Battle of Ratisbon
Napoleon I summoned his first council of war on the night of the 22nd of April 1809. The meeting took place about 18 kilometers south of Ratisbon after his victory at Eckmühl. Austrian forces had captured the city two days earlier and now prepared to defend it. Five battalions from II Korps held the urban perimeter while heavy equipment moved across the stone bridge over the Danube. A pontoon bridge stretched 2 kilometers downstream to the east for retreating troops. Six thousand cavalry units guarded the hilly ground outside the walls. This defensive arrangement allowed Archduke Charles to plan an orderly withdrawal into Bohemia.
At dawn on the 23rd of April French cavalry advanced in a pincer movement toward the medieval defenses. General Louis-Pierre Montbrun approached from the southwest while Napoleon moved up from the south. By 9:00 am ten thousand French cavalrymen under Étienne Nansouty engaged Austrian horsemen who held them for almost three hours. Light infantry skirmished with Austrian troops in the suburbs as noon approached. Two failed assaults on the main gates cost many lives before engineers breached the wall near the Straubing gate at 3:00 P.M. Henri Gatien Bertrand directed the artillery that created the opening. Three small parties carrying siege ladders failed to scale the damaged fortifications.
Walking to observe the breach, Napoleon received a small canister round in his left foot. The shot came from great distance and caused only a contusion rather than severe injury. He mounted his horse immediately to ride around the battlefield reassuring anxious troops. Marshal Jean Lannes led his men up ladders onto the walls during the chaos. His soldiers could not bring themselves to advance into the maelstrom a fourth time despite repeated orders. Exasperated by their hesitation he grabbed a scaling ladder himself and shouted about being a grenadier before becoming a marshal. Aides physically restrained him as he moved forward but his despair shamed the troops into action. They rushed forward and carried the walls within minutes of his intervention.
The bridge remained under determined defense by the 1st battalion of Infanterie Regiment 15 until around 9:00 P.M. Defenders held positions in the northern gatehouse while street-by-street fighting raged for several hours. Last defenders surrendered soon after abandoning their posts near Stadt-am-Hof. Austrian forces utilized the Danube bridge to facilitate escape into Bohemia through the eastern pontoon crossing. Five battalions from II Korps defended the city while cavalry units covered the retreat on hilly ground outside. The pontoon bridge allowed troops to slip away after holding French advances for three hours. This strategic withdrawal preserved the main army for future engagements against Napoleon's forces.
French casualties numbered between 1,500 and 2,000 men including the wounded Emperor. Austrian losses reached at least 6,000 killed injured or captured during the engagement. Sending Marshal Louis Davout to guard the north bank across the Danube freed Bonaparte to move toward Vienna. The battle marked the last engagement of the Bavaria phase of the campaign of 1809. Robert Browning later described a probably fictional incident during the battle in his poem Incident of the French Camp. The victory enabled subsequent operations leading directly to the Battle of Aspern-Essling. Archduke Charles successfully withdrew his forces despite heavy losses to continue the War of the Fifth Coalition.
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Common questions
When did Napoleon I summon his first council of war for the Battle of Ratisbon?
Napoleon I summoned his first council of war on the night of the 22nd of April 1809. The meeting took place about 18 kilometers south of Ratisbon after his victory at Eckmühl.
How many French cavalrymen engaged Austrian horsemen during the Battle of Ratisbon?
Ten thousand French cavalrymen under Étienne Nansouty engaged Austrian horsemen who held them for almost three hours. This engagement occurred by 9:00 am on the 23rd of April 1809.
What injury did Napoleon sustain while observing the breach at the Battle of Ratisbon?
Napoleon received a small canister round in his left foot that caused only a contusion rather than severe injury. He mounted his horse immediately to ride around the battlefield reassuring anxious troops.
Who led the French soldiers up ladders onto the walls during the chaos of the Battle of Ratisbon?
Marshal Jean Lannes led his men up ladders onto the walls during the chaos. His soldiers could not bring themselves to advance into the maelstrom a fourth time despite repeated orders until he grabbed a scaling ladder himself.
When did the last defenders surrender near Stadt-am-Hof during the Battle of Ratisbon?
Last defenders surrendered soon after abandoning their posts near Stadt-am-Hof around 9:00 P.M. The bridge remained under determined defense by the 1st battalion of Infanterie Regiment 15 until this time.