Tag: Vilna
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Eyewitness accounts of the campaign in Russia, 1812 (II) …
TO COUNT DE LAVALETTE, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF THE EMPIRE’S POSTAL SERVICES, IN PARIS. Moscow, 16 October 1812. My dear Count, I have the honour of informing you that the Intendant General has ordered me to bring down the postal service between France and Gumbinnen to one courier every two days, and the one between the…
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The early stages of the Russian campaign, recounted by an officer …
… On my arrival at Berlin, I received the order to proceed to Warsaw, carrying dispatches to Prince Jérôme; my instructions required me to follow the operations of this army corps until further notice. On the departure of King Jérôme, who was displeased to see himself placed under the command of Marshal Davout, I left…
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The plight of an officer in the train (transport logistics), 1812-1813
Here are the ‘Recollections’ of Nicolas Nottat, brigadier in the Train Regiment. This account was published the first time in June 1939 in the ‘Revue d’Histoire’, by the Reserve Captain Pierre Arnoult. A second publication dates from October 1953 in the ‘Revue du Train’ at the initiative of Mr. Péchon, President of the Train Cadets…
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General Rapp at the outset of the siege of Danzig (1813) …
From Smorgoni (Smarhonʹ – Smorgonʹ) in late 1812, Napoleon, at the time of his departure for France after the debacle in Russia, assessing with an experienced eye the precise extent of his reverses, had foreseen the siege of the Vistula places and had sent his intrepid aide-de-camp, General Rapp, to take over the government of…
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An interpreter’s journey during the Russian campaign …
Here we find a set of letters written by Gabriel Le Coigneux de Belâbre, an interpreter on Napoleon’s cabinet, on a day to day basis throughout the Russian campaign of 1812, meant for his cousin, René de Thomé : ‘To Monsieur René de Thomé, rue des Francs-Bourgeois n° 16, at Marais in Paris’. We present some…
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The plight of the Frankfurt Regiment, Russia 1812 …
The remnants of the division of the Prince gathered at Königsberg. The 6th Regiment of the Rhine, which had not fought, was already there with 300 men. Marshal Murat reviewed the division on 28 December (1812), numbering 2,000 men. On 1 November it had boasted 14,000 soldiers! Of all the regiments, that of Frankfurt had…
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Officer Boudousquie (18th Line) on the road to Russia, 1812 (III) …
Near Culm, on the Vistula, 31 May 1812. Your letter reached me the day before yesterday at Culm, my dear mother, at the same time as my lieutenant’s commission, which dates back only to 5 May. I am very pleased to have been appointed before the Emperor’s review, for he might still have found fault…
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Succinct history of the Dragoons of the Guard, Russia 1812 …
The recipient of this letter is most likely Marshal Berthier, the major général of the Grande Armée, or Bessières, who commanded the Guard cavalry. Elbing, 28 December 1812. Monseigneur, In accordance with Your Excellency’s order, I have the honour of presenting you the account of the regiment from the time of its departure from Paris…
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Details on the supply system of the Grande Armée in Russia …
In March 1830, Georges Cuvier (member of the Institut de France, scientist, …) approached Philippe de Ségur for details on the administration of the French army during the Russian campaign and in particular on the operations relating to food supplies. Ségur consulted Mathieu Dumas, Intendant General of the French army in 1812, and Dumas sent…