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Detta blir det härnäst.

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Kartan med förtydliganden. Norr är uppåt (så klart!)

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Koolaste kampanjen i Napoleonkrigen. Har aldrig spelat ett spel om den som inte gett mig tandvärk.

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Utgångsläget. Feta namn är commanders, övriga officers. Nappe, Lannes och Bessieres samt Karl saknar egna förband att chefa över. Karl har framryckt söderifrån och skaffat sig den centrala positionen. Jag avser väl försöka med samma sak som han, men jag avser lyckas, nämligen att inlednings slå fiendens starkaste kår, Davouts III, genom att inringa den. Hohenzollerns kår och Hillers kår får fördröja övriga franska kårer.

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Background

Welcomed as liberators in 1806, within three years the French in Germany were resented as an army of occupation. Still, while insurgency developed in Spain, Germany slumbered. By invading Spain in 1807, Napoleon found his quagmire, and he would fight the remainder of his
wars in Central Europe with one hand tied behind his back. After attending to his shaky alliance with Russia at the Congress of Erfurt in September 1808, the Emperor departed to cure his Spanish ulcer by attending to the fighting there in person. Austria ventured to
take advantage of his absence to regain some of her
lost territory. Napoleon became aware of Austrian troop mobilizations
and on January 23rd, 1809, he departed for Paris to prepare for the coming campaign. He again settled on Vienna as his ultimate objective, but realized the Austrians would be ready to march before he was.
The French and their allies were as yet widely dispersed—
during the campaign's opening stages they would be on the defensive. The theme of the Abensberg- Eckmühl operation is the French Army's transition from delaying defense.

"The transition from the defensive to the offensive is one of the most delicate operations in war."
— Napoleon

The Austrian Army

After its disastrous defeat in 1805 the Austrian Army implemented a modernization program, though the French still held the tactical edge. In fighting Davout's III Corps they were opposed to the best of the
French, and acquitted themselves well. Their failure was due to a lack of initiative on the part of their leaders. By the time of Wagram, the Austrians had revised their antiquated and leisurely concepts of war and
were on a fairly equal footing with the French for the first time.

I. Armeekorps, G. d. K. Graf Bellegarde– 25700
24 Bn., 14 Sqn., 62 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos. (+ 2 Bn., 2
Sqn. detached in Bohemia).  

II. Armeekorps, FZM. Graf Kolowrat– 22151
19 Bn., 7 Sqn., 65 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.
Detached: 1 bn. for the siege of the fortress Oberhaus.
attached: Brigade Rottermund: 12 Sqn. (Dragoons) –
1549, 2 Pontoneer Div. with 50 Pontoons.

III. Armeekorps, FML. Fst. Hohenzollern– 23603
25 Bn., 8 Sqn., 96 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.
IV. Armeekorps, FML. Fst. Rosenberg– 15000
14 Bn., 15 Sqn., 62 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos. (+ 5 Bn., 1
Sqn., 1 Batt. with FML. v. Dedovich and GM. v. Reinwald
detached for the siege of Oberhaus (Passau)
attached: Brigade Vecsey: 5 Bn., 8 Sqn. – 6191
arriving as reinforcements: 2 Bns.
Reinwald was intended to join IV Corps, but got bundled
up in Hiller's retreat after Landshut.

V. Armeekorps, FML. Archduke Ludwig– 24191
28 Bn., 24 Sqn., 96 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.
arriving as reinforcements during the advance to the
Isar: 1 Line Bn. and 3 Bns. Vienna Volunteers.

VI. Armeekorps, FML. Freiherr v. Hiller– 31792
28 Bn., 24 Sqn., 96 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.
arriving as reinf. on 18. Apr: 3 Bn. Vienna Volunteers.

I. Reserve Korps, GdK. Fst. Liechtenstein– 14369
12 Bn. (Grenadiers), 24 Sqn. Cuirassiers (Rottermund
det. to II Corps), 34 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.

II. Reserve Korps, FML. Frh. v. Kienmayer– 6690
5 Bn. (Grenadiers), 24 Sqn. (12 Cuirassiers/12 Dragoons),
20 Guns, 2 Pioneer Cos.

Austrian Commanders

The Archduke Charles (Karl), the Emperor's brother, had fought to modernize the Army after the cataclysm of 1805. The only Austrian in a class with the best of Napoleon's Marshals, he succeeded to some degree
over considerable resistance from conservative officers like Hiller. His reforms did not lead to marked increases in initiative among the higher echelon. He was seconded by chief of staff Johann v. Prochaska and
aides-de-camp Grünne, Colloredo, v. Wimpffen, and Auersperg. The jealous Hiller was imposed on him by the Emperor. Hiller's idea was to reconnoiter in person and then ride back to instruct his idling troops.
Posted to guard the left of the army, Hiller sidled to his right, allowing Massena to slip through to Landshut. The Archduke Ludwig, also placed on the Army's left wing in a post most likely to encounter Napoleon, was only 25 years old and—despite his complete lack of experience in war—resented his subordination to Hiller. Kolowrat, Liechtenstein and
Kienmayer had fought well at Austerlitz in 1805.

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The French Armée de l'Allemagne

The Army of Germany was not the instrument that Napoleon had used to such devastating effect in 1805-07 against Austria, Prussia, or Russia. Most of those troops were dead, debilitated, or transferred to Spain.
An important exception was III Corps. Aside from these proven veterans, two new Corps were created— the II and IV—supplemented by two Corps of German Confederation of the Rhine troops. Of the 114,635 French troops, 23,300 were conscripts (concentrated in Divisions Tharreau, Claparede, Molitor and Boudet) and half of these were completely untrained. The army lacked the cannon needed to bolster
its untried formations. Each infantry division comprised two or more
brigades, each of two or three regiments. The regiment was the soldier's "nuclear family" which looked to his needs, and it was to the regiment's eagle that he rallied on the battlefield. Each regiment comprised two, three or four battalions in the field and one
in the depot at home, which provided a stream of replacements
from the same area. The battalions in turn comprised several "line" companies, plus one of tall grenadiers, and one of light and nimble voltigeurs. The Cavalry comprised three divisions of armorclad
cuirassiers on huge Belgian mounts; a single light division of hussars and chasseurs; plus the light cavalry brigades attached to the Corps.

II Corps—Oudinot– 213882
Oudinot's Grenadier division (which had been depleted
by drafts for Spain) was expanded to two divisions
with the introduction of raw conscripts,
including beardless youths of 17. Their designation,
demi-brigades d'elite, was misleading—less than onethird
of these troops had previously seen combat.
Hampered by inflexibility on the battlefield, the conscripts
of the two divisions had benefited from training
with the Imperial Guard.
1. Inf.-Div. Tharreau: 16 Bns., 18 Guns – 7145
2. Inf.-Div. Claparede: 16 Bns., 18 Guns – 8860
Lt. Cav.-Brig. Colbert: 9 Sqds. – 2183
3. H Cav.-Div. Espagne: 16 Sqds., 6 Guns – 3200

III Corps—Davout– 60597
The incomparable III Corps had stopped a force of
double its numbers at Austerlitz in 1805 and again at
Auerstadt in 1806. Under the stern gaze of Marshal
Davout, the combat-proven divisions of Gudin, Friant,
and Morand had not noticeably declined in effectiveness
despite serious casualties in three campaigns. All
their regiments were capable of deploying into skirmish
order like light infantry. These three were joined
1 Bowden and Tarbox, "Armies on the Danube 1809," p. 61.
1 French strengths in "Studienbehelfe der k. u. k. Kriegsschule:
Regensburg 1809" Verlag der k. u. k Kriegsschule, Wien 1911.
by St. Hilaire's division, formerly of Soult's old IV
Corps, which included one of the most formidable of
all French infantry regiments—the 57th. Each of these
four main divisions contained 15 battalions, 15 guns,
and 11,350 men (on average). Demont's Reserve division
comprised 10 understrength battalions of new 4th
battalion recruits, with 15 guns—3215 men. The
Corps light cavalry component under Montbrun (3
brigades) was expanded in proportion to the infantry,
with 24 Sqds and 5218 men. St. Sulpice's independent
Cuirassier Division was attached—16 Sqds., 6
Guns, 3411 men.

IV Corps—Massena– 37559
A mixture of veteran and conscript French troops plus
two German brigades. Division Legrand included one
brigade of French and one of Baden troops—mainly
conscripts with a cadre of veterans of the 1807 campaign.
Their Dragoons were attached to Marulaz's
Light Cavalry. The 24th Light and 4th Line Regiments
under Carra Saint Cyr were veterans; the division also
contained a brigade of Hesse-Darmstadt troops. Molitor
and Boudet comprised over 50% of new recruits.
Inf.-Div. Legrand: 13 Bns., 24 Guns – 10458
(includes Baden Brigade of 7 Bns., 12 Guns—
5517 infantry in three regiments and one Jäger battalion,
435 Light Dragoons, 348 gunners.)
Inf.-Div. Carra St. Cyr: 14 Bns., 18 Guns – 11553
(includes the Hessian Brigade of 6 Bns., 6 Guns.)
3. Inf.-Div. Molitor: 10 Bns., 12 Guns – 7166
4. Inf.-Div. Boudet: 7 Bns., 12 Guns – 5628
Lt. Cav.-Div. Marulaz: 18 Sqds. – 2765

VII Corps—Lefebvre (Bavarian)– 27603
The Bavarian army had made the transition from the
inflexible drill of the 18th century to the adaptable
tactics of the French. Mobilized on 25th February
1809, the Army comprised 13 Infantry Regiments, 7
Lt Infantry battalions, 2 Rgts. of Dragoons, 4 of Light
Cavalry, and 20 batteries of Artillery, 13 of which
served with VII Corps.
1st Div.—Crown Prince Ludwig: 9 Bns., 6 Sqds., 18
Guns – 8782
2nd Div.—Wrede: : 9 Bns., 8 Sqds., 18 Guns – 8944
3rd Div.—Deroy: 10 Bns., 8 Sqds., 18 Guns – 9751
Artillery Reserve: 18 Guns
Each division comprised two infantry and one cavalry
brigades, supported by three batteries.

VIII Corps—Vandamme (Württemberg)– 12242
A wagon train provided by Württemberg brought
supplies from their own depot at Heidenheim (north
of Ulm) to troops in the field. The light infantry under
Hügel featured prominently in the battle of
Abensberg.
Inf.-Div. Neubronn: 14 Bns.– 9615 (two infantry
brigades and Hügel's Lt. Infantry brigade)
Cav.-Bde. Wöllwarth: 16 Sqds. – 2214 (2 brigades)
Artillery: 22 Guns (459 artillerists, three batteries)

Independent Units
Div. Rouyer (German states): 9 Bns.– 6777
1. Hvy Cav.- Div. Nansouty: 24 Sqds. (Brigades Defrance,
Doumerc, and St. Germain), 12 Guns – 4833

French Commanders

The leaders of this rapidly assembled French Army were still the best in the world, though some showed signs of decline. By this time Lannes was the equal of Davout or Massena in his prime. Bessieres, Oudinot, Lannes and Massena were recalled from Spain. Massena had not served under the Emperor for ten years, and his initiative was flagging. Oudinot was an old grenadier, who impetuously put himself in the front ranks. Davout was a meticulous organizer and strict disciplinarian who also grasped strategy—a rare quality among all Napoleon's marshals. Vandamme was
abrasive and failed to cooperate with the other Corps Officers.
To find the necessary officers and NCOs for the newly-created formations, every expedient was resorted to, with officers drawn from depots, from retirement, from academies, as well as thousands of
newly-commissioned sergeants.

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French Plans

Napoleon selected the fortified town of Regensburg on the Danube as his center of operations. From this bridgehead he would be able to parry an Austrian thrust regardless of which bank it followed. "Napoleon planned to form a new version of his famed bataillon carré around Ratisbon, capable of meeting an attack from any direction and of turning any situation
to the French advantage. A combination of unanticipated Austrian aggressiveness and plain bungling on the part of poor Berthier, hopelessly out of his depth amid this welter of instructions, was to lead to
the near ruination of Napoleon's carefully considered schemes."

Austrian Plans

By avoiding large detachments on secondary fronts, the Austrians were able to concentrate almost 200,000 men for the attack on Bavaria. The Archduke Charles favored a surprise attack against Davout's command
from Bohemia. However, poor communications with Bohemia would delay baggage trains. The Aulic Council, which had to approve war plans, were in favor of a more limited offensive from the south bank. This would alleviate communications and supply problems, protect Vienna from a French advance on that side, and place the army in a position to support the forces of Archduke John in the Tyrol. With news of Oudinot's
and Massena's threatening appearance at Ulm, Charles was forced to adopt the lesser strategy, and it took two weeks to transfer six corps from Bohemia across the Danube. Bellegarde's I and Kolowrat's II Corps remained in Bohemia to attack through Cham toward Ratisbon.
After crossing the River Inn at Scharding, and the Isar at Landshut, the Austrian center and reserve would advance on Kelheim to cross the Danube behind Davout and possibly cut his line of retreat, while the left
wing guarded against a move by Massena and Oudinot from the west.

The Outbreak of War

The Austrians made no formal declaration of war, merely handing a note to M. Otto, head of the French legation at Munich. This provided a degree of surprise, although the maneuvers of the Austrians in their approach to the frontier were known. Initial concentrations in Bohemia, north of the Danube, led Napoleon to think the main attack would come from that
side.

Opening Moves  

Davout marched from Erfurt to Nuremberg to block any Austrian moves westward from Bohemia. Oudinot's II Corps moved to Augsburg, and Massena's IV Corps to Ulm. The French army was well positioned to
deal with an offensive on either side of the Danube. Due to Berthier's misunderstanding of his master's intentions, Davout was ordered to retreat toward Ingolstadt by the south bank, directly into the path of
127,000 Austrians. Marshal Lefebvre's VII Corps was pushed forward along the Isar River to screen French deployments against Austrian moves south of the Danube. As in 1805, Austria began the campaign by
attacking Bavaria.

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Karl följer med Rosenberg som rör sig mot Davouts söderifrån. Liechtenstein rör sig norrut för att avskära Davout  från den franska huvudstyrkan. Hohenzollern grupperar för försvar. Hiller rör sig västerut för att fördröja Oudinot och Massena. Ludvig och Kolowrat tar sovmorgon.

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Davout rör sig snabbt västerut för att undkomma. Lannes rider söderut. sannolikt för att ta befälet över Oudinot som i sig kan vara lite flegmatisk. Van Damme rör sig mot Lefebvre.

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Rosenberg/Karl rör sig för att kunna anfalla Davout söderifrån medan Liechtenstein placerar sig för ett anfall från väster. Kolowrat är handlingsförlamad vilket gör att det östra styrkan, och nästan hälften av styrkan, inte kommer att kunna ingripa samordnat med de andra. Liechtenstein är tyvärr ganska svag... Hiller rör sig västerut för att få ut ett större fördröjningsdjup. Ludvig och Kienmayer tar siesta.

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Davout blixtrar till och anfaller Rosenberg och Karl! Davout har mycket starka förband. Han pryglar upp mig rejält och jag viker bakåt.

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En kavalleriräd slår ut Rosenbergs tross. Liechtenstein rör sig mot Davouts rygg för att presentera ett hot så att Rosenberg kan undkomma. Kolowrat, den j-vla sopan, står ännu still! Liksom de flesta andra. Hiller grupperar för fördröjning.

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Davout kastar om kåren och river helt upp Liechtenstein! Liechtenstein själv tas till fånga. Lannes har nu tagit befälet över Oudinot och Bessieres över det fristående kavalleriet vilket innebär att Vandamme och Lefebrve är den enda som inte automatiskt får agera hela tiden (fast decär just nu inom Nappes befälsräckvidd). Jämför detta med Ludvigs och inte minst Kolowrats flegmatiska attityd... Kienmayer har underpresterat statistiskt.

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När Karl får höra om Liechtensteins nederlag på kvällen drabbas han av ett epileptiskt anfall (jo, det finns regler för detta) varför den österrikiska befälskedjan drabbas av ledningsbortfall. Detta sammanfaller med att alla hans underordnade tydligen tycker att de gjort nog för dagen och tar natt! Inget händer i den österrikiska armén!

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På morgonen omgrupperar Karl till cntern för att samordna det väntande slaget vid ABENSBERG där Davout efter segern vid ABBACH dagen innan väntas anfalla söderut in i flanken på Hohenzollern. Colloredo övertar Liechtensteins befäl och reorganiserar den decimerade svaga kåren. Hiller börjar backa då Massena hotar att omfatta honom söderifrån. Kolowrat? Kolowrat? KOLOWRAT?!