Q 16.1
How Many Captured Eagles at Wagram?

Jean Lochet's expert response on AoN17 was a little unfair to Dr. Chandler and Archduke Charles regarding Wagram. All Austrian documents don't claim 12 eagles, but follow the 'Relation' (official report) issued some time after the battle. A copy is in the British Library under 9078.g.17 (2), 'Offizielle Berichte' (1810). It was put into English as W. Miller Relation of the Operations and Battles of the Austrian and French Armies in the Year 1809 (1810, reprinted 1986 by Ken Trotman). Page 78 reads '(We) took 12 eagles and colours'.

See also, for example, Angeli Erzherzog Carl als Feldherr und Heeresorgisator, (1896-7) Vol. 4, p.516 or for easy reference. Ian Castle's Osprey Aspern & Wagram 1809, (1994) p.88. The Relation mentions six trophies taken around Aderklaa, including, presumably, a flag of the 2nd battalion of the Hessian Leib Regiment (see Gill, With Eagles to Glory, (1992) p.240). Hoen, in his essay on Wagram in Das Kriegsjahr 1809 in Einzelen Darstellungen (1906) also mentions that Oberjeeger Lauer of 8tes Jaeger captured a French Battalion flag during Oudinot's attack on Baumersdorf on 5 July 1809.

It may have been a misreading of Petre: Napoleon and the Archduke Charles (1909) p.379, which reads '12 eagles or standards'. Dr. Chandler didn't use the Archduke's writings, but more likely, he was a victim of the publisher's editing. Nonetheless, the Austrians gained more trophies than the French.
--Dave Hollins

Q 17.2
Flags of the Austrian Grenadiers

I have seen the suggestion that Austrian Grenadier battalions rotated Leibfahne from their parent regiments reproduced in many places, but never the original reference. It seems unlikely that this would have happened on campaign, since the Grenadier division (2 companies) wouldn't necessarily have been in the same theatre as the parent regiments.

From 1769 the Grenadier divisions were formed into battalions in wartime, but returned to their parent bases when peace returned. These battalions were concentrated into brigades and divisions as the infantry reserve from 1796 onward (Austria having no Guard formations). Under Mack's 1805 reforms, each regiment had its own 4-company Grenadier battalion, but the old organisation returned in 1806.

After 1809, the Grenadiers returned to their regimental bases. In terms of their war footing they were reorganised by designating battalions made up from divisions in the same locality. As an example, the two battalions which went to Russia in 1812 were from Hungarian and Galician regiments respectively. Thus, Grenadier battalions would not appear to have rotated flags on campaign and the divisions were not formed as battalions in peacetime.

l have not come across any list of which flags were being carried at Aspern and Wagram in 1809, but the problem is quite complex fro the infantry later in this campaign. For example, Angeli mentions that some documents in the War Archive state that it was the flag of the 2nd Battalion IR15 Zach which Charles grabbed on the 22nd. Most accounts say it was the 1st Battalion's. The confusion has arisen because IR15 suffered heavy casualties in the Bavarian phase and its three battalions were merged into two.

Under an order issued just prior to the campaign, Landwehr flags were to have the Doppeladler on a yellow background on one side with the district arms on the other. No size was prescribed (Dolleczek: Monographie der kuk osterrung Handfeuerwaffen, rep. 1970, p.162). At least two of the volunteer 'Archduke Charles Legion' battalions are thought to have been carrying flags with the provincial arms of Bohemia on the other (Catalogue to the 1909 'Erzherzog Karl Ausstellung'). The Vienna Volunteers had 1806-pattern Ordinarfahne with red honour ribbons, presented by Empress Maria Ludovika in 1808. (These more unusual flags will be featured in my upcoming Osprey MAA: Austria (4) Auxiliaries, due in November.) Under the 1808 regulations, Jagers did not carry standards. Cavalry standards were smaller versions of the infantry flags and were issued at one per division of 2 squadrons.

It should be borne in mind that many units were carrying old flags dating from prior to 1806, when the Doppeladler was somewhat different. KK IR4 Deutschmeister was presented with two 1806 pattern Ordinarfahne in June 1806, which appear to have gone to the 2nd and 3rd battalions in 1808, when the number of flags per regiment was halved. (Amon: Geschichte des kuk IR4 'Hoch- und Deutschmeister' 1879, p.397.) Research continues on this one, but one suggestion is that each Grenadier battalion may have been carrying the Leibfahne of the senior contributing regiment. IR15's division was the senior division in the Nissel (later Berger) Grenadier battalion. This may throw further light on the confusion about which flag Charles actually seized as it could have been the 1st Battalion's replacement Ordinarfahne.
--Dave Hollins

Queries: Uniform help wanted
Notes: Austrian "Regimental Days"

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