As against this large and eager, if partly irregular, force Napoleon is said by De Chambray to have had barely 31,000 men. This figure is certainly too low. De Fezensac believes that he had 50,000 men; and on the whole it is possible that the total number of combatants was about 47,000. It was composed as follows: Guard (less Claparède) 8500, Ney about 5000, Davout 3000, Eugène 2000, Junot 1500 (including dismounted cavalry), Oudinot 11,000 (including Dombrowski), Victor 13,500, Head-quarters 2500. The last item is usually ignored by historians. There were between 250 and 300 guns, and perhaps 5500 effective cavalry, of whom 1500 belonged to the Guard and Head-quarters. But of these troops nearly a third were so worn down by hardship as to be hardly capable of making any great effort.
Eugène and Davout on reaching Studianka crossed in the night, the bitter cold of which went far to achieve the destruction of their few remaining troops. Even Oudinot’s troops, still in comparatively good condition, suffered greatly in their wretched bivouacs in the woods of Stakhov. Behind the 1st and 4th Corps the horde of non-combatants came pouring down to the bridges. The road from Borisov to Studianka was choked with their throngs. Every age and sex was represented in the helpless mass; and there was to be seen human misery in its most hideous aspects. Even more harrowing than the misery and hideous aspect of the fugitives was their utter apathy and helplessness. The crowd heaved itself sluggishly along the tracks in whatever direction it chanced to take or was pushed by moving troops. Most of the wretches who composed it seem to have lost their senses no less than their appearance as more or less civilised human beings. The instincts of comradeship and humanity were almost extinct, and progress was constantly retarded by the brawling and fighting for places in the column of the mass of degraded savages which once had been Napoleon’s Grande Armée.
Snow fell heavily during the night upon the unfortunates huddled shelterless among the woods and marshes. The non-combatants on reaching Studianka would go no further, despite the efforts of Eblé and Chasseloup to induce some of them to cross. Napoleon had issued orders that the passage was to be kept up day and night, but they probably could not be, at any rate were not, executed. The luckless people continued to stream down towards Studianka until the bank for miles was covered with them, and apathetically bivouacked as best they could among their vehicles. Very few appear to have attempted to cross; those who did probably created blockages and disorder, being amenable to no kind of control. The pontonniers and engineers were too few and too weary to enforce order in such a mass. More might have been done had Napoleon personally exerted himself to supervise the passage; unfortunately after the 27th he did nothing.
Victor’s corps on the 26th became the rear-guard, Davout and Eugène passing in advance with the scanty relics of their troops. Victor left Borisov for Studianka on the 27th. The Baden brigade of Dändel’s division marched first and crossed the bridges soon after Napoleon. Victor himself with the rest of Dändel’s troops, Gérard’s Poles and Saxons, and the artillery made his way out of Borisov towards midday, while Partouneaux’s division with 4 guns and Delaître’s cavalry brigade formed the rear-guard. It was to remain at Borisov until dark. Platov was marching upon Borisov; behind him came Wittgenstein with Steingell’s and Berg’s troops. Yermólov was behind. Vlastov’s division was marching upon Staroï Borisov and Fock’s reserve on the way to rejoin.[9]
The road from Borisov to Studianka was choked with non-combatants, sick and wounded barely capable of dragging themselves along, straggling soldiers, disbanded skulkers, fugitives from Moscow, camp-followers, men, women and children, huddled in a helpless mass, all streaming mechanically to Studianka with the last of the organised fighting men. Vlastov’s division coming into the road at Staroï Borisov about 3 a.m., cut the line of retreat and the rearward portions of the mob fled back towards Borisov, whence Partouneaux moved out to fight his way through. His division was now only 4000 strong. Delaître had about 500 Saxon and Berg horsemen. Two tracks led from Borisov to Studianka, dividing a short distance west of the town. That to the left skirted the bank, but it was full of stragglers, and Partouneaux, believing that the right-hand one would take him directly to Studianka, struck into it. This movement brought him right against Vlastov’s division. After a most gallant attempt to fight their way through the French were forced to give way. Partouneaux and Billard were taken prisoners with the poor remains of the latter’s brigade, and the remaining three fell back towards Borisov, to find it occupied by Wittgenstein. They passed a fearful night in the snow, without food, fire, or shelter. Next day almost all the wounded and weaker men were dead, and the benumbed and starving survivors could only surrender. A single battalion, about 160 strong, which had luckily taken the left-hand track, reached Studianka. The French loss was over 4000 men, including 500 cavalry and 4 guns.
In the evening of the 27th Yermólov entered Borisov. As soon as the French left the town Chichagov repaired the bridge with pontoons, and direct communication being thus established, a general attack was concerted for next day. Wittgenstein was to complete the destruction of Victor’s corps, while Chichagov, supported by Yermólov and Platov, pressed Ney and Oudinot, and endeavoured to throw them back upon Zembin.
The whole country was partially wooded except on the marshy banks of the Berezina, and in places the woods became very thick. On the western bank, about 3 miles south of Studianka and nearly half-way between the villages of Brilova and Bolshoï Stakhov, stood Ney and Oudinot. Their front was about a mile long, Ney’s force being on the left, resting on the river, Oudinot on the right, supported upon a dense wood. Guns could not be brought into action on either side except on the road, where 8 pieces, equally divided between the two armies and continually replaced, fought each other all day. In reserve behind Ney and Oudinot stood the Guard.
At 8 a.m. Chaplitz and Pahlen began an attack on the 2nd Corps with 7 regiments of Chasseurs, and soon a furious conflict raged in the woods. At first the attack made headway, and the French and Swiss soldiers, who had passed a wretched night, began to give ground. When the roar of firing swelled up all the disbanded men took to flight, disordering and carrying away the reserves, while Oudinot was disabled by a wound. Ney, always at the point of danger, rushed to take his place, rallied the 2nd Corps and, calling up some of his own troops in support, checked Chaplitz’s advance and began to drive him back upon Stakhov. Some hundreds of prisoners were taken. Sabaniev, who was moving up to support Chaplitz, stayed Ney’s advance, but was suddenly charged in the most gallant fashion by Doumerc’s Cuirassiers. They burst from the woods upon Cherbatov’s division, broke through its skirmishing line, and charged its squares with desperate courage. Some 2000 Russians were sabred and captured. The Cuirassiers were of course nearly destroyed, but their splendid behaviour saved the army for the moment. Chichagov sent forward Voïnov to sustain Sabaniev, but though nearly twice as numerous the Russians could make no headway. The French losses were fearful. General Zayonczek, who had defended Praga against Suvorov in 1794, had his leg shattered; Legrand, Rapp, Amey, Dombrowski, and Kniaziewicz were also wounded. Half the survivors of the 2nd Corps were killed or disabled; but at night their shattered ranks still held their own, and if courage and devotion could have saved the Grande Armée, that end would have been achieved.
Meanwhile on the left bank Victor’s corps, with equal heroism but less success, had been contending with Wittgenstein. Most of Victor’s artillery and the Baden brigade were already across, but Napoleon now sent back the latter, adding to them apparently the Baden battalion at Head-quarters. The bridges were so blocked that the artillery could not return. Victor took up a position nearly perpendicular to the river, just south of Studianka, on some rising ground partially wooded. On the right, close to the river, there was a thick clump of wood. This was defended by the Badeners. Next on the left stood the Berg brigade when it arrived in line, then Gérard’s 3 Polish regiments, with Löw’s Saxon brigade beyond them. On the extreme left stood General Fournier with his two remaining cavalry regiments (Baden and Hesse). Victor had under his hand only 15 guns, and his entire strength was not more than 8000 infantry and 500 cavalry (according to his own account only 7400). The Berg brigade had moved forward to endeavour to rescue Partouneaux.