216 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



higher up the river. Besides these 

 bridges formed on piles, a bridge of 

 boats was constructed. Each of the 

 bridges was covered and protected 

 by a tete-du-pont [a bridge head] 

 ]60 fathoms long, formed of re- 

 doubts, and surrounded by pali- 

 sades, chevaux de frise, and 

 ditches filled with water. Maga- 

 zines of provisions, 100 pieces 

 of cannon, and twenty mortars, 

 were stationed in the island of In- 

 der-Lobau. In the mean time the 

 Austrian army was strongly en- 

 trenched on the left bank of the 

 Danube. 



Besides the bridges just men- 

 tioned, another was thrown over 

 to the left of the Danube, from a 

 small island on the left of the 

 river, opposite to Essling, not 

 with a view of facilitating the pas- 

 sage of the French, but of divert- 

 ing the attention of the Austrians 

 from that quarter where it was 

 really intended. The manoeuvre 

 succeeded. On the night of the 

 4th of July, when the Austrians 

 were expecting an attack on their 

 right, a heavy fire was opened 

 upon the village of Enzersdorf 

 which supported the left wing of 

 their army. In the short space of 

 two hours the French army crossed 

 the river, and appeared in the 

 morning of the 5th drawn up in 

 order of battle, on the Austrian 

 left flank. In consequence of this 

 masterly disposition the archduke 

 was obliged to change his front, 

 and quit his entrenched camp, or 

 to march forth and give battle to 

 the enemy on ground which the 

 enemy had chosen. Buonaparte, 

 instead of being conined as before 

 within the limits of a number of 

 small villages, where he had to 

 fight corps to corps, division to 



division, column to column, and 

 even man toman (aspecies of war- 

 fare in which the Austrians were 

 fully a match for the French), had 

 now the vast plain of Enzersdorf 

 on which to manoeuvre, and what 

 was of all the most important con- 

 sideration, he had rendered it im- 

 possible for the archduke, in case 

 of a defeat, to fall back upon Hun- 

 gary, and to effect a junction with 

 the army under the command of 

 his brother the archduke John.— 

 The forenoon of the fifth was pas- 

 sed principally in manoeuvring, the 

 result of which was, that the arch- 

 duke was compelled to give up his 

 entrenchments, and the whole of 

 the old field of battle from Enzers- 

 dorf to Aspern, and to abandon 

 the country between Enzersdorf 

 and Wagram. On the nnorning of 

 July 6th the battle was renewed, 

 each of the two armies acting upon 

 their respective and opposite sys- 

 tems. Buonaparte had passed the 

 night in accumulating his force 

 towards the center. The archduke 

 on the contrary weakened his cen- 

 ter, in order to secure and augment 

 the strength of his two extremities, 

 where was planted a great propor- 

 tion of his artillery. This dispo- 

 sition of the Austrian army appear- 

 ed so strange, according to the 

 French bulletin, to Buonaparte, 

 that he suspected at first some 

 stratagem ; but he soon perceived 

 that it was a blunder, and imme- 

 diately took advantage of it. 

 The battle had become general in 

 every part of the line. In every 

 attack, whether made by the 

 French or the Austrians, with the 

 arms or the bayonet, the latter had 

 rather the advantage. But Buona- 

 parte, concentrating almost the 

 whole of his artillery, battered one 



single 



