(subordinate of Alemdar)
Being a record of the war that began on April 1st 1810 between France and the Fifth Coalition. Though Austria was tempted to declare war in 1809, while the French were tied up in the Iberian Peninsula, they waited until they could get Russia on side. Russia joined the coalition in January of 1810, using this as an opportunity to wage war against the Ottoman Turks in conjunction with Austria. On April 1st, 1810, the Russians and Austrians declared war on the Ottoman Empire. Napoleon ordered his armies to march against Austria in response.
| Emperor Napoleon | Marshal Davout | Marshal Massena | Eugene | Marshal Lannes | Alemdar Mustafa Pasha | Murad Bey |
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| La Grand Armee | Army of Italy | Armee de Nord | Armee d'Interior | Army of the Alps | Ordu doğu Avrupa |
Army of Wallachia (subordinate of Alemdar) |
| Archduke Charles | Archduke John | FM Schwarzenburg | FM Kolowrat | Alvinzi | General Kutusov | Tsar Alexander | General Barclay de Tolly |
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| Osterreichische Grossartige Armee | Army of the South | Army of the Tyrol |
Osterreichische Sudliche Armee (subordinate of Charles) |
Army of the
West (subordinate of John) |
Kutusov | Alexander | Prut Expeditionary |
Most armies started at 200 points. Subordinate armies are created when a player dedicates 60 of his points to form a 50 point secondary player.
Contact Malcolm McCallum
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May 14th, 1810 (Aug 11, 2010)
The War Ends Campaign Summary Map:
While the war was decided in Austria and the treaty was signed there, the battle continues for a day or two in the far flung other theatres. Alemdar seeks to use the central position allow him to mass his striking army against the Russian right wing while occupying the left wing with a light force that falls back rather than face battle. Barclay de Tolly orders Platov to hurry his cavalry from from Aytos to the battle at Sliven.
A battle was fought at Sliven with both sides getting bloodied but leaving the Ottoman armies unable to defeat the Russian wing. They would be obliged to retire.
All of John and Davout's forces are simultaneously engaged across the breadth of Italy. Thousands of Venetian soldiers follow the French north to Mestre after the siege of their capital is lifted. The French forces that were off to the side at Schio prove an invaluable reserve that allows Davout to shift his forces for best possible results at the battles of Bassano and Vicenza.
The final positions when peace breaks out. It is a French victory but it is not as decisive as it might have been. The French really wanted Venice.
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May 13, 1810 (Aug 9, 2010) ITALY: First contact has been made between John and Davout since John was sent reeling back to the east to rebuild. The French and Austrian infantry have met at Bassano while large cavalry formations swirl around to the southwest. The Austrians have also occupied Mestre, driving the French there back toward Venice.
RUMELIA: Barclay has revised his plan slightly and now moves in two columns southward. They are driving Turkish piquets back onto their armies. In the north. Ottoman funded Wallachian guerrillas march on Bucharest with pitchforks and knives.
AUSTRIA: Following the battle of Purkersoors, both the French and Austrians spread their Corps out again with Charles' army moving to get behind Vienna. Napoleon's army though is too exhausted to try pushing on the capital with a peace treaty being negotiated. He daren't risk a defeat.
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May 11, 1810 (Aug 4-8, 2010) ITALY:
RUMELIA:
AUSTRIA:
The Battle of Purkersoors: A decisive two-day battle fought amid the Vienna Wood.
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Treaty of St Polten proposed by Napoleon Up for Ratification on May
14th. 14 Political Points (he currently has 15).
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May 9th, 1810 (Aug 2, 2010) Alexander determines his direction of march, making for Bavaria. Archduke Charles advances his conscripts up the road to St Polten where they meet the massed armies of Napoleon and are hurled back to Pukersoors. The Libegarde is pulled south of the Danube again and head for a major engagement at Pukersoors. Marshal Lannes and Schwarzenberg are mostly motionless. The small corps moving north from Graz is under command of Archduke Charles.
Davout pulls all but a small masking force from Venice and begins to concentrate to meet the approaching armies of Archduke Johann.
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May 7th, 1810 (July 31st, 2010)
In Rumelia, the Ottoman Turks have begun to advance north, searching for the rumoured forces of Barclay de Tolly. One of the first things that they've had to do was rebuild a line of communication to their fortresses on the Danube. Maybe those will have some news of the invaders.
It has to be in the mind of both adversaries in the east that the war will be decided in Austria so whatever political gains are achieved in Bulgaria or Wallachia may be inconsequential.
A minor engagement is fought at Hollabrunn where Massena's 5th cavalry encounters the heavy cavalry of Charles' Liebegarde. The Austrians are sent back to the east with neither side having suffered grievous casualties. Still, it is another frustrating check for the army of Austria.
Hollabrunn |
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May 5th, 1810 (July 29th, 2010)
On the Italian theater,
There was a French cavalry corps as far forward as Osoppo, but it became lost and out of command, and so is being rebuilt at the depot at Alessandria. A long line of replacements is trailing forward from the depot to rebuild French VI Corps. In Rumelia, the Ottoman force has recaptured Adrianople and is now free to move north to meet Barclay de Tolly. Prince Eugene was successful in recapturing Zurich and restoring control of the Helvetic Republic. The French IX Corps in the Alps settles into standard counter-guerrilla operations.
French replacements are coming forward from Munich in a steady stream. They march for Enns with some being picked up at Frankenmarkt by Lannes and Lambach by Napoleon as they go by. Alexander may fall upon the French in a week but, at this time, but it does not yet seem decided which route and which strategy they might take. They could go west to get behind the French and perhaps aim to take Munich. They might go straight for Linz and look to hit the French in the left flank but where will the French be in a week? The third option is to march for Wagram and Vienna to unite with the Austrians for a decisive battle. |
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Surrender of Steyr Pocket
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May 4th, 1810 (July 28th, 2010) Napoleon gets only an indecisive result at Steyr and so retreats toward his center of communications at Lambach. Surprisingly, the French at Kuchl defeat vastly superior Austrians. Lannes pushes the rest of II Corps into Micheldorf and so Charles is driven back. The encirclement of Steyr appears complete (though there is an escape route at Wels). 70,000 Austrians are bottled up inside the fortresses of Linz and Enns. 60,000 are at Steyr, unable to receive new orders from Charles whose couriers could not get past Micheldorf and Amstetten. The French are now aiming to get to St Polten which would threaten the Austrian depot at Vienna. If the depot is threatened then only conscripts and conscript replacements can be raised there. Marshal Davout has proposed a new treaty that would be ratified in June. Napoleon though has offered a proposal to the Austrians: Surrender all the troops at Lambach, Linz, Enns, and Steyr and grant Napoleon 3 political points. This would allow Charles and Alvinzi to entirely rebuild fresh armies at Vienna. In other news, Kutusov has been pulled out of the war against the Turk. The troops negotiated and armistice and marched out without incident. The siege of Adrianople continues. Alexander is now massing a 60,000 man army in Bohemia.
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May 3rd, 1810 (July 27th, 2010)
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May 2nd, 1810 (July 26, 2010) All of the major activity is happening now in Austria. Barclay de Tolly inches ever nearer the front while Alemdar Mustafa Pasha and Kutusov continue their respective sieges. Davout and John are each in a rebuilding phase in Italy and Eugene is actively trying to suppress revolts in the Helvetic Republic and Tyrolia.
On the Danube, the Austrians were driven back from Linz and Enns but after a very even battle, the French were obliged to retreat from Lambach to Linz. Thousands of Austrians are bottled up neatly inside fortresses but that also ties of French troops to mask those fortresses. The loss of Lambach seriously inconveniences Napoleon. |
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May 1st, 1810 (July 21st - July 25th 2010)
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April 30th 1810 (July 20, 2010) The Ottoman army of Alemdar Mustafa Pasha rolls across the rivers on the offensive. The twenty thousand Russian defenders of Adrianople estimate the numbers of Turks descending upon them from three sides as upwards of fifty thousand infantry and forty thousand cavalry. The coalition forces hurriedly withdraw into their recently captured fortress. Swiss guerrillas have liberated Zurich from the French invaders. The French response is to raise a subordinate command under Eugene in Strasbourg. This will take command of Lannes' IX Corps that is tied down fighting guerrillas around Innsbruck. The Emperor wants the situation stabilized and the rebellions put down harshly. In Germany, Schwarzenberg is on the attack, swinging up through Kuchl and even getting cavalry as far as Salzburg. Lannes has forces there to oppose him but the manoeuvre does concern the French Emperor. Following the battle at Lambach, the French have not been idle. They have repeatedly harassed the army of Charles at Steyr and Alvinzi at Wells, generally pinning it, while Massena pushes south to mask both Linz and Enns fortresses. There is a depot within the Enns fortress that the Austrians do not want falling into Massena's hands. Napoleon's I Corps is across the Danube at Friestadt. The road is entirely open to Vienna though Kollowrat is hastily trying to raise a new defense force. The encirclement of Steyr
The Austrian push on Salzburg
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April 28th 1810 (July 15th-July 18th 2010) ITALY: Archduke's John's army is wrecked. After a series of desperate battles around
Castelbaldo, the weight of French numbers just proves to be too much. He
commands th For Marshal Davout though, it is a period of mopping up and he cannot move east in pursuit. He does send a cavalry corps to probe toward the eastern Venetian fortresses, but he has the remnants of Austrian IV Korps still besieging Milan that needs defeating. As well, there remain Austrian defenders at Mantua and Venice. The French VI Corps is shattered and will be sent back toward Pavia or Parma to rebuild. Part of John's strategy to buy himself some time involves funding and encouraging guerrillas in the alps. THE ALPS:
The rest of Lannes' wing, the Army of the Alps, gets to Salzburg and Frankenmarkt where they pause to reorganize and await instructions from the Emperor. RUMELIA:
Alemdar Mustafa Pasha is oblivious to Kutusov's manoeuvres but also, he is still trying to rebuild his army. He may switch to the offensive at any time but still, he remains behind the Maritsa river. AUSTRIA:
Austrian Forces at Lambach at dawn on April 28th Opposing initial French Forces Massena sends his IV Corps under Ney to pursue Hiller. The French force is watered down by some going north to Passau so that only two divisions reach Linz where they come across several Austrian divisions, some marching for Lambach. The French do the same upon parallel roads. Charles summons his VIII Korps to the battle at Lambach but it will not arrive in time to participate.
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April 26th 1810 (July 13th 2010) Stalemates descend upon all of Europe but Napoleon has ordered his Marshals forward into the attack, despite their protests that they needed more time to rebuild their losses. Archduke Charles anticipates entirely where the attack must fall but has he left himself too vulnerable? Schwarzenberg, becoming increasingly restless about the lack of French aggression, orders more troops to the south and west. The Ogre is up to something.
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April 23rd 1810 (July 10th 2010) RUMELIA
The Russians conquer Thrace but are alarmed by the large numbers of Turks appearing around the freshly secured capital, Adrianople. The Russians are beaten at Kirklareli and withdraw from Luleburgaz, concentrating on their fortress. The Ottoman forces though are surprised to have escaped the siege and are only thinking of getting across the river and toward Corlu where they can begin to find reinforcements and replacements. Finally though Alemdar Mustafa Pasha has his army under command again. The Russians have no line of communication so no way to replace their losses. That puts a war of attrition into the Turkish favour but Barclay de Tolly is marching through Wallachia and that will spell doom for Alemdar. ITALY
The tables have entirely turned once again and now it is John who has a spread out army that is beyond his command. GERMANY The French are paused now, trying to rest their armies and collect
replacements that arrive through Munich. That does not prevent Bonaparte from
seeing an opportunity to take Wacklabruck with I Corps and the Guard. The Guard
are immediately sent back to Frankenmarkt to reset the flexible defensive
position. Charles withdraws from Ried, perhaps seeing the threat that the loss
of Wacklabruck represents, and there is now a massive Austrian concentration at
Lambach. Massena, stung by a repulse from Ried a few days before, is not quick
to follow Charles.
Schwarzenberg is shifting his weight to the south. This would be partly due to the anticipated threat from the French to try to outflank the river lines, as they had done twice before now, or it may be an Austrian flank march beginning. Napoleon has rumours and reports of nine divisions from Wels and II Corps had repulsed an attempt at Regau the day before, so he is not blind to the massing. The 40,000 Germans at Vorchdorf though are unknown to him. With Lannes having completed his objectives in the Tyrol and Switzerland, he should be arriving in the Austrian theater within the week but it is not known if he will come through the center at Munich or through the mountains to Radstadt. Either way, he may be too late to decide the next critical phase of the campaign in Germany. Also, unknown to the French, A Russian army is marching through Bohemia, due to begin arriving in Prague within a week.
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April 20th 1810 (July 7th, 2010) A treaty was proposed yesterday by Napoleon. It will be ratified on 12 May unless he falls below 7 Political Points or a higher value treaty is proposed. The terms of the treaty would have Ligurian Republic and Helvetic Republic become provinces of France. Salzburg would join the French faction as an ally. Everything in the Eastern theater would return to pre-war borders. As well, Russia would be unable to participate in the next campaign. When the bulk of the Russian forces pulled back from Adrianople to bait the Ottoman into a sally, the battered Ottoman forces attempted a break out. They were arrested by a Russian Corps at Kirklareli. Meanwhile, a relief column from Constantinople has come across another Russian Corps southeast of Adrianople, at Luleburgaz. Estimated Ottoman strength at Kirklareli is 12000 infantry and 13000 cavalry. Estimated Ottoman strength at Luleburgaz is 23500 infantry and 6500 cavalry. In Italy, John's III Korps was repulsed at Rovigo to Ferrara while the French VI was driven back from Mestre to Padua. John has pursued but the French at Mestre were able to make the march to Padua and suddenly John's situation is less than ideal. It is Austrians that are now besieged inside Mantua. Davout still does not have reliable communications with his army but he is assembling a considerable force at Pavia and preparing to go once more on the offensive. Despite their victory at Branau, the Austrians in Germany felt that the loss of Salzburg necessitated a general retreat to the next line of defense. The French have completed assembling a field depot at Munich and are hoping to pause for a few days to rest.
Marshal Lannes encountered 60,000 Austrians and Tyroleans at Innsbruck, which was a greater force than he had anticipated and so is working to assemble his army for an attack on the Tyrolean capital. |
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April 17th 1810 (July 2nd, 2010) Events have gone all to pot in Italy for the French. Following the Austrian attack on Mantua on the 8th, Davout was trapped inside the siege and had to escape back to Alessandria. He has been advancing slowly back to the east but a single Austrian cavalry division has been slowing him down. Meanwhile, his three Corps that were earlier sent to Rovigo and Venice have received no new orders. When Archduke john found Venice under attack behind him, he immediately rushed himself off there to take personal charge of the situation. He was able to throw together enough of a force of Venetians to repel the French of VI Corps. Austrian III Korps meanwhile had left Mantua, leaving IV Korps to continue the siege, and marched down to lay claim to Bologna. From there they proceeded to march east where they are about to come across the French army that is waiting there without direction from Davout. That Marshal, fighting his way back to Mantua, is too late. The garrison of Mantua has just now surrendered.
Napoleon achieves another victory at Salzburg but Massena is checked at Branau |
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April 16th, 1810 (July 1st, 2010) Moldavia, and Bosnia have all fallen to the coalition. They have also liberated Bologna from the French. Mantua continues to hold out while Davout marches with a modest force to the relief of the siege. The siege of Venice has begun. In Bulgaria, Kutusov's Russians have reached Adrianople. Their advanced guard was pushed back by the surprisingly large Ottoman presence there but when the main Russian army was brought up, the issue looked to be entirely in Kutuzov's favour. Alemdar Mustafa Pasha, caught out of position in the face of the Russian landings, is scrambling to put up a cohesive defense. The army of Bosnia has effectively ceased to exist and a new army of 70,000 is being raised in Constantinople to answer the Russian threat. The Rumelia Theater: In Germany, the French continue their steady advance through southern Bavaria and the Austrians are trying to put up resistance. The Salzburg depot was dismantled and re-established at Enns. Today, there are simultaneous battles: Napoleon and Schwarzenberg fight at Salzburg while Massena tries to force a passage of the Inn River against Charles at Branau. The German Theater: |
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April 14th, 1810 (June 29,2010) The Italian Theater: The German Theater: The French have 263,000 men within a day's march of Munich. |
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April 13th, 1810 (June 28, 2010) Kutusov lands at Burgas in Bulgaria with 75,000 men while Barclay de Tolly's troops enter the capitals of Bessarabia and Moldavia and the Austrians arrive within a day of Sarajevo. The Turks are under heavy pressure on three fronts. In Italy, Archduke John continues his siege of Mantua but has now realized that Davout is behind him, cutting him off from his depot and about to seize Venice. Schwarzenberg is falling back on Salzburg and Charles is also ordering a retreat across the Inn River.
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April 12th 1810 There is a major battle taking place at Munich. Schwarzenberg is in place there with VI and VII Corps (much reduced), a reserve Korps, and three divisions of conscripts hurried up from Salzburg and manning breastworks that the Austrians had begun to construct as soon as they took the Bavarian capital. In defense, they have 42,750 conscript infantry, 76,310 infantry, 10,880 cavalry, and 12 batteries of artillery. A 12,000 man mixed division is hurrying from Pfaffenhoffen to join the fray. At the commencement of the battle, the French have 51,840 infantry. 6,400 cavalry, and 12 batteries of artillery. Napoleon and Marshal Massena are both present which is fortunate as the French advance down two separate roads onto the battlefield. 41,760 infantry (including the Old Guard), 7680 (including the Guard cavalry), and 6 more batteries of artillery will be following up. The weather is warm and clear.
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April 10th 1810 (June 20th) In Italy, John has begun the siege of Mantua while Davout shifts his weight to deal with the Bologna problem. A not-insignificant problem for the French is that Marshal Davout is trapped inside the siege of Mantua. He will have a terrible time with couriers getting in and out. Germany: Ney is advanced with IV Corps to Munich but, in the face of two Austrian Corps, he is obliged to withdraw back to Nannhofen. Soult advances to encounter Czarak's VII Korps and a battle is fought at Herrsching: After Action Report Pursuit is made on to Munich and Ney is once more advanced from Nannhofen. 120, 000 Austrians arrange a reception there.
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April 8th 1810 (real world June 18, 2010) In Italy, Davout and John have made contact at two locations: Austrian III and IV Korps advanced on French VII Corps at Mantua while French II Cavalry Corps got ahead of its supports and encountered Austrian X Corps at Bologna.
On the Balkan front, Kolowrat has slowed in his advance on Sarajevo which is allowing the Turks to hastily raise forces to defend the capital. The main combat force of Bosnia, Ali Hiyet, is off laying siege to the Dalmatian capital and are at least a week from Sarajevo.
On the Black Sea, Kutusov has loaded his army aboard the vast flotilla and has ordered his ships to make for a landing place. There are light naval engagements in the Black Sea but the Turks have no significant presence there. Barclay de Tolly continues to march his massive army south on roads of conquest. Napoleon's Germany plan is going according to schedule and he and Massena are massing at Augsburg. his right wing, under Lannes, has gotten slowed by bad roads and the Emperor's insistence on taking the best roads for himself. French II Corps fought their way across the Lech River at Landsberg and drove Austrian VII Corps back toward Munich. Schwarzenberg is aware that Napoleon is at Augsburg in force and we watch to see how he will respond.
The French in Germany are alarmed that they have had no contact yet with Archduke Charles and Marshal Massena has been urged to be alert to the chance of 100, 000 Austrians descending on his left flank at any time. |
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April 5th 1810 (real world June 15, 2010) There is, as yet, little significant contact. Lobau and Schwarzenberg meet at Munich with the Bavarians being driven back, woefully outnumbered. In Bosnia, Kolowrat drove back some Ottoman cavalry from Banja Luka. Davout made definite progress and was moving beyond Milan into Bologna. Barclay de Tolly advances into Bessarabia and Moldavia, bringing them into the war. Kutusov waits for his ships.
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The initial dispositions of the armies reflected a concentration by the Russians on the Ottoman Front. The French and Austrians, in the west, lined up against one another in the traditional ways. Days before the campaign opened, players were given the following summary of dispositions:
French As a result of these dispositions, the Ottoman Empire would shift Alemdar Mustafa Pasha to the east and leave Murad Bey in charge of the Bosnian contingent. Archduke John was actually in the process of mustering his army in Venice. French Strategy Napoleon's plan for the campaign is to send the Grand Armee and Massena on a fast drive through Germany. When the plan was made, it was assumed that there would be Russians coming to Austrian aid so the scheme was to hit whichever Austrians were in Bavaria quickly and then turn to the Russians in theater. Lobau commands a Corps of Bavarians that seek to defend their land from Austrian invaders. The doctrine was to be speed and pursuit. Napoleon's plan for an advance into Germany, on the assumption that the Austrians would pause after taking Munich:
In Italy, the intention was for Davout to conquer as much of Italy as possible, on the assumption that the Austrians would only seek to contain that theater. Three days into the war, Davout, has already crossed the borders of Ligurian Republic and Lombardy, bringing them into the coalition against the French. Marshal Lannes was assigned the task of being the right flank of Napoleon, with responsibility for conquering Helvetic Republic and Tyrol and, importantly, establishing a communications link with Marshal Davout. The Ottoman Empire would be obliged to adopt a defensive strategy in the face of the massive build up by the Russians. Coalition Strategy From what I know, the Coalition strategy is to try to make a quick knock-out of the Ottoman Empire while the Austrians seek to engage and slow the French. De Tolly was to engage the Turks in Moldavia and Bessarabia while Kutusov would conduct a naval landing in Bulgaria. It was expected that the Austrians would seek to invade Bavaria and then defend the Danube river line.
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The Austrians are obliged to surrender the
army encircled at Steyr. A wing commander, 9 Corps headquarters with their
artillery, and 28 combat divisions lay down their arms. 150,000 Austrian
soldiers are taken into captivity. As part of the terms, the garrisons of Enns
and Linz capitulate. Enns included an Austrian depot. The French gain 3
political points for this.
