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In the second volume of this epic work, John H. Gill traces Napoleon's progress as he sought to complete his victory over the Habsburgs. The war had erupted on April 10th with Austria's invasion of Germany and Italy. After just two weeks, Napoleon had battered the Habsburg Archduke Charles in a series of bruising defeats.
This volume begins with a Napoleon astride the Danube at Regensburg. He faced a critical strategic choice - whether to pursue the injured Austrian main army into Bohemia or march directly for Vienna, the seat of Habsburg power.
After electing to target Vienna, his troops defeated the Austrians in the brutal Battle of Ebelsberg, allowing him to enter the city on May 13th. But meanwhile, on the far side of the Danube, he suffered a dramatic loss at the gruelling, two-day Battle of Aspern. While his Danube forces recovered from this setback, the Emperor cleared trouble from his strategic flanks.
Gill describes in vivid detail the hopeful Habsburg invasion of Italy, led by the 27-year-old Archduke Johann, and the fierce French counter-offensive under Napoleon's stepson, Eugene de Beauharnais (also aged 27). In a series of encounters across Italy, de Beauharnais rebounded from initial defeat to advance triumphantly into Austrian territory, shattering and scattering Johann's army. In the wake of Aspern, while the Austrians vacillated, Napoleon gathered every man, horse and gun around Vienna, setting the stage for the gigantic spectacle of the Battle of Wagram, the final chapter in the story of the 1809 war. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A two sided view,
By
This review is from: 1809 - Thunder on the Danube - Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs: 1 Abensberg (Hardcover)
Military history, especially of pre-modern wars, is usually dominated by the accounts of one side. In the Peninsualr War (contemporary with this campaign) for example, French sources are few and far between, and quite overwhelmed by British ones. But the 1809 campaign between Austria and France is a rarity since there are excellent and detailed accounts from both sides. Unfortunately this usually defeats the analytical skills of historians - but John Gill is an exception. This account reconciles the two sides, and does so at all levels from the strategic to quite small combats. It's quite wonderful.
The book starts with an account of how Austria got into the war. This won't interest the tactical wargamers much, but probably has more to teach the general reader than any other part of the book. Austria should never have started the war, but through a lack of clear-sighted leadership and a lot of what we would now call "group think" they managed to drift into it. Gill gives us a very clear blow by blow account of this. Then we get onto the battles: the disaster for the Austrians that unfolded in Bavaria. Gill draws on the many detailed accounts from Austria, France and (importantly) the minor German states, and weaves them into a very clear narrative. The early skirmishes are covered in almost ridiculous detail, while for some of the later battles the sweep is more rapid. It is quite the clearest account I have read. Gill doesn't seek to challenge the conventional wisdom or create controversy. He just weaves a wonderful, detailed lucid account. History at its best. I eagerly look forward to reading the next two volumes.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
an ignorant's view of this book,
By
This review is from: 1809 - Thunder on the Danube - Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs: 1 Abensberg (Hardcover)
I purchased this book after hearing much about it... a sure way to meet disaster as rarely high expectations are met.
What I found is a solid, agreeable book, a solid work that starts from the political situation and strategical aims of the two enemies and proceeds through the description of operational movements... a veritable blow by blow description of the military campaign with abundant quotations from contemporary observers and a wealth of details about the orders of battle. I can't really comment about the analysis or the details of historical data, as I accosted this campaign with very little previous knowledge and the intention of knowing more through what was described as a masterpiece on the matter. I was not disappointed. All told, I think I was well served by this book and will gladly go on to the further works Gill has published on the 1809 campaign. Heartily suggested :)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.6 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews) 15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good Book but . . .,
By Christopher J. Anders - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 1809 - Thunder on the Danube - Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs: 1 Abensberg (Hardcover)
This is great book with a lot of very useful information that I personnally have not seen in print in America before. A word of caution though to all we are looking to buy this book . . . this is ONLY Volume I of a series. This book covers only the Bavarian phase of the 1809 campaign on the Danube. I have not seen this tidbit of information in print anywhere including the Pen and Sword website nor have I found any information on the release of subsequent books in the series (or how many there will be for that matter). It is still a great book as are all of John Gill's books.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well worth the Geld,
By Warren Bajan "military historian" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 1809 - Thunder on the Danube - Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs: 1 Abensberg (Hardcover)
This has become my primary reference for the Eggmuhl campaign. It has a good section on the backround to the war and the battles through 22 April are well described. The battle and campaign maps are good. Gill's narrative is more objective in tone than his also excellent With Eagles to Glory. His research is comprehensive, and his oobs (some 50 pages worth with three sets) may be the best I've seen.
I hope the next two volumes arrive in time for the 200th anniversary. 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The book for serious historians and wargamers alike,
By Andy Nunez, Editor of Against the Odds Magazi... - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: 1809 - Thunder on the Danube - Napoleon's Defeat of the Habsburgs: 1 Abensberg (Hardcover)
I sought this book eagerly after acquiring Volume III. I was not disappointed. John Gill is a master of detail, yet he is never boring. The facts and figures all swirl around a highly readable narrative and we follow the path both sides took that ultimately ended at Wagram. Excellent maps for gamers and historians to follow, the treasure for wargamers and game designers is the huge trove of Order of Battle information found in each volume. This series is so expanded that it makes a great companion piece to the long out of print Armies on the Danube by Scott Bowden. Gill goes beyond Bowden to give accurate analyses of the plans and battles while bringing the various characters to life for the reader. If you ever wondered what happened in general histories from Austerlitz to the retreat from Moscow, John Gill brings it all with this masterpiece of historical research. My next mission is to find Volume II somewhere. It may be a long and arduous hunt, but dear reader, it will be worth it. I am hoping there will be more books from John Gill to follow.
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