Meanwhile Kray, on his way to Stokach, had reached Engen before the
arrival of Moreau. In this position his troops, numbering about
forty-five thousand men, faced south with their left at Engen and their
right extended towards Zollhaus. Moreau soon arrived with the reserve.
His forces, counting the two brigades on his right detached from
Lecourbe's corps, numbered about forty thousand men. At once Moreau
began the battle. Fiercely and desperately the French and Austrians
fought for several hours, but neither gained a decided advantage.
Finally, late in the day, St. Cyr, who had received orders from Moreau
to hurry forward from Zollhaus, arrived and began an attack upon the
right of the Austrians, which caused them to give way. But this attack
was made too late to produce any decisive result. The Austrians,
though forced at last to yield, were not crushed; in fact, Engen was
little more than a drawn battle. But, during the night, Kray, having
learned of the capture of Stokach, began to fear that Lecourbe would
push forward, seize Mosskirch, and sever his communications with Ulm.
He therefore decided to retreat. Leaving a rear guard to hold Moreau
in check, he directed his forces upon Tuttlingen, Liptengen, and
Mosskirch. At the battle of Engen each side lost in killed, wounded,
and captured, about seven thousand men.
Kray now determined to unite as many of his troops as possible at
Mosskirch, and there to make a stand against the French, who were
pushing eagerly forward towards Ulm. Already he had sent word to
General Starray and General Kienmayer to descend the left bank of the
Danube, and join him at the earliest possible moment.
On the 4th of May Moreau directed his own corps and that of Lecourbe on
Mosskirch; St. Cyr arrived at Geisingen; and Ste. Suzanne, who had been
forcing his way through the Black Forest, was at Donaueschingen.
On the following day Kray, having been joined by the remnants of
his reserve, beaten at Stokach, took position at Mosskirch with
forty thousand men. His right was at Tuttlingen, about twelve miles
distant; but Kienmayer and Starray were beyond supporting distance on
the north side of the Danube. On this day Moreau attacked Kray with
fifty thousand men, and, after hard fighting, succeeded in forcing
the Austrians back towards Sigmaringen. But Kray did not retire far.
Being anxious for the safety of the Austrian troops at Tuttlingen,
he halted, formed line of battle, and with the right of his line
strongly re-enforced, attacked the French and drove them from the
Tuttlingen-Mosskirch road. This success opened his communications with
the Austrians at Tuttlingen, and enabled them to join him. Being thus
re-enforced, he again attacked the left flank of Moreau, and attempted
to seize the Stokach-Mosskirch road. But in his attempt to outflank the
French, he was in turn outflanked by them, and was again compelled to
retire.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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