Battle of Raab

Significance

The Battle of Raab, fought near Győr in the Kingdom of Hungary, produced a Franco-Italian victory over Habsburg forces composed largely of poorly trained Landwehr and militia. The outcome carried direct strategic consequences for the climactic Battle of Wagram: Archduke John's army was left too degraded to contribute any significant force to that engagement, while Eugène de Beauharnais was able to link up with Napoleon at Vienna in time to fight there. The battle thus shaped the correlation of forces at Wagram by simultaneously removing a substantial Austrian column from the order of battle and reinforcing the French main effort. Napoleon's own framing of the victory — calling it 'a granddaughter of Marengo and Friedland,' both of which fell on the same calendar date — reflected the weight he assigned to it within the broader campaign of 1809.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (3)