At Donawerth Napoleon addressed his troops in a proclamation in which he

said: "Soldiers, the territory of the Confederation has been violated.

The Austrian general expects us to fly at the sight of his arms, and to

abandon our allies to him. I arrive with the rapidity of lightning.

Soldiers, I was surrounded by you when the sovereign of Austria came to

my camp in Moravia; you have heard him implore my clemency, and swear an

eternal friendship towards me. Victors, in three wars Austria has owed

everything to your generosity; three times has she perjured herself. Our

past successes are a safe guarantee of the victory which awaits us. Let

us march, and at our aspect may the enemy acknowledge his conqueror."

It should be remembered that at this time, while Napoleon was

astonishing Europe by the rapidity of his movements, and the display of

the resources of his military and political genius, he had left an army

in the Peninsula, distributed over an immense space of territory,

weakened by diseases, reduced by partial combats, and without receiving

reinforcements from the interior of the Empire. During the whole of the

German campaign of 1809, the French in Spain were merely able to

maintain themselves in the positions they had occupied soon after

Napoleon's departure.

Austria had reckoned on the absence of Napoleon and his Guard, and on

the veteran troops of Marengo and Austerlitz being far distant. She knew

that there did not remain more than 80,000 French scattered throughout

Germany, while her army divided into nine bodies, under the orders of

the Archduke Charles, had not less than 500,000 men.

The Archduke Louis was defeated and driven back at Abensberg on the

20th, and utterly routed at Landshut on the 21st, losing 9,000 men,

thirty guns and all his stores. Those unfortunate Austrians who had been

led from Vienna singing songs, under a persuasion that there was no

longer a French army in Germany, and that they should only have to deal

with Wurtemburgers and Bavarians, experienced the greatest terror when

they came to conflict and found themselves defeated. The Prince of

Lichtenstein and General Lusignan, were wounded, while the loss of the

Austrians in colonels, and officers, of lower rank was considerable.

In the battle of Abensberg which occurred on the 20th, Napoleon was

resolved to destroy the corps of the Archduke Louis, and of General

Keller, amounting to sixty thousand men. The enemy only stood his ground

for an hour and left eighteen thousand prisoners. The cannonade of the

French was successful at all points and the Austrians, disconcerted by

Napoleon's brilliant movements, beat a hasty retreat leaving eight

standards and twelve pieces of cannon. The French loss was very small.

Before this engagement Napoleon saw defile before him on the plateau in

front of Abensberg the Wurtemberg and Bavarian troops, allies of the

French, who were going to put themselves in line and whom the pride of

fighting under a general of his renown filled with enthusiasm. The

Emperor caused them to be drawn up and proceeded to harangue them, one

after the other, the officers translating his words to the troops. He

said that he was making them fight, not for himself, but for themselves;

against the ambition of the house of Austria, which was enraged at not

having them, as of yore, under its yoke; that this time he would soon

restore them peace, and forever, and with such an increase of power that

for the future they should be able to defend themselves against the

pretensions of their old dominators. His presence and words electrified

his German allies, who were flattered to see him amongst them, he

trusting entirely to their honor, for at that moment he had no other

escort than some detachments of Bavarian cavalry.

When Napoleon arrived that evening at Rotterburg he was intoxicated with

joy. The engagement, which was of short duration, had cost the Austrians

7,000 or 8,000 men, and he saw his adversary driven back on the Iser at

the very beginning of the campaign, and the Austrian soldiers

disheartened, like the Prussians after Jena.

The battle of Landshut completed the defeat of the preceding evening. On

this day General Mouton, at the head of a column of grenadiers rushed

through the flames that were consuming one of the bridges of the Iser;

"Forward, but reserve your fire!" he shouted to the soldiers in a voice

of thunder; and in a few moments he had penetrated into the town, which

then became the seat of a sanguinary struggle, and which the Austrians

were not long in abandoning.

Next day Napoleon executed a variety of manoeuvres, considered as

amongst the most admirable of his science, by means of which he brought

his whole force, by different routes, at one and the same moment upon

the position of the Archduke Charles, who was strongly posted at Eckmuhl

with 100,000 men. On both sides all was ready for a decisive action.

Until 8 o'clock a thick fog enveloped that rural scene which was soon to

be drenched with the blood of thousands of men. As soon as it cleared

away both sides prepared for action. Not a musket or a cannon shot was

fired before noon, however.

There was no need of a signal for battle as the terrible contest began

on both sides simultaneously about 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Napoleon

commanding and leading the charge, and accompanied by Lannes and

Massena. One of the most beautiful sights war could produce now

presented itself; one hundred and ten thousand men were attacked on all

points, turned to their left, and successively driven from all their

positions, although not a half of the French troops were engaged. The

battle was stern and lasted until twilight, ending with the utter defeat

of the Archduke's army, and leaving Napoleon with 20,000 prisoners,

fifteen imperial standards and a vast number of cannon in his hands,

while the defeated and routed enemy fled back in confusion on the city

of Ratisbon. The Austrian cavalry, strong and numerous, attempted to

cover the retreat of the infantry, but was attacked by the French both

on the right and left. The Archduke Charles was only indebted for his

safety to the fleetness of his horse, when darkness at length compelled

the victors to halt.

While the French were galloping along the road in pursuit of the

Austrians, finding the plain to which they had retreated swampy, they

endeavored to regain the road, and thus became mingled with the mass of

victorious cavalry. A multitude of single combats then took place by the

uncertain light of the moon, and nothing was heard but the clashing of

sabres on their cuirasses, the shouts of the commandants, and the heavy

tramp of horses. The French cuirassiers, wearing double cuirasses, which

covered them all round, could more easily defend themselves than the

Austrians, who, having only breastplates, fell in great numbers,

mortally wounded by the thrusts dealt them from behind. Night put an end

to a contest where there were scenes of carnage that had not been

equalled in years.

At the battle of Abensberg the Emperor beat separately the two corps of

the Archduke Louis and General Keller; at the battle of Landshut he took

the centre of their communications and the general depot of their

magazines and artillery; and, finally, at the battle of Eckmuhl, the

corps of Hohenzollern, Rosenberg, and Lichtenstein, were defeated.

The Austrians, astonished by rapid movements beyond their calculation,

were soon deprived of their sanguine hopes, and precipitated from a

delirium of presumption to a despondency bordering on despair. Two days

later the Archduke made an attempt to rally his troops, and not only to

hold Ratisbon, but to meet Napoleon. He was obliged to give up the place

at the storming of the walls by the French, who drove the Austrians

through the streets. All who resisted were slain. The enemy's commander

fled precipitately into Bohemia, abandoning once more the capital of

the Austrian Empire to the mercy of the Conqueror.

Napoleon was wounded in the foot during the storming of Ratisbon. He had

approached the town amidst a fire of sharpshooters kept up by the

Austrians from the walls, and by the French from the edge of a ditch.

Whilst he was looking through a telescope he received a ball in the

instep, and said, with the coolness of an old soldier: "I am hit!" When

the Emperor received his wound he was talking with Duroc. "This," said

he to his marshal, "can only come from a Tyrolian; no other marksman

could take an aim at such a distance; those fellows are very clever."

The wound might have been dangerous for had it been higher up the foot

would have been shattered and amputation inevitable. The first surgeon

of the Guard, Dr. Larrey, being near took off his boot and prepared to

dress the wound, which was not serious.

At the news that the Emperor was wounded the troops crowded around him

in great alarm. Officers and soldiers ran up from all sides; in a moment

he was surrounded by thousands of men, in spite of the fire which the

enemy's guns concentrated on the vast group. The Emperor, wishing to

withdraw his troops from this useless danger, and to calm the anxiety of

the more distant corps who were getting unsteady in their desire to come

and see what was the matter, mounted his horse the instant his wound was

dressed and rode down the front of the whole line amid loud cheers.

Those around remonstrated with him for continually exposing his person,

to which he replied: "What can I do? I must see how things are going

on."

"It was at this extempore review," says General Marbot, "held in

presence of the enemy, that Napoleon first granted gratuities to private

soldiers, appointing them Knights of the Empire and members, at the same

time, of the Legion of Honor. The regimental commanders recommended, but

the Emperor also allowed soldiers who thought they had claims, to come

and represent them before him; he then decided upon them himself."

An old grenadier, who had made the campaigns of Italy and Egypt, not

hearing his name called, came up, and in a calm tone of voice asked for

the cross.

"But," said Napoleon, "what have you done to deserve it?"

"It was I, sir, who, in the desert of Joppa, when it was so terribly

hot, gave you a watermelon!"

"I thank you for it again," said the Emperor, "but the gift of the fruit

is hardly worth the cross of the Legion of Honor." Then the grenadier,

who up till then had been as cool as ice, working himself up into a

frenzy, shouted at the top of his voice, "Well, and don't you reckon

seven wounds received at the bridge of Arcola, at Lodi, at Castiglione,

at the Pyramids, at Acre, Austerlitz, Friedland; eleven campaigns in

Italy, Egypt, Austria, Prussia, Poland--."

But the Emperor cut him short laughing, and mimicking his excited

manner, cried;--"There, there, how you work yourself up when you come to

the essential point! That is where you ought to have begun; it is worth

much more than your melon. I make you a Knight of the Empire, with a

pension of 1200 francs. Does that satisfy you?"

"But your Majesty, I prefer the cross."

"You have both one and the other since I make you a Knight."

[Illustration: From a Drawing by L. Marin

ENTRY OF NAPOLEON INTO BERLIN]

"Well, I would rather have the cross," and the worthy grenadier could

not be moved from that point. It took much explaining to make him

understand that the title of Knight of the Empire carried with it the

Legion of Honor. He was not appeased on this point until the Emperor had

fastened the decoration on his breast, and he seemed to think a great

deal more of this than of his annuity of 1200 francs.

It was by familiarities of this kind that the Emperor made the soldiers

adore him, but as Marbot again well says, it was a means that was only

available to a commander whom frequent victories had made illustrious;

any other general would have impaired his reputation by it.

Napoleon now sent an aide-de-camp to Lannes urging him to expedite the

taking of Ratisbon. This intrepid marshal had directed all his artillery

against a projecting house which rose above the wall surrounding the

town. The house was knocked down and the ruins fell into the ditch.

Still there were two fortified positions to take. Ladders were procured

and placed at the critical points by the grenadiers, but every time one

of them appeared he was instantly brought down by the well-aimed balls

of the Austrian sharpshooters. After some men had been thus struck, the

rest appeared to hang back. Thereupon Lannes advanced, covered with

decorations, seized one of the ladders and cried out: "You shall see

that your marshal, for all he is a marshal, has not ceased to be a

grenadier!" Two aides-de-camp sprang forward and snatched the ladder out

of his hands, and the grenadiers followed them, took the ladders, and,

notwithstanding the continued fire of the sharpshooters, made the

crossing in safety, followed by hundreds of others in an instant.

The walls being scaled, the town was soon in the hands of the French,

who rushed along the blazing streets taking prisoners in all directions.

Suddenly they were stopped with a cry of terror uttered by the

Austrians; "Take care, we shall all be blown up!" shouted an officer.

There were some barrels of powder left in the street which were in

danger of being fired by the shots exchanged on either side. The

belligerents stopped with one accord and joined hands in removing the

barrels to a place of safety. The Austrians then withdrew and left the

town to the French troops.

After the taking of Ratisbon Napoleon issued an address to his soldiers

complimenting them highly on their valor. "You have justified my

expectations," he said. "You have made up for numbers by your courage;

you have gloriously marked the difference which exists between the

soldiers of Cæsar and the armies of Xerxes. In a few days we have

triumphed in the three battles of Tann, Abensberg and Eckmuhl, and the

affairs of Peising, Landshut and Ratisbon. One hundred pieces of cannon,

fifty thousand prisoners, three equipages, three thousand baggage

wagons, all the funds of the regiments, are the results of the rapidity

of your marches, and of your courage.... Before a month we shall be in

Vienna!"

Thus in five days, in spite of inferiority of numbers and of the

unfavorable manner in which his lieutenants had distributed an inferior

force; by the sole energy of his genius, did Napoleon triumph over the

main force of his opponent. The Emperor reviewed his army on the 24th,

distributing rewards of all sorts with a lavish hand. Upon Davoust he

bestowed the title of Duke of Eckmuhl.

On May 3rd a body of 30,000 Austrians remaining from the army of

Landshut, fell back upon Ebersberg, where Massena engaged in a stubborn

battle, General Claparéde being obliged to defend himself for three

hours with but 7,000 men against 30,000 Austrians. Reinforcements at

last arrived and the enemy retired in disorder upon the Ens, where they

burned the bridge so as to protect their flight in the direction of

Vienna. The battle cost the Austrians 12,000 men, of whom 7,500 were

prisoners. The field of carnage was hideous, and the town of Ebersberg

was so wrapped in flames that the wounded could not be withdrawn. To

prevent the fire from reaching the bridge it had been necessary to cut

off the approach at either end, so that communication was interrupted

for several hours between the troops who had crossed the river and those

coming to their aid. Napoleon had galloped up on hearing the cannonade,

and though inured to all the horrors of war, is said to have been

greatly shocked at the sight he beheld.

Passing before the ruins of the castle of Dirnstein, on an eminence

beyond the Molck, and in the direction of Vienna, whither he was going,

Napoleon said to Marshal Lannes, who was at his side: "Look! Behold the

prison of Richard Coeur de Lion. Like us, he went to Syria and

Palestine. Coeur de Lion, my brave Lannes, was not braver than thou. He

was more fortunate than I at St. Jean d'Acre. The Duke of Austria sold

him to an emperor of Germany who had him imprisoned there. That was in

the barbarous ages. How different to our own civilization! You have seen

how I treat the Emperor of Austria, whom I could have taken prisoner.

Ah! well! I shall treat him again in the same manner. It is not my wish,

but that of the age!"

From Molck the headquarters of the Emperor were transferred to St.

Polten and two days later, at 9 o'clock in the morning, Napoleon was at

Vienna, which he desired to take forthwith, but to take without

destroying if possible.

Meeting with resistance in entering the city, the inhabitants having

prepared for a vigorous defense, Napoleon began to play with his heavy

batteries upon the city. The bombardment soon convinced them that it was

hopeless to resist, and Vienna surrendered May 12th after suffering

severely. In a few hours eighteen hundred shells had fallen in the city.

The streets were narrow, the houses high, and the population crowded

within the narrow fortifications, were terrified and infuriated at the

sight of the damage caused by the shells which started fires in every

direction. Who would have said to the Viennese, who were then hurling

all manner of imprecations at Napoleon, the author of all their woes,

that ten months later they would be singing the praise of this detested

Emperor, and would be voluntarily setting French flags in their windows

as symbols of friendship?

All the royal family had fled except the young Archduchess Marie Louise,

who was detained in the palace, suffering from small-pox. When Napoleon

heard she was sequestered there he ordered that no battery should be

directed to that part of the town in which lay she who was destined to

be his bride within less than a year! At this time Napoleon himself

would no doubt have laughed heartily had he been told that in that

palace was a woman who was to succeed Josephine in his struggle for a

dynasty, to be Empress of the French, and later, to bear him the long

wished for son and heir.

That Marie had no such thoughts or inclinations can readily be guessed

from the fact of the present campaign in which her father, the Emperor,

was battling for his Empire. The Emperor Francis had left his capital on

April 8th, 1809, leaving there his wife and children, but all of whom

departed, except Marie, on May 5th. From Vienna Marie wrote frequently

to her father. A rumor had reached the capital that the battle of

Eckmuhl had been a brilliant victory for the Austrians, and the young

Archduchess wrote to her father on April 25th: "We have heard with

delight that Napoleon was present at the great battle which the French

lost. May he lose his head as well! There are a great many prophecies

about his speedy end, and people say that the Apocalypse applies to him.

They maintain that he is going to die this year at Cologne, in an inn

called the 'Red Crawfish.' I do not attach much importance to these

prophecies, but how glad should I be to see them come true!"

On May 13th the capitulation of the Austrian capital was signed, and

Napoleon's army again entered Vienna, the Emperor taking up his old

quarters at the imperial palace of Schoenbrunn. He said to his soldiers:

"The people of Vienna, according to the expression of the deputation,

wearied, deserted, widowed, shall be the object of your regards. I take

the inhabitants under my special protection. As for the turbulent and

ill-disposed, I will make a severe example of them. Let us be kind

towards the poor peasants, towards these good people, who have so many

claims upon our esteem. Let us not be vain of all our successes; but

look upon them as a proof of that divine justice which punishes

ingratitude and perjury."

XI

THE BATTLE OF WAGRAM

The Austrian army, in abandoning the capital of the Empire, had not

renounced the war, although in thirty-three days Napoleon had, with one

stroke of his sword, cut in two the mass of their armies, and with a

second burst open the gates of Vienna. He was now firmly established in

that capital, and master of the main resources of the monarchy; but his

work was far from being done, either in Austria or in Germany. A great

difficulty remained to be overcome,--that of crossing a vast river in

the face of the enemy, and to give battle with the river behind him.

This difficulty Napoleon had been unable to prevent, and it resulted

inevitably from the nature of things. On leaving Ratisbon he had been

obliged to take the route which was shortest, thus keeping the two main

divisions of the Austrian army separated from each other. He was

consequently obliged to march along the right bank of the Danube,

abandoning the left to the Austrians, but securing to himself

exclusively the means of crossing from the one to the other.

The Archduke Charles was soon tempted to quit the fastness of Bohemia,

and try once more the fortune of a battle. Having re-established the

order, and recruited the numbers of his army to 100,000 men, he was soon

posted on the banks of the Danube. Opposite were the French, and the

river being greatly swollen, and all the bridges destroyed, the two

armies seemed separated by an impassable barrier. Napoleon determined to

pass it and after an unsuccessful attempt at Nussdorff, met with better

fortune at Ebersdorff, where the river is broad and intersected by a

number of low and woody islands, the largest of which bears the name of

Lobau. Here Massena had thrown several bridges over the arms of the

Danube.

On these islands Napoleon established the greater part of his army on

May 19th, and on the following day made good his passage by means of a

bridge of boats to the left bank of the Danube, where he took possession

of the villages of Asperne and Essling, with so little show of

opposition that it became evident that the Archduke wished the

inevitable battle to take place with the river between his enemy and

Vienna.

On the 21st, at daybreak, the Archduke appeared on a rising ground,

separated from the French position by an extensive plain. His whole

force was divided into five heavy columns and protected by not less than

two hundred pieces of artillery. The battle began at 4 o'clock in the

afternoon with a furious assault on the village of Asperne, which was

taken and retaken several times, and remained at nightfall in the

occupation partly of the French and partly of the assailants, who had

established themselves in the church and churchyard. Essling sustained

three attacks also, but there the French remained in complete

possession. At one time Lannes, who defended this point, was so hard

pressed, that he must have given way had not Napoleon relieved him, and

obtained him a breathing spell by a well-timed and terrific charge of

cavalry under Bessieres, which fell upon their centre.

Night finally interrupted the action, the Austrians exulting in their

partial success; and Napoleon surprised that he should not have been

wholly victorious. On either side the carnage had been terrible, and

the pathways of the villages were literally choked with the dead.

Just as Napoleon was about to retire for a few hours' rest he was

interrupted by a violent altercation between two of his chief

lieutenants, Bessieres and Lannes, the former of whom complained of the

language used by the latter, his inferior in rank, in giving a necessary

order for a charge of cuirassiers and chasseurs, then under the orders

of Marshal Bessieres himself. Massena, who was on the spot, was obliged

to interfere between these gallant men, who after having braved for a

whole day the cross-fire of 300 pieces of cannon, were ready to draw

their swords for the sake of their offended pride. Napoleon allayed

their quarrel, which was to be terminated next day by the enemy in the

saddest way for themselves and for the army.

Next morning the battle recommenced at 4 o'clock with equal fury, the

French recovering Asperne; but the Austrian right wing renewed its

assaults on that point, and in such numbers that Napoleon guessed that

their centre and left had been weakened for the purpose of strengthening

their right. Believing this he instantly moved such masses upon the

Austrian centre that the Archduke's line was shaken, and for a moment it

seemed as if the victory of the French was secure. In fact it was

extremely doubtful if the Austrian centre could withstand the mass of

20,000 infantry and 6,000 horse which Lannes had thrown upon it.

The Archduke Charles now hastened to the spot to prevent the catastrophe

that threatened his centre, and in this critical moment discharged at

once the duties of a general and a common soldier. He brought up

reserves, replaced the gaps which had been made in his line by the

furious onslaught of the French, and while awaiting the execution of

these orders, seized a standard and himself led the grenadiers to the

charge, while his bravest officers were struck down by his side. Lannes,

who also headed his soldiers in person, seeing the Austrian infantry

disordered, let loose upon them Bessieres and his own cuirassiers, who,

charging Hohenzollern's corps, broke several squares and took prisoners,

cannon and flags.

Success now seemed certain, and Lannes sent a staff officer to acquaint

Napoleon of his progress and asked him to cover his rear whilst he was

advancing in the plain and leaving so large a space between him and

Essling. The officer found Napoleon watching the grand spectacle

of which he was the director. He did not express anything like

the satisfaction he might have been expected to feel at such a

communication. The fact was, an unfortunate accident had occurred. At

this critical moment the bridge connecting the island of Lobau was being

wholly swept away by means of fire-ships sent down the river by the

Austrians. Napoleon at once perceived that if he wished to preserve his

communication with the right of the Danube, where his reserve still lay,

he must instantly fall back on Lobau. The want of troops, however, was

not the first consequence of the rupture of the bridge, for the 60,000

already passed over were enough to beat the Austrians. What was most to

be regretted was the want of ammunition, a prodigious quantity of which

had already been consumed, and of which there would soon be a scarcity.

Napoleon therefore resolved upon a painful sacrifice in order not to

expose himself to risks which prudence forbade him to brave. Having

formed this resolution, in an instant he ordered the staff officer to

return to Lannes as fast as possible and tell him to suspend the

movement and fall back gradually on the Essling and Asperne line. He was

also to recommend the marshal to be sparing of ammunition.

On receiving this order Lannes and Bessieres were compelled, to their

deep regret, to halt in the midst of the vast plain of Marchfield. No

sooner did the French troops commence their backward movement than the

Austrians recovered their order and zeal, charged in turn, and finally

made themselves masters of Asperne.

Essling, where Massena commanded, held firm, and under the protection of

that village and numerous batteries erected near it, Napoleon succeeded

in withdrawing his whole force during the night. The Commander had sent

earlier in the day to inquire of Massena if he could rely on the

possession of Asperne; for as long as it and Essling remained, the safe

retreat of the army was insured. The staff officer who took the message

found Massena on a heap of rubbish, harassed with fatigue, with

blood-shot eyes, but with unabated energy of spirit.

On receiving the message he stood up and replied with extraordinary

emphasis: "Go tell the Emperor I will hold out two hours,--twenty-four

--so long as it is necessary for the safety of the army!"

It was during this exciting retreat that a dreadful calamity befell the

army. Whilst Lannes was galloping in front of the line from one corps to

another, encouraging the soldiers by his voice and example, an officer

who was alarmed at seeing him exposed to so much danger, entreated him

to dismount for greater safety. He followed the advice, though it was

far from his habit to be careful of his life. At that instant he was

struck by a cannon ball that shattered both his knees. Bessieres and an

aide raised him up, and found him bathed in blood and almost senseless.

Bessieres, with whom he had quarreled on the preceding day, pressed his

weak hand. He was laid on a cuirassier's cloak and carried to a little

bridge where an ambulance was stationed. The news soon spread through

the army and filled it with sorrow. The surgeon declared his wounds to

be mortal.

In his frenzy the brave marshal called for Napoleon, his friend. The

latter observed a group advancing, supporting Lannes on a bier formed of

crossed fire-locks and some branches of oak. Twelve old grenadiers,

covered with blood and dust, bore this illustrious warrior along. As

soon as the Emperor saw it was the Duke of Montebello he hastened to

meet him. The grenadiers stopped, and Napoleon, throwing himself upon

his old companion-in-arms, who had fainted from the loss of blood, in a

voice scarcely articulate, said, several times, "Lannes, my friend, do

you know me? It is the Emperor, it is Bonaparte, your friend."

At these words Lannes opened his eyes, till then closed, collected his

spirits, and made some attempts to speak; but, being unable, he could

only lift his dying arms to pass them round the neck of Napoleon. The

fear of exhausting the little life still remaining in the marshal

determined the Emperor to leave him.

Sometime later Napoleon visited his wounded friend and conversed with

him briefly. "My noble marshal," said the Emperor, "It is all over."

"What!" cried the dying man, "can't _you_ save me?" He died in delirium

some days later in the arms of his chief, who wept over him as he had

done at the death of Desaix at Marengo. The French soldiery delighted to

call him the "Roland of the Camp," and Napoleon said, "It was impossible

to be more brave than Lannes." No man could inspire his troops with more

confidence than could this brave soldier who had been the companion of

the fortunes and glory of Napoleon from the very beginning of his public

career.

Napoleon had charged Lannes to maintain Essling at all hazards and he

valiantly fulfilled his task. At length, at nine at night, the

sanguinary conflict ceased; the French preserving the position they had

occupied in the morning, and the Austrians bivouacking where they were.

Both sides sustained an equal loss, from fifteen to twenty thousand men

having been killed, or wounded, on both sides. Among the Austrians were

four field-marshals, eight generals and six hundred and sixty-three

officers killed or wounded.

On the morning of the 23rd of May the French were cooped up in Lobau and

the adjacent islands,--Asperne and Essling--the whole left bank of the

river, remaining in the possession of the Austrians. On either side a

victory was claimed. In the eyes of Europe it was a check for Napoleon,

accustomed to crush his enemy, to have been unable at this time to drive

the Austrians from their position.

The situation of the French Emperor was imminently hazardous; he was

separated from Davoust and his reserves, and, had the enemy either

attacked him in the islands, or passed the river higher up and so

overwhelmed Davoust and relieved Vienna, the results might have been

fatal. But the Archduke's loss in these two days had been very great;

and, in place of risking an offensive movement, he contented himself

with strengthening the position of Asperne and Essling, and awaiting

quietly the moment when his enemy should choose to attempt once more the

passage to the left bank, and the reoccupation of these stubbornly

contested villages.

Napoleon availed himself of this pause with his usual skill. That he had

been checked was true, and that the news would be heard with enthusiasm,

he well knew. It was necessary, therefore, to regain the fame which had

surrounded the beginning of the campaign, and he made every preparation

for another decisive battle. Some weeks elapsed ere he ventured to

assume the offensive.

On the 4th of July, 1809, Napoleon at last re-established his

communication with the right bank, and arranged the means of passing to

the left at a point where the Archduke had made hardly any preparation

for receiving him. On the 5th of July, at 10 o'clock at night, the

French began to cross from the islands in the Danube to the left bank.

Gunboats prepared for the purpose silenced some of the Austrian

batteries; others were avoided by passing the river out of reach of

their fire on bridges that had been secretly erected by the French. When

Napoleon had a river to be crossed he began the operation by suddenly

conveying some determined men to the opposite side in boats. These

proceeded to disarm or kill the enemy's advanced posts, and to fix the

moorings to which the boats were to be attached that were to carry the

bridge. The army then passed over as quickly as possible.

The first of these operations was the most difficult in presence of an

enemy so numerous and so well prepared as were the Austrians. To

facilitate it, Napoleon had large flat boats constructed, capable of

carrying 300 men each, and having a moving gunwale to protect the men

from musketry, which on being let down, would serve instead of planks

for landing. Every corps was provided with five of these flat-boats,

which made an advance guard of 1500 men carried over at once, and the

enemy, not knowing exactly where the crossing would be made, could not

confront the French with advanced posts in sufficient numbers to prevent

their landing.

The Austrians having rashly calculated that Asperne and Essling must

needs be the object of the next contest, as of the preceding, they were

taken almost unawares by Napoleon's appearance in another quarter. They

changed their line on the instant and occupied a position, the centre

and key of which was the little town of Wagram. Here, on the 6th of

July, the final and decisive battle was to be fought. Adding together

the troops of Massena, Oudinot, Davoust, Bernadotte, Prince Eugene,

Macdonald, Marmont, de Wrede and the Guard, there appeared to be 150,000

men; of whom 26,000 were cavalry and 12,000 artillerymen serving 550

guns; an enormous force, such as Napoleon had never yet mustered on a

field of battle, and according to some authorities, such a host as had

never been brought into action by any leader. Besides this vast force

Napoleon had with him the invincible Massena, who was then suffering

from a fall from his horse, but who was capable of mastering all

physical sufferings on a day of battle; the stubborn Davoust, the

impetuous Oudinot, the intrepid Macdonald, and a multitude of others who

were ready to purchase the triumph of the French arms with their blood.

The heroic Lannes was the only one missing. Fate had forbidden him to

witness a victory to which he had powerfully contributed by his conduct

in this campaign.

When the day dawned on the banks of the river, about 4 o'clock in the

morning, a most imposing spectacle presented itself to both armies. The

sun glistened on thousands of bayonets and helmets, and seventy thousand

men were already in line of battle on the enemy's side of the river

capable of making a good fight with the Archduke's forces. Seeing

Napoleon ride along the front of the lines his soldiers raised their

shakos on their bayonets and cried: "Vive l'Empereur!" The ground

covered by the two armies was about two leagues in extent. The troops

nearest were about 1200 fathoms from the city of Vienna, so that the

towers, steeples, and tops of the highest houses, were covered by the

numerous population, thus become spectators of the terrible contest then

preparing.

The Archduke had extended his line over too wide a space, and his former

error enabled Napoleon to at once see an opportunity to ruin him by his

old device of pouring the full shock of his strength on the centre. In

fact, so apparently weak was the position of the Austrians at this time

that the Emperor, in his bulletin of the engagement sent to Paris, had

this to say: "This disposition of the army appeared so absurd that some

snare was dreaded, and the Emperor hesitated some time before ordering

the easy dispositions which he had to make in order to annul those of

the enemy, and render them fatal to him." At sunrise the cannonade

commenced upon the two lines. Napoleon, perceiving that the Prince of

Rosemberg was moving upon Marshal Davoust, repaired in person to the

right wing, which he reinforced with the cuirassiers under General

Arrighe, and caused twelve pieces of light artillery to advance upon

the flank of the enemy's columns. After an obstinate engagement of two

hours' duration, Davoust succeeded in repulsing his adversary as far as

Neusiedel.

While the French army thus signalized itself by success in the beginning

of the day, the battle was carried along the rest of the line with great

determination. The fire of musketry and cannon was now general on that

vast front of nearly three leagues, along which 300,000 men and 1100

pieces of cannon were arrayed against each other. It was a principle of

Napoleon's that by concentrating on one point the action of certain

special arms that grand effects were to be produced, and therefore it

was that he bestowed an immense amount of artillery on the Guard and had

kept under his hand a reserve of fourteen regiments of cuirassiers.

The Emperor now ordered that the whole of the artillery of the Guard,

together with all that could be spared by the several corps, advance at

a gallop. Just then General de Wrede arrived on the ground with

twenty-five pieces of excellent artillery, and solicited the honor of

taking part in the decisive movement, to which Napoleon consented. He

then sent for General Macdonald, his design being to shake the Austrian

centre with 100 guns, and then pierce it with Macdonald's bayonets and

Nansouty's sabres. These orders were obeyed on the instant.

While awaiting the carrying out of these movements, impatient for the

arrival of Macdonald and Lauriston, Napoleon rode about the field on his

Persian horse of dazzling whiteness, giving orders to his aides

constantly. The cannonading had by this time acquired the frequency of

musket-firing, and everybody shuddered at the thought of seeing the

man, on whose life so many destinies depended, struck by one of those

blind messengers of death. The hundred guns were now ranged in line and

instantly began the most tremendous slaughter ever known to those who

witnessed it. Napoleon observed with his glass the effect of that

formidable battery, saw the enemy's artillery dismounted, and was

satisfied with the correctness of his own conceptions. But artillery was

not sufficient to break the Austrian centre; bayonets, too, were

requisite.

[Illustration: From a Painting by Baron Gros

NAPOLEON AT THE BATTLE OF EYLAU]

The intrepid Macdonald now advanced at the head of his corps under a

deluge of fire, leaving the ground covered at every step with his dead

and wounded, still closing the ranks without wavering, and communicating

his own gallant bearing to his soldiers. "What a brave man!" Napoleon

exclaimed several times, as he saw him thus march under the shower of

grape and bullets. The Archduke's centre, shaken by the fire of a

hundred pieces of ordinance, retreats, as does also his right. Davoust

now shakes the Austrian left wing, and as he does so Napoleon exclaims:

"The battle is won!",--and so it was. Lauriston, with a hundred pieces

of cannon, and Macdonald at the head of a chosen division, charged the

Austrians in the centre and broke through it. The victory was for the

French once more.

At length the Austrian army fell into disorder, their centre was driven

back two or three miles out of the line; cries of alarm were heard, the

right wing gave way and the left soon followed. The rout was now

complete. At the close of the battle there remained 20,000 prisoners,

besides all the artillery and baggage in the hands of the French.

Napoleon showed all his courage and talents on this day, and was ever

in the hottest of the action, though the appearance of his retinue drew

on him showers of grape by which he was repeatedly endangered. From

early morning, he was occupied in galloping through the different lines,

encouraging the troops by his presence and persuasive eloquence; many

being killed by the balls that flew about him. It was observed that the

enemy's fire was particularly directed against the Emperor; in

consequence of which Napoleon was obliged to change his surtout three

times. The aides-de-camp and officers of the staff were also given to

understand that they should keep more at a distance, and the regiments

were instructed not to salute the Emperor with acclamations at the

moment he was passing.

On the following morning, after surveying the field of battle, Napoleon

went to place himself in the midst of his troops who were about to

pursue the retreating enemy. He walked round the bivouacs without either

hat or sword, his hands being crossed behind him, and as he talked with

the soldiers of his Guard his manner and countenance expressed the

utmost satisfaction and confidence. On passing Macdonald, with whom he

had lost favor, and who had not followed the fortunes of the Emperor for

some years, Napoleon stopped and held out his hand, saying: "Shake

hands, Macdonald; no more animosity between us, we must henceforth be

friends; and, as a pledge of my sincerity, I will send you your

marshal's staff, which you so gloriously earned in yesterday's battle."

The general, pressing the Emperor's hand affectionately, exclaimed: "Ah,

sire; with us it is henceforth for life and for death." The act was

heightened by the grace and good will with which it was performed. The

same rank was granted a few days after to General Oudinot and the Duke

of Ragusa (Marmont), for their eminent services.

After the battle Napoleon recognized among the dead a colonel who had

displeased him. He stopped and looked at the mangled body for a moment

and then said, "I regret not having told him before the battle that I

had forgotten everything."

The Archduke fled in great confusion as far as Znaim in Moravia,

abandoning, as trophies of his defeat, ten standards, forty pieces of

cannon, nearly 18,000 prisoners, nine thousand wounded, and a great

quantity of equipage.

The loss of the French, while much less than that of the enemy, was

6,000 wounded and 2,600 killed. Marshal Bessieres was among the former.

The French army had to lament the loss of the valiant LaSalle, one of

the first generals of light cavalry. His death was greatly regretted

both by the Emperor and the army. He was considered the best light

cavalry officer for outpost duty and had the surest eye. He could take

in a whole district in a moment, and seldom made a mistake, so that his

reports on the enemy's position were clear and precise. He was a

handsome man of bright wit, an excellent horseman and brave to the point

of rashness. He first attracted the notice of General Bonaparte at the

battle of Rivoli when he galloped down a descent to which the fleeing

Austrians had resorted to escape, and took some thousand prisoners under

the eyes of General Bonaparte and the army. From that time LaSalle was

in high favor with Napoleon who promoted him rapidly and took him to

Egypt where he made him colonel. He distinguished himself at Austerlitz

and in Prussia.

The Imperial Council perceived that further resistance was useless and

an armistice was agreed to at Znaim. Napoleon, on returning to Vienna,

continued occupied until October. For the third time he found himself

master of the destinies of the House of Lorraine, which he had accused

of ingratitude and perjury before Europe and in the face of history; for

the third time this conqueror, so violent in his menaces, so

overwhelming in his reproaches, eagerly received the proposals of those

who had provoked the war, whose hopes had been overthrown, and whose

resources were destroyed on the day of Wagram. The results of the

battle, without being as extraordinary as those of Austerlitz, Jena or

Friedland, were great nevertheless.

The announcement of the armistice with Austria put an end, in effect, to

all hostile demonstrations on the Continent, except in the Peninsula,

and Germany in apparent tranquility awaited the result of the

negotiations of Vienna.

A few days after Napoleon had returned to Schoenbrunn from Moravia he

narrowly escaped the dagger of a young man who rushed upon him at a

grand review of the Imperial Guard, and while in the midst of all his

staff. Berthier and Rapp threw themselves upon the would-be assassin and

disarmed him at the moment when his knife was about to enter the

Emperor's body.

Napoleon demanded to know what motive had actuated the assassin. "What

injury," said he, "have I done to you?"

"To me personally, none," answered the youth, "but you are the oppressor

of my country; the tyrant of the world; and to have put you to death

would have been the highest glory of a man of honor."

The youth, a son of a clergyman of Erfurt named Staaps, was condemned to

death. It is said Napoleon wished to pardon Staaps, whose frankness and

courage had struck him, and in whom, besides, he saw but a blind

instrument of the passions incited by the monarchy; but his orders

arrived too late. The young German met his death with the greatest

coolness, exclaiming: "Hail, Liberty! Germany forever! Death to the

tyrant!"

The length to which the negotiations with Austria were protracted

excited much wonder, but Napoleon, who was occupied incessantly with his

ministers and generals, and seldom showed himself in public, had other

business on hand besides his treaty with the Emperor Francis. His

long-standing quarrel with the Pope now reached its crisis, growing out

of the Concordat, involving affairs in Spain and Portugal, and finally

by a refusal of the pontiff to acquiesce in the Berlin and Milan decrees

against England's commerce. On the 17th of May Napoleon had issued from

Vienna his final decree declaring the temporal sovereignty of the Pope

to be wholly at an end, incorporating Rome with the French Empire, and

declaring it to be his second city, settling a handsome pension on the

holy father in his spiritual capacity, and appointing a committee of

administration for the civil government of Rome. The Pope replied with a

bull of excommunication against Napoleon which finally resulted in the

removal of His Holiness to Fontainebleau where he continued a prisoner,

though treated personally with respect and magnificence, during more

than three years.

The treaty with Austria was at last signed at Schoenbrunn on the 14th of

October, Austria giving up territory to the amount of 45,000 square

miles, with a population of four millions, and depriving her of her

last seaport. Yet, when compared with the signal triumphs of the

campaign at Wagram, the terms on which the conqueror signed the peace

were universally looked upon as remarkable for moderation. Napoleon

afterwards expressed himself as highly culpable in having left Austria

too powerful after the affair at Wagram, using the following words on

that occasion: "The day after the battle I ought to have published in

the order of the day that I would ratify no treaty with Austria, until

after a previous separation of the crown of Austria, Hungary, and

Bohemia; to be placed on three different heads."

Napoleon quitted Vienna on the 16th of October, and was congratulated by

the public bodies of Paris at Fontainebleau on the 14th of November as

"the greatest of heroes, who never achieved victories but for the

happiness of the world." When he reappeared at the palace at

Fontainebleau on Oct. 26th 1809, crowned with the victory of Wagram,

there was one to whom dark forebodings came--Josephine felt that her

fate was sealed. In fact, as a modern writer has said, the immediate

result of Wagram was the divorce from the Empress.

The first public intimation of a measure which had for a considerable

period occupied Napoleon's thoughts came from the Emperor himself when

he said, in an imperial speech in which he described the events of the

past year, and the state of France: "I and my house will ever be found

ready to sacrifice everything, even our own dearest ties and feelings,

to the welfare of the French people."

XII

CAMPAIGN OF RUSSIA

Long before Napoleon assumed the imperial title his hopes of offspring

from the union with Josephine were at an end, but the Empress lived for

a time in hope that the Emperor would be content to adopt her son

Eugene. Louis Bonaparte married Hortense Beauharnais, daughter of

Josephine, and an infant son became so much the favorite of Napoleon

that the Empress, as well as others, come to regard this boy as the heir

of France. But the child died early and the Emperor then began to direct

his thoughts towards the best means of dissolving his marriage with

Josephine, in order that he might form an alliance with some daughter of

Russia, or other imperial family. The Emperor Alexander was approached

on this subject, and informed that one of his sisters, the Grand Duchess

Anne, would be acceptable, but the Empress-mother hesitated, and this

being taken by Napoleon as a refusal, he sought the hand of the

Archduchess Marie Louise, daughter of the Emperor Francis of Austria.

On the 15th of December, 1809, the Emperor summoned his council and

announced to them, that at the expense of all his personal feelings, he,

devoted wholly to the welfare of the State, had resolved to separate

himself from his most dear consort. "Arrived at the age of forty years"

he said, "I may conceive the hope of living sufficiently long to

elevate, in my mind and after my ideas, the children with which it shall

please Providence to bless me. God knows how much this resolution has

cost my heart; * * * I should also add, that, far from ever having to

complain, I have on the contrary, only had cause to laud the attachment

and tenderness of my beloved wife. She has adorned fifteen years of my

life. The recollection thereof will always remain graven on my heart."

Josephine then appeared among them, and not without tears, expressed her

acquiescence in the decree. "I believe I acknowledge all these

sentiments," she said, "by consenting to the dissolution of a marriage

which, at present, is an obstacle to the welfare of France, which

deprives it of being one day governed by the descendants of a great man,

so evidently raised by Providence to efface the ills of a terrible

revolution, and re-establish the altar, the throne, and social order."

The council, after addressing the Emperor and Empress on the nobleness

of their mutual sacrifice, accepted and ratified the dissolution of

marriage. The title of Empress was preserved to Josephine for life and a

pension of two million francs, to which Napoleon afterwards added a

third million from his privy purse. She then retired from the Tuileries,

residing thenceforth mostly at Malmaison, and in the course of a few

weeks Austria was called upon for her daughter.

Having given her hand at Vienna on the 11th of March, 1810, to Berthier,

who had the honor to represent the person of the Emperor, the young

Archduchess set out for France on the 13th.

On the 28th, as her carriage was proceeding towards Soissons, Napoleon

rode up to it, in a plain dress, altogether unattended, and introduced

himself to his proxy bride. She had never seen his person till then,

and it is said her first exclamation was, "Your Majesty's pictures have

not done you justice."

They spent the evening at the chateau of Compiegne and a religious

marriage was celebrated on the 1st of April at St. Cloud amidst every

circumstance of splendor; the next day they made their entry into the

capital. Napoleon in his exile said that "the Spanish ulcer" and the

Austrian match were the two main causes of his ruin;--and they both

contributed to it largely, although by no means equally. The Exile's own

opinion was that the error lay, not in seeking a bride of imperial

birth, but in choosing her at Vienna. Had he persisted in his demands,

the Czar, he doubted not, would have granted him his sister; the proud

dreams of Tilsit would have been realized, and Paris and St. Petersburg

become the only two capitals of Europe. Possibly, then, he would not

have had occasion to say that he "set his foot upon an abyss of roses"

when he married Marie.

Had he married a daughter of France, or even an imperial princess of

Russia, he could have done so without the sacrifice of the prestige of

the nobility, and even the divinity of the people he had so gloriously

contended for; but when it was announced that he had contracted an

alliance with the House of Hapsburg,--that hated race against whom and

whose principles he had fought a hundred battles, they were convinced

that no good would come of it--and they were right.

The war, meanwhile, continued without interruption in the Peninsula;

whither, but for his marriage Napoleon would certainly have repaired in

person, after the peace of Schoenbrunn left him at ease. So illy was

that Spanish campaign conducted during Napoleon's absence that not an

inch of soil could be counted by the French beyond their outposts. Their

troops were continually harassed and thinned by the indomitable

guerrillas who acted singly or in bands as occasion offered.

The Emperor's marriage was speedily followed on the 20th of April, 1811,

by the birth of a son and heir whom Napoleon announced to the waiting

courtiers in these words: "It is a King of Rome!" The happy event,

announced to the populace by the firing of one hundred and one guns, was

received with many demonstrations of loyal enthusiasm. Even Josephine

joined in expressing her satisfaction at the event which seemed to

portend so much for the founding of a Napoleonic dynasty which the

Emperor now saw possible by direct lineage.

When the Emperor of Russia was informed of Napoleon's approaching

nuptials with the Austrian princess his first exclamation was, "Then the

next thing will be to drive us back into our forests." In truth the

conferences at Erfurt had but skinned over a wound which nothing could

have cured but a total alteration of Napoleon's policy. The Russian

nation suffered so much from the continental system that the Czar soon

found himself compelled to relax the decrees drawn up at Tilsit in the

spirit of those previously declared at Berlin and Milan. Certain harbors

were opened partially for the admission of colonial produce and the

export of native productions; and there ensued a series of indignant

reclamations on the part of Napoleon, and haughty evasions on that of

the Czar, which, ere long, satisfied all near observers that Russia

would not be slow to avail herself of any favorable opportunity of once

more appealing to arms.

During the summer of 1811 the relations of Russia and France were

becoming every day more dubious and when towards the close of it the

Emperor of Austria published a rescript granting a free passage through

his territories to the troops of his son-in-law, England, ever watchful

of her great enemy, perceived clearly that France was about to have an

ally. Alexander had long since ceased to regard the friendship of the

great man as a blessing of heaven. Of the solemn cordiality of Tilsit,

and the more recent meeting at Erfurt, there remained in the soul of the

Czar naught but the displeasure and resentment arising from extinct

affection and deceived hopes.

From the moment in which the Russian government began to reclaim

seriously against certain parts of his conduct, Napoleon increased by

degrees his military force in the north of Germany, and the Grand Duchy

of Warsaw, and advanced considerable bodies of troops nearer and nearer

to the Czar's Polish frontier. These preparations were met by similar

movements on the other side; yet, during many months, the hope of

terminating the differences by negotiations was not abandoned. The

regulations of the Continental System were especially objected to by

Russia, and the Czar having lent his ear to the representations of the

English cabinet, asked that they be dispensed with as he declared he

could no longer submit to see the commerce of an independent Empire

trammeled for the purpose of serving the policy of a foreign power.

Napoleon admitted that it might be necessary to modify the system

complained of, and expressed his belief that it would be found possible

to devise some middle course by which the commercial interests of France

and Russia might be reconciled. A very considerable relaxation in the

enforcement of the Berlin code was at last effected, and a license

system arranged which admitted Alexander to a share in the pecuniary

advantages. Had there been no cause of quarrel between these powers

except what appeared on the face of their negotiations, it is hardly to

be doubted but a new treaty might have been effected. The Czar, however,

from the hour of Marie Louise's marriage, felt a conviction that the

diminution of the Russian power in the north of Europe would form the

next great object of Napoleon's ambition. The Czar therefore assured

himself that if war must come, there could be no question as to the

policy of bringing it on before Austria had entirely recovered from the

effects of the campaign of Wagram, and, above all, while the Peninsula

continued to occupy 200,000 of Napoleon's troops.

As concerned the Spanish armies, it might still be said that King Joseph

was in military possession of all but some fragments of his kingdom. The

English had been victorious in Portugal and the French troops in Spain

lost more lives in this incessant struggle, wherein no glory could be

achieved, than in any similar period spent in any regular campaign; and

Joseph, while the question of peace or war with Russia was yet

undecided, became so weary of his situation, that he earnestly entreated

Napoleon to place the crown of Spain on some other head. Such were the

circumstances under which the eventful year of 1812 began.

Most persuasive appeals were made to Napoleon by his ministers to

refrain from entering into a campaign of aggression against Russia. To

Fouché, minister of police, Napoleon is reported to have said, in reply,

"Is it my fault that the height of power which I have attained compels

me to ascend to the dictatorship of the world? My destiny is not yet

accomplished,--the picture exists as yet only in outline. There must be

one code, one court of appeal, and one coinage for all Europe. The

states of Europe must be melted into one nation, and Paris be its

capital."

In the arguments used by Napoleon's advisers at this time they attempted

to show him, among other things, the great extent of Alexander's

resources,--his 400,000 regulars, and 50,000 Cossacks, already known to

be in arms--and the enormous population on which he had the means of

drawing for recruits; the enthusiastic national feeling of the

Muscovites; the distance of their country; the severity of their

climate; the opportunity which a war would afford to England of urging

her successes in Spain; and the chance of Germany rising in insurrection

in case of any reverses.

With the greater part of the population of France, and especially with

the army, the threatened war was exceedingly popular. Russia, the most

extensive Empire in Europe, it was fondly imagined, was on the point of

falling before the power of the Great Nation; and England would then be

left to struggle, unaided, for mastery with France. It was deemed a

certain pledge of victory, since the Emperor himself was to lead his

veteran legions to the new scene of triumph.

Cardinal Fesch, uncle of the Emperor, appealed to him on other grounds.

The Cardinal had been greatly affected by the treatment of the Pope, and

he contemplated this new war with dread,--as likely to bring down the

vengeance of heaven upon the head of one who had dared to trample on

its vice-regent. Napoleon led the Cardinal to the window, opened it, and

pointing upwards, said, "Do you see yonder star?"

"No Sire," replied the Cardinal. "But I see it," answered Napoleon; and

the churchman was dismissed.

Trusting to this star,--his "Star of Destiny" in which he yet firmly

believed,--he was far from being awed when in April, 1812, Russia

declared war against France. It was an indefensible violation of the

treaty of Tilsit, but it showed Napoleon that Europe was determined to

crush him, and he rallied the forces of his Empire for a more terrible

conflict than he had yet been summoned to.

Not satisfied with disposing everything for war in the bosom of the

Empire, Napoleon, who wished to march into Russia at the head of his

vast army of Europe, busied himself in forming and cementing,

externally, powerful allies. Two treaties were concluded to this effect;

the one with Prussia and the other with Austria on the 24th of February

and 14th of March, 1812.

Alexander's minister was ordered in the beginning of April to demand the

withdrawal of the northern troops, together with the evacuation of the

fortress in Pomerania, in case the French government still entertained a

wish to negotiate. Napoleon replied that he was not accustomed to

regulate the distribution of his forces by the suggestions of a foreign

power. The ambassador then demanded his passports and quitted Paris.

The Emperor of France was confident, and seems to have entertained no

doubt of his success in the coming campaign. "The war" he said, "is a

wise measure, called for by the true interests of France and the general

welfare. The great power I have already attained compels me to assume

an universal dictatorship. My views are not ambitions. I desire to

obtain no further acquisition; and reserve to myself only the glory of

doing good, and the blessings of posterity."

Leaving Paris with the Empress on the 9th of May, 1812, on his way to

join the Grand Army then forming on the Polish frontier, the imperial

pair were accompanied by a continual triumph. Not merely in France but

throughout Germany the ringing of bells, music and the most enthusiastic

greetings awaited them wherever they appeared. On May 16th, the Emperor

arrived at Dresden where the Emperor of Austria, the Kings of Prussia,

Naples, Wirtemberg, and Westphalia and almost every German sovereign of

inferior rank had been invited to meet him. He had sent to request the

Czar also to appear in this brilliant assemblage, as a last chance of an

amicable arrangement, but the messenger could not obtain admission to

Alexander's presence.

Marie Louise was now sent back to France and the Russian campaign began.

Marshal Ney, with one great division of the army, had already passed the

Vistula; Junot, with another, occupied both sides of the Oder. The Czar

was known to be at Wilna, collecting the forces of his immense Empire

and entrusting the general arrangements of the approaching campaign to

Marshal Barclay de Tolly, an officer who had been born and educated in

Germany. The season was advancing and it was time that the question of

peace or war should be forced to a decision.

Napoleon, before leaving the gay court of Dresden, where he was hailed

as "the king of kings," dispatched Count de Narbonne to the Emperor

Alexander to make a fresh attempt at negotiation in order to spare the

shedding of more blood. On his return Narbonne stated that "he had found

the Russians neither depressed nor boasting; that the result of all the

replies of the Czar was, that they preferred war to a disgraceful peace;

that they would take special care not to risk a battle with an adversary

so formidable; and, finally, that they were determined to make every

sacrifice to protract the war, and drive back the invader."

Napoleon arrived at Dantzic on the 7th of June, and during the fortnight

which ensued, it was known that the final communications between him and

Alexander were taking place. On the 22nd the French Emperor broke

silence in a bulletin in which he said: "Soldiers, Russia is dragged on

by her fate; her destiny must be accomplished. Let us march; let us

cross the Niemen, let us carry war into her territories. Our second

campaign of Poland will be as glorious as the first; but our second

peace shall carry with it its own guarantee. It shall put an end forever

to that haughty influence which Russia has exercised for fifty years

over the affairs of Europe."

The Czar announced the termination of the negotiations by stating the

innumerable efforts to obtain peace and concluded in these words:

"Soldiers, you fight for your religion, your liberty and your native

land. Your Emperor is amongst you; and God is the enemy of the

aggressor."

Napoleon reviewed the greater part of his troops on the battlefield of

Friedland, and having assured them of still more splendid victories over

the same enemy, issued his final orders to the chief officers of his

army. The disposition of his forces when the campaign commenced was

as follows:--The left wing, commanded by Macdonald, and amounting to

30,000 men, had orders to march through Courland, with the view, if

possible, of outflanking the Russian right, and gaining the possession

of sea coast in the direction of Riga. The right wing, composed almost

wholly of Austrians, 30,000 in number, and commanded by Schwartzenberg,

was stationed on the Volhynian frontier. Between these moved the various

corps forming the grand central army under the general superintendence

of Napoleon himself, viz., those of Davoust, Ney, Jerome Bonaparte,

Eugene Beauharnais, Prince Poniatowski, Junot and Victor; and in numbers

amounting to 250,000 men. The communication of the centre and the left

was maintained by the corps of Oudinot, and those of the centre and the

extreme right by the corps of Regnier, who had with him the Saxon

auxiliaries and the Polish legion of Dombrowski. The chief command of

the whole cavalry of the host was assigned to Murat who was in person at

the headquarters of the Emperor, having immediately under his order

three divisions of horse--those of Grouchy, Montbrun and Nantousy.

Augereau, with his division was to remain in the north of Germany to

watch over Berlin and protect the communications with France. Napoleon's

base of operations, as will be seen by the map, extended over full one

hundred leagues, and the heads of his various columns were so

distributed that the Russians could not guess whether St. Petersburg or

Moscow formed the main object of his march.

[Illustration: From a Painting by Lionel Royer

THE 14TH LINE AT EYLAU]

The Russian army, under de Tolly, had its headquarters at Wilna, and

consisted, at the opening of the campaign, of 120,000 men. Considerably

to the left lay "the second army," as it was called, of 80,000 men

under Bagration with whom were Platoff and 12,000 of his Cossacks; while

at the extreme of that wing, "the army of Volhynia," 20,000 strong,

commanded by Tormazoff, watched Schwartzenberg. On the right of de Tolly

was Witgenstein with 30,000 men and between these again and the sea, the

corps of Essen 10,000 strong. Behind the whole line two armies of

reserve were rapidly forming at Novogorod and Smolensk, each, probably,

of about 20,000 men. The Russians actually in the field at the opening

of the campaign were, then, as nearly as can be computed, 260,000; while

Napoleon was prepared to cross the Niemen at the head of 470,000 men.

The Czar was resolved from the beginning to act entirely on the

defensive and to draw Napoleon, if possible, into the heart of his own

country ere he gave him battle. The various divisions of the Russian

force had orders to fall back leisurely as the enemy advanced,

destroying whatever they could not take with them, and halting only at

certain points where intrenched camps had already been formed for their

reception.

The difficulty of feeding half a million men in a country deliberately

wasted beforehand, and separated by so great a space from Germany, to

say nothing of France, was sure to increase at every hour and every

step. Alexander's great object was, therefore, to husband his own

strength until the Polar winter should set in around the strangers, and

bring the miseries which he thus foresaw to a crisis.

Napoleon, on the other hand, had calculated on being met by the Russians

at, or even in advance of their own frontier, (as he had been by the

Austrians in the campaign of Austerlitz and by the Prussians in that of

Jena); of gaining a great battle, marching immediately either to St.

Petersburg or Moscow, and dictating a peace within the walls of one of

the Czar's own palaces.

On June 24th the Grand Imperial Army, consolidated into three masses,

began their passage of the Niemen,--Jerome Bonaparte at Grodno, Eugene

at Pilony, and Napoleon himself near Kowno. The Emperor rode on in front

of his army at two o'clock in the morning to reconnoitre the banks,

escaping observation by wearing a Polish cloak and hat; his horse

stumbled and he fell to the ground. "A bad omen--a Roman would return,"

some one remarked. After a minute investigation he discovered a spot

near the village of Poinemen, above Kowno, suitable for the passage of

his troops, and gave orders for three bridges to be thrown across at

nightfall. The first who crossed the river were a few sappers in a boat.

All was deserted and silent on the foreign soil, and no one appeared to

oppose their proceedings with the exception of a single armed Cossack,

who asked, with an appearance of surprise, who they were and what they

wanted. "Frenchmen," was the reply; "we come to make war upon your

Emperor; to take Wilna, and deliver Poland."

The Cossack struck spurs into his horse and three French soldiers

discharged their pieces into the gloomy depths of the woods, where they

had lost sight of him, in token of hostility. There came on at the same

moment a tremendous thunder storm. Thus began the fatal invasion.

The passage of the troops was impeded for a time; as the bridge over the

Vilia, a stream running into the Niemen, had been broken by the

Russians. The Emperor, however, despising this obstacle, ordered a

Polish squadron of horse to swim the river. They instantly obeyed; but

on reaching the middle the current proved too strong for them, broke

their ranks, and swept away and engulfed many of them. Even during their

last struggles the brave fellows turned their faces towards the shore,

where Napoleon was watching their unavailing efforts with the deepest

emotion, and shouted with their dying breath, "Vive l'Empereur!"

Three of these noble-spirited patriots uttered this cry when only a part

of their faces was above the waters. The army was struck with a mixture

of horror and admiration. Napoleon watched the scene apparently unmoved,

but gave every order he could devise for the purpose of saving as many

of them as possible, though with little effect. It is probable that his

strongest feeling, even at the time, was a presentiment that this

disastrous event was but the beginning of others, at once tremendous and

extensive.

As these enormous hosts advanced into the Russian territory Alexander

withdrew his armies as deliberately as the invader pushed on. Wilna, the

capital itself, was evacuated two days before the French came in sight

of it, and Napoleon took up his quarters there on the 28th of June. Here

it was found that all the magazines, which he counted on seizing, had

been burnt before the Russians withdrew. Already the imperial bulletins

began to denounce the "barbarous method" in which the enemy resolved to

conduct his defense.

Napoleon remained twenty days at Wilna during which time he redoubled

his efforts to secure quantities of provisions which were to be conveyed

along with his army; these were to render him independent of the

countries through which he might pass. The destruction of the magazines

at Wilna reassured him that he had judged well in departing from the old

system of marauding, which had been adopted in previous campaigns with

success. At the end of this period Napoleon became aware that while the

contracts entered into by his war minister were adequate for the army's

needs, the handling of such enormous quantities of provisions, under the

most favorable circumstances, must be slow and in some degree uncertain.

Thus the Emperor found himself under the necessity, either of laying

aside his invasion for another year, or of urging it in the face of

every difficulty, all of which he had forseen except the slowness of a

commissariat department.

When Napoleon arrived at Wilna, he was regarded by the people as their

liberator. A deputation was sent to him by the Diet of Warsaw entreating

his assistance towards the restoration of their ancient kingdom, the

re-establishment of Poland having been proclaimed. They came, they said,

to solicit Napoleon the Great to pronounce these few words: "Let the

kingdom of Poland exist!" and then it would exist; that all the Poles

would devote themselves to the orders of the fourth French dynasty, to

whom ages were but a moment, and space no more than a point.

Napoleon's reply was not satisfactory, "In my position, I have many

interests to reconcile," he said "and many duties to fulfill." His

answer was so extremely guarded, that the Poles became dissatisfied and

offered little or no support to the French. "Had Poland been

regenerated" says Bourrienne, "Napoleon would have found the means of

succeeding in his expedition. In his march upon Moscow, his rear and

supplies would have been protected, and he would have secured that

retreat which subsequent reverses rendered but too needful."

During this delay Alexander was enabled to withdraw the troops which he

had been maintaining on the flanks of his European domains and bring

them all to the assistance of his main army. The enthusiasm of the

Russian nation appeared in the extraordinary rapidity with which

supplies of every kind were poured at the feet of the Czar. From every

quarter he received voluntary offers of men, money, and whatever might

assist in the prosecution of the war. The Grand Duchess Anne, whose hand

Napoleon had solicited, set the example by raising a regiment on her

estate. Platoff, the veteran hetman of the Cossacks, promised his only

daughter and 200,000 rubles to the man by whose hand Napoleon should

fall. Noblemen everywhere raised troops, and displayed their patriotism

by serving in the ranks themselves and entrusting the command to

experienced officers chosen by the government.

Napoleon at length re-entered the field without having done much to

remedy the disorders of his commissariat. He at first determined to make

St. Petersburg his mark, counting much on the effects which a triumphal

entry into the capital would produce throughout the country, but his

troops meeting with some reverses at Riga and Dunaburg, he changed his

plans and resolved to march on Moscow instead.

The centre of the army was now thrown forward under Davoust with the

view of turning Barclay's position and cutting off his communication

with Bagration. This brought about an engagement with the latter on the

23rd of July near Mohilow, the French remaining in possession of the

town. The Russian commander in retreating informed Barclay that he was

now marching, not on Vitepsk, but on Smolensk.

During the three days of the 25th, 26th and 27th of July the French were

again victorious. Napoleon halted at Vitepsk for several days in order

to allow his troops to recuperate. On the 8th of August the Emperor

quitted Vitepsk and after a partial engagement at Krasnoi on the 14th,

came in sight of Smolensk on the 16th. On the 10th of August Napoleon

was observed to write eight letters to Davoust, and nearly as many to

each of his commanders. "If the enemy defends Smolensk" he said in one

of his letters to Davoust, "as I am tempted to believe he will, we shall

have a decisive engagement there, and we cannot have too large a force.

Orcha will become the central point of the army. Everything induces me

to believe that there will be a great battle at Smolensk."

The day on which the combat at Krasnoi was fought happened to be the

Emperor's birthday. There was no intention of keeping it in these

immense solitudes, and under the present circumstances of peril and

anxiety. There could be no heartfelt festival without a complete

victory. Murat and Ney, however, on giving in the report of their recent

success, could not refrain from complimenting the Emperor on the

anniversary of his nativity. A salute from a hundred pieces of artillery

was now heard,--fired according to their orders.

Napoleon, with a look of displeasure, observed, that in Russia it was

important to be economical of French powder; but he was informed in

reply, that it was Russian powder, and had been taken the night before.

The idea of having his birthday celebrated at the expense of the

Russians made Napoleon smile.

Prince Eugene also paid his compliments to the Emperor on this occasion,

but was cut short by Napoleon saying, "Everything is preparing for a

battle. I will gain that, and then we will see Moscow." Ségur says that

Eugene was heard to observe, on leaving the imperial tent, "Moscow will

destroy us!"

The first and second armies of the Czar, under Bagration and Barclay,

having at length effected a junction, retired with 120,000 men behind

the river which flows at the back of this town.

As soon as Napoleon saw these masses of men approaching from the

distance he clapped his hands with joy, exclaiming, "At last I have

them!" The moment that was to decide the fate of Russia or the French

army, had apparently arrived.

Napoleon passed along the line, and assigned to each commander his

station, leaving an extensive plain unoccupied in front between himself

and the Dneiper. This he offered to the enemy as a field of battle, but

instead of accepting the challenge Barclay and Bagration were seen next

morning in full retreat.

During the night the Russian garrison had withdrawn and joined the army

across the river. Before they departed they committed the city to

flames, and, the buildings being chiefly of wood, the conflagration,

according to the French bulletin, "resembling in its fury an eruption of

Vesuvius." "Never," said Napoleon, "was war conducted with such

inhumanity; the Russians treat their own country as if it were that of

an enemy." It now, however, began to be difficult in the extreme to

extinguish the flames created by the retreating Russians. The Emperor in

person used every effort to stop the progress of the devouring element

and render succor to the wounded. "Napoleon," says Gourgaud, "is of all

generals, whether ancient or modern, the one who has paid the greatest

attention to the wounded. The intoxication of victory never could make

him forget them, and his first thought, after every battle, was always

of them."

It was very evident that the Russian commander had no desire that

Napoleon should establish himself in winter quarters at this point. From

Smolensk the Russians retreated to Dorogoburg, and thence to Viasma;

halting at each of these towns and deliberately burning them in face of

the enemy. Having returned to Smolensk, Napoleon became a prey to the

most harassing reflections on the opportunity which had so lately

escaped him of destroying the whole of the Russian army, and attaining a

speedy conclusion of peace. Uncertainty began to gain ground with him;

vague presentiments made him desire to terminate as soon as possible

this distant campaign. "We are too far engaged to fall back," said the

Emperor on arriving at Ougea; "and if I only proposed to myself the

glory of warlike exploits, I should have but to return to Smolensk,

there plant my eagles, and content myself with extending my right and

left arms which would crush Witgenstein and Tormasoff. These operations

would be brilliant; they would finish the campaign very satisfactorily,

but they would not terminate the war. Our troops may advance, but are

incapable of remaining stationary, motion may keep them together: a halt

or retreat would at once dissolve them. Ours is an army of attack, not

of defense; of operation, not of position. We must advance upon Moscow,

gain possession of that capital, and there dictate terms of peace to the

Czar! Peace is before us; we are but eight days march from it; when the

object is so nearly attained, it would be unwise to deliberate. Let us,

therefore, march upon Moscow!"

At this period Barclay was appointed to the war ministry at St.

Petersburg, and Kutusoff, who assumed the command in his stead, was

beginning to doubt whether the system of retreat had not been far enough

persisted in. Napoleon ordered a vigorous pursuit of the enemy, hoping

to come up with and crush him, before he could reach his ancient

capital. The honor of marching with the advance guard devolved upon

Marshal Ney, who gloriously justified the confidence of Napoleon by the

intelligence and bravery which he displayed at the battle of Valoutina.

This was a most sanguinary fight. Four times were the Russians driven

from their positions, and on each occasion, brought up reinforcements,

and retook them; at length they were finally overthrown by the valorous

Gudin who charged at the head of his division, the vigor and impetuosity

of which led the enemy to believe that they were exposed to the shock of

the Imperial Guard. Thirty thousand men were brought into action on

either side, and the slaughter was terrible. Much individual bravery was

also displayed on this occasion. But for the failure of Junot,--who had

begun to show signs of approaching insanity,--to faithfully execute his

orders, the victory might have been decisive. The Emperor was much

gratified, however, at the conduct of his troops at Valoutina. He

repaired in person to the field of battle and passed in review the

divers regiments which had distinguished themselves there. "Arrived at

the 7th light infantry" says Gourgaud, "he ordered the captains to

advance, and said to them, 'Show me the best officer of the regiment.'

'Sire, they are all good--' 'that is no answer; come at least to the

conclusion of Themistocles; 'I am the first; the second is my

neighbor.''"

At length Captain Moncey, who was absent on account of his wounds, was

named. "What," said the Emperor, "Moncey who was my page! the son of the

marshal! Seek another!" "Sire, he is the best." "Ah, well!" said

Napoleon, "I shall give him the decoration."

Up till this time the 127th regiment had marched without an eagle,

having had no opportunity of distinguishing itself. The Imperial ensign

was now delivered to it by Napoleon's own hands.

The new Russian general at length resolved to comply with the clamorous

entreaties of his troops and fixed on a strong position between Borodino

and Moskowa on the highroad to Moscow, where he determined to await the

attack of Napoleon who was pushing the war vigorously, sword in hand, in

the hopes of closing hostilities by one pitched battle.

On the 5th of September Napoleon came in sight of the position of

Kutusoff and succeeded in carrying a redoubt which had been erected to

guard the high-road to Moscow. This was effected at the bayonet point,

though not without great slaughter on either side.

The next day the two armies lay in presence of each other preparing for

a great contest. On the eve of, and before daybreak on the 6th, the

Emperor was on horseback, wrapped in his gray coat, and exhibited all

the alacrity of his younger days. On his return to headquarters he

found a courier had arrived with dispatches announcing Marmont's defeat

and the deliverance of Salamanca into the hands of Wellington. M. de

Beausset also arrived bringing from Paris a portrait of Napoleon's son

which deeply moved the Emperor. He caused the picture to be placed

outside his tent where it was viewed by his officers. He then said to

his secretary, "Take it away, and guard it carefully; he sees a field of

battle too early."

The Russians were posted on an elevated plain; having a wood on their

right flank, their left on one of the villages, and a deep ravine, the

bed of a small stream, in front. Extensive field-works covered every

prominent point of this naturally very strong ground; and in the centre

of the whole line, a gentle eminence was crowned by an enormous battery,

serving as a species of citadel. The Russian army numbered about 120,000

men against which were opposed almost an equal number of French troops.

In artillery, also, the armies were equal. The Emperor fixed his

headquarters in the redoubt whence he had issued the order for battle in

the morning; the elevation of the ground permitted him to observe the

greatest part of the Russian line, and the various movements of the

enemy. The young guard and the cavalry were before him, and the old

guard in his rear.

Before the engagement Napoleon addressed his troops: "Here is the battle

you have looked for,"--he said, "for it brings us plenty; good

winter-quarters, and a safe retreat to France. Behave yourselves so that

posterity may say of each of you,--'He was in that great battle beneath

the walls of Moscow.'"

At 4 o'clock on the morning of the 7th the French advanced under cover

of a thick fog, and assaulted at once the centre, the right, and the

left of Kutusoff's position. Such was the impetuosity of the charge that

they drove the Russians from their redoubts but this was for a short

time only as they rallied under every line of the fire from the French,

and instantly advanced. Russian peasants who, till that hour, had never

seen war, and who still wore their usual rustic dress, distinguished

only by a cross sewed on it in front, threw themselves into the thickest

of the combat. As they fell, others rushed on and filled their places.

Some idea may be formed of the obstinacy of the contest from the fact

that one division of the Russians which mustered 30,000 in the morning

only 8,000 survived. These men had fought in close order, and unshaken,

under the fire of eighty pieces of artillery. The Russians had the

advantage of ground, of speaking but one language, of one uniform, of

being a single nation, and fighting for the same cause. By 2 o'clock,

however, according to the imperial bulletin, all hope had abandoned the

enemy; the battle was at an end, although the cannonade was not yet

discontinued. The Russians fought for their retreat and safety, but no

longer for the victory.

The result of this terrible day, in which the French fired sixty-six

thousand cannon balls, was that while the Russians were defeated they

were far from routed. "However great may have been the success of this

day," says Ségur, "it might have been still more so if Napoleon, instead

of finishing the battle at 4 o'clock in the afternoon had profited by

the remainder of the day to bring his Guard into the field, and thus

changed the defeat of the enemy into a complete rout."

That the Emperor suffered intensely during the day is well-known. He had

passed a restless night and a violent and incessant cough cut short his

breathing.

As to his desire of preserving a reserve uninjured, and forming it from

a chosen and devoted body, such as his Guard, Napoleon explained it to

his marshals by saying: "And if there should be a second battle

tomorrow, what could I oppose to it?"

General Gourgaud has added: "If the Guard had been destroyed at the

battle of Moskowa, the French army, of which their guard constantly

formed the core, and whose courage it supported during the retreat,

could scarcely have ever repassed the Niemen."

This refusal of Napoleon to engage his Guard is generally held to have

been one of his greatest military lapses. At the time they were demanded

by Ney and others the enemy was all but beaten and the appearance of the

Emperor at their head would in all probability have closed the day with

a great victory to his credit, and, according to the opinions of many

military men of this day, have ended the Russian campaign by this one

battle.

Night found either army on the ground they had occupied at daybreak. The

number of guns and prisoners taken by the French and the Russians was

about equal; and of either host there had fallen not less than 40,000

men. Some accounts give the total number of the slain as 100,000.

The Russian commander fought desperately but was at last compelled to

retire. His army was the mainstay of the country and had it been

destroyed, the Czar would have found it difficult to form another.

Having ascertained then the extent of his loss and buried his dead,

among whom was the gallant Bagration, the Russian withdrew from his

intrenchment and marched on Mojaisk. Marshal Ney was rewarded for the

noble share he had in the success of this battle, by the title of Prince

of the Moskowa.

The small number of prisoners taken at Moskowa,--or Borodino as the

battle is frequently called,--the circumstance of the Russians being

able to carry away their wounded, and many other considerations amply

prove that such another contest would have ruined Napoleon. The Russians

ordered _Te Deums_ to be chanted at Moscow in honor of what they termed

a victory for themselves and Napoleon sent similar instructions to his

bishops in France.

Napoleon was so fortunate as to be joined exactly at this time by two

fresh divisions from Smolensk which nearly restored his muster to what

it had been when the battle began, and thus reinforced commanded that

the pursuit be pushed. On the 9th the French vanguard came in sight of

the Russian rear again and Napoleon prepared for battle but once more

Kutusoff fled precipitately in the direction of the capital.

The Emperor reached the "Hill of Salvation,"--so called because from

that eminence the Russian traveler obtains his first view of the ancient

metropolis affectionately called "Mother Moscow," and hardly less sacred

in his eyes than Jerusalem. The soldiery beheld with joy and exultation

the magnificent extent of the place; its mixture of Gothic steeples and

oriental domes; and high over all the rest the huge towers of the

Kremlin, at once the palace and citadel of the old Czars. The cry of

"Moscow! Moscow!" ran through the lines. Napoleon himself reined in his

horse, and exclaimed, "Behold, at last, that celebrated city!"

It was soon observed that no smoke came from the chimneys, and again,

that no military appeared on the battlements of the old walls and

towers. Murat, who commanded the van, now came riding up and informed

the Emperor that he had held a parley with Milarodowitch, general of the

Russian rear-guard, and that he had declared that unless two hours were

granted for the safe withdrawing of his troops, he would at once set

fire to Moscow. Napoleon immediately granted the armistice. When the

Emperor halted at the barrier he had the exterior of the city

reconnoitred; Eugene was ordered to surround it on the north, and

Poniatowski to embrace the south, whilst Davoust remained near the

centre; the Guard was then ordered to march, and, under the command of

Lefebvre, Napoleon entered Moscow, and prepared to establish himself in

the city. He found the capital deserted by all but the very lowest and

most wretched of its vast population. The French soldiers soon spread

themselves over its innumerable streets filling the magnificent palaces,

the bazaars of the merchants, the churches, convents and public

buildings of every description. The meanest soldier clothed himself in

silk and furs and drank at his pleasure the costliest wines. Napoleon,

perplexed at the abandonment of so great a city, had great difficulty in

keeping together 30,000 men under Murat, who followed Milarodowitch, and

watched the walls on that side.

At midnight the Emperor, who had retired to rest in a suburban palace,

was awakened by the cry of "Fire!" The chief market-place was in flames

and it was some hours before it could be extinguished. While the fire

still burned Napoleon established his quarters in the Kremlin, and wrote

by that fatal light, a letter to the Czar, containing proposals for

peace. In his letter he assured the Czar, "that whatever might be the

vicissitudes of war, nothing could diminish the esteem entertained for

him by his friend of Tilsit and Erfurt."

[Illustration: From a Painting by Horace Vernet

NAPOLEON AT THE BATTLE OF FREIDLAND]

The letter was committed to a prisoner of rank but no answer was ever

received to it. On the next day the flames broke out again and in a

short time various detached parts of the city were in flames,

combustibles and matches were found in many places, and the water-pipes

cut so that attempts to control the spreading flames were almost

useless. The wind changed three times in the course of the night and the

flames always broke out again with new vigor in the quarter from which

the prevailing breeze blew right on the Kremlin. It was now found that

the governor, in abandoning the city, had set all the malefactors in the

numerous jails at liberty.

For four days the fire continued with more or less fury and four-fifths

of the city was wholly consumed. "Palaces and temples," says Karamsin

the Russian author, "monuments of arts and miracles of luxury, the

remains of ages long since past, and the creation of yesterday, the

tombs of ancestors, and the cradles of children were indiscriminately

destroyed. Nothing was left of Moscow save the memory of her people, and

their deep resolution to avenge her fall."

On the third night the equinoctial gale arose, the Kremlin itself, from

which point Napoleon had witnessed the spread of this fearful

devastation, took fire and it became doubtful whether it would be

possible for the Emperor to withdraw in safety.

About 4 o'clock in the morning, one of Napoleon's officers awoke him, to

inform him of the conflagration. He had thrown himself on the bed only

a few minutes before, after having dictated orders to the various corps

of his army, and labored with his secretaries. He watched from the

windows the course of the fire which devoured his fair conquest, and the

exclamation burst from him: "This is then how they make war! The

civilization of St. Petersburg has deceived us; they are indeed

Scythians!"

During several hours he remained immovable at the Kremlin. The palace

was now surrounded by the flames and he consented to be conducted out of

the city. He rode out through streets in many parts arched over with

flames, and buried, where this was not the case, in one dense mantle of

smoke. "It was then" says Ségur, "that we met the Prince of Eckmuhl

(Davoust). This marshal, who had been wounded at the Moskowa, had

desired to be carried back among the flames to rescue Napoleon, or to

perish with him. He threw himself into his arms with transport; the

Emperor received him kindly, but with that composure which in danger he

never lost for a moment."

"Not even the fictions of the burning of Troy" said the Emperor, "though

heightened by all the powers of poetry, could have equalled the

destruction of Moscow."

It was in the afternoon of the 16th that Napoleon left Moscow and before

nightfall had reached Petrowsky, a country palace of the Czar, about a

league distant, and where he fixed his headquarters.

On the 20th, the flames being at length subdued, or exhausted, Napoleon

returned to the Kremlin still hoping that the Czar would relent on

learning of the destruction of his ancient and sacred metropolis. Day

after day passed and still there came no answer from Alexander. The

Emperor's position was becoming hourly more critical. On every side

there was danger; the whole forces of Russia appeared to be gathering

around him. Then, too, the season was far advanced; the stern winter of

the North was at hand and the determined hostility of the peasants

prevented the smallest supplies of provisions from being introduced into

the capital.

Daru advised the Emperor to draw in all his detachments, convert Moscow

into an intrenched camp, kill and salt every horse, and trust to

foraging parties for the rest--in a word to lay aside all thoughts of

keeping up communication with France, or Germany, or even Poland; and

issue forth from Moscow, with his army entire and refreshed, in the

commencement of the Spring. But Napoleon feared, and not without reason,

that were he and his army cut off from all communication, during six

months, the Prussians and the Austrians might throw off the yoke; while,

on the other hand, the Russians could hardly fail, in the course of so

many months, to accumulate, in their own country, a force before which

his isolated army, on re-issuing from their winter quarters would appear

but a mere speck.

Another letter was now sent by Napoleon to the headquarters of Kutusoff

for Alexander. Count Lauriston was received by the commander in the

midst of his generals and answered with such civility that the envoy

doubted not of success. In the end, however, he was informed that no

negotiations could be entertained and he declared his inability to even

sanction the journey of any French messenger to St. Petersburg, without

the authorization of his master. Kutusoff offered, finally, to send

Napoleon's letter by one of his own aides-de-camp, and to this

Lauriston was obliged to agree. The interview occurred on the 6th of

October; no answer could be expected before the 20th. There had already

been one fall of snow, and the dangers attendant on a longer sojourn in

the ruined capital were increasing every hour.

It was under such circumstances that Napoleon lingered on in the Kremlin

until the 19th of October when he decided to depart from Moscow. That

evening several divisions were put in motion and the metropolis was

wholly evacuated on the morning of the 22nd. This sudden departure was

due in part to Murat's engagement with Bennigsen at Vincovo on the 18th,

the day on which the suspension of arms expired, causing him to lose

3,000 prisoners and forty pieces of artillery. General Milarodowitch,

during a conversation with Murat a few days before, talked very frankly

of the situation. Murat looked upon peace as indispensable to Russia,

and was enlarging upon "the continued success of the French" and

having opened for them the gates of Moscow. "Yes General," replied

Milarodowitch, briskly, "the campaign is over with the French, and it is

now time it should commence with the Russians."

On the 19th of October the Emperor with 6,000 chosen horse began his

journey towards Smolensk, the care of bringing up the main body being

given to Eugene Beauharnais, while Ney commanded the rear.

As Napoleon left Moscow he said to Mortier: "Pay every attention to the

sick and wounded. Sacrifice your baggage,--everything to them. Let the

wagons be devoted to their use, and, if necessary your own saddles. This

was the course I pursued at St. Jean d' Acre. The officers will first

relinquish their horses, then the sub-officers, and finally the men.

Assemble the generals and officers under your command, and make them

sensible how necessary, in their circumstances, is humanity. The Romans

bestowed civic crowns on those who preserved their citizens; I shall not

be less grateful."

From the commencement of this march hardly a day elapsed in which some

new calamity did not befall those hitherto invincible legions. The

Cossacks of Platoff came upon one division at Kolotsk, near Borodino, on

the 1st of November, and gave them a total defeat. A second division was

attacked the day after and with nearly equal success, by the irregular

troops of Count Orloff Denizoff. The French now became separated by

attacks made by Milarodowitch and the soldiers began to suffer from

extreme hunger. On the 6th of November their miseries were heightened by

the setting in of the Russian winter. Thenceforth, between the heavy

columns of regular troops which on every side watched and threatened

them, the continued assaults of the Cossacks who hung around them in

clouds by day and by night, rushing on every detached party like the

Mamelukes of Egypt, disturbing every bivouac, breaking up bridges

before, and destroying every straggler behind them, to the terrible

severity of the climate, the frost, the snow, the wind--the sufferings

of this once magnificent army were such as have hardly been equalled in

the world's history.

The enormous train of artillery which Napoleon brought from Moscow was

soon diminished and the roads were blocked up with the spoils of the

city, abandoned of necessity, as the means of transport failed. The

horses, having been ill-fed for months, were altogether unable to resist

the united effects of cold and fatigue. They sank and stiffened by

hundreds and by thousands. The starving soldiery slew others of these

animals that they might drink their warm blood and wrap themselves in

their yet reeking skins! All discipline had vanished.

They were able to keep together some battalions of the rear-guard, and

present a bold aspect to the pursuers, the heroic Marshal Ney not

disdaining to bear a firelock, and share the meanest fatigues of his

brave followers.

The main Russian army, having advanced side by side with the French, was

now stationed to the southwest of Smolensk, in readiness to break the

enemy's march whenever Kutusoff should choose. Milarodowitch and Platoff

were hanging close behind, and thinning every hour the miserable bands

which had no longer heart, nor, for the most part, arms of any kind

wherewith to resist them. All the reports brought to headquarters by the

officers, represented Kutusoff as disposed to oppose the French army and

risk a battle, rather than abandon his positions which were on the road

he wished to close against the continued retreat of the Emperor.

Napoleon was not convinced by these reports. At daybreak, mounted on

horseback, he started out to reconnoitre the camp and disposition of the

enemy who was preparing to dispute Kalouga. As the Emperor arrived near

Malojaroslawetz a body of Cossacks was seen approaching. Napoleon and

his escort prepared to defend themselves. Rapp had scarcely time to

seize his chief's bridle and say, "It is the Cossacks, turn back!" ere a

fierce band galloped towards them. The Emperor, scorning flight, drew

his sword, and reigned his horse to the side of the road. The troop

dashed past wounding Rapp and his horse. "When Napoleon saw my horse

covered with blood," says Rapp in his "Memoirs," "he demanded if I had

been wounded. I replied that I had come off with a few bruises, upon

which he began to laugh at our adventure, although I, for my part, found

it anything but amusing." The appearance of Marshal Bessieres, who

arrived at the head of some squadrons of grenadiers of the Guard,

sufficed to stay the disorder and put the Cossacks to flight.

The Grand Army had mustered 120,000 men when it left Moscow. Including

the fragments of various divisions which met the Emperor at Smolensk it

was with great difficulty that 40,000 men could now be brought together

in anything like fighting condition. These Napoleon divided into four

columns, nearly equal in numbers; of the first which included 6,000 of

the Imperial Guard, he himself took the command, and marched with it

towards Krasnoi. The second corps was that of Eugene Beauharnais; the

third Davoust's; and the fourth destined for the perilous service of the

rear, and accordingly strengthened with 3,000 of the Guard, was

intrusted to the guidance of Marshal Ney.

Eugene and Ney at length entered Smolensk. The name of that town had

hitherto been the only spell that preserved any hope within the soldiers

of the retreat. There, they had been told, they should find food,

clothing, and supplies of all kinds, and there being once more assembled

under the eye of Napoleon, speedily reassume an aspect such as none of

the northern barbarians would dare to brave.

These expectations were far from realized. Smolensk had been almost

entirely destroyed by the Russians in the early part of the campaign.

Its ruined walls afforded only a scant shelter to the famished and

shivering fugitives, and the provisions assembled there were so

inadequate to the demands of the troops, that after the lapse of a few

days Napoleon found himself under the necessity of once more renewing

his disastrous march. While at Smolensk Napoleon received dispatches

from France, informing him that a false report of his death had

occasioned an outbreak and which threatened for a brief period the

colossal Empire he controlled. On receiving the news he exclaimed, with

deep feeling, and in the presence of his generals: "Does my power then,

hang on so slender a thread? Is my tenure of sovereignty so frail that a

single person can place it in jeopardy? Truly my crown is but ill-fitted

to my head if, in my very capital, the audacious attempt of two or three

adventurers can make it totter. After twelve years of government,--after

my marriage--after the birth of my son--after my oaths--my death would

have again plunged the country into the midst of revolutionary horrors.

And Napoleon II., was he no longer thought of?"

Napoleon left Smolensk on the 13th of November, 1812, having ordered

that the other corps should follow him on the 14th, 15th and 16th

respectively thus interposing a day's march between every two divisions.

It seems to be generally accepted that the name of Napoleon saved

whatever part of his host finally escaped from the territory of Russia.

Kutusoff appears to have exhausted the better part of his daring at

Borodino and thenceforth adhered to the plan of avoiding battle. He

seems to have been unable to again shake off that awe which had been the

growth of a hundred of Napoleon's victories;--had he been able to do so

the Emperor would probably have died on some battlefield between

Smolensk and the Beresina, or been taken a prisoner in the country

which three months before he had invaded at the head of half a million

of men. The army of Napoleon had been already reduced to a very small

fragment of its original strength, and even that fragment was now split

into four divisions against any one of which it would have been easy to

concentrate a force overwhelmingly superior.

The Emperor reached Krasnoi unmolested although the whole of the Russian

army, moving on a parallel road, were in full observation of his march;

Eugene, who followed him, was, however, intercepted on his way by

Milarodowitch, and after sustaining the contest gallantly against very

disproportionate numbers, and a terrible cannonade, was at length saved

only by the fall of night. During the darkness Eugene executed a long

and hazardous _detour_, and joined the Emperor at Krasnoi on the 17th;

the two leading divisions now united, mustered scarcely 15,000 men. It

was then thought advisable to await the arrival of Davoust's and Ney's

divisions before proceeding. Kutusoff was again urged to seize this

opportunity of pouring an irresistible force on the French position, and

although he thinned the ranks of the enemy with 100 pieces of artillery

well placed, he ventured on no closer collision than one or two isolated

cavalry charges. Napoleon, therefore, held his ground in face of all

that host, until nightfall, when Davoust's division, surrounded and

pursued by innumerable Cossacks, at length was enabled to rally once

more around his headquarters. Ney, however was still at Smolensk.

The Emperor now pushed on to relieve Eugene who was in command of the

van with orders to march on Liady and secure the passage of the Dneiper

at that point.

Davoust and Mortier were left at Krasnoi with orders to hold out as long

as possible in the hope of being there joined by Ney. Long, however,

before that gallant leader could reach this point, the Russians, as if

the absence of Napoleon had at once restored all their energy, rushed

down and forced on Davoust and Mortier the battle which Napoleon had in

vain solicited. On that fatal field the French left forty-five cannon

and 6,000 prisoners, besides the slain and wounded. The remainder with

difficulty effected their escape to Liady, where Napoleon once more

received them, and crossed the Dneiper.

Ney, meanwhile, having as directed by the Emperor, blown up whatever

remained of the walls and towers of Smolensk, at length set his

rear-guard in motion and advanced to Krasnoi, without being harassed by

any except Platoff whose Cossacks entered Smolensk ere he could wholly

abandon it. Ney continued to advance on the footsteps of those who had

thus shattered Davoust and Mortier and met with no considerable

interruption until he reached the ravine in which the rivulet Losmina

has its channel. A thick mist lay on the ground and Ney was almost on

the brink of the ravine before he perceived that it was manned

throughout by Russians, while the opposite banks displayed a long line

of batteries deliberately arranged, and all the hills behind covered

with troops.

A Russian officer appeared and summoned Ney to surrender. "A Marshal of

France never surrenders!" was his intrepid answer, and immediately the

batteries, distant only two hundred and fifty yards, opened a tremendous

storm of grape-shot. Ney, nevertheless, had the hardihood to plunge into

the ravine, clear a passage over the stream, and charge the Russians at

their arms. His small band was repelled with fearful slaughter; but he

renewed his efforts from time to time during the day, and at night,

though with numbers much diminished, still occupied his original

position in the face of a whole army interposed between him and

Napoleon. The Emperor had by this time given up all hopes of ever again

seeing anything of his rear column.

During the ensuing night Ney effected his escape--an escape so

miraculous that the history of war can scarcely furnish a parallel. The

marshal broke up his bivouac at midnight, and marched back from the

Losmina, until he came on another stream, which he concluded must also

flow into the river Dneiper. He followed this guide, and at length

reached the great river at a place where it was frozen over, though so

thinly, that the ice bent and cracked beneath the feet of the men who

crossed it in single files. The wagons laden with the wounded, and what

great guns were still with Ney, were too heavy for this frail bridge.

They attempted the passage at different points, and one after another

went down, amid the shrieks of the dying and the groans of the

onlookers.

The Cossacks had by this time gathered hard behind, and swept up many

stragglers, besides the sick. But Ney had achieved his great object; and

on the 20th of November he, with his small and devoted band of 1500 men,

joined the Emperor once more at Orcha. Napoleon, on seeing him received

him in his arms, and exclaimed, "What a man! What a soldier!" He could

not find words to express the admiration which the intrepid marshal had

inspired him with; he hailed him as "the bravest of the brave" and

declared with transport: "I have two hundred millions (of francs) in

the cellars of the Tuileries, and I would have given them all to save

Marshal Ney!"

The Emperor was once more at the head of his united "grand army"--a sad

remnant of its former glory and power. Between Smolensk and the Dneiper

the Russians had taken 228 guns, and 26,000 prisoners. At leaving

Smolensk Napoleon had mustered 40,000 effective men--he now could count

only 12,000, after Ney joined him at Orcha. Of these there were but one

hundred and fifty cavalry; and, to remedy this defect, officers still in

possession of horses, to the number of 500, were now formed into a

"sacred band," as it was called, commanded by General Grouchy, under

Murat, for immediate attendance upon the Emperor's person.

The Russians were now uniting all their forces for the defense of the

next great river on Napoleon's route,--the Beresina. The Emperor had

hardly resolved to cross this river at Borizoff, ere, to renew all

perplexities, he received intelligence that by a combat with Dombrowski

there the enemy had retained possession of the town and bridge. Victor

and Oudinot advanced immediately to succor Dombrowski and retook

Borizoff; but the Russians burned the bridge before re-crossing the

Beresina.

Napoleon now decided to pass the Beresina higher up, at Studzianska, and

forthwith threw himself into the huge forests which border the river,

adopting every stratagem by which his enemies could be puzzled as to the

immediate object of his march. His 12,000 brave and determined men were

winding their way amidst these dark woods, when suddenly the air around

them was filled with sounds which could only proceed from the march of

some far greater host. They were preparing for the worst when they

found themselves in the presence of the advanced guard of the united

army of Victor and Oudinot, who, although they had been defeated by

Witgenstein, still mustered 50,000 men, completely equipped and hardly

shaken in discipline.

Napoleon now continued his march on Studzianska, employing, however, all

his wit to confirm the belief among the Russians that he meant to pass

the Beresina at a different place, and this with so much success that

the Russian rear-guard abandoned a strong position commanding the river,

during the very night which preceded the Emperor's appearance there.

Two bridges were erected, and Oudinot had passed over before Tchaplitz,

in command of the Russian rear-guard, perceived his mistake, and

returned again toward Studzianska. Discovering that the passage had

already begun, and that in consequence of the narrowness of the only two

bridges, it must needs proceed slowly, Tchichagoff and Witgenstein now

arranged a joint plan of attack. Platoff and his indefatigable Cossacks

joined Witgenstein arriving long before the rear-guard of Napoleon could

pass the river. The French that had made the passage were attacked by

Tchaplitz, and being repelled by Oudinot left them in unmolested

possession, not only of the bridges on the Beresina, but of a long train

of wooden causeways extending for miles beyond the river over deep and

dangerous morasses which but a few sparks were needed to ignite and

destroy.

Victor with the rear division, consisting of 8,000 men, was still on the

eastern side when Witgenstein and Platoff appeared on the heights. The

still numerous retainers of the camp, crowds of sick, wounded, and

women, and the greater part of the artillery were in the same situation.

When the Russian cannon began to open upon this multitude, crammed

together near the bank, and each anxiously expecting the turn to pass, a

shriek of utter terror ran through them, and men, women, horses and

wagons rushed pell-mell upon the bridges. The larger of these, intended

solely for wagons and cannon, ere long broke down precipitating all that

were upon it into the dark and half-frozen stream. "The scream that

arose at this moment," says one that heard it, "did not leave my ears

for weeks; it was heard clear and loud over the hurrahs of the Cossacks,

and all the roar of artillery."