Ballyhoo Studios

Austerlitz
Fought in the winter of 1805, Austerlitz captures the excitement of the early 19th century battle with all the color, pomp, and pageantry of the Napoleonic era. Take command of either Napoleon's troops to recreate his greatest victory or the combined might of Russia and Austria to alter history forever. Austerlitz accurately depicts napoleonic warfare at its finest based on the award-winning Waterloo: Napoleon's Last Battle engine. Game features: * Design your own random battles * Historical landmarks featuring the Pratzen Heights, the Pheasantry, and Sokolnitz castle * Improved solider animation * Multiplayer allows up to 8 players over LAN or Internet * Artwork of famed Napoleonic artist Keith Rocco * New command and control system * Displaying battlefield conditions (i.e. fog and time of day) see the BreakAwayGames site for more information.

Historical Overview
The Battle of Austerlitz (Czech: Bitva u Slavkova) also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, effectively destroying the Third Coalition against the French Empire. On December 2, 1805 (November 20, Old Style), a French army, commanded by Emperor Napoleon I, decisively defeated a Russo-Austrian army, commanded by Tsar Alexander I, after nearly nine hours of difficult fighting. The battle took place near Austerlitz (Slavkov u Brna) about 10 km (6 miles) south-east of Brno in Moravia. The battle is often regarded as a tactical masterpiece.

The French victory at Austerlitz effectively brought the Third Coalition to an end. On December 26, 1805, Austria and France signed the Treaty of Pressburg, which took Austria out of the war, reinforced the earlier treaties of Campo Formio and Lunéville, made Austria cede land to Napoleon's German allies, and imposed an indemnity of 40 million francs on the defeated Habsburgs. Russian troops were allowed to head back to home soil. Victory at Austerlitz also permitted the creation of the Confederation of the Rhine, a collection of German states intended as a buffer zone between France and central Europe. In 1806, the Holy Roman Empire ceased to exist when Holy Roman Emperor Francis II kept Francis I of Austria as his only official title. These achievements, however, did not establish a lasting peace on the continent. Prussian worries about growing French influence in Central Europe sparked the War of the Fourth Coalition in 1806.