The Battle opens on May 16, 1809, as Napoleon's forces confront the assembled armies of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at Essling, near Vienna. Angered by the Austrians' challenge to his rule over their land, Napoleon is determined to crush the enemy troops with the quick troop maneuvers that won so many previous battles. Yet the French soon find that the wide-open Austrian plains are not conducive to theirtechniques, as the enemy's sheer manpower begins to overwhelm them.