MARSHAL LOUIS N. DAVOUT AND THE ART OF COMMAND A ...

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may be an error.However, it was an aberration from hisnormally faultless behavior.At about noon on the nineteenth, Davout and theArchduke Charles were to collide with each other.Thisbattle, fought on two gently rolling ridges, will allow anexamination of Davout's tactical art of command.It isknown as the battle of the ridgetops or simply Teugen-Hausen.
CHAPTER 5 YOU ONLY HAVE A CURTAIN <strong>OF</strong> THREE REGIMENTS TO YOUR FRONT General Bonnal considered Davout's situation on the morning of the nineteenth to be desperate.' However, even if Charles could have brought forward all his available troops he would still have had a very difficult fight. The terrain in the area of Teugen-Hausen favored the French style of fighting. The battlefield consisted of two rolling ridges separated by one-thousand meters of open farmers' fields (see Appendix A, Figure 3). The sides were heavily wooded constricting the fields at various points. One road ran through the center connecting the small villages of Teugen and Hausen. This area therefore favored the use of light infantry tactics and skirmishing in which the French excelled. Davout knew that there was a better than average chance that he would run into the Austrians before he could join forces with Lefebvre. This was one reason for his decision to move in three columns. If he made contact with the Austrians he wanted to do it with the minimum necessary force. At the same time if that minimum force got into trouble the other columns remained within
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ABSTRACT MARSHAL LOUIS N. DAVOUT AN
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TABLE OF CONTENTS ?&%slsAPPROVALPAG
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CHAPTER 1 BUT WHAT ARE WE TO UNDERS
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the study of simple strategy and ta
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This fact becomes even more obvious
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the grand tactic. Operational warfa
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Burgundian countryside. He was born
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In1803 Davout was given command of
Page 19 and 20: then launch a major offensive into
Page 21 and 22: This attack'then ensured victory fo
Page 23 and 24: would actually go to war. However,
Page 25 and 26: Bluecher made four unsuccessful att
Page 27 and 28: fight entirely on his own. The batt
Page 29 and 30: title until two years after the bat
Page 31 and 32: Without hesitation Davout pushed fo
Page 33 and 34: most of his marshals, generals, the
Page 35 and 36: CHAPTER 3 THE AUSTRIANS ARE OUR WOR
Page 37 and 38: Finally, with Davout's information
Page 39 and 40: Austrian influence in Germany and I
Page 41 and 42: organization, always slow to act. M
Page 43 and 44: course of action. They now had a be
Page 45 and 46: elieved Prince Eugene and Marshal A
Page 47 and 48: 22 March Davout had sent a message
Page 49 and 50: were designated VII Corps and consi
Page 51 and 52: and intelligence at the strategic l
Page 53 and 54: across the Danube. The Austrians al
Page 55 and 56: transmitted from Napoleon to Berthi
Page 57 and 58: Normally, the message dispatched by
Page 59 and 60: me that the best maneuver would be
Page 61 and 62: Berthier chose to overlook this cor
Page 63 and 64: Landshut were only one corps and no
Page 65 and 66: destroy him. On the eighteenth Char
Page 67 and 68: critical for the French. Napoleon r
Page 69: Throughout these ten days before th
Page 73 and 74: Gudin to support the movement of hi
Page 75 and 76: well. They bought Davout the necess
Page 77 and 78: The remainder of the Austrians then
Page 79 and 80: His tactical leadership was at its
Page 81 and 82: Napoleon's vision of the battlefiel
Page 83 and 84: against the French. His troops succ
Page 85 and 86: to surrender at 5:00 P.M. Now Charl
Page 87 and 88: pursuit on two parallel roads leadi
Page 89 and 90: important part in Davout's decision
Page 91 and 92: orders and directions. While Davout
Page 93 and 94: Corps. He received no reply from th
Page 95 and 96: convinced he was being attacked by
Page 97 and 98: CHAPTER 6 THE DUKE OF AUERSTAEDT IS
Page 99 and 100: eginning to feel the fatigue of con
Page 101 and 102: Just as the Austrians began to move
Page 103 and 104: effect, Davoutfs forces became the
Page 105 and 106: The French carabiniers fired a volZ
Page 107 and 108: Charles would lose his desire to st
Page 109 and 110: The ~re'nch prevailed over the Aust
Page 111 and 112: CHAPTER 7 IN BATTLE MEN ARE NOTHING
Page 113 and 114: counter orders did nothing but conf
Page 115 and 116: doctrine, and most importantly the
Page 117 and 118: The art of war on land is an art of
Page 119 and 120: Maintaining this vision or coup d'o
Page 121 and 122:
internal fears rather than obstinac
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who never made a mistake. The key i
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too seemed only to be small diversi
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helped to provide definition to the
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Figure 1.Theater of Operations.
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INITIALACTIONSABOUT 1500Counteratta
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Figure 5.Davout's Running Fight on
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N1- 'LABER RIVER' SCHlERLlNGLANNESI
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Reserve Division: Demont' (3,215) 2
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APPENDIX C ORDER OF BATTLE CHANGES
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ll~avidG. Chandler, The Cam~aians o
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3~hisis noted in Napoleon's corresp
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20~his is from correspondence numbe
Page 147 and 148:
WORKS CITED Primarv Sources Bonapar
Page 149 and 150:
Arnold, James R. Crisis on The Danu
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ackground material and specifics on
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secondary source but all informatio
Page 155 and 156:
INITIAL DISTRIBUTION LIST 1. , Comb
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STATEMENT A: Approved for public re
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