Napoleon's German Allies - 1809

While a significant part of the France's army was involved in the struggle in Spain Napoleon's German Allies were required to provide extensive formations for the 1809 Campaign in Bavaria Italy and Austria. The Volley & Bayonet Scenario Book "Austria Stands Alone" provides extensive detail on the allied formations. However what I present here differs in a number of points and adds more detail to Frank Chadwick's excellent scenario book. 

The information was collected as I prepared my armies for the battles of the 1809 Campaign. A list of sources can be found at the end of this document. Each army described includes a list of notes at the end of the corresponding section.

The specific armies detailed her are:

 

The Bavarian Army of 1809

In January 1809 the Bavarian Army contained some 13 regiments of line infantry, 7 light infantry battalions, 6 cavalry regiments, 16 artillery batteries and a garrison regiment. The formations can be represented in Volley, Bayonet & Glory as follows: 

VII Corps, Marshal Lefebvre (CC)

Corps Troops:

  • Reserve Heavy Artillery             M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] Fld. [Note 1]
  • (Comprising Batteries: von Dietrich, Dohl, Leiningen)
  • Reserve Horse Artillery             M6 [ ] Fld, Horse [Note 2]
  • (Comprising Battery: van Douwe)

1st Division, Crown Prince Ludwig (DC), Exhaustion = 8 8,720 men 8,720 men

  • 1st Brigade   Rechberg              M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [s]
  • (Comprising: 1st Lieb and 2nd Infantry Regiments, plus 1st Light Battalion)
  • 2nd Brigade   Stengel               M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
  • (Comprising: 4th & 8th Infantry Regiments)
  • Cavalry Brigade   von Zandt         M5 [s] [s] Lt.
  • (Comprising: 1st Dragoons (less detachments) & 1st Chevauxlegers)
  • Foot Artillery                      M5 [ ] [ ] Fld.
  • (Comprising Batteries: Wagner & Hofstetten)
  • Horse Artillery                     M6 [ ] Fld, Horse
  • (Comprising Battery: Regnier)

2nd Division, von Wrede (DC), Exhaustion = 8 8,940 men 8,940 men

  • 1st Brigade   von Minucci           M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [s]
  • (Comprising: 3rd & 13th Infantry Regiments & 6th Light Battalion)
  • 2nd Brigade   Beckers               M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
  • (Comprising: 6th & 7th Infantry Regiments)
  • Cavalry Brigade   Preysing          M5 [s] [s] Lt.
  • (Comprising: 2nd & 3rd Chevauxlegers)
  • Foot Artillery                      M5 [ ] [ ] Fld.
  • (Comprising Batteries: Dorn, Berchem)
  • Horse Artillery                     M6 [ ] Fld, Horse
  • (Comprising Battery: Caspers)

3rd Division, von Deroy (DC), Exhaustion = 8 9,750 men 9,750 men

  • 1st Brigade   Vincenti              M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [s]
  • (Comprising: 9th & 10th Regiments & 5th Light Battalion)
  • 2nd Brigade   Siebein               M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ] [s]
  • (Comprising: 5th & 14th Regiments & 7th Light Battalion)
  • Cavalry Brigade   Seydewitz         M5 [ ] [ ] Md.
  • (Comprising: 2nd Dragoon & 4th Chevauxlegers)
  • Foot Artillery                      M5 [ ] [ ] Fld.
  • (Comprising Batteries: Peters, Roys)
  • Horse Artillery                     M6 [ ] Fld, Horse
  • (Comprising Battery: Palmer)

Independent Formations:

Tyrol Command, von Kinkel (DC), Exhaustion = 3 4,560 men, see also Note [3] 4,560 men, see also Note [3]

  • 11th Infantry Regiment              M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
  • 2nd Light Battalion                 M5 [s]
  • 3rd Light Battalion                 M5 [s]
  • 4th Light Battalion                 M5 [s]
  • Foot Battery                        M5 [ ] Fld. [Note 4]

Fortress Garrisons:

A further 3,430 troops were positioned in fortress and garrison duties. A number of additional militia and reserve formations were also available.Six artillery companies were used for fortress artillery formations and reserves. Kufstein, in the Tyrol, had some 60 guns in its defenses.

Bavarian Notes:

  1. Later in the campaign the reserve batteries were broken up somewhat and sent to the divisions. If this option is selected either one SP can be allocated to a divisional foot battalion or all SP can be broken up and allocated one SP per divisional battalion potentially raising them to 3 SP Fld battalions.
  2. For simplicity allocate the reserve horse artillery to any one division to make a 2SP horse artillery stand.
  3. The light battalions from 1st Division 2nd Brigade and 2nd Division 2nd Brigade were detached and allocated to Kinkel’s command. In addition 2 squadrons of the 1st Dragoon Regiment were detached from 1st Divisions cavalry, due to the small numbers, less than 250 men this is not represented.
  4. The average infantry regiment embarked on the 1809 campaign with a strength of 1600 men, excluding a regimental depot of 300-500 men. The 4th regiment had 1,655 while the 5th and 10th onlt 1,570. The other regiments ranged from 1,601 to 1,629.
  5. The 7th Light Battalion wore a black shako rather than the Raupenhelm. This formation suffered heavily from desertion.

 

The Saxon Army of 1809

The Saxon army in 1809 could field on paper some 12 line infantry regiments, a Guard Grenadier regiment (900 on paper, but only 584 at the start of the campaign), a Swiss Guard company, a garrison company and three ‘half-invalid' companies, used for fortress and prison defence. Average field strength of a line regiment was 1,100 plus grenadiers. A converged grenadier battalion strength averaged 560. In addition the cavalry consisted of 4 heavy regiments and 5 light regiments. On paper some 40 squadrons, but only 20 could be mounted for the 1809 campaign.

Major formations of the Saxon Army were combined into IX Corps. Orders of battle for the begining of the campaign and at Wagram are defined as follows.

IX Corps   8th April 1809:

Corps Commander Marshal Bernadotte (CC)

Corps Artillery:

  • Heavy Artillery                    M4 [ ] [ ] Fld, PDR [Note 1]
  • Light Artillery                    M4 [ ] [ ] Fld, PDR

1st Division GL von Zezschwitz (DC), Exhaustion = 7

  • Saxon Grenadier Brigade            M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [Note 2] (Comprising 2nd & 3rd Grenadier, Leib Grenadier Garde)
  • Regiment Koenig & I/von Dyherrn    M4 [ ] [ ] [ ] ne [Note 3]
  • Regiment Prinz Maximilian          M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Prinz Fredrich August     M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Prinz Anton               M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Schutzen von Metzsch               M5 [s] ne [Note 4]
  • Gutshmind Cavalry Brigade (Heavy)  M6 [ ] Hv. (Comprising Garde du Corps (2 sqdns), Karabiniers (2 sqdns))
  • Gutshmind Cavalry (Light)          M5 [s] [s] Lt (Comprising Clemens & Albrecht Chevauxlegers, Hussars)

2nd Division GL von Polenz (DC), Exhaustion = 6

  • Regiment Prinz Clemens             M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment von Low                   M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment von Cerrini               M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment von Niesemeuschel         M4 [ ] [ ] [ ] ne [Note 3] (Includes 2nd Battalion von Oebschelwitz)
  • Converged Grenadiers               M5 [ ] [ ] (Consisting of 1st & 4th Battalions)
  • Schutzen von Egidy                 M5 [s]
  • Lieb Garde Kurassier (4 sqdns)     M6 [ ]
  • Prinz Johann Chevauxlegers         M5 [s] Lt.

  

Wagram – 5th of July:

The Saxons were reoganised on the 10th of June and 3 battalions allocated to Dupas mid June. By the 5th of July their organistaion was:

Corps Troops:

  • Nil Artillery assigned as divisional artillery

1st Division  GL von Zezschwitz (DC), Exhaustion = 6

  • 1st Artillery                       M4 [ ] [ ] Fld, PDR [Note 1]
  • Saxon Grenadier Brigade             M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [Note 5] (2nd & 3rd Grenadier, Leib Grenadier Garde)
  • Regiment Koenig                     M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Niesemeuscel               M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Converged Regiment Klengal          M4 [ ] [ ] ne (Comprising I/von Dyherrn & II/Oebschelwitz)
  • 2nd Schutzen von Egidy              M5 [s] ne
  • Gutshmind’s Advance Guard           M5 [s] [s] Lt (Comprising Clemens & Albrecht Chevauxlegers, Hussars)

2nd Division von Polenz (DC), Exhaustion = 7

  • 2nd Artillery                       M4 [ ] [ ] Fld, PDR [Note 1]
  • Regiment Prinz Clemens              M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment von Low                    M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment von Cerrini                M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Prinz Maximilian           M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Prinz Fredrich August      M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Regiment Prinz Anton                M4 [ ] [ ] ne
  • Cavalry Brigade Feilitzsch          M6 [ ] [ ] Hv. (Comprising Garde du Corps (2 sqdns), Karabiniers (2 sqdns), Lieb Garde Kurassier (4 sqdns))
  • Prinz Johann Chevauxlegers          M5 [s] Lt [Note 6]

French Reserve Division – Dupas (DC), Exhaustion = 5 [Note 7]

  • Saxon Reserve Grenadiers            M5 [ ] [ ] [Note 5]
  • Saxon 1st Schutzen Battalion        M5 [s] ne (Under command of von Metzsch)
  • French 5th Legere                   M5 [ ] [ ] [ ]
  • French 19th Ligne                   M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]
  • French Divisional Artillery         M5 [ ] [ ] Fld. [Note 8]

 

Additional Formations:

While the IX Corps was the main field formation other formations were deployed as garrisons or in support.

Grand Dutchy of Warsaw, GM von Dyherrn, (DC), Exhaustion = 2 [Note 9]

  • Converged Regiment                  M5 [ ] [ ] [ ] [Note 10]
  • (Comprising I/von Oebschelwitz & von Einsiedel Grenadier Battalion total strength 1,619)
  • Saxon Artillery - 14 guns           M4 [ ] [ ] Fld, PDR [Note 1]

Danzig Garrison:

  • Regiment Von Rechten (785 men)      M4 [ ] [ ] bg. [Note 11]
  • Zastrow Kurassier (630 men)         M6 [ ] Hv. [Note 12]

Glogau Garrison:

  • Regiment von Burnsdorf              M4 [ ] [ ] bg. [Note 11]
  • (Comprising of Regiment von Bursdorff (935), Prinz Max. Grenadiers (202))

Other formations:

  • Stettin II/von Dyhern (342 men)

Saxon Notes:

  1. All artillery is rated "field" as all batteries consisted of four 8-pounder guns and two 8-pounder howitzers. At the start of the campaign there were 4 batteries each of 6 guns and 2 additional reserve pieces. However due to the many gun carriages being extremely heavy and that there were insufficient horse to even provide mounts at the beginning of the campaign, they should be classed as "heavy" for movement and are also rated as PDR. There was no horse artillery at the beginning of the war, but Bernadotte was often attempting to add a horse artillery battery from other sources. Eventually he formed an adhoc horse artillery battalion using 4 guns and what mounts could be found. The following is from Gill pg 288: "The result was a small battery whose performance ‘remained far behind expectations’ and which, encumbered by horses the men hardly knew how to handle, ‘could not be employed other than as a foot battery’."
  2. Some sources also indicate the Saxons had issued orders for infantry battalions to be equipped with 3 or 4 pounder battalion guns, which was normally the custom. One source, note stated, suggesting as many as 46 pieces. As an option, allow all Saxon regiments to have Battalion guns.
  3. The I/von Dyhern and II/von Oebschelwitz have been converged with other Regiments for game purposes.
  4. The Schutzen were often formed into adhoc units, but Bernadotte formally formed them into separate battalions on the 18th of May by removing the schutzen from the regiments and argumenting additional soldiers.
  5. 1st & 4th Grenadier Battalions detached to Dupas’ French Reserve division from mid June. However at Wagram the 3rd and 4th Grenadiers were actually detached to Lobau under Reynier. Leaving only the 1st with Dupas! For simplicity I have left the 1st and 4th Battalions with Dupas and the 3rd with the Saxon 1st Division.
  6. Actually detached to Oudinot’s II Corps around midday.
  7. Dupas’s division was added to IX Corps at Passau on the 12th of May when the Saxons arrived.
  8. Dupas’s division had 12 French artillery pieces with it when it joined IX Corps. This accounts for some sources saying IX Corps having 36 guns. Twelve being French. I have arbitrarily rated these as "Field".
  9. These formations were engaged at Rasyn before returning to Dresden area by the 20th May. It included 200 Hussars which were converged with Polish cavalry and not listed here.
  10. Rated M5 due to their action at Raszyn and the high number of Grenadiers present.
  11. Elites are present. A detachment of artillery available counting as Battalion guns.
  12. Bowden and Tarbox show the Zastrow at Wagram. Gill details them in Danzig.

 

Sources

  • With Eagles to Glory – Napoleon and his German Allies in the 1809 Campaign, John H. Gill. (Primary Source)
  • Volley & Bayonet Scenario Book: Austria Stands Alone, Frank Chadwick
  • Osprey MAA: Napoleon's German Allies (4) Bavaria, Pivka & Hook
  • Osprey MAA: Napoleon and his German Allies (3): Saxony 1806-1815, Pivka
  • Osprey Campaign Series: Aspern & Wagram 1809 – Mighty Clash of Empires, Ian Castle
  • Armies on the Danube 1809, Scott Bowden & Charles Tarbox

[Return to the Volley & Bayonet Page]