Editing Battle of Wagram (section)

=== Clashes on the Marchfeld ===
As the French were successfully moving forward, the Austrian Advance Guard, under ''Feldmareschalleutnant'' Nordmann, supported by ''Feldmareschalleutnant'' Klenau's VI Korps, in all 25,000 infantrymen, were gradually withdrawing northwards. The Austrian infantry were formed in masses, a formation that had proved very efficient in fending off cavalry, but whose compact ranks made it extremely vulnerable to artillery fire. Casualties began to mount at an alarming rate and Nordmann's infantry, initially 12,000 men strong, was particularly exposed to artillery fire during its retreat towards [[Grosshofen]]. Additionally, towards 13:00, Nordmann became extremely concerned that the numerous French cavalry, might cut him off from the rest of the army. Seeing the dangerous situation of his Advance Guard, Archduke Charles ordered [[Johann I Joseph, Prince of Liechtenstein|Liechtenstein]] to the rescue of these infantrymen with five cavalry regiments. Liechtenstein moved swiftly towards the east with his [[Squadron (army)|squadrons]], arriving in the vicinity of [[Glinzendorf]], but then remained passive, while the French, who now had a numerous combined-arms presence there, were able to continue their advance unmolested. The first serious Austrian attempt to slow down the French onslaught came towards 15:00, when Liechtenstein and Nordmann tried to organise a joint operation, but they gave up quite early on, realising that they were opposed by a very powerful force of several infantry divisions and three cavalry divisions from ''Maréchal'' Davout's III French Corps. The Austrians pulled back, leaving Davout free to position his men between Glinzendorf and Raasdorf, thus drawing closer to the II Corps.{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|p=163}}

[[File:French Hussars 1809.jpeg|thumb|200px|left|French [[hussar]]s on a scouting mission. After the successful crossing of the Danube early on 5 July, the French [[light cavalry]] launched reconnaissance missions as they preceded the advance of the infantry columns.]]
Further west, ''Maréchal'' Bernadotte's IX Corps had been steadily advancing, with the French II Corps on their right, but began to meet steady resistance, when troops from Nordmann's Corps decided to make a stand. These men were from Riese's brigade, soon reinforced by the 13th [[Vlachs|Wallachian]]-[[Illyrians|Illyrian]] ''Grenzer'' and Infantry Regiment 46 ''Chasteler''. Bernadotte sent forward the two battalions of the 5th Light regiment, which successfully pushed back the opposition, allowing the rest of his Corps to continue its advance towards the village of [[Aderklaa]], near which they had to stop, towards 15:30, as they met enemy cavalry. Towards 17:00, in an attempt to secure the vital position at Aderklaa, the Austrians launched a cavalry attack with the brigade of French ''émigré'' [[Nicolas François Roussel d'Hurbal|Roussel d'Hurbal]].{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|pp=163–164}} This [[heavy cavalry]] brigade, around 1,000 sabres strong, deployed on two lines, with the 3rd ''Herzog Albert'' [[Cuirassier]]s on the left and the 2nd ''Erzherzog Franz'' Cuirassiers on the right. D'Hurbal was suddenly charged by the 400 cavalrymen from the [[Kingdom of Saxony|Saxon]] ''Prinz Klemens Chevaulegers'' regiment from Bernadotte's Corps, who had recklessly moved forward unsupported. D'Hurbal's cuirassiers stood to receive the charge and repulsed them by firing a pistol volley from 30 meters. This practice that was highly unusual for the cavalry tactics of the time but in this case it worked perfectly, with the Saxon chevaulegers sent fleeing. The Saxons then brought up the bulk of their cavalry, in [[echelon formation]], with the right leading. D'Hurbal again chose to meet them with a pistol volley but this time the Saxons managed to maintain the impetus of their charge and crashed into the Austrian cuirassiers. Amongst the Saxon cavalry was a single squadron of the ''Herzog Albrecht Chevaulegers'' regiment, which shared the same [[Inhaber|Regimental Proprietor]] with the Austrian ''Herzog Albert'' cuirassiers and these units fought in a generalized melee that involved the entire cavalry present. After a few minutes, d'Hurbal's Austrians were beaten back and pursued, until they were rescued by [[Ignaz Freiherr von Lederer|Lederer]]'s cuirassier brigade.{{sfn|Castle|1990|p=61}} After this cavalry action, Prince Liechtenstein decided that he had lost too many men to no avail and consequently pulled the bulk of his forces back to safety, behind the [[Deutsch-Wagram|Wagram]]-[[Gerasdorf bei Wien|Gerasdorf]] line, leaving five cavalry regiments with the IV Korps at [[Markgrafneusiedl]].{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|pp=163–164}}

Meanwhile, Nordmann's slow retreat allowed Klenau's VI Austrian Korps, which had also been placed in an advanced position, to make a skillful fighting retreat westwards, taking few losses. In sharp contrast, Nordmann's Advance Guard suffered horrendous losses, with its initial 12,000 infantry reduced to little more than 6,000 soldiers capable of further action. This unusually high casualty rate resulted from Nordmann having been positioned in a perilous location and having been maintained there for too long, to little purpose. Additionally, Nordmann had benefitted from little protection from the cavalry present in that sector. After a well-led and determined staged retreat, Nordmann managed to extricate his battered troops, reaching the relative safety of the town of Markgrafneusiedl. The Advance Guard continued to constitute a viable fighting force and they were thus integrated in the IV Korps, guarding the Austrian left wing. The Austrian army was now deployed on a very wide ark-shaped frontage, {{convert|19|km|mi}} long, including Klenau's VI Korps on the far right, then Kollowrat's III Korps on the right-centre, Hohenzollern's II Korps and Bellegarde's I Korps behind the Russbach line in central position, while Rosenberg's IV Korps covered the left. Liechtenstein's [[Grenadier]] Reserve divisions were placed in second line, with the Cavalry Reserve in a central position next to the village of Wagram.{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|p=165}}

Opposite to the Austrians lay the French Army, which managed to fully deploy towards 18:00. From left to right, the French army included: Masséna's IV Corps, covering a wide area between the Danube and Süssenbrunn, the lead elements of Bernadotte's XI Corps ([[Pierre Louis Dupas|Dupas]]'s division) near Aderklaa, Viceroy Eugène's "Army of Italy" in the centre, while Oudinot's II Corps was deployed opposite to Baumersdorf and Davout's III Corps continued the French line eastwards, beyond Glinzendorf. The rest of the French and Allied troops, including the [[Imperial Guard (Napoleon I)|Imperial Guard]] and ''Maréchal'' Bessières's Cavalry Reserve, were in second line. Napoleon had a sound strategic position, as he was holding the [[central position]] and had a much shorter line than his opponent.{{sfn|Rothenberg|1995|pp=164–165}}{{sfn|Castle|1990|p=59}}