I Corps (Grande Armée)
The I Corps of the Grande Armée was a French military unit that existed during the Napoleonic Wars. The corps was composed of French troops.
| I Corps | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1805–1815 |
| Country | .svg.png){kind=small} |
| Branch | Army |
| Type | Corps |
| Size | 2-5 infantry divisions, along with cavalry and artillery elements |
| Engagements | War of the Third Coalition War of the Fourth Coalition Peninsular War Russian campaign War of the Sixth Coalition War of the Seventh Coalition |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte Louis-Nicolas Davout Jean-Baptiste Drouet Claude Victor-Perrin Dominique Vandamme |
Campaigns
The corps was formed in 1805, with Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte appointed as its commander.
War of the Third Coalition
The corps took part in the Ulm campaign before participating at the Battle of Austerlitz in 1805.
War of the Fourth Coalition
The corps took part in the battles of Schleiz, Halle, and Lübeck in 1806, and Mohrungen and Spanden in 1807. After Bernadotte was wounded at Spanden, General Claude Victor-Perrin led the I Corps at Friedland where his tactics earned him a marshal's baton.
Peninsular War
Victor continued to lead the I Corps in Spain where it was engaged at Uclés, Medellín, Alcantara, and Talavera in 1809, the Siege of Cádiz beginning in 1810, and Barrosa in 1811.
Russian campaign
The corps was reorganized into a strength of five infantry divisions for the invasion of Russia in 1812 and Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout was appointed to lead it. At the crossing of the Niemen River in 1812, the size of I Corps was around 79,000 men, but by the Battle of Smolensk, about 60,000 men remained.[1] By the end of the Russian campaign, only 2,235 men remained.[2]
Under Davout, the unit fought at Borodino, Vyazma, and Krasnoi before dissolving as an effective unit during the retreat from Moscow.
War of the Sixth Coalition
In 1813, the I Corps was reconstituted and placed under the command of General Dominique Vandamme. The corps was destroyed at Kulm, with the remnants surrendering together with XIV Corps following the siege of Dresden in November 1813.
War of the Seventh Coalition
The corps was rebuilt in 1815 during the Hundred Days, and was assigned to General Jean-Baptiste Drouet, under whom it fought at the Battle of Waterloo
Order of Battle, 15th June 1815
| I Corps Order of Battle, 1815 | |
|---|---|
| |
Notes
- Badone, Jean Cerino; et al. "1812 – Invasion of Russia". Retrieved 16 August 2007.
- Badone, Jean Cerino; et al. ""I have no army any more!" – Napoleon". Retrieved 16 August 2007.
- "Les Uniformes pendant la campagne des Cent Jours - Belgique 1815". centjours.mont-saint-jean.com. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
References
- Chandler, David G. (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York, NY: Macmillan.
- Oman, Charles (2010). A History of the Peninsular War Volume I. La Vergne, Tenn.: Kessinger Publishing. ISBN 1432636820.
- Oman, Charles (1995). A History of the Peninsular War Volume II. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole. ISBN 1-85367-215-7.
- Oman, Charles (1996). A History of the Peninsular War Volume III. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole. ISBN 1-85367-223-8.
- Oman, Charles (1996). A History of the Peninsular War Volume IV. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole. ISBN 1-85367-224-6.
- Petre, F. Loraine (1912). Napoleon's Last Campaign in Germany, 1813. New York: John Lane Company.
- Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.
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