June 12 – December 25, 1812 The Patriotic War is a just national liberation war of Russia against Napoleonic France that attacked it.
The invasion of Napoleon's troops was caused by the aggravation of Russian-French economic and political contradictions, the actual refusal of Russia from Continental blockade.
Main events of 1812
June 12 - transition to French. armies across the Neman (the forces of the parties at the beginning of the war: the French - about 610 people; the Russians - about 240 people). When Alexander I found out about this, he immediately sent his adjutant, General A.I., to Napoleon. Balashova. To all of Alexander I's proposals for peace, Napoleon had only one answer - “no!” Napoleon Bonaparte hoped to defeat the Russian army in a short-term campaign and then force Russia to join the orbit of French foreign policy.
The personnel Russian army numbered more than 220 thousand people. It was divided into three parts, far apart from each other. The first army under the command of M.B. Barclay de Tolly was in Lithuania, the second was under General P.I. Bagration - in Belarus, the third - General A.P. Tormasova - in Ukraine.
Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army M.B. Barclay de Tolly chose the correct tactic in those circumstances - retreat. Near Smolensk, he managed to unite the first and second Russian armies and give battle to the French.
4-6 Aug. - Battle of Smolensk, Napoleon's unsuccessful attempt to defeat the main forces of the Russian troops.
The Russian army continued to retreat, and the war began to take a protracted character. This caused public discontent. M.B. Barclay de Tolly was accused of treason and complicity with the French. They began to demand that Alexander I put a Russian at the head of the army.
Aug 26 - battle of Borodino. The battle did not end with the victory of the Russian troops, but, nevertheless, the offensive pressure of the French dried up. The losses on both sides were enormous. In such a situation, continuing the battle the next day with the French was risky. M.I. Kutuzov decided to take care of the army. The Russian army after Borodino began to retreat to Moscow.
1 Sep. - military council in Fili, Kutuzov’s decision to leave Moscow; introduction French troops to Moscow.
Sep. – Oct. – Kutuzov conducts Tarutinsky march-maneuver - Russian troops abruptly changed the eastern direction to the southern one - they reached the Kaluga road. This allowed the Russian troops to break away from the French.
During a month of staying in empty and hungry Moscow, burning in fires, Napoleon's army was almost completely demoralized. This forces the French to leave Moscow. Napoleon moved his troops along the Kaluga road, hoping to break through to the south to replenish food supplies and military equipment.
12 Oct. – battle of Maloyaroslavets, in which Napoleon suffered a crushing defeat and had to retreat along the devastated Old Smolensk Road. A guerrilla war is unfolding.
Nov. - Dec. - death of the French army.
1813-1814 – foreign campaigns of the Russian army.
In January 1813, Russian troops entered the territory of Poland. Started from border campaign of the Russian army
. The entry of the Russian army into Europe served as a signal for a general uprising of European peoples against the rule of Napoleon. A new anti-French coalition of European states was concluded - consisting of Russia, England, Prussia, Austria and Sweden.
IN October 1813 A decisive battle took place between Napoleon's new army and the Allied armies. Leipzig, which went down in history as "battle of the nations". More than half a million people took part in it on both sides. The French army was completely defeated, but Napoleon himself was able to escape from the encirclement. In January 1814, allied troops entered French territory. In March 1814, Russian Colonel M.F. Orlov accepted the surrender of Paris. Napoleon was exiled to the island of Elba in the Mediterranean Sea. The old royal dynasty of the Bourbons returned to the French throne. The monarchy in France was restored.
Congress of Vienna (September 1814 - June 1815) was supposed to decide the fate of the post-war structure of Europe and satisfy the territorial claims of the victorious countries. All European states except Turkey took part in the congress. The main role was played by Russia, England, Austria. The Russian delegation was represented by Alexander I. The Congress of Vienna eliminated the political changes and transformations that occurred as a result of the French Revolution of 1789 and the Napoleonic Wars. France was returned to its pre-revolutionary borders. The Congress of Vienna restored monarchical regimes in France, Italy, Spain and other countries. According to the decisions of the Congress of Vienna, Central Poland with Warsaw went to Russia. The Kingdom of Poland was formed from Polish and part of Lithuanian lands within Russia.
Socio-economic and socio-political development of Russia in the first half of the 19th century.
- Socio-economic development.
- Decembrist movement.
- Social movement in Russia in the second quarter of the 19th century.
The first half of the 19th century was a period of crisis in feudal-serf relations in the Russian economy and, at the same time, an era of strengthening the power of the absolutist state and expanding its police functions.
The territory of Russia was 18 million square meters. km, population – 74 million people.
The entire population of Russia was divided into closed groups - estates. The privileged classes were clergy, nobility, merchants; taxable - philistinism And peasantry. A special place in the class structure of Russian society was occupied by guild artisans, Cossacks, honorary citizens.
The largest social group was peasantry, which made up about 90% of the Russian population.
It, in turn, was divided into three main categories : privately owned(landowners); specific(belonging to the royal family) and state(free rural inhabitants) peasants.
Economy
By the end of the 18th century. Russia was distinguished by a generally stable economy based on serf peasant labor. But it was precisely at this time that fundamentally new processes began to manifest themselves more and more clearly in various spheres of Russian life.
As a result, by the end of the 18th century. A domestic market is emerging in Russia. It's in full swing zoning- specialization of various regions in the production of certain products for sale. Fairs played a major role in the development of commodity-money relations. The most famous were Makaryevskaya (near Nizhny Novgorod), Irbitskaya (in Siberia), Rostovskaya. The main commodity product in Russia's domestic and foreign trade was bread. Landowner farms continued to be the main suppliers of commercial grain.
Transport occupied an important place in the formation of the national market. Its main types in pre-reform Russia remained water and horse-drawn. The first Russian railway (between Tsarskoye Selo and St. Petersburg) was opened in 1837. In the 1840-50s. The Warsaw-Petersburg and Petersburg-Moscow (Nikolaev) railways were built.
The process went slowly in the village social stratification. It was spreading in the village otkhodnichestvo- peasants leaving to work in cities and large villages.
In industrial production in Russia at this time, the decisive role was played by the technology inherited from the 18th century. industry of the old, serf type. The main labor force here were serfs assigned to individual enterprises. The serf industry was doomed to stagnation. However, already in the first half of the 19th century. In Russia, enterprises of a completely different type are appearing: not associated with the state, they work for the market, producing goods for free sale and using civilian labor. Such enterprises arise primarily in light industry. Their owners, as a rule, are rich peasant fishermen, and the peasants who work here are otkhodniks.
Thus, in the first half of the 19th century. The traditional economic system was already clearly slowing down the development of production and preventing the formation of new relations in it.
Decembrist movement
First quarter of the 19th century became the time of formation of revolutionary ideology and revolutionary movement. From 1811 to 1825 in Russia there were more than thirty secret revolutionary organizations of nobles. Most of them were military officers - guard officers.
The first political secret societies: "Union of Salvation"(1816 to St. Petersburg), "Union of Welfare"(1818-1820). In March 1821, the Northern Society was formed in St. Petersburg (founders N.M. Muravyov and N.I. Turgenev) and the Southern Society in Ukraine (leader P.I. Pestel). Each society had its own program document. Northern - "Constitution" written by N.M. Muravyov. South - "Russian truth" written by P.I. Pestel. Both program documents expressed a single goal - the abolition of serfdom and the elimination of autocratic rule. However, if according to the “Constitution” Russia was declared a constitutional monarchy with the provision of legislative power to a bicameral parliament - the People’s Assembly, then according to “Russian Truth” a parliamentary republic with a presidential form of government was proclaimed in Russia. The “Constitution” expressed the liberal nature of the reforms, while “Russian Truth” expressed the radical, republican nature. The conspirators planned to carry out a revolutionary coup in the summer of 1826 during army exercises. But unexpectedly, on November 19, 1825, Alexander I died, and this event pushed the conspirators to take active action ahead of schedule.
On December 14, 1825, the Decembrist uprising took place on Senate Square, which was suppressed. On December 29, 1825, S.I. Muravyov-Apostol and M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin rebelled Chernigov regiment. On January 3, 1826, the uprising in the south was also suppressed.
Results of the uprising
Of the 131 convicts, five people were executed (P.I. Pestel, K.F. Ryleev. S.I. Muravyov-Apostol, M.P. Bestuzhev-Ryumin, P.G. Kakhovsky), 88 people were sent to hard labor, 18 sent to settle in Siberia, 4 were exiled to serfdom, 15 were demoted to the ranks of soldiers, one person was sent to live in Siberia.
The Decembrist uprising was the first open uprising in Russia, which set as its task a radical restructuring of society. The ideas of the Decembrists contributed to the formation of independent public opinion aimed at the destruction of serfdom and autocracy in Russia.
The campaign of 1813 was a new, now forgotten by our people, page of the Glory of Russian weapons. The inspirer and organizer, as well as the binding link of the VI anti-Napoleonic coalition, was certainly Emperor Alexander I.
AlexanderI
Having already completed the victorious campaign of 1812, the Emperor decided for himself that leaving Napoleon in the state he was in after the defeat in the Russian campaign of 1812 was unacceptable and dangerous, because. his shaky Throne, like the Throne of any conqueror, was maintained only by continuous victories, and Bonaparte, after a year or two, having again gathered the troops of the subjects of Europe, would again repeat the invasion of Russia and would try to avoid his previous mistakes. Thus, the campaign in Europe was not so much the willfulness of Alexander I, but also a state necessity.
In early December 1812, the Russian army concentrated near Vilna (Vilnius). Having left the Tarutino camp with an army of almost 100 thousand, Field Marshal M.I. Kutuzov brought only 40 thousand soldiers to the borders of the Russian Empire, and out of 620 guns, only 200 were delivered. Thus, the autumn-winter campaign of 1812 cost Napoleon 160,000 people (killed and captured), and the Russian army lost up to 80 thousand people in this period (only one fourth of this composition was killed in action). By the end of December 1812, units of Admiral P.V. joined Kutuzov’s army. Chichagov and the building of Count P.Kh. Wittgenstein, thus forming an army of 90 thousand. Already on December 28, 1812, Kutuzov’s army crossed the river. Neman and entered the territory of Prussia and the Duchy of Warsaw.
M.I. Kutuzov-Golenishchev
The main goal of the winter campaign of 1813, Alexander I set the destruction of the flanking corps of Magdonald in Prussia and the Austro-Saxon corps of Schwarzenberg and Rainier in Poland. These goals were soon achieved. In January 1813, all of eastern Prussia was cleared of the French by the army of Count P. Wittgenstein; the Prussians enthusiastically greeted the Russian liberators. Soon the cities of Thorn and Danzig were besieged by Russian troops. Units under the command of Prince Kutuzov-Smolensky began an attack on the city of Polotsk, which forced Schwarzenberg to evacuate units from Warsaw and retreat with Poniatowski’s corps to Galicia. The Saxon corps of General Rainier retreated to Kalisz, where on February 1, 1813 it was defeated by the corps of General Wintzingerode.
The actions of the Russian army in East Prussia became the spark that ignited the fire of the patriotic struggle of the people of Prussia against the Napoleonic occupation. After some hesitation, King Frederick William III concluded a military alliance on February 16, 1813, according to which Russia was obliged to form an army of 150 thousand and a decision was made by the allied monarchs (Russian and Prussian) “not to lay down weapons until the restoration of Prussia within the borders of 1806” . Prussia, for its part, was obliged to field an 80 thousand army, but at the beginning of the union, the Prussian army of General Blucher had only 56 thousand soldiers. By the end of February 1813, the Russian army already had 140 thousand, and a reserve army was also being formed in Belarus and Ukraine, reaching up to 180 thousand soldiers. On February 27 (March 11), 1813, Count Wittgenstein's army occupied Berlin, and on March 15 (27), 1813, Dresden was captured by Russian troops.
Peter Christianovich Wittgenstein
On April 16 (28), 1813, His Serene Highness Prince Kutuzov-Smolensky dies in the city of Bunzlau. Count Peter Wittgenstein was appointed the new commander of the united Russian army. His position was quite difficult, because... Under his command were more senior and experienced corps commanders, once his direct superiors: M.B. Barclay de Tolly, Tsarevich Konstantin Pavlovich and Field Marshal Blucher.
Gebhard Leberecht Blücher
Wittgenstein did not have sufficient authority before them. In addition, there was an imperial headquarters under the Russian army, which also gave its own orders, bypassing the commander-in-chief of the army.
At the cost of enormous efforts, Napoleon assembled a new French army during the winter of 1812-13, numbering about 200 thousand people, with 350 guns, and in April 1813 he invaded German territory. Bonaparte's new army had only 8 thousand cavalry; all the famous cavalry of Marshal Murat died in the Russian company of 1812 (at Borodino and when crossing the Berezina River). The Russian-Prussian army in early April 1813 concentrated south of Leipzig, trying to get closer to the Austrian border, because. There were constantly secret negotiations with Austria with the aim of joining it to the anti-Napoleonic coalition. Not knowing about the concentration of Allied troops near Leipzig, Napoleon sent his troops to it in echelon. Count Wittgenstein, with 94 thousand and 650 guns, tried to launch a flank attack on the dispersed parts of the French and attacked Napoleon on April 20 (May 1), 1813 at Lucin.
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But this attack was repulsed by the French army, and the allied troops retreated across the river. Elba. Of the 72 thousand allies, the losses amounted to 12 thousand people, and of the 100 thousand French - 15 thousand. The lack of cavalry deprived Napoleon of the opportunity to build on his success and carry out strategic reconnaissance on the flanks. Despite Count Wittgenstein's attempts to attack Napoleon from the flanks, the Allies were soon forced to abandon Dresden and all of Saxony.
On May 8 (20) and 9 (21), 1813, near the city of Bautzen, the allied Russian-Prussian army was again defeated and retreated to upper Selesia. Under Bautzen, the balance of forces was as follows: the allied Russian-Prussian army numbered 96 thousand soldiers and 610 guns, the French had 165 thousand with 250 guns, i.e. The French had an almost twofold superiority in manpower, while the allied army had a twofold superiority in artillery. On May 8 (20), 1813, Napoleon attacked the units of General Miloradovich and threw him back to the main positions of the Allied army. After this, General M.B. Barclay de Tolly advised not to accept the battle and retreat, but Alexander I supported the arguments of the Prussian generals and insisted on a battle. On May 9 (21), a 100 thousand army led by Napoleon attacked the allied army in the front (frontal attack), and Ney's 60 thousand corps bypassed the right flank and created a threat to the rear of the entire allied army. Napoleon carried out a diversionary maneuver on the left flank, forcing reserve units to be transferred there. Count Wittgenstein warned of a possible attack on the right flank, but Alexander I ignored his warning. The situation was saved by the fact that Marshal Ney never completed his task and was carried away by private, rearguard battles and thereby saved the Allied army from complete disaster. The losses of the allied army were: 12 thousand killed and wounded, the French lost 18 thousand soldiers and officers.
On May 23 (June 4), 1813, a 1.5-month truce was concluded between the Russian-Prussian alliance and Napoleon, which was later extended until July 29 (August 9), 1813. On July 30 (August 10), 1813, after the end of the truce, the Austrian Empire announced a break with France, joining the anti-Napoleonic coalition and thereby declared war on Napoleonic France.
By the end of the Armistice VI, the coalition numbered up to 0.5 million people, and consisted of three armies: the Bohemian, the Austrian Field Marshal Schwarzenberg, located near the city of Bautzen - 237 thousand (77 thousand Russians, 50 thousand Prussians, 110 thousand Austrians) , the Silesian General Blücher at Schweidnitz - 98 thousand (61 thousand Russians and 37 thousand Prussians), and the northern army of the former Napoleonic Marshal Bernadotte (then already known as Crown Prince Karl Johan of Sweden) at Berdin - 127 thousand (30 thousand. Russians, 73 thousand Prussians and 24 thousand Swedes). Formally, the commanders-in-chief were the monarchs of Russia, Prussia and Austria, but de facto the commander-in-chief of the allied army was the Austrian Field Marshal Schwarzenberg...
Carl Philipp Schwarzenberg
Thus, all Russian units were subordinate to foreign commanders. To defeat Napoleon, the Allies adopted the so-called. The “Trachtenberg Plan”, according to which the main thing was not a battle, but a maneuver... The Allied army, which Napoleon attacked, would have to retreat, and the other two would have to carry out flank attacks on the extended communications of the French.
By this time, Napoleon had concentrated up to 40 thousand active forces in Germany, and another 170 thousand were in the garrisons of Hamburg, Dresden, Danzig and Torgau. Thus. Napoleon's active army was little more than 100 thousand. Napoleon saw his main task as entering Berlin and the surrender of Prussia, for which purpose the 70 thousand corps of Marshal Oudinot was sent to the Berlin direction, and the units of Marshal Davout and Girard (about 50 thousand) were supposed to block the retreat of Bernadotte’s northern army. Ney's corps acted against Blucher's army, and General Saint-Cyr's corps acted against Schwarzenberg's army. Napoleon himself led the reserve army, which should immediately approach the French corps against which the main blow would be delivered. On August 11 (22), Marshal Oudinot's army collided with Bernadotte's army at Grosberen and was defeated, i.e. the attack on Berlin failed...
Soon the next battle of Dresden took place on August 14-15 (26-27), 1813, at first on August 13 (25) Schwarzenberg had a two-fold superiority (87 against 40 thousand Frenchmen of Saint-Cyr), who could not decide to fight the French, and when on August 14 (26) the allied army increased to 130 thousand, the French reserve army led by Napoleon approached Dresden. Based on this, Emperor Alexander I ordered a retreat, but the order did not reach the army of Count Wittgenstein in time, who launched an attack on the outskirts of Dresden and suffered significant losses. On August 15 (27), Napoleon dealt a crushing blow to the allies, sending his units against the Austrians on the left flank. The battle was accompanied by heavy rain, and the battle was fought with cold steel. The French lost 12 thousand soldiers, the Allies 16 thousand and 50 guns. After the defeat at Dresden, Schwarzenberg's army began to retreat to Bohemia, his task was to cover the direction to Vienna and prevent the French army from entering the capital of the Austrian Empire.
In order to cut off the allies’ retreat route through the mountain valleys (the Ore Mountains region), Napoleon, on August 14 (26), 1813, sent General Vandam’s 1st Army Corps in a roundabout maneuver from the left to the city of Teplitz (Bohemia), which was to be supported by the corps of Marshals Saint-Marshals. Sira and Marmona (but Vandam never received support). If Vandam successfully completed his task, an extremely dangerous and even critical situation would have developed for the allies, both militarily and politically. In the military because if Vandam's corps reached Teplitz, it blocked the narrow path through the Ore Mountains, and then the Bohemian army (which included the Russian Emperor and the King of Prussia) was threatened with encirclement and complete defeat. Politically, there was a real threat of the collapse of the allied coalition. Already after the defeat at Dresden, Austria was inclined to withdraw from the VI anti-French coalition, and its Chancellor Mitterrich was already planning to send his representatives to negotiate with the French...
The path of the 35 thousand French corps of Vandam near the city of Kulm (Bohemia) was blocked by a detachment of the Russian Guard of Count Osterman-Tolstoy, which included the 1st Guards Infantry Division of General A.P. Ermolov and the remnants of the 2nd Army Corps of Prince Eugene of Württemberg - a total of 10-12 thousand soldiers of the Russian Guard.
On the first day of the battle, August 17 (29), 1813, the French units, having almost three times superiority, constantly attacked, but all their efforts were defeated by the steadfastness of the Russian guard. The Life Guards Semenovsky Regiment stubbornly defended itself, but lost almost 1,000 people (out of 1,600 initially). His second battalion lost all its officers. The lifeguards also distinguished themselves. The commander of the Russian corps, Count Osterman-Tolstoy, was out of action; his left arm was torn off by a cannonball. General A.P. took command of the Russian units. Ermolov. At 17.00 hours the French managed to achieve success in the center of the position. In A. Ermolov’s reserve there were only two companies of Preobrazhentsy and Semyonovtsy left, and when it seemed that the French would be able to win, reinforcements arrived - dragoon and uhlan regiments, under the command of General I.I. Dibich, they entered the battle from the march... Next came the heavy cavalry - the 1st and 2nd cuirassiers, the 1st Grenadier and 2nd Guards divisions. The Russian units lost about 6 thousand people that day, but the combat mission was completed - the movement of the allied army through the Ore Mountains was ensured.
On August 18 (30), the battle of Kulm continued. Now the Allies had numerical superiority and attacked the French units from three sides. As a result of this attack, Vandam's corps was almost completely destroyed, General Vandam himself with four generals surrendered, and the other two generals of his corps remained in the fields near Kulm. More than 12 thousand French soldiers and officers were captured. Also captured were 84 guns, two imperial eagles, five banners, and the entire French baggage train. As noted by the Russian military historian in exile A.A. Kersnovsky: “The Kulm victory shines with glory on the banners of our guard - it was the favorite victory of Emperor Alexander Pavlovich.” In honor of the victory at Klm, the King of Prussia, Frederick William III, established the “sign of the Iron Cross,” which in Russia became known as the Kulm Cross.
After the victory at Kulm, the allied army moved to Bohemia to replenish reserves. After the end of the war with Napoleon, all regiments of the Russian Guard were given St. George's banners with the inscription embroidered on them: “For their heroic deeds in the battle of Kulm on August 17, 1813.”
On the eve of the Battle of Kulm, on August 14 (26), the Franco-Prussian battle of Katzbach took place, as a result of which Blucher’s army completely defeated Macdonald’s corps (the balance of forces was as follows: 75 thousand allies against 65 thousand French and 200 guns on each side) . Napoleon's army moved to help MacDonald, but Blucher avoided battle even then.
On August 24 (September 5), Marshal Ney’s army launched a new attack on Berlin, but was defeated in the Battle of Dennewitz and retreated. After the defeat of Ney's army, the position of the French army in Germany became critical. The victories of the Bohemian army at Kulm, the Silesian at Katzbach, the northern at Grosberen and Dennewitz undermined the faith of the French army in victory, and Napoleon’s losses amounted to 80 thousand soldiers and 300 guns... In September, the army of the VI coalition received reinforcements in the form of a 60 thousand army (formed in Poland) Count Bennigsen.
In mid-September, the offensive of the Allied armies began, which was divided into two groups: the 1st Northern and Selesian armies led by Blücher and Bernadotte, the 2nd Bohemian and Polish under the command of Schwarzenberg. Napoleon tried to break through to Berlin again, but soon learned of an uprising in the Kingdom of Bavaria, which threatened to block the route of retreat, and turned to Leipzig. Soon the main forces of Napoleon and the allies gathered near Leipzig, and from October 4 (16) to October 7 (19), 1813, the “Battle of the Nations” took place at Leipzig.
The balance of forces according to A. Kersnovsky in his “History of the Russian Army” is given as follows: 316 thousand and 1335 guns for the forces of the anti-Napoleonic coalition and 190 thousand and 700 guns for Napoleon. The front of the Battle of Leipzig stretched over 16 kilometers. Despite the rather mediocre command of Schwarzenberg, the allies managed to break Napoleon’s resistance during two days of fighting, but in the heat of battle Alexander I was almost captured; he owed his salvation to the attack of the Life Cossacks of Orlov-Denisov and His Majesty’s Own Convoy. After a bloody battle on October 7 (19), Schwarzenberg was unable to cut off the retreat routes for the French units, but despite this, Leipzig was taken by Allied troops. The French lost 40 thousand (1/5 of their army), 20 thousand prisoners (10%), and more than 300 guns (40% of artillery). The Allies at Leipzig lost 45 thousand (15%), with half of the losses falling on the Russian contingent - 22 thousand, the Prussians lost 14 thousand and the Austrians lost 9 thousand. Napoleon was able to withdraw only 60 thousand soldiers from his 190 thousand army across the Rhine. But even these forces were enough for him to defeat the army of the Bavarian King at Hanau, which blocked his route of retreat to France. At the same time, Russian units led by Prince Alexander of Württemberg occupied Danzig, thereby ending the 1813 campaign with the liberation of the Kingdom of Prussia.
The campaign of 1813 had the character of a war of mass armies and armed peoples, at the same time, the very attitude of the opponents to each other had the character of the traditions of chivalry, and there could be no talk of concentration camps for prisoners of war! Even the attitude towards prisoners was emphatically polite and respectful, as on the part of the Napoleonic army, but especially on the part of the Russian soldiers. It must be admitted that the entire campaign of 1813 was entirely the merit of the Russian army; it showed miracles of valor and fortitude, just as Emperor Alexander I showed enviable tenacity in the fight against Napoleon, and did not make any concessions or negotiations with Bonaparte.
Causes and nature of the war
Causes: Napoleon's desire for world domination
Occasion: Russia's non-compliance with the continental blockade of England
Character: aggressive (France), liberating (Russia)
Balance of forces and plans of the parties
| France | Russia |
| » 640 thousand people ("Great Army") | » 590 thousand people |
| Well-trained, trained soldiers, battle-hardened army | Large human resources, food and fodder reserves |
| The army is concentrated on Russia's western borders in the Poland region; military warehouses were created in Warsaw and other Polish cities | The army is stretched along the western borders, divided into 3 parts (Barclay, Bagration, Tormasov - north-centre-south). |
| Multinational army Þ reluctance of many to fight against Russia; moral disunity | Patriotic inspiration of all segments of the population; a common desire to fight for the Fatherland. |
| Counteroffensive | Active defense |
| Napoleon: Target: the seizure of territories up to Moscow and the conclusion of a new peace treaty subjugating Russia to France. Plan: destroy both armies at once. Decide the outcome of the war in several major border battles. | Alexander I: Target: prevent the enemy from taking over the country; if successful, fight in Western Europe. Plan: repel the main blow - on the army of Barclay de Tolly. At this time, Bagration's army strikes from the left and rear of the French and destroys them. |
1810– military warehouses and stores in Poland.
In the western provinces - an increase in the contingent of troops.
The beginning of Napoleon's invasion of Russia
June 11-12, 1812- Napoleon's invasion of Russia. Crossed the Neman. Poland = bridgehead.
Barclay de Tolly and Bagration retreat, avoiding a general battle.
Stubborn rearguard battles with the French "attrition".
Russians: divided, no single commander, no connection between Barclay and Bagration. WE NEED TO CONNECT!!!
August 1812- association near Smolensk.
Smolensk: 2-day siege; Raevsky, Neverovsky vs the French.
Suvorov's best student. Napoleon's main opponent.
August 18, 1812- arrives at the Headquarters of the Russian troops (Tsarevo-Zaimishche). Solution: look for a convenient position on the road to Moscow for a general battle. Found! Borodino.
B Borodino F
Preparing for battle
Advantages of Borodino:
· the ability to block the old and new Smolensk roads at the same time
· large area for troop deployment
· Koloch River - a defensive line for the Russian right flank
Left flank and the center is not protected Þ built Shevardinsky redoubt
Behind the Shevardinsky redoubt - Bagration's flushes
Center– earthen rampart and artillery – Raevsky battery
Right flank– 1st Army of Barclay de Tolly, reserve.
Kutuzov's goal:
defense on the flanks, encircle, destroy.
Balance of forces for the Battle of Borodino
1st attack - Shevardinsky redoubt; During the attack, defensive structures are strengthened. Captured after a day of attacks.
Progress of the battle
2nd attack – Bagration’s flushes. After 7 hours of fighting and 7 attacks taken; but the left flank has not been broken through.
The main attack was on Raevsky’s battery.
To distract the French, Platov’s Cossacks and Ushakov’s cavalry corps hit the French in the rear. The attack was interrupted for 2 hours.
Raevsky's battery was taken only at 16:00.
Napoleon does NOT use reserves. "The Old Guard".
Results of the battle
12 hours of battle. The main Russian positions have been taken, but there is no final victory. Napoleon's goal was not fulfilled, but Kutuzov's goal was fulfilled. Þ won Russian army. The combat potential of the French has been destroyed and it is very difficult to restore it. The Russian combat potential has been preserved.
“The French showed themselves worthy of victory, and the Russians acquired the right to be invincible”
Abandonment and fire of Moscow
After Borodino, the Russians retreat to Moscow.
Kutuzov: “With the loss of Moscow, Russia is not lost... But when the army is destroyed, Moscow and Russia will perish”
Causes of the fire: several.
a) “drunken fire” - the French got drunk in wine cellars and failed to keep track of the fire
b) the order to set fire was given by the governor of Moscow
c) dry weather + wind = spread of fire
The French = marauders + robbers. Demoralized.
The peasants do not want to supply the French with food.
Napoleon has two options: peace or retreat.
The world is rejected. (AI simply did not answer).
Tarutino march maneuver
The Russian army retreats along the Ryazan road, in the Krasnaya Pakhra area it turns sharply to the south and moves along the old Kaluga road.
What did Kutuzov achieve?
a) Tula and Kaluga protected (ammunition and food)
b) Napoleon "lost" the Russian army
c) For 3 weeks the troops rest, are replenished with ammunition and food, by militias in the village of Tarutino, Kaluga Region (Tarutino camp).
Monument: “In this place, the Russian army, having strengthened itself, saved Russia and Europe.”
October 12, 1812– Battle of Maloyaroslavets. Rested Russian troops and tired and hungry French. Nobody won.
BUT Napoleon is forced to retreat along the plundered land Smolensk road.
On one side the regular troops are fighting, on the other - the partisans.
Guerrilla detachments G.M. Kurin, V. Kozhina, E.V. Chetvertakova.
“Flying detachments” are partisan units of the regular army.
Denis Davydov – hussar, poet, head of the “flying squad”. Natalya Durova.
December 21, 1812- order of M.I. Kutuzov on the army about the expulsion of the French from Russia
Russians: by the end of the exile - ½ of those who stood at Tarutin.
French people: Out of 678 thousand people. 30 thousand people returned.
Foreign campaign of the Russian army 1813-1814.
Russia ® Prussia ® Germany ® France
· ensuring your own safety
movement for the liberation of European peoples from the French
January 1813- death of Kutuzov. Wilgenstein - commander-in-chief.
February 1813- treaty of alliance between Russia and Prussia
The French lost, but Napoleon managed to escape due to inconsistency in the actions of the allies.
All German states are liberated.
Target: solve the post-war structure of Europe
July 1815– Battle of Waterloo
Napoleon: Paris ® o. Elba ® 100 days ® o. St. Helena
The result of the VC: the old ruling dynasties were restored, territorial disputes were resolved, and new borders were approved.
By decision of Russia, Poland withdraws (“ Kingdom of Poland»).
September 1815– Holy Alliance
(Alexander I, Frederick Welhelm III (Prussia), Franz (Austria))
Target: fight revolutionary movements.
But this contradicted the progressive bourgeois development of most European states.
Russian army in Europe, 1813-1814.
After the expulsion of Napoleon's army from Russia, Russian troops continued their victorious campaign in Germany. Emperor Alexander I, covered in glory, saw himself as the liberator of Europe from the Napoleonic yoke. His intention found wide support at the courts of European monarchs. Alexander was compared to the legendary Agamemnon - the “king of kings”, the leader of all Greek states in the Trojan War.
While the main Russian forces wintered around Vilno, military operations continued in Lithuania. Prussian troops, under the command of Napoleonic Marshal MacDonald, concluded a truce with the Russians. This circumstance contributed to the occupation of Königsberg by the troops of General Wittgenstein at the end of December 1813 (beginning of January 1814 according to the new style).
After a short rest, the Main Army under the command of Field Marshal Kutuzov crossed the Neman River and invaded Polish territory. On January 27 (February 8), the Russians entered Warsaw without a fight. The Austrian corps of Schwarzenberg, formally bound by an alliance with Napoleon, went to Krakow and did not interfere with the Russians. Napoleonic Europe was bursting at the seams, while the French Emperor, who hastily returned to Paris, was gathering a new army.
Prussia was the first to join the sixth coalition against France, concluding an alliance treaty with Russia in March 1813. In Napoleon's absence, the mission of holding back the Allies on the Elbe fell to his stepson Eugene Beauharnais. In mid-April, the emperor himself headed for Germany with hastily recruited troops, which largely consisted of untrained conscripts. He intended, relying on numerous fortresses occupied by French garrisons, to push the Russians back to the borders and defeat the Prussians before other states joined the coalition.
The first major battle of the 1813 campaign took place at Lützen on May 2 (all dates are given in the new style). After Kutuzov's death at the end of April, command passed to General Wittgenstein. He decided to strike at Napoleon's army, which was stretched out on the march. However, the French counter-offensive led to a heavy defeat for the Allies. Their retreat allowed Napoleon to reoccupy Saxony. The Allies gained a foothold at Bautzen, where the numerically superior French attacked the position on 20 and 21 May. The battle ended in defeat for the Russians and Prussians, who retreated again. As after Lützen, the lack of cavalry prevented Napoleon from organizing the pursuit and defeating the enemy.
On June 4, the Pleiswitz Truce was concluded. Its effect actually lasted until mid-August. Napoleon received the necessary respite to recruit an army and transfer units from Spain. However, the allies also did not waste time. The Sixth Coalition was significantly strengthened by Sweden, whose crown prince was the former Napoleonic Marshal Bernadotte. Then Austria entered the war, providing the Allies with a significant numerical superiority. For Napoleon this was a heavy blow, since until the last he hoped for the loyalty of the Austrian emperor, his father-in-law.
The new Allied plan (Trachenberg), developed during the armistice, divided their forces into three large armies: the Bohemian under the command of the Austrian field marshal Schwarzenberg, the Silesian under the command of the Prussian military leader Blücher. The Northern Army was commanded by Bernadotte. Each of these armies had Russian contingents. The armies had to act together. One of the features of the plan was that the allies decided, if possible, not to give battle to Napoleon himself, but to attack individual corps of his marshals.
Napoleon was in Dresden, the capital of Saxony, which was still friendly to him, until mid-August. Hostilities resumed as the Allies marched on Dresden. In the general battle on August 26 and 27, Napoleon again won a brilliant victory. However, its results were zero due to a series of defeats of individual units of Napoleonic army. Marshal Oudinot, advancing on Berlin, was defeated on August 23 at Grossbeeren. His replacement, Marshal Ney, was defeated at Dennewitz on September 6. On August 26, Blucher defeated MacDonald at the Katzbach River. On August 30, in the bloody battle of Kulm, General Vandamme, a potential candidate for the marshal's baton, was surrounded and captured.
The fate of the war in Germany was decided in the “Battle of the Nations” at Leipzig on October 16-19. A huge superiority in forces brought victory to the allies this time. During his retreat to the borders of France with the remnants of his army, Napoleon was able to defeat the Bavarians, who had just joined the coalition, at Hanau.
Apart from a few besieged fortresses that still held out in Germany, the war moved into French territory. The Confederation of the Rhine, created by Napoleon in 1806, collapsed. From now on he had to rely only on his own strength. On New Year's Eve, Blucher's army crossed the Rhine. Other troops advanced through Switzerland. Alexander sought to enter Paris as quickly as possible, but it took three months of endless fighting to achieve this goal. The 1814 campaign is recognized by military historians as Napoleon's masterpiece. Possessing only a small army, the emperor managed to win a series of victories: Montmirail, Champaubert, Vauchamp, Montero, Craonn, Reims... Nevertheless, the allies did their best to slow down peace negotiations. Military operations were also carried out in other directions: in Italy, in the Alps, in southwestern France. The last battle for Russian troops in the main direction was the battle for Paris on March 30. The next day the capital capitulated and Allied troops entered the city. The Parisians looked with particular curiosity at the Cossacks, who seemed to them to be complete savages.
The entry into Paris marked the end of the Russian army's foreign campaigns. Napoleon abdicated the throne and was exiled to the island of Elba. In 1815 he regained the throne, but suffered a final defeat at Waterloo on 18 June. Russian troops did not participate in this battle, although they were already on the march towards Belgium, where the last act of the Napoleonic wars took place.
In the order for the army, he congratulated the troops on expelling the enemy from Russia and called on them to “complete the defeat of the enemy on his own fields.”
Russia's goal was to expel French troops from the countries they had captured, deprive Napoleon of the opportunity to use their resources, complete the defeat of the aggressor on his own territory and ensure the establishment of lasting peace in Europe. On the other hand, the tsarist government aimed to restore feudal-absolutist regimes in European states. After his defeat in Russia, Napoleon sought to gain time and again create a mass army.
The strategic plan of the Russian command was built with the expectation of withdrawing Prussia and Austria from the war on Napoleon’s side as quickly as possible and making them allies of Russia.
Offensive actions in 1813 were distinguished by their large spatial scope and high intensity. They deployed at the front from the shores of the Baltic Sea to Brest-Litovsk, and were carried out to great depths - from the Neman to the Rhine. The 1813 campaign ended with the defeat of Napoleonic troops in the Battle of Leipzig on October 4-7 (16-19), 1813 (“Battle of the Nations”). Over 500 thousand people took part in the battle on both sides: the allies - over 300 thousand people (including 127 thousand Russians), 1385 guns; Napoleonic troops - about 200 thousand people, 700 guns. Its most important results were the formation of a powerful anti-French coalition and the collapse of the Confederation of the Rhine (36 German states under Napoleon's protectorate), the defeat of the army newly formed by Napoleon and the liberation of Germany and Holland.
By the beginning of the 1814 campaign, the Allied forces deployed on the Rhine numbered about 460 thousand people, including over 157 thousand Russians. In December 1813 - early January 1814, all three allied armies crossed the Rhine and began an offensive deep into France.
In order to strengthen the coalition, on February 26 (March 10), 1814, the Treaty of Chaumont was signed between Great Britain, Russia, Austria and Prussia, according to which the parties pledged not to enter into separate peace negotiations with France, to provide mutual military assistance and to jointly resolve issues about the future of Europe . This agreement laid the foundations of the Holy Alliance.
The 1814 campaign ended with the capitulation of Paris on March 18 (30). On March 25 (April 6) in Fontainebleau, Napoleon signed the abdication of the throne, then was exiled to the island of Elba.
The wars of the coalitions of European powers with Napoleon I ended with the Congress of Vienna (September 1814 - June 1815), in which representatives of all European powers took part, except Turkey.
Foreign campaigns of the Russian army in 1813–1814. Help http://ria.ru/history_spravki/20100105/203020298.html
NAPOLEON'S ARMY AFTER 1812
The French emperor […], returning to Paris, found 140,000 recruits there according to the recruitment of 1813, which he had announced during the campaign against Moscow. They were mustered out in October, trained for a quarter of the year, and were generally fit for military service. The same could be said about 100,000 people. the National Guard, which had been under arms since the spring of 1812. True, the National Guard was not legally required to march beyond the French borders. But one word from Napoleon was enough for the obsequious Senate to circumvent the prohibition of the law. In addition to everything, the mobilization of 100,000 people was announced. older age, four conscriptions in recent years and 150,000 people. conscription of 1814, which were intended, however, only to replenish spare parts, and not for field war.
The terrible disaster of the Russian campaign did not remain without a trace; Some mute resistance was already noticeable in the country; It happened that recruits were brought to the regiments in chains. But in general, the mighty military machine obeyed the still brilliant hand of its leader. Under the guise of voluntary supplies, the French cities offered the emperor to take part of the weapons at their own expense, namely, to give him horses and restore the almost completely destroyed cavalry. As a completely “free gift from the heart,” Paris fielded 500 horsemen, Lyon - 120, Strasbourg - 100, Bordeaux - 80, etc.; Some cities and towns fielded two or even one horseman. But their donations, as well as their good wishes, were of little use. In most cases, horses and riders could not be delivered “in kind”, but were placed on the altar of the fatherland in specie, at a rate established by the government. This was, in any case, a modest financial source compared to the 370,000,000 francs that Napoleon received by selling the lands taken from the communities; in exchange for these lands, he gave their previous owners a 5 percent state rent.
Napoleon, busy with his energetic armaments, carried away by his undaunted energy, colossal organizational talent and finding more and more new sources with his insightful mind, did not want to hear anything about Prussian mediation. He knew that until he had dealt a crushing blow to his enemies, he would have no honorable peace either in his own eyes or in the eyes of the nation; making efforts to keep his German vassals in the Rhine League, and conducting serious negotiations with Austria to strengthen the alliance with it, he retained his previous attitude towards Prussia, half incredulous, half contemptuous. Accepting the declaration of war from Prussia, he coldly shrugged his shoulders: “It is better to have an open enemy than an unreliable friend,” and sent through his Foreign Minister a mocking reply, where he pointed out poisonously, but quite rightly, that it was the sacred heritage whose return the Prussian king demanded , was created through constant betrayal of the emperor and the empire.
Already on April 15, Napoleon left Saint-Cloud and headed to Mainz, where he stayed for about a week. He reviewed here 130,000 soldiers, with whom he intended to advance at the end of April into the Saxon Plain in order to unite there with the Italian viceroy, his stepson Eugene Beauharnais, who was supposed to come to meet him from the Elbe, having with him 40,000- 50,000 people These were the remnants of the “great” army, which was meanwhile restored and replenished, but nevertheless pushed back by Russian and Prussian troops to the Elbe; If we add to this some detachments that began to form in Wesel and Wittenberg, then all the active forces with which Napoleon could begin the campaign numbered, in general, more than 200,000 people. To this we must add another 60,000 people who were in the fortresses on the Vistula and Oder, of which Thorn and Czestochowa were the first to fall.
Mering F. History of wars and military art. St. Petersburg, 2000 http://militera.lib.ru/h/mehring_f/07.html
BUNZLAU AND LUTZEN
The Russian troops, non-stop pursuing the enemy over such a great space from Moscow, having spent a fierce winter in bivouacs, had a great loss of men from frequent battles and campaigns, and were far removed from reserves. So, our army was barely sixty thousand, and the Prussians were about thirty-five thousand. In addition, during their campaign, the Russians left the hero, Field Marshal and Commander-in-Chief, Prince Kutuzov, who had turned gray in battle; he retired from earthly labors in Schlese Prussia, in the city of Bunzlau, leaving an unforgettable memory of his services for Russia. He bequeathed and further advised Prussia to stop with its troops, but to wait for its reserves and increase them significantly. And it seems that, having stopped at the borders of Saxony and dug in fortifications with Prussian troops, the army would have had good rest and calm staffing, and perhaps political relations with Austria would have been more successful. But they decided to attack the French, and from the very sparse army they separated a detachment of fifteen thousand under the command of General Miloradovich to go to the enemy’s rear and attack him as he retreated, for they probably intended to defeat him.
So Emperor Alexander, with Russian-Prussian troops approaching the city of Lutzen, attacked the French; the enemy was twice as strong and had a great and skilled commander in Napoleon; he saw from the smoke and shots the powerlessness and small numbers of the opposing side, but carefully concealed his victory and the superiority of the battle, everything was in a defensive position. But from midday, having brought out significantly strong masses of troops from behind the hills, he quickly attacked the right flank and, having defeated it, in a short time began to pursue it. The left flank, seeing it already somewhat almost cut off, struck at it, which, already in disarray, also began to retreat. A piece of Russian fresh troops, which was in the rear of the enemy under the command of General Miloradovich, barely managed to take the place of the rearguard and, due to the rapid retreat to the right of the Prussian rearguard located, could not withstand the enemy’s pressure for long and was in great danger of being completely cut off and exterminated. The artillery was trotting for five miles and then it was still running towards the French flankers, but not far away they noticed our grenadier corps on the hills; So, stopping and hiding behind a former town here, they held back the enemy growing from the forest, and the entire rearguard infantry approached, and thus ended the Battle of Lutzen, which was very unsuccessful, costing over 8 thousand Russians alone in killed and wounded.
Meshetich G.P. Historical notes on the war between the Russians and the French and the twenty tribes of 1812, 1813, 1814 and 1815 http://militera.lib.ru/h/meshetich/01.html
POST-WAR ORDER OF THE EUROPEAN WORLD
In 1814, a congress was convened in Vienna to resolve the issue of the post-war structure of Europe. Representatives of 216 European states gathered in the Austrian capital, but Russia, England and Austria played the main role. The Russian delegation was headed by Alexander I.
The victory of the peoples of Europe over the tyranny of Napoleon was used by European rulers to restore the former monarchies. But serfdom, swept away in a number of countries during the Napoleonic wars, proved impossible to restore.
According to the Vienna agreements, a significant part of Poland, along with Warsaw, became part of Russia. Alexander I provided Poland with a constitution and convened a Sejm.
In 1815, when the congress ended, the Russian, Prussian and Austrian monarchs signed the Treaty of the Holy Alliance. They took upon themselves to ensure the inviolability of the decisions of Congress. Subsequently, most European monarchs joined the union. In 1818-1822 Congresses of the Holy Alliance were regularly convened. England did not join the union, but actively supported it.
The post-Napoleonic world order, implemented on a conservative basis, turned out to be fragile. Some of the restored feudal-aristocratic regimes soon began to come apart at the seams. The Holy Alliance was active only for the first 8-10 years, and then actually disintegrated. Nevertheless, the Congress of Vienna and the Holy Alliance cannot be assessed only negatively. They also had a positive impact, ensuring for several years universal peace in Europe, exhausted by the nightmare of continuous wars.
After the Napoleonic invasion, a long-term estrangement arose between Russia and France. Only towards the end of the 19th century. relations warmed up, and then rapprochement began. In 1912, the centenary of the Patriotic War was widely celebrated in Russia. On August 26, a parade took place on Borodino Field. Wreaths were laid at the monument on the Raevsky battery, at the grave of Bagration. Near the village of Gorki, where the command post of the Russian troops was located, a monument to Kutuzov was unveiled. A French military delegation took part in the celebrations. On a hill near the village of Shevardina, from where Napoleon led the battle, an obelisk was erected in memory of the French soldiers and officers who fell on the fields of Russia.