X Corps (Grande Armée)

The X Corps of the Grande Armée was a French military formation active during the Napoleonic Wars. Originally established in 1807, for the War of the Fourth Coalition, under the command of Marshal François Joseph Lefebvre, X Corps was reconstituted in 1812 during the French invasion of Russia under Marshal Jacques MacDonald's command. Macdonald’s X Corps was tasked with securing the northern flank by advancing into Courland and besieging Riga.The corps crossed the Niemen on 24 June 1812 and moved toward Riga. After the French retreat from Russia, X Corps was tasked with defending Danzig, under the leadership of General Jean Rapp. The Siege of Danzig lasted from January 1813 to January 1814, ending with the surrender of the garrison. Notably, the X Corps included a Prussian contingent that eventually became the foundation of the reformed Prussian Army in 1813. Prussia then fought the broken German countries and Austria. The Prussians defected at Tauroggen in December of 1812 depriving the X Corp's of tens of thousands of troops.