I won the battle by marches alone.
Napoleon
210 years ago, on October 16-19, 1805, the French army under the command of Napoleon defeated and captured the Austrian army of General Mack. This defeat had strategic consequences. The Austrian Empire was unable to recover from this defeat, and Napoleon occupied Vienna. Kutuzov's army, unable to resist the French alone, was forced to retreat hastily, barely avoiding the fate of the Austrian army.
The battle is interesting in that Napoleon's victory was achieved not in a general engagement, but in a series of successful battles with individual Austrian corps. As usual, Napoleon managed to achieve surprise. "Napoleon walked with unusually fast transitions," wrote the famous Russian historian E. V. Tarle, "making a detour from the north of the location of the Austrian troops on the Danube, the left flank of which was the Ulm fortress." The Austrians learned about the appearance of the enemy only when the French had already cut it off from reinforcements and sources of supply. By October 16, Napoleon managed to encircle the entire Austrian army at Ulm. The shocked Austrian general asked for an 8-day truce, hoping for the arrival of the Russian army. In fact, Mac capitulated a few days later. The Austrian army was partly destroyed, partly captured, partly fled.
Background
Napoleon planned a war within England, dreamed of "the capture of London and the Bank of England", but he had to wage a war with the "hirelings" of England - Austria and Russia, and end the war not in London, but near Vienna.
The head of the British government, William Pitt, was not sparing and not counting millions of gold pounds, preparing a new coalition. Vienna was sympathetic to the idea of a new war. The losses of Austria in the last war were enormous, and most importantly, Napoleon began to arbitrarily dispose of the western and southern small states of Germany. Previously, Austria considered itself the head of Germany, but now it has lost this role, and turned into a minor power, which had to yield to France. A new war for the Austrian Empire was the only hope to regain the former positions in Germany and Italy, to "put in place" France. And here it was possible to wage a war on British gold, and even in alliance with Russia. True, the negotiations were slow, Vienna was afraid of a new war with France. However, gradually the thirst for revenge overcame fear. Especially when the Austrian Empire was reinforced with Russian bayonets. On July 29, 1805, Austria, by a special declaration, announced its accession to the Russian-English agreement.
Those who did not want war were dismissed from their posts. Thus, Archduke Karl, the most famous commander and supporter of a sober foreign policy, was replaced by the belligerent General La Tour as chairman of the Hofkrigsrat. The Austrian army began to prepare for war. Quartermaster General Duka, a supporter of moderate politics and a man from the "clan" of Archduke Charles, lost his post. General Mack was appointed to his post.
Almost simultaneously with the development of these secret negotiations with the Austrian Empire, William Pitt conducted similar negotiations with Russia. At the same time, Russia supported England even before Austria, although Russia and England had disagreements on almost all issues, from Malta to the Baltic, where the British constantly encouraged Sweden, wanting to throw Russia away from the Baltic Sea. In fact, from the point of view of Russia's national interests, the war with France was not needed, just as France did not need a war with Russia. Both great powers did not have a common border and their interests lay in different strategic zones. France was a colonial empire and vied with Britain for dominance in various regions of America, Africa and Asia (including India). France was unable to "digest" Austria and Prussia, as well as all the German states that were located between Russia and France. France would never have subdued England. The domination of France in Italy and Spain did not affect Russia in any way. Russia's national interests did not clash with those of France. Russia needed accelerated internal development, it was necessary to develop the North, Siberia and the Far East, to reliably link Russian America with Eurasian Russia. It was necessary to make a lot of efforts and spend time for the annexation and civilizational leap of the peoples of the Caucasus and Central Asia, to solve the problems associated with Persia and the Ottoman Empire. Interesting strategic prospects opened up in Korea and China, there was an opportunity, in alliance with the French, to oust Britain from India. It was necessary to establish friendly and mutually beneficial ties with Japanese civilization.
In general, the European showdowns were beneficial to Russia. Letting her focus on her business. However, Petersburg got into European affairs headlong. The personal motives of Alexander, the dynastic interests of the Romanovs, which were connected by many threads with the houses of Germany, the secret calculations of the emperor's close associates, many of whom were associated with the West, the general Anglomania among the high society and the nobility, including those fueled by economic interests, made it easier for the British to solve the difficult tasks. Russia was turned into an enemy of France, contrary to its national interests.
Upon accession to the throne, the Russian emperor Alexander Pavlovich interrupted all talks about an alliance with Napoleon, begun by his father Pavel. He stopped all measures against England. Alexander knew that the nobility selling agricultural raw materials and bread to England was interested in friendship with London. In addition, the "enlightened" Russian nobility, high society, out of habit considered France to be a carrier of the revolutionary infection, and Napoleon - a "Corsican monster."
When the Duke of Enghien was shot, a violent seething began throughout monarchical Europe, which already hated Napoleon. Active agitation began against the "Corsican monster" who dared to shed the blood of the prince of the House of Bourbon. Napoleon responded to the protest of Russia with a famous note, where he touched upon the mystery of Paul's death. Alexander was offended. The personal hatred for Napoleon that flared up in Alexander was supported by the sentiments of the Russian court and the nobility. In addition, in St. Petersburg they hoped that a broad coalition would take part in the coalition and Paris would not be able to resist the whole of Europe. Britain agreed to finance Russia without hesitation. In April 1805, an alliance was concluded with Great Britain.
It is clear that Napoleon knew that England was counting on a war in which Austria and Russia would fight for it. He also knew that it was Vienna, irritated and frightened by defeat, who was very attentive to the advice of Britain. As early as 1803, he said that he did not consider victory over England to be assured until her possible continental allies, or "hirelings," as he called them, were crushed. “If Austria intervenes, it will mean that it will be England who will force us to conquer Europe,” Napoleon told Talleyrand.
Napoleon knew about the diplomatic game of his opponents, but hoped to outplay them. As noted by the historian A. Z. Manfred: "… he again played a risky game, a game on the edge of a knife, when victory and defeat are separated from each other by the thinnest line." First, Napoleon hoped to solve all problems with one swift blow - to hit the British lion in the very heart. The landing operation was to lead to the collapse of all plans of England. With Napoleon's inherent ability to briefly express the most complex thoughts, he defined his plan in a few words in a letter to Admiral Latouche-Treville. Informing about the awarding of the Admiral with the Order of the Legion of Honor, Bonaparte wrote: "Let us become the masters of the world for six hours!" These words were the main strategic idea of Napoleon - domination over the English Channel for several hours and the problems of European and world politics will be resolved. The British lion surrenders.
Secondly, Napoleon saw that the anti-French coalition was forming slowly, despite all the efforts of Britain. It seemed to Napoleon until the autumn of 1805 that Austria was not yet ready for war. In Germany, Napoleon achieved some success. Prussia did not want to fight and hoped to expand its possessions with the help of France. Berlin claimed Hanover, which was the personal possession of the English king and was captured by the French. The Prussian king Frederick William III dreamed of the title of emperor. The monarchs of Bavaria, Württemberg and Baden became allies of Napoleon. The French emperor made the monarchs of Bavaria and Württemberg kings, and the Baden Elector Grand Duke.
Therefore, Napoleon, on the one hand, continued to actively prepare for the landing in England, and on the other, he acted as if there was no one else in Europe except him. He wanted to give a number of small German lands to his German vassals - he gave them away; wanted to become an Italian king - became; annexed the Ligurian Republic and Piedmont to France, etc.
Napoleon is crowned king of Italy on May 26, 1805 in Milan. Italian artist Andrea Appiani
Coalition plans and forces
England promised Austria five million pounds and, as the final payment for participation in the war, territorial acquisitions - Belgium, Franche-Comté (part of the former Burgundy) and Alsace. London promised all members of the coalition being formed full monetary financing of military expenditures. England undertook to pay for every 100 thousand soldiers 1 million 250 thousand pounds sterling annually. Thus, the division of labor was strictly regulated: England supplied gold and blockaded France with the help of the fleet, Austria and Russia exhibited "cannon fodder". True, England promised to land small landings in Holland, Italy and even France.
At a meeting in Vienna, where the high command of the Austrian army and the envoy of the Russian tsar, Adjutant General Vintsingerode, took part, a plan for a war with France was adopted. The Allies were going to put up huge forces to fight Napoleon. Russia and Austria were to deploy the main forces. The convention between Austria and Russia determined the forces of these powers intended for the campaign: 250 thousand Austrians and 180 thousand Russians. The Allies also hoped to attract Prussia, Sweden, Denmark, the Kingdom of Naples and various German states. More than 600 thousand people were going to exhibit in total. True, this was in theory. In practice, neither Prussia nor the small German states that feared Napoleon did not fight.
Therefore, the plan, outlined in Vienna on July 16, 1805, assumed an offensive in four directions:
1) The 50-thousand-strong Russian army, the command of which would later be transferred to General Kutuzov, was to gather on the southwestern border of the Russian Empire near the town of the Radziwills and move to Austria to join the troops of this power. Later, the second Russian army was supposed to approach (according to the original plan - through the territory of Prussia). Austria exhibited 120 thousand. Danube army of General Mack, to which Kutuzov's troops were to join. The Austro-Russian army was supposed to operate in southern Germany. The total number of allied forces after the unification of all contingents was to reach 220 thousand soldiers.
2) Approximately 90 thousand the Russian army was to gather on the western borders of Russia. Petersburg was going to demand that these troops pass through Prussian territory and thereby force Prussia to side with the anti-French coalition. Then, after entering Prussian territory, part of this army was to be sent to join with the Austrians, and the other part was to go to the north-west of Germany. As a result, the Volyn army under the command of General Buxgevden of 30 thousand people was concentrated on the western borders of Russia, which was supposed to strengthen the army of Kutuzov, and in the Grodno region 40 thousand people were deployed. General Bennigsen's Northern Army.
In the north-west of Germany, in Pomerania, another 16 thousand Russian soldiers (Tolstoy's corps) and the Swedish corps were supposed to arrive by sea and land. The Russian and Austrian command hoped that the Prussian army would also join them. This army was to operate in northern Germany, capture Hanover and defeat the French forces in Holland.
3) In Northern Italy, 100 thous. Austrian army of Archduke Charles. The Austrian army was to drive the French troops out of Lombardy and begin the conquest of southern France. To ensure communication between the actions of the two main shock groups in southern Germany and northern Italy, a 30,000-strong army was concentrated on the land of Tyrol under the command of Archduke John.
4) In the south of Italy, it was planned to land a Russian (20 thousand expeditionary corps from the island of Corfu) and an English corps, which were to unite with 40 thousand. the Neapolitan army and act against the southern flank of the French group in Italy.
Thus, the Allies planned to advance in four main directions: in Northern and Southern Germany, in Northern and Southern Italy. They planned to exhibit more than 400 thousand people. With the Prussian army, the size of the allied army grew to 500 thousand people. In addition, Austria and its German allies had to deploy an additional 100 thousand soldiers during the war. The core of the anti-French coalition was Austria and Russia, which nominated the most numerous troops. In the fall of 1805, huge coalition forces began to move towards the French border.
The allies hoped to use the fact that the main and best forces of Napoleon were diverted by the preparation of the landing operation. They thought that Napoleon would not have time to quickly regroup his forces and the allies at this time would launch a decisive offensive, be able to solve the tasks of the first stage and prepare for the invasion of France itself. France will have to fight heavy defensive battles in several directions. Quartermaster General of the Austrian army Mack and vice-president of the Hofkriegsrat Schwarzenberg drew up a campaign plan against France, according to which it was supposed to swiftly invade Bavaria and force it to go over to the side of the Allies, and at the same time launch an offensive with large forces in Italy. These operations were supposed to begin even before the approach of the Russian army, and with its arrival to transfer hostilities to the territory of France. Based on the interests of Vienna, the Northern Italian theater of military operations was considered the main one. As a result, the Russian troops had to fight again, as during the Second Coalition, for the interests of London and Vienna.
In general, the plan of the anti-French coalition was calculated on the fact that their opponent would not be Napoleon, but the head of a different warehouse and contained major miscalculations. There was no single command of all the Allied armies. The forces of the allies were scattered, it was proposed, first of all, to solve the problems of Austria. Even during the previous campaign, Suvorov suggested focusing efforts on France. The Austrians overestimated their strength and self-confidently were going to start active hostilities before joining with the Russian troops. Although Kutuzov recommended refraining from hostilities until all Russian and Austrian forces were united, not splitting them into small parts. However, Alexander I did not heed this advice and decided to stick to the Austrian plan.
The third coalition differed from the first two: both politically and militarily it was stronger than the previous ones. The new coalition did not officially appear under the banner of the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty, did not present itself as an open counter-revolutionary force. The members of the coalition in their program documents emphasized that they were fighting not against France, not against the French people, but personally against Napoleon and his aggressive policy. Here the flexibility of the policy of the Russian Emperor Alexander Pavlovich, who, as a diplomat and politician, turned out to be the most intelligent and understanding of the spirit of the times, the leader of the anti-French alliance, had an effect. True, the secret clauses of the treaties became the former goals: the change of the French government, the elimination of the consequences of the French Revolution, the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy and the seizure of a number of territories. The vassal territories of the French Empire were going to be liquidated and divided “like brothers”.
Napoleon turns his army east
In the summer of 1805, Napoleon still put on a swift dash to cross the English Channel and bring England to her knees. The army was ready, only suitable weather and cover for the French fleet were required. On July 26, 1805, Napoleon wrote to Admiral Villeneuve: "If you make me master of the Pas-de-Calais for three days … then with God's help I will put an end to the fate and existence of England."
Villeneuve's squadron left Toulon on March 29, 1805. The French were able to avoid collision with Admiral Nelson's squadron and passed through the Strait of Gibraltar on 8 April. In Cadiz, the French joined up with the Spanish squadron of Gravina. The combined fleet sailed for the West Indies to divert the British fleet from the Straits, reaching Martinique on 12 May. The combined Franco-Spanish fleet managed to avoid meeting with Nelson's squadron, which was pursuing the French and, as planned, went back to Europe. Villeneuve was supposed to go to Brest to join the French squadron there.
The British, learning that the Franco-Spanish fleet was heading for Ferrol, sent a squadron of Robert Calder to meet him. The opponents saw each other on July 22. Although the French had a numerical superiority - 20 ships of the line against 15 - they could not win. Two Spanish ships were badly damaged and surrendered to the British. The British had two ships badly damaged. On July 23, neither Calder nor Villeneuve dared to continue the battle. Calder did not want to re-attack the superior forces of the enemy, fearing the loss of damaged ships and captured prizes. He also feared that Villeneuve's fleet would be reinforced by French squadrons from Rochefort and Ferrollet, in which case his fleet was doomed. Villeneuve also decided not to risk it and eventually returned to Cadiz. The battle ended with an uncertain result, both admirals, and Villeneuve and Calder, declared their victory.
Battle at Cape Finisterre July 22, 1805. William Anderson
The departure of Villeneuve to Cadiz destroyed all Napoleon's hopes for organizing an invasion and landing in England. True, he put on until the last moment. On August 22, he reported to Admiral Gantom, commander of the Brest squadron: “Go and move here. We have to pay back six centuries of shame. " Then he wrote again to Villeneuve: “Go, do not waste a moment and enter the English Channel with my united squadrons. England is ours. We are ready, everyone is in place. Show yourself only twenty-four hours and everything will be over … ". But the indecisive Villeneuve never came. At the end of August, the emperor learned that Villeneuve's fleet was thoroughly blocked in the bay of Cadiz by the British.
Meanwhile, the emperor received alarming news that a formidable danger was approaching France from the east. By the summer of 1805, Austrian troops were concentrated on the border with Bavaria and Italy. Napoleon saw this and, awaiting the approach of his fleets in Boulogne, anxiously watched the border along the Rhine. The French emperor tried to reason with the Austrians, but nothing came of it. Then Napoleon told her ambassador in Paris Cobenzel: "The emperor is not so mad as to give the Russians time to come to your aid … if your sovereign wants war, well, tell him that he will not celebrate Christmas in Vienna." The Austrians were not scared. On September 8, 1805, Austrian troops crossed the Inn River and invaded Bavaria. The war has begun.
Napoleon addressed the army: “Brave soldiers! You won't go to England! The gold of the British seduced the emperor of Austria, and he declared war on France. His army violated the limits that it had to observe. Bavaria is invaded! Soldiers! New laurels await you on the Rhine. Let's go to defeat the enemies that we have already beaten."
The French emperor reacted quickly and decisively. Napoleon seized the strategic initiative and launched the offensive himself. The "Army of England" ("Army of the Ocean Shore") was renamed the "Great Army" and in September 1805 crossed the Rhine and invaded Germany. Napoleon, as an excellent strategist, easily revealed the enemy's plans and acted like Suvorov - "by eye, speed, onslaught." He destroyed the numerical superiority of the enemy by the rapid movement of the French army and the crushing of the enemy armies one by one. He dismembered the forces of the enemy and struck them blow after blow.
