Barclay, whose great military virtue was perfect self-possession in the face of danger, ordered Prince Eugen, with as much of his division as remained with him, to take up a position at the hamlet of Gedeonovo, bidding him recollect that the fate of the army might depend upon his firmness. Ney’s advance-guard was soon in contact with Eugen, who held his ground obstinately, in order to give Korff time to file past. After a good deal of fighting Eugen was forced back, but by that time Korff had got his 14 battalions on to the Gorbunovo-Lubino track. Eugen then fell back to another position towards Gorbunovo, and Ney was preparing to follow, when orders arrived directing him to incline to his right to the Moscow road. This appears to have been about 11 a.m. Early on the 19th Napoleon sent Eblé to Prudichevo to bridge the Dnieper, and ordered Junot’s corps to cross the river there, a movement which would bring him to Lubino. Grouchy was sent along the St. Petersburg road, Montbrun along that to Moscow, while Bruyère’s division of Nansouty’s corps was ordered to support Ney. Evidently Napoleon had no certainty as to the precise direction of Barclay’s retreat, and so far the Russian general’s delay on the 18th had justified itself. About 11 a.m. Davout’s corps began to cross the bridge. The Guard, now rejoined by Claparède, was in Smolensk. Eugène and Poniatowski were in the ruins of the suburbs. The Emperor apparently spent the morning in his cabinet, but in the afternoon mounted and proceeded to the high ground east of the city, opposite Sheïn Ostrog. General Tuchkov III in his march had to contend with the same difficulties and obstacles which impeded the main column, so that he did not reach the Moscow road, some 4 miles west of Lubino, until 8 a.m. Toll accompanied him, and they went forward to confer with Karpov. It soon became evident that a force of cavalry, presumably the advance-guard of Napoleon’s main body, was moving eastward from Smolensk, and also that a strong column was passing the Dnieper at Prudichevo. Tuchkov pushed Karpov out to observe Junot, and with his own column took up a position across the road, where it passed over a low swell, with his flanks covered by some small woods and his twelve guns on the crest of the rise, and awaited events. Soon after 10 o’clock skirmishing began on the high-road, probably with the advanced guard of Bruyère’s division, supported perhaps by some battalions of light infantry; but it cannot have been until about 1 p.m. that the head of Ney’s main column appeared, and the battle of Lubino definitely began.[2] By this time the 3rd Corps, which was at the head of Barclay’s column, had reached Lubino. As it tramped through, Tuchkov I detached Tornov’s brigade of Grenadiers to support his brother.