DOCSLIB.ORG

Waterloo in Myth and Memory: the Battles of Waterloo 1815-1915 Timothy Fitzpatrick

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Waterloo in Myth and Memory: the Battles of Waterloo 1815-1915 Timothy Fitzpatrick Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2013 Waterloo in Myth and Memory: The Battles of Waterloo 1815-1915 Timothy Fitzpatrick Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES WATERLOO IN MYTH AND MEMORY: THE BATTLES OF WATERLOO 1815-1915 By TIMOTHY FITZPATRICK A Dissertation submitted to the Department of History in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2013 Timothy Fitzpatrick defended this dissertation on November 6, 2013. The members of the supervisory committee were: Rafe Blaufarb Professor Directing Dissertation Amiée Boutin University Representative James P. Jones Committee Member Michael Creswell Committee Member Jonathan Grant Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the dissertation has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii For my Family iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank Drs. Rafe Blaufarb, Aimée Boutin, Michael Creswell, Jonathan Grant and James P. Jones for being on my committee. They have been wonderful mentors during my time at Florida State University. I would also like to thank Dr. Donald Howard for bringing me to FSU. Without Dr. Blaufarb’s and Dr. Horward’s help this project would not have been possible. Dr. Ben Wieder supported my research through various scholarships and grants. I would like to thank The Institute on Napoleon and French Revolution professors, students and alumni for our discussions, interaction and support of this project. Special thanks go to Major Michael Bonura, PhD whose many discussions on Waterloo and the Napoleonic era have been both enlightening and humorous. In addition, I would like to thank FSU alumni Dr. Skip Vichness for his generous support of travel grants for the Institute so that I could conduct research in France and present papers at the Consortium on the Revolutionary Era. I would like to thank the support of Michael De Grouchy, Marc and Valerie Cornet for helping me with research in France. Yves Vander Cruysen was instrumental in allowing me access to the Livre D’Ors of Waterloo. I would also like to thank Madame Marie-Theresa Brassine a longtime resident of Waterloo for her perspective on the effect of the battle on the residents of Waterloo. The Waterloo tourism office was very kind in their support and use of their offices while in Belgium. I would like to thank Guy Crawels and his daughter Kirsten Kinsley, who allowed me permission to view another Livre D’Or from their family’s Waterloo Hotel. I would also like to thank Dr. Paul Mazgaj of the University of North Carolina Greensboro, Dr. Stefano D’Amico and Dr. Aliza Wong of Texas Tech University for their mentoring and encouragement to become a historian. I would also like to thank Dr. Alexander Grabb who recommended me to Dr. Horward. This project would not have been possible without the support of my family, particularly my wife Jill and my parents. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... vi 1. INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................1 2. CHAPTER 1 MAKING WATERLOO ..................................................................................13 3. CHAPTER 2 WATERLOO: NAPOLÉON’S MYTH AND LEGEND ..................................39 4. CHAPTER 3 GROUCHY AND WATERLOO .....................................................................53 5. CHAPTER 4 JOMINI AND CLAUSEWITZ........................................................................105 6. CHAPTER 5 VICTOR HUGO: MEMORY AND WATERLOO .........................................132 7. CHAPTER 6 MEDIA AND MEMORY OF WATERLOO .................................................170 8. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................222 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................229 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .......................................................................................................238 v ABSTRACT This work examines memory of the Battle of Waterloo. There have been hundreds of works on the Battle of Waterloo but what this work does is to examine how works in several genres change over time. The memory of Waterloo was not static but changed several times over and over again. The myth of Waterloo was created, challenged and renegotiated several times. What makes this project significant is that it is not a battle history of Waterloo but a history of the battle over the battle’s significance in history. It combines several different approaches using biography, literary criticism, historiography, art and monuments to explore the history of the myths and memory of Waterloo. This interpretation combines those approaches in a new way to look at how cultural myths and legends about a battle can be made and challenged. It also examines the successes and failures of interpretations in making “the” History of a battle. It uses sources from the battlefield tourists and participants of different cultural events in addition to the primary historical figures involved. It is intentionally not a work of archival sources but of cultural ones. This project makes several points about the historical significance of the Battle of Waterloo. Wellington and Napoleon tried to shape the memory and history of the battle to their advantage. Others willingly helped Wellington and Napoleon make legends and myths of the battle like Henry Barker, Sir Walter Scott, Emmanuel Las Cases, and Gaspard Gourgaud. The memory of Waterloo was contested. Victor Hugo successfully challenged the myths and legends of the battle while Marshal Grouchy and William Siborne were not successful. Military theorist like Clausewitz and Jomini used the battle as a blueprint for future wars and a guide for understanding the essence of war in general. The myths and memories of the battle Waterloo were intertwined into the national identities of both Britain and France. vi INTRODUCTION The Battle of Waterloo was an event that changed the world. Few battles in history can be described as so decisive and complete in their geo-political consequences. It marked the end of nearly a century of war between France and Great Britain and ushered in an era of peace that lasted just as long. Waterloo was significant because, for some countries involved, the story of Waterloo became a part of their national identity. This work attempts to understand how the Battle of Waterloo was interpreted and how it served the political needs of various factions within the countries involved during the nineteenth century. Historians have focused on the military operations of the campaign and how the battle unfolded. This dissertation does something else; it looks at the battle over the memory and meaning of Waterloo, a battle fought from 1815 to 1915. The purpose of this work is to provide a clearer understanding of how the history of the battle was made. This approach to Waterloo is multinational and thematic. It was refought many times in books and in art during the nineteenth century for various political purposes. This work hopes to shed light on why it mattered so much to refight the battle so many times. Waterloo became a prism thru which nations could construct their own national myths and identities. Each of the nationalities or political factions within those nations had the same problem with regard to their national identity. How could the interpretation of the Battle of Waterloo be made to serve their political needs? Each country came up with different solutions on how to fit the battle within their national community’s identity. To some nations, the battle was extremely important, while for others, less so. For Great Britain, Waterloo was the culmination of nearly one hundred years of warfare against France. Waterloo became a symbol of British hegemony. The victory at Waterloo has 1 often been called the furnace that forged the final unifying bond of the English, Scots, Welsh and Irish into one people called the Britons.1 Under the leadership of the British upper class, Britain had prevailed against the self-made man, Napoléon. To magnify the victory, The Duke of Wellington propagated the myth of the battle as a “near run thing”, that the British were outnumbered by a huge French army bent on the annihilation of Great Britain. It was the spirit, determination, efficiency, character, and will of both Wellington and his men that secured victory from the jaws of defeat. British moral character was tested – and emerged triumphant. France had the most problems dealing with the defeat at Waterloo. After nearly conquering all of Europe, France was prostrate at the hands of the allies. France was occupied and made to pay for both occupation and war reparations. Waterloo was known in France for most of the nineteenth century as the catastrophe by men like Victor Hugo. After Waterloo, they blamed each other for the loss not the British or the Germans. Waterloo was a divisive topic for French national identity. Waterloo marked the end of the dream of uniting Europe under France’s leadership.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • La Batalla De Borodinó. Napoleón Contra Kutúzov Mikaberidze, Alexander La Batalla De Borodinó
    ALEXANDER MIKABERIDZE es profesor de Imagen de portada: Historia en la Louisiana State University Shreveport. «Toda nación sufre momentos críticos que ponen a prueba El príncipe Bagratión en la batalla de la fortaleza y la nobleza de su alma». Para Rusia, uno de Borodinó, óleo de Alexander Yuriyevich Ha escrito ampliamente sobre las Guerras Alexander LA BATALLA DE Averyanov, colección particular. Napoleónicas y ha publicado varios libros sobre la esos momentos se dio en las cercanías de Moscú el 7 de Mikaberidze © Bridgeman Images/agefotostock participación de Rusia en la pugna contra Francia septiembre de 1812, clímax de la invasión napoleónica que han sido distinguidos con diversos galardones. que precederá al desgarrador desenlace de esta tragedia, la Entre sus recientes trabajos se encuentran: Napoleon’s terrible retirada francesa. La batalla de Borodinó, en la que BORODINÓ Great Escape: The Battle of the Berezina (2010), participó más de un cuarto de millón de soldados y dejó Napoleon’s Trial by Fire: The Burning of Moscow tras de sí un campo sembrado de cadáveres, fue uno de (2012) y La batalla de Borodinó. Napoleón contra los enfrentamientos de mayor envergadura del siglo XIX NAPOLEÓN CONTRA KUTÚZOV Kutúzov (2018). y uno de los más sangrientos de los anales de la historia militar. Resulta imposible subestimar su importancia en EN ESTA COLECCIÓN términos militares, políticos, sociales y culturales, por lo que sorprende que el lector occidental haya carecido de Alexander Mikaberidze un análisis exhaustivo de esta batalla y del imprescindible punto de vista ruso. Hasta ahora. En este provocador nuevo estudio, el historiador napoleónico Alexander Mikaberidze reconsidera la campaña napoleónica de 1812 y vuelve a relatar la apasionante historia de la batalla de Borodinó, terrible y épica a partes iguales, en la que conjuga con espíritu crítico un abrumador compendio de fuentes francesas, Austerlitz alemanas, británicas y, por supuesto, rusas.
    [Show full text]
  • The London Times Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte's Invasion
    East Tennessee State University Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University Electronic Theses and Dissertations Student Works 8-2012 “We Have to Record the Downfall of Tyranny”: The London imesT Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte’s Invasion of Russia Julia Dittrich East Tennessee State University Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.etsu.edu/etd Part of the European History Commons, and the Journalism Studies Commons Recommended Citation Dittrich, Julia, "“We Have to Record the Downfall of Tyranny”: The London Times Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte’s Invasion of Russia" (2012). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 1457. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1457 This Thesis - Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Works at Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. “We Have to Record the Downfall of Tyranny”: The London Times Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte’s Invasion of Russia _______________________ A thesis presented to the faculty of the Department of History East Tennessee State University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in History _______________________ by Julia Dittrich August 2012 _______________________ Dr. Stephen G. Fritz, Chair Dr. Henry J. Antkiewicz Dr. Brian J. Maxson Keywords: Napoleon Bonaparte, The London Times, English Identity ABSTRACT “We Have to Record the Downfall of Tyranny”: The London Times Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte’s Invasion of Russia by Julia Dittrich “We Have to Record the Downfall of Tyranny”: The London Times Perspective on Napoleon Bonaparte’s Invasion of Russia aims to illustrate how The London Times interpreted and reported on Napoleon’s 1812 invasion of Russia.
    [Show full text]
  • Understanding the Value of Arts & Culture | the AHRC Cultural Value
    Understanding the value of arts & culture The AHRC Cultural Value Project Geoffrey Crossick & Patrycja Kaszynska 2 Understanding the value of arts & culture The AHRC Cultural Value Project Geoffrey Crossick & Patrycja Kaszynska THE AHRC CULTURAL VALUE PROJECT CONTENTS Foreword 3 4. The engaged citizen: civic agency 58 & civic engagement Executive summary 6 Preconditions for political engagement 59 Civic space and civic engagement: three case studies 61 Part 1 Introduction Creative challenge: cultural industries, digging 63 and climate change 1. Rethinking the terms of the cultural 12 Culture, conflict and post-conflict: 66 value debate a double-edged sword? The Cultural Value Project 12 Culture and art: a brief intellectual history 14 5. Communities, Regeneration and Space 71 Cultural policy and the many lives of cultural value 16 Place, identity and public art 71 Beyond dichotomies: the view from 19 Urban regeneration 74 Cultural Value Project awards Creative places, creative quarters 77 Prioritising experience and methodological diversity 21 Community arts 81 Coda: arts, culture and rural communities 83 2. Cross-cutting themes 25 Modes of cultural engagement 25 6. Economy: impact, innovation and ecology 86 Arts and culture in an unequal society 29 The economic benefits of what? 87 Digital transformations 34 Ways of counting 89 Wellbeing and capabilities 37 Agglomeration and attractiveness 91 The innovation economy 92 Part 2 Components of Cultural Value Ecologies of culture 95 3. The reflective individual 42 7. Health, ageing and wellbeing 100 Cultural engagement and the self 43 Therapeutic, clinical and environmental 101 Case study: arts, culture and the criminal 47 interventions justice system Community-based arts and health 104 Cultural engagement and the other 49 Longer-term health benefits and subjective 106 Case study: professional and informal carers 51 wellbeing Culture and international influence 54 Ageing and dementia 108 Two cultures? 110 8.
    [Show full text]
  • THE BRITISH ARMY in the LOW COUNTRIES, 1793-1814 By
    ‘FAIRLY OUT-GENERALLED AND DISGRACEFULLY BEATEN’: THE BRITISH ARMY IN THE LOW COUNTRIES, 1793-1814 by ANDREW ROBERT LIMM A thesis submitted to the University of Birmingham for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY. University of Birmingham School of History and Cultures College of Arts and Law October, 2014. University of Birmingham Research Archive e-theses repository This unpublished thesis/dissertation is copyright of the author and/or third parties. The intellectual property rights of the author or third parties in respect of this work are as defined by The Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 or as modified by any successor legislation. Any use made of information contained in this thesis/dissertation must be in accordance with that legislation and must be properly acknowledged. Further distribution or reproduction in any format is prohibited without the permission of the copyright holder. ABSTRACT The history of the British Army in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars is generally associated with stories of British military victory and the campaigns of the Duke of Wellington. An intrinsic aspect of the historiography is the argument that, following British defeat in the Low Countries in 1795, the Army was transformed by the military reforms of His Royal Highness, Frederick Duke of York. This thesis provides a critical appraisal of the reform process with reference to the organisation, structure, ethos and learning capabilities of the British Army and evaluates the impact of the reforms upon British military performance in the Low Countries, in the period 1793 to 1814, via a series of narrative reconstructions. This thesis directly challenges the transformation argument and provides a re-evaluation of British military competency in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars.
    [Show full text]
  • The Memoirs of General the Baron De Marbot in 2 Volumes
    The Memoirs of General the Baron de Marbot in 2 Volumes by the Baron de Marbot THE MEMOIRS OF GENERAL THE BARON DE MARBOT. Table of Contents THE MEMOIRS OF GENERAL THE BARON DE MARBOT......................................1 Volume I....................................................................2 Introduction...........................................................2 Chap. 1................................................................6 Chap. 2...............................................................11 Chap. 3...............................................................17 Chap. 4...............................................................24 Chap. 5...............................................................31 Chap. 6...............................................................39 Chap. 7...............................................................41 Chap. 8...............................................................54 Chap. 9...............................................................67 Chap. 10..............................................................75 Chap. 11..............................................................85 Chap. 12..............................................................96 Chap. 13.............................................................102 Chap. 14.............................................................109 Chap. 15.............................................................112 Chap. 16.............................................................122 Chap. 17.............................................................132
    [Show full text]
  • Could Napoleon Have Won the Battle of Waterloo with a Different Leadership Style/ Use of Power Modes? Where/ for What Reason Did He Fail?
    COULD NAPOLEON HAVE WON THE BATTLE OF WATERLOO WITH A DIFFERENT LEADERSHIP STYLE/ USE OF POWER MODES? WHERE/ FOR WHAT REASON DID HE FAIL? Stephanie Jones and Jonathan Gosling In the spring of 1815 Napoleon escaped from exile on Elba, landed at Antibes and marched on Paris, raising an army of supporters as he went. This was the second time he had seized power (the first was in a coup d’état 16 years earlier), and it thrilled all of Europe – galvanizing the fac- tious allies into an extraordinary unanimity to control this phoenix-like return. The recently restored Bourbon King Louis XVIII fled as Napoleon approached, but many officials and generals simply switched sides again. Napoleon moved back into the Tuilleries palace, ripping off the royalist Fleur-de-Lys symbols that had been stitched over the Bonapartist emblems of bees on the carpets. But although he was back on the throne, his grasp on power was obviously tenuous, and many who had benefitted from his patronage in the past had shown how fickle was their loyalty – and were well aware of the vulnerability of his position. Amazingly, he did nothing to remove the chief schemers, the wily apparatchiks Talleyrand and Fouché, who continued to prepare for the fallout from his inevi- table defeat. Napoleon had determinedly silenced political opposition for years, and there were few now willing to commit either way. Meanwhile the military meritocracy, mostly solid in their allegiance to this greatest of generals, had been decimated by the Russian campaign of 1812/13 and the subsequent invasion of France.
    [Show full text]
  • {FREE} Napoleon Bonaparte Ebook
    NAPOLEON BONAPARTE PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Gregory Fremont-Barnes,Peter Dennis | 64 pages | 25 May 2010 | Bloomsbury Publishing PLC | 9781846034589 | English | Oxford, England, United Kingdom Napoleon Bonaparte - Quotes, Death & Facts - Biography They may have presented themselves as continental out of a desire for honor and distinction, but this does not prove they really were as foreign as they themselves often imagined. We might say that they grew all the more attached to their Italian origins as they moved further and further away from them, becoming ever more deeply integrated into Corsican society through marriages. This was as true of the Buonapartes as of anyone else related to the Genoese and Tuscan nobilities by virtue of titles that were, to tell the truth, suspect. The Buonapartes were also the relatives, by marriage and by birth, of the Pietrasentas, Costas, Paraviccinis, and Bonellis, all Corsican families of the interior. Napoleon was born there on 15 August , their fourth child and third son. A boy and girl were born first but died in infancy. Napoleon was baptised as a Catholic. Napoleon was born the same year the Republic of Genoa ceded Corsica to France. His father was an attorney who went on to be named Corsica's representative to the court of Louis XVI in The dominant influence of Napoleon's childhood was his mother, whose firm discipline restrained a rambunctious child. Napoleon's noble, moderately affluent background afforded him greater opportunities to study than were available to a typical Corsican of the time. When he turned 9 years old, [18] [19] he moved to the French mainland and enrolled at a religious school in Autun in January Napoleon was routinely bullied by his peers for his accent, birthplace, short stature, mannerisms and inability to speak French quickly.
    [Show full text]
  • Teaching the Age of Revolutions 2018
    Teaching the Age of Revolutions HA Teacher Fellowship Programme 2018 (Secondary) Ben Walsh Week 4: What were the wider consequences of the Napoleonic Wars? For Week 4 the focus was on the impact of the Napoleonic wars. In recent times, scholars have been emphasising the far reaching effects of these wars. The Fellows were asked to consider some points set out by Dr Ben Marsh of the University of Kent about the wars: Confrontation of larger armies than have taken the field for centuries Regime change, bloodshed, and economic malaise feed off one another Mass conscription and participation brings new styles to global warfare Advances made in technology, recruitment, training, and organisation French pioneer artillery and new infantry formations to great effect British and allies struggle to contain Napoleon but avoid knockout until 1812 Von Clausewitz constructs new theory of war on basis of experiences The Fellows were then asked to suggest how they might use the Battle of Waterloo as a hook to help students to think more widely about the context and impact of the Napoleonic Wars: You can do this by focussing on the domestic impact in Britain or look more widely at the European context. Begin by using the knowledge of Waterloo you gained on the residential and broaden your thinking using the suggested resources below. Your plan should focus on the consequences of the Napoleonic Wars. Some of the Fellows considered ways of giving the Battle a wider and deeper context than they might normally consider, drawing on up to sate scholarship to support this: As Mather's article notes, Napoleon had threatened to invade Britain, but this was not the only reason for the British to become involved in a war against the French.
    [Show full text]
  • UNIT :1 I.FRENCH REVOLUTION Dr. P. Suresh, Ph.D., the French Revolution in 1789, in the Wake of Early Morning, the City of Paris Was in a State of Alarm
    UNIT :1 I.FRENCH REVOLUTION Dr. P. Suresh, Ph.D., The French Revolution In 1789, in the wake of early morning, the city of Paris was in a state of alarm. Rumours spread that the King would open fire upon the citizens. People started gathering and they started breaking a number of government buildings in search of arms. The commander of the Bastille was killed in the armed fight and the prisoners were released. People hated the Bastille as it stood for the despotic power of the king. People protested against the high price of bread. A new chain of events began which led to the execution of the King in France. French Society During the Late Eighteenth Century Louis XVI, in 1774, ascended the throne of France. Financial France was drained because of the war. France, Under Louis XVI, helped the thirteen American colonies to gain their independence from Britain. Taxes were increased to meet regular expenses, such as the cost of maintaining an army, the court, running government offices or universities. The country of France was divided into three estates in the eighteenth century. The feudal system was part of the society estates dated back to the middle ages. 90 percent of the population was dominated by peasants but only a small number of them owned the land they cultivated. 60 percent was owned by nobles, the Church and other richer members of the third estate. The clergy and the nobility, members of the first two estates enjoyed certain privileges by birth. These groups of members were exempted from paying taxes and enjoyed feudal privileges.
    [Show full text]
  • Meteorological Aspects of the Battle O
    J N e Great Historical Events That Were De p a~ Significantly Affected by the rsrSSSS Weather. Part 11: Meteorological Jerusalem lsrael Aspects of the Battle of Waterloo* Abstract Napoleon's forces. The emperor was forced to sign his abdication (April 1814) and the victorious allies ban- The Waterloo Campaign extended from 15 to 18 June 1815, with ished him into exile on the island of Elba, off the west the decisive Battle of Waterloo taking place on the 18th. The coast of Italy. The French Senate reinstated the Bour- campaign involved the "Army of the North" of Napoleon on the one hand, and the Anglo-Dutch and Prussian armies on the other. The bon dynasty in the person of Louis XVI's brother, latter were commanded, respectively, by the Duke of Wellington and styled as Louis XVIII. However, before long, person- Prince Blucher. A shallow but active low and associated warm and ages loyal to Napoleon sent him messages informing cold fronts crossed the battle area on the 16th and 17th. him of dissatisfaction in the country and suggested his The weather had important effects on the battles. On the 16th, return. On 20 March 1815, the former emperor entered in a battle between part of the French army and part of the Prussian army, at the village of Ligny, about 40 km south-southeast of Paris, where he was received by enthusiastic crowds. Brussels, thunderstorms connected with the passage of the afore- With this began Napoleon's "one hundred days' rule." mentioned warm front made the use of muskets impracticable.
    [Show full text]
  • The Napoleon Series
    The Napoleon Series The Germans under the French Eagles: Volume II The Baden Contingent – Chapter 3 Part I By Commandant Sauzey Translated by Greg Gorsuch CHAPTER III CAMPAIGN OF 1809 EBERBERG. -- ESSLING. -- RAAB. -- WAGRAM. -- HOLLABRUNN. ZNAÏN. _____________________ Austria, seeing the Emperor engaged in the Spanish war and desiring to take revenge for Austerlitz, was arming silently and preparing to enter the field. As early as October 1808, the Grand Duke of Baden had warned Napoleon of Austrian arming and he had replied on 17 October, reassuring his ally and assuring him that he could not see between Austria and France any reason for a rupture. But at the beginning of 1809, there were no more illusions possible: a conflict became imminent and it was necessary, without delay, to cover all eventualities.1 The Emperor Napoleon to Grand Duke Charles Frederick of Baden. Valladolid, 15 January 1809. "My brother, having beaten and destroyed the Spanish armies and defeated the English army, and learning that Austria is continuing her arming and making movements, I have thought fit to go to Paris. I pray your Royal Highness to inform me immediately of the situation of his troops. I was satisfied with the ones he sent me for Spain. I hope that your Highness will be able to supplement with 8,000 men the troops whom he will put in campaign, because it is better to bring war to our enemies than to receive it." "With that, I pray to God that he will have you in his holy and worthy guard." Your good brother, NAPOLEON.
    [Show full text]
  • Marshal Louis Nicolas Devout in the Historiography of the Battle of Borodino
    SHS Web of Conferences 106, 04006 (2021) https://doi.org/10.1051/shsconf/202110604006 MTDE 2021 Marshal louis Nicolas devout in the historiography of the battle of Borodino Francesco Rubini* Academy of Engineering, Peoples’ Friendship University of Russia, School of Historical Studies, Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation Abstract. This article is dedicated to the study and analysis of the historiography about the participation of Marshal Davout during the Battle of Borodino of 1812. The article analyzes a number of sources of both personal and non-personal nature and the effect of the event on art. In the work are offered by the author professional translations of several extracts of historiography which have never been translated from Russian, and which are therefore still mostly unknown to the international scientific community. In addition, the article provides some statistical data on the opinion of contemporaries on the results of the Patriotic War of 1812. 1 Introduction «Скажи-ка, дядя, ведь не даром «Hey tell, old man, had we a cause Москва, спаленная пожаром, When Moscow, razed by fire, once was Французу отдана? Given up to Frenchman's blow? Ведь были ж схватки боевые, Old-timers talk about some frays, Да, говорят, еще какие! And they remember well those days! Недаром помнит вся Россия With cause all Russia fashions lays Про день Бородина!» About Borodino!». The battle of Borodino, which took place during the Russian Campaign of 1812, is without any doubt one of the most important and crucial events of Russian history. Fought on the 7th of September, it was a huge large-scale military confrontation between the armed forces of the First French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon Bonaparte himself, and the Russian Army, commanded by General Mikhail Kutuzov, and is still studied as one of the bloodiest and most ferocious battles of the Napoleonic Wars.
    [Show full text]