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Napoleonic wars of conquest. Military campaigns of Napoleon

It prompted anti-feudal, anti-absolutist, national liberation movements in European countries. A huge role in this belongs to the Napoleonic wars.
The French bourgeoisie, striving for a dominant position in the government of the country, was dissatisfied with the regime of the Directory and sought to establish a military dictatorship.
The young Corsican general Napoleon Bonaparte was the best fit for the role of military dictator. A talented and courageous military man from an impoverished noble family, he was an ardent supporter of the revolution, participated in the suppression of the counter-revolutionary actions of the royalists, and therefore the bourgeois leaders trusted him. Under the command of Napoleon, the French army in northern Italy defeated the Austrian invaders.
Having made a coup on November 9, 1799, the big bourgeoisie was supposed to have firm power, which it entrusted to the first consul, Napoleon Bonaparte. He begins to implement domestic and foreign policy with the help of authoritarian methods. Gradually, all the fullness of power is concentrated in his hands.
In 1804, Napoleon was proclaimed Emperor of France under the name. The dictatorship of imperial power strengthened the position of the bourgeoisie and opposed the return of the feudal system.
The foreign policy of Napoleon I is the world domination of France in the military-political and commercial-industrial field. The main rival and opponent of Napoleon was England, which did not want to disturb the balance of power in Europe, and it was necessary for it to preserve its colonial possessions. The task of England in the fight against Napoleon was to overthrow him and return the Bourbons.
The peace treaty concluded in Amiens in 1802 was a temporary respite and already in 1803 hostilities resumed. If in land battles the advantage was on the side of Napoleon, then the English fleet dominated the sea, which in 1805 dealt a crushing blow to the Franco-Spanish fleet at Cape Trafalgar.
In fact, the French fleet ceased to exist, after which France declared a continental blockade of England. This decision prompted the creation of an anti-French coalition, which included England, Russia, Austria and the Kingdom of Naples.
The first battle between France and the coalition troops took place at Austerlitz on November 20, 1805, called the Battle of the Three Emperors. Napoleon won, and the Holy Roman Empire ceased to exist, and France received Italy at its disposal.
In 1806, Napoleon invades Prussia, which contributed to the emergence of the fourth anti-French coalition from England, Russia, Prussia and Sweden. But Prussia is defeated at Jena and Auerstedt in 1806, and Napoleon occupies Berlin and occupies most of Prussia. On the occupied territory, he creates the Confederation of the Rhine from 16 German states under his auspices.
Russia continued to conduct military operations in East Prussia, which did not bring her success. On July 7, 1807, she was forced to sign the Peace of Tilsit, thereby recognizing all the conquests of France.
From the conquered Polish lands on the territory of Prussia, Napoleon creates the Duchy of Warsaw. At the end of 1807, Napoleon occupied Portugal and launched an invasion of Spain. The Spanish people opposed the French invaders. The residents of Zaragoza were especially distinguished, who withstood the blockade of Napoleon's fifty-thousandth army.
The Austrians tried to take revenge and in 1809 began hostilities, but in the battle of Wagram they were defeated and were forced to conclude a humiliating Schönbrun peace.
By 1810, Napoleon reaches the zenith of his dominance in Europe and begins to prepare for war with Russia, which remains the only power beyond his control.
In June 1812, he crosses the border of Russia, moves to Moscow and occupies it. But already in early October, he realizes that he lost the decisive battle, flees from Russia, leaving his army to the mercy of fate.
The European powers unite in the sixth coalition and inflict a crushing blow on the French near Leipzig. This battle, which threw Napoleon back into France, was called the Battle of the Nations.
Allied troops captured, and Napoleon I was exiled to about. Elbe. A peace treaty was signed on May 30, 1814, and France was deprived of all the occupied territories.
Napoleon managed to escape, raise an army and capture Paris. His revenge lasted 100 days and ended in full.

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Introduction
1. The beginning of conquests

1.1 Goals of conquest
1.2 Preparing for the trip
1.3 Hike to Malta
1.4 Hike to Cairo

2. Napoleon's campaign in Syria

2.1 Preparations for the invasion of Syria
2.2 Rebellion in Cairo
2.3 Invasion of Syria
2.4 Failed siege of Acre fortress
2.5 Return to Egypt

3. Unity against France
4. The eighteenth Brumaire 1799

4.1 Napoleon's plans
4.2 Resumption of Napoleon's dictatorship
4.3 Napoleon and Talleyrand
4.4 Coup d'état

Conclusion
Literature

Introduction

NAPOLEON I (Napoleon) (Napoleon Bonaparte) (1769-1821), French emperor in 1804-14 and in March - June 1815.

A native of Corsica. Began service in the army in 1785 with the rank of junior lieutenant of artillery; advanced during the French Revolution (reaching the rank of brigadier general) and under the Directory (army commander). In November 1799 he carried out a coup d'état (Brumaire 18), as a result of which he became the first consul, who in the course of time effectively concentrated all power in his hands; in 1804 he was proclaimed emperor. Established a dictatorial regime. He carried out a number of reforms (the adoption of the civil code, 1804, the foundation of the French bank, 1800, etc.). Thanks to victorious wars, he significantly expanded the territory of the empire, made most of the Western states dependent on France. and Center. Europe Henri Marie Bayle (Stendhal) Life of Napoleon, 2008, p. 225.

The defeat of Napoleon's troops in the war of 1812 against Russia marked the beginning of the collapse of the empire of Napoleon I. The entry of troops of the anti-French coalition into Paris in 1814 forced Napoleon I to abdicate. Was exiled to Fr. Elba Bogdanov L.P. “ On the Borodino field” Moscow, Military Publishing House, 1987, p. 64.

He occupied the French throne again in March 1815. After the defeat at Waterloo, he abdicated a second time (June 22, 1815). He spent the last years of his life on about. St. Helena a prisoner of the British.

He came from a poor Corsican noble family of Charles and Letitia Buonaparte (there were 5 sons and 3 daughters in the family).

He studied at the royal military school in Brienne and at the Paris military school (1779-85), from which he graduated with the rank of lieutenant.

Napoleon's publicistic works of the Revolution period ("Dialogue on Love", "Dialogue sur l "amour", 1791, "Supper at Beaucaire", "Le Souper de Beaucaire", 1793) indicate that he then shared Jacobin sentiments. artillery in the army besieging Toulon, occupied by the British, Bonaparte carried out a brilliant military operation. Toulon was taken, and he himself received the rank of brigadier general at the age of 24 (1793). was appointed commander of the Italian army.In the Italian campaign (1796-97), the military genius of Napoleon manifested itself in all its splendor.

The Austrian generals could not oppose anything to the lightning-fast maneuvers of the French army, impoverished, poorly equipped, but inspired by revolutionary ideas and led by Bonaparte. She won one victory after another: Montenotto, Lodi, Milan, Castiglione, Arcole, Rivoli.

The Italians enthusiastically welcomed the army, carrying the ideals of freedom, equality, freeing them from Austrian rule. Austria lost all its lands in Northern Italy, where the Cisalpine Republic, allied with France, was created. The name of Bonaparte thundered throughout Europe. After the first victories

Napoleon began to claim an independent role. The government of the Directory, not without pleasure, sent him on an Egyptian expedition (1798-1799). Its idea was connected with the desire of the French bourgeoisie to compete with the English, which was actively asserting its influence in Asia and North Africa. However, it was not possible to gain a foothold here: fighting the Turks, the French army did not find support from the local population.

1. The beginning of conquests

1.1 Goals of conquest

In the historical career of Napoleon, the Egyptian campaign - the second great war that he waged - plays a special role, and in the history of French colonial conquests this attempt also occupies a very exceptional place. Horace Vernet "History of Napoleon", p. 39.

The bourgeoisie of Marseilles and the whole south of France has for a long time carried on the most extensive and extremely beneficial relations for French trade and industry with the countries of the Levant, in other words, with the shores of the Balkan Peninsula, with Syria, with Egypt, with the islands of the eastern Mediterranean Sea, with the Archipelago. And it has also long been the constant desire of these sections of the French bourgeoisie to consolidate the political position of France in these profitable, but rather disorderly ruled places, where trade is constantly in need of protection and the prestige of a force that the merchant can, in case of need, call to his aid. By the end of the XVIII century. seductive descriptions of the natural wealth of Syria and Egypt, where it would be good to establish colonies and trading posts, multiplied. For a long time, French diplomacy had been keeping an eye on these Levantine countries, so weakly protected by Turkey, which were considered the possessions of the Sultan of Constantinople, the lands of the Ottoman Porte, as the Turkish government was then called. For a long time, too, the French ruling spheres looked to Egypt, washed by both the Mediterranean and the Red Seas, as a point from which to threaten commercial and political competitors in India and Indonesia. The famous philosopher Leibniz once submitted a report to Louis XIV in which he advised the French king to conquer Egypt in order to undermine the position of the Dutch in the entire East. Now, at the end of the 18th century, it was not the Dutch, but the English, who were the main enemy, and after all that has been said, it is clear that the leaders of French politics did not at all look at Bonaparte as crazy when he proposed to them an attack on Egypt, and were not at all surprised, when the cold, cautious, skeptical Foreign Minister Talleyrand became the most resolute support for this plan.

Having barely captured Venice, Bonaparte ordered one of his subordinate generals to capture the Ionian Islands and then already spoke of this capture as one of the details in the capture of Egypt. We also have irrefutable evidence showing that throughout his first Italian campaign he never ceased to return to Egypt in thought. Back in August 1797, he wrote from his camp in Paris: "The time is not far off when we will feel that in order to really defeat England, we need to take possession of Egypt." During the whole Italian war, in his free moments, as always, he read a lot and voraciously, and we know that he ordered and read Volnay's book on Egypt and several other works on the same topic. Having captured the Ionian Islands, he valued them so much that, as he wrote to the Directory, if you had to choose, it would be better to abandon the newly conquered Italy than the Ionian Islands. And at the same time, not yet concluding a final peace with the Austrians, he strongly advised to take possession of the island of Malta. He needed all these island bases in the Mediterranean to organize a future attack on Egypt.

Now, after Campo Formio, when Austria was - temporarily at least - finished and England remained the main enemy, Bonaparte directed all his efforts to persuade the Directory to give him a fleet and an army to conquer Egypt. He was always attracted by the East, and at this time of his life his imagination was more occupied with Alexander the Great than with Caesar or Charlemagne or any of the other historical heroes. A little later, already wandering through the Egyptian deserts, he half-jokingly, half-seriously expressed to his companions regret that he was born too late and could no longer, like Alexander the Great, who also conquered Egypt, proclaim himself immediately a god or a son of God. And quite seriously, he later said that Europe is small and that real great deeds can be done best of all in the East.

These inner inclinations of his corresponded as well as possible to what was required at that moment from the point of view of his further political career. In fact: from that very sleepless night in Italy, when he decided that it was not always for him to win only for the Directory, he had set a course for mastering the supreme power. "I no longer know how to obey," he openly declared at his headquarters, when he was negotiating peace with the Austrians, and directives that irritated him came from Paris. But it was still impossible to overthrow the Directory now, that is, in the winter from 1797 to 1798 or in the spring of 1798. The fruit was not yet ripe, and Napoleon at that time, if he had already lost the ability to obey, had not yet lost the ability to patiently wait for the moment. The Directory had not yet compromised itself enough, and he, Bonaparte, had not yet become the favorite and idol of the whole army, although he could already rely on the divisions he commanded in Italy. How better can you use the time that still needs to be waited out if you do not use it for a new conquest, for new brilliant deeds in the country of the pharaohs, the country of the pyramids, following in the footsteps of Alexander the Great, creating a threat to the Indian possessions of hated England?

The support of Talleyrand was extremely valuable to him in this matter. It is hardly possible to speak of Talleyrand's "beliefs" at all. But the opportunity to create a rich, prosperous, economically useful French colony in Egypt for Talleyrand was undeniable. He read a report on this at the Academy even before he learned about the plans of Bonaparte. An aristocrat who, for reasons of careerism, went to the service of the republic, Talleyrand in this case was the spokesman for the aspirations of a class that was especially interested in Levantine trade - the French merchant class. Now, on the part of Talleyrand, there was added the desire to win over Bonaparte, in which the cunning mind of this diplomat predicted the future ruler of France and the most faithful strangler of the Jacobins before anyone else.

1.2 Preparing for the hike

But Bonaparte and Talleyrand did not have to work very hard to convince the Directory to give money, soldiers and a fleet for this distant and dangerous enterprise. Firstly (and this is the most important), the Directory, for the already indicated general economic and especially military-political reasons, also saw the benefit and meaning in this conquest, and secondly (this was incomparably less significant), some of the directors (for example , Barras) could indeed see some benefit in the distant and dangerous expedition being planned, precisely because it is so distant and so dangerous ... The sudden colossal and noisy popularity of Bonaparte had long been alarming them; that he had “forgotten how to obey,” the Directory knew better than anyone else: after all, Bonaparte concluded the Peace of Campo-Formian in such a form as he wanted, and contrary to some direct desires of the Directory History of France, v.2. M., 1973, p. 334. At his celebration on December 10, 1797, he behaved not like a young warrior, with excitement of gratitude, accepting praise from the fatherland, but like an ancient Roman emperor, to whom the obsequious Senate arranges a triumph after a successful war: he was cold, almost gloomy, taciturn, accepted everything that happened as something normal and normal. In a word, all his tricks also prompted restless reflections. Let him go to Egypt: he will return - good, he will not return - well, Barras and his comrades were already prepared in advance to meekly endure this loss. The expedition was decided. General Bonaparte was appointed commander in chief. It happened on March 5, 1798.

The most vigorous activity of the Commander-in-Chief to prepare the expedition, to inspect ships, to select soldiers for the expeditionary corps, Carl von Clausewitz "1799", 2001, immediately began; Carl Von Clausewitz "1806", 2000; Carl von Clausewitz "1712", 1998. Here, even more than at the beginning of the Italian campaign, Napoleon's ability, undertaking the most grandiose and most difficult undertakings, was revealed to be vigilantly watching all the little things and at the same time not to get confused or lost in them at all - to simultaneously see both trees and forest, and almost every bough on every tree. Inspecting the shores and the fleet, forming his own expeditionary force, closely following all the fluctuations in world politics and all the rumors about the movement of Nelson's squadron, which could sink him during the move, but for the time being was cruising off the French coast - Bonaparte at the same time almost alone selected soldiers for Egypt, with whom he fought in Italy. He knew a huge number of soldiers individually; his exceptional memory has always and subsequently amazed those around him. He knew that this soldier was brave and steadfast, but a drunkard, but this one was very smart and quick-witted, but quickly tired, because he was sick with a hernia. Not only did he subsequently select marshals well, but he also selected corporals well and successfully selected ordinary soldiers where it was needed. And for the Egyptian campaign, for the war under the scorching sun, at 50 ° and more heat, for the passage through the red-hot immense sandy deserts without water and shade, it was precisely people who were selected in terms of endurance that were needed. On May 19, 1798, everything was ready: Bonaparte's fleet set sail from Toulon. About 350 large and small ships and barges, which housed an army of 30 thousand people with artillery, had to pass along almost the entire Mediterranean Sea and avoid meeting with Nelson's squadron, which would have shot and sunk them.

All of Europe knew that some kind of sea expedition was being prepared; England, moreover, knew perfectly well that vigorous work was going on in all the southern French ports, that troops were constantly arriving there, that General Bonaparte would be at the head of the expedition, and that this appointment already showed the importance of the matter. But where will the expedition go? Bonaparte very skillfully spread the word that he intended to pass through Gibraltar, round Spain, and then try to make a landing in Ireland. This rumor reached Nelson and deceived him: he guarded Napoleon at Gibraltar, when the French fleet left the harbor and went straight east, to Malta New history of European and American countries: the first period, ed. Yurovskoy E.E. and Krivoguz I.M., M., 2008 .

1.3 Hike to Malta

Malta has belonged since the 16th century. Order of the Knights of Malta. General Bonaparte approached the island, demanded and obtained its surrender, declared it the possession of the French Republic, and after several days of stopping, sailed further to Egypt. Malta was about halfway there; and he approached her on June 10, and on the 19th he was already on his way. Accompanied by a favorable wind, on June 30, Bonaparte and his army landed on the coast of Egypt near the city of Alexandria. He immediately began disembarking. The situation was dangerous: he learned in Alexandria immediately upon arrival that exactly 48 hours before his appearance, an English squadron approached Alexandria and asked about Bonaparte (who, of course, they had not the slightest idea about). It turned out that Nelson, having heard about the capture of Malta by the French and convinced that Bonaparte had deceived him, rushed at full sail to Egypt in order to prevent the landing and sink the French at sea. But it was his excessive haste and the great speed of the British fleet that damaged him; correctly realizing at first that Bonaparte had gone from Malta to Egypt, he was again confused when he was told in Alexandria that no Bonaparte had been heard of there, and then Nelson rushed to Constantinople, deciding that the French had nowhere else to sail, since they are not in Egypt.

This chain of Nelson's mistakes and accidents saved the French expedition. Nelson could return any minute, so the landing was made with great speed. At one in the morning on July 2, the troops were on land.

Finding himself in his element with loyal soldiers, Bonaparte was no longer afraid of anything. He immediately moved his army to Alexandria (he landed in the fishing village of Marabu, a few kilometers from the city).

Egypt was considered the possession of the Turkish Sultan, but in fact it was owned and dominated by the commanding elite of the well-armed feudal cavalry. The cavalry were called Mamelukes, and their chiefs, the owners of the best lands in Egypt, were called Mameluke beys. This military-feudal aristocracy paid a certain tribute to the Sultan of Constantinople, recognized his supremacy, but in fact Tarle E.V. depended very little on him. Napoleon, 1997, p. 82.

The main population - the Arabs - was engaged in some trade (and among them were wealthy and even wealthy merchants), some crafts, some caravan transport, some work on the ground. In the worst, most driven condition were the Copts, the remnants of the former, still pre-Arab, tribes that lived in the country. They bore the common name "fellahi" (peasants). But impoverished peasants of Arab origin were also called fellahs. They worked as laborers, were laborers, camel drivers, and some were petty itinerant traders.

Although the country was considered to belong to the sultan, Bonaparte, who arrived to seize it in his own hands, all the time tried to pretend that he was not at war with the Turkish sultan - on the contrary, he had deep peace and friendship with the sultan, and he came to free the Arabs ( he did not speak of the Copts) from the oppression of the Mameluke beys, who oppress the population with their extortions and cruelties. And when he moved towards Alexandria and, after several hours of skirmishing, took it and entered this vast and then quite rich city, then, repeating his fiction regarding liberation from the Mamelukes, he immediately began to establish French dominion for a long time. He assured the Arabs in every possible way of his respect for the Qur'an and the Mohammedan religion, but recommended complete obedience, threatening drastic measures otherwise.

After a few days in Alexandria, Bonaparte moved south, deepening into the desert. His troops suffered from a lack of water: the population of the villages in a panic left their homes and, running away, poisoned and polluted the wells. The Mamelukes slowly retreated, occasionally disturbing the French, and then Manfred A.Z. hid from the chase on their magnificent horses. "Napoleon Bonaparte" Moscow, publishing house "Thought", 1971, p. 71.

On July 20, 1798, in view of the pyramids, Bonaparte finally met with the main forces of the Mamelukes. "Soldiers! Forty centuries look at you today from the height of these pyramids!" - said Napoleon, referring to his army before the start of the battle.

It was between the village of Embabe and the pyramids. The Mameluks were completely defeated, they abandoned part of their artillery (40 guns) and fled south. Several thousand people remained on the battlefield.

1.4 Hike to Cairo

Immediately after this victory, Bonaparte went to the city of Cairo, the second of the two large cities of Egypt. The frightened population greeted the conqueror in silence; it not only had not heard anything about Bonaparte, but even now it still had no idea who he was, why he had come and with whom he was fighting.

In Cairo, which was richer than Alexandria, Bonaparte found a lot of food supplies. The army rested after heavy transitions. True, it was unpleasant that the inhabitants were already too frightened, and General Bonaparte even issued a special appeal, translated into the local dialect, calling for calm. But since at the same time he ordered, as a punitive measure, to plunder and burn the village of Alkam, not far from Cairo, suspecting its inhabitants of killing several soldiers, the intimidation of the Arabs increased even more Pimenova E.K. "Napoleon 1" (Historical and biographical essay), 2009, p. 243.

In such cases, Napoleon did not hesitate to give these orders in Italy, and in Egypt, and everywhere where he fought later, and this was also quite calculated with him: his army should have seen how terribly their leader punished everyone and everyone who dare to raise a hand against a French soldier.

After settling in Cairo, he set about organizing the administration. Without touching on details that would be out of place here, I will note only the most characteristic features: firstly, power was to be concentrated in every city, in every village in the hands of the French head of the garrison; secondly, this chief should have an advisory "sofa" of the most eminent and wealthy local citizens appointed by him; thirdly, the Mohammedan religion should enjoy the fullest respect, and mosques and the clergy should be inviolable; fourthly, in Cairo, under the commander-in-chief himself, there should also be a large deliberative body of representatives not only of the city of Cairo, but also of the provinces. The collection of tributes and taxes was to be streamlined, the delivery in kind should be so organized that the country would maintain the French army at its own expense. Local chiefs with their advisory bodies had to organize a good police order, protect trade and private property. All land taxes levied by the Mameluke beys are cancelled. The estates of the recalcitrant and continuing the war beys who fled to the south are taken to the French treasury.

Bonaparte here, as in Italy, sought to put an end to feudal relations, which was especially convenient, since it was the Mamluks who supported military resistance, and to rely on the Arab bourgeoisie and Arab landowners; exploited by the Arab bourgeoisie fellah he did not take under protection.

All this was to consolidate the foundations of an unconditional military dictatorship, centralized in his hands and ensuring this bourgeois order created by him. Finally, the religious tolerance and respect for the Koran he insistently proclaimed were, by the way, such an extraordinary innovation that the Russian "Holy" Synod, putting forward, as you know, in the spring of 1807 a bold thesis about the identity of Napoleon with the "forerunner" of the Antichrist, in the form of one of arguments hinted at the behavior of Bonaparte in Egypt: patronage of Mohammedanism, etc.

2. Napoleon's campaign in Syria

2.1 Preparations for the invasion of Syria

Having planted a new political regime in the conquered country, Bonaparte began to prepare for a further campaign - for an invasion from Egypt into Syria Fedorov K.G. "History of the state and the law of foreign countries", Len. 1977, p. 301. He decided not to take the scientists, whom he took with him from France, to Syria, but to leave them in Egypt. Bonaparte never showed a particularly deep respect for the brilliant research of his scientific contemporaries, but he was well aware of the great benefit that a scientist can bring if he is directed to the fulfillment of specific tasks put forward by military, political or economic circumstances. From this point of view, he treated his scientific companions, whom he took with him on this expedition, with great sympathy and attention. Even his famous team before the start of one battle with the Mamelukes: "Donkeys and scientists in the middle!" - meant precisely the desire to protect, first of all, along with the most precious pack animals in the campaign, also representatives of science; a somewhat unexpected juxtaposition of words resulted solely from the usual military laconicism and the necessary brevity of the command phrase. It must be said that Bonaparte's campaign played a colossal role in the history of Egyptology. Scientists came with him, who for the first time, one might say, discovered this ancient country of human civilization for science.

Even before the Syrian campaign, Bonaparte repeatedly had to make sure that the Arabs were far from all delighted with that "liberation from the tyranny of the Mamelukes", which the French conqueror constantly spoke about in his appeals. The French had enough food, having established a properly operating, but heavy for the population, requisition and taxation machine. But less specie was found. Other means served to obtain it.

2.2 Rebellion in Cairo

Left by Bonaparte as governor-general of Alexandria, General Kleber arrested the former sheikh of this city and the rich man Sidi Mohammed El Koraim on charges of treason, although he had no evidence of this. El Koraim was sent under escort to Cairo, where he was told that if he wanted to save his head, he must give 300 thousand francs in gold. El Koraim turned out to be a fatalist to his misfortune: "If I am destined to die now, then nothing will save me and I will give, therefore, my piastres uselessly; if I am not destined to die, then why should I give them away?" General Bonaparte ordered to cut off his head and carry it through all the streets of Cairo with the inscription: "This is how all traitors and perjurers will be punished." The money hidden by the executed sheikh was never found, despite all the searches. On the other hand, several rich Arabs gave everything that was demanded of them, and in the short time after the execution of El-Koraim, about 4 million francs were collected in this way, which went to the treasury of the French army. People were treated more simply and even more so without much ceremony.

At the end of October 1798, it came to an attempted uprising in Cairo itself. Several people from the occupying army were openly attacked and killed, and for three days the rebels defended themselves in several quarters. The restraint was merciless. In addition to the mass of killed Arabs and fellahs during the very suppression of the uprising, after the pacification, executions took place for several days in a row; executed from 12 to 30 people a day.

The Cairo uprising had an echo in neighboring villages. General Bonaparte, having learned about the first of these uprisings, ordered his adjutant Croisier to go there, surround the entire tribe, kill all the men without exception, and bring the women and children to Cairo, and burn the very houses where this tribe lived. It was done exactly. Many children and women who were driven on foot died on the way, and a few hours after this punitive expedition, donkeys loaded with sacks appeared in the main square of Cairo. The bags were opened, and the heads of the executed men of the offending tribe rolled across the square.

These brutal measures, judging by the testimony of eyewitnesses, terrorized the population terribly for a while.

Meanwhile, Bonaparte had to reckon with two extremely dangerous circumstances for him. Firstly, a long time ago (just a month after the landing of the army in Egypt), Admiral Nelson finally found the French squadron, which was still stationed in Aboukir, attacked it and completely destroyed it. The French admiral Briey died in the battle. Thus, the army that fought in Egypt was cut off from France for a long time. Secondly, the Turkish government decided in no way to support the fiction spread by Bonaparte that he was not at war with the Ottoman Porte at all, but only punished the Mamelukes for the insults committed against French merchants and for the oppression of the Arabs. The Turkish army was sent to Syria.

2.3 Invasion of Syria

Bonaparte moved from Egypt to Syria, towards the Turks. Cruelty in Egypt, he considered the best method to completely secure the rear during a new long campaign.

The campaign in Syria was terribly difficult, especially due to the lack of water. City after city, starting from El Arish, surrendered to Bonaparte. Having crossed the Isthmus of Suez, he moved to Jaffa and on March 4, 1799 laid siege to it. The city did not give up. Bonaparte ordered to announce to the population of Jaffa that if the city was taken by attack, then all the inhabitants would be exterminated, they would not be taken prisoner. Jaffa did not give up. On March 6, an assault followed, and, breaking into the city, the soldiers began to exterminate literally everyone who came to hand. Houses and shops were given over to be plundered. Some time later, when the beatings and robbery were already coming to an end, it was reported to General Bonaparte that about 4,000 Turkish soldiers still surviving, fully armed, mostly Arvanites and Albanians by origin, locked themselves in one vast place, blocked off from all over, and that when the French officers drove up and demanded surrender, these soldiers announced that they would surrender only if they were promised life, otherwise they would defend themselves to the last drop of blood. The French officers promised them captivity, and the Turks left their stronghold and surrendered their weapons. The French locked the prisoners in barns. General Bonaparte was very angry about all this. He believed that there was absolutely no need to promise life to the Turks. "What am I to do with them now?" he shouted. "Where do I have supplies to feed them?" There were no ships to send them by sea from Jaffa to Egypt, nor enough free troops to escort 4,000 selected, strong soldiers through all the Syrian and Egyptian deserts to Alexandria or Cairo. But Napoleon did not immediately stop at his terrible decision ... He hesitated and lost himself in thought for three days. However, on the fourth day after the surrender, he gave the order to shoot them all. 4,000 captives were taken to the seashore and here, every one was shot. “I don’t wish anyone to experience what we experienced, who saw this execution,” says one of the French officers.

2.4 Failed siege of Acre fortress

Immediately after that, Bonaparte moved on to the Acre fortress, or, as the French often call it, Saint-Jean d "Acre. The Turks called it Akka. There was no need to delay especially: the plague was chasing the French army on the heels, and stay in Jaffa, where and in the houses, and on the streets, and on the roofs, and in the cellars, and in the gardens, and in the vegetable gardens, the untidy corpses of the slaughtered population rotted, it was, from a hygienic point of view, extremely dangerous.

The siege of Acre lasted exactly two months and ended in failure. Bonaparte had no siege artillery; the defense was led by the Englishman Sydney Smith; from the sea, the British brought both supplies and weapons, the Turkish garrison was large. It was necessary, after several unsuccessful attacks, on May 20, 1799, to lift the siege, during which the French lost 3 thousand people. True, the besieged lost even more. After that, the French went back to Egypt.

It should be noted here that Napoleon always (until the end of his days) attached some special, fatal significance to this failure. The fortress of Acre was the last, easternmost point of the earth, to which he was destined to reach. He intended to stay in Egypt for a long time, ordered his engineers to examine the ancient traces of attempts to dig the Suez Canal and draw up a plan for future work on this part. We know that he wrote to the Sultan of Mysore (in southern India), who was fighting against the British just then, promising help. He had plans for relations and agreements with the Persian Shah. Resistance in Acre, restless rumors about uprisings of Syrian villages left in the rear, between El-Arish and Acre, and most importantly, the impossibility of stretching the communication line so terribly without new reinforcements - all this put an end to the dream of asserting his rule in Syria Babkin V. And The People's Militia in the Patriotic War of 1812, M., Sotsekgiz, 1962, p.

2.5 Return to Egypt

The return journey was even more difficult than the advance, because it was already the end of May and June was approaching, when the terrible heat in these places increased to an unbearable degree. Bonaparte did not stop long, in order to punish, as cruelly as he always did, the Syrian villages that he found it necessary to punish.

It is curious to note that during this difficult return journey from Syria to Egypt, the commander-in-chief shared with the army all the difficulties of this campaign, without giving himself and his higher commanders any indulgence. Plague pressed more and more Beskrovny L. G. Partisans in the Patriotic War of 1812 - Questions of History, 1972, No. 1,2. . The plague-stricken were left behind, but the wounded and those who were not plague-stricken were taken further with them. Bonaparte ordered everyone to dismount, and to provide horses, all wagons and carriages for the sick and wounded. When, after this order, his chief manager of the stable, convinced that an exception should be made for the commander-in-chief, asked which horse to leave him, Bonaparte became furious, hit the questioner in the face with a whip and shouted: "Everyone go on foot! I'll go first! What, you don't know the order? Out!"

For this and similar deeds, the soldiers loved Napoleon more and in their old age more often remembered Napoleon than for all his victories and conquests. He knew this very well and never hesitated in such cases; and none of those who watched him could subsequently decide what and when there was direct movement, and what was simulated and thought out. It could be both at the same time, as happens with great actors. And Napoleon was really great in acting, although at the dawn of his activity, in Toulon, in Italy, in Egypt, this property of his began to be revealed so far only to a very few, only to the most insightful of those closest to him. And among his relatives there were few insightful then.

On June 14, 1799, Bonaparte's army returned to Cairo. But for a short time, if not the entire army, then its commander-in-chief, was destined to remain in the country he had conquered and submitted, Vereshchagin V.V. "1812", 2008, p. 94.

Before Bonaparte had time to rest in Cairo, the news came that near Abukir, where Nelson had destroyed the French transports the year before, a Turkish army had landed, sent to liberate Egypt from the French invasion. Now he set out with troops from Cairo and headed north to the Nile Delta. On July 25, he attacked the Turkish army and defeated it. Almost all 15 thousand Turks were killed on the spot. Napoleon ordered not to take prisoners, but to exterminate everyone. “This battle is one of the most beautiful that I have ever seen: not a single person escaped from the entire landed enemy army,” Napoleon solemnly wrote. The French conquest by this seemed to be fully consolidated for the coming years. An insignificant part of the Turks escaped to the English ships. The sea was still in the hands of the British, but Egypt was stronger than ever in the hands of Bonaparte Davydov Denis Vasilievich "Diary of partisan actions" "Did the frost destroy the French army in 1812?", 2008 .

3. Unity against France

And then there was a sudden, unforeseen event. Cut off from all communication with Europe for many months, Bonaparte learned amazing news from a newspaper that accidentally fell into his hands: he learned that while he was conquering Egypt, Austria, England, Russia and the Kingdom of Naples resumed the war against France, that Suvorov appeared in Italy, defeated the French, destroyed the Cisalpine Republic, moves to the Alps, threatens to invade France; in France itself - robbery, unrest, complete disorder; The Directory is hated by the majority, weak and confused. "Scoundrels! Italy is lost! All the fruits of my victories are lost! I must go!" - he said, as soon as he read the newspaper Zhilin P.A. "Death of the Napoleonic army". Moscow, Nauka publishing house, 1974, p. 81.

The decision was taken immediately. He handed over the supreme command of the army to General Kleber, ordered four ships to be equipped in a hurry and in the strictest secrecy, put on them about 500 people selected by him and on August 23, 1799 left for France, leaving Kleber a large, well-equipped army, regularly operating (by himself created) the administrative and tax apparatus and the silent, submissive, intimidated population of the vast conquered country of Tarle E.V. “ 1812”Moscow, publishing house ”Press”, 2004., p. 129.

4. The eighteenth Brumaire 1799

4.1 Napoleon's plans

Napoleon sailed from Egypt with a firm and unshakable intention to overthrow the Directory and seize the supreme power in the state. The enterprise was desperate. To attack the republic, to “put an end to the revolution” that began with the taking of the Bastille more than ten years ago, to do all this, even having Toulon, Vandemiere, Italy and Egypt in its past, presented a number of terrible dangers. And these dangers began as soon as Napoleon left the coast of Egypt he had conquered. During the 47 days of the journey to France, meetings with the British were close and, it seemed, inevitable, and in these terrible moments, according to the observers, only Bonaparte remained calm and gave all the necessary orders with usual energy. On the morning of October 8, 1799, Napoleon's ships landed in a bay near Cape Frejus, on the southern coast of France. In order to understand what happened in 30 days, between October 8, 1799, when Bonaparte set foot on French soil, and November 9, when he became ruler of France, it is necessary to recall in a few words the situation in which the country was at that moment when she learned that the conqueror of Egypt had returned.

After the coup of 18 fructidor V (1797) and the arrest of Pichegru, the director of the republic, Barras, and his comrades seemed to be able to count on the forces that supported them that day:

1) to the new proprietary strata of the city and countryside, who grew rich in the process of selling off national property, church and emigrant lands, overwhelmingly fearing the return of the Bourbons, but dreaming of establishing a strong police order and a strong central government,

2) to the army, to the mass of soldiers, closely connected with the working peasantry, who hated the very idea of the return of the old dynasty and the feudal monarchy.

But in the two years that elapsed between the 18th fructidor of the fifth year (1797) and the autumn of 1799, it was found that the Directory had lost all class support. The big bourgeoisie dreamed of a dictator, of a restorer of trade, of a man who would ensure the development of industry, bring victorious peace and a strong internal "order" to France; the petty and middle bourgeoisie - and above all the peasantry that had bought the land and became rich - wanted the same thing; Anyone could be a dictator, but not Bourbon Orlik O. V. “Thunderstorm of the twelfth year ...”. M., 1987. .

Parisian workers after their mass disarmament and the ferocious terror directed at them in the prairial of 1795, after the arrest in 1796 and the execution of Babeuf and the exile of the Babouvists in 1797, after the entire policy of the Directory, aimed entirely at protecting the interests of the big bourgeoisie, especially speculators and embezzlers of public funds - these workers, continuing to starve, suffer from unemployment and high prices, cursing the buyers and speculators, of course, were not in the least inclined to defend the Directory from anyone. As for the newcomers, day laborers from the villages, there really was only one slogan for them: "We want a regime in which they eat" (un regime ou l "on mange") This phrase was often overheard by police agents of the Directory on the outskirts of Paris and reported to his worried superiors.

Over the years of its rule, the Directory has irrefutably proved that it is not in a position to create that stable bourgeois system, which would be finally codified and put into full operation. The Directory has recently shown its weakness in another way. The enthusiasm of the Lyon industrialists, silk manufacturers about the conquest of Italy by Bonaparte, with its huge production of raw silk, gave way to disappointment and despondency when, in the absence of Bonaparte, Suvorov appeared and in 1799 took Italy from the French. The same disappointment seized other categories of the French bourgeoisie when they saw in 1799 that it was becoming increasingly difficult for France to fight against the powerful European coalition, that the millions of gold that Bonaparte sent to Paris from Italy in 1796-1797 were mostly plundered. officials and speculators robbing the treasury with the connivance of the same Directory Garin F.A. "The Expulsion of Napoleon" Moscow Worker 1948, p. 96. The terrible defeat inflicted on Suvorov's French in Italy at Novi, the death of the French commander-in-chief Joubert in this battle, the retreat of all the Italian "allies" of France, the threat to French borders - all this finally turned the bourgeois masses of town and country from the Directory.

There is nothing to say about the army. Bonaparte, who had gone to Egypt, was long remembered there, the soldiers openly complained that they were starving because of the general theft, and repeated that they were being driven to slaughter in vain. Suddenly, the royalist movement in the Vendée, always smoldering like coal under the ashes, revived. The leaders of the Chouans, Georges Cadoudal, Frotte, Laroche-Jacquelin, raised again both Brittany and Normandy. In some places, the royalists reached such audacity that they sometimes shouted in the street: "Long live Suvorov! Down with the republic!" Thousands wandered around the country, evading military service and therefore forced to leave their homes, young people. The dearness grew every day as a result of the general disorder of finance, trade and industry, as a result of disorderly and continuous requisitions, on which big speculators and buyers profited widely. Even when in the autumn of 1799 Massena defeated the Russian army of Korsakov in Switzerland near Zurich, and the other Russian army (Suvorov) was recalled by Paul, these successes did little to help the Directory and did not restore its prestige.

If anyone wished to express in the briefest words the state of affairs in France in the middle of 1799, he could stop at the following formula: in the propertied classes, the overwhelming majority considered the Directory useless and incapacitated from their point of view, and many - definitely harmful; for the poor masses, both in the city and in the countryside, the Directory was the representative of the regime of rich thieves and speculators, the regime of luxury and contentment for embezzlers of public funds, and the regime of hopeless hunger and oppression for workers, farm laborers, for the poor consumer; finally, from the point of view of the soldiers of the army, the Directory was a bunch of suspicious people who leave the army without boots and without bread and who in a few months gave the enemy what Bonaparte had won in a dozen victorious battles in his time. The ground for dictatorship was ready.

4.2 Resumption of Napoleon's dictatorship

On October 13 (21 Vendemière), 1799, the Directory notified the Council of Five Hundred - "with pleasure", it was said in this paper - that General Bonaparte had returned to France and landed at Fréjus. Amid a furious storm of applause, shouts of joy, inarticulate cries of delight, the entire assembly of people's representatives stood up, and while standing, the deputies shouted out greetings for a long time. The meeting was adjourned. As soon as the deputies took to the streets and spread the news, the capital, according to witnesses, suddenly went crazy with joy: in theaters, in salons, on the main streets, the name of Bonaparte was tirelessly repeated. One after another, news arrived in Paris of the unheard-of meeting that the general was receiving from the population of the south and the center in all the cities through which he passed on his way to Paris. Peasants left the villages, city deputations one after another presented themselves to Bonaparte, welcoming him as the best general of the republic. Not only he himself, but no one at all could even imagine such a sudden, grandiose, significant manifestation before that. One feature was striking: in Paris, the troops of the garrison of the capital took to the streets as soon as the news of the landing of Bonaparte was received, and marched through the city with music. And it was impossible to understand exactly who exactly gave the order to do so. And was such an order given at all, or was it done without an order?

On October 16 (24 Vendemière), General Bonaparte arrived in Paris. The Directory had still three weeks left to exist after this arrival, but neither Barras, who was waiting for political death, nor those directors who helped Bonaparte to bury the directorial regime, did not even suspect at that moment that the denouement was so close and that before the establishment of a military dictatorship, the time needed to be calculated no longer weeks, but days, and soon not days, but hours.

Bonaparte's journey through France from Frejus to Paris has already clearly shown that they see him as a "savior". There were solemn meetings, enthusiastic speeches, illuminations, demonstrations, delegations. Peasants, townspeople of the provinces came out to meet him. Officers and soldiers enthusiastically greeted their commander. All these phenomena and all these people who, like in a kaleidoscope, alternated before Bonaparte while he was traveling to Paris, did not yet give him full confidence in immediate success. It was important what the capital would say. The garrison of Paris enthusiastically welcomed the commander, who returned with fresh laurels as the conqueror of Egypt, the conqueror of the Mamluks, the conqueror of the Turkish army, who had finished with the Turks just before leaving Egypt. In the highest circles, Bonaparte immediately felt strong support. In the early days, it also became clear that the overwhelming mass of the bourgeoisie, especially among the new owners, was clearly hostile to the Directory, did not trust its viability either in domestic or foreign policy, was frankly afraid of the activity of the royalists, but trembled even more at the ferment in the suburbs, where the working masses had just been dealt a new blow by the Directory: on August 13, at the request of the bankers, Sieyès liquidated the last stronghold of the Jacobins - the Union of Friends of Freedom and Equality, which had up to 5,000 members and had 250 mandates in both councils. That the danger both from the right and from the left, and most importantly from the left, can best be prevented by Bonaparte - this was immediately and firmly believed by the bourgeoisie and its leaders. In addition, quite unexpectedly, it turned out that in the five-member Directory itself there was no one who would be able and able to offer serious resistance, even if Bonaparte decided on an immediate coup. Insignificant Goya, Moulin, Roger-Ducos did not count at all. They were also promoted to director precisely because no one ever suspected that they were capable of producing any kind of independent thought and of the determination to open their mouths in those cases when it seemed superfluous to Sieyes or Barras.

There were only two directors to reckon with: Sieyes and Barras. Sieyès, who thundered at the beginning of the revolution with his famous pamphlet on what the third estate should be, was and remained the representative and ideologist of the French big bourgeoisie; together with her, he reluctantly endured the revolutionary Jacobin dictatorship "with her warmly approved of the overthrow of the Jacobin dictatorship on 9 Thermidor and the Prairial terror of 1795 against the insurgent plebeian masses and, together with the same class, sought to consolidate the bourgeois order, considering the directorial regime absolutely unsuitable for this ", although he himself was one of the five directors. He looked at the return of Bonaparte with hope, but to the point of curiosity he was deeply mistaken in the personality of the general. "We need a sword," he said, naively imagining that Bonaparte would only be a sword, and the builder of a new regime he will, Sieyes We shall now see what came out of this deplorable (for Sieyes) assumption.

As for Barras, he was a man of a completely different background, a different biography, a different mindset than Sieyes. He was, of course, smarter than Sieyes, if only because he was not such a puffed up and self-confident political reasoner as Sieyes was, who was not just an egoist, but was, so to speak, respectfully in love with himself. Bold, depraved, skeptical, wide in revelry, vices, crimes, count and officer before the revolution, montagnard during the revolution, one of the leaders of parliamentary intrigue, who created the external frame of the events of 9 Thermidor, the central figure in the Thermidorian reaction, the responsible author of the events of 18 Fructidor, 1797. - Barras always went where there was power, where it was possible to share power and take advantage of the material benefits that it gives. But unlike, for example, Talleyrand, he knew how to put life at stake, as he put it before 9 Thermidor, organizing an attack on Robespierre; he knew how to go directly to the enemy, as he went against the royalists on 13 Vendemière 1795 or 18 Fructidore 1797. He did not sit like a lurking mouse in the underground under Robespierre, like Sieyes, who answered the question of what he did during the years of terror: "I stayed alive." Barras burned his ships long ago. He knew how much he was hated by both the royalists and the Jacobins, and did not give mercy to either one or the other, realizing that he would not receive mercy from either one or the other if they won. He was not averse to helping Bonaparte, if he had already returned from Egypt, unfortunately healthy and unharmed. He himself visited Bonaparte in those hot days before Brumaire, sent him to him for negotiations, and kept trying to secure a higher and warmer place for himself in the future system.

But very soon Napoleon decided that Barras was impossible. Not only is it not needed: there were not so many smart, courageous, subtle, crafty politicians, and even in such a high position, and it would be a pity to neglect them, but Barras just made himself impossible. He was not only hated, but despised. Shameless theft, undisguised bribery, dark scams with suppliers and speculators, frantic and continuous revelry in front of the fiercely starving plebeian masses - all this made the name Barras as if a symbol of rottenness, depravity, and decay of the Directory regime. Sieyès, on the other hand, was favored by Bonaparte from the very beginning. Sieyes had a better reputation, and he himself, being a director, could, when he went over to the side of Bonaparte, give the whole case some kind of supposedly “legal look”. His Napoleon, like Barras, for the time being did not disappoint, but saved, especially since Sieyes was supposed to be needed for some time even after the coup.

4.3 Napoleon and Talleyrand

On the same days, two people appeared to the general who were destined to associate their names with his career: Talleyrand and Fouche. Bonaparte knew Talleyrand for a long time, and he knew him as a thief, a bribe taker, an unscrupulous, but also the smartest careerist. That Talleyrand sells on occasion everyone whom he can sell and for whom there are buyers, Bonaparte did not doubt this, but he clearly saw that Talleyrand would not sell him to the directors now, but, on the contrary, he would sell him the Directory, which he almost until very recently served as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Talleyrand gave him many valuable instructions and greatly hurried the matter. The general fully believed in the mind and insight of this politician, and already the decisiveness with which Talleyrand offered him his services was a good omen for Bonaparte. This time Talleyrand directly and openly went to the service of Bonaparte. Fouche did the same. He was Minister of Police under the Directory, and he was going to remain Minister of Police under Bonaparte. He had - Napoleon knew - one valuable feature: very afraid for himself in the event of a restoration of the Bourbons, the former Jacobin and terrorist who voted the death sentence of Louis XVI, Fouche, seemed to give sufficient guarantees that he would not sell the new ruler in the name of the Bourbons. Fouche's services were accepted. Big financiers and suppliers frankly offered him money. The banker Collot immediately brought him 500,000 francs, and the future ruler had nothing resolutely against it yet, but he took the money especially willingly - it would come in handy in such a difficult undertaking.

The beginning of the war

Causes of the War of 1812

The causes of the Patriotic War of 1812, like all other wars in the history of mankind, must be considered in two aspects - the reasons from France and the reasons from Russia.

Reasons from France

In just a few years, Napoleon radically changed his own view of Russia. If, having come to power, he wrote that Russia was his only ally, then by 1812 Russia had become a threat to France (consider the emperor). In many ways, this was provoked by Alexander 1 himself. So, this is why France attacked Russia in June 1812:

Breaking the Tilsit Accords: Relaxing the Continental Blockade. As you know, the main enemy of France at that time was England, against which the blockade was organized. Russia also participated in this, but in 1810 the government passed a law allowing trade with England through intermediaries. In fact, this made the entire blockade ineffective, which completely undermined the plans of France.
Refusals in dynastic marriage. Napoleon sought to marry the imperial court of Russia in order to become "God's anointed". However, in 1808 he was denied marriage to Princess Catherine. In 1810 he was denied marriage to Princess Anna. As a result, in 1811 the French emperor married an Austrian princess.
The transfer of Russian troops to the border with Poland in 1811. In the first half of 1811, Alexander 1 ordered the transfer of 3 divisions to the Polish borders, fearing an uprising in Poland, which could be transferred to Russian lands. This step was regarded by Napoleon as aggression and preparation for a war for Polish territories, which by that time were already subordinate to France.

Soldiers! A new, second in a row, Polish war begins! The first ended in Tilsit. There Russia promised to be an eternal ally for France in the war with England, but she broke her promise. The Russian emperor does not want to give explanations for his actions until the French eagles cross the Rhine. Do they think that we have become different? Are we not the winners of Austerlitz? Russia put France before a choice - shame or war. The choice is obvious! Let's go ahead, cross the Neman! The second Polish howl will be glorious for French weapons. It will bring a messenger to the destructive influence of Russia on the affairs of Europe.

Thus began a war of conquest for France.

Reasons from Russia

On the part of Russia, there were also weighty reasons for participating in the war, which turned out to be a liberation state. Among the main reasons are the following:

Great losses of all segments of the population from the break in trade with England. The opinions of historians on this point differ, since it is believed that the blockade did not affect the state as a whole, but only its elite, which, as a result of the lack of the possibility of trade with England, was losing money.
The intention of France to recreate the Commonwealth. In 1807, Napoleon created the Duchy of Warsaw and sought to recreate the ancient state in its true size. Perhaps this was only in the case of the seizure of Russia's western lands.
Violation of the Treaty of Tilsit by Napoleon. One of the main criteria for signing this agreement was that Prussia should be cleared of French troops, but this was not done, although Alexander 1 constantly reminded of this.

For a long time, France has been trying to encroach on the independence of Russia. Always we tried to be meek, thinking so to deflect her attempts at capture. With all our desire to keep the peace, we are forced to gather troops to defend the Motherland. There are no possibilities for a peaceful solution to the conflict with France, which means that only one thing remains - to defend the truth, to defend Russia from the invaders. I do not need to remind commanders and soldiers of courage, it is in our hearts. In our veins flows the blood of the victors, the blood of the Slavs. Soldiers! You are defending the country, defending the religion, defending the fatherland. I'm with you. God is with us.

The balance of forces and means at the beginning of the war

Napoleon's crossing of the Neman took place on June 12, with 450 thousand people at his disposal. Around the end of the month, another 200,000 people joined him. If we take into account that by that time there were no large losses on the part of both sides, then the total number of the French army at the time of the outbreak of hostilities in 1812 was 650 thousand soldiers. It is impossible to say that the French made up 100% of the army, since the combined army of almost all European countries (France, Austria, Poland, Switzerland, Italy, Prussia, Spain, Holland) fought on the side of France. However, it was the French who formed the basis of the army. These were proven soldiers who won many victories with their emperor.

Russia after mobilization had 590 thousand soldiers. Initially, the size of the army was 227 thousand people, and they were divided along three fronts:

Northern - First Army. Commander - Mikhail Bogdanovich Barclay de Toli. The population is 120 thousand people. They were located in the north of Lithuania and covered St. Petersburg.
Central - Second Army. Commander - Pyotr Ivanovich Bagration. Number - 49 thousand people. They were located in the south of Lithuania, covering Moscow.
Southern - Third Army. Commander - Alexander Petrovich Tormasov. Number - 58 thousand people. They were located in Volhynia, covering the attack on Kyiv.

Also in Russia, partisan detachments were actively operating, the number of which reached 400 thousand people.

The first stage of the war - the offensive of Napoleon's troops (June-September)

At 6 am on June 12, 1812, the Patriotic War with Napoleonic France began for Russia. Napoleon's troops crossed the Neman and headed inland. The main direction of the strike was supposed to be in Moscow. The commander himself said that “if I capture Kyiv, I will lift the Russians by the legs, I will capture St. Petersburg, I will take it by the throat, if I take Moscow, I will strike the heart of Russia.”

The French army, commanded by brilliant commanders, was looking for a general battle, and the fact that Alexander 1 divided the army into 3 fronts was very helpful to the aggressors. However, at the initial stage, Barclay de Toli played a decisive role, who gave the order not to engage in battle with the enemy and retreat inland. This was necessary in order to combine forces, as well as to pull up reserves. Retreating, the Russians destroyed everything - they killed cattle, poisoned water, burned fields. In the literal sense of the word, the French moved forward through the ashes. Later, Napoleon complained that the Russian people were carrying out a vile war and were not behaving according to the rules.

North direction

32 thousand people, led by General MacDonald, Napoleon sent to St. Petersburg. The first city on this path was Riga. According to the French plan, MacDonald was to capture the city. Connect with General Oudinot (he had 28 thousand people at his disposal) and go further.

The defense of Riga was commanded by General Essen with 18,000 soldiers. He burned everything around the city, and the city itself was very well fortified. MacDonald by this time captured Dinaburg (the Russians left the city with the outbreak of war) and did not conduct further active operations. He understood the absurdity of the assault on Riga and was waiting for the arrival of artillery.

General Oudinot occupied Polotsk and from there tried to separate Wittenstein's corps from the army of Barclay de Toli. However, on July 18, Wittenstein delivered an unexpected blow to Oudinot, who was saved from defeat only by the corps of Saint-Cyr who came to the rescue. As a result, a balance came and no more active offensive operations were carried out in the northern direction.

South direction

General Ranier with an army of 22 thousand people was supposed to act in the young direction, blocking the army of General Tormasov, preventing it from connecting with the rest of the Russian army.

On July 27, Tormasov surrounded the city of Kobrin, where the main forces of Ranier gathered. The French suffered a terrible defeat - 5 thousand people were killed in the battle in 1 day, which forced the French to retreat. Napoleon realized that the southern direction in the Patriotic War of 1812 was in danger of failure. Therefore, he transferred the troops of General Schwarzenberg there, numbering 30 thousand people. As a result, on August 12, Tormasov was forced to retreat to Lutsk and take up defense there. In the future, the French did not undertake active offensive operations in the southern direction. The main events took place in the Moscow direction.

The course of events of the offensive company

On June 26, the army of General Bagration advanced from Vitebsk, tasked by Alexander 1 to engage in battle with the main enemy forces in order to wear them out. Everyone was aware of the absurdity of this idea, but only by July 17 the emperor was finally dissuaded from this undertaking. The troops began to retreat to Smolensk.

On July 6, the large number of Napoleon's troops became clear. To prevent the Patriotic War from dragging on for a long time, Alexander 1 signs a decree on the creation of a militia. Literally all the inhabitants of the country are recorded in it - in total, there were about 400 thousand volunteers.

On July 22, the armies of Bagration and Barclay de Tolly united near Smolensk. The command of the united army was taken over by Barclay de Tolly, who had 130 thousand soldiers at his disposal, while the front line of the French army consisted of 150 thousand soldiers.

On July 25, a military council was held in Smolensk, at which the issue of accepting the battle was discussed in order to go on the counteroffensive and defeat Napoleon with one blow. But Barclay spoke out against this idea, realizing that an open battle with the enemy, a brilliant strategist and tactician, could lead to a grand failure. As a result, the offensive idea was not implemented. It was decided to retreat further - to Moscow.

On July 26, the retreat of the troops began, which General Neverovsky was supposed to cover, occupying the village of Krasnoe, thereby closing the bypass of Smolensk for Napoleon.

On August 2, Murat with a cavalry corps tried to break through the defenses of Neverovsky, but to no avail. In total, more than 40 attacks were made with the help of cavalry, but it was not possible to achieve the desired.

August 5 is one of the important dates in the Patriotic War of 1812. Napoleon began the assault on Smolensk, capturing the suburbs by evening. However, at night he was driven out of the city, and the Russian army continued its massive retreat from the city. This caused a storm of discontent among the soldiers. They believed that if they managed to drive the French out of Smolensk, then it was necessary to destroy it there. They accused Barclay of cowardice, but the general implemented only 1 plan - to wear down the enemy and take the decisive battle when the balance of power was on the side of Russia. By this time, the French had the advantage.

On August 17, Mikhail Illarionovich Kutuzov arrived in the army, who took command. This candidacy did not raise any questions, since Kutuzov (Suvorov's student) enjoyed great respect and was considered the best Russian commander after Suvorov's death. Arriving in the army, the new commander-in-chief wrote that he had not yet decided what to do next: "The question has not yet been resolved - either lose the army or give up Moscow."

On August 26, the Battle of Borodino took place. Its outcome still raises many questions and disputes, but there were no losers then. Each commander solved his own problems: Napoleon opened his way to Moscow (the heart of Russia, as the emperor of France himself wrote), and Kutuzov was able to inflict heavy damage on the enemy, thereby introducing an initial turning point in the battle of 1812.

September 1 is a significant day, which is described in all history books. A military council was held in Fili, near Moscow. Kutuzov gathered his generals to decide what to do next. There were only two options: retreat and surrender Moscow, or organize a second general battle after Borodino. Most of the generals, on the wave of success, demanded a battle in order to defeat Napoleon as soon as possible. Opponents of such a development of events were Kutuzov himself and Barclay de Tolly. The military council in Fili ended with the phrase Kutuzov “As long as there is an army, there is hope. If we lose the army near Moscow, we will lose not only the ancient capital, but the whole of Russia.”

September 2 - following the results of the military council of the generals, which took place in Fili, it was decided that it was necessary to leave the ancient capital. The Russian army retreated, and Moscow itself, before the arrival of Napoleon, according to many sources, was subjected to terrible looting. However, even this is not the main thing. Retreating, the Russian army set fire to the city. Wooden Moscow burned down almost three-quarters. Most importantly, literally all food depots were destroyed. The reasons for the Moscow fire lie in the fact that the French did not get anything from what the enemies could use for food, movement, or in other aspects. As a result, the aggressor troops found themselves in a very precarious position.

The second stage of the war - the retreat of Napoleon (October - December)

Having occupied Moscow, Napoleon considered the mission accomplished. The commander's bibliographers later wrote that he was faithful - the loss of the historical center of Russia would break the victorious spirit, and the leaders of the country had to come to him with a request for peace. But this did not happen. Kutuzov stationed himself with an army 80 kilometers from Moscow near Tarutin and waited until the enemy army, deprived of normal supplies, weakened and itself introduced a radical change in the Patriotic War. Without waiting for an offer of peace from Russia, the French emperor himself took the initiative.

Napoleon's Desire for Peace

According to Napoleon's original plan, the capture of Moscow was to play a decisive role. Here it was possible to deploy a convenient bridgehead, including for a trip to St. Petersburg, the capital of Russia. However, the delay in moving around Russia and the heroism of the people, who literally fought for every piece of land, practically thwarted this plan. After all, a trip to the north of Russia in winter for the French army with irregular food supplies was actually equal to death. This became clear by the end of September, when it started to get colder. Subsequently, Napoleon wrote in his autobiography that his biggest mistake was a trip to Moscow and a month spent there.

Understanding the severity of his position, the French emperor and commander decided to end the Patriotic War of Russia by signing a peace treaty with her. Three such attempts have been made:

September 18th. Through General Tutolmin, a message was sent to Alexander 1, which said that Napoleon honored the Russian emperor and offered him peace. Russia is only required to give up the territory of Lithuania and return to the continental blockade again.
September 20th. Alexander 1 was delivered a second letter from Napoleon with an offer of peace. The conditions were the same as before. The Russian emperor did not answer these messages.
The 4th of October. The hopelessness of the situation led to the fact that Napoleon literally begged for peace. Here is what he writes to Alexander 1 (according to the prominent French historian F. Segur): “I need peace, I need it, no matter what, just save the honor.” This proposal was delivered to Kutuzov, but the emperor of France did not wait for an answer.

The retreat of the French army in autumn-winter 1812

For Napoleon, it became obvious that he would not be able to sign a peace treaty with Russia, and to stay for the winter in Moscow, which the Russians, retreating, burned down, was recklessness. Moreover, it was impossible to stay here, since the constant raids of the militias caused great damage to the army. So, for a month, while the French army was in Moscow, its number was reduced by 30 thousand people. As a result, the decision was made to retreat.

On October 7, preparations began for the retreat of the French army. One of the orders on this occasion was to blow up the Kremlin. Luckily, he didn't succeed. Russian historians attribute this to the fact that due to the high humidity, the wicks got wet and failed.

On October 19, the retreat of Napoleon's army from Moscow began. The purpose of this retreat was to get to Smolensk, since it was the only major nearby city that had significant food supplies. The road went through Kaluga, but this direction was blocked by Kutuzov. Now the advantage was on the side of the Russian army, so Napoleon decided to get around. However, Kutuzov foresaw this maneuver and met the enemy army at Maloyaroslavets.

On October 24, a battle took place near Maloyaroslavets. During the day, this small town passed 8 times from one side to the other. In the final stage of the battle, Kutuzov managed to take up fortified positions, and Napoleon did not dare to storm them, since the numerical superiority was already on the side of the Russian army. As a result, the plans of the French were frustrated, and they had to retreat to Smolensk along the same road along which they went to Moscow. It was already scorched earth - without food and without water.

Napoleon's retreat was accompanied by heavy losses. Indeed, in addition to clashes with the army of Kutuzov, one also had to deal with partisan detachments that daily attacked the enemy, especially his trailing units. Napoleon's losses were terrible. On November 9, he managed to capture Smolensk, but this did not make a radical change in the course of the war. There was practically no food in the city, and it was not possible to organize a reliable defense. As a result, the army was subjected to almost continuous attacks by militias and local patriots. Therefore, Napoleon stayed in Smolensk for 4 days and decided to retreat further.

Crossing the Berezina River

The French were heading to the Berezina River (in modern Belarus) in order to force the river and go to the Neman. But on November 16, General Chichagov captured the city of Borisov, which is located on the Berezina. Napoleon's situation became catastrophic - for the first time, the possibility of being captured actively loomed for him, since he was surrounded.

On November 25, by order of Napoleon, the French army began to simulate a crossing south of Borisov. Chichagov bought into this maneuver and began the transfer of troops. At that moment, the French built two bridges across the Berezina and began crossing on November 26-27. Only on November 28, Chichagov realized his mistake and tried to give battle to the French army, but it was too late - the crossing was completed, albeit with the loss of a huge number of human lives. When crossing the Berezina, 21,000 Frenchmen died! The "Great Army" now consisted of only 9 thousand soldiers, most of whom were already unfit for combat.

It was during this crossing that unusually severe frosts set in, to which the French emperor referred, justifying the huge losses. In the 29th bulletin, which was published in one of the French newspapers, it was said that until November 10 the weather was normal, but after that very severe cold came, for which no one was ready.

Crossing the Neman (from Russia to France)

The crossing of the Berezina showed that Napoleon's Russian campaign was over - he lost the Patriotic War in Russia in 1812. Then the emperor decided that his further stay with the army did not make sense and on December 5 he left his troops and headed for Paris.

On December 16, in Kovno, the French army crossed the Neman and left the territory of Russia. Its number was only 1600 people. The invincible army, which inspired fear throughout Europe, was almost completely destroyed by Kutuzov's army in less than 6 months.

Below is a graphical representation of Napoleon's retreat on a map.

Results of the Patriotic War of 1812

The Patriotic War between Russia and Napoleon was of great importance for all the countries involved in the conflict. Largely due to these events, the undivided dominance of England in Europe became possible. Such a development was foreseen by Kutuzov, who, after the flight of the French army in December, sent a report to Alexander 1, where he explained to the ruler that the war must be ended immediately, and the pursuit of the enemy and the liberation of Europe would be beneficial for strengthening the power of England. But Alexander did not heed the advice of his commander and soon began a campaign abroad.

Reasons for Napoleon's defeat in the war

Determining the main reasons for the defeat of the Napoleonic army, it is necessary to focus on the most important ones that historians most often use:

The strategic mistake of the emperor of France, who sat in Moscow for 30 days and waited for the representatives of Alexander 1 with pleas for peace. As a result, it began to get colder and to run out of provisions, and the constant raids of partisan movements made a turning point in the war.
Unity of the Russian people. As usual, in the face of a great danger, the Slavs rally. So it was this time. For example, the historian Lieven writes that the main reason for the defeat of France lies in the mass nature of the war. Everyone fought for the Russians - both women and children. And all this was ideologically justified, which made the morale of the army very strong. The emperor of France did not break him.
The unwillingness of the Russian generals to accept a decisive battle. Most historians forget about this, but what would have happened to Bagration's army if he had accepted a general battle at the beginning of the war, as Alexander 1 really wanted? 60 thousand army of Bagration against 400 thousand army of aggressors. It would be an unconditional victory, and after it they would hardly have had time to recover. Therefore, the Russian people must express their gratitude to Barclay de Tolly, who, by his decision, gave the order to retreat and unite the armies.
Genius Kutuzov. The Russian general, who learned well from Suvorov, did not make a single tactical miscalculation. It is noteworthy that Kutuzov never managed to defeat his enemy, but he managed to win the Patriotic War tactically and strategically.
General Frost is used as an excuse. In fairness, it must be said that the frost did not have any significant effect on the final result, since at the time of the start of abnormal frosts (mid-November), the outcome of the confrontation was decided - the great army was destroyed.

Napoleon said: "Victory will give me the opportunity, as a master, to accomplish whatever I want"

Napoleonic Wars 1799-1815- fought by France and its allies during the years of the Consulate (1799-1804) and the Empire of Napoleon I (1804-1815) against coalitions of European states.

The nature of wars:

1) aggressive

2) revolutionary (undermining the feudal order, the development of capitalist relations in Europe, the spread of revolutionary ideas)

3) bourgeois (were conducted in the interests of the French bourgeoisie, who sought to consolidate their military-political and commercial and industrial dominance on the continent, pushing the British bourgeoisie into the background)

Main opponents: England, Russia, Austria

Wars:

1) fight with 2 anti-French coalition

2 anti-French coalition was formed in 1798-99 .participants: England, Russia, Austria, Turkey and the Kingdom of Naples

Brumaire 18 (November 9), 1799 - the establishment of the military dictatorship of Napoleon Bonaparte, who became the first consul - the conditional date for the start of the Napoleonic wars

May 1800 - Napoleon at the head of an army moved across the Alps to Italy and defeated the Austrian troops at the Battle of Marengo (June 14, 1800).

Outcome: 1) France received Belgium, the left bank of the Rhine and control over all of Northern Italy, where the Italian Republic was created (Treaty of Luneville)

2) the 2nd anti-French coalition actually ceased to exist,

Russia withdrew from it because of disagreements; Only Great Britain continued the war.

After the resignation of W. Pitt the Younger (1801), the new English government entered into negotiations with France

Outcome of negotiations:

1802 - signing Treaty of Amiens. France withdrew its troops from Rome, Naples and Egypt, and England - from the island of Malta.

BUT 1803 - the resumption of war between France and Great Britain.

1805 - Battle of Trafalgar. The English fleet under the command of Admiral G. Nelson defeated and destroyed the combined Franco-Spanish fleet. This defeat thwarted the strategic plan of Napoleon I to organize the landing in Great Britain of the French expeditionary army, concentrated in the Boulogne camp.

1805 - creation 3 anti-French coalition(Great Britain, Austria, Russia, Sweden).

Military operations - along the Danube. Within three weeks, Napoleon defeated the 100,000-strong Austrian army in Bavaria, forcing the surrender of the main Austrian forces on October 20 at Ulm.

December 2, 1805 - the battle of Austerlitz, in which Napoleon inflicted a crushing defeat on the Russian and Austrian troops.

December 26, 1805 - Peace of Pressburg. Austria pays an indemnity, she has lost a huge part of the land. From the South German states, Napoleon created the Confederation of the Rhine and appointed himself its head. In turn, the Russian Emperor Alexander I did not accept defeat and did not sign peace with Napoleon.

September 1806 - between Russia and Prussia was concluded new anti-French alliance joined by England and Sweden

October 14, 1806 in two battles at Jena and Auerstadt, the French defeated the Prussian army, thirteen days later Napoleon's army entered Berlin.

Outcome:

capitulation of Prussia, all possessions west of the Elbe - with Napoleon, where he formed the kingdom of Westphalia

The Duchy of Warsaw was created on the territory of Poland

A 100 million indemnity was imposed on Prussia, until the payment of which she was occupied by French troops.

2 battles with the Russian army:

French troops pushed back the Russian army and approached the Neman. Both Napoleon, who by this time had conquered all of Europe, and Alexander I, who had lost all allies, considered the further continuation of the war pointless.

July 7, 1807 - Peace of Tilsit. On a specially placed raft in the middle of the Neman River, a meeting of two emperors took place. Outcome:

Russia recognized all the conquests of the French Empire

Russia received freedom of action against Sweden and Turkey.

Under the secret clause of the agreement, Alexander promised to stop trading with England, that is, to join the continental blockade, announced shortly before by Napoleon.

May 1808 - popular uprisings in Madrid, Cartagena, Zaragoza, Murcia, Asturias, Grenada, Balajos, Valencia.

A series of heavy defeats of the French. Portugal revolted, on whose territory the British troops landed. The defeat of the Napoleonic troops in Spain undermined the international position of France.

Napoleon sought support in Russia.

Napoleon succeeded in obtaining an extension Franco-Russian Union, but only at the cost of recognizing Russia's rights to Moldavia, Wallachia and Finland, which then still belonged to Sweden. However, in the most important issue for Napoleon about Russia's attitude to Austria, Alexander I showed stubbornness. He was well aware of Napoleon's predicaments and was not at all disposed to help him pacify Austria. The discussion on the Austrian problem proceeded in a tense atmosphere. Unable to achieve concessions, Napoleon screamed, threw his cocked hat on the floor, and began to trample it with his feet. Alexander I, keeping calm, told him: "You are a hot person, but I'm stubborn: anger does not work on me. Let's talk, reason, otherwise I'll leave" - and headed for the exit. Napoleon had to hold him back and calm down. The discussion resumed in a more moderate, even friendly tone.

Outcome: October 12, 1808 signing union convention, but no real strengthening of the Franco-Russian alliance occurred.

The conclusion of a new convention with Russia allowed Napoleon to throw his forces against Spain and take control of Madrid again.

April 1809 - Austria began hostilities on the Upper Danube with the support of England, which formed the 5th coalition against France.

heavy defeat of the Austrians, after which Franz I was forced to start peace negotiations.1

Napoleon annexed almost all of Western Galicia to the Duchy of Warsaw

Russia left the Tarnopol district.

Austria was deprived of Western Galicia, the provinces of Salzburg, parts of Upper Austria and Carniola, Carinthia, Croatia, as well as lands on the Adriatic coast (Trieste, Fiume, etc., which became the Illyrian departments of the French Empire). The Treaty of Schönbrunn in 1809 is the biggest success of Napoleon's diplomacy.

Russian-French relations began to deteriorate rapidly due to:

the conclusion of the Treaty of Schonbrunn and a significant expansion of the Duchy of Warsaw at the expense of Western Galicia

Napoleon's unwillingness to delimit spheres of influence in the Middle East. He tried with all his might to subjugate the Balkan Peninsula to his influence.

July 1810 - The Kingdom of Holland was annexed to France

December 1810 - Swiss territory of Vallis off France

February 1811 - the Duchy of Oldenburg, parts of the Duchy of Berg and the Kingdom of Hanover were ceded to France.

Hamburg, Bremen and Lübeck also belong to France, which was becoming a Baltic power

Napoleon's unsuccessful attempt to marry Alexander 1's sister Anna Pavlovna (of course, this is not the main thing)

Napoleon's support for the Poles' desire for independence, which did not suit Russia

Napoleon's failure to fulfill his promise to support Russia against Turkey

Russia's violation of the Continental Blockade Agreement.

This was the cause of the War of 1812.

Both countries violated the terms of the Peace of Tilsit. War was being prepared. Napoleon sought, above all, to tie Prussia and Austria more firmly to France.

February 24, 1812 - Friedrich Wilhelm III concluded a secret convention with France, according to which Prussia undertook to field a 20,000-strong corps to participate in the war against Russia.

March 14, 1812 - Austria also pledged to take part in the war against Russia, putting up a 30,000-strong corps for operations in Ukraine. But both of these agreements were signed under brute pressure from French diplomats.

Napoleon demanded that Russia comply with the conditions of the Tilsit peace.

On April 27, Kurakin, on behalf of the tsar, informed Napoleon that the precondition for this could be:

withdrawal of French troops from Prussia across the Elbe

liberation of Swedish Pomerania and Danzig

consent to Russian trade with neutral countries.

Napoleon refused. He deployed armed forces in Prussia and in the Duchy of Warsaw, right at the very borders of Russia.

representative of Alexander 1, Balashov, tried to convince Napoleon to stop the invasion. The latter answered the royal envoy with a rude and arrogant refusal. After Balashov's departure from Vilna, diplomatic relations between the Russian and French governments ceased.

The first failures of Napoleon, who failed to defeat the troops of General Barclay de Tolly in border battles, forced him to seek an honorable peace.

August 4-5 - Battle of Smolensk. Retreat of Russian troops. After Smolensk, Bonaparte for the first time tried to start negotiations with the Russian government, but the negotiations did not take place.

November 14-16 - Battle of the Berezina. The retreat towards the Berezina and Vilna led Napoleon's army to almost complete destruction. The already catastrophic situation of the French troops was further aggravated by the transition of the Prussian troops to the side of Russia. Thus, a new, 6th coalition against France was created. In addition to England and Russia, Napoleon was now opposed by Prussia, and then Sweden.

On August 10, Austria joined the 6th coalition at a time when a huge army consisting of Russian, Prussian, Swedish and English contingents was concentrating in Germany against Napoleon.

October 16-19, 1813 - "Battle of the Nations" near Leipzig. The defeated armies of Napoleon were forced to retreat beyond the Rhine, and soon hostilities were transferred to the territory of France itself.

March 31 - Alexander I and Friedrich Wilhelm III, at the head of their troops, solemnly entered the streets of the French capital. Located in Fontainebleau, 90 kilometers from Paris, Napoleon was forced to abandon the continuation of the struggle

April 6 - Napoleon abdicated in favor of his son. later he dutifully proceeded to the south of France, in order to proceed further by sea to the island of Elba, granted to him by the allies for life possession.

May 30, 1814 - Treaty of Paris between France and the Sixth Coalition (Russia, Great Britain, Austria, Prussia), which was later joined by Spain, Portugal and Sweden.:

the restoration of the independence of Holland, Switzerland, the German principalities (which were united in a union) and the Italian states (except for the lands that were ceded to Austria).

Freedom of navigation on the Rhine and Scheldt was declared.

France returned most of the colonial possessions lost during the Napoleonic Wars

September 1814 - June 1815 - Congress of Vienna. Convened under the terms of the Paris Treaty. Representatives of all European states participated (except Turkey)

Tasks:

elimination of political changes and transformations that took place in Europe as a result of the French bourgeois revolution and the Napoleonic wars.

the principle of "legitimism", i.e., the restoration of the "legitimate" rights of former monarchs who have lost their possessions. In reality, the principle of "legitimism" was only a cover for the arbitrariness of the reaction

creation of guarantees against the return to power of Napoleon and the resumption of French wars of conquest

repartition of Europe in the interests of the victorious powers

Solutions:

France is deprived of all conquests, its borders remain the same as in 1792.

Transfer of Malta and the Ionian Islands to England

Austrian authority over northern Italy and some Balkan provinces

Division of the Duchy of Warsaw between Austria, Russia and Prussia. The lands that became part of the Russian Empire were called the Kingdom of Poland, and the Russian Emperor Alexander I became the Polish king.

incorporation of the territory of the Austrian Netherlands into the new Kingdom of the Netherlands

Prussia got part of Saxony, a significant territory of Westphalia and the Rhineland

Formation of the German Confederation

Significance of Congress:

determined the new balance of power in Europe, which had developed by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, for a long time denoting the leading role of the victorious countries - Russia, Austria and Great Britain - in international relations.

the Vienna system of international relations

the creation of the Holy Alliance of European States, which had the goal of ensuring the inviolability of European monarchies.

« 100 days» Napoleon - March-June 1815

Return of Napoleon to power

June 18, 1815 - Battle of Waterloo. Defeat of the French army. Napoleon's exile to Saint Helena.

Na-po-leo-nov wars are commonly called wars, which were waged by France against European countries in the period of the reign of Na-po-leo-on Bo- on-par-ta, that is, in 1799-1815. European countries created anti-Napoleonic coalitions, but their forces were insufficient to break the power of the Napoleonic army. Napoleon won victory after victory. But the invasion of Russia in 1812 changed the situation. Napoleon was expelled from Russia, and the Russian army launched a foreign campaign against him, which ended with the Russian invasion of Paris and Napoleon's loss of the title of emperor.

Rice. 2. British Admiral Horatio Nelson ()

Rice. 3. Battle of Ulm ()

On December 2, 1805, Napoleon won a brilliant victory at Austerlitz.(Fig. 4). In addition to Napoleon, the emperor of Austria and the Russian emperor Alexander I personally participated in this battle. The defeat of the anti-Napoleonic coalition in central Europe allowed Napoleon to withdraw Austria from the war and focus on other regions of Europe. So, in 1806, he conducted an active campaign to capture the Kingdom of Naples, which was an ally of Russia and England against Napoleon. Napoleon wanted to put his brother on the throne of Naples Jerome(Fig. 5), and in 1806 he made another of his brothers King of the Netherlands, LouisIBonaparte(Fig. 6).

Rice. 4. Battle of Austerlitz ()

Rice. 5. Jerome Bonaparte ()

Rice. 6. Louis I Bonaparte ()

In 1806, Napoleon managed to radically solve the German problem. He liquidated a state that had existed for almost 1000 years - Holy Roman Empire. Of the 16 German states, an association was created, called Confederation of the Rhine. Napoleon himself became the protector (defender) of this Confederation of the Rhine. In fact, these territories were also placed under his control.

feature these wars, which in history have been called Napoleonic Wars, was that the composition of the opponents of France changed all the time. By the end of 1806, the anti-Napoleonic coalition included completely different states: Russia, England, Prussia and Sweden. Austria and the Kingdom of Naples were no longer in this coalition. In October 1806, the coalition was almost completely defeated. In just two battles, under Auerstedt and Jena, Napoleon managed to deal with the Allied troops and force them to sign a peace treaty. Near Auerstedt and Jena, Napoleon defeated the Prussian troops. Now nothing prevented him from moving further north. Napoleonic troops soon occupied Berlin. Thus, another important rival of Napoleon in Europe was taken out of the game.

November 21, 1806 Napoleon signed the most important for the history of France continental blockade decree(a ban on all countries subject to him to trade and in general to conduct any business with England). It was England that Napoleon considered his main enemy. In response, England blockaded French ports. However, France could not actively resist England's trade with other territories.

Russia was the rival. In early 1807, Napoleon managed to defeat the Russian troops in two battles on the territory of East Prussia.

July 8, 1807 Napoleon and AlexanderIsigned the Treaty of Tilsit(Fig. 7). This agreement, concluded on the border of Russia and French-controlled territories, proclaimed good neighborly relations between Russia and France. Russia pledged to join the continental blockade. However, this treaty meant only a temporary softening, but in no way overcoming the contradictions between France and Russia.

Rice. 7. Peace of Tilsit 1807 ()

Napoleon had a difficult relationship with Pope PiusVII(Fig. 8). Napoleon and the Pope had an agreement on the division of powers, but their relationship began to deteriorate. Napoleon considered church property to belong to France. The Pope did not tolerate this and after the coronation of Napoleon in 1805 he returned to Rome. In 1808, Napoleon brought his troops to Rome and deprived the pope of secular power. In 1809, Pius VII issued a special decree in which he cursed the robbers of church property. However, he did not mention Napoleon in this decree. This epic ended with the fact that the Pope was almost forcibly transported to France and forced to live in the Fontainebleau Palace.

Rice. 8. Pope Pius VII ()

As a result of these campaigns of conquest and the diplomatic efforts of Napoleon, by 1812, a huge part of Europe was under his control. Through relatives, military leaders or military conquests, Napoleon subjugated almost all the states of Europe. Only England, Russia, Sweden, Portugal and the Ottoman Empire, as well as Sicily and Sardinia, remained outside his zone of influence.

June 24, 1812 Napoleon's army invaded Russia. The beginning of this campaign for Napoleon was successful. He managed to pass a significant part of the territory of the Russian Empire and even capture Moscow. He could not hold the city. At the end of 1812, the Napoleonic army fled from Russia and again fell into the territory of Poland and the German states. The Russian command decided to continue the pursuit of Napoleon outside the territory of the Russian Empire. It went down in history as Foreign campaign of the Russian army. He was very successful. Even before the beginning of the spring of 1813, Russian troops managed to take Berlin.

From October 16 to October 19, 1813, the largest battle in the history of the Napoleonic Wars took place near Leipzig., known as "Battle of the Nations"(Fig. 9). The name of the battle was due to the fact that almost half a million people took part in it. Napoleon at the same time had 190 thousand soldiers. His rivals, led by the British and Russians, had about 300,000 soldiers. The numerical superiority was very important. In addition, Napoleon's troops did not have the readiness in which they were in 1805 or 1809. A significant part of the old guard was destroyed, and therefore Napoleon had to take into his army people who did not have serious military training. This battle ended unsuccessfully for Napoleon.

Rice. 9. Battle of Leipzig 1813 ()

The allies made Napoleon an advantageous offer: they offered him to keep his imperial throne if he agreed to cut France to the borders of 1792, that is, he had to give up all conquests. Napoleon indignantly refused this offer.

March 1, 1814 members of the anti-Napoleonic coalition - England, Russia, Austria and Prussia - signed Chaumont treatise. It prescribed the actions of the parties to eliminate the Napoleonic regime. The parties to the treaty pledged to field 150,000 soldiers in order to resolve the French question once and for all.

Although the Treaty of Chaumont was only one in a series of European treaties of the 19th century, it was given a special place in the history of mankind. The Chaumont Treaty was one of the first treaties aimed not at joint campaigns of conquest (it was not aggressive), but at joint defense. The signatories of the Treaty of Chaumont insisted that the wars that shook Europe for 15 years should finally end and the era of the Napoleonic wars should end.

Almost a month after the signing of this agreement, March 31, 1814, Russian troops entered Paris(Fig. 10). This ended the period of the Napoleonic wars. Napoleon abdicated and was exiled to the island of Elba, which was given to him for life. It seemed that his story was over, but Napoleon tried to return to power in France. You will learn about this in the next lesson.

Rice. 10. Russian troops enter Paris ()

Bibliography

1. Jomini. Political and military life of Napoleon. A book covering Napoleon's military campaigns up to 1812

2. Manfred A.Z. Napoleon Bonaparte. - M.: Thought, 1989.

3. Noskov V.V., Andreevskaya T.P. General history. 8th grade. - M., 2013.

4. Tarle E.V. "Napoleon". - 1994.

5. Tolstoy L.N. "War and Peace"

6. Chandler D. Napoleon's military campaigns. - M., 1997.

7. Yudovskaya A.Ya. General history. History of the New Age, 1800-1900, Grade 8. - M., 2012.

Homework

1. Name the main opponents of Napoleon during 1805-1814.

2. Which battles from the series of Napoleonic wars left the greatest mark on history? Why are they interesting?

3. Tell us about Russia's participation in the Napoleonic Wars.

4. What was the significance of the Treaty of Chaumont for European states?