The Failure of Napoleon's Russian Campaign
Napoleon Bonaparte was seemingly invincible. Under his command, the Grande Armee had conquered much of Europe, and was viewed by others as an austere foe. Though despite all this, Napoleon made a fatal mistake: he entered Russia. Of the 600,000 troops that reached the Russian border, only 100,000 made it out (Moore, Online). Through the Russian Campaign the seemingly indomitable man of Napoleon began to crumble at the base, and after numerous fatal errors, the foundation fell. Napoleon 's Russian Campaign of 1812 resulted in failure.
Napoleon unleashed his armies to Russia in June of 1812. The initial reason for the start of the Russian Campaign was that of desertion (Bloy, Online). This became evident when Czar Alexander I of Russia left the Continental System. While hurting Britain 's economy, the Continental System also hurt Russia 's. Soon enough, Napoleon sent over 600,000 troops to Russia, hoping to straighten out the czar (Burnham, Online). The czar seemed not to be worried, and readily commanded two Russian armies to protect their country. The initial attacks against the Russians were relentless, and the two armies were readily overwhelmed. On June 24 the two Russian armies retreated, under the command of General Barclay de Tolly and General Bagration (Moore, Online). The Czar Alexander was cunning, and instead of directly confronting the Grande Armee, he would always retreat. This greatly irritated Napoleon, who pressed on further and further, deep into Russia (Sparknotes, Online). However, this process of enticement and retreat seemed to be working, as the battle-hungry Napoleon kept on proceeding. Knowing that they could not win a fight by force, the Russians were cunning and traded space for time with the French. By this time, the Russians had developed the "scorched-earth" policy, which was the destruction of one 's own land (Burnham, Online). Whenever the Russians would retreat, they would burn all the land behind them. This
Napoleon unleashed his armies to Russia in June of 1812. The initial reason for the start of the Russian Campaign was that of desertion (Bloy, Online). This became evident when Czar Alexander I of Russia left the Continental System. While hurting Britain 's economy, the Continental System also hurt Russia 's. Soon enough, Napoleon sent over 600,000 troops to Russia, hoping to straighten out the czar (Burnham, Online). The czar seemed not to be worried, and readily commanded two Russian armies to protect their country. The initial attacks against the Russians were relentless, and the two armies were readily overwhelmed. On June 24 the two Russian armies retreated, under the command of General Barclay de Tolly and General Bagration (Moore, Online). The Czar Alexander was cunning, and instead of directly confronting the Grande Armee, he would always retreat. This greatly irritated Napoleon, who pressed on further and further, deep into Russia (Sparknotes, Online). However, this process of enticement and retreat seemed to be working, as the battle-hungry Napoleon kept on proceeding. Knowing that they could not win a fight by force, the Russians were cunning and traded space for time with the French. By this time, the Russians had developed the "scorched-earth" policy, which was the destruction of one 's own land (Burnham, Online). Whenever the Russians would retreat, they would burn all the land behind them. This
Cited: Bloy, Marjie. "Napoleon 's Moscow Campaign: 1812." 20 Oct. 2004. History Home. 21 Oct. 2004. Burnham, Robert. "FAQs: Why did Napoleon Fail in Russia in 1812?" 1995-2004. Napoleon Series. 16 Oct. 2004. Moore, Richard. "The Russian Campaign." 1999-2003 Napoleon Guide. 15 Oct. 2004. Not Given. "The Russian Campaign and Napoleon 's Defeat." 1999-2003. Sparknotes. 16 Oct. 2004. Not Given. "The Russian Campaign." 2004. PBS. 17 Oct. 2004.