Nap-dog and the Rushies.
Posted: Tue Sep 14, 2010 5:38 am
Napoleon's idea to invade Russia was one of the worst military decisions in history.
In 1811 Napoleon's was hell bent on destroying Great Britain through a continental blockade, (Unable to establish a foot hold on the British island, he believed he could starve them into submission.) The plan though was being undone by Russians who continued on trade, undermining the French authority and previous peace deal they had already made with France 4 years earlier.
In December of 1812 Napoleon set out to deal with this challenge to his authority like any good dictator. To teach the Tsar a lesson he gathered a huge army of around 600 000 troops and set off to conquer his one time ally. By invading Russia in 1812, Napoleon was upping the ante. Once he sent his vast army eastward, there was no turning back; he was sucked farther and farther into the one territory he could not conquer.
Napoleon had developed a strategy of feeding his army off of the lands he conquered. To counter this, the Russians came up with what would now be called a "scorched earth" policy. By laying waste to the lands as they retreated, they were successfully able to cut off Napoleon's ability to replenish his supply's that were needed for such a large scale force. Leading the army into starvation, desertion, typhus, and suicide that would rob the French Army of more men than all the battles of the Russian invasion combined.
The tactic of constant retreat might not have been honorable in many peoples eyes, but it was definitely effective. Killing off a large number of Napoleons horses, destroying supply wagons and depleting the rations and other supplies brought along which were unable to be replenished. At the battle Borodino an embattled French army finally got their chance to take the Russian forces head on. It was the bloodiest single day of battle in the Napoleonic Wars. The Russian army could only muster half of its strength on September 8 and was forced to retreat, leaving the road to Moscow open.
The Russians decided to evacuate their capital and it was stripped of all supplies. When Napoleon marched in he was expecting to receive a delegation of dignitaries to finalize his triumph over Russia. Instead he found what could be described as a ghost town. With only about 1/4 of the city's population remaining.
In a normal surrender, the city officials would be forced to find billets and make arrangement for the feeding of the soldiers, but the situation caused a free-for-all in which every man was forced to find lodgings and sustenance for themselves. In the aftermath of that looting a fire was started. It it unknown it it was accidental or deliberate but it is estimated 4/5 of the city was destroyed in the blaze.
This left destitute an already distraught French force. Sitting in the ashes of a ruined city without having received the Russian capitulation and facing a Russian maneuver forcing him out of Moscow, Napoleon started his long retreat by the middle of October. At the Battle of Maloyaroslavets, Kutuzov was able to force the French army into using the very same Smolensk road on which they had earlier moved East and which had already been stripped of food supplies by both armies.
This resulted in an army of 600 000 strong turning into a mere 45 000 frost bitten troops.
Napoleons inability to adapt to changes in tactics and pigheaded advance in the name of victory destroyed his once Grand Armée. He said it himself that an army runs off of it stomach. But when push came to shove he was too proud to apply his own wisdom and marched his army straight into the frozen ground.
What did he end up having to show for this whole thing? Nada.
He just gave time for his enemies to strengthen their resolve and thoroughly destroyed his reputation as the unbeatable general.
500 000 + of his troops died for nothing. A terrible defeat.
In 1811 Napoleon's was hell bent on destroying Great Britain through a continental blockade, (Unable to establish a foot hold on the British island, he believed he could starve them into submission.) The plan though was being undone by Russians who continued on trade, undermining the French authority and previous peace deal they had already made with France 4 years earlier.
In December of 1812 Napoleon set out to deal with this challenge to his authority like any good dictator. To teach the Tsar a lesson he gathered a huge army of around 600 000 troops and set off to conquer his one time ally. By invading Russia in 1812, Napoleon was upping the ante. Once he sent his vast army eastward, there was no turning back; he was sucked farther and farther into the one territory he could not conquer.
Napoleon had developed a strategy of feeding his army off of the lands he conquered. To counter this, the Russians came up with what would now be called a "scorched earth" policy. By laying waste to the lands as they retreated, they were successfully able to cut off Napoleon's ability to replenish his supply's that were needed for such a large scale force. Leading the army into starvation, desertion, typhus, and suicide that would rob the French Army of more men than all the battles of the Russian invasion combined.
The tactic of constant retreat might not have been honorable in many peoples eyes, but it was definitely effective. Killing off a large number of Napoleons horses, destroying supply wagons and depleting the rations and other supplies brought along which were unable to be replenished. At the battle Borodino an embattled French army finally got their chance to take the Russian forces head on. It was the bloodiest single day of battle in the Napoleonic Wars. The Russian army could only muster half of its strength on September 8 and was forced to retreat, leaving the road to Moscow open.
The Russians decided to evacuate their capital and it was stripped of all supplies. When Napoleon marched in he was expecting to receive a delegation of dignitaries to finalize his triumph over Russia. Instead he found what could be described as a ghost town. With only about 1/4 of the city's population remaining.
In a normal surrender, the city officials would be forced to find billets and make arrangement for the feeding of the soldiers, but the situation caused a free-for-all in which every man was forced to find lodgings and sustenance for themselves. In the aftermath of that looting a fire was started. It it unknown it it was accidental or deliberate but it is estimated 4/5 of the city was destroyed in the blaze.
This left destitute an already distraught French force. Sitting in the ashes of a ruined city without having received the Russian capitulation and facing a Russian maneuver forcing him out of Moscow, Napoleon started his long retreat by the middle of October. At the Battle of Maloyaroslavets, Kutuzov was able to force the French army into using the very same Smolensk road on which they had earlier moved East and which had already been stripped of food supplies by both armies.
This resulted in an army of 600 000 strong turning into a mere 45 000 frost bitten troops.
Napoleons inability to adapt to changes in tactics and pigheaded advance in the name of victory destroyed his once Grand Armée. He said it himself that an army runs off of it stomach. But when push came to shove he was too proud to apply his own wisdom and marched his army straight into the frozen ground.
What did he end up having to show for this whole thing? Nada.
He just gave time for his enemies to strengthen their resolve and thoroughly destroyed his reputation as the unbeatable general.
500 000 + of his troops died for nothing. A terrible defeat.
