Battle of Aspern-Essling - Napoleonic Wars Battle of Aspern-Essling

Battle of Aspern-Essling - Napoleonic Wars Battle of Aspern-Essling Conflict Dates: The Battle of Aspern-Essling was fought May 21-22, 1809, and was part of the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815). Armies Commanders: French Napoleon Bonaparte27,000 increasing to 66,000 men Austria Archduke Charles95,800 men Battle of Aspern-Essling Overview: Occupying Vienna on May 10, 1809, Napoleon paused only briefly as he wished to destroy the Austrian army led by Archduke Charles. As the retreating Austrians had destroyed the bridges over the Danube, Napoleon moved downstream and began erecting a pontoon bridge across to the island of Lobau. Shifting his troops to Lobau on May 20, his engineers completed work on a bridge to the far side of the river that night. Immediately pushing units under Marshals Andrà © Massà ©na and Jean Lannes across the river, the French quickly occupied the villages of Aspern and Essling. Watching the Napoleons movements, Archduke Charles did not oppose the crossing. It was his goal to allow a sizable part of the French army to cross, then attack it before the rest could come to its aid. While Massà ©nas troops took positions in Aspern, Lannes moved a division into Essling. The two positions were connected by a line of French troops stretched across a plain known as the Marchfeld. As French strength increased, the bridge became increasingly unsafe due to rising flood waters. In an effort to cut off the French, the Austrians floated timbers which severed the bridge. His army assembled, Charles moved to attack on May 21. Focusing his efforts on the two villages, he sent General Johann von Hiller to attack Aspern while Prince Rosenberg assaulted Essling. Striking hard, Hiller captured Aspern but was soon thrown back by a determined counterattack by Massà ©nas men. Surging forward again, the Austrians were able to secure half of the village before a bitter stalemate ensued. At the other end of the line, Rosenbergs assault was delayed when his flank was attacked by French cuirassiers. Driving off the French horsemen, his troops encountered stiff resistance from Lannes men. In an effort to relieve pressure on his flanks, Napoleon sent forward his center, consisting solely cavalry, against the Austrian artillery. Repulsed in their first charge, they rallied and succeeded in driving off the enemy guns before being checked by Austrian cavalry. Exhausted, they retired to their original position. At nightfall, both armies camped in their lines while French engineers worked feverishly to repair the bridge. Completed after dark, Napoleon immediately began shifting the troops from Lobau. For Charles, the opportunity to win a decisive victory had passed. Shortly after dawn on May 22, Massà ©na launched a large-scale attack and cleared Aspern of the Austrians. While the French were attacking in the west, Rosenberg assaulted Essling in the east. Fighting desperately, Lannes, reinforced by General Louis St. Hilaires division, was able to hold and force Rosenberg out of the village. Seeking to retake Aspern, Charles sent Hiller and Count Heinrich von Bellegarde forward. Attacking Massà ©nas tired men, they were able to capture the village. With possession of the villages changing hands, Napoleon again sought a decision in the center. Attacking across the Marchfeld, he broke through the Austrian line at the junction of Rosenberg and Franz Xavier Prince zu Hohenzollern-Hechingens men. Recognizing that the battle was in the balance, Charles personally led forward the Austrian reserve with a flag in hand. Slamming into Lannes men on the left of the French advance, Charles halted Napoleons attack. With the assault failing, Napoleon learned that Aspern had been lost and that the bridge had again been cut. Realizing the danger of the situation, Napoleon began retreating into a defensive position. Taking heavy casualties, Essling was soon lost. Repairing the bridge, Napoleon withdrew his army back to Lobau ending the battle. Battle of Aspern-Essling - Aftermath: The fighting at Aspern-Essling cost the French around 23,000 casualties (7,000 killed, 16,000 wounded) while the Austrians suffered around 23,300 (6,200 killed/missing, 16,300 wounded, and 800 captured). Consolidating his position on Lobau, Napoleon awaited reinforcements. Having won his nations first major victory over the French in a decade, Charles failed to follow up on his success. Conversely, for Napoleon, Aspern-Essling marked his first major defeat in the field. Having allowed his army to recover, Napoleon again crossed the river in July and scored a decisive victory over Charles at Wagram. Selected Sources Historynet: Battle of Aspern-EsslingNapoleon Guide: Battle of Aspern-EsslingBattle of Aspern-Essling

Roman Emperor Theodosius the Great

Roman Emperor Theodosius the Great Under Emperor Valentinian I (r. 364-375), army officer Flavius Theodosius was stripped of command and exiled to Cauca, Spain, where he had been born in about 346. Despite such inauspicious beginnings, Theodosius, with his 8-year-old son installed  in name  as ruler of the Western Empire, became the last emperor to rule the  entire Roman Empire  in fact. Probably two to three years after Valentinian exiled Theodosius (and executed his father), Rome needed Theodosius again. The empire was a formidable power at this time. Thus it was against all odds that on August 9, 378 the Visigoths trounced the  Eastern Empire  and killed its emperor (Valens [r. A.D. 364-378]) at the momentous  Battle of Adrianople. Although it took a while for the after-effects to play out, this defeat is a major event to look at when tracing the  fall of the Roman Empire. With the eastern emperor dead, his nephew, the western Emperor Gratian, needed to reclaim command of  Constantinople  and the rest of the eastern part of the empire. To do so he sent in his best general- the formerly-exiled Flavius Theodosius. Dates: A.D. c. 346-395; (r. A.D. 379-395)Place of Birth: Cauca, in Hispania [see sec. Bd on Map]Parents: Theodosius the Elder and Thermantia Wives: Aelia Flavia Flaccilla;Galla Children: Arcadius (made Augustus on 19 January 383), Honorius (made Augustus on 23 January 393), and Pulcheria;Gratian and Galla Placidia(by adoption) Serena, his niece Claim to Fame: The last ruler of the entire Roman Empire; effectively put an end to pagan practices. Theodosius Hazardous Rise to Power Theodosius own father had been a senior military officer in the Western Empire. Emperor Valentinian had honored him by appointing him magister equitum praesentalis Master of the Horse in the Presence of the Emperor (Ammianus Marcellinus 28.3.9) in 368 and then executed him in early 375 for unclear reasons. Perhaps Theodosius father was executed for trying to intercede on behalf of his son. At about the time Emperor Valentinian executed his father, Theodosius went into retirement in Spain. It was only after Valentinians death (November 17, 375) that Theodosius regained his commission. Theodosius obtained the rank of the magister militum per Illyricum Master of the Soldiers for the Prefecture of Illyricum in 376, which he kept until January 379 when Emperor Gratian appointed him co-Augustus to replace Emperor Valens. Gratian may have been coerced into making the appointment. Barbarian Recruits The Goths and their allies were ravaging not only Thrace but also Macedonia and Dacia. It was the eastern emperor, Theodosius job to suppress them while the western emperor, Gratian attended to matters in Gaul. Although Emperor Gratian provided the Eastern Empire with some troops, Emperor Theodosius needed more because of the devastation that had been caused by the Battle at Adrianople. So he recruited troops from among the barbarians. In an only partially successful attempt to stave off barbarian defection, Emperor Theodosius made a trade: he sent some of his new, questionable recruits to Egypt to be exchanged for presumed-loyal Roman soldiers. In 382 Emperor Theodosius and the Goths reached an agreement: Emperor Theodosius permitted the Visigoths to retain some autonomy while living in Thrace, and many of the Goths enlisted in the imperial army, and especially the cavalry, which had proved to be one of the Roman weaknesses at Adrianople. The Emperors Their Domains From Julian to Theodosius Sons. (Simplified) NB: Valeo is the Latin verb to be strong. It was a popular base for mens names in the Roman Empire. Valentinian was the name of 2 Roman emperors during the lifetime of Theodosius, and Valens was that of a third. Julian Jovian (West) (East) Valentinian I / Gratian Valens Gratian / Valentinian II Theodosius Honorius Theodosius / Arcadius Maximus Emperor In January of 383, Emperor Theodosius named his young son Arcadius successor. Maximus, a general who had served with Theodosius father and may have been a blood relative, may have hoped to be named, instead. That year Maximus soldiers proclaimed him emperor. With these approving troops, Maximus entered Gaul to face Emperor Gratian. The latter was betrayed by his own troops and killed in Lyons by Maximus Gothic magister equitum. Maximus was preparing to advance on Rome when Emperor Gratians brother, Valentinian II, sent a force to meet him. Maximus agreed to accept Valentinian II as ruler of part of the Western Empire, in 384, but in 387 he advanced against him. This time Valentinian II fled to the East, to Emperor Theodosius. Theodosius took Valentinian II into protection. Then he led his army to fight against Maximus in Illyricum, at Emona, Siscia, and Poetovio [see map]. Despite many Gothic troops defecting to Maximus side, Maximus was captured and executed at Aquileia on August 28 , 388. (Valentinian II, Theodosius brother-in-law through his second marriage, was killed or committed suicide in May of 392.) One of the defecting Gothic leaders was Alaric, who fought for Emperor Theodosius in 394 against Eugenius, another pretender to the throne which he lost in the civil war battle on the river Frigidus in September and then against Emperor Theodosius son, but is best known for sacking Rome. Stilicho From the time of Emperor Jovian (377), there had been a Roman treaty with the Persians, but there were skirmishes along the borders. In 387, Emperor Theodosius magister peditum praesentalis, Richomer, put an end to these. Conflict over Armenia picked up again, until another of Emperor Theodosius officials, his magister militum per Orientem, Stilicho, arranged a settlement. Stilicho was to become a major figure in Roman history of the period. In an effort to tie Stilicho to his family and presumably strengthen the claim of Emperor Theodosius son Arcadius, Emperor Theodosius married his niece and adoptive daughter to Stilicho. Emperor Theodosius appointed Stilicho regent over his younger son Honorius and possibly (as Stilicho claimed), over Arcadius, as well. Theodosius on Religion Emperor Theodosius had been tolerant of most pagan practices, but then in 391 he sanctioned the destruction of the Serapeum at Alexandria, enacted laws against pagan practices, and put an end to the Olympic games.  He is also credited with putting an end to the power of the Arian and Manichean heresies in Constantinople while establishing Catholicism as the state religion. Sources DIR - TheodosiusNotitia DignitatumMagnus Maximus (383-388 A.D.) Theodosius(www.suc.org/exhibitions/byz_coins/present/Theodosius_I.html 06/26/01) Theodosius IAmmianus, Theodosius and Sallusts JugurthaThe Roman Magistri in the Civil and Military Service of the Empire, by A. E. R. Boak.  Harvard Studies in Classical Philology, Vol. 26, (1915), pp. 73-164.