1809 Thunder On The Danube by John H. Gill

Author:John H. Gill
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781783033966
Publisher: Frontline Books
Published: 2013-07-11T16:00:00+00:00

22 May: The Most Frightful Day

Napoleon’s thoughts now turned to retreat and he rode to conduct a personal reconnaissance of the Lobau with a view to adjudging its suitability. Curiously, retreat was also on Charles’s mind. Not only did he forbid a request by the grenadiers to renew their attacks on the granary, he also ordered the entire Austrian centre to retire. He apparently feared a French strike against his left and wanted to withdraw to prevent the middle of his line from being outflanked. The Cavalry Reserve, the grenadiers, Hohenzollern, and Bellegarde had all pulled back as much as 2,000 metres when the archduke changed his mind sometime before 5 p.m. Some of his generals, Liechtenstein most vocally, are said to have importuned him to halt the withdrawal, but the deciding factor was the obvious French retreat.143 The whitecoats returned to their previous positions north of the berm, but this incident illustrates how the Austrian leadership could be dominated by fears of Napoleon and his army.

Charles was extremely fortunate that Hiller, who had observed to his astonishment that the centre had vanished (‘I suddenly found myself all alone’), maintained his position at Aspern.144 Having received no new instructions, Hiller adhered to his previous orders and thus preserved this critical post for his commander.

Charles may have reversed his decision on the army’s withdrawal, but he wanted no more combat. He had achieved the desired symbolic victory and had no interest in risking this success by a hasty evening attack against an enemy that still seemed to be full of fight. Couriers thus dashed off with orders to pursue the enemy with artillery fire but to avoid any action that might lead to serious engagement.

The French troops, hungry, thirsty, and utterly weary, thus had to endure a reinvigorated barrage as the afternoon waned. Along with dozens of other men and numerous horses, this deluge of iron cost the army GB Pierre Charles Pouzet, one of St Hilaire’s brigadiers and a close friend of Lannes. Shortly thereafter, probably sometime between 5 and 6 p.m., as he was mourning the death of this old comrade, Lannes himself was struck by a 3-pounder ball that grazed his right thigh and crushed his left knee. His remaining staff officers and some carabiniers of the 10th Léger carried him awkwardly on a litter improvised from muskets and branches to the nearby field hospital where the Guard Surgeon, Dominique Larrey, amputated his left leg. A short time later, the wretched party was attempting to evacuate the semi-conscious marshal to the Lobau when they came upon the emperor at the Stadtler Arm bridge. The ensuing scene of dolour and compassion has many variants, but Napoleon’s ‘indescribable grief’ for his friend’s pitiable condition was evident to all who witnessed it.145 ‘None of us could hold back his tears,’ recalled one of Napoleon’s personal escorts.146 The two men embraced and exchanged a few words, a tearful Napoleon anxiously trying to hearten the stricken marshal and Lannes telling his leader, ‘Sire, you are losing your best friend.

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