Essay "Patriotic War of 1812"
The Napoleonic army in June 1812 entered the borders of Russia. The fate of not only Russia, but also numerous European states, depended on the outcome of this war. all of them were directly or indirectly dependent on Napoleonic France.
It seemed that nothing could stop Napoleon's army. However, the campaign in Russia, begun by the invincible commander, ended in a defeat unprecedented in history. Napoleon's army of thousands, which invaded Russia, was destroyed. Only a few thousand soldiers and officers, along with Napoleon, fled.
The war of 1812, which ended with the collapse of the Napoleonic empire and a radical change in the entire political situation in Europe, left an indelible mark on world history.
Until now, many issues of the history of the war of 1812 are being debated. Therefore, this topic remains relevant in history. Today, the history of the Napoleonic invasion of Russia includes thousands of works by Soviet and Russian historians - monographs, collective works, brochures, articles, reviews, documentary publications. But, despite the achievements of scientists in the study of the war of 1812, there are many controversial issues.
In 2012, the 200th anniversary of the Patriotic War of 1812 will be celebrated. This event, it seems to me, will contribute to the intensification of the journalistic activity of historians - source researchers and archivists. Perhaps the researchers of the Patriotic War of 1812 will be guided by an in-depth study of private aspects of the history of the war, will find and publish new archival documents.
The purpose of this work is to study and analyze the opinions of a number of Soviet and Russian historians about the events of the Patriotic War of 1812.
The implementation of this goal required the solution of the following tasks:
- Study the literature on this subject.
- Identify discussion questions on the topic.
- Analyze the reasons for the change in the views of historians on this topic.
The work uses both historical and general scientific methods. The basis is the problem-chronological principle of the analysis of literature and sources, through the methods of analysis and synthesis. When comparing different points of view, and identifying debatable issues, the historical-comparative and historical-systemic methods are used.
A decisive shift in the field of studying the history of the Napoleonic wars and the events of the Patriotic War in 1812 was observed in the mid-30s of the XX century, when historical science was singled out in primary, secondary and higher schools as an independent subject of study. It was from this period that the frontal study of the war of 1812 began. In 1936, on the eve of the 125th anniversary of the war of 1812, a monograph by E.V. Tarle, as well as separate articles on the Napoleonic wars and Russia's international policy at the beginning of the 19th century. The book of E.V. Tarle "Napoleon" opened a new page in the study of the history of the Napoleonic wars, including the Patriotic War of 1812 (2).
In the year of the 125th anniversary of the Patriotic War, numerous articles are published in newspapers and magazines, brochures and monographs devoted to both general issues and individual aspects of the struggle of the peoples of Russia, the heroes of 1812. Particular attention was paid to the Battle of Borodino. Among the first works, the monograph of the military historian, brigade commander M.S. Svechnikov "War of 1812: Borodino". The book that gained great popularity on the eve of World War II was the monograph by E.V. Tarle, Napoleon's Invasion of Russia; 1812". Among the publications of educational literature, lectures by professor of Leningrad University S.B. Okun, where he considered all the most important aspects of the war of 1812 - from its background to the events of 1815.
During the Great Patriotic War, many future historians of the Patriotic War of 1812 fought in the ranks of the Soviet Army: P.A. Zhilin, L.G. Beskrovny, I.I. Rostunov, N.I. Kazakov, V.A. Dunayevsky and others. “... In the difficult period of 1941-1942,” wrote P.A. Zhilin, - I happened to fight on the Western Front and go the same way that the Russian army went in 1812 ... ”(6).
In the year of victory over Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union celebrated another event - the anniversary of M.I. Kutuzov. On September 8, 1945, the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR adopted a resolution “On the 200th anniversary of the birth of M.I. Kutuzov”, in which he scheduled a series of events. In particular, it was planned to publish the brochure "Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov", a collection of documents of the field marshal, the publication of materials about his life, military leadership and diplomatic activities, and holding scientific sessions. The anniversary year showed the increased interest of scientists in the history of the Patriotic War. If earlier its problems were studied by individual historians, now collectives of scientific and educational institutions of the country have joined this work. This is evidenced by scientific sessions dedicated to the memory of M.I. Kutuzov. In 1950-1956, the Military Publishing House published a 5-volume collection of documents “M.I. Kutuzov" (Edited by L.G. Beskrovny) - a fundamental publication about the life and military art of the great Russian commander. The fourth volume, consisting of two parts, is devoted to the activities of Kutuzov in the war of 1812. In total, both parts contain more than 1200 documents. Most of the documents included in the collection were published for the first time.
The results of research on the topic of the Patriotic War of 1812 were summarized in Soviet historiographyrepeatedly. In the works of L.G. Beskrovny and P.A. Zhilin made a review of the main literature published before 1962 (4). In the reviews of Abalikhin B.S., Dunaevsky V.A. analyzed the literature published in 1962-1982 (2).
Among the latest works on the historiography of the war of 1812 are the following: Troitsky N.A. "Patriotic War of 1812. History of the theme”, Shein I.A. “The War of 1812 in Russian Historiography”, “The Epoch of 1812. Research. Sources. Historiography"; The encyclopedia "Patriotic War of 1812" (2004) is a fundamental scientific and reference publication designed not only for researchers, but also for a wide range of military history lovers.
Having become acquainted with the literature on the topic, I found out that in Soviet historiography, discussions took place on important issues of the Patriotic War of 1812. About the role of Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov in the war of 1812; on the course and results of the Battle of Borodino; about the causes and significance of the Moscow fire; about the periodization of the war; about the role of the masses in the defeat of Napoleonic France. But in the 40-50s of the 20th century, the second stage of the war was mainly studied, the emphasis was on the military art of M.I. Kutuzov, the role of M.B. was displayed incorrectly. Barclay de Tolly. The economic, diplomatic and ideological aspects of the war were extremely poorly developed.
In the late 40s - early 50s of the XX century, most authors considered the burning of Moscow to be the work of Russian patriots who did not want to give the "white stone" capital to the enemy intact. In a public lecture "Moscow in 1812" M.V. Nechkina, having considered three versions of the Moscow fire (Moscow was burned by the French invaders, Russian patriots, and, finally, Moscow burned down spontaneously), came to the conclusion that "the fire of Moscow is an act of heroic popular patriotism." Some researchers believed that M.I. was involved in the fire of Moscow. Kutuzov, who organized it in order to carry out a flank march. The version that the Moscow fire was an act of patriotic actions of the Russian people was widely reflected in the educational and popular science literature of that time. The point of view that Moscow was burned by the Napoleonic invaders was held by L.G. Beskrovny, P.A. Zhilin and a number of other authors.
At the end of the 50s of the 20th century, a turning point was outlined in the assessment of the role of M.B. Barclay de Tolly in the war of 1812. The authors of the fundamental "World History" named Barclay de Tolly among the "very gifted military leaders of 1812." In 1959, the Publishing House of the USSR Academy of Sciences published the main works of E.V. Tarle in the special collection "1812", where the scientist fairly objectively assessed the activities of Barclay de Tolly.
One of the controversial issues in the history of the war of 1812 was its periodization. L.G. Bloodless divides the war into two stages, considering the battle of Borodino to be the border, and I.I. Rostunov proposed a three-stage periodization: the beginning of the war before Tarutino, stay in Tarutino and the transition to the pursuit of the enemy until the final defeat of the Napoleonic army.
The 150th anniversary of the Patriotic War of 1812 contributed to the intensification of the journalistic activity of historians - source researchers and archivists. In 1962 and subsequent years, a series of documentary collections was published, devoted to various aspects of it. Among the documentary collections, first of all, it is necessary to note the fundamental publication about the people's militias. Here, for the first time, the significance and role of the people's militia in the struggle against the Napoleonic army was revealed in the most complete form.
A distinctive feature of this period of historiography (60-80s) was that all aspects of the war of 1812 were studied - economic, military, political and ideological. Of great importance in revealing the underlying causes and factors of the war of 1812 is the study of its economic history, which is represented by three closely interrelated problems: the economic causes of the military conflict between Russia and France; the role of the economic factor in the war; the impact of the war of 1812 on the socio-economic development of Russia. Historians did not disagree on the issue that one of the main causes of the war of 1812 was the Russian-French economic contradictions, or rather, Russia's participation in the continental blockade. M.F. Zlotnikov in his work "The Continental Blockade and Russia" showed the great importance for Russia of its trade with England, in which both Russian landowners and Russian merchants were interested. The break with England after Tilsit "endangered almost the entire Russian maritime trade." For a long time, historians focused their efforts on the development of the second stage of the war of 1812 and achieved significant success in this. But the first, most difficult period of the war remained in the shadows. In the 1960s and 1980s, the gap in the development of the first stage of the war was basically filled. It is covered most thoroughly in the monographs of L.G. Beskrovny, P.A. Zhilina, I.A. Troitsky (7).
A study of the literature on the topic indicates that scientific ideas about Napoleon's invasion of Russia underwent significant changes throughout the 20th century. What are the reasons for the change in the views of historians on this topic?
Until the mid-1930s, historical science was under the influence of Marxist historical theory (the concept of M.N. Pokrovsky dominated). In the mid-1930s, the situation changed. New works are published. Historians have returned to use in relation to the war of 1812 the term "Patriotic", which has not been used since 1917. Like all science in general, the historiography of the Patriotic War of that time was strongly influenced by the personality cult of I.V. Stalin. According to the "instructions" of Stalin, M.I. became the central figure of 1812. Kutuzov, he alone was credited with the merit of the defeat of Napoleon. The main topic of research was the so-called counteroffensive by M.I. Kutuzov. A more objective approach to the study of the war of 1812 was outlined after the death of I.V. Stalin - in the late 1950s - early 1960s in the conditions of the "thaw". In the 60s, literature, on the one hand, created idealized portraits of military leaders and heroes of 1812, exaggerated the extent of Napoleon's defeat and loss, on the other hand, works appeared on specific problems of the history of 1812. Since 1985, with the beginning of changes in the country, there has been at first a subtle and gradual abolition of the only permitted ideology. In the 1980s - 90s, the stereotypes of the previous years began to gradually collapse. There is a circle of historians who are trying to expand and update the problems of research and more objectively consider the events of 1812. The output of historical literature has increased. But here, it seems to me, you need to be wary of sensational and amateurish tabloid works, when they start writing about anything and in any way.
Thus, the research path traversed by Soviet and Russian scientists was quite difficult. The development of historiography on this topic was accompanied by both an explicit and a hidden struggle between two directions - officially - patriotic and scientific - critical. And along with the indisputable achievements in the study of the war of 1812, there are problems and contradictions that scientists have to solve in the present and future.
Literature:
- Abalikhin B.S., Dunaevsky V.A. New in the study of the history of the Patriotic War of 1812. - M., 1983, pp. 234-240.
- Abalikhin B.S., Dunaevsky V.A. 1812 at the crossroads of opinions of Soviet historians 1917-1987. - M., 1990, p. 155-156.
- Beskrovny L.G. Some questions of the history of the Patriotic War of 1812 // Questions of history. 1962 No. 10; With. 21-23.
- Beskrovny L.G. Essays on military historiography of Russia. - M., 1962, p. 34-38.
- Zhilin P.A. The death of the Napoleonic army in Russia. 2nd edition. - M., 1974, p. 10-17.
- Zhilin P.A. Patriotic War of 1812 - M., 1988. S. 3-4.
- Historical science in the twentieth century. Historiography of the history of modern and modern times in Europe and America: A textbook for students // Ed. I.P. Dementieva, A.I. Patrusheva. – M.: Space. 2002, p. 165-167.
- Kutuzov M.I.: Sat. documents and materials // Edited by L.G. Bloodless. - M., 1954. Vol. 4, part 1; With. 10-15.
- Troitsky N.A. Patriotic War of 1812. The history of the topic. Saratov. 1991, p. 140-145.
- Troitsky N.A. 1812: The Great Year of Russia, 1991, p.193-197, p. 300
- Shein I.A. War of 1812 in Russian historiography, M., 2002, p. 24-28.
- Shein I.A. Encyclopedia of the Patriotic War of 1812 (new estimates) // Questions of History No. 9, 2004, p.156.
- Encyclopedia of the Patriotic War of 1812 - M., 2004. S.588-612.
Introduction
Napoleonic Wars - this name is mainly known for the wars waged by Napoleon I with various states of Europe when he was the first consul and emperor (1800-1815). In a broader sense, this includes both Napoleon's Italian campaign (1796-1797) and his Egyptian expedition (1798-1799), although these (especially the Italian campaign) are usually classified as so-called revolutionary wars.
The coup of 18 Brumaire (November 9, 1799) gave power over France into the hands of a man who, with unlimited lust for power and ambition, was distinguished by the genius of a commander and a passion for war. This happened just at a time when old Europe was in complete disorganization: the governments were completely incapable of joint action and were ready to change the common cause for the sake of private benefits; everywhere the old order reigned in administration, in finance, and in the army - orders, the inefficiency of which was revealed at the first serious clash with France.
All this made Napoleon the master of the European continent, and before his imagination the idea of a "world monarchy" under the leadership of France was hovering. Even before 18 Brumaire, being the commander-in-chief of the Italian army, Napoleon began to redistribute the political map of Europe, and during the era of his expedition to Egypt and Syria, he made grandiose plans for the East. Having become the first consul, he dreamed of, in alliance with the Russian emperor, to drive the British out of the position they occupied in India.
1. Background
Having received power (1799), Napoleon found France isolated, although the coalition opposing it was not particularly strong. The French troops retreated across the Rhine; in Italy all the fruits of previous victories were lost; The Cisalpine Republic disintegrated, and the Parthenopean Republic underwent a monarchical restoration; The Roman Republic also fell. Only in Switzerland did the French do better, and the combined Austro-Russian army failed to oust the Republican troops from there.
The strife that arose between the allies led to the withdrawal of Russia from the coalition; Emperor Paul I even began to draw closer to France, after “anarchy was replaced by a consulate” in it, and the first consul released Russian prisoners to their homeland without ransom, re-dressed and armed. As soon as Napoleon took over the government, he sent a letter to the English king and emperor, inviting them to stop fighting; but they demanded from Napoleon the restoration of the Bourbons and the return of France to its former borders.
In the spring of 1800, France again invaded Italy, and the first consul himself was at the head of the army that invaded here through St. Bernard. The victory at Marengo (June 14) forced Austria to conclude a truce (in Alessandria), again placing Lombardy at the disposal of Napoleon. Another French army invaded Swabia and Bavaria and after the victory at Hohenlinden (December 3) threatened Vienna itself. Austria was forced to make peace at Lunéville on February 9, 1801, which confirmed the Campoformian conditions. The Rhine and Etsch were recognized as the borders of France; Lombardy became the Italian Republic. Imperial officials who lost land on the left bank of the Rhine were to be rewarded with secularized church estates and abolished imperial cities. The peace of Luneville opened up to Napoleon the opportunity to dispose of at his own discretion in significant parts of Italy and Germany. Napoleon became, by virtue of his election by the representatives of the Italian Republic convened at Lyons, the president of that republic, with very wide powers, under a purely decorative constitution, and received the right to dispose of a large army. The Duke of Modena received an increase in his possessions; The Grand Duke of Tuscany renounced his Italian possessions and Tuscany, with the title of the Kingdom of Etruria, was given to the Duke of Parma.
In Germany, the so-called decision of the imperial deputation (German. Reichsdeputationshauptschluss) On February 28, 1803, after a real bargaining by the German bishoprics, abbeys and free cities, a new distribution of land holdings was made. The leading role in this matter belonged to the first consul; Bavaria especially won a lot, having entered into a close alliance with France. The possessions of the Margrave of Baden, who at the same time was elevated to the rank of elector, were enlarged. They were rewarded for losses and received large increments to their former possessions of Württemberg, Hesse-Kassel (both made electors), Hesse-Darmstadt, Nassau, Hanover and other principalities. Of the spiritual possessions, only one survived, greatly curtailed - the archbishopric of Mainz; out of fifty imperial cities, only six retained their former position - Hamburg, Bremen, Lübeck, Frankfurt am Main, Nuremberg and Augsburg.
In addition to the German powers and Russia, Spain and Portugal also reconciled with France, and in 1802, under the Peace of Amiens, England. This last peace was soon broken, as Napoleon asserted his dominion, in the form of a protectorate, over both the Batavian Republic and Switzerland: by a mediation act, the independence of individual Swiss cantons was restored, under the general patronage of France.
2. Beginning of the Napoleonic Wars
In May 1803, the first consul moved the French army to the Weser to capture Hanover, which belonged to the English king; in June, the electorate was already in the power of France, due to the cowardice of the local government, which hastened to conclude an agreement with the first consul, according to which the French army could occupy the whole country to the Elbe, and the Hanoverian army was to be disbanded.
Third Coalition (1805)
The death of the Duke of Enghien, preceding the adoption of the imperial crown by Napoleon, and the unauthorized orders of Napoleon in Italy, Germany, Spain and Holland, greatly alarmed other powers. The Italian Republic was turned into a kingdom and Napoleon was proclaimed king, who was crowned in Milan (in March 1805) with an iron crown. In Germany, Napoleon, passing, after taking the imperial title, through Aachen, Cologne and Mainz, behaved like the ruler of the entire Rhine region. At the same time, he obliged Spain by an agreement to help France with both the fleet and money. In Holland, by intrigues and threats, he prepared the introduction of the monarchy, in favor of one of his brothers. Under the influence of all this, Russia, Austria, Sweden and Naples joined England, and England undertook to pay monetary subsidies to its allies.
The new coalition tried to win Prussia over to its side, but it hesitated and preferred to remain neutral, armed, however, just in case; with her ambiguous behavior, she incurred the displeasure of Napoleon. Enlisting the promise of help from the South German princes, Napoleon unexpectedly moved his troops to Germany, where part of them passed through the possessions of neutral Prussia and where they were reinforced by auxiliary corps of Baden, Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, Nassau and others. On October 20, the Austrian army, locked in Ulm and cut off from communications with Vienna, she surrendered to surrender. This enormous success of Napoleon was overshadowed by the famous Trafalgar victory (October 21) of the English fleet over the French.
Meanwhile, Prussia, irritated by the violation of her neutrality, joined the coalition, but too late. On November 13, the French captured Vienna and pushed the Austrian and Russian troops back to Moravia, where on December 2, on the anniversary of Napoleon's coronation, the famous "Battle of the Three Emperors" took place near Austerlitz. The French victory was complete. Emperor Franz humbly asked Napoleon for a truce, to which the winner agreed, but under the condition that Russian troops be removed from Austrian territory (December 4). On December 26, Austria concluded the Treaty of Pressburg with France, which deprived the Habsburg monarchy of possessions in southwestern Germany, Tyrol and the Venetian region (the first were divided between Baden and Württemberg, the second was annexed to Bavaria, the third to the Kingdom of Italy), finally abolishing the Holy Roman Empire and who granted the royal crowns of Naples and Holland to Napoleon's brothers.
In the interval between the Austerlitz victory and the Peace of Pressburg, Napoleon managed to persuade the authorized Gaugwitz, sent to him by the Prussian king, to the side of France, who not only did not dare, after Austerlitz, to present the demands of his government to the winner, but even without his consent concluded an agreement with Napoleon in Schönbrunn (15 December). Prussia entered into an alliance with France, gave her part of the Duchy of Cleves on the right bank of the Rhine, with the fortress of Wesel, and abandoned the Franconian principalities; at the same time, she pledged not to allow the British into her ports, for which she received Hanover. The Prussian king agreed to this deal, but, occupying Hanover, he announced that he was taking it only under his protection until the conclusion of a general peace. This statement irritated Napoleon, who saw in it the intention of Frederick William III not to completely separate from the coalition.
Bavaria was elevated to a kingdom, the new king married his daughter to Napoleon's adopted stepson, Prince Eugene de Beauharnais. Württemberg was also turned into a kingdom, and after some time, Napoleon's brother, Jerome, married the Württemberg princess. Increased and Baden, elevated to the Grand Duchy; the Grand Duke's grandson married Stephanie de Beauharnais, niece of Empress Josephine. From Berg, ceded by Bavaria, and Klöve, acquired from Prussia, Napoleon created a new grand duchy for his son-in-law, Murat. Neuchâtel, whose prince since 1707 was the King of Prussia, was granted to Marshal Berthier. Napoleon's uncle, Cardinal Fesch, was declared coadjutor and successor to the archbishop of Mainz, the imperial archchancellor. Austria acquired the Archbishopric of Salzburg, in exchange for which the former Grand Duke of Tuscany received Würzburg. These changes were accompanied in Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden and other states by major changes in internal relations - the elimination of medieval zemstvo ranks, the abolition of many noble privileges, the alleviation of the lot of peasants, increased religious tolerance, limiting the power of the clergy, the destruction of a mass of monasteries, various administrative, judicial , financial, military and educational reforms, the introduction of the Napoleonic Code.
On July 12, 1806, between Napoleon and many German sovereigns (Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, Darmstadt, Klöve-Berg, Nassau, etc.), an agreement was concluded, under the terms of which these sovereigns entered into an alliance, called the Rhine, under the protectorate of Napoleon and with the obligation to keep for him a sixty thousandth army. The formation of the union was accompanied by a new mediatization, that is, the subordination of small immediate (immediat) holders of the supreme power of large sovereigns. The mediatization of 1806 had the same effect in Germany as it did in 1802-03. - secularization: Paris again became the center of the distribution of all sorts of favors, where the German princes used all possible means, some to prevent their own mediatization, others to mediatize other people's possessions in their favor.
The Ligurian Republic (Genoa) and the Kingdom of Etruria were annexed to France. The very next day after the conclusion of the Treaty of Pressburg, Napoleon announced by a simple decree that “the Bourbon dynasty in Naples has ceased to reign”, because Naples, contrary to the previous agreement, joined the coalition and allowed the landing of the troops that arrived in the Anglo-Russian fleet. The movement of the French army to Naples forced the local court to flee to Sicily, and Napoleon granted the Kingdom of Naples to his brother Joseph. Benevent and Pontecorvo were given, as fief duchies, to Talleyrand and Bernadotte. In the former possessions of Venice, Napoleon also established a significant number of fiefs, which were combined with the ducal title, gave large incomes and complained to French dignitaries and marshals. Napoleon's sister Elisa (after Bacciocchi's husband) received Lucca even earlier, then Massa and Carrara, and after the destruction of the kingdom of Etruria, she was appointed ruler of Tuscany. To his other sister, Paulina Borghese, Napoleon also gave possession. In the kingdom of Italy, Lucca, Tuscany and Naples, many French orders were introduced. Napoleon's brother, Louis, reigned in Holland.
ESSAY
Napoleonic Wars
Introduction
Napoleonic anti-French coalition war
The Napoleonic Wars (1799-1815) were fought by France during the years of the Consulate and Empire of Napoleon I against coalitions of European states.
Of course, one cannot explore the Napoleonic Wars without the personality of Napoleon himself. He wanted to do the same thing that the Romans wanted to do with the world - to civilize it, erase the borders, turning Europe into one country, with common money, weights, civil laws, local self-government, the flourishing of sciences and crafts ... He took the Great French Revolution with ardor approval. His activities in Corsica and the mastery of the city of Toulon was the beginning of the rapid ascent of Bonaparte in military service.
Bonaparte proved to be a remarkable master of strategy and maneuvering tactics. Fighting against a numerically superior enemy. Victorious wars with coalitions of powers, brilliant victories, a huge expansion of the territory of the empire contributed to the transformation of N. I into the actual ruler of all Western (except Great Britain) and Central Europe.
All Napoleonic wars were fought in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, which sought to establish its military-political and commercial-industrial hegemony in Europe, annex new territories to France and win the fight against Great Britain for world trade and colonial superiority. The Napoleonic wars, which did not stop until the fall of the empire of Napoleon I, were on the whole wars of conquest. They were conducted in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, which sought to consolidate its military-political and commercial-industrial dominance on the continent, pushing the British bourgeoisie into the background. But they also contained progressive elements, tk. objectively contributed to the undermining of the foundations of the feudal system and cleared the way for the development of capitalist relations in a number of European states: (the abolition of dozens of small feudal states in Germany, the introduction of the Napoleonic civil code in some conquered countries, the confiscation and sale of part of the monastic lands, the elimination of a number of privileges of the nobility, etc.). The main opponents of France during the Napoleonic Wars were England, Austria and Russia.
1.
Causes and nature of the Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic era had not only a military-political aspect, in many respects the war acquired a universal character, turned into a war of economies and peoples, something that later became an axiom in the 20th century during the years of two world wars. If earlier the war had the character of military clashes of relatively small professional armies, then in the Napoleonic era, all spheres of public and state life of the participating countries were already permeated by war. The nature of the armed forces also changed; they began to turn into mass armies. This inevitably led to changes in the relationship between state and public institutions.
There are several opinions about the nature of the Napoleonic wars and the reasons that caused them. To name just a few of them: the continuation of the revolutionary wars of the French Republic, the fruit of the exorbitant ambition of one person (Napoleon), the desire of the feudal "old regime" states to destroy this person (Napoleon), the continuation of the centuries-old confrontation between France and England for dominance in the world, the struggle between the ideologies of the new and the old regimes (that is, the clash of young capitalism with feudalism).
2.
First anti-French coalition 1793-1797
The revolution that took place in France in 1789 had a strong effect on the states adjacent to it and prompted their governments to resort to decisive measures against the menacing danger. Emperor Leopold II and King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia, at a personal meeting in Pilnitz, agreed to stop the spread of revolutionary principles. They were also encouraged to do so by the insistence of the French emigrants, who made up a corps of troops in Koblenz under the command of the Prince of Condé. Military preparations were begun, but the monarchs for a long time did not dare to open hostilities. The initiative was taken by France, which on April 20, 1792 declared war on Austria for its hostile actions against France. Austria and Prussia entered into a defensive and offensive alliance, which was gradually joined by almost all other German states, as well as Spain, Piedmont and the Kingdom of Naples.
Hostilities began with the invasion of French troops into the possessions of the German states on the Rhine, followed by the invasion of coalition troops into France. Soon the enemies were repulsed and France itself began active military operations against the coalition - it invaded Spain, the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Western German states. Soon, in 1793, the battle of Toulon took place, where the young and talented commander Napoleon Bonaparte first showed himself. After a series of victories, the enemies were forced to recognize the French Republic and all its conquests (with the exception of the British), but then, after the deterioration of the situation in France, the war resumed.
3.
Second anti-French coalition (1798-1801)
The conditional date of the start of the Napoleonic Wars is considered to be the establishment in France during the coup of 18 Brumaire (November 9), 1799, of the military dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte, who became the first consul. At this time, the country was already at war with the 2nd anti-French coalition, which was formed in 1798-99 by England, Russia, Austria, Turkey and the Kingdom of Naples.
Having come to power, Bonaparte sent the English king and the Austrian emperor a proposal to start peace negotiations, which was rejected by them. France began to form a large army on the eastern borders under the command of General Moreau. At the same time, on the Swiss border, in secrecy, the formation of the so-called "reserve" army was going on, which dealt the first blow to the Austrian troops in Italy. Having made a difficult transition through the St. Bernard Pass in the Alps, on June 14, 1800, at the Battle of Marengo, Bonaparte defeated the Austrians operating under the command of Field Marshal Melas. In December 1800 Moreau's army of the Rhine defeated the Austrians at Hohenlinden (Bavaria). In February 1801, Austria was forced to conclude peace with France and recognize her seizures in Belgium and on the left bank of the Rhine. After that, the 2nd coalition actually broke up, England agreed in October 1801 to sign the terms of the preliminary (i.e. preliminary) agreement, and on March 27, 1802, the Treaty of Amiens was concluded between England, on the one hand, and France, Spain and the Batavian Republic - with another.
4.
Third Anti-French Coalition (1805)
However, already in 1803 the war between them resumed, and in 1805 the 3rd anti-French coalition was formed, consisting of England, Russia, Austria and the Kingdom of Naples. Unlike the previous ones, it proclaimed as its goal the struggle not against revolutionary France, but against the aggressive policy of Bonaparte. Becoming Emperor Napoleon I in 1804, he prepared the landing of a French expeditionary army in England. But on October 21, 1805, in the Battle of Trafalgar, the English fleet, led by Admiral Nelson, destroyed the combined Franco-Spanish fleet. However, on the continent, Napoleon's troops won one victory after another: in October 1805, the Austrian army of General Mack capitulated at Ulm without a fight; in November, Napoleon marched victoriously into Vienna; On December 2, 1805, Emperor Napoleon defeated the armies of the emperors of Austria, Franz I and Russia, Alexander I at the Battle of Austerlitz. Europe, and France became a powerful land power. Now the biggest opponent of France in the struggle for hegemony in Europe was Great Britain, which, after the Battle of Cape Trafalgar, held unconditional dominance over the seas.
As a result of the war, Austria was completely ousted from Germany and Italy, and France established its hegemony on the European continent. March 15, 1806 Napoleon gave the Grand Duchy of Cleve and Berg into the possession of his brother-in-law I. Murat. He expelled from Naples the local Bourbon dynasty, which fled to Sicily under the protection of the English fleet, and on March 30 he placed his brother Joseph on the Neapolitan throne. On May 24, he transformed the Batavian Republic into the Kingdom of Holland, placing his other brother Louis at the head of it. In Germany, on June 12, the Confederation of the Rhine was formed from 17 states under the protectorate of Napoleon; On August 6, the Austrian emperor Franz II renounced the German crown - the Holy Roman Empire ceased to exist.
The war against Napoleon was continued by England and Russia, which were soon joined by Prussia and Sweden, concerned about the strengthening of French domination in Europe. In September 1806, the 4th anti-French coalition of European states was formed. A month later, during two battles, on the same day, October 14, 1806, the Prussian army was destroyed: near Jena, Napoleon defeated parts of Prince Hohenlohe, and at Auerstedt, Marshal Davout defeated the main Prussian forces of King Friedrich Wilhelm and the Duke of Brunswick. Napoleon solemnly entered Berlin. Prussia was occupied. The Russian army moving to help the Allies met with the French first near Pultusk on December 26, 1806, then at Preussisch-Eylau on February 8, 1807. Despite the bloodshed, these battles did not give an advantage to either side, but in June 1807 Napoleon won the battle of Friedland over the Russian troops commanded by L.L. Benigsen. On July 7, 1807, in the middle of the Neman River, a meeting of the French and Russian emperors took place on a raft, and the Peace of Tilsit was concluded. According to this peace, Russia recognized all the conquests of Napoleon in Europe, and joined the "Continental blockade" of the British Isles proclaimed by him in 1806. In the spring of 1809, England and Austria again united into the 5th anti-French coalition, but already in May 1809 the French entered Vienna, and on July 5-6, the Austrians were again defeated in the battle of Wagram. Austria agreed to pay an indemnity and joined the continental blockade. A significant part of Europe was under the rule of Napoleon.
6.
End of the Napoleonic Wars
The national liberation movement, which was growing in Europe, acquired the greatest scope in Spain and Germany. However, the fate of Napoleon's empire was decided during his campaign in Russia. During the Patriotic War of 1812, the strategy of the Russian army, led by Field Marshal M.I. Kutuzov, the partisan movement contributed to the death of more than 400,000 "Great Army". This caused a new upsurge in the national liberation struggle in Europe, in a number of states people's militia began to be created. In 1813, the 6th anti-French coalition was formed, which included Russia, England, Prussia, Sweden, Austria, and a number of other states. In October 1813, as a result of the "battle of the peoples" near Leipzig, the territory of Germany was liberated from the French. The Napoleonic army withdrew to the borders of France, and then was defeated on its own land. On March 31, Allied troops entered Paris. On April 6, Napoleon I signed the abdication of the throne and was expelled from France to the island of Elba.
In 1815, during the famous "Hundred Days" (March 20 - June 22), Napoleon made his last attempt to regain his former power. The defeat in the Battle of Waterloo (Belgium) on June 18, 1815, inflicted on him by the troops of the 7th coalition under the command of the Duke of Wellington and Marshal Blucher, completed the history of the Napoleonic wars. The Congress of Vienna (November 1, 1814 - June 9, 1815) decided the fate of France, fixing the redistribution of the territories of European countries in the interests of the victorious states. The wars of liberation that were waged against Napoleon were inevitably associated with the partial restoration of the feudal-absolutist order in Europe (the “Holy Alliance” of European monarchs, concluded with the aim of suppressing the national liberation and revolutionary movement in Europe).
Results
As a result of the Napoleonic Wars, France's military power was broken and she lost her dominant position in Europe. The main political force on the continent was the Holy Union of Monarchs, led by Russia; The UK has maintained its status as the world's leading maritime power.
The aggressive wars of Napoleonic France threatened the national independence of many European peoples; at the same time, they contributed to the destruction of the feudal-monarchist order on the continent - the French army brought on its bayonets the principles of a new civil society (Civil Code) and the abolition of feudal relations; Napoleon's liquidation of many small feudal states in Germany facilitated the process of its future unification.
Bibliography
1.Bezotosny V.M. Napoleonic Wars. - M.: Veche, 2010. 2.Zalessky K.A. Biographical encyclopedic dictionary. Napoleonic Wars, 1799-1815, M., 2003 3.Easdale C.J. Napoleonic Wars. Rostov-on-Don, 1997 4.Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron Napoleonic Wars. - St. Petersburg: Publishing Society "F.A. Brockhaus - I.A. Efron", 1907-1909 5.Chandler D. Napoleon's military campaigns. Triumph and tragedy of the conqueror. M., 2000 6.#"justify">7. http://www.bezmani.ru/spravka/bse/base/3/014204.htm
Seminar: Napoleonic Wars 1799-1815.
1.Napoleon Bonaparte: historical portrait
Bonaparte Napoleon
Napoleon French statesman and commander, first consul of the French Republic (1799-1804), emperor of the French (1804-14 and March - June 1815). Born in the family of a poor Corsican nobleman lawyer Carlo Buonaparte. At the age of ten he was placed at the Autun College in France, and then in the same 1779 he was transferred to a state scholarship at the Brienne military school. In 1784 he successfully graduated from college and transferred to the Paris Military School (1784-85). Since October 1785 in the army (with the rank of junior lieutenant of artillery). Brought up on the advanced ideas of the French Enlightenment, a follower of J. J. Rousseau, G. Reynal, Bonaparte accepted the Great French Revolution with warm approval; in 1792 he joined the Jacobin Club. His activities took place mainly in Corsica. This gradually brought Bonaparte into conflict with the Corsican separatists led by Paoli, and in 1793 he was forced to flee Corsica. During a long and unsuccessful siege by the republican army of Toulon, captured by the monarchist rebels and the English interventionists, Bonaparte proposed his plan for capturing the city. December 17, 1793 Toulon was taken by storm. For the capture of Toulon, the 24-year-old captain was promoted to brigadier general. From this time begins the rapid ascent of Bonaparte. After a short-term disgrace and even arrest during the days of the Thermidorian reaction for being close to O. Robespierre, Napoleon again attracted attention - already in Paris - with energy and determination in suppressing the monarchist rebellion on 13 Vendemière (October 5), 1795. Following that, he was appointed commander Parisian garrison and in 1796 - commander in chief of the army created for operations in Italy.
In the Italian campaign of 1796-97, not only Bonaparte's military talent was manifested, but also his understanding of the social aspect of war: the desire to raise against the powers. Austrian anti-feudal forces and acquire an ally for France in the Italian national liberation movement. Although the first Italian campaign was already accompanied by indemnities, the robbery of the country, its progressive content provided the French army with the support of the Italian population. In the subsequent military campaigns of Napoleon, the aggressive tendencies intensified more and more. The Peace of Campoformia of 1797 revealed Napoleon's diplomatic abilities. Returning to Paris as a winner, he easily made a decision in the Directory to organize a campaign to conquer Egypt. However, the Egyptian expedition of 1798-1801, despite individual victories<Наполеона>, after the defeat by the British of the French fleet at Aboukir, which cut off the French army in Egypt from the metropolis, and an unsuccessful campaign in Syria, was doomed to defeat. Taking advantage of the information that had reached him about the defeat of the armies of the Directory and the victories of A. V. Suvorov, Napoleon arbitrarily left the expeditionary army and returned to Paris in October 1799, when the crisis of the Directory regime had already reached an extreme degree. The weakness of the Directory, its constant fluctuations, which prompted the bourgeoisie to strive for "firm power", contributed to the implementation of Napoleon's personal ambitious plans. Relying on influential circles of the bourgeoisie, on November 9-10, 1799 (18-19 Brumaire of the 8th year), he carried out a coup d'etat that established the consular regime and actually granted him, although not immediately, full power.
Dictatorship, covered until 1804 by a republican sign, Napoleon directed to protect the interests of the bourgeoisie, peasant proprietors and to strengthen the bourgeois state as a whole. He abolished national representation, even in the truncated form that had been preserved under the Directory, destroyed elective self-government, a press independent of the government, and other remnants of the democratic gains of the revolution; they were replaced by a bureaucratic-police system of prefects, mayors and their subordinates appointed from above. The concordat concluded with the Pope in 1801 provided Napoleon with the support of the Catholic Church. The civil, commercial and criminal codes developed with the personal participation of Napoleon established the legal norms of bourgeois society. Strengthening and defending the main gains of the bourgeois revolution in the economic sphere and, in particular, the redistribution of property that had been carried out, Napoleon resolutely suppressed all attempts (both from the left and from the right) to change this order. He struck both at the former Jacobins and at the militant royalists. The economic policy of the Napoleonic regime was aimed at the development of industry and trade; in 1800 the French Bank was founded. Napoleon enjoyed special patronage of industry, in the development of which he saw a means of strengthening the power of the state. Napoleon was afraid of workers' unrest and sought to prevent them both by organizing public works (in order to prevent unemployment), and by maintaining the Le Chapelier law (1791), which prohibited workers' associations, and by introducing the so-called workers' books in 1803.
In 1802, Napoleon achieved his appointment as consul for life, and in 1804 he was proclaimed emperor. In order to strengthen the new, bourgeois monarchy and give it an external brilliance, N. I created a new imperial nobility, a magnificent imperial court, annulled the marriage with his first wife Josephine and entered into marriage in 1810 with Maria Louise, the daughter of the Austrian emperor Franz I. Victorious wars with coalitions powers, brilliant victories at Marengo (1800), Austerlitz (Battle of Austerlitz 1805), Jena and Auerstedt (Jena-Auerstedt battle 1806), Wagram (1809), a huge expansion of the territory of the empire and the transformation of N. I into the actual ruler of all Western (except Great Britain ) and Central Europe contributed to its extraordinary fame. The fate of N. I, who reached unparalleled power in 10 years, forcing the monarchs of Europe to reckon with his will, seemed inexplicable to many of his contemporaries and gave rise to all sorts of “Napoleonic legends”. A man of enormous personal talent, exceptional capacity for work, strong, sober mind and unbending will, merciless in achieving goals, N. I was an outstanding representative of the bourgeoisie at a time when it was still a young, rising class; he most fully embodied all the strengths inherent in her then, as well as her vices and shortcomings - aggressiveness, self-interest, adventurism.
In the field of military art, N. I developed and improved what was new that had previously been created by the armies of revolutionary France. The merit of N. I was that he found the most expedient in the given historical conditions the tactical and strategic use of the colossal armed masses, the appearance of which became possible thanks to the revolution. He proved to be a remarkable master of strategy and maneuvering tactics. Fighting against a numerically superior enemy, N. I sought to separate his forces and destroy them piece by piece. His principle was: "compensate for numerical weakness with speed of movement." On the march, N. I led the troops dispersed, but in such a way that they could be assembled at the right time at any point. This is how the principle of “going apart, fighting together” developed. N. I improved the new maneuvering tactics of the columns in combination with the loose formation, based on the clear interaction of various branches of the troops. He made extensive use of rapid maneuver in order to create superiority in decisive directions, he knew how to deliver surprise strikes, carry out detours and envelopments, and build up efforts in decisive areas of the battle. Considering the defeat of enemy forces as his main strategic task, N. I always sought to seize the strategic initiative. The main way to defeat the enemy for him was a general battle. The success achieved in the general battle, N. I sought to develop by organizing a persistent pursuit of the enemy. N. I provided a wide opportunity for initiative to the commanders of units and formations. He knew how to find and promote capable, talented people. But the rapid rise of Napoleonic France and the victories of French arms were explained not so much by the personal qualities of N. I and his marshals, but by the fact that in a collision with feudal-absolutist Europe, Napoleonic France represented a historically more progressive, bourgeois social system. This was also reflected in the military sphere, where the art of generalship of N. I had an undoubted advantage over the backward, routine strategy and tactics of the armies of feudal Europe, and in the superiority of the system of bourgeois social relations, boldly introduced in the countries of Western Europe by Napoleonic legislation, over backward patriarchal-feudal relations. . However, over time, the Napoleonic wars lost their earlier (despite their aggressive nature) progressive elements and turned into purely predatory ones. Under these conditions, no personal qualities and efforts of N. I couldn't bring victory. This was first revealed during the war that began in Spain in 1808, where the people rose up against the French conquerors; this was fully and with catastrophic consequences for the Napoleonic empire confirmed in the campaign of 1812 in Russia. The war against Russia was, as N. I himself later admitted, his fatal mistake. After N. I came to power, he was the first of the French statesmen to understand the full significance of an alliance with Russia for France. His efforts were aimed at achieving this goal: in negotiations with Paul I, he came close to concluding an alliance with Russia. The assassination of Paul I in March 1801 postponed this possibility for a long time. Tilsit negotiations with Alexander I (1807) led to the creation of a Franco-Russian alliance, which was highly valued by N. I. During the Erfurt meeting of N. I with Alexander I (1808), Franco-Russian contradictions aggravated in connection with the Continental blockade, the Polish question, etc. The decision to start a war against Russia testified that, blinded by success and the desire to establish his dominance over Europe , N. I began to lose the sense of the real, inherent in him before. The Patriotic War of 1812 not only destroyed the "great army" of N. I, but also gave a powerful impetus to the national liberation struggle against Napoleonic oppression in Europe. In the campaign of 1813, N. I had to fight not only against the armies of the anti-Napoleonic coalition, but also against an irresistible force - the rebellious peoples of Europe. The inevitable defeat of H. I under these conditions, completed by the entry of allied troops into Paris (March 1814), forced him to abdicate (April 6, 1814). The victorious allies retained N. I the title of emperor and gave him possession of Fr. Elbe. The landing of N. I in France (March 1, 1815) and the "Hundred Days" (March 20 - June 22, 1815) of his second reign again showed not only his talent, but to an even greater extent the significance of the social forces behind him. The unprecedented “conquest” in 3 weeks without a single shot of France became possible only because the people considered N. I capable of expelling the Bourbons and aristocrats hated by the popular masses from France. The tragedy of N. I was that he did not dare to fully rely on the people who supported him. This led to his defeat at Waterloo and his second abdication (June 22, 1815). Exiled to about. Helena, he died after 6 years as a prisoner of the British. In 1840, the ashes of N. I were transferred to Paris, to the Les Invalides.
1) List the main provisions of the Peace of Tilsit?
2) What explains Napoleon's military successes?
3) What is the reason for the crushing defeat of Napoleon in Russia?
2. Causes and nature of the Napoleonic wars
The Napoleonic Wars of 1799-1815 were fought by France and its allies during the years of the Consulate (1799-1804) and the Empire of Napoleon I (1804-1814,1815) against coalitions of European states.
The nature of wars
Chronologically, they continued the wars of the French Revolution of 1789-99 and had some common features with them. Being aggressive, they, nevertheless, contributed to the spread of revolutionary ideas in Europe, the undermining of the feudal order and the development of capitalist relations. They were conducted in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, which sought to consolidate its military-political and commercial-industrial dominance on the continent, pushing the British bourgeoisie into the background. The main opponents of France during the Napoleonic Wars were England, Austria and Russia.
2nd anti-French coalition (1798-1801)
The conditional date of the start of the Napoleonic Wars is considered to be the establishment in France during the coup of 18 Brumaire (November 9), 1799, of the military dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte, who became the first consul. At this time, the country was already at war with the 2nd anti-French coalition, which was formed in 1798-99 by England, Russia, Austria, Turkey and the Kingdom of Naples (the 1st anti-French coalition consisting of Austria, Prussia, England and a number of other European states fought against revolutionary France in 1792-93).
Having come to power, Bonaparte sent the English king and the Austrian emperor a proposal to start peace negotiations, which was rejected by them. France began to form a large army on the eastern borders under the command of General Moreau. At the same time, on the Swiss border, in secrecy, the formation of the so-called "reserve" army was going on, which dealt the first blow to the Austrian troops in Italy. Having made a difficult transition through the St. Bernard Pass in the Alps, on June 14, 1800, at the Battle of Marengo, Bonaparte defeated the Austrians operating under the command of Field Marshal Melas. In December 1800 Moreau's army of the Rhine defeated the Austrians at Hohenlinden (Bavaria). In February 1801, Austria was forced to conclude peace with France and recognize her seizures in Belgium and on the left bank of the Rhine. After that, the 2nd coalition actually broke up, England agreed in October 1801 to sign the terms of the preliminary (i.e., preliminary) agreement, and on March 27, 1802, the Treaty of Amiens was concluded between England, on the one hand, and France, Spain and the Batavian Republic - with another.
3rd Anti-French Coalition
However, already in 1803 the war between them resumed, and in 1805 the 3rd anti-French coalition was formed, consisting of England, Russia, Austria and the Kingdom of Naples. Unlike the previous ones, it proclaimed as its goal the struggle not against revolutionary France, but against the aggressive policy of Bonaparte. Becoming Emperor Napoleon I in 1804, he prepared the landing of a French expeditionary army in England. But on October 21, 1805, in the Battle of Trafalgar, the English fleet, led by Admiral Nelson, destroyed the combined Franco-Spanish fleet. This defeat forever deprived France of the opportunity to compete with England at sea. However, on the continent, Napoleon's troops won one victory after another: in October 1805, the Austrian army of General Mack capitulated at Ulm without a fight; in November, Napoleon marched victoriously into Vienna; On December 2, in the battle of Austerlitz, he defeated the combined forces of the Russians and Austrians. Austria was again forced to sign peace with France. Under the Treaty of Pressburg (December 26, 1805), she recognized the Napoleonic seizures, and also pledged to pay a huge indemnity. In 1806, Napoleon forced Franz I to resign as Holy Roman Emperor of the German Nation.
4th and 5th anti-French coalitions
The war against Napoleon was continued by England and Russia, which were soon joined by Prussia and Sweden, concerned about the strengthening of French domination in Europe. In September 1806, the 4th anti-French coalition of European states was formed. A month later, during two battles, on the same day, October 14, 1806, the Prussian army was destroyed: near Jena, Napoleon defeated parts of Prince Hohenlohe, and at Auerstedt, Marshal Davout defeated the main Prussian forces of King Friedrich Wilhelm and the Duke of Brunswick. Napoleon solemnly entered Berlin. Prussia was occupied. The Russian army moving to help the Allies met with the French first near Pultusk on December 26, 1806, then at Preussisch-Eylau on February 8, 1807. Despite the bloodshed, these battles did not give an advantage to either side, but in June 1807 Napoleon won the battle of Friedland over the Russian troops commanded by L. L. Benigsen. On July 7, 1807, in the middle of the Neman River, a meeting of the French and Russian emperors took place on a raft and the Peace of Tilsit was concluded, according to which Russia recognized all Napoleon’s conquests in Europe and joined the “Continental blockade” of the British Isles proclaimed by him in 1806. In the spring of 1809, England and Austria again united into the 5th anti-French coalition, but already in May 1809 the French entered Vienna, and on July 5-6, the Austrians were again defeated in the battle of Wagram. Austria agreed to pay an indemnity and joined the continental blockade. A significant part of Europe was under the rule of Napoleon.
Reasons for France's military success
France possessed the most perfect military system for its time, born back in the years of the French Revolution. New conditions for recruiting into the army, the constant attention of military leaders, and above all Napoleon himself, to the fighting spirit of soldiers, maintaining their high military training and discipline, a guard formed from veteran soldiers - all this contributed to the victories of France. An important role was played by the military talent of the famous Napoleonic marshals - Bernadotte, Berthier, Davout, Jourdan, Lannes, Macdonald, Massena, Moreau, Murat, Ney, Soult and others. Napoleon Bonaparte himself was the greatest commander and military theorist.
The needs of the Napoleonic army were provided by the conquered countries of Europe and the states that were politically dependent on France - they, for example, formed parts of the auxiliary troops.
The first defeat of France. End of French expansion
The national liberation movement, which was growing in Europe, acquired the greatest scope in Spain and Germany. However, the fate of Napoleon's empire was decided during his campaign in Russia. During the Patriotic War of 1812, the strategy of the Russian army, led by Field Marshal M. I. Kutuzov, the partisan movement contributed to the death of more than 400,000 "Great Army". This caused a new upsurge in the national liberation struggle in Europe, in a number of states people's militia began to be created. In 1813, the 6th anti-French coalition was formed, which included Russia, England, Prussia, Sweden, Austria, and a number of other states. In October 1813, as a result of the "battle of the peoples" near Leipzig, the territory of Germany was liberated from the French. The Napoleonic army withdrew to the borders of France, and then was defeated on its own land. On March 31, Allied troops entered Paris. On April 6, Napoleon I signed the abdication of the throne and was expelled from France to the island of Elba.
End of the Napoleonic Wars
In 1815, during the famous "Hundred Days" (March 20 - June 22), Napoleon made his last attempt to regain his former power. The defeat in the Battle of Waterloo (Belgium) on June 18, 1815, inflicted on him by the troops of the 7th coalition under the command of the Duke of Wellington and Marshal Blucher, completed the history of the Napoleonic wars. The Congress of Vienna (November 1, 1814 - June 9, 1815) decided the fate of France, fixing the redistribution of the territories of European countries in the interests of the victorious states. The wars of liberation that were waged against Napoleon were inevitably associated with the partial restoration of the feudal-absolutist order in Europe (the “Holy Alliance” of European monarchs, concluded with the aim of suppressing the national liberation and revolutionary movement in Europe).
1) What agreements were reached at the signing of the Treaty of Amiens?
2) What was the "Continental Blockade"?
3) Explain the meaning of the concept of "battle of nations"?
3. Periodization of the Napoleonic wars. Major military campaigns and major battles
War of the First Coalition 1793–1797
Hostilities began with the invasion of French troops into the possessions of the German states on the Rhine, followed by the invasion of coalition troops into France. Soon the enemies were repulsed and France itself began active military operations against the coalition - it invaded Spain, the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Western German states. Soon, in 1793, the battle of Toulon took place, where the young and talented commander Napoleon Bonaparte first showed himself. After a series of victories, the enemies were forced to recognize the French Republic and all its conquests (with the exception of the British), but then, after the deterioration of the situation in France, the war resumed.
The beginning of the war
The revolution that took place in France in 1789 had a strong effect on the states adjacent to it and prompted their governments to resort to decisive measures against the menacing danger. Emperor Leopold II and King Friedrich Wilhelm II of Prussia, at a personal meeting in Pilnitz, agreed to stop the spread of revolutionary principles. They were also encouraged to do so by the insistence of the French emigrants, who made up a corps of troops in Koblenz under the command of the Prince of Condé.
Military preparations were begun, but the monarchs for a long time did not dare to open hostilities. The initiative was taken by France, which on April 20, 1792 declared war on Austria for its hostile actions against France. Austria and Prussia entered into a defensive and offensive alliance, which was gradually joined by almost all other German states, as well as Spain, Piedmont and the Kingdom of Naples.
In the summer of 1792, the allied troops (in total - up to 250 thousand) began to concentrate on the borders of France. These troops in tactical terms (according to the then concepts) were much higher than the French; but their leaders, for the most part elderly people, were able to imitate Frederick the Great only in trifles and external form: moreover, their hands were tied by the presence of the Prussian king in the army and the instructions of the Viennese Hofkriegsrat. Finally, from the very beginning of hostilities, complete disagreement was revealed in the preparation of the operational plan: the offensive enthusiasm of the Prussians collided with the slowness and exaggerated caution of the Austrians. The French regular army then did not exceed 125 thousand, was in a severe disorder and lost many experienced generals and officers who emigrated to foreign lands; the troops suffered hardships of all kinds, the material part of the military structure was in a deplorable state. The French government took the most energetic measures to strengthen the army and raise its morale. The French were preparing to oppose the system of close masses (columns) and the fire of numerous shooters (following the example of the Americans in the struggle for independence) to the linear and so-called cordon systems followed by the Allied commanders. Any simple private who showed fighting qualities was open to the achievement of the highest positions in the army. At the same time, mistakes and failures were mercilessly punished. At first, the French invasion of the Austrian Netherlands ended in complete failure for them; they were forced to retreat within their borders and confine themselves to defensive actions. On August 1, the main Allied forces under the command of the Duke of Brunswick crossed the Rhine and began to concentrate between Cologne and Mainz. Convinced by the emigrants that when the allies entered France, all the conservative elements of the country would rise up to suppress the revolutionary minority and free the king, the duke decided to break into Champagne and then go straight to Paris. He issued a formidable proclamation, which was intended to frighten the French, but had the opposite effect: its defiant tone aroused the strongest indignation; everyone who could, took up arms, and in less than 2 months the number of French troops already exceeded 400 thousand people, badly arranged and armed, but imbued with the greatest enthusiasm. The offensive movement of the allies was slowed down by bad roads in the Ardennes and a lack of food; French commander-in-chief Dumouriez managed to bring up reinforcements. On September 20, an insignificant in itself, but very important in its consequences, cannonade took place at Valmy, which put an end to the Allied offensive. Their troops, embarrassed by the staunchness of the enemy, exhausted by illnesses and various hardships, indulged in terrible marauding, which even more turned the population against them. Meanwhile, the French were getting stronger every day, and the Duke of Brunswick, not seeing the possibility of either going forward or remaining in devastated Champagne, decided to withdraw from the French borders. Taking advantage of this, Dumouriez invaded Belgium, defeated the Austrians at Jemappe on November 18, and by the end of the year captured all the main cities of the country. On the middle Rhine, the French General Custin, having defeated the military contingents of various small German rulers, invaded the Palatinate and, with the assistance of the revolutionary party in Mainz, captured this important fortress. The actions of the French in Savoy were also successful;
On February 1, 1793, immediately after the execution of Louis XVI, the French Republic declared war on the Netherlands and Great Britain. From that time on, the latter became at the head of the powers that fought against revolutionary France, helped them with subsidies and private expeditions, and at the same time, through her fleet, caused enormous harm to the colonies and trade of the enemy. In the Netherlands, the French began to suffer setbacks, culminating on March 18 with the defeat at Neuerwinden. After the betrayal of Dumouriez and his flight to the enemy, the French National Convention reinforced the army with new regiments and entrusted the main authorities to Dampierre, who soon died in the battle of Conde. The generals Custine, and then Jourdan, who were appointed in his place, had just as little success. Operations on the Middle and Upper Rhine proceeded with varying success, but generally unfavorably for the Republicans, who lost Mainz and other important points. Only the lack of agreement in the actions of the opponents and mutual distrust between the Austrians and Prussians saved them from complete defeat. Operations in the Alps, on the border of Italy, were successful for the French, commanded by General Kellermann; the Sardinians, who had entered Savoy, were defeated at Albaretta on September 20 and Valmeny on October 14, and retreated to their positions on Mont Cenis. The war in the Pyrenees continued sluggishly, but rather favorably for the French. The internecine war in the Vendée flared up more and more, and the republican troops there suffered severe defeats from the royalists. In the same 1793, Toulon was occupied by the British and Spaniards, and then besieged and taken by the troops of the republic.
In the campaign of 1794, military operations in Holland, which began in April, were at first successful for the allies. But already in June, success leaned towards the French, who took away from the enemy all the cities and fortresses he had captured and inflicted several sensitive defeats on him, and by the end of the year forced Holland, called the Batavian Republic, to conclude an alliance with France. In action on the Rhine, fortune also favored French arms; by the end of the year, only Mainz remained in the hands of the allies on the left bank of the river. In Italy, the Republicans, having twice defeated the Austro-Sardinian troops, invaded Piedmont (in April), but the development of epidemic diseases and the appearance of the English fleet in the Gulf of Genoa forced them to withdraw. In September, they entered the Genoese possessions, which were considered neutral, and settled there in winter quarters. Tuscany concluded a separate peace with France, by which she pledged to recognize the French Republic and pay her a million francs.
Following this, in April 1795, the king of Prussia, convinced that the war upsets the finances of Prussia and does not bring her any benefits, made peace with the republic in Basel and ceded to her all his overseas possessions. Under the treaty signed on May 11, almost the entire northern part of Germany (separated by the demarcation line) was declared neutral. Spain also left the coalition, so that the theater of operations in Europe was limited to southern Germany and northern Italy. These actions, due to the fatigue of both belligerents, resumed only in September 1795, when French troops under the command of Jourdan and Pichegru crossed the Rhine at Neuvid and near Mannheim. Having suffered major setbacks in battles with the Austrians, both of them soon had to retreat again to the left bank of the river; On December 31, a truce was concluded between the warring armies. In Italy, the Austrians first drove the French out of Piedmont, but then, when General Scherer arrived from the Spanish border with the Eastern Pyrenean army, the Austrian General Devens was defeated on November 23 at Loano. During the armistice, both warring parties received significant reinforcements and began to prepare for decisive action.
Italian campaign 1796
Two young commanders appeared on the historical stage, soon attracting everyone's attention: Napoleon Bonaparte and Archduke Charles. Drawing up an operational plan and supplying the troops with everything necessary was entrusted in France to the clever and skillful Carnot, while in Austria everything still depended on the Hofkriegsrat, whose orders only tied the hands of the commanders in chief. According to the plan drawn up by Carnot, the Rhine and Moselle French armies under the command of General Moreau were to act in concert with the Sambre-Meuse, led by Jourdan, penetrate two columns along both banks of the Danube into Germany and unite under the walls of Vienna with the Italian army entrusted to Bonaparte. On March 31, 1796, the truce was broken. The initial operations of the French troops who crossed the Rhine were brilliant; the Austrians were pushed back at all points, and already at the end of July, the Duke of Württemberg, the Margrave of Baden and the entire Swabian district were forced to conclude a separate peace, paying France 6 million livres indemnity and ceding to her many possessions on the left bank of the Rhine. In August, the Franconian and Upper Saxon districts followed their example, so that the entire burden of the war fell on Austria alone. Soon, however, circumstances changed: Archduke Charles, taking advantage of the fact that the French columns were divided by the Danube, first turned against Jourdan, defeated him in several battles, and already in early September forced him to retreat across the Rhine. The same fate befell the column of General Moreau. By the end of October, the entire right bank of the Rhine was again cleared of French troops, after which a temporary truce was concluded on the Rhine.
The Italian campaign of 1796 was very favorable to the French, thanks to the skillful actions of their young leader. Having taken command of the army, Bonaparte found her in the most miserable financial situation, to which her negligence and embezzlement of the former chiefs and commissariat brought her. With an authoritative hand, he eliminated all abuses, appointed new commanders, collected the necessary money and food supplies, and immediately gained the trust and devotion of the soldiers. He based his operational plan on the speed of action and on the concentration of forces against the enemies, who adhered to the cordon system and disproportionately stretched their troops. With a quick offensive, he managed to separate the troops of the Sardinian general Colli from the Austrian army of Beaulieu. The Sardinian king, frightened by the successes of the French, concluded a truce with them on April 28, which delivered Bonaparte several cities and free passage across the Po River. On May 7, he crossed this river, and within a month he cleared almost all of northern Italy from the Austrians. The dukes of Parma and Modena were compelled to conclude a truce, bought with a considerable sum of money; a huge contribution was also taken from Milan. June 3 Bonaparte entered Verona. Only the fortress of Mantua and the citadel of Milan remained in the hands of the Austrians. The Neapolitan king also made a truce with the French, followed by the Pope, whose possessions were flooded with French troops: he had to pay 20 million and provide the French with a significant number of works of art. On July 29, the Milanese citadel fell, and then Bonaparte laid siege to Mantua. The new Austrian army of Wurmser, which arrived from Tyrol, could not improve the situation; after a series of failures, Wurmser himself, with part of his forces, was forced to lock himself in Mantua, which he had previously tried in vain to free from the siege. At the end of October, new troops were moved to Italy under the command of Alvintsi and Davidovich; but after the battle of Rivoli they were finally driven back to the Tyrol, having suffered enormous losses.
The situation of Mantua, where epidemic diseases and famine raged, became desperate, and Wurmser capitulated at the beginning of 1797, having 18 thousand people at his disposal. The campaign of 1797 in Germany was not marked by anything particularly important. Upon the departure of the Archduke Charles, who was appointed commander-in-chief in Italy, the French again crossed the Rhine (in mid-April) and scored several successes over the Austrians, but the news of the armistice at Leoben stopped further hostilities. In Italy, the Pope, who violated the treaty with the French Republic, suffered the first blows from the French: he paid with the concession of several cities and the payment of 15 million francs. On March 10, Bonaparte moved against the Austrians, whose weakened and disorganized troops could no longer offer stubborn resistance. Twenty days later the French were only a few marches from Vienna. The Archduke Karl, with the permission of the emperor, proposed a truce, to which Bonaparte readily agreed, since his position was also becoming difficult due to the remoteness from the sources of the army's allowance; in addition, he was preoccupied with news of movements hostile to him in the Tyrol and Venice. On April 18, 1797, a truce was concluded at Leoben. Immediately after this, Bonaparte declared war on the Republic of Venice for violating neutrality and killing many French people. On May 16, Venice was occupied by his troops, and on June 6, Genoa, named the Ligurian Republic, fell under French rule. At the end of June, Bonaparte declared the independence of the Cisalpine Republic, made up of Lombardy, Mantua, Modena and some other adjacent possessions. On October 17, peace was concluded with Austria at Campo Formio, ending the War of the First Coalition, from which France emerged victorious, although Great Britain continued to fight. Austria abandoned the Netherlands, recognized the left bank of the Rhine as the border of France and received part of the possessions of the destroyed Venetian Republic. The stadtholder of Holland and the imperial owners, who had lost their lands beyond the Rhine, were promised a reward by abolishing independent spiritual possessions in Germany. To resolve all these extremely confusing questions, it was necessary to convene in the city of Rastatt a congress from representatives of France, Austria, Prussia and other German possessions.
War of the Second Coalition 1798-1802
a coalition with the participation of Austria, England, Russia and Turkey in order to limit the expansion of the zone of influence of revolutionary France during the revolutionary wars of 1791-1802. Created after Switzerland came under French control in 1798. In Italy, in April-August 1799, the combined Russian-Austrian troops under the command of Suvorov won a series of victories over the French army under the command of Moreau, pushing it out of the Po Valley into the French Alps and the environs of Genoa.
In Switzerland, on September 14-15, French troops under the command of Massena (about 75 thousand people) in the battle near Zurich defeated the coalition forces under the command of Rimsky-Korsakov (about 60 thousand people, of which 34 thousand were Russians). The 23,000-strong detachment of Suvorov, who arrived in Switzerland a few days later, instead of the allied troops, met four times the superior forces of the French and was forced to break through the mountains to Glarus. Switzerland was lost by the Allies.
In Holland, the Anglo-Russian Expeditionary Force, landed in August, acted unsuccessfully and was evacuated in November. Shortly thereafter, Russia withdrew from the coalition.
On November 9, 1799, Napoleon, who returned from Egypt, seized power in France during the coup of 18 Brumaire. Napoleon personally led the French troops in Italy in the 1800 campaign and in June 1800, at the Battle of Marengo, he won a decisive victory over the Austrian forces, which led to the evacuation of the Austrian troops from northern Italy west of the Ticino.
On February 9, 1801, Austria signed the Peace of Luneville, which formally recognized Austria's independence of the Batavian and Helvetian republics (Holland and Switzerland, respectively), which were actually controlled by France.
The withdrawal of Austria from the war meant the actual collapse of the Second Coalition - only England remained at war with France.
In 1801, as a result of the Russian-French rapprochement, the Indian campaign of the Don army was being prepared in 1801. After the palace coup on March 11, 1801, which led to the accession of Alexander I to the Russian throne, the plans for the campaign were curtailed.
Left alone, England, having lost all its allies on the continent, signed the Peace of Amiens with France on March 25, 1802.
War of the Third Coalition 1805
War of the Third Coalition (also known as the Russian-Austrian-French War of 1805) - a war between France, Spain, Bavaria and Italy, on one side and the Third Anti-French Coalition, which included Austria, Russia, Great Britain, Sweden, the Kingdom of Naples and Portugal - with another.
In 1805 Russia and Great Britain signed the Treaty of St. Petersburg, which laid the foundation for a third coalition. In the same year, Great Britain, Austria, Russia, the Kingdom of Naples and Sweden formed the Third Coalition against France and its allied Spain. While the fleet of the coalition fought successfully at sea, the armies were unsuccessful and were defeated, so the coalition fell apart rather quickly - in December.
Napoleon had been planning an invasion of England since the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, signed by Cornwallis for England and Joseph Bonaparte for France. At this time (summer 1805), Napoleon's 180,000-strong army (the "Great Army") stood on the French coast of the English Channel, in Boulogne, preparing to land in England. These ground forces were quite enough, but Napoleon did not have enough navy to cover the landing, so it was necessary to pull the British fleet away from the English Channel.
Military operations at sea
An attempt to distract the British by threatening their dominance in the West Indies failed: the Franco-Spanish fleet under the command of the French Admiral Villeneuve was defeated by the English squadron on the way back to Europe at Cape Finisterre, and retreated to Spain, to the port of Cadiz, where it was blocked.
Admiral Villeneuve, despite the poor state of the fleet, to which he himself brought him, and having learned that they were going to replace him with Admiral Rossilli, went out, following the instructions of Napoleon, at the end of October to the sea. At Cape Trafalgar, the Franco-Spanish fleet took the battle with the English squadron of Admiral Nelson and was completely defeated, despite the fact that Nelson was mortally wounded in this battle. The French fleet never recovered from this defeat, losing control of the sea to the English fleet.
Military action on land
In order to finally protect itself from the French invasion, England hastily put together another anti-French coalition, unlike the first and second, no longer anti-republican, but anti-Napoleonic.
By joining the coalition, Austria, taking advantage of the fact that most of Napoleon's army was concentrated in northern France, planned to unleash hostilities in northern Italy and Bavaria. To help the Austrians, Russia moved two armies, under the command of generals Kutuzov and Buxgevden, respectively.
Having received information about the actions of the coalition forces, Napoleon was forced to postpone the landing on the British Isles for an indefinite period and move troops to Germany. It was then that Napoleon said: "If I am not in London in 15 days, then I should be in Vienna in mid-November."
Meanwhile, a 72,000-strong Austrian army under the command of Baron Karl Mack von Leiberich invaded Bavaria, without waiting for the Russian troops, who had not yet reached the theater of operations.
Napoleon left the Boulogne camp and, having made a forced march to the south, reached Bavaria in the shortest possible time. The Austrian army capitulated at the Battle of Ulm. The corps of General Elachich managed to escape capture, however, he was subsequently overtaken by the French Marshal Augereau and capitulated.
Left alone, Kutuzov was forced to retreat with rearguard battles (the Battle of Merzbach, the Battle of Hollabrunn) to join with the army of Buxgevden that had not yet approached.
Napoleon occupied Vienna without serious resistance. Of the entire Austrian army, only the formations of Archduke Charles and Archduke John, as well as a few units that managed to connect with Kutuzov's army, continued the war.
The Russian Emperor Alexander I and the Austrian Emperor Franz II arrived at the army. At the insistence of Alexander I, Kutuzov's army stopped its retreat and, without waiting for the approach of Buxgevden's troops, entered the battle with the French at Austerlitz, in which it suffered a heavy defeat and retreated in disorder.
The results of the war
Soon after Austerlitz, Austria concluded the Treaty of Pressburg with France, according to which it lost a number of territories and became an ally of France. Russia, despite heavy losses, continued military operations against Napoleon as part of the fourth anti-French coalition, also organized with the active participation of England. The continental part of the Kingdom of Naples, including the capital, the city of Naples, was conquered by Napoleon. A French satellite state of the same name was formed on this territory. The island part of the kingdom, that is, Sicily, retained its independence, but did not take an active part in hostilities.
War of the Fourth Coalition 1806 - 1807
(also known in Russia as the Russian-Prussian-French war) - the war of Napoleonic France and its satellites in 1806-1807. against a coalition of great powers (Russia, Prussia, England). It began with the attack of royal Prussia on France. But in two general battles near Jena and Auerstedt, Napoleon defeated the Prussians and on October 27, 1806 entered Berlin. In December 1806, the imperial Russian army entered the war. Fierce battles near Charnov, Golymin and Pultusk in December 1806 did not reveal the winners. The general battle of the winter company took place near Eylau in February 1807. In a bloody battle between the main forces of the French Great Army of Napoleon and the Russian under the command of General. L.L. Bennigsen did not have any winners. Since Bennigsen retreated the night after the battle, Napoleon declared himself the winner. Both sides were bled dry by a three-month inconclusive struggle and were happy with the onset of mudslides, which put an end to hostilities until May. By this time, the forces of the Russian army were diverted by the outbreak of war with the Ottoman Empire, and therefore Napoleon received a huge numerical superiority. By the start of the spring campaign, he had 190,000 soldiers against 100,000 Russians. Near Heilsberg, Bennigsen successfully repelled the attack of the French. army, however, near Friedland, the numerical superiority of the Great Army played a decisive role. Napoleon, with 85,000 soldiers, inflicted a heavy defeat on the Russian army of 60,000 people.
Important battles
Battle of Jena and Auerstedt (October 1806)
Battle of Golymin (October 1806)
Battle of Golymin (December 1806)
Battle of Charnovo (December 1806)
Battle of Pultusk (December 1806)
Battle of Eylau (February 1807)
Siege of Danzig (1807)
Battle of Guttstadt (June 1807)
Battle of Heilsberg (June 1807)
Battle of Friedland (June 1807)
Reason for making peace
Alexander I was clear that it was impossible for Russia to wage a successful war simultaneously with Napoleon and Turkey, so the tsar preferred to make peace with Napoleon and continue the war with the Ottoman Empire.
War of the Fifth Coalition April 9 - October 14, 1809 (188 days) (also known as the Austro-French War) - a military conflict between the Austrian Empire and Great Britain, on the one hand, and the French Empire of Napoleon and his allies. The main military events unfolded in Central Europe from April to July 1809. England at that time was drawn into the war in the Iberian Peninsula, but she, under pressure from the Austrians, landed her troops in the Netherlands. This did not affect the outcome of the war. After fighting in Bavaria and the Danube Valley, the war ended successfully for the French after the battle of Wagram. In early 1809, Great Britain succeeded in creating a new coalition against France. In addition to England, it included Austria and Spain. It was the shortest coalition in the history of the Napoleonic Wars.
France before the war
Napoleon was aware that Austria, instigated by England, was preparing for war. But he still doubted that Austria would enter the war. Napoleon planned to move the fighting to the Danube Valley, as in 1805. But incorrect information regarding the Austrian offensive (Napoleon was informed that the Austrians would advance with the main forces in the northern part of the Danube) almost led to the collapse of the French army. 140,000 French soldiers (Napoleon's main force in this war) found themselves surrounded by more superior enemy forces. But the Austrians did not take advantage of the confusion of the French. The French emperor quickly gathered his army into one fist and began its deployment.
fighting
On April 9, 1809, the French envoy was informed that Austria had declared war on France. Early on the morning of April 10, the main body of the Austrian army crossed the border on the river Inn and invaded Bavaria. Bad roads, washed out by rain, slowed down the Austrian advance in the first week of the war. But, nevertheless, the Bavarian troops, after several battles, began to retreat. The Austrian command missed a great opportunity to split the Grand Army in two. The Austrians attacked about a week earlier than Napoleon had anticipated. After regrouping their troops, the French troops inflicted a series of defeats on the Austrians at: Sacile (April 16), Regensburg (April 19-23), Abensberg (April 20), Landshut (April 21), Eckmuhl (April 21-22). Having lost more than 50,000 people in these battles, Archduke Charles led the remnants of the army to Vienna. After the fall of Regensburg, the Austrian troops crossed to the other side of the Danube. The French emperor decided not to pursue the Archduke Charles and on May 13 entered Vienna, which opened the gates for him without a fight. By mid-May, the Austrians had amassed 115,000 troops near Vienna against 80,000 French. The French refused to enter into any negotiations. To break the forces of the Austrians, a good bridgehead was needed on the northern bank of the Danube. The sappers of the Great Army performed a miracle, having managed to throw several bridges across the river during the night of May 20-21. However, the hastily devised plan failed. It turned out that the main forces of Karl are in close proximity to the river. In the morning the French vanguard was attacked. The Battle of Aspern-Essling began (May 21-22). Napoleon was defeated in it. Many European states were delighted when Napoleon lost the Battle of Aspern-Essling. This was Napoleon's first total defeat on the battlefield. Did the French lose? troops (only killed 7,000 soldiers). But the losses of the Austrians were no less (only 4,286 people were killed + many wounded). Napoleon lost several good generals in the battle, including Marshal Lannes. This battle dispelled the myth of the invincibility of Napoleon Bonaparte. The French emperor promised that his next crossing of the Danube would be a disaster for the Austrians. In the strictest secrecy, new bridges began to be built. Having received reinforcements, Napoleon crossed the Danube. The Austrians poorly positioned their patrols. It was a complete surprise for them when they saw Napoleon on their shore. A battle ensued, which went down in history as the Battle of Wagram (July 5-6). In total, only 12,800 soldiers fell in the battle. The Austrians retreated. Napoleon no longer had the strength to continue the war. Actions in secondary theaters: in Italy, Dalmatia and Tyrol (where an anti-French uprising led by A. Gofer broke out), developed not in favor of the Austrians. The attempts of Major Schill in Prussia and Colonel Dernburg in Hesse to raise uprisings against France also ended in failure. In the Netherlands, the English corps, having lost 4,000 soldiers killed and wounded, made little progress. But this did not affect the war in any way. Austria by this time was defeated.
Schönbrunn Peace
On October 14, 1809, the Treaty of Schönbrunn was signed between Austria and France. The defeat of the Austrians was terrible not only militarily, but morally and politically.
War of the Sixth Coalition 1813-1814
Napoleon returned from the Russian campaign to Paris on December 18, 1812, and immediately energetically set about organizing a new army to replace the destroyed one in Russia. 140,000 young men were drafted ahead of schedule, to be drafted in 1813, and another 100,000 were transferred to the regular army from the National Guard. Citizens of older ages were called up, young men of 1814 were called up for auxiliary service. Several regiments have been withdrawn from Spain. A number of categories lost their deferments, the sailors were transferred to the infantry. A considerable part of the troops managed to collect on the garrisons.
While Napoleon was forming an army, his stepson Eugene Beauharnais held back the further advance of the allied Russian-Prussian troops along the Elbe line, relying on a chain of fortresses and an army of 60,000.
April 15, 1813 Napoleon left Paris to the newly formed army (about 130 thousand) in Mainz on the border of France. At the end of April, he moved to Saxony to Leipzig, from where, uniting with the troops of Beauharnais, he intended to drive back the Russian troops and bring the rebellious Prussia into submission. In total, Napoleon had up to 180 thousand soldiers in Germany against 69 thousand Russian and 54 thousand Prussian soldiers, if you do not take into account the French garrisons of fortresses on the Oder and Vistula and the forces besieging them.
Campaign of 1813. War in Germany
Liberation of Prussia. January-April 1813
Although the Prussian king Friedrich Wilhelm III formally remained loyal to the alliance with Napoleon, the entry of Russian troops into East Prussia created the prerequisites for a reversal of Prussian policy. Russian troops kept friendly on Prussian territory, not interfering in the internal affairs of Prussia. On January 25, 1813, the Prussian king moved from French-occupied Berlin to neutral Silesia (Prussian possessions on the border with Austria). On February 9, Prussia introduced universal conscription, which made it possible, along with other measures, to create an army of 120 thousand by the beginning of March. The Prussian regular units began to act in concert together with the Russians against the French, not always receiving the sanction of the Prussian king. The French attempt to organize a second line of defense along the Oder was unsuccessful due to the Russo-Prussian alliance.
Kutuzov's army after the capture of Warsaw moved to the west of Poland to Kalisz. On February 13, the advanced Russian detachment (16 thousand) under the command of Winzingerode intercepted the retreating 10 thousandth Saxon corps Rainier near Kalisz, the Saxons lost 3 thousand soldiers in battle. On February 24, Kutuzov's headquarters moved to Kalisz. From Kalisz, Russian detachments began to make sorties into Germany.
On February 28, an allied Russian-Prussian treaty was signed in Kalisz, and on March 27, 1813, the Prussian king declared war on France. By this time, the entire territory of Prussia (excluding several blockaded fortresses on the Vistula and Oder) up to the Elbe had been liberated from French troops. Beyond the Elbe and to the south of it began the lands of the German principalities of the Confederation of the Rhine, which remained loyal to Napoleon.
The main Russian army (43 thousand), located on the western border of the Duchy of Warsaw, stopped its advance for a month. According to Commander-in-Chief Kutuzov, Russian troops should not have participated in the war for the liberation of Germany, since battles with the French in Europe were in the interests not so much of Russia as of the interests of the German states themselves and England. However, Kutuzov could not openly resist the plans of Emperor Alexander I, and the combined Russian-Prussian army (about 70 thousand) moved in several echelons from Polish Kalisz to Saxony, capturing Dresden on March 27, the capital of a formally neutral kingdom. On April 3, the Allied vanguard entered Leipzig.
The shortest route from Prussia to Paris passed through Saxony. With the capture of this state, the Confederation of the Rhine (Napoleon's vassal formation of the German states) expected disintegration, and it was there that the main battles of Napoleon in 1813 unfolded with the armies of the Sixth Coalition.
Wittgenstein's separate corps acted more energetically than the Main Russian Army to the north. The advance detachment from his corps under the command of Adjutant General Chernyshev entered Berlin on March 4, left the day before by the French garrison. On March 11, the main forces of Wittgenstein triumphantly entered the liberated capital of Prussia. On March 17, the Prussian corps of York (30 thousand) joined Wittgenstein's troops (20 thousand) in Berlin in order to act jointly within the framework of the Russian-Prussian alliance.
Then Wittgenstein, together with the Prussian units, moved to Magdeburg on the Elbe (the stronghold of the French on the western border of Prussia), where the Allies repulsed the French attempt to make a sortie to Berlin. Convinced that there was no threat to Berlin from this direction, Wittgenstein in the 20th of April moved south to Leipzig to join Kutuzov's army.
The detachment of Lieutenant General Leviz (12 thousand) Wittgenstein left to block the Prussian Danzig at the mouth of the Vistula (Danzig capitulated on December 24, 1813). Chichagov's corps, which soon came under the command of Barclay de Tolly, besieged the Thorn fortress on the middle Vistula. Thorn capitulated on April 16, which freed the Russian corps (12 thousand) just in time for the start of the battles with Napoleon's army in Saxony.
Due to the lack of sufficient cavalry, Napoleon had vague information about the deployment of the enemy, unaware of the concentration of allied forces south of Leipzig. His army stretched for 60 km from Jena to Leipzig, which the new Allied commander-in-chief, Russian General Wittgenstein, decided to take advantage of. According to his plan, the Allied forces were to launch a flank attack on the French corps while they were scattered on the march. On May 2, 1813, the Battle of Lützen took place. Napoleon managed to repel the unexpected offensive of the Allies and, quickly pulling his forces, went on the counteroffensive. In the battle, the allies lost up to 10 thousand soldiers (of which 2 thousand were Russians), but the French losses were about 2 times higher. Discouraged by the unsuccessful development of the case, the allies decided to retreat.
On May 8, the Russians left Dresden and crossed over the Elbe. Saxony fell back under the rule of Napoleon.
On May 12, the Allies took up a defensive position on the eastern outskirts of Saxony at Bautzen (40 km east of Dresden), successfully fortified by nature itself. On May 20-21, another battle took place there, known as the Battle of Bautzen. Napoleon had 143 thousand soldiers against 93 thousand Russian and Prussian. In two days of fighting, the Russians lost 6400 soldiers, the Prussians - 5600, the French losses were one and a half times heavier (18-20 thousand). The allies, squeezed out of their positions, decided to continue their retreat to the east.
If for the Russian army the withdrawal was a profitable tactical maneuver, for the Prussians the consequences were more difficult, since the fighting was transferred to the territory of Prussia. After the second unsuccessful general battle in a row, Tsar Alexander I replaced the commander-in-chief Wittgenstein on May 25 with a more experienced and senior general in the rank of Infantry General Barclay de Tolly. The Allied troops, retreating to Silesia, gave a number of successful rearguard battles (cases at Reichenbach and Gainau), but Barclay resolutely did not want to give the next general battle, hoping for the depletion of the French army.
During the pursuit, Napoleon's army was completely upset, the French were tired of continuous fruitless battles, losses from desertion and disease significantly exceeded combat losses. The supply of the French troops was unsatisfactory, food depended on the robbery of the local population.
As early as May 18, before the battle of Bautzen, Napoleon asked to receive the Marquis Caulaincourt in the Russian-Prussian apartment for negotiations with Alexander I, but received no answer. On May 25, negotiations resumed at the initiative of the French side. On June 4, 1813, Napoleon concluded an armistice with the Allies in Poischwitz until July 20 (then extended until August 10, 1813), after which he returned to Dresden. Both sides hoped to use the respite to mobilize forces.
Truce. June-August 1813
Napoleon called the armistice one of the greatest mistakes of his life. As a result of the truce, the Sixth Coalition expanded and strengthened significantly, the preponderance of forces went over to the side of Napoleon's opponents.
In mid-June, England undertook to support Russia and Prussia with significant subsidies to continue the war.
On June 22, Sweden joined the anti-French coalition, bargaining for Norway (a Danish possession).
At the end of June, the Allies and Napoleon accepted the Austrian offer of mediation, but if the Allies also accepted the Austrian terms of the peace treaty, then Napoleon did not want to sacrifice even part of his captured possessions. In early July, in the town of Trachenberg (north of Breslau), a meeting of the allied monarchs (Russia, Prussia, Sweden) was held to draw up a general plan of military operations against Napoleon. The Austrian Emperor approved the Trachenberg Plan as an observer. At the same time, there were sluggish negotiations with the French representatives in Prague.
At the beginning of August, Napoleon made a last attempt to clarify the terms under which Austria would agree to peace. On the last day of the armistice, 10 August, he sent a dispatch in which he agreed to accept part of the Austrian terms, but time was lost. On August 12, Austria officially entered the war on the side of the coalition.
On August 14, Napoleon accepted all the conditions of the Vienna cabinet, but the forced concession could no longer change the decisions of Austria. The Russo-Prussian army moved from Silesia to Bohemia to join the new allies.
Liberation of Germany. August-December 1813
Battle of Dresden. Aug. Sept.
The fighting was resumed by Napoleon sending his Marshal Oudinot with 70,000 men. army to Berlin. Oudinot was to be supported by French garrisons from Magdeburg and Hamburg. At the same time, Blucher, the most resolute of the allied commanders, set out from Silesia. Napoleon, believing to see the main forces of the allies in front of him, rushed to Blucher, who on August 21 immediately withdrew according to the Trachenberg plan.
On August 19, the Bohemian Allied Army, unexpectedly for Napoleon, moved towards Dresden through the Ore Mountains, threatening to enter the rear of the main French army. Napoleon, having learned about the danger to Dresden, covered only by the corps of Marshal Saint-Cyr, hastened from Silesia back to the most important stronghold in accelerated marches. Marshal MacDonald was left against Blucher with an army of 80,000.
On August 23, the Prussian corps from the Allied Northern Army pushed back Marshal Oudinot near Grosberen (15 km south of Berlin), defeating the Saxon corps. The victory over the French, won by the Prussians almost independently, caused a patriotic upsurge in Prussia. Oudinot retreated to the Elbe under the protection of the fortress of the city of Wittenberg and was soon replaced by Napoleon with Marshal Ney, who was given the previous task of capturing Berlin.
On August 25, the Bohemian army approached Dresden, but commander Schwarzenberg did not dare to take the city on the move, deciding to wait for the lagging troops. The next day, August 26, he launched an assault, but Napoleon managed to return that day with the guard. On August 27, a pitched battle took place in which the Allies were defeated and retreated in frustration back to Bohemia. The main losses were suffered by the Austrian troops. Napoleon tried to block the mountain pass, through which the Allied troops rushed, sending Vandam's strong corps around. However, Vandam himself was surrounded by the steadfastness of the Russian guards in the battle of Kulm, on August 30, his corps was completely defeated.
On August 26, on the day the Dresden battle began, Blucher launched a counteroffensive in Silesia on the Katzbach River, where, in a head-on battle, he defeated the army of Marshal MacDonald with superior cavalry forces (see Battle of the Katzbach). The defeated marshal retreated to Saxony to the main forces.
Napoleon, after defeating the Bohemian army of the allies, was forced in early September to again oppose the Silesian army of Blucher. Blucher retreated across the Beaver River, destroying the bridges. Meanwhile, the Bohemian army demonstrated towards Dresden, occupying Pirna. Napoleon hurried back to Dresden. Disorganized by the war on two fronts, Napoleon went on the defensive, his troops were exhausted by continuous, fruitless marches for the French.
September 1813 passed without major battles, with the exception of another unsuccessful campaign of the French army under the command of Marshal Ney against Berlin (see Battle of Dennewitz). On September 6, the Prussian corps of the Northern Army defeated Ney, pushing his troops back to the Elbe. The Allied victories did not allow Napoleon to build on the success of the Dresden battle and kept the coalition with Austria ready to fall apart. There was a respite in the hostilities for 3 weeks, the opponents gathered forces and made sorties against each other with limited forces.
Napoleon's strategic position worsened. In a number of defeats, and even more so from exhausting marches and poor supplies, he lost significantly more soldiers than his allies. According to the German historian F. Mehring, in August and September, Napoleon lost 180 thousand soldiers, mainly from illness and desertion.
Battle of Leipzig. October December.
General situation towards the end of February 1814
The general situation by the end of February 1814 was difficult for Napoleon, but not hopeless. He set himself the task of making peace with the allies on the condition that the borders of France be preserved by the beginning of the era of the Napoleonic wars, that is, along the Rhine and the Alps. The general disposition of the opposing armies on February 26, 1814 was as follows.
Napoleon between the rivers Seine and Aube had about 74 thousand soldiers with 350 guns. With such forces, he successfully held back the allied armies of Blucher and Schwarzenberg, whose number was estimated to exceed 150,000 soldiers. Blucher (about 45 thousand soldiers) separated from the Main Army of Schwarzenberg and moved towards Paris. On its way there were only a weak barrier in the form of the French corps of Marmont and Mortier (up to 16 thousand soldiers).
On the southern flank in Switzerland, Napoleonic Marshal Augereau, with 28,000 soldiers, pushed back the Austrian corps of Bubna and was preparing to take Geneva, after which his task was to cut the Schwarzenberg communication line.
In Italy, French General Eugene Beauharnais with 48,000 soldiers successfully resisted the 75,000-strong Austrian army of Field Marshal Bellegarde, and also restrained the former Napoleonic marshal, and now the Neapolitan king Murat, with his Neapolitans from active operations against the French.
In Spain, Napoleon's Marshal Suchet had up to 40,000 soldiers. According to the treaty, he did not conduct hostilities, waiting for the opportunity to withdraw troops to France. The Pyrenees locked the detachment of Marshal Soult, preventing the Anglo-Spanish army of the Duke of Wellington from invading France from the south.
In the north, in the region of the Rhine and Holland, the French continued to resist in numerous fortresses.
Allied successes. March 1814
On February 27, Blucher approached Laferte-sous-Joire (75 km east of Paris) on the Marne, where he pushed back the weak barriers of Marshals Marmont and Mortier. Having learned about the movement of Napoleon, Blucher began a retreat along the Urk River north to Soissons on the Aisne towards the moving reinforcements (the corps of Winzingerode and Bülow). Threatening with an assault, the allies persuaded the French garrison to leave the fortress of Soissons with weapons on March 3, after which on March 4 Blucher moved to the right bank of the Aisne, where his army, combined with the corps of Winzingerode and Bülow, doubled and began to number up to 109 thousand soldiers.
Napoleon was forced by small forces (40-50 thousand) to attack Blucher in order to break through to the north to the Rhine and Holland, where he expected to release the French garrisons. The garrisons could give him up to 50 thousand soldiers, which would give the French emperor hope to crush the allied armies in France.
Napoleon did not know about the connection of the allies and intended to cut the central Soissons-Laon road. On March 7, Napoleon attacked Blucher's positions on the Craon Heights, where two Russian divisions of Vorontsov and Stroganov (16,000 soldiers) from the Winzingerode corps were defending. Blucher's idea was to let Napoleon get bogged down in the battle, and then strike him in the rear with a roundabout maneuver. However, a strong cavalry corps was unable to make this maneuver, and the Russians retreated from the plateau. The battle of Craon is regarded as one of the bloodiest of the entire campaign, if we evaluate the specific number of killed and wounded (percentage of the number of participants in the battle). Russian divisions lost almost a third of their personnel.
Blucher pulled all available forces (104 thousand, of which 22 thousand cavalry, 260 guns) to Laon, a heavily fortified town - the ancient capital of France. Napoleon also pulled his forces into a fist, bringing the size of the army to 52 thousand soldiers (including 10 thousand cavalry) with 180 guns. On March 9, at Laon, the Allied forces, mainly Prussian divisions, repelled Napoleon's offensive and then on the night of March 10 completely defeated one of his corps under the command of Marshal Marmont. Nevertheless, Napoleon continued his attacks on March 10 on Blucher's twice as strong army, after which, by the end of the day, he retreated unhindered across the Aisne River.
After Napoleon's retreat, the strategic initiative could have passed to Blucher's army, but his troops remained motionless for a week due to the Prussian field marshal's illness and supply difficulties. Napoleon moved east and on March 13, with a surprise attack, defeated the 14,000th Russian-Prussian corps of Count Saint-Prix in Reims. Having occupied Reims, Napoleon cut the communication line between the Silesian army of Blucher and the Main Army of Schwarzenberg. Napoleon's sudden success had a moral impact on the allies, who in confusion suspended their operations, entrusting the initiative in hostilities to the French emperor.
At this time, the Main Allied Army under the command of Schwarzenberg was slowly advancing towards Paris. Napoleon, weakened by heavy losses in the battles with Blucher, had no choice but to rush again to the Main Army. Napoleon expected to use the usual tactics: to attack from the flank the allied corps scattered on the march separately. However, this time the allies managed to pull the corps into a fist, so that Napoleon could not hope to win the battle with a much superior enemy. The only thing Napoleon could do was stop the advance of the Main Army by threatening it from the flank or rear. However, in this case, the path to Paris remained open to Blucher's army.
Napoleon chose the following strategy: to set up barriers against the allies, and to go himself between the armies of Blucher and Schwarzenberg to the northeastern fortresses, where he could, by releasing and attaching garrisons, significantly strengthen his army. Then he would have the opportunity to force the allies to retreat, threatening their rear communications. Napoleon hoped for the slowness of the allied armies and their fear of the army of the French emperor in their rear. Paris was left to protect, mainly, its inhabitants and the National Guard.
By March 20, the corps of the Main Army concentrated between the rivers Seine and Aube near Troyes. Napoleon chose a route northeast along the Aube valley through the town of Arcy-sur-Aube to Vitry and further east. On March 20, his 25,000-strong army clashed in Arsi with the troops of Schwarzenberg (up to 90,000 soldiers). On March 21, after the battle of Arcy-sur-Aube, Napoleon was driven back across the Ob River and went to Saint-Dizier, where he intended to disturb the allied armies from the rear. He managed to partially complete the task: the attack on Paris by Schwarzenberg was suspended.
The capture of Paris and the end of the campaign. March 1814
In turn, the Allies on March 24 agreed on a plan for further action in the campaign, deciding after disputes to resume the attack on Paris. A 10,000-strong cavalry corps was sent against Napoleon under the command of the Russian general Winzingerode in order to mislead Napoleon about the intentions of the allies. The Wintzingerode Corps was defeated by Napoleon on March 26, but this did not affect the course of further events.
On March 25, the armies of Blucher and Schwarzenberg moved on Paris. On the same day, at Fer-Champenoise, the allied cavalry in 2 separate battles defeated the corps of marshals Marmont and Mortier (16-17 thousand soldiers) and almost completely destroyed a large detachment of the National Guard. The French corps hurried to connect with Napoleon, after the defeat they fell back to Paris.
When on March 27, Napoleon learned about the attack on Paris, he highly appreciated the decision of the enemy: “This is an excellent chess move. I would never have believed that any general among the allies is capable of doing this. The next day, he rushed from Saint-Dizier (approx. 180 km east of Paris) to save the capital, but arrived too late.
On March 29, the allied armies (about 100 thousand soldiers, of which 63 thousand were Russians) came close to the front line of defense of Paris. According to various sources, the French had 22-26 thousand regular troops, 6-12 thousand National Guard militias and about 150 guns. The lack of troops was partially compensated by the high morale of the defenders of the capital and their hope for the speedy arrival of Napoleon with the army.
On March 30, Russian and Prussian corps attacked and, after fierce fighting, captured the suburbs of Paris. Wanting to save the city of many thousands from bombardment and street fighting, Marshal Marmont, commander of the right flank of the French defense, sent a truce to the Russian emperor by 5 o'clock in the afternoon. Alexander I gave the following answer: “He will order to stop the battle if Paris is surrendered: otherwise, by the evening they will not recognize the place where the capital was.” The battle for Paris in the campaign of 1814 was one of the bloodiest for the allies, who lost more than 8 thousand soldiers in one day of fighting (of which more than 6 thousand were Russians).
On March 31, at 2 o'clock in the morning, the surrender of Paris was signed. By 7 o'clock in the morning, according to the agreement, the French regular army was to leave Paris. At noon on March 31, the Russian and Prussian guards, led by Emperor Alexander I, triumphantly entered the capital of France.
In early April, the French Senate issued a decree deposing Napoleon and established a provisional government. Nevertheless, in most of France, the people recognized the imperial power, that is, dual power arose.
Napoleon learned about the surrender of Paris on the same day at the entrance to the capital. He went to his palace at Fontainebleau, where he awaited the approach of his stray army. Napoleon pulled together all the available troops (up to 60 thousand) to continue the war. However, under pressure from his own marshals, who took into account the mood of the population and soberly assessed the balance of power, on April 4, Napoleon wrote a conditional abdication in favor of his son Napoleon II under the regency of his wife Marie-Louise. While negotiations were underway, part of the French army went over to the side of the allies, which gave Tsar Alexander I a reason to tighten the conditions for abdication.
On April 6, Napoleon wrote an act of abdication for himself and his heirs from the throne of France. On the same day, the Senate proclaimed Louis XVIII king. On April 20, Napoleon himself went into honorable exile on the island of Elba in the Mediterranean.
On May 30, 1814, peace was signed, returning France to the borders of 1792 and restoring the monarchy there.
1) Why did Napoleon invade Spain?
2) What was the reason for the start of the war between Austria and France in 1792?
3) Why, after the deposition of Napoleon from the throne, did the people continue to recognize his imperial power?
4. Military art of the Napoleonic wars. Marshals of the Napoleonic Empire
The 26 marshals of the First Empire (1804-1814) in France is a historical phenomenon. The emergence of such a number of military leaders for the first time became possible thanks not so much to Napoleon as the Great French Revolution. Never before has the world seen such a bright constellation of military leaders who rose from the ranks of the people solely on their talents and regardless of kinship, patronage or royal whim. The title of marshal in France existed as a court dignity from the beginning of the 13th century, and as the highest military rank - from 1627, when Cardinal A. J. Richelieu abolished the post of constable - commander in chief of the army. Louis XIV already had 20 marshals of France, among whom were the largest generals of their time - A. Turenne, S. Vauban, K. Villar. The title of marshal with its distinctive sign - the marshal's baton - was assigned by decree of the king. So it was until the revolutionary Convention on February 21, 1793 abolished, along with other "old regime" titles, the military rank of marshal. Napoleon restored the rank of Marshal of France as soon as France, after a 12-year regime of the First Republic, was proclaimed an empire on May 18, 1804. This act of Napoleon was one of his many steps towards the return - however, already in the conditions of the new bourgeois France - of the old ranks and titles, which were intended to give the Napoleonic court a monarchical flavor. Together with the rank of marshal, the old order of its assignment was restored - by the will and signature of the monarch.
Napoleon inherited the fundamental principles of manning and maintaining the army from the revolution. Thanks to the success of the French economy and at the expense of the resources of the defeated states of Europe, he better than any of his opponents provided for his army materially, but even more than all other armies, if I may say so, socially. It was a mass army of a new type. It was completed on the basis of universal military service, decreed in 1793 and, five years later, somewhat narrowed down in the form of the so-called conscription. Almost all of Napoleon's best marshals - Lannes, Massena, Ney, Murat, Bessieres, Lefebvre, Suchet, Jourdan, Soult - came from the common people. They started their service as soldiers. But next to them were aristocratic marshals: Davout, Macdonald, Serrurier, Marmont, Pears. Granting them marshal's baton. Napoleon took into account mainly their military merits. The emperor made his closest friend, General Andoche Junod, a duke - and not every marshal then had a ducal title - but he never made him a marshal, seeing that as a military leader he still did not reach the level of a marshal. In the same way, he did not give the marshal's baton to D. Vandam, although he valued him as a general so much that he even forgave him official abuses, telling his accusers: “If I had two Vandams, then I would hang one of them for this!” The first marshals of the First Empire were 18 generals, to whom Napoleon awarded marshal ranks by decree of May 19, 1804, the day after he himself took the imperial throne. Of these, four of the oldest were declared honorary marshals. Perhaps the loudest name then was already almost 70-year-old Francois Etienne Christophe Kellermann - the winner in the historic battle of Valmy on September 20, 1792, where the French Revolution won the first victory over an external enemy. An eyewitness to this event, Goethe, said that evening: "Today a new era of history began here." Jean-Mathieu Philibert Serrurier also became an honorary marshal - a participant in the Seven Years' War, a hero of the Italian campaign of 1796-1797, who accepted the surrender of the famous Austrian field marshal S. Wurmser in Mantua, since 1802 - vice-president of the Senate. Finally, two more far from aged generals received the baton of honorary marshals. One of them is the 50-year-old Dominique Perignon, whose brilliance of victories over the Austrians and Prussians in 1794-1795. not even overshadowed by the sad fact for him that in 1799 he was taken prisoner under Novi A.V. Suvorov, - since 1802. was, like Serrurier, Vice-President of the Senate. Another, François Joseph Lefebvre, who in May 1804 was not yet 49 years old, deserves a special introduction.
If Kellerman, Serrurier and Perignon, crowned with marshal laurels for past merits, no longer participated in the battles for the entire time of the First Empire, then Lefevre took an active part in all the wars of the Empire of 1805-1814, including Napoleon's invasion of Russia, where he was the head illustrious Old Guard. A volunteer of the revolution directly from the plow, who received from Napoleon, in addition to the marshal's baton, also the titles of count and duke of Danzig, semi-literate, but strong in natural intelligence, peasant ingenuity and soldier's prowess, Lefebvre moved into the ranks of the best Napoleonic marshals. Among the other 14 marshals of the “first call”, along with the faithful Lannes, Berthier, Murat, Davout, Ney, Bessieres, Soult, Moses, Mortier, Napoleon also included those who, for one reason or another, were in opposition to the regime of his personal power: Massena , Bernadotte, Jourdan, Brun, Augereau. All of them, except for Berthier and Moses, were younger than any of the honorary marshals, and half of the 14 were not even 40 years old: Davout was 34 years old, Lannes, Ney, Bessieres and Soult were 35 each. Of the best generals of the Republic, then they were left without a marshal rank only four: Fronders MacDonald, Saint-Cyr (these two are temporary) and staunch republicans J.-C. Lecourbe and J.-V., who was already in prison. Moreau. Later, eight more generals became marshals of the Empire: in 1807 - Victor, in 1809 - MacDonald, Oudinot, Marmont, in 1811 - Suchet, in 1812 - Saint-Cyr, in 1813 - Poniatowski, in 1815 - Pears.
The son of a groom, a soldier of the revolution, Jean Lannes, the future Duke of Montebello was seen by Napoleon as a battalion officer in the battle of Dego on April 15, 1796, and from that day he rapidly went up, ending the Italian campaign already as a general. In Egypt, he became one of the closest associates of Napoleon, and in the campaigns of 1805-1809. - his right hand and main hope. He not only fulfilled Napoleon's plans, but also led operations himself, won battles: at Montebello on June 10, 1800, with an 8,000th vanguard, he scattered the 20,000th corps of the Austrian Field Marshal P.K. Ott, and under Tudela on November 23, 1808, at the head of a 20,000th corps, he defeated the 45,000th army of the best Spanish commanders X. Palafox and F. Castaños. It is noteworthy that four months earlier the latter struck all of Europe, forcing the French corps of General P. Dupont to capitulate in an open field near Bailen. In February 1809, it was Lannes who stormed the legendary and previously impregnable Zaragoza, after which he wrote to Napoleon about his rejection of such a war, when civilians had to be killed. The historian J. Michelet considered Lannes "a great soldier" and "a great commander". Napoleon himself appreciated Lannes for his "greatest talents", called him "Achilles" and "Roland" of the French army, and remembered him on the island of St. Helena like this: "I found him a pygmy, but lost him a giant"
André Massena, illiterate like Lefebvre, the son of a peasant, Duke of Rivoli and Prince of Essling, perhaps surpassed all marshals with the gift of military improvisation and, in general, as a military leader was good for everyone. In 1775, Massena became a soldier in the royal army and by the beginning of the revolution had risen to the rank of sergeant for 14 years. After the revolution, he joined the National Guard and in 1792 became a captain, and in 1793 a general. It was he who, having defeated the Russian corps of A.M. Rimsky-Korsakov, forced A.V. Suvorov to leave Switzerland and thereby saved France from the Russian-Austrian invasion that threatened her. But this unique nugget "had an unfortunate tendency to steal", and "stealed like a magpie, instinctively" and most importantly - a lot. This undermined the reputation of the marshal and eventually led to the collapse, spoiled his career. When Napoleon scolded him: “You are the biggest robber in the world!” Massena suddenly objected, bowing respectfully: “After you, sir…”. For such audacity, before going to Russia, he fell into disgrace.
Louis Nicolas Davout, Duke of Auerstedt and Prince of Ekmul, was distinguished by a disinterestedness, republican honesty and directness, rare for a marshal of the empire. Napoleon, already in exile, described him thus: "This is one of the most glorious and pure heroes of France." As a commander, Davout brilliantly showed himself on October 14, 1806 in the battle of Auerstedt, where he destroyed half of the 100,000-strong Russian army led by the king, two princes and the field marshal of Prussia, while Napoleon, in another battle that took place on the same day near Jena, eliminated the other half. Davout's victory at Auerstedt was all the more striking because he had only 27,000 fighters against the enemy's 53,000. A. Jomini on this occasion reasonably noted that "none of the revolutionary wars represents such a disproportionate battle with such amazing success." A multi-talented strategist, administrator, politician, "a great man, not yet appreciated," as Stendhal wrote about him in 1818. Davout was extremely demanding of himself and others, in any conditions he maintained order and discipline with an iron fist. Therefore, one of his best biographies is called “Iron Marshal”.
Next to Davout, yielding to him as a strategist, but surpassing him as a tactician, shone in the constellation of the best Napoleonic marshals Michel Ney, the son of a cooper, the Duke of Elchingen and the Prince of Moscow (he was awarded the last title for valor in the Battle of Borodino), the hero of all Napoleon's campaigns, a man exceptionally popular in the army. “This is the god Mars,” Baron P. Denier recalled about him. “His appearance, look, confidence can inspire the most timid.”
A warrior of chivalrous character and indomitable temperament, "fire-breathing Ney", as Borodin's hero Fyodor Glinka called him, he was the living personification of the fighting spirit of the "Great Army". It was not for nothing that Napoleon, though already after the death of Lannes, gave him the nickname that the army put above all his titles - "The Brave of the Brave."
And to this day, the undying interest in the personality of Ney is fueled by disputes about how this Napoleonic marshal ended his life. On December 7, during the Hundred Days, he, sent at the head of the royal troops against Napoleon, went over with the troops to the side of the former emperor. Now in Paris, on the Observatory Square, where the French executed their "Brave of the Brave", there is a monument to him. In world literature, there is a romantic, but dubious version that Michel Ney escaped in 1815 and left for the USA, where he lived until 1846 under the name of Peter Stuart Ney, a school teacher.
Far from the most talented, but the most beautiful and stately, the most popular in literature of Napoleon's marshals is, of course, Joachim Murat, a tavern servant who became an imperial prince, the Grand Duke of Berg, King of Naples and, by the way, the husband of Napoleon's sister Caroline Bonaparte, famous the head of Napoleon's entire cavalry and, in general, one of the best cavalry commanders in the West.
Murat was neither a politician nor a strategist. Napoleon spoke about him not without regret: "He has so little in his head!" Always in the forefront, always where the greatest danger is and where the highest courage is required. He rudely encouraged the combatants: “Glorious, children! Get over this bastard! You shoot like angels!" At the critical moment, the marshal himself led his cavalry lava into the attack - a tall, blue-eyed athlete, a handsome man with shoulder-length curls dressed in silks, velvet, ostrich feathers, with all the regalia and with one whip in his hand. And at the same time, he was never wounded after a saber strike near Abukir in 1799. Murat's dizzying career ended tragically. In 1813, after the battle of Leipzig, he betrayed Napoleon in order to retain the Neapolitan throne, but during the Hundred Days he again took the side of the emperor, was defeated by the Austrians, captured and shot by a military court.
Louis Alexandre Berthier, the son of a geographer, accustomed to working on a map from an early age, served as a staff officer in the wars of two revolutions - the American and the French. In 1796, he became close to Napoleon and became his indispensable assistant, the Minister of War, and from 1807 to 1814, the permanent Chief of the General Staff. According to Napoleon himself, Berthier "had an indecisive character, not very suitable for commanding an army, but possessed all the qualities of a good chief of staff." namely, phenomenal memory, efficiency of thinking, efficiency, accuracy, accuracy and speed of execution. It is clear why the emperor trusted Berthier so much, showered him with awards - a millionth fortune, a marshal's baton, the titles of the Duke of Valangin, Prince of Neuchâtel, Prince of Wagram - and so regretted that Berthier was not with him at Waterloo: “Be Berthier my chief of staff, I wouldn't lose the battle." Eyewitnesses testified that in the midst of the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon, seeing that the fresh corps of Marshal Grusha was late, asked his newly appointed chief of staff N.Zh. Sulta: "Did you send messengers to Pear?" Soult replied, "I sent one." "Your Majesty! - Napoleon was indignant, - Berthier would send five! Indeed, before the battle of Eylau, Bertier sent five adjutants with the same order to Marshal Bernadotte for urgent communication with him on different roads, and, it turned out, not in vain: only one of the five reached. Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte, Prince of Ponte Corvo, an intelligent and treacherous Gascon, former Minister of War of the Directory, hated Napoleon, although he received everything from him: a marshal's baton, a princely title, even the Swedish throne. He himself aimed at "Napoleons", and Napoleon would not mind making his "Bernadotte". Until 1810, when Napoleon gave his consent to the parliamentarians of Sweden, who wished to please him, to elect Bernadotte as heir to the Swedish crown, his relationship with Bernadotte was complicated. "Be that as it may, having become the heir to the throne and the de facto ruler of Sweden, Bernadotte soon broke off relations with France and entered into an alliance with Russia, and in 1813-1814 at the head of the Swedish troops fought against his compatriots on the side of the sixth anti-Napoleonic coalition.
1) Why did Napoleon distrust Bernadotte?
2) What made I. Murat famous?
3) How did Ney deserve the attention of Napoleon?
5. Results and significance of the Napoleonic wars
The victories won by France in N. century. over the armies of the feudal-absolutist states, were explained primarily by the fact that bourgeois France, representing a more progressive social system, had an advanced military system created by the Great French Revolution. An outstanding commander, Napoleon I perfected the strategy and tactics developed during the revolutionary wars. The Napoleonic army consisted mainly of free peasants, the term of military service was 5 years. The army also included troops of states subordinate to Napoleon I and foreign corps, exhibited by the allied countries. Large formations were formed - corps (including cavalry), artillery was reinforced, to which Napoleon attached great importance. The role of a powerful shock reserve was played by the guard, staffed from veteran soldiers (in 1804 - 10 thousand people, in 1812 - 60 thousand people), in which all types of troops were represented. The Napoleonic army, especially before the defeat of its best forces in Russia in 1812, was characterized by high combat training and discipline. Distinguished soldiers were awarded officer ranks. Napoleon I was surrounded by a galaxy of talented marshals and young generals (L. Davout, I. Murat, A. Massena, M. Ney, L. Berthier, J. Bernadotte, N. Soult, etc.), many of whom were soldiers or from the lower strata of society. However, the increasing transformation of the French army in the course of the N. century. as an instrument for the implementation of the aggressive plans of Napoleon I, huge losses (according to rough estimates, in 1800-15 3153 thousand people were called up for military service in France, of which 1750 thousand people died only in 1804-14) led to a significant decrease her fighting qualities.
As a result of continuous wars and conquests, a huge Napoleonic empire was formed, supplemented by a system of states directly or indirectly subject to France. Napoleon I subjected the conquered countries to robbery. The supply of the army in the campaign was carried out mainly with the help of requisitions or direct robbery (according to the principle "war must feed the war"). Great damage to countries that were dependent on the Napoleonic empire was caused by customs tariffs that were beneficial to France. N. in. were a constant and important source of income for the Napoleonic government, the French bourgeoisie, the top military.
The wars of the French Revolution began as national wars. “These wars were revolutionary: the defense of a great revolution against a coalition of counter-revolutionary monarchies. And when Napoleon created the French empire with the enslavement of a number of long-established, large, viable, national states of Europe, then the French national wars turned into imperialist ones, which in turn gave rise to national liberation wars against Napoleon's imperialism.
The beginning of the national liberation struggle of the oppressed peoples against Napoleonic domination was laid in Spain (the Spanish Revolution of 1808-14). In 1809 an uprising broke out against the French occupiers in Tyrol. Separate pockets of resistance to Napoleonic oppression arose in some German states. The decisive blow of the Napoleonic empire was inflicted in Russia. Undertaking a campaign against Russia in 1812, which was preceded by extensive strategic and diplomatic preparation, Napoleon I clearly underestimated the strength of the enemy. He hoped to defeat the main forces of the Russian army in a general battle near the border, then quickly occupy Moscow and dictate his terms of peace there. This plan failed. As a result of the heroic struggle of the Russian people and the Russian army under the command of Field Marshal M. I. Kutuzov, the “great army” of Napoleon that invaded Russia was destroyed (Patriotic War of 1812). The crushing defeat of the Napoleonic troops dramatically changed the balance of power in Europe and had a huge impact on the entire subsequent course of events. A powerful upsurge in the liberation struggle of the European peoples began. In Germany, and especially in Prussia, a war of liberation unfolded against the domination of Napoleon I, which was waged to a large extent by the methods of insurrectionary warfare. Under pressure from the people's liberation movement, the Prussian government was forced to oppose France and conclude the Treaty of Kalisz with Russia in February 1813, which laid the foundation for the 6th anti-French coalition (Russia, Great Britain, Prussia, Sweden, from August 1813 also Austria and a number of others). states). In military campaigns after 1812 (see Foreign Campaigns of the Russian Army in 1813-14), the Russian army was the core of the coalition troops. The situation of the people's war against Napoleonic France to a large extent increased the combat effectiveness of the regular armies of the states that were part of the anti-Napoleonic coalition. As a result of the Battle of Leipzig in 1813, the entire territory of Germany was liberated from Napoleon's rule.
Despite a number of private victories won at the beginning of 1814 by the French army over the troops of the allies who entered the territory of France, it was ultimately defeated; At the end of March 1814, the allied troops entered Paris. Napoleon was forced to abdicate (April 1814) and sent to Fr. Elbe. In May, the Paris Peace Treaty of 1814 was signed, according to which France was deprived of all the conquests made in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The question of these territories was to be decided at an international congress (see Congress of Vienna 1814-15). Having again regained the throne in 1815 during the "Hundred Days", Napoleon was defeated by the English troops of A. Wellington and the Prussian troops of G. Blucher at Waterloo - in the last battle of N. century. On July 6, 1815, the troops of the countries participating in the 7th anti-French coalition formed in the spring of 1815 (Russia, Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and others) entered Paris. On November 20, the Paris Peace Treaty of 1815 was signed between the members of the coalition and France, in which the power of the Bourbons was again restored.
"All the wars of independence that were waged against France are characterized by a combination of the spirit of revival with the spirit of reactionary ...". The wars that unfolded against Napoleonic France were controversial. The peoples' struggle for independence, against foreign oppression, made them liberators; at the same time, the goals and policies of the monarchist governments and the ruling classes of the states that were part of the anti-French coalition gave reactionary features to these wars. And if in 1813 the war against Napoleon I was mainly of a liberation character, then after the states that waged "... with Napoleon not a liberation war, but an imperialist war ..." transferred it to the territory of France in 1814, setting as their goal the restoration of feudal orders and the Bourbon dynasty, the reactionary features of this war sharply intensified. After the defeat of Napoleon, feudal reaction was established in many European countries. However, the main result of the fierce wars was not a temporary victory for the reaction, but the liberation of the countries of Europe from the domination of Napoleonic France, which ultimately contributed to the independent development of capitalism in a number of European states.
1) How did the Napoleonic Wars affect the countries of Europe?
2) What was the purpose of Napoleon, waging numerous wars?
3) How did Napoleon remain in the minds of the French?
GBOU VPO PGMA them. ak. E.A. Wagner.
Ministry of Health and Social Development of Russia.
Department of Fatherland History
History of medicine
Political science and sociology
Napoleonic Wars
Student's abstract 105 gr. p./f.
Sibiryakova D.A.
Scientific adviser:
PhD in History, Associate Professor Azanova
Nina Yakovlevna
- Perm, 2011
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………... 3
Napoleon…………………………………………………………………………….. 4
From Second Lieutenant to General………………………………………………………. 5
Napoleonic Wars before the March on Russia…………………………………. 9
Patriotic War of 1812………………………………………………... 13
Crisis and fall of the Empire (1812-1815)……………………………………... 20
One Hundred Days of Napoleon……………………………………………………………….. 22
Concluded………………………………………………………………………… 27
Bibliography…………………………………………………… ………... 30
Introduction
Napoleonic wars, the wars of France during the period of the consulate (1799-1804) and the empire of Napoleon I (1804-14, 1815). (In a broader sense, this includes both Napoleon's Italian campaign (1796-1797) and his Egyptian expedition (1798-1799), although they (especially the Italian campaign) are usually ranked among the so-called revolutionary wars.) They were fought in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, which aspired to establish its military-political and commercial-industrial hegemony in Europe, annex new territories to France and win the fight against Great Britain for world trade and colonial superiority. The modern wars, which did not stop until the fall of the empire of Napoleon I, were on the whole wars of conquest. At first, N. century. contained progressive elements, as they objectively contributed to undermining the foundations of the feudal system and cleared the way for the development of capitalist relations in a number of European states (the abolition of dozens of small feudal states in Germany, the introduction of the Napoleonic civil code in some conquered countries, the confiscation and sale of part of the monastic lands, the elimination of a number of privileges nobility, etc.). However, after Napoleon I enslaved a number of countries whose peoples were doomed to double oppression—foreign conquerors and "their own" exploiters—N. became purely aggressive and lost all progressive elements.
Napoleon is undoubtedly one of those personalities whose life and work has a tremendous impact on the fate and history of countries and the world as a whole.
Napoleon gave about 60 large and small battles in his lifetime (the number is incomparably more than Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Caesar and Suvorov gave together)
Napoleon
Napoleon I Bonaparte (Italian Napoleone Buonaparte, French Napoleon Bonaparte, August 15, 1769, Ajaccio, Corsica - May 5, 1821, Longwood, Saint Helena) - Emperor of the French in 1804-1815, French commander and statesman who laid the foundations of the modern French state.
Napoleone Buonaparte (as his name was pronounced until about 1800) began his professional military service in 1785 with the rank of second lieutenant of artillery; advanced during the French Revolution, reaching the rank of brigade under the Directory (after the capture of Toulon on December 17, 1793, the appointment took place on January 14, 1794), and then the divisional general and the post of commander of the rear military forces (after the defeat of the rebellion of 13 Vendemière 1795 ), and then the commander of the Italian army (the appointment took place on February 23, 1796).
In November 1799, he carried out a coup d'état (18 Brumaire), as a result of which he became the first consul, thereby effectively concentrating all power in his hands. May 18, 1804 proclaimed himself emperor. Established a dictatorial regime. He carried out a number of reforms (the adoption of a civil code (1804), the foundation of the French Bank (1800), etc.).
The victorious Napoleonic Wars, especially the first Austrian campaign of 1805, the Prussian campaign of 1806, the Polish campaign of 1807, contributed to the transformation of France into the main power on the continent. However, Napoleon's unsuccessful rivalry with the "mistress of the seas" Great Britain did not allow this status to be fully consolidated. The defeat of the Grand Army in the war of 1812 against Russia marked the beginning of the collapse of the empire of Napoleon I. After the "battle of the peoples" near Leipzig, Napoleon could no longer resist the allies. The entry of troops of the anti-French coalition into Paris in 1814 forced Napoleon I to abdicate. He was exiled to Fr. Elbe. Re-occupied the French throne in March 1815 (One Hundred Days). After the defeat at Waterloo, he abdicated a second time (June 22, 1815). He spent the last years of his life on about. St. Helena a prisoner of the British. His ashes have been in the Les Invalides in Paris since 1840.
Titles: General of the French Revolutionary Army, First Consul of the French Republic (from 1799), Emperor of the French (May 18, 1804 - April 11, 1814, March 12, 1815 - June 22, 1815), King of Italy (from 1805), Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine (from 1806)
From Lieutenant to General
Released in 1785 from the Paris Military School to the army with the rank of lieutenant, Bonaparte for 10 years went through the entire hierarchy of rank production in the army of France at that time. In 1788, being a lieutenant, he tried to enter the Russian service, but was refused by Lieutenant General Zaborovsky, who led the recruitment of volunteers to participate in the war with Turkey. Literally a month before Napoleon's request for admission to the Russian army, a decree was issued on the acceptance of foreigners for service with a lower rank, to which Napoleon did not agree. In the heat of the moment, he ran out from Zaborovsky, shouting that he would offer his services to the King of Prussia: "The King of Prussia will give me the rank of captain." Bonaparte's first combat experience was participation in an expedition to Sardinia. The landing force, landed from Corsica, was quickly defeated, but Lieutenant Colonel Buonaparte, who commanded a small artillery battery of four guns, distinguished himself: he made every effort to save the guns, but they still had to be riveted, since by the time they were brought to the coast there were already only small court. In 1789, having received a vacation, he went to his homeland in Corsica, where he was caught by the French Revolution, which he unconditionally supported. In 1793, Pasquale Paolo announced the independence of Corsica from France, Napoleon regarded this as a betrayal of the ideas of the Great French Revolution and renounced the ideas of Paolo, whom he considered his idol in childhood. He openly opposed the policy of the authorities of Corsica for complete independence and, in view of the threat of political persecution, having left the island, returned to France. By the time of his appearance near Toulon (September 1793), he was in the rank of captain of regular artillery, but in addition he also confirmed the rank of lieutenant colonel of volunteers (since September 17). Already in Toulon in October 1793, Bonaparte received the post of battalion commander (corresponding to the rank of major). Finally, appointed head of artillery in the army besieging Toulon, occupied by the British, Bonaparte carried out a brilliant military operation. Toulon was taken, and at the age of 24 he himself received the rank of brigadier general - a cross between the ranks of colonel and major general. The new rank was assigned to him on January 14, 1794.
After the Thermidorian coup, Bonaparte, because of his connections with Augustin Robespierre, was first arrested (August 10, 1794, for two weeks). After being released due to a conflict with the command, he retires, and a year later, in August 1795, he receives a position in the topographical department of the Committee of Public Safety. At a critical moment for the Thermidorians, he was appointed by Barras as his assistant and distinguished himself during the dispersal of the royalist uprising in Paris (13 Vendemière, 1795), was promoted to the rank of general of division and appointed commander of the rear troops. Less than a year later, on March 9, 1796, Bonaparte married the widow of the general executed during the Jacobin terror, Count Beauharnais, Josephine, the former mistress of one of the then rulers of France - P. Barras. Barras' wedding gift to the young general is considered by some to be the commander of the Italian army (the appointment took place on February 23, 1796), but Bonaparte was offered this position by Carnot. Already being the commander of the Italian army, he inflicted a crushing defeat on the troops of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Austria, which glorified him as one of the best commanders of the Republic.
Thus, a new military and political star "rose" on the European political horizon, and a new era began in the history of the continent, the name of which will be the "Napoleonic Wars" for a long 20 years.
Many opinions were expressed about General Bonaparte, many of which etched themselves in the minds of subsequent generations."He walks far, it's time to appease the young man!" - these words of the old man Suvorov were said precisely at the height of the Italian campaign of Bonaparte. Suvorov was one of the first to point out the rising thundercloud, which was destined to rumble over Europe for so long and strike it with lightning.
One of the key moments in the biography of Napoleon is the 13th Vendemière, who played a much greater role in Napoleon's life than his first performance - the capture of Toulon. The rebels moved on the Convention, and Bonaparte's artillery thundered towards them.
In this method of suppressing street protests, he was the direct and immediate predecessor of the Russian Tsar Nikolai Pavlovich, who repeated this method on December 14, 1825. The only difference was that the tsar, with his usual hypocrisy, said that he was horrified and did not want to resort to this measure for a long time and as if only the convictions of Prince Vasilchikov prevailed over his exemplary generosity and philanthropy, and Bonaparte never even thought of making excuses for anything and blaming responsibility on someone. The rebels had more than 24,000 armed men, while Bonaparte did not have at that moment even the full 6,000, that is, four times less. So, all hope was in the guns; he launched them. If it comes to battle, give victory, no matter what the cost. Napoleon always adhered to this rule without exception. He did not like to waste artillery shells, but where they could be useful, Napoleon never skimped on them. He did not save even on the 13th of Vendémière: the porch of the church of St. Roja was covered with some kind of continuous bloody porridge.
Complete ruthlessness in the struggle was a characteristic feature of Napoleon. “Two different people live in me: a man of the head and a man of the heart. Don't think that I don't have a sensitive heart like other people. I'm also quite a kind person. But since my early youth, I have tried to silence this string, which now no longer makes any sound with me, ”he said in one of his rare moments of frankness to one of the people he favored, Louis Raederer.
Bonaparte as a general, in addition to many of his virtues, was distinguished by a special feature peculiar, to some extent, only to him - the ability to merge politics and strategy into one inseparable whole: moving from victory to victory, this first manifested itself in the April days of 1796.
Napoleonic Wars before the March on Russia.
By the time of the coup d'état of 18 Brumaire (November 9-10), 1799, which resulted in the establishment of the military dictatorship of Napoleon, France was at war with the 2nd coalition created in 1798-99 consisting of Russia, Great Britain, Austria, Turkey, the Kingdom of Naples and others (the 1st anti-French coalition was formed in 1792-1793, it included Austria, Prussia, Great Britain and some other states). In May 1800, Napoleon at the head of an army moved across the Alps to Italy and defeated the Austrian troops at the Battle of Marengo (June 14, 1800). Part of the Italian lands (and later almost all of Italy) came under the rule of France, the 2nd anti-French coalition, from which Russia withdrew in 1800 due to disagreements with the allies, actually ceased to exist; Only Great Britain continued the war. After the resignation of W. Pitt the Younger (1801), the new English government entered into negotiations with France, which ended with the signing of the Amiens Peace Treaty of 1802. However, already in May 1803 the war between Great Britain and France resumed. In the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, the English fleet under the command of Admiral G. Nelson defeated and destroyed the combined Franco-Spanish fleet. This defeat thwarted the strategic plan of Napoleon I to organize the landing of the French expeditionary army in Great Britain, concentrated in the Boulogne camp. In 1805, the third anti-French coalition (Great Britain, Austria, Russia, and Sweden) was created. Its forces numerically significantly exceeded the forces of the Napoleonic army. In the campaign of 1805, Napoleon I decided to compensate for the numerical superiority of the coalition forces by the rapid actions of the French troops in order to defeat the enemy forces in parts and impose a general battle on the enemy before his reserves approached. Following the encirclement of the Austrian army at Ulm, Napoleon I inflicted a heavy defeat on the Russian-Austrian troops on December 2, 1805 in the battle of Austerlitz, Austria was forced to sign the Treaty of Pressburg with France (December 26, 1805), according to which she recognized all French seizures in Italy, in Western and southern Germany. Austria lost most of its possessions. In June 1806, Napoleon I created the Confederation of the Rhine from the states of Western and Southern Germany, including it in a military bloc with France. The creation of the union led to the liquidation in August 1806 of the "Holy Roman Empire", headed by the Austrian Habsburgs. In September 1806, the 4th anti-French coalition was formed (Russia, Great Britain, Sweden, Prussia). In October 1806, in the battles of Jena and Auerstedt, the Prussian army was completely defeated. Prussia was occupied by French troops. In February 1807, Napoleon I tried to defeat the Russian troops in a fierce battle at Preussisch-Eylau, but was unsuccessful. However, at Friedland (June 1807) he managed to win.
According to the Peace of Tilsit in 1807, Russia recognized the territorial and political changes made by Napoleonic France in Europe and joined the Continental blockade proclaimed by Napoleon I in 1806. In the spring of 1808, the French occupation of Spain began. In March 1808 Madrid was occupied.
During the Austro-French War of 1809, Napoleon I won a victory at Wagram over Austria, which again entered into an alliance with Great Britain (5th anti-French coalition). Austria became a dependent state of France. In 1810, the Kingdom of Holland, dependent on France, was included in the French empire.
The victories won by France in N. century. over the armies of the feudal-absolutist states, were explained, first of all, by the fact that bourgeois France, representing a more progressive social system, had an advanced military system created by the Great French Revolution. An outstanding commander, Napoleon I perfected the strategy and tactics developed during the revolutionary wars. The Napoleonic army consisted mainly of free peasants, the term of military service was 5 years. The army also included troops of states subordinate to Napoleon I and foreign corps, exhibited by the allied countries. Large formations were formed - corps (including cavalry), artillery was reinforced, to which Napoleon attached great importance. The role of a powerful shock reserve was played by the guard, staffed from veteran soldiers (in 1804 - 10 thousand people, in 1812 - 60 thousand people), in which all types of troops were represented. The Napoleonic army, especially before the defeat of its best forces in Russia in 1812, was characterized by high combat training and discipline. Distinguished soldiers were awarded officer ranks. Napoleon I was surrounded by a galaxy of talented marshals and young generals (L. Davout, I. Murat, A. Massena, M. Ney, L. Berthier, J. Bernadotte, N. Soult, etc.) Undoubtedly, Deza and Lanna of those two generals without whom there would be no Napoleon I. Both of these talented military leaders personally saved the life of Napoleon. It is believed that without Lannes, Napoleon would not have been able to win those many victories thanks to which he is still considered the greatest commander in world history. Many of these generals came from soldiers or from the lower strata of society. However, the increasing transformation of the French army in the course of the N. century. as an instrument for the implementation of the aggressive plans of Napoleon I, huge losses (according to rough estimates, in 1800-15 3153 thousand people were called up for military service in France, of which 1750 thousand people died only in 1804-14) led to a significant decrease her fighting qualities.
As a result of continuous wars and conquests, a huge Napoleonic empire was formed, supplemented by a system of states directly or indirectly subject to France. Napoleon I subjected the conquered countries to robbery. The supply of the army in the campaign was carried out mainly with the help of requisitions or direct robbery (according to the principle "war must feed the war"). Great damage to countries that were dependent on the Napoleonic empire was caused by customs tariffs that were beneficial to France. N. in. were a constant and important source of income for the Napoleonic government, the French bourgeoisie, the top military.
As V. I. Lenin noted, the wars of the Great French Revolution began as national ones. “These wars were revolutionary: the defense of a great revolution against a coalition of counter-revolutionary monarchies. And when Napoleon created the French empire with the enslavement of a number of long-established, large, viable, national states of Europe, then the French national wars turned into imperialist ones, which in turn gave rise to national liberation wars against Napoleon's imperialism.
Patriotic War of 1812
PATRIOTIC WAR 1812 - Russia's war against the "Great Army" of the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, which invaded its borders.
The size of Napoleon's "Great Army" was approx. 600-650 thousand people with 1350-1370 artillery pieces. In the first days of the war, 448 thousand crossed the Russian border, the rest - in the summer and autumn. Representatives of different European peoples were gathered in the "Great Army": less than half were French, the rest were Austrians, Prussians, Saxons, Italians, Belgians, Poles, etc.
By the beginning of the war, the Russian army had 317 thousand people, gathered in three armies and three separate corps. 1st Western Army (120 thousand people) under the command of M.B. Barclay de Tolly was in the Vilna area and covered the St. Petersburg direction. 2nd Western Army (50 thousand people) P.I. Bagration was located in Belarus near Bialystok and covered the Moscow direction. 3rd Army (44 thousand people) A.P. Tormasova stood near Lutsk and covered the Kiev direction. In addition, I.N. Essen (38 thousand people), near Toropets - the 1st reserve corps of E.I. Meller-Zakomelsky (27 thousand people), near Mozyr - the 2nd reserve corps of F.F. Ertel (38 thousand people). There were also the Danube army of Admiral P.V. Chichagov (58 thousand people) in Wallachia and the corps of F.F. Steingel (19 thousand people) in Finland, but they did not take part in the hostilities at the first stage of the war. At the beginning of the war, Russian troops were inferior to the French in numbers by about one and a half times.
In the European wars of 1805-1807. Russian soldiers showed exceptional courage against Napoleon. But the Russian army was not sufficiently prepared for combat operations against the advanced army of Europe at that time. As a result of the conducted in 1806-1811. transformations in the troops and the experience gained in wars, the combat capability of the Russian army increased. Its strength was the almost homogeneous national composition. A powerful patriotic upsurge became the basis for the mass heroism of soldiers and officers who defended their native land. The heroes of the Patriotic War of 1812 were M.B. Barclay de Tolly, P.I. Bagration, A. Yermolov, N. Raevsky, division commanders P. Konovnitsyn and D. Neverovsky, corps commander D. Dokhturov, Cossack ataman M. Platov and others. .B. Barclay de Tolly, who did not enjoy great prestige among soldiers and officers. In addition, hostile relations developed between him and Bagration.
Russia was preparing to meet the enemy. The chief military adviser to the emperor, K Ful, drew up a plan of military action. According to him, Napoleon should have attacked the largest 1st Army first. Barclay de Tolly was ordered to retreat to a fortified camp near the town of Drissa and hold the enemy there. At this time, Bagration will inflict a blow to the French on the flank and rear. But Napoleon, possessing a numerical superiority and military experience, acted differently: he decided to attack both Russian armies before they united, to defeat them separately in border battles and thereby open the way for Moscow and St. Petersburg.
The war began on the night of June 12, 1812, when the "Great Army" crossed the river. Neman (the western border of Russia then passed along it). The entire course of the war is divided into two large periods. The first stage is from the French crossing the Russian border to the battle of Maloyaroslavets on October 12. During this period, the strategic initiative (the timing and method of combat operations) was in the hands of Napoleon. Until the beginning of September, the "Great Army" was steadily moving deep into Russia.
The main task of the 1st and 2nd Russian armies, which were the first to meet the enemy, was to join forces. Napoleon wanted first of all to encircle and destroy Bagration's 2nd Army. But the general managed to cross the Dnieper and get away from the French, retreating to Smolensk. Barclay de Tolly's 1st Army also moved there. She was pursued by the main troops of Napoleon. The Russians needed to avoid battles with superior enemy forces, and this was only possible with a retreat. The Russian army continuously struck at the enemy and exhausted the enemy. On July 22, both armies managed to connect in the Smolensk region. Napoleon longed for a pitched battle. But Barclay de Tolly, after several days of battle for Smolensk, ordered the retreat to continue.
Following the Russian troops, the "Great Army" was moving towards Moscow. The French entered cities and villages where there was not a single person. Peasants, townspeople abandoned their property and left after the Russian army. The French were starving, the death of horses began.
The retreat of the Russian troops caused a sharp discontent of Bagration, in the army Barclay de Tolly was accused of treason.
To defuse the conflict situation in the army, Alexander I appointed M.I. Kutuzov. August 17 M.I. Kutuzov arrived in the army. The experienced commander understood that without a general battle with the French, the morale of the army and the people could be broken: so strong was the tension of feelings that arose on the wave of patriotic upsurge.
On August 26, a grandiose battle took place on the field near the village of Borodino, near Mozhaisk. Despite the heroism of the Russian soldiers, the Battle of Borodino could not stop the "Great Army", which was moving deep into Russia. But Napoleon did not achieve his goal - to defeat the Russian army.
After a council in Fili (a village near Moscow), Kutuzov ordered to leave Moscow. For four days he led the army along the Ryazan road, on the fifth day, September 6, Kutuzov turned west, onto the Kaluga road, and camped near the village of Tarutino.
The maneuver was carried out so cleverly that the troops of Marshal I. Murat, who were pursuing the Russian army, lost sight of it for several days. Resting, the Russian troops replenished with reserves, they stocked up on food and ammunition. They closed the French way to Tula and Kaluga, where the warehouses of weapons and food were located. Almost the entire population left Moscow along with the troops (about 6 thousand people remained out of more than 275 thousand inhabitants). All fire equipment was removed from the city; he was doomed to death by fire. But thousands of wounded remained in Moscow, a large number of weapons and ammunition, and rich food supplies. Napoleon hoped that comfortable winter quarters for his army would be secured. But the celebration was premature. Already on September 2, a fire broke out in Moscow. Kutuzov and the governor of Moscow Rostopchin ordered to burn in the arsenals and warehouses what was not taken out. In addition, Muscovites themselves set fire to the city so that the French would not get anything. Very soon, Moscow turned into ashes. When food supplies ran out in the city, Napoleon realized that he had fallen into a trap.
All the people rose up to fight the French conquerors, defending their Fatherland from a foreign enemy. The peasants, without any orders from the authorities, began to create partisan detachments. Known detachments of G.M. Kurin, V. Kozhina and many others. In the rear of the French, specially allocated flying groups of partisans under the command of army officers F.F. Vintsengerode, D.V. Davydova, A.N. Seslavina, I.S. Dorohova, A.S. Figner, N.D. Kudashev. It became more and more difficult to supply the French army with food and ammunition, because. partisan detachments smashed the French convoys.
Locked in Moscow, the "Great Army" was gradually melting from hunger and constant skirmishes with the partisans. Considering himself the winner, Napoleon waited for offers of peace. Without waiting for them, he himself tried to offer peace to Alexander I and Kutuzov on his own terms, but Kutuzov replied: "The war is just beginning."
Napoleon understood that it was pointless to stay in Moscow and on October 7 he began to withdraw his army (about 116 thousand people) from the burned city. He tried to break through to Kaluga in order to replenish his supplies and destroy the arms factories in Tula, and then withdraw along the Kaluga road to Smolensk and spend the winter there. But on October 12, a fierce battle took place near Maloyaroslavets and the Napoleonic troops could no longer turn to the southern provinces, where there was food. The French emperor was forced to make a decision, to which the Russians were pushing him, - to retreat along the utterly devastated Old Smolensk road, where hunger and raids by partisan detachments awaited his soldiers.
From that moment began the second stage of the Patriotic War. The military initiative passed to the Russian command. The retreat of the French troops turned into a disaster. The loss of horses began, and most of the guns had to be abandoned. The famine assumed catastrophic proportions.
On October 22, near Vyazma, the formations of General M.A. Miloradovich and Cossack chieftain M.I. Platov inflicted a heavy defeat on the corps of Marshal L.N. Davout. On the same days, frosts hit to -18 °, from which hundreds of French soldiers died. The remnants of the "Great Army" were constantly attacked by partisans and Russian cavalry units. Meanwhile, the main forces of the Russian army under the command of M.I. Kutuzov moved south of the columns of the retreating French in a parallel march. They hung over their left flank and threatened to cut off their retreat.
On October 28, Napoleon entered Smolensk and became convinced that it was impossible to spend the winter in the city, as he had previously assumed. A disorderly flight of soldiers to the west began. Everyone thought only about saving their lives.
On November 4-6, 1812, in the vicinity of the county town of Krasny, a battle took place between the French army retreating from Moscow and the Russian army pursuing it.
November 12-17 during the crossing of the river. Berezina, the "Great Army" lost a total of 45-50 thousand people and actually ceased to exist. However, Napoleon himself managed to cross the river, get away from the chase and save his old guardsmen, as well as the core of the army officer corps, in total approx. 9 thousand people.
M.I. Kutuzov, with good reason, wrote in a report dated December 7 to the emperor: "The enemy is almost exterminated." On December 14, the last French detachment under the command of Marshal M. Ney crossed the Neman to the Prussian coast.
This very day, December 14, is considered the day of the end of the Patriotic War of 1812. Napoleon's "Great Army" was destroyed. In order to prevent it from reviving, gathering new forces and getting stronger, Alexander I ordered the Russian troops to cross the border and clear the countries of Europe from the French occupation. The actions of the Russian troops associated with the liberation of Europe are called the Foreign Campaigns of the Russian Army of 1813-1814.
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