 1809’ and proved to be a fun game, but damn-near impossible for the Austrians to have any chance of winning!  However, historical research has moved on since then and since reading John H Gill’s superb trilogy ‘Thunder on the Danube 1809’, I’ve been itching to have another go at the battle.

I won’t repeat the historical background again here, as it’s all in the original scenario if you just follow the link.

The main differences in this version of the scenario are some changes to the order of battle; particularly in terms of French unit strengths (which in many cases are rather weaker), French cavalry organisation (the original version had the majority of the cavalry grouped under Grouchy on the right flank), the Austrian cavalry group formed under Frimont, some additional units of Hungarian Insurrectio Hussars and a few ‘cosmetic’ changes, such as the names of brigadiers.

I’ve also added some optional reinforcements for the Austrians, in an attempt to balance things up a bit more and make it a better game for poor Archduke John.

We actually refought the battle at W.A.S.P. last weekend and it was a lot of fun.  That report will be posted here soon, but I include a few teaser photos here.

I should also add that the problems with WordPress seem to have been largely fixed, so normal blogging service should now be resumed…  And there was much rejoicing…

French Objective

You are to attack the army of Archduke John and destroy him or drive him from the field, with the intention of preventing him from linking up with Archduke Charles’ main army north of Vienna.  To achieve total victory, the Austrian Army must be pushed beyond its Army Morale rating.  A partial victory can be achieved if the Austrians suffer the loss of seven or more Morale Points.

Austrian Objective

You are to hold your ground and resist the assault of Eugène’s army, with the intention of inflicting sufficient damage on Eugène to force him to break off his pursuit of your army and allow you to link up with Archduke Charles north of Vienna.  In order for the French to claim total victory, the Austrian Army must be pushed beyond its Army Morale level before the end of the scenario.  The French may achieve a partial victory if the Austrians suffer the loss of seven or more Morale Points.  A partial Austrian victory may be achieved if the Austrians frustrate either French objective and a total Austrian victory will be achieved if the French Army is pushed beyond its Army Morale level.

Game Length and Sequence

The game lasts 17 turns, starting with the French 0900hrs turn and ending with the Austrian 1700hrs turn.  While there is still plenty of daylight left at that time of day, both armies will have ground to a halt due to fatigue.

Terrain

Each square on the map represents 1 square foot on the table, for a total table size of 6’x5′.

The Kis-Megyer Farm is strongly fortified with a +4 defensive modifier.  All other villages and farms have a +1 defensive modifier.

The Raab River is unfordable to all troop-types.

The Pandsza Stream is for the most part, deep, steep-sided, marshy and not fordable to artillery at any point.  Artillery is therefore limited to crossing at one of the four bridges.  Cavalry attempting to ford the Pandsza downstream (i.e. west) Kis-Megyer suffer a Fording combat modifier of -3 instead of the usual -2.  Infantry and Generals may ford the Pandsza at any point.  When fording, units class the Pandsza as 2 inches of Rough Terrain.

The Viczay Stream is fordable to all troop types, being classed as 1 inch of Rough Terrain.

The Szabadhegy Hill is high and reasonably steep-sided, though flat-topped and makes an ideal artillery position.  Artillery positioned on the hill may therefore fire over the Kis-Megyer Farm, Szabadhegy village and any units positioned on the lower ground.  Defenders gain a +1 combat modifier.

The eastern slope of the Szabadhegy Hill is described as being covered in vineyards, so I would class this area as Rough Terrain, providing infantry with an additional +1 combat modifier and a -1 cover modifier against musketry & artillery.  The extent of the vineyards is not shown on any map that I’ve found, so the shaded area on the map above is entirely arbitrary.

Note that there is a projecting spur or ‘knoll’ on the southern side of the Szabadhegy Hill, just to the east of Kis-Megyer Farm.  This actually had a small chapel on the crest, though this is too small to be represented at this scale.  This knoll was fiercely contested throughout the day, as it was in our refight.

Deployment

The position of troop-blocks on the map above is for illustrative purposes only and is only a rough depiction of each side’s historical deployment.  Each player may therefore deploy each division anywhere within the ‘deployment boxes’ shown on the map below.

If preferred, each side may opt for a ‘free deployment’, with the Austrians deploying their forces anywhere north of the Pandsza Stream and the French deploying their forces anywhere within 18 inches of the southern table edge.

French Order of Battle

L’Armée d’Italie

Prince Eugène de Beauharnais, Viceroi d’Italie
13”G(10)+1D
[5 Free Rolls]
[14M]

Right Wing (Corps Grouchy) – Général de Division Grouchy     8”G(5)+1 [2F]

1st Dragoon Division – Général de Brigade Guérin (vice Grouchy)     3”A(6)+0
Guérin’s Brigade (7e & 30e Dragons)     16 FrLC [8D]
Italian Dragoon Regiments     12 ItLC [6D]
Half Horse Battery     Fr4# (Half)

Reserve Cavalry Division – Général de Division Montbrun     4”E(8)+2
Jacquinot’s Brigade (1er & 2e Chasseurs à Cheval & 7e Hussards)     20 FrLC [10D]
Colbert’s Brigade (7e & 20e Chasseurs à Cheval & 9e Hussards)     20 FrLC [10D]
Half Horse Battery     Fr4# (Half)

VI Corps – Général de Division Grenier     9”G(7)+1 [3F]

1st Division – Général de Division Seras     3”G(5)+0
Moreau’s Brigade #1 (53e de Ligne)     16 FrLN [8D]
Moreau’s Brigade #2 (Légère IV Battalions)     16 FrPLT [10D]
Roussel’s Brigade (106e de Ligne)     24 FrLN [12D]
8pdr Foot Battery     Fr8#

2nd Division – Général de Division Durutte     3”G(6)+1
Valentin’s Brigade (23e Légère & IV Battalions)     28 FrLT [14D]
Dessaix’s Brigade #1 (62e de Ligne)     20 FrLN [10D]
Dessaix’s Brigade #2 (102e de Ligne)     20 FrLN [10D]

XII Corps – Général de Division Baraguèy d’Hilliers     8”P(4)-1 [3F]

1st Division – Général de Division Pacthod     3”G(5)+1
1st Brigade (1er de Ligne & III/8e Légère)     20 FrLN [10D]
2nd Brigade (52e de Ligne & IV/8e Légère)     24 FrLN [12D]
8pdr Foot Battery     Fr8#

2nd Division – Général de Division Severoli     4”G(4)+0
Bonfanti’s Brigade (2nd, 3rd & 7th Italian Regts and Dalmatian Regt)     20 ItLN [10D]
Teste’s Brigade #1 (1st Italian Regt)     16 ItLN [8D]
Teste’s Brigade #2 (112e de Ligne)     16 FrLN [8D]

Left Wing

Light Cavalry Division – Général de Division Sahuc     3”G(5)+1 [1F]
Debroc’s Brigade (6e & 9e Chasseurs à Cheval)     12 FrLC [6D]
Gérard’s Brigade (8e & 25e Chasseurs à Cheval)     16 FrLC [8D]
Half Horse Battery     Fr4# (Half)

2nd Dragoon Division – Général de Division Pully     4”G(6)+0 [1F]
Poinsot’s Brigade (23e, 28e & 29e Dragons)     16 FrLC [8D]
Half Horse Battery     Fr4# (Half)

Baden Contingent – Général de Division Lauriston     4”G(7)+1 [1F]
1. Leib-Infanterie-Regiment ‘Grossherzog’ & Jäger-Bataillon ‘Lingg’     16 BdLN [8D]
2. Linien-Infanterie-Regiment ‘Erbgrossherzog’     16 BdLN [8D]
Reitende-Batterie (-)     Bd6# (Half)

Army Reserve

Italian Royal Guard – Général de Brigade Lecchi     4”G(6)+1 [2F]
Italian Guard Infantry     16 ItGD [6D]
Italian Guard Cavalry & French 24e Dragons     8 ItGCV [3D]
1st Italian Guard Horse Battery     It6#

French Notes

1.  Colbert’s cavalry brigade arrives after the start of the battle (Game Turn 2).  They arrive in march column formation on the road at Point A and are assigned to Montbrun’s Division, Grouchy’s Corps.

2.  Marshal MacDonald (V Corps) arrived with Lamarque’s infantry division at around 4pm, when the battle had effectively finished, so these troops are not included in this scenario.

3.  A lot of the infantry brigades had various fourth battalions attached from various random regimental depots to beef up the numbers.  These were especially numerous in Moreau’s Brigade of Seras’ Division, so I’ve split them off as a Provisional Légère unit.  Elsewhere they are absorbed into the overall brigade strength.

4.  There was no designated overall commander for the Left Wing.

5.  Light and medium foot batteries are not normally represented in Napoleon’s Battles, being assumed to be an integral part of infantry brigades.  However, the 8pdr foot batteries deployed with Seras’ and Pachtod’s Divisions were critical in out-gunning the Austrian artillery at Raab and are therefore included here as separate batteries.  I’ve not included the 6pdr foot batteries.

Austrian Order of Battle

Armee von Innerösterreich

Feldmarschall Erzherzog Johann
11”G(10)+0
[5 Free Rolls]
[11M/12M]

General Wing Commander
General der Kavallerie Erzherzog Josef Palatin
9”G(6)+0

Reserve Cavalry Division – Feldmarschalleutnant (FML) Freiherr Frimont     3”G(8)+0 [2F]
Besan’s Cavalry Brigade (Dragoon, Chevauxleger & Hussar detachments)     12 AsLC [6D]
Paszthory’s Insurrectio Hussar Brigade     12 AsILC [10D]
Siegenfeld’s Insurrectio Hussar Brigade     16 AsILC [10D]
Cavalry Half-Battery     As3# (Half)

Right Wing Corps – FML Freiherr Jellacíc     4”A(6)+1 [2F]
Markus’ Insurrectio Brigade     16 AsILT [10D]
Sebottendorff’s Brigade (IRs 32 ‘Esterházy’ & 45 ‘De Vaux’)     16 AsLN [8D]
Grenze-Infanterie-Regiment 10 (1. Banalisten)     20 AsGRZ [12D]
Legisfeld’s Landwehr Brigade     16 AsLW [11D]
Cavalry Half-Battery     As3# (Half)

Centre Corps – FML Graf Colloredo     4”A(8)+1 [2F]
Infanterie-Regiment 27 ‘Strassoldo’     16 AsLN [8D]
Lutz’s Brigade (IRs 61 ‘St. Julien’ & 62 ‘Franz Jellacíc’)     16 AsLN [8D]
Ghilyani’s Insurrectio Brigade     20 AsILT [12D]
Ungerhofer’s Landwehr Brigade     20 AsLW [14D]
Cavalry Half-Battery     As3# (Half)

Left Wing Corps – FML Freiherr Mecséry     4”G(7)+1 [3F]
Husaren-Regiment 2 ‘Erzherzog Josef’ (Andrassy’s Brigade)     12 AsLC [6D]
Andrassy’s Insurrectio Hussar Brigade     16 AsILC [10D]
Gosztony’s Insurrectio Hussar Brigade     16 AsILC [10D]
Husaren-Regiment 5 ‘Ott’ (Gosztony’s Brigade)     12 AsLC [6D]
Hadik’s Insurrectio Hussar Brigade     12 AsILC [10D]
Elements, Mesko’s Insurrectio Brigade     12 AsILC [10D]
Cavalry Half-Battery     As3# (Half)

1st Reserve Line – Generalmajor (GM) Gajoli     3”A(6)+0 [1F]
Gajoli’s Light Infantry Brigade     16 AsGRZ [10D]
Infanterie-Regiment 19 ‘Alvinczy’     20 AsLN [10D]
12pdr Position Battery     As12#

2nd Reserve Line – GM Kleinmayrn     3”A(5)+0 [2F]
Kleinmayrn’s Grenadier Brigade     16 AsGN [6D]
Infanterie-Regiment 16 ‘Lusignan’     16 AsLN [8D]
12pdr Position Battery     As12#

Right Flank Corps (Optional) – Feldzeugmeister Freiherr Davidovich     4”A(5)+1 [2F]
Mesko’s Insurrectio Brigade #1     16 AsILT [10D]
Mesko’s Insurrectio Brigade #2     16 AsILT [10D]
Mesko’s Insurrectio Brigade #3 (Hussars)     8 AsILC [5D]
Cavalry Half-Battery     As3# (Half)

Austrian Notes

1.  Erzherzog Josef (Archduke Joseph) is a general Wing Commander and may command any division.

2.  Although Frimont was commander of the Reserve Corps, on the day of battle he took command of the reserve cavalry on the right wing.  I’ve therefore designated the two reserve infantry brigades (Gajoli’s and Kleinmayrn’s) as independent formations and have split the army reserve position batteries between them.

3.  A large part of Mesko’s Insurrectio Hussars had been transferred from Davidovich’s Corps in the Raab entrenchments to reinforce Méscery’s Left Wing on the morning of the battle.

4.  This is a very tough scenario for the Austrians to win.  As a balancing option, FZM Davidovich’s Corps, which spent the entire battle guarding entrenchments on the opposite bank of the River Raab, may be brought on as reinforcements from Turn 8.  They will arrive in March Column formation, on the road at Point B or Point C.  The Army Morale level becomes 12M once Davidovich arrives.

5.  The Austrian ‘corps’ are divisional-sized formations and are treated as such in game terms.

Unit Labels