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Battle of Austerlitz Timeline

(December 2, 1805)

The Battle of Austerlitz, fought on December 2, 1805, near the village of Austerlitz in Moravia (present-day Czech Republic), was Napoleon Bonaparte's greatest military triumph. Often called the 'Battle of the Three Emperors,' it saw the French Grande Armée decisively defeat a larger Russo-Austrian army under Tsar Alexander I and Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, effectively ending the War of the Third Coalition and dissolving the Holy Roman Empire shortly afterward. Less

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Prelude and Coalitions

Start of the French Revolutionary Wars

1792

Europe had been in turmoil since the start of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1792, a conflict that set the stage for decades of warfare between revolutionary and later Napoleonic France and the great powers of Europe.

Image source: French Revolutionary Wars

Start of the French Revolutionary Wars

Dissolution of the First Coalition

1797

In 1797, after five years of war, the French Republic broke up the First Coalition, an alliance of Austria, Prussia, Great Britain, Spain, and various Italian states.

Image source: War of the First Coalition

Dissolution of the First Coalition

Formation of the Second Coalition

1798

A Second Coalition, led by Britain, Austria and Russia, and including the Ottoman Empire, Portugal and the Kingdom of Naples, was formed in 1798, but by 1801 this too had been defeated, leaving the British the only opponent of the new French Consulate.

Image source: War of the Second Coalition

Formation of the Second Coalition

Italian and Swiss expedition of 1799

1799

During the Italian and Swiss expedition of 1799 the Russians drove the French out of Italy, but they failed in Switzerland.

Image source: Italian and Swiss expedition of 1799

Italian and Swiss expedition of 1799

Archduke Charles begins Austrian army reform

1801

Archduke Charles, brother of the Austrian Emperor, had started to reform the Austrian army in 1801 by taking away power from the Hofkriegsrat, the military-political council responsible for the armed forces.

Image source: Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg

Archduke Charles begins Austrian army reform

Treaty of Amiens ends hostilities between France and Britain

Mar 1802

In March 1802, France and Britain agreed to end hostilities under the Treaty of Amiens, bringing a temporary peace between the two powers.

Image source: Treaty of Amiens

Treaty of Amiens ends hostilities between France and Britain

Britain declares war on France

May 1803

In May 1803, Britain declared war on France, resuming hostilities after the brief peace brought by the Treaty of Amiens.

Image source: Battle of Austerlitz

Britain declares war on France

Creation of the Third Coalition

Dec 1804

In December 1804, an Anglo-Swedish agreement led to the creation of the Third Coalition against France.

Image source: War of the Third Coalition

Creation of the Third Coalition

Austrian cavalry and artillery strengths assessed

1805

The fighting qualities of the Austrian cavalry were high in 1805, but they were often outnumbered by French horsemen due to Napoleon's new cavalry tactics 'en masse'. The artillery of 1805 was the best among the entire continental Coalition, but no better than the French.

Russian army retains Ancien Régime organization

1805

The Russian army in 1805 had many characteristics of Ancien Régime organization. From Peter the Great until the war with Napoleonic France in 1805, Russia almost always achieved success in military affairs.

Image source: Imperial Russian Army

Russian army retains Ancien Régime organization

Grande Armée grows to 350,000 men

1805

By 1805, the Grande Armée had grown to a force of 350,000 men, who were well equipped, well trained, and led by competent officers.

Image source: Grande Armée

Grande Armée grows to 350,000 men

Britain and Russia sign alliance

Apr 1805

British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger spent 1804 and 1805 in a flurry of diplomatic activity geared towards forming a new coalition against France, and by April 1805, Britain and Russia had signed an alliance.

Legacy and Commemoration

Victor Hugo reveres the battle in literature

Jan 1, 1800 - Dec 31, 1899

In French history, Austerlitz is acknowledged as an impressive military victory, and in the 19th century, when fascination with the First French Empire was at its height, the battle was revered by French authors such as Victor Hugo, who wrote of the 'sound of heavy cannons rolling towards Austerlitz' echoing in the 'depths of [his] thoughts'.

Pyramid of Austerlitz built near Utrecht

1805

A notable monument is the Pyramid of Austerlitz, built by French soldiers stationed there to commemorate the 1805 campaign near Utrecht in the Netherlands.

Image source: Pyramid of Austerlitz

Pyramid of Austerlitz built near Utrecht

Monument to the Three Emperors designed and built

1910 - 1912

It was designed and built in the Art Nouveau style by Josef Fanta in 1910–1912.

World War I postpones monument's dedication

1923

World War I postponed the monument's dedication until 1923.

Austerlitz battlefield protected as landscape monument zone

1992

Since 1992, the area where the Battle of Austerlitz took place has been protected by law as a landscape monument zone.

Bicentennial commemoration controversy

2005

In the 2005 bicentennial, controversy erupted when neither French President Jacques Chirac nor Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin attended any functions commemorating the battle.

Battle and Aftermath

Indemnity imposed on the Habsburgs

1805

The settlement imposed an indemnity of 40 million francs, equivalent to €106 million in 2025, on the Habsburgs and allowed the fleeing Russian troops free passage through hostile territories and back to their home soil.

Austria cedes territory under peace terms

1805

Austria agreed to recognize French territory captured by the treaties of Campo Formio (1797) and Lunéville (1801), cede land to Bavaria, Württemberg and Baden, which were Napoleon's German allies, pay 40 million francs in war indemnities and cede Venice to the Kingdom of Italy.

Image source: Peace of Pressburg (1805)

Austria cedes territory under peace terms

Suvorov's military 'pleiad' decisively defeated

Dec 2, 1805

Remarkably, the pleiad of Russian military commanders nurtured by the great general Alexander Suvorov (1730–1800) – including Mikhail Kutuzov, Pyotr Bagration, Mikhail Miloradovich, Nikolay Kamensky, Sergei Kamensky, Peter Wittgenstein and Friedrich von Buxhoeveden – was decisively defeated at Austerlitz.

Image source: Alexander Suvorov

Suvorov's military 'pleiad' decisively defeated

Battle of Austerlitz fought

Dec 2, 1805

The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important military engagements of the Napoleonic Wars.

Armistice signed at Slavkov Castle

Dec 6, 1805

An armistice was signed between Austria and France after the battle on 6 December 1805 at Slavkov Castle.

Image source: Slavkov u Brna

Armistice signed at Slavkov Castle

Francis dissolves the Holy Roman Empire

1806

The Confederation rendered the Holy Roman Empire virtually useless, so Francis dissolved the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, but remained as emperor of Austria. 1806 was seen as the Empire's final year.

Image source: Holy Roman Empire

Francis dissolves the Holy Roman Empire

Prussia goes to war with France in the Fourth Coalition

1806

Prussian worries about the growing French influence in Central Europe led to the War of the Fourth Coalition in 1806. Prussia saw these moves as an affront to its status as the main power of Central Europe, and it went to war with France.

Image source: War of the Fourth Coalition

Prussia goes to war with France in the Fourth Coalition

Campaign of 1805

Napoleon turns his sights to the Rhine

Aug 1805

In August 1805, Napoleon, Emperor of the French since December of the previous year, turned his sights from the English Channel to the Rhine to deal with the new Austrian and Russian threats.

Image source: Ulm campaign

Napoleon turns his sights to the Rhine

Kutuzov arrives at the battlefield area

Sep 9, 1805

On 9 September 1805, Kutuzov arrived at the battlefield, quickly contacting Francis I of Austria and his courtiers to discuss strategy and logistics.

Image source: Mikhail Kutuzov

Kutuzov arrives at the battlefield area

French seize Vienna after Ulm campaign

Nov 1805

After eliminating an Austrian army during the Ulm campaign, French forces seized Vienna in November 1805.

Murat sets up headquarters at Stará Pošta

Nov 28, 1805

Stará Pošta ('old post') in Kovalovice is an original building from 1785. On 28 November 1805, the French cavalry general Murat set up his headquarters here.

Image source: Joachim Murat

Murat sets up headquarters at Stará Pošta

French troops shifted in line with Allied movements

Dec 1, 1805

By 1 December 1805, the French troops had been shifted in accordance with the Allied movement southward, as Napoleon expected.

Key Facts

  1. The Battle of Austerlitz took place on December 2, 1805, exactly one year after Napoleon's coronation as Emperor of France.
  2. It is known as the 'Battle of the Three Emperors' because Napoleon I, Alexander I of Russia, and Francis II of Austria all commanded their forces on the field.
  3. Despite being outnumbered (roughly 68,000 French against 85,000 Allied troops), Napoleon deliberately weakened his right flank to lure the Allies into attacking and then split their center at the Pratzen Heights.
  4. The victory forced Austria to sign the Treaty of Pressburg and led to the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806.
  5. Austerlitz is widely regarded by historians as Napoleon's masterpiece of tactical genius, studied in military academies to this day.

Source

This Battle of Austerlitz timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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