Back in June, Lies Agreed Upon covered similar events on consecutive days because the calender was chock-full of topics too good to pass up. Now, however, we return to Napoleon's invasion of Russia, simply because it appears November 17 is a slow day in military history. Therefore, today we will look at the Battle of Krasnoi, in which the Russians tried to pounce on the remnants of the Grand Armee as it made its desperate attempt to flea enemy territory.
After abandoning Moscow in October, Napoleon was determined to move what was left of his army to its supply base at Smolensk, nearly 270 miles to the west. The Russians, aided by their old ally, General Winter, harassed the French the entire way. So depleted were Napoleon's forces by the time they reached their objective that Bonaparte decided he could no longer hold the position. He hoped to reach Orsha, a supply base further west, then planned on making winter camp near his huge depot at Minsk.
Assuming his enemy was just as hampered by the weather as his own troops, Napoleon decided to move his men out as quickly as possible. Instead of concentrating his army, he sent it out piece-meal, corps by corps on the road to Orsha. Napoleon himself, personally commanding a unit of veterans known as the Imperial Guard, planned to wait for the rear units of the army at a small town called Krasnoi, now known as Krasny near the modern day border with Belarus. It was here, with the battered Grand Armee staggering into town piece by piece, that the Russians struck on November 17, 1812.
The battle itself is not overly significant, with the Russians lashing at the heels of a battered enemy that, while unable to offer much resistance, was retiring in good order. A strong feint by the Imperial Guard gave most of the army enough time to move through the city and continue toward Orsha. The approach of the Russian army, however, meant that French units could not wait for their rear guard to catch up as originally planned. Any remaining men in the tail end of Napoleon's army would be forced to fight their way through enemy lines to rejoin their comrades.
Luckily, the rear guard was commanded by Michel Ney, Napoleon's close friend and one of his original Marshals of the Empire. As is our practice here at Lies Agreed Upon, we must take a moment to recognize Ney, our honorary over-zealous Frenchman of the day. Serving since 1787, Ney was the extremely seasoned leader of the army's III Corps, and earned the dubious honor of commanding the rear guard.
Marshal of France
Michel Ney.
Ney had fought under Napoleon since the Emperor's first days in command and continuously proved his worth. Affectionately dubbed Le Rougeaud, or Red Face, by his men, not even a neck wound suffered a few months before the retreat was enough to keep him from duty. Arriving at Krasnoi late on November 17, Ney was surprised to find the Russians, not his comrades, waiting for him. Undeterred, and convinced the remnants of the Grand Armee were nearby, Ney ordered his exhausted Corps to attack the next morning.
They nearly succeeded. Three lines of Russian infantry lay before him, and Ney's veterans slashed, shot and gouged their way through the first two. The third line, however, refused to yield, and a swift counterattack nearly routed what was left of III Corps. Ney, cut off from his commander and left with only a few thousand men, fled into the forest. For the next few days they blindly marched to the west, constantly shadowed by the dreaded Russian Cossacks. Ney eventually reunited with Napoleon near Orsha on November 20, a feat so impressive even the egotistical Bonaparte dubbed him Le Brave des Braves, "The Bravest of the Brave."
Ney cemented himself a place in military history for his relentless drive toward Krasnoi. Twice during the battle, first when he came in sight of the Russian lines and then again after the counterattack scattered his forces, the enemy offered Ney a chance to honorably surrender. Both times, he refused. He served under Napoleon all the way to Waterloo three years later, a battle that saw five horses shot from under him.
After Napoleon was exiled Ney was arrested and tried for treason. Despite a huge public outcry for one of France's heroes, he was convicted and sentenced to death, perhaps to set an example for Bonaparte's other followers. Before the firing squad, he refused the customary blindfold and gave the order to fire himself, with these stirring final words:
Soldiers, when I give the command to fire, fire straight at my heart. Wait for the order. It will be my last to you. I protest against my condemnation. I have fought a hundred battles for France, and none against her. Soldiers...Fire!It sounds like Napoleon knew bravery when he saw it.
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