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    Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command
    Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command
    Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command
    Ebook139 pages2 hours

    Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command

    By Major John M. Keefe

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    This paper involves an in-depth study of the art of command at all three levels of warfare. It examines this art through the eyes of one of Napoleon’s ablest Marshals, Louis N. Davout. The paper addresses and accomplishes three primary goals. First, it defines the art of command and shows its relevance to modern day warfare. Second, the paper shows that Marshal Davout was the best of Napoleon’s generals and had an art of command that rivaled the Emperor himself. Finally, the paper demonstrates how Davout was instrumental in winning the battle of Abensberg-Eckmühl.

    The study proves that Marshal Davout displayed an art of command at Abensberg-Eckmühl that ensured success for Napoleon during the early phases of his Austrian campaign of 1809. It does this through a detailed analysis of his actions throughout the five days of fighting from April 19 to April 23, 1809. The study then draws conclusions to help define the art of command from Davout’s actions.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherWagram Press
    Release dateNov 6, 2015
    ISBN9781782897484
    Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command

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      Book preview

      Marshal Louis N. Davout And The Art Of Command - Major John M. Keefe

      This edition is published by PICKLE PARTNERS PUBLISHING—www.picklepartnerspublishing.com

      To join our mailing list for new titles or for issues with our books – picklepublishing@gmail.com

      Or on Facebook

      Text originally published in 1994 under the same title.

      © Pickle Partners Publishing 2014, all rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted by any means, electrical, mechanical or otherwise without the written permission of the copyright holder.

      Publisher’s Note

      Although in most cases we have retained the Author’s original spelling and grammar to authentically reproduce the work of the Author and the original intent of such material, some additional notes and clarifications have been added for the modern reader’s benefit.

      We have also made every effort to include all maps and illustrations of the original edition the limitations of formatting do not allow of including larger maps, we will upload as many of these maps as possible.

      MARSHAL LOUIS N. DAVOUT AND THE ART OF COMMAND

      Major John M. Keefe, USA

      TABLE OF CONTENTS

      Contents

      TABLE OF CONTENTS 3

      ABSTRACT 4

      ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 4

      LIST OF MAPS 5

      CHAPTER 1 — BUT WHAT ARE WE TO UNDERSTAND BY EXPERIENCE? 6

      CHAPTER 2 — YOUR MARSHAL MUST BE SEEING DOUBLE 9

      CHAPTER 3 — THE AUSTRIANS ARE OUR WORST NEIGHBORS 18

      CHAPTER 4 — THE ARMY MUST BE CONCENTRATED AROUND INGOLSTADT 26

      CHAPTER 5 — YOU ONLY HAVE A CURTAIN OF THREE REGIMENTS TO YOUR FRONT 34

      CHAPTER 6 — THE DUKE OF AUERSTÄDT IS AT GRIPS WITH THE ENEMY 45

      CHAPTER 7 — IN BATTLE MEN ARE NOTHING ONE MAN IS EVERYTHING 51

      APPENDIX A — FIGURES 59

      APPENDIX B — ORDER OF BATTLE, APRIL 16, 1809 66

      The French Army of Germany 66

      The Imperial Army of Austria 67

      APPENDIX C — ORDER OF BATTLE CHANGES ON APRIL 20, 1809 69

      REQUEST FROM THE PUBLISHER 70

      WORKS CITED 71

      Primary Sources 71

      Secondary Sources 72

      Unpublished Works 75

      ABSTRACT

      This paper involves an in-depth study of the art of command at all three levels of warfare. It examines this art through the eyes of one of Napoleon’s ablest Marshals, Louis N. Davout. The paper addresses and accomplishes three primary goals. First, it defines the art of command and shows its relevance to modern day warfare. Second, the paper shows that Marshal Davout was the best of Napoleon’s generals and had an art of command that rivaled the Emperor himself. Finally, the paper demonstrates how Davout was instrumental in winning the battle of Abensberg-Eckmühl.

      The study proves that Marshal Davout displayed an art of command at Abensberg-Eckmühl that ensured success for Napoleon during the early phases of his Austrian campaign of 1809. It does this through a detailed analysis of his actions throughout the five days of fighting from April 19 to April 23, 1809. The study then draws conclusions to help define the art of command from Davout’s actions.

      ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

      I owe a special debt of gratitude to my committee chairman Major Rob Connor for first of all helping me to refine my topic and then for his guidance throughout this project. I would also like to thank the other members of my committee Lieutenant Colonel Richard Barbuto and Dr. Robert Baumann for their timely guidance and help.

      Finally I owe a great deal to my wife, Laura, for continually adding to my Napoleonic library, accompanying me on many battlefield tours, and supporting me during this project.

      LIST OF MAPS

      1. Theater of Operations

      2. April 19: The Road to War

      3. The Battle of Teugen-Hausen

      4. Situation on April 20

      5. Davout’s Running Fight on April 21

      6. Situation at The End of The Day, April 21

      7. The Battle of Eckmühl

      CHAPTER 1 — BUT WHAT ARE WE TO UNDERSTAND BY EXPERIENCE?

      The art of command is a topic which has been debated throughout history. It is certainly a most difficult subject to define. After his forced retirement Napoleon attempted to provide a definition; The art of warfare on land is an art of genius, of inspiration. It is by the eyes of the mind, by reasoning over the whole that the generals sees, knows, judges.{1} Is this the art of command today? Or can the art of command truly be defined?

      To help solve this problem it is essential to look at success in battle through the minds and eyes of past commanders. One has to crawl into the commander’s head and discern what attributes have made him successful and how they can be applied today. The simple presentation of a series of attributes would do nothing more than provide a laundry list of undefined characteristics. Even a detailed discussion of leadership and its abstract qualities would result in something equally meaningless. These attributes cannot be placed on a slide and viewed under a microscope. They must be viewed in the context of the dynamics of battle.{2} One must, therefore, look into the leader’s actions to gain a perspective on his abilities and attributes.

      This historical study of leadership then can provide a context to help guide the modern leader in his future actions. This study must be a detailed and comprehensive look at the leader’s actions. It must penetrate as deeply as possible into the details. For this purpose the particular knowledge of a few engagements or a few leaders is much more useful than a broad knowledge of a great many battles or wars.{3} Simply looking at the subject in general terms and making specific conclusions can be a technique fraught with many hazards.

      But what can these past conflicts fought with spears and clubs tell us about fighting in today’s technologically advanced battlefield? It is true that technology has changed the face of battle. However, we can learn certain lessons and principles from the study of the past. These lessons can then be applied today as long as one remembers the context in which they are studied. Even the United States Army’s modern warfighting doctrine draws its premises from principles practiced by Napoleon almost two-hundred years ago. Suffice to say that the study of history can be, and is, applied to modern warfare. However, the real lessons of warfare go beyond the study of simple strategy and tactics. The real lesson that pervades the centuries of warfare is that war is essentially an encounter of human beings. It is the study of human beings that will unlock many secrets to successful combat and the art of command.

      On the other hand it may be argued that the only way to learn the art of command is through experience. However, even experience in war does not necessarily ensure that one learns how to conduct war. One who participates in war without reflection does not necessarily gain the experience of war. Does not one who studies war and examines its causes and results have the greater experience? In Theorie des Grossen Krieges Count York von Wartenburg sums this point up very well.

      It is true, war can only be learned by experience; but what are we to understand by experience? Who will gain experience, the man who has been present during this or that event, but has never thought about it, either before or after it, or while it took place or the man who may possibly not have had any personal experience whatever of such matters, but who studies a great number of wars, and who has always and everywhere examined the causes and results and learnt from them that certain results recur, if they had been preceded by the same causes, and who this has come at last to formulate his views and to deduce great principles? Has not the latter experience and the former none. Shall I not by such experience alone learn to know war, whilst by the other I shall remain altogether ignorant of it?{4}

      The best way to prepare for war, or learn this occupation of soldiering, is through the comprehensive and detailed study of past conflicts and their leaders.

      Marshal Louis N. Davout and his actions at the battle of Abensberg-Eckmühl illustrate and begin to define the art of command. His actions during the events preceding the battle and the four days of fighting allow one to view the art of command through the eyes of one of history’s most victorious leaders. His actions will help define the art of command and identify the essential attributes or characteristics necessary for battlefield success. The study of Marshal Davout will help to provide more form and body to the very amorphous topic of the art of command. This examination of Marshal Davout will not only unlock some of the secrets of the art of command, it will do so in the context of the dynamics of battle. It will also show how his art of command influenced the outcome of the battles leading to the French victory in April 1809.

      As one of the more underrated of Napoleon’s lieutenants, Davout deserves much more credit than he is given. Ask any student of history to name five of Napoleon’s Marshals and the normal answers will be Michel Ney, Louis-Alexander Berthier, Jean Lannes, or Joachim Murat. Most will overlook or not even remember Davout. One of

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