Napoleon in 1812

Chapter 13

2. Battle of Hrodna – 7

A battle that started and ended with fake information. Napoleon commented on the battle being fought in Hrodna. At the Kalozha Orthodox church in the heart of Hrodna, the flag of Louis Nicolas Davout, Duke of Auerstedt, was fluttering. However, nowhere in the church could be found the figure of Marshal Davout, who had a sharp face and bald head. It was not Davout with high magnification telescopes inside the high chapel who was constantly sending messengers.

It was the fat French Emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte.

Napoleon, disillusioned with his poor physical condition, exercised his mind and commanded the entire Hrodna defense. No matter how much the Russians had been fooled, the reason why Napoleon was able to achieve an overwhelming victory against enemies who were more than twice as many was because he was the one commanding. The arrangement he had set had not failed, and his tactical judgment was never wrong. The staff officers who were with Napoleon could not hide their admiring looks as he blocked the Russian army’s attacks dozens of times.

‘His strategies and tactics were originally great, but he’s showing a different level!’

‘I can’t believe he showed such a perfect operation against the ferocious Russian elite!…

“The Emperor is the God of War himself!’

The officers were obsessed with Napoleon’s perfect tactics and command, but Napoleon’s expression was not very good despite their praise.

I’ve been thinking of the elite troops of the Imperial Guard to some extent, but… their level is below expectations. They’re not as good as the Rhine army, let alone the Corsican Regiment, the Presidential Guard, or the Alpine Division.’

Napoleon recalled the elite troops of the French Republic, from the other world, who could even defeat the demons of hell. If they were here, they would have shredded the entire enemy army without stopping. There was no significant difference in the way soldiers were trained or nurtured in this world, but the gap in terms of quality was too large. The Empire’s soldiers were young and most had a short career.

This made Napoleon assume that the French Empire had reached a serious stage of human sacrifice.

‘How many wars have you started… You stupid bastard.’

Napoleon, who once again cursed at Nabot of this world, resumed his command by reading the situation in Hrodna. The third-class officers were not able to deal with the situation before them properly, and the second-class were trying to solve only the things right in front of them. The first-class commanders were predicting the next situation and came up with answers. They read the psychological state of the enemies and adapted to the changes as if they were prophets.

“Send these letters to Colonel Robert Lubel of the 15th and 16th artillery battalions and Baron Cesari of the Cavalry Regiment, respectively. Take at least five messengers to carry the letters.”

Colonel Lubel and Baron Cesari marched to the position commanded by Napoleon and waited there. The Russian army appeared shortly afterwards. On standby, the French immediately charged and easily pushed back the Russians. As such, the French army was fully prepared and was always one step ahead of the Russian army.

“General Andoche Junot has defeated Bagration’s forces! He captured countless weapons, artillery, and prisoners, and the enemies have retreated 1.5 kilometers away!”

“Your Majesty the Emperor! The Curassiers Regiment has defeated the Cossack bandits! Our cannons did devastating damage to them!”

The officers clasped their hands strongly and cheered at the successive news. Napoleon also had a small smile on his face. It had been more than seven years since he had stopped commanding. However, his skills had not declined at all.

On July 5th, 1812, the first battle between Russia and France in Hrodna ended after 7 pm. Both the Barclay and the Bagration corps stop fighting, retreated for about five miles and set up a campsite. There was a deep sense of defeat and helplessness on the faces of the Russian soldiers who had not been able to break down the solid defense of the Allied Corps. The same was true for the officers and the generals.

There were about 20,000 casualties after the battle that lasted for nearly six hours. Among them, the number of officers alone exceeded 100. In particular, the loss rate was high in the cavalry, which could be called the ‘cream’ of the Russian army, such as the Cossack Cavalry Regiment and the Russian Cavalry, which was even more painful news for the Barclay and Bagration corps. But did they do as much damage to the enemy? They did not think so. The result of the six-hour battle was the capture of one bastion on the right side of the Allied Corps. Neither artillery nor base nor supply camp was occupied.

It was a clear defeat for Russia.

“Poniatowski, who was staying in Augustów, started to move. The exact time was around noon today. Assuming a rapid march, the Polish Corps will arrive here tomorrow afternoon. If they join in, the numerical superiority of our troops will disappear. Our original plan will collapse entirely.”

Lieutenant General Johan Bergiokic, the chief of staff of the Barclay Corps, spoke in a grieving voice. After two and a half days or three days, Napoleon’s Corps would arrive as well. If things went that far, the entire Barclay corps and Bagration corps would have to bury their bones here.

The barracks fell into silence.