Battle of Leipzig-1813

[Prussian]

Campaign in Germany

(for Prussians "War of Liberation")

In December 1812 left the army, and after a journey of 12 days reached the French capital. The grandest army the greatest nation had ever sent out was lying behind him dead. (see picture).

Hereafter he could not believe himself invincible. Already his enemies were suggesting that since his good genius had failed him once, it might again.
Napoleon began preparations for another campaign. He wrote to Eugene "You should say and yourself believe, that in the next campaign I shall drive the Russians back across the Nieman River."

But Napoleon's allies Prussia and Austria played a double game, assuring the Tsar of Russia of their support. In the very end of December, Prussian general Yorck signed the Convention of Tauroggen which seperated him from the French troops under MdE MacDonald and made the Prussian army a neutral force. Yorck said "Gentlemen, I do not know what I shall say to the King about my action. Perhaps he will call it treason. Then I shall carry the consequences. I shall put my grey head willingly at the disposal of His Majesty and die gladly, knowing that I have not failed as a faithful subject and a true Prussian." Yorck's defection was to live with him for the rest of his life. All over Prussia young men were flocking to arms. In Berlin were many volunteers, one man in twelve wanted to fight the French. The Prussians called the war the War of Liberation.

After his retreat from Russia in 1812, Napoleon mounted a new offensive in Germany in 1813. His armies failed to take Berlin, however, and were forced to withdraw west of the Elbe River. In the German Confederation of Rhine nationalist and liberation movements were less and less held in check by the French troops. In March 1813 Prussia declared war on France. Napoleon defeated Allies at Lutzen and again at Bautzen. Following these defeats the Austrians proposed an armistice which was concluded in June between France, Prussian, and Russia.

In 1813 the British subsidies and % share in total Russian military expenditure increased from 1 % in 1805 to 19 % in 1813 ! For Austria the subsidies in 1813 reached 3 % of total military expenditure.
Austrian politicians and monarch had resolved to regain, either by war or negotiation, the provinces which it had lost in 1809. In 1813 now preparing to offer its mediation, but it was also preparing to join the Russians and Prussians in case Napoleon rejected their demands. At that moment Austrian Emperor held the key to the situation because Prussians and Russians saw that they were defeated if they could not persuade him to join them. Napoleon, his old confidence restored by a series of victories at Lutzen and Bautzen, hoped to keep his Austrian father-in-law quiet until he had crushed the Prussians and driven the Russians back. In June, Austria had signed a treaty at Reichenbach, pledging itself to join the Russians and Prussians. Armistice lasted until August 10th but no agreement came about from the armistice and war restarted with full force.

The moral effect of the victories at Lutzen and Bautzen was excellent in the French army but among the allies there was a return to the old dread of the 'undefeated Napoleon'. But Napoleon had his own problems. His army was made of very young, hastily trained and not so disciplined soldiers. Napoleon wrote: "On your march towards Bautzen you will find many stragglers and plunderers belonging to the III, V, and XI Army Corps who have thrown their muskets away. Turn them back on Bautzen, where muskets will be served out to them." There was also lack of food. On 23rd Sept Napoleon wrote to Count Daru: "The army is not properly fed, it would be a delusion to think it is. Twenty-four ounces of bread, one ounce of rice, and eight of meat are not enough for a soldier. Now we are getting only eight ounces of bread, three of rice, and eight of meat."

Then came the defeats, one after another. MdE Oudinot's corps was trashed at Gross Beeren, then MdE MacDonald was defeated by general Blucher's Prussians at Katzbach and GdD Vandamme was defeated at Kulm. In September 1813 Napoleon wrote: "The misfortune that has overtaken the I Army Corps could not well be foreseen. General Vandamme, who seems to have been killed, had left no posts in the mountains, and had no reserves anywhere, he ran into a corner without seeing what he was doing." MdE Ney's army was defeated at Dennewitz. During the fighting half of the Saxons and some Bavarians went over to the enemy. Only Napoleon continued his victories, he won the gigantic battle around the big city of Dresden. The Battle of Dresden was second largest battle of Napoleonic Wars.

The gathering of incredible amount of troops around Leipzig began. On 14th October Napoleon wrote to MdE Macdonald: "I hope you will arrive early. We shall undoubtedly be attacked to-morrow by the 'Army of Bohemia' and the 'Army of Silesia'. March rapidly therefore, and if you should hear them, move towards the sound of the guns."

Concentration of armiesaround Leipzig.

When the allied armies threatened Napoleon's line of communications through Leipzig (see picture), he was forced to concentrate his forces in that city. The city of Leipzig was one of the leading cultural and industrial centers of central Europe.
Napoleon had 220.000 men (151,500 infantry, 41,000 cavalry and 26,500 artillery/engineer)
Napoleon faced an army of 350.000 Russians, Prussians, Austrians and Swedes.
German historian Quistrop gives Allies only 193.920 men and French 187.110 men.
A Frenchman, Vaudoncourt, gave Allies 349.000 and the French only 156.800 men.
An American author, S. Bowden, gave Allies 361.100 and Napoleon 219.100 men.

Allies forces were divided into several armies:
'Army of Bohemia' (Schwarzenberg) - 120,000-196.000 men and 380-785 guns.
'Army of Silesia' (Blucher) - 63.000-70.000 men and 310-360 guns strong.
'Army of the North' (Bernadotte) - 55.000-70.000 men and 225-275 guns.
'Army of Poland' (Bennigsen) - 33.000 men and 135 guns.
There were also some detachments and flying columns, all these troops totalled some 35.000-60.000 men and 130-300 guns.

Cavalry battle at Liebertwolwitz

14th October.

Two days before the battle of Leipzig, on October 14th, was fought a massive but indecisive cavalry battle at Liebertwolkwitz (see map), just a few miles south of Leipzig. On the map is shown one of the first French attacks. Total strength of Murat's cavalry was between 7.000 and 10.000 horsemen, while Allies had few thousands less. The battle was a typical cavalry engagement with the advantage swinging from one side to other and back again. The daring King MdE Joahim Murat was nearly captured twice by the Prussians but twice evaded the enemy. The larger French forces often attacked in heavy columns while the Russians, Prussians and Austrians engaged the front then attacked the flanks. Allies' cavalry was superior in horsemanship and swordsmanship over the young and hastily trained Frenchmen. Murat lost 1.500 killed, wounded and prisoners, while Allies losses were half of that number.

"The Battle of the Nations"

LEIPZIG

After the cavalry battle both armies began their preparation for the major fight. The next day more troops were coming almost from every direction. The roads were crowded with rolling artillery and ammunition wagons. Along the roads, on both sides marched long columns of infantry, and across the fields trotted the colorful cavalry. On October 16th the battle began. It was one of the most crucial battles of the Napoleonic Wars and represented the climax of the campaign of 1813 in Germany. In terms of numbers of troops engaged, Leipzig was the biggest battle of the Napoleonic Wars.

At Leipzig have fought men of very many nations:
- 160.000 Frenchmen
- 150.000 Russians
- 115.000 Austrians
- 75.000 Prussians
But there were also
- 19.000 Swedes
- 12.000 Poles
the smallest contingents were :
- 9.000 Italians
- 6.000 Saxons
- 5.000 Badens
- 3.500 Wirtembergians
- 2.500 Hessians
- 2.000 Westphalians
and some other Germans (Berg), Finns, Danes, Spaniards, Portugueses, few Greeks, Brits and Kalmuks.

The Battle of Leipzig was fought for several days to the south, east, west and north of Leipzig. Napoleon organized his forces around Leipzig to protect his supply lines and meet the enemy. The primary front was the southern front and it was defended by the biggest amount of troops. MdE Murat was the commander here and Napoleon most of his time during this battle spent with Murat. Under Murat's command were II, V and IX Army Corps, I, II, III, IV and V Cavalry Corps, Imperial Guard, and Polish VIII Corps.
The northern front was defended by MdE Michel Ney, Prince de la Moskova, and MdE Auguste Frédéric Louis Viesse de Marmont, and the eastern front by MdE MacDonald. Artillery reserve and parks, ambulances and baggages stood near Leipzig. The bridges on Pleisse and Elster River were defended by infantry and few guns. The main battery stood in reserve, and during battle will be deployed on the Gallows Height. This battery will be commanded by Drouot himself. The western flank of French positions at Wachau and Liebertwolkwitz was defended by the "intrepid Poniatowski" and MdE Augereau and his French young conscripts.

Allies commanders, Tsar Alexander of Russia (1777-1825), King of Prussia and Austrian general Karl Phillip Fürst zu Schwarzenberg (1771-1820) stood on a hill near Gulden Gossa and watched the raging battle. Nearby was a group of generals and wounded soldiers are streaming into safety. (See picture above) The monarchs were very interested in the battle and the entire campaign against Napoleon.

The commander-in-chief of all Allies troops was Austrian Karl Phillip Fürst zu Schwarzenberg. The Russian monarch admonished Schwarzenberg, who plan he thought poor. Tsar Alexander said: "Well, Marshal, since you insist, you will do what you like with the Austrian army, but as for the Russian troops of Grand Duke Constantine and Barclay de Tolly they will go to the right of the Pleisse River where they ought to be and nowhere else !" During this discussion the King of Prussia avoided expressing an opinion as if the affair didn't concern him. The course of events proved Alexander was right. The action he had ordered Blucher to take met with great success north of Leipzig and the actions of Russian guard was decisive in halting the French all-out attack on Gulden Gossa. On the other hand, the actions of Austrians along Pleisse River, ended in failure.

16th October.

First Day of Battle.
The fighting began on the southern and northern front. The troops on the northern front were commanded by MdE Michel Ney 'The bravest of the Brave". The troops on the southern front were led by flamboyant MdE Joachim Murat. In the reserve were kept Old and Young Guard.

Schwarzenberg ordered Allies battalions and squadrons to be formed in checkrboard pattern during attack or retreat. This was not always possible, especially in the fighting for villages and wooded areas. In such situations the spearheads of attacking troops were formed of light troops in skirmish formations.

Several villages were taken and lost several times. Finally the Russian and Prussian infantry captured Mark-Kleeberg, the Prussians took Wachau and the Austrians captured Liebertwolkwitz. The problem however was such that although they took these places they were unable to move forward.

With the Allies' troops struggling Napoleon ordered to bring 100 guns and deploy them on the Gallows Hill. During the heavy bombardment the Allies' troops began withdrawal and were charged by Murat with 10.000 cavalrymen. Napoleon wrote: " "The King of Naples (Murat) placed himself at the head of the cuirassiers and marched on the enemy's cavalry to the left of Wachau, while the Polish horse and the dragoons of the Guard charged to the right. The enemy's cavalry was routed. Matters being thus reestablished on our right, the enemy fell back ... The Emperor ordered the Duke of Reggio to move on Wachau with two divisions of the Young Guard; and at the same time to move two other divisions of Young Guard on Liebertwolkvitz. Napoleon also pushed forward in the centre a battery of 150 guns under the command of General Drouot."

The Allies wavered and were close to breaking point before their reserves arrived and counterattacked regaining all lost terrain. Next day Napoleon moved his troops back, closer to Leipzig.

Blucher marched from the north toward Lindenthal, Wahren, Mockern and Wiederitzsch and down toward Leipzig. The French troops on the northern front were under the command of MdE Ney. Ney's strongest force was Marmont's VI Corps. At 3 pm the Prussian I Corps led by von Yorck was ordered to attack Mockern. In about the same time Langeron's Russians attacked the two villages of Wiederitzsch defended by Dabrowski's division. The battle on the northern front was a bloody one and all three villages changed hands several times. The French regiments of naval infantry and Dabrowski's division covered themselves with glory. But Blucher won although the French lost 6,500 while Allies 7,500 men. Napoleon was in the village of Schonefeld when MdE Marmont reported his defeat.

17th October.

In the early morning Schwarzenberg's "Army of Bohemia" formed itself for battle while the French army got ready to execute Napoleon's orders. Several French batteries opened fire on Klenau's infantry but the Austrians did not advance and the guns fell silent. Allies monarchs ordered their troops not to advance in order to allow Bennigsen's army time to arrive on the battlefield. The morning passed while the French and Allies limited themselves to a skirmish fight between advance posts.
Around 10 am cannons were heard on the north of Leipzig. Allies troops standing south of Leipzig thoght that Napoleon suddenly moved against Blucher. But the cannonade soon fell silent. Now quite a few generals on both sides expected Napoleon would withdraw but it didn't happen. The noise up north was made by Blucher's Russian infantry and guns as he attacked the Poles (Dabrowski) and French (Delmas) near Gohlish and Eutritzsch. Blucher also unleashed Lanskoi's 2nd Hussar Division (Russian) against Arrighi's III Cavalry Corps. The French were broken almost immediately and hotly pursued. The Russian hussars captured half thousand of prisoners and 5 guns. Shattered French cavalry fled behind Parthe River and own infantry. It was the major action fought on 17th October.

In the afternoon Schwarzenberg received news that Bennigsen reached Naunhof. Now he made decision to attack Napoleon. Schwarzenberg issued orders to attack "after the arrival of Bennigsen, around 2 pm, and from our right wing against the enemy's left." Soon Bennigsen announced that his advance guard had arrived at Fuchshain but his troops were too fatigued for fighting. In this situation the monarchs decided that the attack should be delayed until next day. When an officer arrived with news of Blucher's victory (at Mockern the previous day) the monarchs let him know about their plans. They wanted to combine attacks on Napoleon from the north and south.

The whereabouts of Bernadotte's "Army of the North" were unknown to Ney. Bernadotte wrote to Blucher congratulating him on his victory over Ney during the previous day. But Blucher was angry, he thought Bernadotte wanted to take the least hazardous position, while leaving the hardest fighting to Blucher's Russians and Prussians.
In the evening Tsar of Russia and Schwarzenberg were joined by Emperor of Austria. Barclay de Tolly was with his troops near Stormthal.


The news from battlefield depressed the mood in Napoleon's headquarter. Marmont was defeated by Blucher, Poniatowski held his ground but lost 1/3 of his force, Murat was unable to break Allies' line and the expected breakthrough after the Young Guard attacked, didn't materialize. Prisoners taken by the French and Poles said that the arrival of Bennigsen's and Bernadotte's armies is awaited. Napoleon didn't attack and didn't retreat, and allowed the Allies to receive more than 100.000 fresh troops.
Meanwhile Napoleon was strengthened by the arrival at 7 pm of single VII Corps (Raynier's 12,500 French and Saxons). In early night the French, Polish and Wirtembergian troops on the north of Leipzig were on the move. Marmont's, Arrighi's and Souham's corps retreated toward Leipzig and deployed between Gohlis, Leipzig's suburbs and Parthe River.

18th October

Second Day of Battle.
On the 18th the Allies launched a huge assault from all sides and in over 9 hours of fighting the French were forced back towards Leipzig, both sides suffered heavy casualties and only the bravery of the French troops prevented a breakthrough. The monarchs stood on an elevation that would later be known as the Monarchs' Height. From this point they observed the movements of troops. The village of Schonefeld was captured and lost by Russians and French 8 times ! The village was defended by GdD Lagrange's 21st Infantry Division, incl. the marine infantrymen who one day earlier repulsed 4 Prussian attacks on Mockern. At Schonefeld they held their ground against 7-8 Russian attacks. The Allies' repeated attacks on Mockern and Shonefeld were for the French like being on the receiving end of a jackhammer. The stubborn attackers were: X Corps (GL Kapzewich), VIII Corps (St. Priest) and Russian artillery.

Napoleon was pleased with his troops and commanders. He wrote: "It is impossible to praise too highly the conduct of Count Lauriston and Prince Poniatowski in this battle. As a proof of his satisfaction the Emperor promoted the latter on the battlefield to be a Marshal of France."

Meanwhile the Saxons defected to Allies. Napoleon wrote:
"On the 18th October, the victory was won by the French, despite the defeat suffered by the Duke of Ragusa (Marmont) on the 16th. Then the entire Saxon army, with sixty guns, went over to the enemy at one of the most vital points in the army's position and turned their guns on the French....The treachery of various corps of the Confederation of the Rhine, who had been contaminated by the example of the Saxons ... "

19th October

Third Day of Battle.

On the night of the 18th-19th began to withdraw the majority of his army across the river Elster. As it began to retreat over the single bridge westward from the city, a frightened corporal blew up the bridge, leaving 30,000 French troops trapped in Leipzig to be taken prisoner. Napoleon departed the city after visiting the King of Saxony. He detoured through the Peters Gate and across a bridge. The bridge soon was destroyed while it was packed with dozens of fleeing soldiers. Second bridge broke under the weight of the traffic. The remaining troops sought another route out of Leipzig, some swimmed and made it across but others were shot by the Allies skirmishers and drowned, includ. Poniatowski. Marmont was busy directing the infantry into last positions.

The rearguard was formed of GdD Durutte's 32nd Infantry Division, handful of Poles and two divisions of Young Guard commanded by GdD Pacthod and GdD Decouz.

Russian general Bennigsen (he was trashed by Napoleon 6 years earlier at Friedland) brought 50 heavy guns and bombarded the French troops in Leipzig. Russian sappers brought down garden walls and the 13th Infantry Division (GM Lindorfs) and 26th Infantry Division (GM Paskevich, Paskewicz) stormed the city. Bennigsen sent one battalion to serve as a guard for the King of Saxony. The attacking Russians captured many French and Polish guns (29 French and 17 Polish pieces), hundreds of prisoners, ammunition wagons etc. From the north the Prussian 3rd Brigade attacked with the Landwehr and light infantry (fusiliers) as its spearhead. They attacked the palisaded Hinter Gate. There were also 6 Russian and 1 Swedish battalion. The attackers were led by Russian 14th Jäger Regiment and covered by fire from many guns. These troops attacked through gardens firing at French and Polish skirmishers.

Aftermath.

L

eipzig was the first big battle in which Napoleon was clearly defeated in the field and it resulted in the destruction of what was left of French power in Germany and Poland. Never again Napoleon's army went into Germany.

Napoleon lost 45,000 killed, wounded and sick abandoned during the retreat. There were also 15.000 prisoners and 300 guns captured by the Allies. Casualties among Napoleonic generals were high, one marshal was killed (Poniatowski covering the retreat of French army drowned in the Elster River), two marshals were wounded (Ney and Marmont) and many generals were either killed or wounded, including Compans, Lefol, Latour-Maubourg, Maison, Pajol, Meunier, Souham, Sebastiani, Bertrand, Laferiere-Leveque, Gros, Zoltowski, Bronikowski, Grabowski, Rozniecki, Uminski, Malachowski and Brayer.

The total casualties of Allied armies in the Battle of Leipzig ("The Battle of the Nations") were between 50.000 and 60.000 killed, wounded and captured.

The French lost 45.000 killed and wounded, or 28 % of their forces. Additionally there were 23.000 sick and wounded abandoned during the retreat and 15.000 prisoners and 300 guns!

The Russians lost 20.000 killed and wounded, or 13 % of their forces.

The Austrians lost 7.500 killed and wounded, or 7 % of their forces.

The Prussians lost 15.500 killed and wounded , or 20 % of their forces.

The Poles lost 7.500 killed and wounded, or 62 % of their forces.

I don't know how many Italians, Brits, Fins or Greeks were killed or wounded.

The Swedes were only lightly engaged and lost 400 men, or 2 % of their forces.

Source

[General Parmenion]

Good post!

[Theobald]

Interesting post indeed.

Napoleon had 220.000 men. Napoleon faced an army of 350.000 Russians, Prussians, Austrians and Swedes.

Well, this explains a lot.