The Last Success

Reaching Bavaria one week after the Austrian invasion, Napoleon had to make up for lost time to regain the initiative. Archduke Ludwig’s V Corps and the small II Reserve stood scattered and isolated on the Austrian left wing. After uniting with Davout’s III Corps, Napoleon easily repulsed Ludwig in a series of rear-guard actions at Offenstetten, Biburg, Siegenburg, and Rohr, with the Bavarian and Württemberg troops under the Emperor’s immediate command. Marshal Hiller’s intervention with the Austrian VI Corps finally delayed the pursuers at Rottenberg. With the escape of the Austrian left at Landshut, Napoleon turned his attention toward Eckmühl.

After the French capture of Vienna, the retreating Austrian garrison destroyed the great Tabor bridge. The Archduke’s army was approaching on the opposite bank of the Danube and the French needed to get across before Charles had a chance to defend the riverbanks. Lobau Island was selected as the point d’appui for a hurriedly-improvised pontoon bridge.

On the night of 19th-20th May, the first French division reached Lobau. By the following evening, 22,000 men had collected there and had bridged the Städtler Arm, crossing into the Muhlau salient. As warmer weather brought snow-melt from the mountains, the river began to rise. The desperate French engineers proved unable to keep extending the pontoon bridge. It broke free of its moorings, and Austrian fireships finished it off. Without reinforcements or supplies, the French defending Aspern and Essling were barely able to hang on. For the first time the Emperor himself had been personally defeated. 

Davout’s III Corps moved out from Isling toward Abensberg. The baggage train hugged the Danube, while the four divisions maneuvered to screen the trains. 

The two III Corps Divisions of Friant and St. Hilaire found little difficulty in repulsing the ill-directed and lethargic Austrians with heavy loss, while their compatriots, Morand and Gudin, hurried their divisions westward through the dangerous Saal defile to join up with the Bavarians who were also engaged in the vicinity of Abensberg. The first two divisions were already past when vedettes from Hohenzollern’s Austrian III Corps appeared near Schneidhardt and Saalhaupt. From a hilltop overlooking Teugen, Kayser threatened the flank of St. Hilaire’s division column. After long fighting and a belated appearance by the Austrian Grenadiers, Hohenzollern was forced back from the ridgeline, allowing the French to exit.

Each game includes:
Game Box
3 Maps 34"x22"
2 Counter Sheets (560 die-cut player pieces)
2 Booklets (System Rules and Study Folder)
20 Player Aid Cards (TRC x 4, Casualty x 2, Weather, Setup x 11, Reorganization, Combat)
5 Resource Cards (Booklet of Card Instructions, Combat Tables Folder, Sequence of Play, Victory Worksheet).
2 Card Decks (50 cards each)

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