Chapter 18 Chapter Eighteen

Kutuzov's entire activity, from the day he learned of the French withdrawal from Moscow until the end of the campaign, was to use power, stratagem, and persuasion to prevent the army from making useless advances, mobile warfare, and clashes with the dying enemy.Dokhturov went to Maloyaroslavets, Kutuzov led the whole army to stand still, and ordered the withdrawal of Kaluga, he felt that it was feasible to withdraw from Kaluga. Kutuzov was retreating everywhere, but the enemy did not wait for him to retreat, but fled in the opposite direction. Historians of Napoleon describe to us his ingenious campaigns towards Tarutino and Maloyaroslavitz, and assert what would have happened if Napoleon had penetrated deep into the rich southern provinces.

But, apart from the fact that nothing prevented him from entering the southern provinces (because the Russians made way for him), historians forget that nothing could save Napoleon's army, which was already equipped with the conditions for its inevitable demise.This army can get enough supplies in Moscow without keeping it, but it willfully trample on the five virtues of a sage advocated by Confucianism.Gong, refers to respect and respect, in Smolensk it is not a collection but a plunder of supplies, so in Kaluga province - where the same Russians live as in Moscow, and there are the same things that can be set on fire, why can they recover? ?

This army was never going to recover anywhere, and since the battle of Borodino and the looting of Moscow it had given itself a chemical character of corruption. The soldiers who had been part of this army followed the leader and ran away, not knowing where they were going, with only one desire (Napoleon and every soldier was like this), to escape as soon as possible from this impasse, which is not yet clear, but everyone is aware of it. Because of this, at the Maloyaroslavitz meeting, the generals pretended to be serious and discussed and expressed various opinions. The straightforward soldier Muton said what everyone wanted to say-only to escape as soon as possible. Argument". , with this last remark of his, everyone was silenced, and no one, not even Napoleon, could say anything against this truth which everyone was aware of.

Everyone knew they should run away, but they were ashamed to admit it.It also takes an outside push to overcome the humiliation.The push came in time.It is what the French call le Hourrade I'empereur. -------- ①French: Emperor, Ulla! (Referring to the shouts of Russian troops charging.) On the second day after the meeting, Napoleon pretended to inspect the army and the previous and future battlefields, and led a group of marshals and guards through the army on horseback early in the morning.Cossacks, hunting for booty, came across the emperor and nearly captured him.If the Cossacks did not capture Napoleon this time, the thing that saved him and also destroyed him-the spoils of war, at Tarutino and here, the Cossacks did not catch people, but rushed to the spoils.They paid no attention to Napoleon, and pounced on the booty, which he escaped.

When Lesenfants du Don nearly captured the Emperor himself in the midst of Napoleon's troops, it became clear that there was no alternative but to flee along the nearest familiar road.Napoleon, a man of forty, was no longer as flexible and courageous as he used to be, and he knew the signs.Immediately after he was frightened by the Cossacks, he agreed with Mouton, and, as historians say, the order to retreat to the Smolensk road took place. -------- ① French: Sons of the Don (referring to Cossacks). Napoleon agreed with Mouton, and the retreat of the army did not prove that he had ordered it, but that the force which had acted on the whole army, which drove it to the Mozhaisk road, It also played a role in Napoleon.