The Battle of Wagram: Napoleon’s Last Victorious Campaign

Prelude to Battle 🌧️

In May 1809, buoyed by their recent triumph at the bloody Battle of Aspern, the Austrians felt a surge of optimism. Napoleon's seemingly invincible army had been dented, offering hope to his long-subjugated enemies. Just weeks later, Pope Pius the Seventh excommunicated Napoleon for annexing papal land—a significant propaganda win for the French Emperor's adversaries. However, Austria hesitated to capitalize on its moment of glory, torn between continuing the war and seeking peace. Napoleon, on the other hand, sprung into action like a whirlwind. Reinforcements were summoned, transforming the French army's strength from 90,000 to a staggering 164,000 men and 544 guns.

Setting the Stage 🎭

Six weeks after the defeat at Aspern, Napoleon commanded his forces to cross the Danube River once more. His engineers had constructed robust bridges this time, ensuring there would be no repeat of past disasters. In his words, "For the French army, the Danube no longer exists." The scene was set for the largest battle in European history thus far. The French aimed to engage Archduke Charles’s Austrian army, which comprised 128,000 men and 414 guns.

French Maneuvers 🌩️

On the evening of July 4th, in torrential rain, the French initiated their crossing from Lobau Island—not towards the devastated villages of Aspern and Essling, but eastward toward Gross-Enzersdorf. The village quickly fell to the ferocious bombardment from French artillery. The next morning, General Masséna's Fourth Corps and Oudinot's Second Corps drove back the few Austrian troops left to delay them, clearing a path for the French to deploy their forces.

Advance to Wagram 🚶

By 1 pm, Napoleon was poised to march his troops across six miles of flat cornfields towards the Austrian main position—the Wagram plateau. The Battle of Wagram had begun, with General Lasalle’s light cavalry and Masséna’s forces guarding the left flank. Meanwhile, Oudinot's Second Corps and Davout's Third Corps moved toward the plateau, with Bernadotte’s Saxon corps and the Army of Italy in the center. At 6 pm, Napoleon ordered a full-scale attack. Faced with fierce Austrian resistance, his troops made little headway. Remarkably, the Saxon Ninth Corps even mistakenly fired upon by friendly units due to their white Austrian-like uniforms, suffered heavy losses and fled.

The Assault 🗡️

During the night, soldiers from both sides slept under the open sky, planning their next moves. Napoleon designed a strategy for Davout's Third Corps to roll up the Austrian flank while other corps kept the enemy pinned down.

Unexpected Challenges ⚔️

Due to a miscommunication, Marshal Bernadotte had withdrawn his battered Saxons from Aderklaa overnight without orders. This gave the Austrians an advantageous position in the center of the battlefield. Despite immediate orders to retake Aderklaa, the attack was unsuccessful. Meanwhile, on the Austrian side, Archduke Charles planned an all-out dawn assault, hinging on the anticipated arrival of his brother Archduke John's 13,000 reinforcements. However, due to delays, Charles halved his attack to avoid disastrous isolation.

French Offensive 🌪️

At 10 am, Davout commenced his attack, and fierce combat engulfed the village of Markgrafneusiedl. Dragoons and hussars clashed in a whirlwind of cavalry battles. Despite initial gains, the French could not entirely drive the Austrians back from their strong new position on the Wagram escarpment. Simultaneously, a significant threat emerged to the French left flank, as Klenau’s Austrian Sixth Corps pushed dangerously close to Napoleon’s crucial river crossings. In a high-stakes move, Napoleon ordered Masséna's Fourth Corps to march across the battlefield to reinforce the left while Bessières’s cavalry distracted the Austrian center, although incurring high costs.

Decisive Moments 🔥

Napoleon gathered a grand battery of over 80 cannons in the battlefield’s center, one of his signature tactics. This artillery barrage, firing an estimated 15,000 rounds, wreaked havoc on the enemy lines and set fire to the surrounding cornfields.

All-Out Attack 📯

At 1 pm, Napoleon commanded a general attack. Davout maintained pressure on the enemy flank while Fourth Corps attacked on the left and Second Corps on the right. In the center, General Macdonald led 8,000 men in a giant three-sided square formation. The initial French advance faced withering fire from Austrian Third Korps and Grenadiers, resulting in severe French casualties and halting their progress. Though the assault stalled, the relentless French pressure left the Austrian army teetering on the brink. Realizing his position's futility and committed to preserving his force, Archduke Charles ordered a retreat. The well-executed Austrian withdrawal granted Napoleon a hard-fought victory, albeit at a significant cost.

Aftermath and Consequences ⚠️

The Battle of Wagram marked the largest and bloodiest clash in European history up to that point. The French sustained an estimated 37,500 casualties, while Austrian losses were around 41,500. Just four days later, the French engaged the Austrians again at Znaim. Recognizing his army's dire straits, Charles sought a ceasefire, albeit without consulting his elder brother Emperor Francis, who was enraged and unwilling to continue the fight.

British Intervention 🚢

Around the same time, the British launched the largest amphibious invasion force it had ever assembled, aiming to cripple French maritime strength. However, the British forces, bogged down by French troops and ravaged by disease, faltered and eventually evacuated, diminishing the hopes of the Austrians for an allied relief.

The Treaty of Schönbrunn 🕊️

In October, Austria was compelled to sign the Treaty of Schönbrunn, giving up significant territory to Napoleon and his allies. The treaty stripped the Austrian Empire of three and a half million subjects, imposed an indemnity, capped its army at 150,000 men, and forced it to join Napoleon's Continental System, ending trade with Britain. Archduke Charles, one of Napoleon's most skilled adversaries, found himself relegated as a result of intense friction with Emperor Francis.

The Empire’s Future 🔮

Though another crushing victory was secured, subtle yet worrying signs loomed for Napoleon. His adversaries were adapting, and the reliance on young, inexperienced conscripts increasingly filled the gaps left by the fallen veterans. This battle marked the beginning of a gradual decline in Napoleon’s military dominance.

Conclusion 🎖️

The Battle of Wagram remains a pivotal moment in Napoleonic history. It showcased both Napoleon's formidable tactical prowess and the rising resilience of his opponents. As the last of his great victories, it symbolized a peak before the inevitable descent, heralding a new epoch in European warfare. In the end, the Battle of Wagram was more than just another military engagement; it was a harbinger of the shifting tides in a continent gripped by nearly two decades of relentless wars. While Napoleon's star would shine brightly for a while longer, the clouds of adversity were already on the horizon.

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