The Battle of Wagram was fought between a combined army made up of French, Saxon, Bavarian, and Italian troops, led by Napoleon, and the Austrian Army, under the command of Archduke Charles of Austria, during the Napoleonic Wars. It took place on the Marchfeld plain situated north-east of Vienna, near the town of Wagram, on July 5 and 6, 1809. The result of this battle was a decisive French victory, forcing Austria to sign the Treaty of Schönbrunn three months later, which put an end to Austria’s war against France. Austria had started this war to prevent a French control of Germany.
Both Austrian and French armies suffered a high number of casualties at the Battle of Wagram, with the Austrian suffering a total of 41,200 troops (killed, wounded, and missing), while French and Allied casualties amounted to 37,500, with 27,500 killed or wounded and 10,000 missing or captured. The heavy losses suffered by the French, which included many seasoned troops as well as over thirty generals of varying rank, was something that the French would not be able to recover from. Bernadotte’s dismissal from the Grande Armée for his failure would have severe consequences for Napoleon in later years.
Summary
To face Napoleonic forces, Charles of Austria had deployed his 136,000-men army along a 14-mile (23-km) front, with the village of Wagram in the center, waiting for the French to attack. With approximately 188,000 troops, Napoleon Bonaparte crossed the nearby river, marching onto the Marchfeld plain. After being deployed, the French initiated the Battle of Wagram with heavy artillery fire near the town. At around 06:00 hours of the first day, Napoleon launched an attack on the Austrian center. Nevertheless, this initial attack failed under the heavy Austrian fire and was bloodily repulsed.
On the second day of engagement, the Austrians began a diversionary attack on the French right flank, while the major assault was launched against the left. Although the Austrians succeeded to push the French back, Napoleon quickly formed a grand battery of 114 cannons that stopped the Austrian attack. Meanwhile, on the right, the French had turned the tide as they started to advance. This was coupled with a massive attack on the Austrian center that split Charles’ army in two as the French cavalry initiated a ferocious attack on the isolated Austrian units.
Below, the French cavalry charging at the Austrian positions during the Battle of Wagram. Painting by Henri George Jacques Chartier.
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