AUERSTADT
Napoleon’s 1806 campaign
against the Prussian army climaxed on October 14th with the dual
Battle of Jena-Auerstadt. Napoleon, with the main portion of the
French army, engaged what he thought was the entire Prussian army.
In fact, Napoleon only faced the Prussian right wing consisting
of some 30,000 men while Marshal Davout, in command of the 28,000
men of 1st Corps, faced the Duke of Brunswick and his main force
of over 50,000 men. Davout ordered his advance units to cross
the Hassenhausen plateau and to take up positions in Hassenhausen.
When General Gudin’s division did so, they ran right into
General Bluecher and some 600 Prussian horsemen. The Prussians
charged only to be repulsed by the infantry and artillery fire
from Gudin’s division. Bluecher fell back and called for
more cavalry while Gudin solidified his position on the plateau.
The Duke of Brunswick released 12 squadrons to Bluecher and brought
up two divisions of infantry to attack the French positions. Bluecher,
upon receiving reinforcement, immediately charged the French without
waiting for infantry support. His squadrons quickly spent themselves
upon the stout French squares and the Prussian cavalry soon scattered
to the rear. The French forces had held against the first assault.
Fortunately, because the Prussian cavalry attack was made without
infantry support, Gudin’s division was able to regroup before
the main Prussian body contacted them. The two Prussian infantry
divisions led by Schmettau and Wartensleben attacked the French
forces around Hassenhausen, but failed to dislodge them before
Gudin was reinforced by the arrival of Marshal Davout and the
rest of the French forces. The Prussian attack began to lose strength.
Then disaster struck the Prussians. The Duke of Brunswick was
mortally wounded and his army lost what little hope it had of
maintaining the initiative. Davout ordered his troops to counterattack
and Morand’s division, having just arrived on the field,
went on the offensive after beating off yet another cavalry attack
by the Prussians. Hesitation in the Prussian high command proved
to be the final nail in the Prussian army’s coffin. King
Frederick Wilhelm III held his remaining corps in reserve while
his army was being destroyed piecemeal by Davout’s corps.
The Prussian army began to melt under the French counterattack
and they soon went from retreat to rout. Eventually, the Prussian
reserve was engaged and routed as well. Although Davout’s
Corps suffered heavily, the battle was won. In the days that followed,
the pursuit of the Prussian army yielded thousands of captured
troops and signaled the final destruction of the image of Prussian
“Invincibility”.
