On 25 September-20 October 1805, the Battle of Ulm was fought between the French under Napoleon Bonaparte and the Austrians under Mack Von Lieberich during the Napoleonic Wars.
Why did it happen?
By the time the Third Coalition had been formed against him in 1805, Napoleon had created a massive army of 210,000 soldiers organised into seven corps, each commanded by a Marshal. This force was expected to invade Britain, but when he received news in September that Austria and Russia planned major offensives against him, Napoleon cancelled his invasion plan and marched his Grand Armee towards the Rhine River, where the Austrian general Mack Von Lieberich was positioned at Ulm on the Danube River awaiting a Russian army under Mikhail Kutuzov to join him.
Who was involved?
The French army at Ulm numbered 120,000 infantry and 30,000 cavalry. The French army consisted of six Corps from the Grand Armee: I, II, III, IV, V, and VI. The I Corps was arrayed north of Ulm, while the II, III, IV, V, and VI Corps were positioned behind the Rhine River. The French plan was to encircle the Austrian army stationed around Ulm and destroy it before it could link up with relieving Russian forces. The Austrian army at Ulm numbered 40,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry. Because the Austrians expected to engage an army estimated to be one-third of their actual size, the Austrian plan was to hold off the French until the Russians could arrive and execute a “hammer and anvil” manoeuvre.
What happened?
On 25 September, the French cavalry screened through the Black Forest, supported by V Corps, and blew trumpets to fool the Austrians into believing that the main French army was coming from the west. At the same time, Napoleon ordered the rest of the Grand Armee to cut off Mack’s retreat by advancing toward the Danube River, which they reached on 7 October. Between 8-13 October, the French surprised the Austrian forces near Wertingen and defeated them before enveloping the Austrians from the east and north. Between 14-16 October, Mack attempted to break out of the French encirclement at Elchingen but was repulsed by VI Corps, who inflicted heavy casualties on the Austrians. However, the Austrian cavalry was more successful and fled north. Between 17-19 October, Mack attempted several more breakouts before surrendering his remaining 30,000 troops to Napoleon on 20 October. Casualties during the campaign numbered 1,500 French and 10,000 Austrians.
What changed as a result?
The Battle of Ulm was a French victory. In the aftermath of the battle, Napoleon proclaimed, “Never has a victory been so complete and less costly” (Grant, 2005, p.201). Mack’s capitulation left only 80,000 Austrian soldiers to defend Vienna from a French attack. However, most of these troops were positioned in Northern Italy and were blocked by forces under Marshal Ney. In November, Napoleon captured Vienna before decisively defeating Austria and Russia at the Battle of Austerlitz on 2 December. This forced the Third Coalition to seek peace terms and Napoleon concentrated on defeating the Prussians the following year.
Bibliography
Chandler, David G. The Art of Warfare on Land. Harmondsworth, Penguin Books, 2000.
Grant, R.G. Battle: A Visual Journey Through 5,000 Years of Combat. London, Dorling Kindersley, 2005.
Webb, Jonathan. “Ulm Campaign, 1805.” The Art of Battle. Last revised 2009. http://www.theartofbattle.com/ulm-campaign-1805/
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