God-rati-he

37
Oh, how great, great On-the-field!
He is cunning, and fast, and firm in battle;
But he trembled as he stretched out his battle
With a bayonet god-rati-he.
GR Derzhavin

"And only the sky lit up ..."
At dawn on August 26 (on the new style of September 7) 1812, the Russian troops were waiting for the enemy to attack the Borodino field. They were divided into two unequal parts: the 98 of thousands of soldiers of the 1 army occupied the center and the right flank, where the French offensive was less likely; she was commanded by Barclay de Tolly; 34 Thousands of 2 army soldiers stood on the left flank - the direction of Napoleon’s main attack - commanded by General Bagration. His soldiers were convinced that Prince Peter Ivanovich, Suvorov's favorite disciple, was leading the troops to victory. “Whoever fears God — he is not afraid of the enemy,” repeated the words of Suvorov after the morning prayer.

Napoleon was convinced that he had one strong opponent in the Russian army - General Bagration. Both were military geniuses and did not know defeat. But one anticipated massive bloodshed - the emperor loved to go around the battlefield, looking at the corpses. Another grieved and compassionate those who were to fall. One was sovereign. Another with a handful of troops was put under attack.

Prince Peter Bagration was sent to his death many times, but with God's help, he always won!

God-rati-he


Science win
Petr Ivanovich Bagration was born on 1765, in Kizlyar, which was then the stronghold of the Caucasian Fortified Line. His father, Prince Ivan Alexandrovich, served there. Peter's great-grandfather was the Georgian king Jesse, and his grandfather came to Russia and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

The primary education of Peter was her mother, a princess from an ancient Georgian family. “With a motherly male,” recalled Bagration, “I poured the spirit into militant deeds” ...

For ten years of service in the Caucasus, where the young prince fought bravely against the militant highlanders, he earned the rank of second lieutenant. There he met with Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov. Bagration dreamed of getting into a big war in order to learn the art of war from a great commander. And in October 1794, Prince Peter, already a lieutenant colonel, gallops at the head of a squadron to Poland, where Suvorov fights with a rebellious gentry.

The exploits of Bagration are known from the reports of Suvorov. The great commander believed that one Russian soldier against five enemy was enough for victory. Bagration has exceeded this “norm” more than once. His well-trained friendly cavalrymen, with the hope of God's help and with firm faith in the commander, beat a tenfold superior enemy.

The prince did not achieve anything for himself, was not in the "parties", did not make a career - his spirit was serene, personal needs are modest. Several servants of serfs released into the wild, simple food, no more than two glasses of wine at dinner, four hours of sleep, the first half of the day — military service, in the evenings — society. On major holidays, the “church parade” prescribed by Suvorov, when Bagration led the soldiers in prayer, was ordered.

In 1799, Emperor Paul I sent Suvorov, and with him, Bagration to Italy, to win over the captured country from the French. The vanguard of Bagration and the Allied Austrians captured the fortress of Brescia under brutal cannon shots. Captured 1265 French. "On our side, there are no killed and wounded," the official "Journal of hostilities of the combined armies in Italy."

Unbelievable, but it is a fact! Even the detractors of Bagration were forced to admit that the prince surpassed all in reducing combat losses.

Soon followed a new report: "Active Major General Prince Bagration" took the fortress to Sorvalu: "The garrison surrendered, the enemy was killed and wounded before 40, only seven privates were wounded and one was killed." Suvorov told Paul I about the merits of Prince Peter in a decisive victory at Novi and not waiting for the Russian and Austrian emperors to award "the most excellent general and worthy of higher degrees," presented Bagration with his sword, which the prince did not part until the end of his life.

But at the peak of victories the Russians were betrayed by the Allied Austria. Not they had to go to Paris, but to certain death in the Alps.

The fighting began on the approach to the St. Gothard Pass. Prince Peter commanded the vanguard. With a strong wind, in the pouring rain, the Russian troops climbed the mountains and attacked the enemy. The main forces of Bagration went in the forehead to the "almost impregnable position." Staff officers volunteered to go in the forefront. Two commanders of the vanguard fell, the third broke into enemy positions in front of the soldiers.

Then the vanguard of Bagration laid the way for the army through the Rosstok ridge. Descending into the Mutten Valley, the prince, according to Suvorov, quietly approached the French garrison and with a swift attack took him prisoner. In this valley, a council of generals of a trapped army was held.

Suvorov, describing the terrible situation of the troops, called to save "the honor and wealth of Russia." “Lead us where you think, do what you know, we are yours, father, we are Russians!”, The oldest general, Derfelden, answered for all. “Have mercy on God, we are Russian! - Suvorov exclaimed. - Victory! With God!"

“I will not forget until my death this minute! - recalled Bagration. - I had an extraordinary, never been disturbed blood. I was in a state of ecstasy, in such a way that if there were dark-dark enemies, I would be ready to fight with them. It was the same with everyone ”...

Bagration was the last to go down to the green foothills of Austria. "Russian bayonet broke through the Alps! - Suvorov exclaimed. - The Alps are after us and God is before us. Russian eagles flew over Roman eagles! ”

Meanwhile, the confrontation between Russia and France continued. In alliance with other countries, the empire re-entered the war. Russian commander was appointed Kutuzov, head of the avant-garde - his old colleague and Petersburg friend Bagration. Alas, while the 50 thousandth Russian army marched to join up with the Austrian allies, they managed to get surrounded and capitulate to Napoleon’s thousandth army of the thousandth. Kutuzov and Bagration turned out to be face to face with a repeatedly superior opponent ...

Kutuzov decided to donate part of the troops to save the entire army. Bagration had to fight until the main forces had gone a distance.

4 November 1805 of the year under Schöngraben the columns of Murat, Soult, Oudinot and Lanna moved from different sides to attack the troops of Prince Peter. However, time was won: Kutuzov managed to withdraw his troops to two day transitions. Russian is no longer required to stand to the death. The task of Bagration now became a breakthrough through the six times superior enemy forces. AT stories this did not happen. But - "we are Russian, God is with us!". Bagration believed in the superiority of spirit over matter.

Kutuzov wrote to the emperor: “... Prince Bagration, with a corps of six thousand men consisting, accomplished his retreat, fighting the enemy consisting of 30 thousand people under the command of various field marshal generals, and this number (November 7) joined the army, bringing with it captives of one lieutenant colonel, two officers, fifty privates and one French flag. Major General Prince Bagration, in my opinion, deserves the rank of lieutenant-general for the different cases in which he acted, and for the last (case) in the village of Shengrabene indisputable, it seems, has the right to military order of St. George 2 class. The awards were made by the emperor.
And after such feats in the salvation of the army, the Russian and Austrian emperors forced Kutuzov to accept the ridiculous plan of the general battle of Austerlitz, designed by the mediocre Austrian colonel Weyrother!

Prince Peter, who commanded the right flank at Austerlitz, could only do one thing. According to Kutuzov, he "kept the enemy strong aspirations and led his corps out of order in the battle, closing the army retreat the next night."

It is not known whether Alexander I himself understood the motives of his decisions. But after Austerlitz, he diligently divided the command of the Russian army between foreign generals, crossing out the principle of Suvorov: an Orthodox officer should lead Orthodox soldiers into battle. However, foreigners loved by the emperor did not own the science of winning ...

Reluctantly, the king nevertheless had to sign a rescript about “excellent courage and prudent orders” of General Bagration, who was not defeated by the French. In the capitals, a lot of balls were given with the celebration of Prince Peter.

In the new alliance against Napoleon, Prussia played the shameful role. In October, 1806, Napoleon destroyed her army in one day and conquered the country in two weeks. 150 thousand French marched to the Russian border. Alexander I divided the army into two: 60 thousand at Bennigsen and 40 thousand at Buxgevden. According to Yermolov, rival generals, "not being friends before, met perfect enemies." After a series of intrigues, Bennigsen captured the high command. Bagration arrived in the army when the opportunity to split the corps of Ney and Bernadotte separately was missed.

Bennigsen retreated. Having appointed Bagration to command the rearguard, he asked the prince to withdraw as slowly as possible, to enable the army to unite with the remnants of the Prussian troops.

Prince Peter hid shame with enormous tension of his will: to retreat, seeking help from the Prussians beaten by Napoleon!

The Russian army retreated to Friedland. 2 June 1807, Bagration commanded the left wing of the army, divided in half by a deep ravine, with a river in the rear (Bennigsen’s gross error!). The French were more than two times smaller than the Russians, but Bennigsen did not attack. The idea of ​​the possibility of victory did not fit in his head. Then the French threw almost all the forces against Bagration. Having pressed the Russians to the river, the French marshals were waiting for Napoleon. By 17 hours, the emperor pulled thousands of people to the battlefield of 80 and attacked the troops of Prince Peter. Bagration, fighting 16 hours, left behind a rear guard to cover and managed to withdraw beyond the river. The regiments of Bennigsen, who was observing this beating, were rejected. The loss of the French amounted to 7 – 8 thousand, Russian to 15 thousand.

In June, the king asked Bagration to negotiate a truce with the French. It was the only Russian general whom Napoleon respected. 25 June 1807 of the Year Tilsit Peace between Russia and France was signed ...

“We all, who served under the command of Prince Bagration,” recalled General Yermolov, “conducted the beloved chief with expressions of sincere commitment. In addition to the perfect power of attorney for his talents and experience, we felt the difference between doing it and other generals. Nobody was less reminded that he was a boss, and no one could better make him not remember his subordinates. The soldiers he loved extremely. "

Little blood, mighty blow
In the summer of 1811, Prince Peter Ivanovich was appointed commander-in-chief of the Podolsk army. She started the war with Napoleon as 2 I am Western.

This happy assignment for Russia remains a mystery. The king did not appreciate any of the Russian generals. He considered war minister Barclay de Tolly only "less bad than Bagration, in a strategy that he has no idea about." In the winter of 1812, Napoleon’s military preparations against Russia became apparent. The commander sent the emperor a plan of commencement of the war, aimed at preventing the invasion of the enemy into the territory of the empire. The philosophy of Suvorov, which was followed by Bagration, was based on the conviction that the task of the army is to save the population from war: both its own and foreign. The task was solved by a swift blow to the main forces of the enemy, until he managed to concentrate, completely defeating him and depriving him of the means of waging an inhuman war.

Bagration demanded to go on the offensive to the complete concentration of enemy troops from our borders.

“The first strong blows,” Prince Peter stated the science of Suvorov, “they are the most able to instill a good spirit in our troops and, on the contrary, put fear into the enemy. The main benefit of such a sudden and speedy movement is that the theater of war will move away from the limits of the empire ... In all cases, I prefer an offensive war to a defensive war! ”

Historians, justifying Alexander I and his advisers, point to the numerical superiority of Napoleon's forces. But Bagration knew that against 200 thousands of French soldiers of the Great Army, Russia could send thousands more people to 150 in the direction of the main attack - much more than was necessary for “perfect destruction of the enemy” according to the rules of Suvorov.

The passivity of the tsarist government led to the fact that Napoleon prepared for the invasion of the conquered Germans, Italians, Dutch and Poles. Austria, Prussia and Poland, whom Bagration wanted to save from the war, in the summer of 1812, gave Napoleon 200 thousands of soldiers to march to Russia!

Not for nothing, Bagration considered the main army of 100 thousands of soldiers sufficient. Acting offensively, such an army could break the “outstretched fingers” of Napoleon’s corps marching from all over the West. The almost triple superiority of the enemy (approximately 450 thousand against 153x) gave him an advantage in one case: if the Russians, having forgotten the precepts of Suvorov, would be on the defensive. Then they can be "crush number"!

Meanwhile, in St. Petersburg, a defensive plan was adopted, which was not reported to Bagration. It was rumored that the government prefers a “vile defense” characteristic of “lazy and stupid”, as Suvorov put it.

Defense, Bagration argued, was not only unprofitable, but impossible under current conditions. "Any deviation encourages the enemy and gives him great ways in the land, and we will take away the spirit."

The morale of the Russian army, with which it always won under the command of Suvorov, was not familiar to Alexander with his foreign advisors. They did not understand that the army is an “animated organism,” that the slogan “we are Russian, God is with us!” Is not empty words, but the cornerstone of the military spirit and a guarantee of victory.

Alexander I, brought up by the Swiss Lagarp, a follower of Rousseau, was Orthodox only externally. He was alien to the philanthropy, which was the basis of the Orthodox military philosophy of Suvorov. He did not believe that the army was able to protect the country. For him, the Russians were “Scythians”, to whom the enemy should have been lured and killed on scorched earth. The fact that the land was Russian, that it was inhabited by the Orthodox, that they should have been left without food and shelter was not in the power of the enemy, the emperor.

10 June, two days before Napoleon's invasion, Bagration angrily rejected Barclay's offer to destroy food during a retreat. The prince and abroad did not take away products from the population - he bought them. How to destroy the people's good in their country? This will lead to a "special insult to the people"! In this case, "the most terrible measures will be negligible before the space in which such an operation is required to be made." The prince was horrified, referring to the fighting within the Belarusian lands. He could not imagine that the command was ready to burn out the Russian land right up to Moscow itself!

"I am ashamed to wear a uniform"
After the transition of Napoleon’s Great Army through the Neman, having already begun to retreat, Prince Peter nevertheless issued an order to attack the enemy, outlining the Suvorov’s Science to Conquer section. From himself he added: “I am confident in the courage of the army entrusted to me. The masters of the army commanders instill in the soldiers that all the enemy troops are nothing but a bastard from all over the world, we are Russians and the same faith. They cannot bravely fight, but they are especially afraid of our bayonet. ”

Slipping out of the bag prepared by Napoleon, Bagration gave the army a rest, and ordered the cossack chieftain Platov to stop the annoying French near the town of Mir. 27 June 1812, three regiments of Polish lions under the command of General Turno broke into the world on the shoulders of the Cossacks, who lured their enemies into the Cossack "Venter." As a result, - Bagration reported to the emperor, - “Brigadier General Turno barely escaped with a very small number of uhlans, from the three regiments remaining; for our part, no more than 25 people have been killed and wounded. ”

The next day, Russian Cossacks, dragoons, hussars and huntsmen attacked, according to Platov, “four hours on the chest.” The wounded did not go out of battle; “Major General Ilovaisky received two saber wounds in the right arm and in the right leg with a bullet, but he finished his job. Of the six enemy regiments, there is hardly a soul left. ” By order of the army, Bagration expressed "the most sensitive gratitude" to the winners: "Their bravery is proved by the complete extermination of nine enemy regiments."

The inactivity of Barclay de Tolly, retreating without a single shot, was incomprehensible to Bagration: "If the First Army had launched a decisive attack, we would have crushed the enemy forces into parts." Otherwise, the enemy will invade "inside Russia".

Bagration suspected that the country was already mentally brought by Alexander I in. sacrifice. The prince was sick with anger. “You will not assure anyone in the army or in Russia that we are not sold,” he wrote to Arakcheev. “I cannot protect all of Russia alone. I am completely surrounded, and where I’m going through, I can’t say in advance what God will give, but I won’t doze off, unless my health changes me. And the Russians should not run away ... I told you everything, like a Russian to a Russian. "

“It’s a shame to wear a uniform,” wrote Bagration Yermolov, “by God, I am sick ... I confess that I was so disgusted that I was going crazy. Farewell, Christ is with you, and I will put on a zipoon. ” (Zipun - clothes of the national militia, which began to assemble for the defense of the Fatherland.)

Finally, Arakcheev, Secretary of State Shishkov and the Adjutant General of the sovereign Balashov, with the support of Tsar's sister Catherine Pavlovna, an admirer of Bagration, did a favor to the Fatherland: they forced Alexander I to free the army from its presence. But Barclay, like a car executing the king's instructions, continued to retreat ...

Bagration again warned Barclay that "if the enemy breaks through to Smolensk and further into the depth of Russia, then the tears of the beloved Fatherland will not wash away the stain that will remain for centuries on the First Army."

Prince Peter was right in the worst assumptions. 7 July he received an order to cross the Dnieper and preempt the French in Smolensk. On July 18, Bagration wrote to Barclay: “I am going to Smolensk and, although I have no more than 40 thousands of people under my gun, I’ll be holding on.”

“War is not ordinary, but national”
Prince Peter told Barclay that he did not find excuses for his accelerated retreat: “I have always been of those thoughts that no retreat can be beneficial for us, and now every step inside Russia will be a new and more pressing disaster of the Fatherland.” Barclay’s promise to give battle was enough for Bagration to forget his anger. He himself proposed to put the king at the head of the united army of Barclay, although he had more rights to this because of the seniority of the rank, not to mention the merits. And Barclay became commander in chief to ... calmly ponder how to retreat further without battles.

Even the "explicit German" Colonel Clausewitz understood that Barclay began to "lose his head", considering Napoleon invincible. Meanwhile, General Wittgenstein, who was covering Petersburg, defeated the corps of Marshal Oudinot and captured about three thousand people. But the main Russian forces, bound by the orders of Barclay, stupidly awaited Napoleon’s strike. And they waited.

1 August 1812, the main forces of the French began to force the Dnieper. Barclay decided to attack, Bagration moved to help him. However, time was lost, the division of Neverovsky retreated with a battle under the terrible pressure of the corps of Ney and Murat. The French were amazed at the resilience of the Russian soldiers. The attacks of the fivefold superior enemy could not put them to flight: "Every time the Russians suddenly turned their faces towards us and threw us away."

Bagraion sent to the rescue by Raevsky’s corps, “passing the 40 versts without a halt,” supported Neverovsky, who killed five of six soldiers. Rajewski joined the battle with the main forces of the French a few miles from Smolensk.

“My dear,” wrote Bagration to Rayevsky, “I don’t go, but I’d run, I would like to have wings to unite with you!” He arrived with the vanguard and sent the Grenadier Division to battle. Russians did not need encouragement. The soldiers rushed to the bayonets with regiments, so that the commanders could not stop them. "The war is now not ordinary, but national," wrote Bagration. Not to the soldiers, but to the command and the sovereign “we must maintain our honor”. "Our troops fought and fight like never before." Napoleon, having 182 thousands of people, "continued attacks and intensified attacks from 6 hours of the morning to 8 evenings and not only did not receive any superiority, but with considerable harm to him stopped this day completely."

In the evening, Barclay's army began to pull up to the city. In the morning of August 5, he accepted the defense of Smolensk, promising solemnly not to surrender the city, while Bagration sent him to defend the Dorogobuzh road to Moscow. And when Prince Peter left, the commander-in-chief ordered the army to leave the city and blow up powder depots ...

At dawn 6 August, the French entered the flaming Smolensk, in which they still fought, not wanting to retreat, troops and individual soldiers of the rearguard.

As the news of the surrender of the city of Bagration was received, from “bewilderment” he turned to rabies. The prince’s concern for soldiers is the main fact of his military biography. Throughout the war, he was worried about treating and evacuating the sick and wounded, issued strict orders about it and monitored their implementation. In Smolensk, there were concentrated wounded from near Mogilev, Vitebsk and Krasny, many wounded from parts of Neverovsky, Rayevsky and Dokhturov defending the city. And now, in some incredible way, these wounded were not provided with medical care, and many were abandoned and burned in a fire.

According to the calculations of Bagration, more than 15 thousand people were lost during the retreat, for “the scoundrel, the bastard, the creature Barclay gave the gift of a glorious position for nothing.”

"This, - considered Bagration, - is a shame and a stain on our army, and he himself, it seems, should not live in the world." Barclay's “coward” was declared unworthy of life by the general, who first evacuated the wounded and then withdrew the troops. Surrounded by carts with the wounded, Bagration was placed in the center of the troops.

At this time, Kutuzov was already driving to the army commander in chief, who had been hardening to the post of head of the Petersburg militia. By his arrival, Bagration managed to win two victories: tactical and strategic.

The first one occurred in the battle of the village of Senyavin, where General Junot’s corps, which Napoleon sent to cut the Moscow road, was thrown back into the swamps. Napoleon was frantic.

The second victory was that Bagration understood the national character of the war, the role of "men" who "show patriotism" and "beat the French like pigs." This allowed him to evaluate the idea of ​​Denis Davydov about partisan actions against Napoleon “not from his flank, but in the middle and in the rear”, when the brave adjutant of Prince Peter, now Colonel of the Akhtyrsky Hussars of Davydov, told Bagration about his plan.

The partisan detachments became the terror of the French after the fatal wound of Bagration in the battle of Borodino.

“It’s not for nothing that all Russia remembers”
The battle of Borodino was not intended as a frontal slaughter of concentrated armies, this Prince Peter tried to avoid all his life. Kutuzov planned covering maneuvers, “when the enemy uses his last reserves on Bagration’s left flank” (there was no doubt that Prince Peter would not retreat). Not knowing defeat and capable of an 2 offensive maneuver, the prince’s army was set on the direction of Napoleon’s main attack with minimal reserves. It is possible that Barclay’s troops would have sustained this blow, and the opposite alignment of forces would have changed the outcome of the battle. But could cautious Kutuzov do otherwise?

The Russian soldiers and officers, having defended the morning, were ready to die without taking a single step back. There was nowhere to retreat — Moscow was behind. In front of the regiments, the icon of the Mother Protestant, carried by the soldiers of the Konovnitsyn 3 Infantry Division in flaming Smolensk, was carried by the icon of the Mother of God.

The forces were almost equal in number. The Russians outnumbered the enemy. But the great commander commanded the enemy, while the Russian army was deprived of leadership. From his headquarters at the village of Gorki, Kutuzov did not see the battlefield. As with Austerlitz, he withdrew from command. Barclay did the same. Having become in sight of the enemy, he simply waited for death.

26 August with 5 in the morning 25 thousands of Frenchmen attacked Bagration flash on Xrationx 102 guns, defended by 8 thousands of Russians with 50 guns. The enemy was repelled. In 7 hours, Marshal Davou himself led the corps to attack and captured the left flash. However, General Neverovsky counterattacked the French in the flank. The flash was repulsed, Davout was contused, the cavalry of Bagration completed the defeat of the French corps and took the 12 guns.
The French again attacked the 8 watch, then the 10 watch, again - the 10.30, again - the 11 hours. With the help of the artillery that came from the reserve, the infantry and cavalry corps, Bagration repulsed the attack.

Around noon on the front and a half kilometers Napoleon moved 45 thousands of soldiers into battle with the support of 400 guns. Marshals Davout, Ney and Murat rode at their head. They were opposed by 18 of thousands of Russian soldiers with 300 cannons.

“Having grasped the intention of the marshals and saw the formidable movement of the French forces,” Fyodor Glinka recalled, “Prince Bagration designed a great thing. Our entire left wing moved from its place along its entire length and went with a quick step with bayonets. ” According to another participant of the battle, Dmitry Buturlin, “a terrible slaughter ensued, in which, from both sides, the miracles of almost supernatural courage were exhausted.”

The troops were mixed. “Bravo!” Exclaimed Bagration, seeing the grenadiers of the 57 regiment of Davout, without shooting, go to the flash in bayonets, despite the deadly fire. At this moment, a fragment of the nucleus crushed prince Peter's tibia. At that very moment, it became clear what Bagration meant to the army. When joining the 1 and 2 armies, a participant in the events of Grabbe noted: “The moral difference between the two armies was that the First was relying on herself and on the Russian God, the Second on top of that and on Prince Bagration.”

And here the man who “inflamed the soldier with his presence” fell from his horse. “In a moment the rumor about his death swept,” Yermolov wrote, “and the army cannot be kept from confusion. One common feeling is despair! ” “The terrible news spread through the line,” Glinka recalled, “and the hands of the soldiers dropped.” This was also reported in the reports of Kutuzov and other generals.

Napoleon at that moment thought he had won the battle. He was convinced that “there are no good generals in Russia, except for Bagration alone,” and was ready, in response to requests from Davout, Ney, and Murat, to move the last reserve — the guard — into battle. According to the marshals, it was necessary to break through the structure of the 2 army, which retreated behind the flash and the village of Semenovskoye, but withstood the command of General Konovnitsyn, and then Dokhturov. Another student of Bagration, General Rajewski, from the morning 10 reflected the French from the Kurgan battery and knocked them out of there with counterattacks.

Napoleon’s doubts were finally resolved by Bagration’s old friends, Generals Platov and Uvarov. Their cavalry corps stood idle behind Barclay's right flank, actually outside the battle zone. At the critical moment, at their own risk and risk, they rushed to the attack and, bypassing the left flank of Napoleon, sowed panic in his rear. This forced the emperor to postpone the offensive against the 2 army for two hours. Then the fiercest battle for the battery of Rajewski, which was defended by the troops of Miloradovich, led Napoleon to abandon the introduction of the guard into battle until dusk. The Russians, as before the battle, stood, blocking the enemy’s way to Moscow.

"I will not die from my wounds ..."
By this time, Bagration, who followed his soldiers, retreating behind a ravine and “with inconceivable speed,” setting up artillery, beat off the French, began to rave and was carried away from the battlefield. He has done his duty. The Russian army finally joined the battle and lost 44 thousands of people, resisted. Napoleon 58 lost thousands of soldiers, hundreds of senior officers and generals, but did not achieve anything but terrifying, not seen either by himself or Kutuzov, or by other contemporaries of the bloodshed.

Bagration died on the estate of the Golitsyn Sims on September 12, on the 17 day after the battle. Alexander I considered it necessary to write to his sister Catherine (who worshiped Bagration) about his “major mistakes” and the lack of a concept about strategy. The king mentioned the demise of the general only six weeks later. Meanwhile, Napoleon’s adjutant, Count de Ségur, wrote about the prince: “It was an old Suvorov soldier, terrible in battle.”

Contemporaries linked the death of the commander with the news of the abandonment of Moscow. They said that the prince began to stand on crutches, but, having learned the hidden from him news, fell on a bad leg, which led to gangrene. This was not surprising. And the chief of staff of 6 Corps, Colonel Monakhtin, at the news of the surrender, the throne died, tearing the bandages from his wounds.

Bagration left Moscow consciously, sending reports on awarding the distinguished and a note to the governor of Rostopchin: "I will die not from my wound, but from Moscow." Historians reasoned that gangrene could have been avoided. Bagration refused the only salvation - amputation of the leg, because he did not want to lead "idle and inactive life." The prince confessed and took communion, distributed all his property, released the serfs at will, awarded doctors, orderlies, and servants. His orders were surrendered to the state.

Bagration did not leave anything on earth but immortal glory, friends and disciples who, in spite of everything, expelled the enemy from Russia. The ashes of the “lion of the Russian army” were reburied at the Borodino field, from where the Russians began the expulsion of the “twelve languages” and a victorious march to Paris.
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37 comments
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  1. avt
    +19
    30 March 2013 10: 13
    The Great Russian Commander who gave his life for the Fatherland. An example to everyone. And that's it. hi
    1. Logs
      +1
      31 March 2013 18: 03
      It’s a pity that we know very little about such heroes!
  2. +17
    30 March 2013 10: 33
    Good article, we must remember our HEROES.
    1. +2
      April 1 2013 15: 05
      Quote: svp67

      Good article, we must remember our HEROES.


      And honor their MEMORY!
  3. +16
    30 March 2013 10: 59
    May the memory of him not perish for centuries! A REAL HERO OF RUSSIA. And his biography once again proves that to be a patriot of Russia it is not necessary to be Russian by nationality. The main thing is to have a Russian spirit - Honor, conscience, loyalty!
  4. +1
    30 March 2013 11: 27
    It seems that humpback is not the first Euro-polis at the helm of Russia.
  5. Archidemon
    +8
    30 March 2013 14: 10
    Russia will always remember such a hero !!!
    Eternal memory to him, it is not for nothing that the most large-scale offensive operation of World War II was named in his honor.
  6. +7
    30 March 2013 15: 02
    This great husband died in the estate of the Golitsins, in the village of Sima in the current Yuryev-Polsky district of the Vladimir province. Eternal memory to the servants of Russia.
  7. WWW.budanov
    +8
    30 March 2013 15: 17
    Quote: Vladimirets
    This great husband died in the estate of the Golitsins, in the village of Sima in the current Yuryev-Polsky district of the Vladimir province. Eternal memory to the servants of Russia.

    And this memory should enter school textbooks (!) Of history, literature, etc.
  8. +8
    30 March 2013 16: 00
    For 30 years of service, Prince Bagration took part in 20 campaigns and 150 battles. The best tactics of the Russian army, an unsurpassed master of rear-guard battles.
    Great man, Worthy SON of his people, patriot and hero of Russia.
    PS "Prince Bagration is the most excellent general, worthy of the highest degrees" A.V. Suvorov
  9. +9
    30 March 2013 16: 27
    And having such a story they shoot "Ulanskaya Ballad" ... Directors of this level cannot be allowed to go further than commercials.
    1. +5
      30 March 2013 18: 48
      They should be sent to make films about the hard life of the Eskimos in Kolyma.
  10. 0
    30 March 2013 18: 46
    I enjoyed reading an article about this great commander. Eternal memory and glory.
  11. +1
    30 March 2013 21: 01
    A truly Russian general with a Caucasian character !!!
  12. +5
    30 March 2013 21: 39
    These are the names that should be called the streets and not the Kadyrovs and Putin Avenues
    1. 0
      31 March 2013 00: 10
      I agree with you.
    2. wax
      +2
      31 March 2013 11: 49
      Monument to Peter Ivanovich Bagration on Kutuzovsky Prospekt near the Bagrationovskaya metro station in Moscow.
      How is it in Georgia?
      1. +3
        31 March 2013 12: 40
        Quote: Wax
        How is it in Georgia?

  13. wax
    +1
    30 March 2013 23: 38
    Russian man of Georgian nationality, as Stalin said about himself. Bagration is a great Russian right-wing warrior without fear and reproach. The most worthy student of Suvorov. Bagration glory for centuries. However, it’s not quite proper for the author, especially the historian, to emphasize Bagration’s prowess, indicating that Kutuzov did not see the battlefield, retired (almost slept) on the Borodino field. Ugly. Bagration does not need this.

    Pushkin about Alexander the first:
    The sovereign is weak and crafty,
    A bald dandy, the enemy of labor,
    Unintentionally warmed by glory,
    Reigned over us then.
    1. -1
      31 March 2013 23: 38
      But Pushkin almost looked into the water about the current couple ...
  14. -1
    31 March 2013 03: 08
    Undoubtedly Bagration is a hero and an outstanding man of his People.
    But do not make hasty conclusions about Alexander 1 on the basis of this article. For example, Alexander 1 was the first of the emperors who tried to create bills to abolish serfdom. True, serfdom was abolished only in 1861. But under Alexander 1, a decree "On free farmers" was issued, which later formed the basis of the reform of 1961. For the first time, serfs received the legal opportunity to become free.
    Stalin had even greater mistakes on the eve and at the beginning of the war (WWII) which cost our people much more than Alexander's mistakes.
    1. +3
      31 March 2013 15: 12
      NeSvyatoy "Stalin had even bigger mistakes on the eve and at the beginning of the war (WWII), which cost our people much more than Alexander's mistakes."
      Of course, when discussing the war of 1812, we must definitely mention Stalin. Hehe ... there is nothing more to write about? What can we say about Alexander 1? A man who had so much power was unable to implement his decree "On Free Farmers" in life. So he was.
    2. +1
      April 2 2013 13: 40
      No need to compare the father-killer, by the way with English money, who was afraid of everyone and legally elected
  15. +3
    31 March 2013 09: 14
    The author is a huge plus. Bagration was, indeed, for that period of time, perhaps the most talented commander of Russia. This was a warlord from God. In our historiography, an opinion has been rooted that Bagration was not put on the post of commander of the entire army because of his poor knowledge of strategy. In fact, all this is a lie. The tsar’s court simply couldn’t allow a native of small nations, albeit from a noble family, to become a native of the Russian army.
    Bagration demanded to go on the offensive to the complete concentration of enemy troops from our borders.
    Somehow in one article, in the comments I asked the question why the Russian army did not hit Napoleon right away when the news of the border crossing was received. I was wildly bombarded then. But, apparently, I repeated the proposal of Bagration, which was right - the enemy had to be beaten until it was completely concentrated, the Russian army had the strength and means to do this. Instead, traitors (you can’t call them otherwise) from the General Staff and St. Petersburg chose complete inaction, and then they surrendered half the country to ruin.
  16. +1
    31 March 2013 10: 04
    It is necessary to read such articles without fail for children in history lessons!

    So that not the Pepsi generation appears, but the patriots of the Motherland!

    And here we are ... They probably take an hour a week to history.


    The author is well done! The article is interesting, I learned a number of new facts about Bagration.
  17. +2
    31 March 2013 10: 08
    After reading the article, there were ambiguous feelings. Bagration is a hero and well done !!! Well, nobody argues with that. But the passage about the self-removal of Kutuzov evokes sad thoughts. Che, the author is revising his whole story? Aha and Kutuzov slept in Gorki according to yours? Barclay, standing in front of all Navidu, was also dozing ... dreaming at the same time to catch a bullet. Doctors of science, guys, maybe enough of their national heroes to kick? If you claim that Kutuzov has withdrawn, evidence in the studio please ...
    "The forces were almost equal in number. The Russians outnumbered the enemy in spirit. But the enemy was commanded by a great commander, the Russian army was deprived of leadership. From his headquarters near the village of Gorki, Kutuzov did not see the battlefield. As under Austerlitz, he was removed from command. The same did Barclay. Becoming in sight of the enemy, he simply waited for death. "
    The article about Bagratinoa is not bad, but I do not put a plus for such jambs.
    1. wax
      0
      31 March 2013 11: 31
      Behind the milestone, a monument on the site of Kutuzov’s place during the Battle of Borodino.
  18. wax
    0
    31 March 2013 11: 40
    View of the area from the place of Kutuzov’s rate.
  19. wax
    0
    31 March 2013 12: 00
    Unaware of defeat and capable of an offensive maneuver, the 2nd army of the prince was placed with minimal reserves in the direction of Napoleon's main strike. It is possible that Barclay’s troops could have sustained this blow, and the opposite alignment of forces would change the outcome of the battle. However, could the cautious Kutuzov do otherwise?

    It turns out to the author IN ADVANCE the direction of the main blow of Napoleon and his plan of battle. But Kutuzov put Barclay in the wrong place.
    But the enemy was commanded by a great commander, while the Russian army was deprived of leadership. From his headquarters near the village of Gorki, Kutuzov did not see the battlefield. As with Austerlitz, he withdrew from command. Barclay did the same. Standing in front of the enemy, he simply expected death

    You do not know - to laugh or cry over the ardor of the author.
  20. wax
    0
    31 March 2013 13: 16
    51. But most importantly, the historian’s mind should resemble a mirror that is clean, brilliant and properly polished; how it takes the images of things, it should also reflect such, not showing anything distorted, or incorrectly colored, or changed. The task of historians is not the same as that of speakers; what you need to talk about should be told as it really is. After all, all this has already happened - you just have to arrange everything and state ...
    59. Praise and blasphemy should be extremely restrained, cautious, alien to slander, provided with evidence, concise, appropriate, as the historian does not speak before the court ...

    Lucian of Samosata. "How to write a story." Translation S.V. Tolstoy.
    Lucian lived in the 2nd century AD.
  21. -1
    31 March 2013 13: 19
    Thank you for the article ... Critics: the phrase "criticize - offer" will re-sound, criticize - write better ... A good article that raises morale ... Comments about Kutuzov were a little subdued, he was a wonderful strategist, even if he was inferior to Bona in tactics ... To Bagration - bow to the ground ... Probably Russian, after all, an adjective ... A Russian soldier can be defeated only if he is betrayed (sold), this is confirmed by the events of recent history ...
    PS But I didn’t know about Barclay, I was unpleasantly surprised ....
    1. 0
      April 2 2013 13: 46
      I put a minus for insulting the RUSSIAN commander.
      As you will not understand, ALL who work for the benefit of Russia are Russians. It does not depend on the color of the skin or eyes.
      1. 0
        April 2 2013 23: 10
        Sir, you hastened to conclusions .. I did not think of any insult, I had in mind Russian in spirit ... Therefore, the adjective ... Do not rush to show temper, it betrays your young age ... Minus does not matter, I do not want that there would be a mutual misunderstanding ... Rather, I offended the memory of Barclay de Tolly ... But this is my personal opinion about the historical fact ... In recent history (Chechnya), parallels can be drawn .... Respectfully.
  22. G02.
    0
    31 March 2013 14: 29
    It remains for everyone to wallow, as it should, so that there would be no one to poke around :)
  23. +1
    April 1 2013 17: 16
    Quote: Slavs
    PS But I didn’t know about Barclay, I was unpleasantly surprised ....

    Regarding the actions of General Barclay De Tolly: he was practically the only person of his time (except Field Marshal M.I. Kutuzov) who was aware of the importance of supplying the army and was well aware that Napoleon would not be able to supply a huge army for a long time (Napoleon, in fact, was not going to, counting on victory in border battles). Kutuzov, becoming commander in chief, confirmed the orders of De Tolly, as a result of which they retreated to Moscow itself and surrendered Moscow, thus breaking the ridge of the Great Army. As a result of this strategy, in the Battle of Borodino the forces of the parties were practically numerically equal (I recall that Napoleon had a threefold advantage at the beginning of the campaign). The author of the article distorted the whole strategy of Alexander, which was based on a general battle at the border. The mass retreat of the Russian army became the consequence this criminal decision. Thus, De Tolly actually saved the Russian army from defeat in border battles by applying a modern, powerful defensive strategy aimed at moral and physical exhaustion numerically and, most importantly, qualitatively superior enemy forces. And in this sense, Barclay De Tolly is deservedly considered one of the outstanding commanders of Russia.
    1. +1
      April 2 2013 23: 15
      I'm afraid only the heroes of those events themselves know whether this was a strategy or .... We can only make assumptions based on the facts that historians offer us and make up our minds ... Regards.
  24. Alikovo
    0
    April 8 2013 00: 33
    in Russia there were 2 great commanders Bagration and A.V. Suvorov. both did not have a single defeat.
  25. gora1960
    0
    April 11 2013 11: 13
    Rarely learn something new. But Barclay de Tolly wrongly offended. War won as a result.

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