Military Career of Napoleon the Great / An Account of the Remarkable Campaigns of the "Man of Destiny"; Authentic Anecdotes of the Battlefield as Told by the Famous Marshals and Generals of the First Empire

by Montgomery B. Gibbs

Napoleon now recovered his health and activity, and the exertions he made at this time were never surpassed, even by himself. On the 3d of September he was in quest of Blucher who had now advanced near to the Elbe, but the Prussians retired and baffled him as before. Returning to Dresden he received the news of Dennewitz and immediately afterwards heard that Witgenstein had a second time descended towards Pirna. He flew thither on the instant, the Russian gave way, according to the plan of campaign, and Napoleon returned once more to Dresden. Again he was told that Blucher on the one side, and Witgenstein on the other, were availing themselves of his absence, and advancing. He once more returned to Pirna; a third time the Russian retired. Napoleon followed him as far as Peterswald and once more returned to his centre point.

Bernadotte and Blucher finally effected a junction to the west of the Elbe, despite the heroic exertions of Ney who, on witnessing the combination of these armies retreated to Leipsic. Napoleon now ordered Regnier and Bertrand to march suddenly from Dresden to Berlin in the hope of recalling Blucher, but without success. Meantime Schwartzenberg was found to be skirting round the hills to the westward, as if for the purpose of joining Blucher and Bernadotte, in the neighborhood of Leipsic.

It became manifest that Leipsic was now becoming the common centre towards which the forces of France and all her enemies were converging. Napoleon reached that venerable city on the 15th of October and almost immediately the heads of Schwartzenberg's columns began to appear towards the south. Napoleon, having made all his preparations, reconnoitred every outpost in person, and distributed eagles to some new regiments which had just joined him. The young soldiers, with a splendid ceremony, swore to die rather than witness the dishonor of France. Five hundred thousand men were now in presence of each other under the walls or in the environs of Leipsic and a grand battle had become inevitable.

At midnight three rockets, emitting a brilliant white light, sprang into the heavens to the south of the city. These marked the position on which Schwartzenberg—having with him the Emperor of Austria, as well as Alexander and Frederick William, had fixed his headquarters. They were answered by four rockets of a deep red color ascending from the northern horizon.

Napoleon now became convinced that he was to sustain, on the morrow, the assault of Blucher and Bernadotte as well as the grand army of the allies. Blucher was indeed ready to co-operate with Schwartzenberg, and though the Crown Prince had not yet reached his ground, the numerical strength of the enemy was very great. Napoleon had with him to defend the line of villages to the north and south of Leipsic, 134,000 infantry and 22,000 cavalry; while, even in the absence of Bernadotte, who might be hourly looked for, the allies mustered not less than 340,000 combatants, including 54,000 cavalry.

At daybreak on the 16th of October, the battle began on the southern side, the allies charging the French line there six times in succession, and were as often repelled. But it was not sufficient for the Emperor to resist with success and to hold his positions; he had, more than ever, need of a signal triumph, of a decisive victory; and when his enemies failed in their first attack, it was for him to attack them briskly in turn without giving them time to stay the disorder and discouragement of their columns, and to replace by fresh troops the fatigued and beaten soldiers; and this Napoleon did. He at once charged and with such effect, that Murat's cavalry were at one time in possession of a great gap between the two wings of the enemy. The Cossacks of the Russian Imperial Guard, however, encountered the French horse, and pushed them back again, preserving the army of the allies from a total defeat. The combat raged without intermission until nightfall, when both armies bivouacked exactly where the morning light had found them. "The allies were so numerous" said Napoleon at St. Helena, "that when their troops were fatigued they were regularly relieved as on dress parade!" With such a numerical superiority, they could scarcely be definitely beaten; therefore, notwithstanding the prodigies of valor performed by the French army, the victory remained almost undecided. In the centre and to the right the French had maintained their position but on the left treachery made them lose ground.

Marmont commanded on this side. Blucher attacked him with a vastly superior force in numbers and while nothing could be more obstinate than his defense, he lost many prisoners and guns, was driven from his original ground, and occupied when the day closed, a new position, much nearer the walls of the city.

Napoleon became convinced that he must at last retreat from Leipsic and he now made an effort to obtain peace. General Merfeld, the same Austrian officer who had come to his headquarters after the battle of Austerlitz, to pray for an armistice on the part of the Emperor Francis, had been made prisoner in the course of the day, and Napoleon resolved to employ him as his messenger. Merfeld informed him that the King of Bavaria had at length acceded to the alliance, thus adding greatly to his perplexities in finding a new enemy stationed on the line of his march to France.

The Emperor asked the Austrian to request for him the personal intervention of Francis. "I will renounce Poland and Illyria" said he, "Holland, the Hanse Towns, and Spain. I will consent to lose the sovereignty of the kingdom of Italy, provided that state remain as an independent one, and I will evacuate all Germany. Adieu! Count Merfeld. When on my part you name the word armistice to the two emperors, I doubt not the sound will awaken many recollections."