The army was divided into ten great corps. The first under Davout, the
second under Oudinot, the third under Ney; the fourth was an Army of
Observation, under Prince Eugène; the fifth consisted of Poles under
Prince Poniatovski; the sixth, in which the Bavarians were included,
under Saint-Cyr; the seventh, made up of the troops from Saxony, under
Reynier; the eighth, of Westphalians under Vandamme, to be succeeded
by Junot; the ninth was given to Victor, the tenth to Macdonald. An
eleventh Army Corps under Augereau was afterwards created, largely
augmented from the ninth. There were also the Austrians commanded by
Prince Schwarzenberg, the Imperial Guard, and four divisions of Cavalry
under Murat and Latour-Maubourg.
To oppose such a formidable host the Czar finally mustered some 400,000
troops. At the opening of the campaign he had considerably fewer men at
his disposal than Napoleon. They were divided into three main armies.
The first Army of the West, under Barclay de Tolly, numbered 136,000;
the second Army of the West, commanded by Prince Bagration, totalled
39,000; the third, or reserve, under General Tormassoff, reached some
40,000. Other troops, drawn from various places, swelled the initial
number to perhaps 250,000. As there is considerable discrepancy in
the figures given by the most reliable authorities probably the exact
military strength of the two nations will never be known.
CHAPTER XXVIII
The Russian Campaign
(1812)
Poland was the point of concentration, and thither the Grand Army
was marching. On the 11th June 1812, the Emperor arrived at Dantzig,
which had been turned into a vast military depôt, and on the following
morning proceeded to Königsberg, where further supplies were stored.
He spent the whole day and night dictating despatches. Having twice
communicated with the Czar to no effect, he was now irrevocably
committed to the campaign. At Vilkowyski Napoleon took the opportunity
to issue a bulletin to his troops couched in the old style which had
proved so effectual in former campaigns. It is as follows:
“Soldiers! The second Polish war is begun. The first terminated at
Friedland and at Tilsit. At Tilsit, Russia vowed an eternal alliance
with France, and war with England. She now breaks her vows, and refuses
to give any explanation of her strange conduct until the French eagles
have repassed the Rhine and left our allies at her mercy.
“Fate drags her on--let her destinies be fulfilled. Does she imagine
we are degenerated? Are we no longer the soldiers who fought at
Austerlitz? We are placed between dishonour and war; our choice cannot
be doubtful. Let us then march forward. Let us cross the Niemen, and
carry the war into her own territory. This second Polish war will be
as glorious for the French arms as the first; but the peace we shall
conclude will carry with it its own guarantee, and will terminate the
fatal influence which Russia, for fifty years past, has exercised in
the affairs of Europe.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account