Theme
By Steve Jones
Archduke Charles versus Napoleon
The Battle of Aspern-
Essling, May 1809
The clashes between the Habsburg forces of Austria-Hungary
and Napoleon’s French & Allied army in 1809 have much to
offer the wargamer and have long been my favourite part of
the whole Napoleonic period.
A
ustria had been badly beaten in
1805, the culmination of a series
of defeats that had seen the loss
of her territories in Italy, Germany and
the Tyrol. Archduke Charles, brother of
the Austrian ruler Francis II, was made
Generalissimus and began a slow pro-
cess of modernising the army.
In 1808, Napoleon invaded Spain and
Portugal in an effort to damage Brit-
ish trade and in so doing embarked
upon a war that would see thousands
of his veteran troops and many of his
The French hold the outskirts of Aspern
WSS nr58 dec11.indd 32
finest commanders tied down in an
unwinnable conflict. France’s distress
proved Austria’s opportunity and with
the encouragement of the British, plans
were drawn to restore the pride of
the Habsburg Empire. The main effort
would involve an invasion of Bavaria,
commanded by Charles at the head of
6 line corps and the army’s reserve of
grenadiers and heavy cavalry. Sec-
ondary attacks would also be made;
Archduke John would lead two corps
into northern Italy while Archduke Fer-
dinand would take a corps into Saxony
32
© Georgie Harman
Archduke Charles of Austria, Duke of
Teschen
and the Grand Duchy of Warsaw. The
Prussians were to support the main
attack with 80,000 of their own troops,
but in the end they withdrew from the
agreement in March 1809, while a
British diversionary attack at Walcheren
in the Netherlands occurred too late to
affect the outcome on the Danube.
The fighting opened in April when
Charles plunged into Bavaria, which
was defended by an amalgam of French
and Bavarian troops supported by small-
er contingents provided by the Con-
federation of the Rhine. In a week of
desperate fighting, Napoleon succeeded
in pulling together and reinforcing his
forces before launching a counter-attack
at Eckmuhl which sent his opponents
tumbling all the way back to Vienna.
The Austrian capital was soon occupied
and Napoleon drew plans for the final
destruction of Charles’s army. Believing
that Charles was retreating to the north,
he accompanied a pursuing force across
the Danube in May only to discover
over 95,000 Austrians waiting for him
on the flat ground of the Marchfeld.
Unable to retreat from his bridgehead,
Napoleon took position between the
villages of Aspern and Essling with a
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nents but was hampered by the archaic

nature of his army’s staff system. For this
reason, he is only rated as an average
commander (d8). At Aspern-Essling he
commanded four of his line corps (I, II,
IV and VI) and the reserve corps which
included the elite troops of the army.
These were divided into six columns,
with IV strengthened by the presence
of a newly-constituted army advanced
guard under Klenau. The IV corps was
Austrian cavalry attempt to outflank the French initially divided into two columns, but
for simplicity I have left it as a single

mere 23,000 men. Two days of savage I Corps: Bellegarde (Poor)

fighting ensued, made all the harder Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale
for the French when the bridges over Fresnel Infantry (Jäger & line) Good Average Good
the Danube were destroyed, delaying Light Cavalry (Chevaulegers) Average Good
the arrival of reinforcements. Eventu- Vogelsang Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
ally the bridges were rebuilt, allowing Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
the defenders to first reinforce and then Ulm Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
conduct a fighting withdrawal. Napo- Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
leon would recover from this defeat two Nostitz Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
months later when he re-crossed the Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
river with his entire army and defeated Artillery Foot Artillery Average
Archduke Charles at the epic battle of Foot Artillery Average
Wagram, effectively ending the cam-
paign.
II Corps: Hohenzollern (Poor)
Order of Battle Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale
In writing these orders of battle, I have Provencherez Mixed Jäger & Chevaulegers Good Average Good
used easily understood terms to de- Brady Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
scribe the abilities of units. When using Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
my own rules, a poor rating indicates a Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
d6 should be rolled, a d8 for average, Weber Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
d10 for good and d12 for excellent. Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
Austrian Army Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
The Austrian army of 1809 had been Artillery Foot Artillery Average
reorganised after the defeats of earlier Foot Artillery Average
years into a more modern, if ineffective-
ly implemented corps-based structure.
IV Corps: Rosenberg (Poor)
The Archduke Charles was one of Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale
Napoleon’s most competent oppo- Klenau Infantry (Line) Average Average Good
Mixed (Jäger & Uhlans) Good Average Good
Mixed (Line & Hussars) Good Average Good
Dedovich Infantry (Grenz & Line) Good Poor Good
Infantry (Line) Average Good Average
Mixed (Line&Chevaulegers) Average Average Average
Rohan Infantry (Grenz & Line) Good Average Good
Light Cavalry (Hussars) Average Excellent
Hohenloe Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
Infantry (Line) Average Average Average
Artillery Foot Artillery Average
Foot Artillery Average
Austrian line advances to attack
the French

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VI Corps: Hiller (Poor) may command any units of IV Corps,

Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale however no unit may receive action
Nordman Light Cavalry (Hussars) Poor Good points from more than one commander
Infantry (Grenz & Line) Good Good Good during a single turn.
Kottulinski Mixed (Line & Dragoons) Good Average Average
Vincent Infantry (Line) Average Average Average The Battlefield
Infantry (Line) Average Average Average The map shows the portion of the
Light Cavalry (Hussars) Poor* Average Marchfeld plain over which the battle
Artillery Foot Artillery Average was fought. This is bounded to the north
Foot Artillery Average by the Russbach stream and to the south
* Only a small unit, hence the poor combat rating by the river Danube. The villages of
Aspern and Essling provide two bastions
Reserve Corps: Liechtenstein (Poor) on which the French have secured their
Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale position. South of Aspern is the Gemein-
D’Aspre Grenadiers Poor Good Excellent de Au, an overgrown and wooded area
Grenadiers Poor Good Excellent surrounded by a water-filled ditch. Two
Lindenau Grenadiers Poor Good Excellent further villages; Aderklaa and Raasdorf
Grenadiers Poor Good Excellent are also shown but are unlikely to affect
Hessen- the fighting. Ditches and streams can be
Homburg Heavy Cavalry (Cuirassiers) Average Excellent crossed by infantry only and the Danube
Heavy Cavalry (Cuirassiers) Average Excellent is impassable.
Light Cavalry (Hussars) Average Excellent
Keinmayer Heavy Cavalry (Cuirassiers) Average Excellent Timetable and deployment
Heavy Cavalry (Dragoons) Average Good The battle commences at 14:00 on the
Light Cavalry (Hussars*) Poor Poor 21st of May with each game turn ac-
Artillery Cavalry Artillery Average counting for one hour. Play continues
Cavalry Artillery Average until the end of the 21:00 turn. After an
*These were Hungarian Insurrection Hussars, hence the poor quality overnight reorganisation, action will
recommence at 03:00 on the 22nd of

command.
The Austrian army contains a number of
mixed brigades containing both infantry
and light cavalry. These act in the same
way as infantry brigades but negate
opponents’ skirmishers and may only
use one combat die when fighting in
woods.

The French Army

Napoleon’s army at Aspern-Essling was
a mixed-bag. Both 2nd and 4th Corps
included veteran French regiments as
well as recently raised conscripts. Also
present were the experienced heavy
cavalry of Bessieres and most of the
Imperial Guard.

Napoleon still displayed his customary

tactical skill but was badly caught-out
by his own over-confidence. As a result,
he is only rated as a good commander
(Good) but can rely on his subordinates
to a far greater extent than his oppo-
nent. The Imperial Guard do not have
a named commander, but are placed
under a nominal general representing
the effect of the individual Divisional
commanders. On the 21st May, Lannes The battle of Aspern-Essling 1809.

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II Corps: Lannes (Excellent)

Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale Entry
Tharreau Infantry Good Average Average Overnight
Infantry Good Average Average Overnight May, running through until the end of
Infantry Good Poor Average Overnight the 16:00 turn. During the overnight
Claparede Infantry Good Good Good Overnight reorganisation, any unit with one hit
Infantry Good Average Average Overnight may remove it and any unit with more
St Hilaire Infantry Good Average Excellent Overnight than one hit may remove any hits other
Infantry Good Average Good Overnight than the first. All Austrian units are avail-
Infantry Good Average Good Overnight able from the beginning of the battle,
Demont Infantry Good Poor Average Overnight although it may not be possible for every
Infantry Good Poor Average Overnight unit to enter on the first turn. Only part
Artillery Foot Artillery Average Overnight of the French army begins the battle on
the table, as shown on the map. The
IV Corps: Massena (Good) French player may deploy his IV corps
Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale Entry artillery and Guard artillery wherever he
Legrand Infantry Good Average Good At start sees fit. The remainder arrive as rein-
Infantry Good Average Good At start forcements during the May 21st game
Infantry (Baden) Average Average Excellent At start turn or overnight as shown in the Order
St Cyr Infantry of Battle.
(Hesse-Darmstadt) Good Good Excellent 17:00 French reinforcements must arrive be-
Infantry Good Average Good 17:00 tween the points A and B shown on the
Infantry Good Average Average 17:00 map. If the Austrians control this area of
Infantry Good Average Average 17:00 the battlefield, then no French reinforce-
Molitor Infantry Good Average Average At start ments may arrive.
Infantry Good Average Average At start
Boudet Infantry Good Average Average At start Victory conditions
Infantry Good Average Average At start While the major arbiter of victory is the
Lasalle Light Cavalry Average Good At start destruction inflicted on the enemy, it is
Light Cavalry Average Good At start perhaps easier to determine success by
Marulaz Light Cavalry Average Good At start control of significant areas of the bat-
Light Cavalry Average Good At start tlefield. Napoleon’s defence is depend-
Artillery Foot Artillery Average At start ent upon the two villages of Aspern and
Essling and by free access to the crossing
Bessieres (Good) point over the Danube. I suggest award-
Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale Entry ing one victory point each for the villages
Nansouty Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent 18:00 and two for uncontested control of the
Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent 18:00 line A-B shown on the map. The Austrians
Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent 18:00 win by controlling all of the victory points
St Sulpice Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent 16:00 at the end of any game turn, otherwise
Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent 16:00 victory is awarded to whoever controls
D’Espagne Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent At start the most victory points at the end of the
Heavy Cavalry Average Excellent At start 16:00 turn on the 22nd May. A draw
One of Nansouty’s brigades consists of carabiniers, the remaining six brigades is possible but experience suggests it is
are all cuirassiers unlikely. Destruction of the Old Guard
brigade results in an immediate Austrian
Imperial Guard (Average) victory.
Division Brigade type Skirmishing Combat Morale Entry
Old Guard Infantry Good Excellent Excellent Overnight
Young Guard Infantry Good Good Excellent Overnight
Infantry Good Good Excellent Overnight
Guard Cavalry Heavy Cavalry Excellent Excellent Overnight
Artillery Foot Artillery Excellent At start

French brigades move to defend Aspern

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