The Army of the Danube was a field army of the French First Republic. Originally named the Army of Observation, it was expanded with elements of the Army of Mainz (Mayence) and the Army of Helvetia (Switzerland). The army had three divisions plus an advance guard, a reserve, and an artillery park.Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. A Memoir of the Operations of the Army of the Danube under the Command of General Jourdan, Taken from the Manuscripts of that Officer. London: Debrett, 1799, p. 140. The artillery park was under the command of Jean Ambroise Baston de Lariboisière and consisted of 33 cannons and 19 howitzers operated by 1,329 non-commissioned officers and cannoneers as well as 60 officers. There were approximately 25,000 members of the Army, the role of which was to invade southwestern Germany, precipitating the War of the Second Coalition.
The Army crossed the Rhine River on 1 March 1799 under the command of Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, in the order of battle below. As elements crossed the Rhine, they took the name "Army of the Danube". The crossing was completed by 7 March. After passing through the Black Forest, the Army fought two battles in quick succession, the Battle of Ostrach, on 20–21 March, and Stockach, on 25–26 March. It suffered badly in both engagements and, following the action at Stockach, withdrew to the Black Forest. Jourdan established his headquarters at Hornberg, and the Reserve cavalry and the cavalry of the Advance Guard quartered near Offenburg, where the horses could find better forage.Digby Smith. Napoleonic Wars Databook: Actions and Losses in Personnel, Colours, Standards and Artillery, 1792–1815. Mechanicsburg PA: Stackpole, 1998, , pp. 147–148.
Initially, the Army included six future Marshals of France: its commander-in-chief, Jourdan; François Joseph Lefebvre; Jean-Baptiste Drouet; Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr; Gabriel Jean Joseph Molitor; and Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier.Smith, Databook, p. 150. After the defeat at Ostrach, the Army was reorganized and command shifted to another future marshal, André Masséna.Smith, "Clash at Winterthur." Databook, p. 156–157. Under Masséna's command, elements of the army participated in skirmishes in Switzerland, the eleven-hour Battle of Winterthur and the First and Second Battles of Zürich.Lina Hug and Richard Stead. Switzerland. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1902, p. 361. Lawrence Shadwell. Mountain warfare illustrated by the campaign of 1799 in Switzerland: being a translation of the Swiss narrative, compiled from the works of the Archduke Charles, Jomini, and others... London: Henry S. King, 1875. pp. 110–111. The Army was disbanded in November 1799 and its units dispersed among other French field armies by mid-December.Adolphe Thiers. The History of the French Revolution. New York: Appleton, 1854, v. 4., pp. 370, 401–402; Smith, "Clash at Winterthur." Databook, pp. 156–157.
Staff Jean-Baptiste Jourdan received command of the Army of Observation in September 1798, from its temporary commander, Pierre Marie Barthélemy Ferino. From October to December, he assessed its condition. By 27 February 1799 Moreau had drawn together his general staff and laid out his operational plan for a Danube campaign.Jourdan, pp. 12–15, p. 88.
General Staff Chief of Staff Jean Augustin Ernouf Position StaffCommander of the Engineers Armand Samuel de MarescotChief Commissary Jean Baptiste VaillantPromoted to General of Brigade 20 May 1795; See Tony Broughton. "Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789–1814: Vabre to Voulland". Napoleon Series.org. Robert Burnham, editor in chief. November 2007. Accessed 24 April 2010.Commander of the ArtilleryJean Fabre de La MartillièreAndré Joseph LemaireStaff officerJoseph Augustin Fournier, Marquis d'AultanneFormerly commander of the French garrison at Ehrenbreitstein. Jourdan, pp. 80–81.AdjutantsGabriel Jean Joseph MolitorÉtienne Hastrel de RivedouxJean-François BarbierFrançois Louis Dedon-DuclosSource: Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. A Memoir of the Operations of the Army of the Danube under the Command of General Jourdan, Taken from the Manuscripts of that Officer. London: Debrett, 1799, p. 88.
Inspectors GeneralFormationInspectorCavalryLouis-Auguste Juvénal des Ursins d'Harville François Antoine Louis BourcierInfantryEdmond Louis Alexis Dubois-CrancéSource: Jean-Baptiste Jourdan. A Memoir of the Operations of the Army of the Danube under the Command of General Jourdan, Taken from the Manuscripts of that Officer. London: Debrett, 1799, p. 88.
Advance Guard The Advance Guard crossed the Rhine River at Kehl, and marched to the northeast. François Joseph Lefebvre was indisposed—suffering from ringworm—and Jourdan had appointed General of Division Dominique Vandamme to direct the march. Vandamme had been lobbying with Jourdan for a larger and more important command but, given the claims of other officers, this was the best Jourdan could do for him. Vandamme led the Advance Guard through the mountains via Freudenstadt. On 5 March, Lefebvre returned to his command.Ramsay Weston Phipps. Armies of the French Republic. Westport CT: Greenwood Press, 1939, volume 5, p. 29. Within a week, part of the advance guard broke off from the main body and, under command of Vandamme, moved to Stuttgart, to investigate the rumored presence of Habsburg units.
Advance GuardGeneral of Division François Joseph LefebvreAdjutants: Jean-Baptiste Drouet and François-Xavier Octavie Fontaine. General of Brigade Jean-de-Dieu Soult Column Commander Units Notes Left General of Brigade Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier 25th Regiment of Light Infantry (Légère) (two battalions)Digby Smith. Napoleon's Regiments: Battle histories of the Regiments of the French Armies, 1792–1815. London: Greenhill, 2000, p. 201. 53rd Demi-brigade (two battalions) 67th Demi-brigade (two battalions) The 53rd and 67th Demi-brigades had formed part of the Army of the Sambre-et-Meuse 1795–1797.Smith. Napoleon's Regiments. pp. 109, 125. Right General of Division Dominique Louis Antoine Klein 4th Hussars 5th Hussars 1st Light Horse (Chasseurs à Cheval) 17th Dragoons 3rd Horse Artillery (1st and 27th Company) 1st Foot Artillery (1st and 6th Company) 3rd Battalion Sappers (7th Company) Most of these units had served in the old Army of the Sambre-et-Meuse.Phipps, p. 28. Detached Flank General of Division Dominique Vandamme 1st Regiment (Infantry) (two battalions) (Detached from III. Division)Phipps, p. 33. 8th Demi-brigade (two battalions) (Detached from Reserve) 1st (or 2nd) Dragoons (one squadron) 8th (or 10th) Light Horse (Chasseurs à Cheval) (one squadron detached from III. Division)Although Vandamme commanded the I. Division in the absence of Lefebvre, after Lefebvre's return, assumed first, a staff position, and then Jourdan assigned him to investigate rumors of an Austrian presence in Stuttgart.John Gallagher. Napoleon's enfant terrible: General Dominique Vandamme. Tulsa: University of Oklahoma Press, 2008, , p. 70. These units became the flanking corps (corps de flanqueurs); one unit was taken from Saint-Cyr's division and the other, 8th of the Line, from d'Hautpoul's reserve. This amounted to approximately 3,000 troops, which weakened both the Reserve and the III. Division. Vandamme's flanking force including a squadron of dragoons and a squadron of light horse, but it is unclear which ones: A squadron of the 1st Dragoons may have been detached from II. Division, or a squadron of the 2nd Dragoons from the left column of the III. Division. In addition, his force included a squadron of Light Horse, from either the 8th or 10th, detached from the III. Division, were engaged.See Roland Kessinger and Geert van Uythoven. Order of Battle, Army of the Danube . Stockach: Roland Kessinger & Geert van Uythoven. Accessed 14 April 2010. Neither Jourdan nor Digby Smith, Databook, specify the regimental or squadron numbers of these units.Strength of Advance Guard: 6,292 infantry; 2,102 cavalry; 382 artillery; and 177 sappers.Jourdan, p. 89.Sources: Unless otherwise cited, Roland Kessinger and Geert van Uythoven. Order of Battle, Army of the Danube. Stockach: Roland Kessinger & Geert van Uythoven. Accessed 14 April 2010.
I. Division The division crossed the Rhine River at Hüningen near Basel, Switzerland, and marched in two columns eastward. The right column, commanded by Jean Victor Tharreau, moved along the northern shoreline of the Rhine. The left column, commanded by Jean-Baptiste Jacopin, moved at the northernmost rim of the river valley. From Switzerland, Masséna sent a Demi-brigade of the Army of Helvetia to secure Schaffhausen, part of the Swiss cantons that lie north of the Rhine river. In holding Schaffhausen, Masséna insured the passage of Ferino's forward units.Jourdan, pp. 96–97. Ferino's orders were to proceed from Schaffhausen along the north shore of Lake Constance, also called the Bodensee. His left flank was to remain in contact with the II. Division, to prevent the Austrians from piercing the army's forward line. His advance units were to proceed as far as the Imperial Abbey of Salem. From there, he was instructed to prevent any Austrian reinforcements from Switzerland joining with Archduke Charles, whom Jourdan expected to move across the Iller river near Augsburg, and advance into Swabia.Jourdan, p. 94.
I. DivisionGeneral of Division Pierre Marie Barthélemy FerinoAdjutants: Jean-Marie Defrance (chief of staff) and Anne Gilbert de Laval Column Commander Units Notes Left General of Brigade Jean-Baptiste Jacopin 102nd Infantry Demi-brigade (two battalions) 6th Light Horse (Chasseurs à Cheval)Jacopin also commanded the right flank of the Reserve; both columns moved parallel to one another through the Black Forest.Jourdan, p. 93. Like many of the other units, the elements of this column had been part of the Armée de Sambre-et-Meuse and, in 1798, part of the Army of Germany and the Army of Mainz; the regiment saw action in the Rhineland.Smith, p. 149. RightGeneral of Brigade Jean Victor Tharreau 10th Light Infantry Regiment (two battalions) 46th Demi-brigade Light Infantry (two battalions) 11th Dragoons 6th Horse Artillery (1st and 4th Company) 3rd Foot Artillery (12th and 17th Company) 3rd Battalion Sappers (5th Company)Tharreau's force provided the forward line protecting Zurich by April 1799; the furthest posts, at Winterthur, were under command of Michel Ney by late May 1799.Shadwell, p. 108.Strength of I. Division was 6,452 infantry; 988 cavalry; 481 artillery; and 192 sappers.Jourdan, p. 90.Sources: Unless otherwise cited, Roland Kessinger and Geert van Uythoven. Order of Battle, Army of the Danube. Stockach: Roland Kessinger & Geert van Uythoven. Accessed 14 April 2010.
II. Division The division followed the Advance Guard across the Rhine, also at Kehl. As it approached the mountains, II. Division followed the river valleys east of Freudenstadt.Jourdan, p. 97. At the Battle of Ostrach, II. Division took position behind François Joseph Lefebvre's Advance Guard, on the slope below Pfullendorf. At the Battle of Stockach, Souham's Division, positioned in the center, was to coordinate a simultaneous assault with Ferino's I. Division on the Austrian left flank.Jourdan, p. 177.
II. DivisionGeneral of Division Joseph SouhamAdjutants: Pierre-Charles Lochet and Henri Gatien Bertrand Column Commander Units Notes Left General of Brigade François Goullus 83rd Demi-brigade (two battalions) 6th Dragoons