The Campaign of Marengo, With Comments

by Herbert H. Sargent

In the campaign of Marengo Bonaparte displayed excellent judgment in selecting his subordinates. However much he may have failed in this respect in his subsequent career, certainly at this time his success was due in great measure to the fact that he selected Masséna to command the Army of Italy, and Moreau to command the Army of the Rhine.

Masséna was peculiarly fitted both by birth and character to perform the duty required of him. Born at Turbia near Nice, he was familiar with every foot of country bordering on the Gulf of Genoa. Moreover, he had fought in the same theatre of operations under Bonaparte in 1796-97. In action he was cool, clear-headed, obstinate, and brave. When the battle was at its height, and the struggle fierce and desperate, then his genius shone forth with great brilliancy. Probably no other soldier of France could have made such an heroic struggle at Genoa. Though he had some traits of character that stained his reputation and dimmed his glory, he was nevertheless a great soldier, perhaps the greatest of all those remarkable men who were afterwards made marshals of France. His characteristics were thus set forth by Napoleon at St. Helena:—

"Masséna was a man of superior talent. He generally, however, made bad dispositions previous to a battle, and it was not until the dead fell around him that he began to act with that judgment which he ought to have displayed before. In the midst of the dying and the dead, of balls sweeping away those who encircled him, then Masséna was himself—gave his orders and made his dispositions with the greatest sang froid and judgment.... By a strange peculiarity of temperament, he possessed the desired equilibrium only in the heat of battle; it came to him in the midst of danger. The sound of the guns cleared his ideas and gave him understanding, penetration, and cheerfulness. He was endowed with extraordinary courage and firmness. When defeated he was always ready to fight again as though he had been the conqueror."

Though Moreau failed to appreciate thoroughly the strategical situation in Germany, nevertheless the First Consul showed wisdom in appointing him to command the Army of the Rhine. Moreau was familiar with this theatre of operations, and possessed the confidence of the soldiers under him. Moreover, he was brave and cautious, and wonderfully cool and collected on the battle-field. Though he failed to do all that he might have done, yet he was generally successful, and, on the whole, justified the confidence bestowed on him by the First Consul.

In this connection it is worthy of remark that Desaix was ranked by Napoleon as one of the greatest of his subordinates. Had he not been killed at Marengo, he would undoubtedly have been made one of Napoleon's marshals. At St. Helena Napoleon spoke of him as follows:—

"Of all the generals I ever had under me, Desaix and Kléber possessed the greatest talents—especially Desaix; as Kléber only loved glory inasmuch as it was the means of procuring him riches and pleasures, whereas Desaix loved glory for itself, and despised everything else. Desaix was wholly wrapped up in war and glory. To him riches and pleasure were valueless, nor did he give them a moment's thought. He was a little, black-looking man, about an inch shorter than I am, always badly dressed, sometimes even ragged, and despising comfort or convenience. When in Egypt, I made him a present of a complete field-equipage several times, but he always lost it. Wrapt in a cloak, Desaix threw himself under a gun, and slept as contentedly as if he were in a palace. For him luxury had no charms. Upright and honest in all his proceedings, he was called by the Arabs the just Sultan. He was intended by nature for a great general. Kléber and Desaix were a loss irreparable to France."

It is worthy of remark that many of the generals that fought in the French armies during these operations afterwards became marshals of Napoleon. In the Army of Italy there were Masséna, Soult, and Suchet; in the army of Reserve, Lannes, Victor, Murat, Berthier, Marmont, and Davoust; and in the Army of the Rhine, St. Cyr, Moncey, and the immortal Ney, "the bravest of the brave."

The knowledge that Bonaparte displayed of his adversaries' doings in this campaign is indeed wonderful. From reports sent him by Suchet, Masséna, and Moreau, and from information obtained from spies, he had not only a knowledge of the positions occupied by the Austrian armies, but, in addition, was accurately informed as to their numbers and plans of operations. A single example will suffice to illustrate the accuracy of his information, and his remarkable intuition, before the beginning of hostilities, as to the movements and plans of Melas. It will be remembered that while still at Paris he wrote to Masséna as follows:—

"The enemy will debouch upon your right in the direction of Genoa, on your centre in the direction of Savona, and probably on the two points at once. Refuse one of the two attacks, and throw yourself with all your forces united, upon one of the enemy's columns.... In that broken country, if you manœuvre well, with 30,000 men you may give battle to 60,000; in order to carry 60,000 light-armed troops into Liguria, Melas must have 90,000, which supposes a total army of 120,000 men at least."