In November 1812, heavy battles broke out between the retreating Napoleonic troops and the army of M.I. Kutuzov in the area of the village of Krasny. Despite the fact that the French suffered heavy losses, they still managed to avoid complete defeat then, and they continued on their way to the borders of Russia. However, an even more crushing defeat awaited them, which went down in history as a battle on the Berezina.
Inglourious retreat
After the tragic events near Krasnoye, Napoleon had only one task: to take out the greatest possible number of soldiers and officers of his once great army from the blow and save from death. In this regard, it was extremely important to reach the border river Berezina and, by all means, cross the opposite bank.
The difficulty lay in the fact that his troops, demoralized and largely lost their fighting ability, were on the heels of pursuing parts of General Miloradovich and Cossacks Platov, and for a decisive battle the armies of P.V. Chichagov and P. Kh. Wittgenstein.
No less formidable opponents of the French were the Russian frosts that raged that year with extraordinary force, as well as the hunger that devastated their ranks with ruthless shrapnel. Unaccustomed to the harsh climate and weakened by malnutrition, people from the warm Mediterranean lands hundreds died on the sidelines of endless Russian roads. Snow densely covered their icy bodies, and only in the spring the local peasants brought to the earth the remains of the "conquerors of Europe."
The plan developed by the sovereign
After the victory won near the village of Krasny, Kutuzov gave his troops the opportunity to rest and put in order the ammunition. The main role in the proposed battle on the river. Berezina, according to the plan of Alexander I, was assigned to two other armies. One of them, under the command of Admiral Pavel Vasilyevich Chichagov, was to approach the river and take positions in such a way as to cut off the French route to retreat, even in the case of a successful crossing.
At the same time, the corps, led by General Peter Khristianovich Wittgenstein, was to strike from the flanks. To complete the rout of the enemy and thereby ensure victory in the battle on the Berezina, the army of M.I. Kutuzov, suitable from the eastern side, should have been.
In anticipation of the battle
There were all objective prerequisites for the implementation of the plan. In particular, Chichagov’s army, which had previously fought on the territory of Austria, which was Napoleon’s ally, was able to leave the theater of operations in view of the passivity of the enemy. At the same time, General Wittgenstein, who had previously blocked the way for the French to move to St. Petersburg, after retreating from Moscow, was able to leave their previous positions and begin to carry out new operational tasks. As for the army of M.I. Kutuzov, then she was ready for the battle on the Berezina, as she took advantage of the respite granted to her.
The complexity of the situation in which the French troops found themselves was significantly aggravated after parts of General Chichagov captured Smolensk, where Napoleon concentrated a large amount of provisions, vital in conditions of retreat. In addition, his main hospital was located there, in which then about 2 thousand wounded were treated. All of them were captured. Got the Russian army and large food supplies.
The tragedy that preceded the victory
However, the battle near Berezina was preceded by an episode that became a tragic page in the history of the Patriotic War of 1812. The fact is that according to a previously developed disposition, on November 21, the advanced units of the Russian army, under the command of General K.O. Lambert, captured the city of Borisov, in the area of which, according to intelligence, Napoleon intended to carry his troops across the Berezina River.
During this operation, many prisoners and several enemy cannons were also captured. However, due to a number of objective reasons, the armies of Wittgenstein and Kutuzov could not join him in time, and the units led by Lambert remained face to face with the approaching corps of the French Marshal Udino. The forces were unequal, and the Russian troops were forced to retreat from the city, bearing, at the same time, huge losses. According to historians, of these, at least 2 thousand people died that day.
Arrival of Napoleon
Two days before the start of the battle near the Berezina River, which took place on November 26, 1812, Napoleon arrived with the 40,000th corps, including his personal guard, consisting of 8 thousand selected warriors, at the place of the supposed crossing. In addition, a fully combat-ready contingent was accompanied by the same number of wounded, sick and simply unarmed soldiers. Following them stretched an endless string of civilians.
Building bridges
Preparations for the crossing, which was truly disastrous for the French, began on November 25. Under the cover of artillery batteries installed on the shore, soldiers of engineering units violated the construction of two pontoon bridges in the vicinity of the village of Studenka, located just north of Borisov. Despite the fact that the width of the river at this place was about 100 meters, it was recognized as the most convenient for the implementation of the plan. One of the bridges was intended for the passage of manpower, and the second - for transporting carts and artillery.
Eyewitnesses of those events subsequently recalled that for the construction of bridges several hundred pontoons (soldiers who were responsible for guiding the pontoon crossings) were forced to stand chest in water for several hours, while ice floes swam past them, which appeared unusually early that year. As a result, they all died from hypothermia, unable to withstand loads that exceeded the capabilities of human nature.
The beginning of the crossing
The main events that preceded the battle of Berezin (year 1812) began on November 26, when Napoleon ordered the troops to immediately proceed to the crossing, the defense of which he led personally. To this end, on the opposite shore, occupied by the Cossacks of General Kornilov, he sent a detachment of cavalrymen who wade across the river and the first to engage in battle. Their actions covered the fire of several artillery batteries from the eastern side of the river.
At about one o'clock in the afternoon the crossing of troops began, of which the regiments of the marshals Udino and Ney were the first to set foot on the west bank. Following them, the division of the French general Partuno proceeded through pontoon bridges. On this day, the Russian troops could not stop them, because they were pushed back by specially allocated units.
Active hostilities began on November 27, after Napoleon himself and his personal guard unit crossed the western bank of the river. At about two in the afternoon, the corps under the command of Wittgenstein successfully attacked the French division of Marshal Partuno, covering the withdrawal of the main enemy forces, and captured about one and a half thousand soldiers and officers.
Collapsed bridge
The next day, fighting unfolded on both banks of the Berezina. Due to the characteristics of the swampy and marshy terrain, the actions of the cavalry were extremely limited, and the main burden fell on the shoulders of the infantry. The French were in a hurry to leave the east coast, but the bridges they built could not provide the passage of a huge number of people.
As a result, a huge crowd gathered on the eastern shore near the crossing. When several cores hit it, panic broke out. Everyone randomly rushed to the bridge, and it collapsed, unable to bear the weight. Once in the water, people were drowning in hundreds, and those who had not yet had time to step on the pontoons died from an unimaginable crush and suffocation.
Exploded ferry
No less tragic that day for the French and other military operations. It is enough to say that among the killed and wounded there were 13 generals, as for the losses of personnel, they are measured in several thousand. These include a significant number of civilians following the Napoleonic army, who also fell victim to the tragedy.
In order to allow the crossing units to quickly and easily break away from the persecution, on the morning of November 29, the French blew up the still remaining bridge. As a result, a huge number of their soldiers and officers remaining on the east coast became easy prey for the troops of Wittgenstein and the Cossacks of Platov.
Bitter statistics
Summing up the battle on the Berezina, researchers indicate that the salvation of his own life, as well as the withdrawal from the fire of several of the most significant regiments for him, went to Napoleon at a high price. In those days, only the combat-ready soldiers at his disposal killed more than 21 thousand.
The losses incurred among the wounded, sick, as well as civilians, who tried to leave Russia with his army, are incalculable. It is not surprising that even today, the word Berezina is a household word for the French, and means a complete failure that ended in disaster.
Coin "The Battle of Berezin"
Nowadays, all the materials telling about the exile of Napoleonic troops cause hot interest among people of various ages. In this regard, active work is being carried out to promote them, aimed at the patriotic education of Russian citizens.
For example, in honor of the significant event, which was the 200th anniversary of the victory in the Patriotic War of 1812, a 5-ruble commemorative coin was issued - “The Battle of Berezin” (a photo of its reverse is presented in the article). Much has been written about this episode of the expulsion of Napoleonic troops from Russian territory, but its significance is so great that it makes us return to it again and again.