Tag: Vitebsk
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A doctor’s recounting of the battle of Ostrovno, July 1812 …
Raymond Faure (1786-1850), a doctor in I Cavalry Corps of the Grande Armée, provides the following account of this engagement in his memoirs: Our corps (I Corps) was the vanguard of the army, and we had been in sight of the enemy for two or three days; a few cannon shots had been exchanged. On…
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Doctor Wilhelm Meier and Baden’s war efforts during the Russian campaign …
This excerpt represents one complete chapter of Meier’s recollections. Relations between France and the rest of Europe, with Russia in particular – Causes and preparations for war Through the Peace of Vienna of 1809 and its consequences, the family bond established with the Imperial House of Austria, Napoleon had reached the summit of his fortune…
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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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A war commissioner’s account on the battle of the Berezina …
Alexandre Bellot de Kergorre (1784-1840) recounts the events that took place at the banks of the Berezina … … The Army of Moldavia had such a great influence on the events of the 1812 campaign that its actions deserve to be recounted. At the beginning of 1812, Russia was still at war with Turkey and…
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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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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…