The Right Strategy

Before reading the text below, study and translate expressions to help you to understand the text to a better extend.

a) to have consequences

b) to drive somebody into depression and melancholy

c) to get from bad to worse

d) to fight up to the death

e) to use a scorched earth policy

Technically the battle of Smolensk was a victory for Napoleon. He captured the city, and did not incur as many casualties as his enemy. However, the manner in which the battle was fought was to have dire consequences. Due to a failing supply chain his soldiers were already running short on food. Smolensk would have been a useful supply base if it had been captured intact.

The Russians then repeatedly avoided battles with the Grande Armé e. Criticized over his tentative strategy of continual retreat, Barclay de Tolly was replaced by Mikhail Kutuzov, although he continued the Barclay's strategy.

The Russian army stepping backwards repeatedly was continuously deserting anything that could be used by the enemy. At Smolensk, an attempt to desert and put on fire the whole town drove Napoleon into melancholy and depression. Russian peasants were similarly acting differently in comparison with their European opponents; they were leaving their villages and settlements priory destroying anything to support the French troops. Something was going wrong and with the time running the situation was getting from bad to worse. And Napoleon did not like it at all.

Mikhail Kutuzov eventually offered a battle outside Moscow on 7 September. Losses were nearly equal for both armies, with slightly more casualties on the Russian side, after what may have been the bloodiest day of battle in the history - the Battle of Borodino.

When Napoleon arrived at the Shevardino defense point he possessed 135 thousand of army and artillery units of 587 guns. The Russians had 103 thousand of regular troops and 640 guns, supported by 7 thousand of Cossacks and around 10 thousand of privates. The Shevardino defense units were under continuous attacks of General Compane regiments and were finally captured by the French. French grenadiers kept expressing their admiration of Russian defenders who preferred to die rather than to leave the front line.

The 6^th of September 1812 was different to both sides. Napoleon was watching the Russians who were preparing their lines for the battle. Napoleon was afraid of one thing only that the Russian army might leave the battlefield once again, but in vain. The Russians were making preparations for the next day battle.

The battle at Borodino began with forceful French attacks at both ends and Napoleon was receiving reports of his marshals about huge human losses of the Russian army. There was something what frightened Napoleon as Russians kept fighting up to their death and didn’t wish to withdraw. Cossacks headed by their commanders Uvarov and Platov made a forceful raid to the backward of French troops attacking and ruining everything they could. It actually prevented Napoleon to engage reserved guards for the reason of the French insecurity.

The day was coming to the end and Napoleon knew that Prince Bagration was killed, commanders of Tuchkov were also killed, the corps of Rayevsky was nearly destroyed, and the Russians started withdrawing their troops from the battlefield once again. The French artillery immediately began non-stop bombardment of the withdrawing troops. The soldiers were falling down, but they didn’t run off.

When Mikhail Kutuzov was reported that half of the Russian army was lost in casualties and deaths, he commanded to leave Moscow without a new battle. When Napoleon was reported that his 47 best generals killed or heavily wounded and some thousands of French grenadiers lie breathless at the Borodino field he eventually understood that it was not a victory, but something else.

Although Napoleon was far from defeated, the Russian army accepted, and withstood, the major battle the French hoped would be decisive. After the battle, the Russian army withdrew, and retreated Moscow. The Russians retreated and Napoleon was able to enter Moscow, assuming that the fall of Moscow would end the war and that Alexander I would negotiate peace. However, on orders of the city's military governor and commander-in-chief, Fyodor Rostopchin, rather than capitulating, Moscow was ordered burned. Within the month, fearing loss of control back in France, Napoleon left Moscow. The Russians also used a scorched earth policy, as they were burning agrarian crops to keep the French from living off the land.

Exercise № 44. Make a list of the Russian Commanders fighting against the French army.

Exercise № 45. Think over and put in words reasons of Russian Commanders to avoid battles with the Army of Napoleon.