The Battle of Aspern-Essling was a military encounter of the Napoleonic Wars. It was fought between the French Great Army (Grande Armée), under Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Austrian Forces, led by Archduke Charles, on May 21-22, 1809, between the towns of Essling and Aspern, on the Danube River, Austria. The result of the battle was a French Pyrrhic victory as they suffered about 25,000 casualties, including the death of Marshal Jean Lannes, who had been until then Napoleon's most talented General. Thus, it can be said, it was a setback for the French General in the War of the Fifth Coalition.
Summary of Battle of Aspern-Essling
Having been defeated by the French at the Battle of Eckmühl, Archduke Charles was forced to fall back in the direction of Vienna, with 90,000 men. However, when he heard that Napoleon had captured the town of Regensburg, he made up his mind and deployed his large army between Aspern and Essling to engage the French forces. His objective was to liberate the towns that had been taken by the French since April.
The Battle of Essling began on the morning of May 21, with an Austrian attack on Aspern, which was captured by the Austrian VI Corps, led by Hiller. However, the French IV Corps, under Massena, fought back and managed to retake it. In the meantime, the Austrians, under Field Marshal Rosenberg took Essling, which would soon be recovered by the French, led by Lannes. The fighting in the streets of Essling was heroic and vicious. Jean Lannes was seriously wounded during the assault on Essling, dying a several days later on May 31, 1809.
Savage fighting raged on on the outskirts of both towns, with infantry and cavalry assaults and counterattacks. However, Archduke Charles decided to retreat on the afternoon of May 22, as Napoleon also called off a counterattack on the Austrian rear due to the heavy losses they had suffered. It was a costly victory for the French as they had managed to keep possession of both towns.
Below, a 19th century painting depicting the French Marshal Jean Lannes mortally wounded at Essling.
