Louis Nicola Davout - one of the best generals of the Napoleonic Wars. He was the only marshal of Napoleon who did not lose a single battle. Let's take a closer look at the biography and achievements of this famous commander.
Childhood and education
The future commander was born in Burgundy on May 10, 1770 in a noble family. Louis Nicola was brought up at the military school of the commune of Brienne-le-Chateau. It is interesting to note that a year before it arrived, Napoleon Bonaparte graduated from the same school. Being faithful to family tradition, in 1788, Davout began his service in the cavalry regiment, in which his father and grandfather had previously served.
French revolution
During the time of the French Revolution, the beginning military, without thinking twice, decided to defend the position of the revolutionary people. Since many Bourbon supporters fled or quit the army, a large number of vacant posts appeared in it. They were occupied by young officers, and in some cases even ordinary soldiers with leadership inclinations. Davout Louis Nicola became one of many officers who owe their exaltation to the revolution and victory over the Bourbons. From 1794 to 1797, Davout, in the rank of brigadier general, fought in the ranks of the Rhine army. However, the real ascent to the Olympus of military glory Davout began under the banners of Bonaparte.
Egyptian expedition
In the period from 1798 to 1801, with the rank of Major General Davout, he took part in the Egyptian expedition of Napoleon. He was given command of the French cavalry. In the battle for Abukir, which took place on June 25, 1799, the young military commander was especially distinguished. On that day, the 7,000th French army defeated the 15,000th army of a Turkish commander named Mustafa Pasha. Two-thirds of the enemy troops fell on the battlefield, and the rest, along with Mustafa Pasha, surrendered. A small reserve squad, commanded by Louis Davout, made a huge contribution to this victory. Many historians are inclined to believe that it was in this battle that Bonaparte considered in the hero of our conversation a fearless and capable military leader.
Despite the fact that the Egyptian expedition was a complete failure for France, it discovered many new names, which later held the military glory of Napoleon. During this battle, General Louis Davout was in the inner circle of Bonaparte, who confidently moved along the path to the top of state power.
Rank of marshal
Immediately after the Egyptian expedition, Davout successfully led the cavalry of the Italian army of Bonaparte, which fought with the Austrians. In 1804, the hero of the Egyptian expedition and the Italian company of the emperor was awarded the military rank of Marshal of France and the position of adviser to Napoleon.
First successes in command of the corps
In the period from 1805 to 1814, Marshal Davout led the army corps. In 1805, his wards showed themselves well under Ulm, where the emperorâs army defeated the Austrian army. Baron Mack von Layberich - the commander in chief of the Austrians, along with a 30,000-strong army was forced to surrender to the enemy, for which he was sentenced to 20 years in prison by a military tribunal.
On October 9, 1805, Davoutâs wards successfully crossed the Danube, crossing the river in Gunzburg and its environs. The Austrians who defended the Danube city had to retreat after a heavy battle.
Marshal Davout became one of the active participants in the Bonaparte army offensive on Vienna. On November 8, at the head of his corps near the city of Mariazell, he won the battle with the Austrian corps, led by General von Meerfeld. In this battle, the French managed to take 4 thousand prisoners. This victory was a determining event in the fate of Vienna.
Battle of Austerlitz
On December 2, 1805, a battle took place at Austerlitz, which went down in history as the âBattle of the Three Emperorsâ. On that day, the French army defeated the allied Russian-Austrian army. The Austerlitz victory was the end of both the anti-French coalition and the Holy Roman Empire. Franz II - the last emperor of the Roman Empire, having made peace with Napoleon, became just the first Roman emperor Franz. In the historical collapse of the once powerful empire, the French military leader Davout also played an important role.
Jena-Auerstedt battle
In 1806, Davout's military biography was replenished with new victories. In the battle of Jena-Auerstedt between the Napoleonic and Prussian armies on October 14, the marshal was one of the main characters. The battle was divided into two stages. The first took place at Auerstedt, and the second at Jena. The corps of Marshal Louis Davout distinguished himself in the first stage.
Marshal was entrusted with command of the first flank of the imperial army. Under his command were 26 thousand soldiers and 44 guns. Against Davout, the left flank of the Prussian army led by the Duke of Braunschweig, including 54 thousand soldiers and 230 guns. One correlation of forces is enough to unambiguously assess the capabilities of the parties. Nevertheless, in a fierce battle, Davout managed not only to defeat the enemy army, but also to kill its leader.
At the battle of Jena, the French army was personally controlled by Napoleon. He completely defeated the army of the Prussian commander Prince Hohenlohe. However, in this battle the balance of power was almost equal. In total, the French army lost 11 thousand people in the Battle of Jena-Auerstedt, 7 of which fell on the Battle of Auerstedt.
Aristocratic title
In the same 1806, Davout Louis Nicola was forced to collide with Russian troops. On December 24, his corps, along with Napoleonâs army, crossed the Ukru River, and at night near Charnovo attacked the 15,000th Russian army. In this battle, the French lost about half as much as the Russians.
Davout's brilliant victory at Auerstedt could not go unnoticed, and Napoleon awarded the commander not only an order, but also the honorary title of the Duke of Auerstedt. It is worth noting that Napoleon Bonaparte, being a native of a poor Corsican-Italian noble family, becoming emperor of France, generously endowed his associates with titles, thereby trying to create a new elite in the state.
Battle of Ekmule
On April 22, 1809, the Napoleonic army again fought with the Austrian army, whose command was entrusted to Archduke Karl. The Austrians managed to occupy the most advantageous positions at the heights near EkmĂźhl. Napoleon sent his best corps to storm the enemyâs positions, including Marshal Davoutâs corps. Only after a fierce battle, more than once turning into hand-to-hand combat, the French managed to drive the enemy from the heights. With the onset of darkness, Archduke Charles led his army to Regensburg. His losses at the Battle of Ekmule amounted to 11 thousand people from the 76 thousandth army. The victory in this battle opened up excellent prospects for Napoleon - the army of the Austrians was divided into two parts. The generals who played a decisive role in this victory were generously rewarded. So, Davout Louis Nicola also received the princely title for the ducal - he became the Prince of Ekmul.
Battle of Wagram
In 1809, Davout again had the opportunity to meet in a battle with Archduke Charles. This time the battle took place at Wagram. The night before the battle, Napoleonâs army crossed the Danube through the island of Lobau. The Austrian army, with more than one hundred thousandth army and 452 guns, retreated to Wagram and entrenched there. In the evening of July 5, the emperor ordered his Italian army, which was reinforced by the Saxon corps, to attack the enemy. Due to the mistake of the Italians, who took the Saxons for the enemy, the order had to be canceled.
The main events unfolded the next day, when Napoleon rebuilt his army, which had numerical superiority over the enemy, into a new battle formation. Corps Davout and Oudinot worked together against the left wing of an enemy position. The Austrians massively attacked the French from this side, but it did not bring them success. Nevertheless, under the pressure of the enemy, the center and left flank of the French army had to be withdrawn. Having sent reinforcements in the form of the Italian MacDonald Corps to the central part of the army, pulling up artillery there, the emperor was able to save the situation. Powerful artillery fire stopped the onslaught of the Austrians. Davout Louis Nicola, meanwhile, dispensed with reinforcements and, bypassing the left flank of the enemy army, took over it. Marshal managed to get into the rear of the Austrian army and dismember it near Vesedele. The corps of his ally Odino conquered Wagram. In the 11-hour battle, Karl lost about 50 thousand people. As a result, he had to retreat in the direction of Moravia.
The victory at Wagram cost the French quite expensive. Firstly, the Napoleonic army lost 32 thousand soldiers. Secondly, after this battle, Great Britain and the Russian Empire entered the war against Napoleonic France.
Campaign to Russia
The French emperor was not afraid of the European coalition of monarchs created against him. In 1812, Russia was left alone - the former allies in the anti-Napoleonic battles, Austria and Prussia, were forced to become allies of the French Empire.
On July 12, Napoleonâs army, crossing the Neman River, invaded the Russian Empire. Before the superior enemy forces, the Russian armies had to flee, avoiding battle. Fighting alone, they practically ensured complete defeat.
The corps of Marshal Davout was sent to help the army of Jerome Bonaparte, who pursued the second Russian Western army of General Bagration, retreating from Volkovysk to the southeast. By skillful maneuver, the Russian commander led his troops out from under the enemyâs double strike, as a result of which both French marshals were catching up. When the army of Bagration began to cross the Neman, the French commanders made another unsuccessful attempt to encircle it. Predicting the enemyâs plans, General Bagration turned to Minsk.
At Mogilev, Davoutâs corps collided with the pursued army, approaching the city before the enemy. The second Russian Western army was once again cut off from the first Western army of General Barclay de Tolly, retreating north. In this situation, Bagration had no choice but to delay the further advancement of the enemy. He charged the corps of General Raevsky to do this.
The avant-garde units of the Davout corps met with the regiments of Raevsky near the village of Saltanovka. In the battle near Saltanovka, the Russians managed to forge the aspirations of the French, and Bagration's army again came out of the attack of the imperial army. This time it went to Smolensk.
Near Smolensk, the 1st and 2nd Western armies of the Russians joined. On August 4, the Battle of Smolensk (the war of 1812) began, in which the Davout corps also took part. One of his divisions, led by Guden, was able to distinguish herself in the battle of Valutina Gora, attacking the detachment of Major General Tuchkov the third. The latter was seriously wounded and captured.
During the battle of Borodino, according to the emperorâs disposition, the Davout corps stood right in the center of the army. The center was responsible for the main blow of the Napoleonic army. He was supposed to master the field fortifications of the Russians, which went down in military history as Bagrationâs flushes.
According to the tradition that Napoleon started, before the great battle, the soldiers of his empire were dressed in full dress. On August 26, 1812, with the dawn of the sun, a powerful artillery attack began on both sides. Around 6 oâclock in the morning, the French began to massively storm the flushes. Two Davout divisions aimed at the southern flush. Despite the numerical advantage of the French, the Russians still managed to repel the attack.
By 7 oâclock in the morning, Davoutâs corps had put in order and resumed the onslaught. This time he managed to capture the southern flash. However, the bayonet attack of several infantry battalions, which Bagration sent to this flash, allowed the French to be knocked out of the fortification. Then Napoleon sent to help Davout cavalry Murat, Ney's corps and other troops. The French broke into the right and left flushes, but the massive Russian counterattack knocked them out again. The attacks on the Bagration flushes that day followed one after another ...
During the retreat of the Great Army of Napoleon, Davout Louis Nicola led its rearguard, which constantly had to fight off the Cossacks of Ataman Platov and the fighters of General Miloradovich. On October 22, near Vyazma, the Russians blocked the enemy rear guard road to the West. Despite the fact that Davout's army received reinforcements, the Russians defeated him. On that day, the Napoleonic army lost about 8 thousand soldiers. After the defeat at Vyazma, the emperor replaced the âIron Marshalâ (as they called Davout in his homeland) as commander of the army rearguard for Marshal Neem.
The Davout corps suffered another major loss from the Russian army in the battle near the village of Krasnoe, which took place from November 3 to 6. The French retreating from Smolensk wanted to break away from the Russian persecution and go to the Berezin River. After this battle, the corps of Marshal Davout existed except for documents.
Defeat of france
Davout was not among the marshals of Napoleon, who surrendered Paris to the allies. In 1813 and 1814 he fought in northern Germany, defending Hamburg from the siege of Russian and Prussian troops. Despite the fact that the siege took place without fierce offensives and bombing, the Hamburg garrison nevertheless laid down its arms in front of the Allies.
When Napoleonic France suffered a military and political defeat, Davout Louis Nicola, whose biography was always associated with Napoleon, remained faithful to him. And even when he was in exile on the island of Elba, Davout did not give up his views. When Napoleon, having landed in the south of the country, began a victorious march campaign to Paris, Louis Davout joined him. During the time of âone hundred daysâ, he served as Minister of War of France.
When the Bourbons returned to power, Davout was very popular in the country, and especially in the army. He, like the other marshals of Napoleon, lost all his ranks and titles, but not for long - in 1817, in order to avoid irritation in society, he was returned to his previous titles and ranks. Two years later, Davout managed not only to achieve the disposition of the authorities, but also to become a peer in France.
On June 1, 1823, Davout Louis Nicola died of pulmonary tuberculosis in Paris.