Relations between state and church in the 17th century. Russian Orthodox Church in the 17th century

The Battle of Leipzig took place on October 16-19, 1813. It was the largest in all history until the First World War. On the side of Napoleon, not only the French fought, but also the troops of the kingdoms of Saxony, Württemberg and Italy, the Kingdom of Naples, the Duchy of Warsaw and the Rhine Union, which were also part of the empire. The troops of the entire VI anti-French coalition, that is, the Russian and Austrian empires, the kingdoms of Sweden and Prussia, opposed him. That is why this battle is also called the Battle of the Nations - regiments from almost all of Europe converged there.
Initially, Napoleon occupied a central position between several armies and attacked the nearest Bohemian, consisting of Russian and Prussian troops, hoping to break it before the rest approached. The battle unfolded over a large area, the battles went on simultaneously for several villages. By the end of the day, the Allied battle lines were barely holding. From 3 o'clock in the afternoon they were basically only defending themselves. Napoleon's troops made violent attacks, such as an attempt to break through 10 thousand cavalrymen of Marshal Murat in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe village of Wachau, which was stopped only thanks to a counterattack by the Life Guards of the Cossack regiment. Many historians are convinced that Napoleon could have won the battle on the first day, but he did not have enough daylight hours - it became impossible to continue attacks in the dark.
On October 17, local battles took place only for some villages, the main part of the troops was inactive. 100,000 reinforcements were coming to the allies. 54 thousand of them (the so-called Polish Army of General Bennigsen (that is, the Russian army marching from Poland)) appeared on that day. At the same time, Napoleon could only count on the corps of Marshal von Dubep, who did not come that day. The French emperor sent a proposal for a truce to the allies and therefore almost did not conduct hostilities that day - he was waiting for an answer. He was not honored with an answer.
On October 18, Naloleon's troops withdrew to new, more fortified positions. There were about 150 thousand of them, given that at night the troops of the kingdoms of Saxony and Württemburg went over to the side of the enemy. Allied in the morning sent 300,000 soldiers into the fire. They attacked all day, but failed to inflict a decisive defeat on the enemy. They took some villages, but only pushed back, and did not crush and did not break through the enemy battle formations.
On October 19, Napoleon's remaining troops began to retreat. And then it turned out that the emperor was counting only on victory, there was only one road left for retreat - to Weissenfels. As was the custom in all wars until the 20th century, the retreat took the heaviest losses.
Napoleon for the second time in a short time gathered a huge army, and the second time he lost almost all of it. Also, as a result of the retreat after the Battle of the Nations, he lost almost the weight of the occupied lands outside of France, so he no longer had the hope of putting such a number of people under arms for the third time. That is why this battle was so important - after it, the advantage in both numbers and resources was always on the side of the allies.

13th year in history -

1813 year

"BATTLE OF PEOPLES" - this is the name of the historical battle of Leipzig,

the coalition won by the troops against Napoleon in October 1813,

belongs to Colonel of the Prussian General Staff Baron Müfling.

An eyewitness of the battle reports that on October 16, the allied armies moved in a powerful stream towards Leipzig. Those present were captivated by an unusual spectacle, resembling the migration of peoples.

At this time, Müfling called the upcoming battle

"Great Battle of the Nations"

This name has gone down in history (Steffens, Was ich erlebte, VII, S. 295)

"So the four-day battle of peoples near Leipzig decided the fate of the world."

Sauerweid - Battle of Leipzig (19th century)

"Battle of the Nations" - the war of the sixth coalition against Napoleon

AfterRussian campaign of 1812 ending in destructionFrench army, in the spring of 1813, Prussia rebelled against Napoleon . Russian-Prussian troops liberated Germany up to the Elbe.

Napoleon, recruiting new recruits to replace those who died inRussia veterans, managed to win 2 victories over the Russian-Prussian troops at Lützen (May 2) and at Bautzen (May 21 ), leading to a brief ceasefire with June 4, 1813.

The truce is over11th August entry into the war against Napoleon Austria and Sweden . The resulting Sixth Coalition united against Napoleon Austria, Great Britain, Spain, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, Swedenand part of the small German states-principalities.

The coalition troops were divided into 3 armies: the Northern Army under the command of the Swedish Crown PrinceBernadotte, Silesian army under the command of a Prussian field marshal Blucher and Bohemian army under the command of an Austrian field marshal Schwarzenberg . Russian troops made up significant contingents in all 3 armies, however, according to political reasons emperor Alexander Idid not require command for Russian generals.

Although the Russian troops were commandedgenerals of which the most influential wasBarclay de Tolly, Emperor Alexander I intervened in operational management.

Alexander became the main creator Sixth Coalition 1813 against Napoleon.

The invasion of the Napoleonic armies Russia was perceived by Alexander not only as the greatest threat to Russia, but also as a personal insult, and Napoleon himself became his personal enemy. Alexander in turn rejected all offers of peace, as he believed that this would devalue all the sacrifices made during the war. Many times the diplomatic nature of the Russian monarch saved the coalition. Napoleon considered him an "inventive Byzantine", northern Talma, an actor who is able to play any significant role.

HEROES OF THE "BATTLE OF PEOPLES"

Russian historical painting, 1813 - The feat of the grenadier of the Life Guards of the Finnish Regiment L. Korenny in the battle of Leipzig 1813.

Artist - Babaev Polidor Ivanovich - State. Russian Museum, St. Petersburg

Military Encyclopedia: Volume X111 Type. I.D. Sytin, St. Petersburg, 1913

Root Leonty is a grenadier of the 3rd grenadier company of the Finnish Life Guards. p., battle hero. near Leipzig 4-6 Oct. 1813; performed a feat so outstanding that it became known to the entire army, and it was brought to the attention of Napoleon. The story about the feat of K. is recorded from the words of eyewitnesses: “In the battle. near Leipzig, when Finland. n. ousted the French from the village of Gossy, and the 3rd battalion of the regiment went around the village, battled. regiment commander. Gervais and his officers were the first to climb over the stone. fence, and the huntsmen rushed after them, already chasing the French; but being surrounded by numerous enemy, firmly defended their place; many officers were wounded; then K., having transplanted the battle. commander and wounded

battle commander and his wounded chiefs through the fence, he himself gathered the daring, desperate. rangers and began to defend, while other rangers rescued the wounded officers from the battlefield. K. with a handful of dashing shooters stood strong and held the battlefield, shouting: "do not give up, guys." At first they fired back, but the large number of the enemy hampered our people so that they fought back with bayonets ... everyone fell, some were killed and others were wounded, and K. remained alone. The French, marveling at the brave. the huntsman, they shouted that he should surrender, but K. in response turned the gun, took it by the muzzle and fought back with the butt. Then several unpleasant bayonets put him in place, and around this hero lay all our desperately defending, with heaps of the French killed by them. We all mourned, - adds the narrator, - the brave "Uncle K." A few days later, to the greatest. the joys of the entire regiment, "Uncle K." came from captivity, covered with wounds; but, fortunately, the wounds were not all serious. This does honor to the French, who inflicted only light wounds on him, respecting his exemplary courage. Covered with 18 wounds, K. returned to the regiment and told about his stay in captivity, where the fame of his outstanding courage spread throughout the French. troops, and he himself was introduced to Napoleon, who asked to see the Russian. miracle hero. K.'s act was so admirable. regiment that he put Finland in an order for his army. gren-pa as an example to all his soldiers. In the history of the Life Guards Finland. n. the following song about the hero is given - K., composed by his comrades:
We remember Uncle Root,

He lives in our memory

It happened, on what enemy

Will go into hostility with the guys.

Then the bulat will stir,

Hand-to-hand combat will boil,

The blood of the enemy will flow in a stream,

And the Root is knocking forward;

Alexander I Karl Schwarzenberg

The Austrian Field Marshal PrinceKarl Schwarzenberg . Descendant ancient family, to the campaign 1805 successfully fought at the head of the division near Ulm against the French. DuringRussian campaign of 1812 commanded an Austrian auxiliary corps (about 30 thousand) consisting ofGrand Army of Napoleon . He acted extremely carefully and managed to avoid big battles with the Russian troops. After the defeat of Napoleon in Russia did not participate in active hostilities, but covered the rear of the retreating French corps of General Rainier. After joining Austria to the Sixth Coalition against Napoleon in August 1813 appointed Commander of the Allied Bohemian army. AT battle of dresden The Bohemian army was defeated and retreated to Bohemiawhere she remained until early October. He created a reputation for himself as a cautious commander who knows how to maintain a good relationship with monarchs.

Napoleon Bonaparte Jozef Poniatowski

Commander-in-ChiefFrench army was the emperor Napoleon I Bonaparte . Despite the defeat inRussian campaign of 1812 he still ruled over halfcontinental Europe . In a short time, he managed to increase the number of French troops in the east from 30 to 130 thousand, taking into account the troops of the allies - up to 400 thousand, although he restored the previous the cavalry failed. Near Leipzig Napoleon had 9 infantry Poles of Stanisław August

Napoleon and Poniatowski near Leipzig - artist January Suchodolsky

HISTORICAL CONSEQUENCES

The battle ended with Napoleon's retreat across the Rhine to France. After the defeat of the French near Leipzig, Bavaria went over to the side of the 6th coalition. The combined Austro-Bavarian corps under the command of the Bavarian General Wrede tried to cut off the retreat of the French army on the way to the Rhine near Frankfurt, but on October 31 was repulsed with losses by Napoleon in the battle of Hanau. On November 2, Napoleon crossed the Rhine to France, and two days later the allied armies approached the Rhine and stopped there.
Shortly after Napoleon's retreat from Leipzig, Marshal Saint-Cyr surrendered Dresden with all its huge arsenal. Except for Hamburg, where Marshal Davout was desperately defending himself, all the other French garrisons in Germany surrendered before the beginning of 1814. The Confederation of the Rhine of the German states, subject to Napoleon, collapsed, Holland was liberated.
In early January, the Allies launched the 1814 campaign with an invasion of France. Napoleon was left alone with France against advancing Europe, which led in April 1814 to his first abdication.

In memory of the Battle of the Nations in Leipzig in 1898-1913, a monument to the Battle of the Nations was erected. Funding came from a specially founded lottery, as well as from donations. In the immediate vicinity of the monument is the stone of Napoleon. At this place on October 18, 1813, Napoleon placed his command headquarters. In the era of the GDR, the country's leadership thought for a long time about whether it was worth demolishing the monument, which seemed to be a symbol of German nationalism. However, due to the fact that the monument also glorified the "Russian-German brotherhood in arms", it was abandoned. In 2003, work began on its restoration, which should be completed by the double anniversary of the monument in 2013.

Materials used:

N.S. Ashukin, M.G. Ashukina - Winged words, 1987

The battle of peoples near Leipzig is one of the main battles of the period of the Napoleonic wars. It took place in Saxony on October 4 - 7, 1813. The rivals in the battle were the troops of Napoleon and the army of the Sixth Anti-French Coalition.

Battle background

Napoleon's Russian campaign in 1812 ended in complete failure. This led to the creation of the Sixth Anti-French Coalition by the emperor's opponents. It included Russia, England, Prussia, Spain, Portugal, Sweden.

The first major battle between rivals took place near Bautzen, from which the French army emerged victorious. The troops of the Sixth managed to defeat Napoleon near Grosberen, Katzbach, Dennewitz and Kulm. In 1813, the allies went on the offensive against Dresden and Saxony, and soon the famous battle of the peoples near Leipzig took place.

The situation on the eve of the battle

In order to understand the reasons for Napoleon's retreat and the defeat of his troops, one should consider the situation in which the battle of peoples near Leipzig took place. The year 1813 became quite difficult for Saxony. In autumn, 3 allied armies advanced on this territory: the Northern (under the command of the Swedish Crown Prince J. Bernadotte), the Bohemian (Austrian Field Marshal K. Schwarzerber) and the Silesian (Prussian General G. Blucher). Also, the Polish L. Bennigsen, who was temporarily in reserve, also arrived at the battle site.

Napoleon initially expected to strike at the disengaged troops, but the rapidly changing situation, lack of strength and time forced him to abandon his intentions. The army of the French emperor was stationed in the Leipzig region.

The composition and strength of rivals

A person unfamiliar with the history of this battle may have a question: “Why is the battle of Leipzig called the battle of nations?”. The fact is that on the side of Napoleon, the French, Poles, Dutch, Italians, Saxons and Belgians participated in the conflict. At the same time, the Austrians, Swedes, peoples Russian Empire, Prussians, Bavarians.

The French army included 200 thousand soldiers and had 700 guns. About 133 thousand soldiers fought in Bohemian, who had 578 ammunition. The Silesian army included 60 thousand fighters, and the Northern one - 58 thousand, which had 315 and 256 guns, respectively. There were 54 thousand soldiers and 186 ammunition.

Events October 4

The Battle of Nations in 1813 near Leipzig began in the area where the Bohemian army was stationed. Even before the start of the battle, it was divided into three groups. The main blow to the French was to be delivered by the first unit under the command of M. B. Barclay de Tolly. During the offensive on the morning of October 4, this group captured a number of settlements. But the Austrians refused M.B. Barclay de Tolly in support and they were forced to retreat.
Napoleon's cavalry corps under the command of I. Murat began a breakthrough in the area with. Wachau. With the help of the Cossack regiment led by I.E. Efremov, who was part of the army, the French army was thrown back to its original position.
Other Napoleonic units repulsed enemy attacks in the areas of Wiederitz and Meckern. With the onset of night, hostilities in all directions ceased. The positions of the opponents by the end of the battle had not actually changed. During the battles, the rivals lost approximately 30 thousand people each.

Results of the first day

On the first day, the battle of peoples near Leipzig ended in a draw. Both sides received private victories (the Napoleonic army at Lidenau and Wachau, the allied army near Mekerne), which did not affect the overall situation. But the position of the troops of the anti-French coalition was better due to the fact that units of Bennigsen and Bernadotte came to their aid. Napoleon could only count on the small corps of the Rhine.

Events October 5

There were no military operations on this day. Only in the north did Blucher's army capture the villages of Oitritsch and Golis and come close to Leipzig. At night, Napoleon regrouped the army in order to bring it closer to the city. As a result, the French army was deployed on a defensive arc near Leipzig. In turn, the Allies surrounded the Napoleonic army in a semicircle: Silesian - in the north, Northern and Polish - east, Bohemian - south.

Events October 6

The battle of peoples near Leipzig continued on the morning of October 6. On this day, the French army occupied defensive positions, and with the loss of important points, made successful counterattacks. The psychological state of Napoleon's troops was undermined by the unexpected transition of the Saxon division and the Württemberg cavalry to the Allied side. Their betrayal led to the depopulation of the central positions, but the emperor managed to quickly transfer the reserve there and stabilize the situation. The attacks of the army of the anti-French coalition were also not particularly successful. This was due to the offensives at different times and uncoordinated, with the complete inactivity of the reserve units.
The main battles that day took place at Probstgeide, Zuckelhausen, Holzhausen, Dösen, Paunsdorf and Lösnig. By the end of the day, the French managed to hold their positions on almost all flanks except the center. But they lost almost their entire combat kit, and Napoleon understood that such a situation would lead to the complete death of the army.

Events October 7

On the morning of October 7, Napoleon's army began to retreat. The Allies did not set out to defeat the French army on the approaches to Elster, they sent their forces to storm Leipzig. For this, three columns were created, which quickly moved towards the city. Local residents made a request not to start the battle, but the anti-French coalition demanded the complete surrender of Napoleon. At lunchtime, the Allies stormed the city walls.
The French command was deliberately to blow up the bridge over the Elster in order to cut off its army from the allied one and enable it to escape. But he was landed in the air ahead of time and some parts remained in the city. They had to swim to safety. Many soldiers died right in the water. Among them was Marshal Yu. Ponyatovsky. Toward evening, the army of the anti-French coalition managed to take Leipzig.

Aftermath of the battle

The total losses of Napoleon amounted to about 60 thousand soldiers, about the same number of soldiers lost the anti-French coalition. The imperial troops managed to avoid complete defeat in more due to the fact that the actions of the allies were not coordinated and European rulers often could not come to a consensus.

Of paramount importance are political implications, which led to the battle of peoples near Leipzig. The year 1813 turned out to be quite difficult for Napoleon. The failure in the battle of Leipzig was followed by disintegration. After the liberation of Germany, hostilities spread to the territory of France. In March, Paris was taken by the allies and the restoration of monarchical power took place in the country.

Memories of the Battle of Leipzig

The Battle of Leipzig (Battle of the Nations) is one of the most significant in the history of the Napoleonic Wars. It is also referred to as the "Battle of the Three Emperors"
In memory of this battle in Germany in 1814, a magnificent celebration was held.
In 1913, the grandiose monument "Monument to the Battle of the Nations" was opened in Leipzig.

Not far from it, the St. Alexis Church was also erected, where soldiers who fell in battle are buried today. It should be noted that during the GDR, the monument was planned to be destroyed, as it was considered a glorification of German nationalism. However, over time, it began to be perceived as with Russia, and the authorities decided to preserve the monument.
Also, a commemorative coin (3 marks) was issued for the 100th anniversary of the battle.
Today in Leipzig there are several museums dedicated to the history of the great battle.

Battle of Leipzig(also Battle of nations, German Volkerschlacht bei Leipzig, -19 October 1813) - the largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars and the largest in world history before the outbreak of World War I, in which Emperor Napoleon I Bonaparte was defeated by the allied armies of Russia, Austria, Prussia and Sweden.

The battle took place on the territory of Saxony, with German troops participating on both sides. On the first day of the battle on October 16, Napoleon successfully attacked, but under pressure from superior Allied forces, he was forced to retreat to Leipzig on October 18. On October 19, Napoleon began his retreat to France with heavy losses.

The battle ended the 1813 campaign with only France remaining under Napoleon's rule, leading to the Allied invasion of France in 1814 and Napoleon's first abdication.

background

Napoleon, having recruited recruits to replace the veterans who died in Russia, managed to win 2 victories over the Russian-Prussian troops at Lützen (May 2) and at Bautzen (May 21), which led to a short-term ceasefire from June 4.

Karl Schwarzenberg

The Austrian Field Marshal Prince Schwarzenberg was considered the commander-in-chief of the allied forces. A descendant of an ancient family, in the campaign of 1805, at the head of a division, he successfully fought near Ulm against the French. During Napoleon's Russian campaign, he commanded an Austrian auxiliary corps (about 30,000) as part of Napoleon's Grand Army. He acted extremely carefully and managed to avoid big battles with the Russian troops. After the defeat of Napoleon in Russia, he did not participate in active hostilities, but covered the rear of the retreating French corps Rainier. After Austria joined the Sixth Coalition against Napoleon in August 1813, he was appointed commander of the allied Bohemian army. In August 1813, at the battle of Dresden, the Bohemian army was defeated and retreated to Bohemia, where it remained until early October. He created a reputation for himself as a cautious commander, able to maintain good relations with monarchs.

Alexander I

Although Russian forces were commanded by generals, of whom Barclay de Tolly was the most influential, Emperor Alexander I interfered in operational leadership. Alexander became the main creator of the Sixth Coalition of 1813 against Napoleon. The invasion of Napoleon's armies into Russia was perceived by Alexander not only as the greatest threat to Russia, but also as a personal insult, and Napoleon himself became his personal enemy. Alexander in turn rejected all offers of peace, as he believed that this would devalue all the sacrifices made during the war. Many times the diplomatic character of the Russian monarch saved the coalition. Napoleon considered him an "inventive Byzantine", northern Talma, an actor who is able to play any prominent role.

The course of the battle

The disposition of opponents on the eve of the battle

After the objections of Alexander I, who pointed out the difficulty of crossing such a territory, Schwarzenberg received only 35 thousand Austrians from the 2nd Corps of General Merfeld under the general command of Crown Prince Friedrich of Hesse-Homburg to carry out his plan. The 4th Austrian corps of Klenau, the Russian troops of General Wittgenstein and the Prussian corps of Field Marshal Kleist, under the overall command of the Russian General Barclay de Tolly, were to attack the French head-on from the southeast. Thus, the Bohemian army was divided by rivers and swamps into 3 parts: in the west - the Austrians of Giulaia, another part of the Austrian army operated in the south between the rivers Weisse-Elster and Pleise, and the rest of the Bohemian army under the command of General Barclay de Tolly - on southeast.

October 16

The offensive of the troops of Marshal Giulai on Lidenau was also repulsed by the French general Bertrand, but the Silesian army achieved important success. Without waiting for the approach of Bernadotte's Northern Army, Blucher gave the order to join the general offensive. Under the villages of Wiederitz Wideritz) and Möckern (German. Mockern) his troops faced fierce resistance. The Polish General Dombrovsky, who defended the village of Videritz, kept it from being captured by the Russian troops of General Lanzheron all day long. The 17,000 soldiers under the command of Marshal Marmont, who were defending Mökern, were ordered to leave their positions and proceed south to the Wachau, as a result of which they left the well-fortified positions in the north. Upon learning of the approach of the enemy, Marmont decided to detain him and sent a request for help to Marshal Ney.

The Prussian general Yorck, who commanded a 20,000th corps in this sector, took the village after many attacks, losing 7,000 soldiers. Marmont's corps was destroyed. Thus, the front of the French troops north of Leipzig was broken through, Napoleon's 2 corps were distracted from participating in the key battle of the Wachau.

As night fell, the fighting subsided. The offensive cost the Allies about 20,000 dead and wounded. Despite successful Allied counterattacks near Güldengossa and in the University Forest (near the village of Wachau), most of the battlefield was left to the French. They pushed back the Allied troops from the Wachau to Gülgengossa and from Libertwolkwitz to the University Forest, but were unable to break through the front. In general, the day ended without much advantage for the parties.

17 October

Battle of Leipzig
Colorized 19th century engraving

In the battles on the eve of Napoleon failed to defeat the enemy. Reinforcements of 100,000 soldiers were sent to the allies, while the French emperor could only count on von Duben's corps. Napoleon was aware of the danger, however, hoping for family ties with the Holy Roman Emperor Franz II, did not leave the extremely vulnerable position near Leipzig. Through the Austrian general Merfeld, captured at Konnevitz, late at night on October 16, he conveyed to the opponents his terms of truce - the very ones that had already brought him peace in August. However, this time the allies did not honor the emperor with an answer. According to some researchers, the offer of a truce turned out to be a serious psychological mistake of Napoleon: the allies, disappointed by the results of the previous day, believed in the weakness of the French if the emperor was the first to offer peace.

Napoleon, commanding troops from headquarters at the Stötteritz tobacco mill (German. Stotteritz), defended much more fiercely than was necessary to cover the retreat. The allied columns went on the offensive unevenly, some of them moved too late, because of which the blow was not struck along the entire front at the same time. The Austrians advancing on the left flank under the command of the Crown Prince of Hesse-Homburg attacked the positions of the French near Dölitz (German. Dolitz), Dösen (German. Dosen) and Lösnig (German. Lössnig), seeking to push the French back from the Pleise River. Dölitz was taken first, and at about 10 o'clock Dösen was taken. The Prince of Hesse-Homburg was seriously wounded, and Colloredo took command. The French troops were pushed back to Konnewitz, but there they came to the aid of 2 divisions sent by Napoleon under the command of Marshal Oudinot. The Austrians were forced to retreat, leaving Dösen behind. Regrouping, they again went on the offensive and captured Lösning by lunchtime, but they failed to retake Konnewitz, defended by the Poles and the young guard under the command of marshals Oudinot and Augereau.

A stubborn battle flared up near Probstheida (German. Probstheida), defended by Marshal Victor from General Barclay de Tolly. Napoleon sent there the Old Guard and General Drouot's artillery guards (about 150 guns). The Old Guard tried to develop a counteroffensive to the south, but was stopped by artillery fire, located on a small hill 500 meters from the battlefield. Until the end of daylight, the Allies failed to take Probstheid, the battle continued after dark.

At about 2 p.m. on the right flank, Bennigsen's army, which went on the offensive late, captured Zuckelhausen (German. Zuckelhausen), Holzhausen and Paunsdorf (German. Paunsdorf). In the assault on Paunsdorf, despite the objections of Bernadotte, units of the Northern Army, the Prussian corps of General Bülow and the Russian corps of General Winzingerode also participated. Parts of the Silesian army under the command of generals Langeron and Sacken captured Schönefeld and Golis. In the battle near Paunsdorf, a new weapon was used for the first time - English rocket batteries, the contribution of Great Britain to the Battle of the Nations (they were part of the Northern Army).

In the midst of the battle, the entire Saxon division (3 thousand soldiers, 19 guns), who fought in the ranks of the Napoleonic troops, went over to the side of the allies. A little later, the Württemberg and Baden units did the same. The consequences of the Germans' refusal to fight for Napoleon are figuratively conveyed by the following quotation:

“A terrible void gaped in the center of the French army, as if the heart had been torn out of it”

By evening, in the north and east, the French were pushed back to the distance of a 15-minute march from Leipzig. After 6 hours, the onset of darkness ceased hostilities, the troops prepared to resume the battle the next morning. Already after Napoleon gave the order to retreat, the head of his artillery presented a report according to which 220 thousand cores were used up in 5 days of fighting. There were only 16 thousand left, and no delivery was expected.

Schwarzenberg doubted the need to force a still dangerous opponent into a desperate battle. Marshal Giulai was ordered only to watch the French and not attack Lindenau. Thanks to this, the French General Bertrand was able to use the road to Weissenfels (German. weissenfels), through Lindenau in the direction of Salle, where the convoy and artillery were pulled after him. During the night, the retreat of the entire French army, guards, cavalry and corps of Marshals Victor and Augereau began, while Marshals MacDonald, Ney and General Lauriston remained in the city to cover the retreat.

October 19

Since Napoleon, when planning the battle, counted only on victory, insufficient measures were taken to prepare for the retreat. At the disposal of all the columns was only one road to Weissenfels.

Results of the battle

Historical implications

The battle ended with Napoleon's retreat across the Rhine to France. After the defeat of the French near Leipzig, Bavaria sided with the Sixth Coalition. The combined Austro-Bavarian corps under the command of the Bavarian General Wrede tried to cut off the French army's retreat route on the way to the Rhine near Frankfurt, but on October 31 was repulsed with losses by Napoleon in the battle of Hanau. On November 2, Napoleon crossed the Rhine to France, and 2 days later the allied armies approached the Rhine and stopped there.

Shortly after Napoleon's retreat from Leipzig, Marshal Saint-Cyr surrendered Dresden with all its huge arsenal. Except for Hamburg, where Marshal Davout was desperately defending himself, all the other French garrisons in Germany surrendered before the beginning of 1814. The Confederation of the Rhine of the German states, subject to Napoleon, collapsed, Holland was liberated.

In early January, the Allies launched the 1814 campaign with an invasion of France. Napoleon was left alone with France against advancing Europe, which led in April 1814 to his first abdication.

Side losses

The French army, according to rough estimates, lost 70-80 thousand soldiers near Leipzig, of which about 40 thousand were killed and wounded, 15 thousand were captured, another 15 thousand were captured in hospitals, and up to 5 thousand Saxons went over to the Allied side. In addition to combat losses, the lives of the soldiers of the retreating army were carried away by a typhus epidemic. It is known that Napoleon was able to bring back to France only about 40 thousand soldiers. Among the dead was Marshal Jozef Poniatowski (nephew of the King of Poland Stanislaw August), who received his marshal's baton only 2 days before the fateful day. 325 guns went to the Allies as a trophy.

“The French troops, being pushed back from many sides, all approached the city of Leipzig, and this was followed by the concentration of all the troops of the allied powers, who found the enemy troops in the fortifications; from October 5, 1813, they began to attack them all around; but by them in the rear the road to the borders of France, to the river Rhine, was cleared by the attack of the corps of Count Wittgenstein. On October 6, at seven o'clock in the morning, a general battle began with an attack by the combined Russian-Austrian army of the French right flank; which, as the attack intensified, approached, retreating to the city itself.

Gavriil Meshetic

"The four-day battle of peoples near Leipzig decided the fate of the world."

Carl von Mufehling

“The enemy was so puzzled by our unexpected appearance on the flank that he seemed to stop for a minute and become agitated, like water in a trough. And we, with a terrible wild boom, were already rushing at him.

Emelyan Konkov, Cossack

Monument to the Battle of Nations

“The Russians fought with their usual courage, but not with the same frenzy as at Borodino; this is natural: on the banks of the Kolocha it was a matter of whether or not to be holy Russia! The Caesars did not change in their composure, but the Prussians seemed convinced of the idea that on this day it was necessary for them to complete the restoration of their fatherland from a foreign yoke.

As for the French, from the very morning they were no longer up to victory. Napoleon stopped in an unfavorable position for him at Leipzig, having a river and a defile behind him. The French owe their salvation on that day to the soon-coming darkness. Countless lights shone around Leipzig, the allies rejoiced, there was silence in the enemy camp.

Alexander Mikhailovsky-Danilevsky

Battle of Leipzig. Painting by Alexander Sauerweid

“Further on, our path was crossed by a thin, swampy stream, which it was impossible to jump over, and this is where the turmoil began. The dam is narrow - you can’t jump together together, but one at a time - when will we jump? The squadrons scattered along the shore, like a herd of horses driven to a watering place in our Don steppes. Suddenly someone again shouted: “What have become? Let's go!" And the Cossacks, who were standing somewhere, rushed straight in front of them: some make their way through the dam, some swim, where it is deeper, and some, having climbed into the mud, wallow in it up to the very belly of the horse. But now the life squadron is already on the other side; we see, there is a general dump - ours are driven; some cuirassier regiment cut our way, ahead of his general. "Squadron!" Yefremov shouted in a thunderous voice. We all turned our heads. "Squadron! he repeated. “Bless!” - and raised his naked saber high and made it in the air sign of the cross. We lowered our long javelins at the ready, whooped, rushed at the men-at-arms.

Timofey Pershikov, Cossack

“When I returned from Moscow, from Leipzig, in Paris they said that my hair had turned white; but you see that this is not so, and I intend to endure much worse things than what happened!

Napoleon Bonaparte