Identifier: lifeofnapoleonbo00tarb (find matches)
Title: A life of Napoleon Boneparte:
Year: 1901 (1900s)
Authors: Tarbell, Ida M. (Ida Minerva), 1857-1944
Subjects: Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1769-1821 Josephine, Empress, consort of Napoleon I, Emperor of the French, 1763-1814
Publisher: New York, McClure, Phillips & co.
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

View Book Page: Book Viewer
About This Book: Catalog Entry
View All Images: All Images From Book
Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book.

Text Appearing Before Image:
saysJomini, will one find anything which equals in celerity andadmirable precision the opening of this campaign. Li the next ten days a series of combats broke the Austrianarmy, drove the Archduke Charles, with his main force,north of the Danube, and opened the road to Vienna to theFrench. On the 12th of May, one month from the day heleft Paris, Napoleon wrote from Schonbrunn, We aremasters of Vienna. The city had been evacuated. Napoleon lay on the right bank of the Danube; the Aus-trian army under the Archduke Charles was coming to-wards the city by the left bank; it was to be a hand-to-handstruggle under the walls of Vienna. The emperor was un-certain of the archdukes plans, but he was determined thathe should not have a chance to reenforce his army. Thebattle must be fought at once, and he prepared to go acrossthe river to attack him. The place of crossing he chose wassouth of Vienna, where the large island Lobau divides thestream. Bridges had to built for the passage, and it was
Text Appearing After Image:
< ^ ^ ^ K = 214 TALLEYRANDS TREACHERY 215 with the greatest difficuky that the work was accomphshed,for the river was high and the current swift, and anchorsand boats were scarce. Again and again the boats brokeapart. Nevertheless, about thirty thousand of the Frenchgot over, and took possession of the villages of Aspern andEssling, where they were attacked on May 21st by someeighty thousand Austrians. The battle which followed lasted all day, and the Frenchsustained themselves heroically. That night reenforce-ments were gotten over, so that the next day some fifty-fivethousand men were on the French side. Napoleon foughtwith the greatest obstinacy, hoping that another divisionwould soon succeed in getting over, and would enable himto overcome the superior numbers of the Austrians. Al-ready the battle was becoming a hand-to-hand fight, whenthe terrible news came that the bridge over the Danube hadgone down. The Austrians had sent floating down theswollen river great mills, fire-boa

Note About Images