Editing Battle of Wagram (section)

=== Klenau's flank march ===
[[File:Battle of Wagram - Klenau captures Boudet's artillery.png|thumb|200px|Klenau's cavalry captures Boudet's artillery during the morning combats on 6 July 1809.]]
In application of Archduke Charles's plan to take the enemy in a double envelopment, ''Feldmarshalleutnant'' Klenau, commanding VI Korps, and ''[[Feldzeugmeister]]'' Kollowrat, commanding III Korps, moved forward towards the French left. Both commanders had received their orders very late and both had a long distance to cover before they could reach their assigned positions. They did their best to comply but, given the difficulties of a long night march, their leading elements could only manage to arrive on the Austrian right between 07:30 and 08:00, three hours later than Charles had planned.<ref name=Nau55-56/>{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|p=181}}

Klenau was the first to make contact with the enemy. His troops left [[Leopoldau, Vienna|Leopoldau]] towards 07:30 and subsequently deployed between [[Breitenlee]] and [[Hirschstetten]], driving in the enemy outposts in the sector. The only French force present here was the 4th division of the IV Corps, under ''Général de Division'' Boudet, some 4,600 men, to Klenau's 14,000. At 08:00, Klenau unlimbered his artillery and began to fire at the French, while sending forward [[Peter, Freiherr von Vecsey|Vecsey]]'s brigade from ''Feldmarshalleutnant'' Vincent's division to take the village of Aspern. Boudet saw this development and sent forward a battery of ten cannon, with orders to open [[enfilade]] fire and thus delay the enemy. This proved to be a very uninspired move, as Austrian [[hussar]]s suddenly came up and captured these guns. The French 56th Line regiment boldly charged the enemy horse and momentarily recaptured the guns, but they lacked horses to carry them back and the intense Austrian [[cannonade]] soon compelled these men to retreat and leave behind the artillery. After making a timid attempt to defend Aspern with the 93rd Line, Boudet then chose to retreat towards Essling and Vincent's division occupied Aspern, subsequently launching a determined pursuit. The Austrians soon came in range of the French heavy batteries placed on Lobau island, and the bombardment slowed down their advance, but they still pushed on towards Essling, which Boudet promptly abandoned towards 10:00.{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|p=181}}{{sfn|Castle|1990|pp=70–73}}

The French retreated towards the Mühlau salient and to [[Groß-Enzersdorf]], in a bid to protect the vital bridges towards Lobau island. The Austrians then launched a probing attack on the bridgehead but were rapidly repulsed and subsequently contented themselves with bombarding the French supply train, causing some panic among the civilian suppliers. From his current position, Klenau was able to either strike in the undefended rear of the enemy army, some five kilometers away, or to attack the vital bridges towards Lobau island. However, the Austrian commander chose caution; his force was only about 14,000 men strong, a part of which was now in range of the numerous French heavy batteries on Lobau island and his orders provided for his Korps to keep itself abreast with Kollowrat's III Korps. Had Kollowrat moved forward himself, protecting Klenau's left flank, the Austrian VI Korps might have envisaged the continuation of its action, but, as things were, Kollowrat had not yet moved from his position between Süssenbrunn and Breintlee.{{sfn|Castle|1990|pp=70–73}}{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|p=182}}

Indeed, further north, Kollowrat had been slow in moving forward with his numerous III Korps. He deployed between the villages of Süssenbrunn and Breintlee and thus threatened the French flank, which was defended only by Legrand's infantry division and some cavalry. Kollowrat finished his positioning manoeuvres only towards 09:30, when his men made contact with Prochaska's Grenadier division of Liechtenstein's Reserve Korps. For lack of orders, Kollowrat did not attempt an attack against the weak French left. In a move which was typical for Austrian tactics at the time, the 60-year-old Austrian commander had been busy securing his own rear, rather than thinking of any offensive action. He had cautiously left behind an entire brigade on the Bissamberg heights, facing Vienna, and detailed a sizable force to garrison [[Gerasdorf]], a village situated in his rear. He also sent a combined-arms force to occupy the village of Breintlee, to the south. Despite his sound tactical position, which allowed him to envelop Masséna's flank or even march towards the undefended [[Raasdorf]], in the rear of the French army, Kollowrat moved forward cautiously, contenting himself with bombarding Masséna's force with two batteries that he had positioned near Breintlee.<ref>Arnold 145.</ref>