Memoirs of General Count Rapp, First aide-de-camp to Napoleon

Napoleon to the Major-General

"My cousin, inform the Duke de Belluno that I have not yet given orders for his movement, because that depends on the movement of the enemy: that the Russian army from Moldavia, consisting of three divisions, or twenty thousand men strong, infantry, cavalry, and artillery included, passed the Dnieper in the beginning of September; that it may march towards Moscow to reinforce the army under the command of General Kutusow, or towards Volhinia to reinforce that of Tormasoff; that General Kutusow's army, beaten at the battle of Moskowa, is at present on the Kaluga, which would lead us to believe that it expects reinforcements which might come from Moldavia, by the road of Kiow; that, in this case, the Duke de Belluno would receive orders to join the great army, either by the road of Jelnia and Kaluga, or any other; that if, on the contrary, the twenty thousand men from Moldavia relieve Tormasoff, this reinforcement will raise Tormasoff's force to forty thousand men; but that our right, under the command of Prince Schwartzenberg, would be still of equal force—as that Prince, with the Austrians, Poles, and Saxons, has about forty thousand men; that moreover I have demanded of the Emperor of Austria, that the corps which the Austrian General Reuss commands at Leinberg should move; and that Prince Schwartzenberg should receive a reinforcement of ten thousand men; that, on the other side, the Emperor Alexander reinforces as much as he can the garrison of Riga, and the corps of Wittgenstein, in order to dislodge Marshal Saint-Cyr from Polozk, and the Duke of Tarentum from Riga and Dünaburg; that letters which came from Prince Schwartzenberg, dated the 24th, would tend to prove that the army of Moldavia, instead of coming towards Moscow, has reached the army of Tormasoff and reinforced it; that it is necessary then to know what will be done; that, in this state of things, I desire that the Duke de Belluno will canton his corps from Smolensko to Orsza; that he will keep up an exact correspondence by all the estafettes with the Duke de Bassano, in order that that Minister may write to him and give him all the news that he shall have from different parts; that he will send a steady, discreet, and intelligent officer to General Schwartzenberg and General Regnier; that this officer shall learn from General Schwartzenberg what is passing, and from General Regnier the true state of affairs; that he will regularly correspond with the Governor of Minsk; and lastly, that he will send agents in different directions to know what is passing; that the division of Gerard shall be placed on the side of Orsza, where it will be four or five days' march from Minsk, three from Witepsk, four or five from Polozk; that the other division, which shall be between Orsza and Smolensko, shall be in a condition to give it speedy assistance; and that lastly, the third division shall be near Smolensko. That, by this means, his corps d'armée will rest itself, and be able easily to find subsistence; that it will be necessary to station it above the route, in order to leave the great communications free for the troops which arrive; that in this position he will be equally able to march upon Minsk, or upon Wilna, if the centre of our communications and of our depôts be threatened; or if Marshal Saint-Cyr should be driven from Polozk, or to execute the order that he might receive to return to Moscow by the road of Jelnia and of Kaluga—if the taking of Moscow and the new state of things should determine the enemy to reinforce himself with a portion of the troops from Moldavia; that the Duke de Belluno will thus form the chief reserve, to go either to the relief of Schwartzenberg and cover Minsk, or to the assistance of Marshal Saint-Cyr and cover Wilna, or to Moscow to reinforce the main army. That General Dombrowski, who has a division of 8000 infantry, and 12,000 Polish horse, is under his orders, which will increase his corps d'armée to four divisions; that the brigade of reserve from Wilna, composed of four Westphalian regiments, of two battalions from Hesse-Darmstadt, which towards the end of the month will arrive from Swedish Pomerania, and of eight pieces of cannon, will also be under his orders; that, in fine, in the course of November, two new divisions will assemble;—the one at Warsaw, that is, the thirty-second division, which will be augmented by three battalions from Wurtsburg, and will remain under the command of General Durutte; the other at Kœnigsberg, that is, the thirty-fourth, which was in Pomerania under the orders of General Morand, and which, also increased by some battalions, will be commanded by General Loison. Thus, whether it be necessary to march to the assistance of Prince Schwartzenberg, or to the assistance of Marshal Saint-Cyr, the Duke de Belluno will always assemble a mass of forty thousand men; that, as the correspondence by estafette is quick, I always give my orders; and that it would only be in the event of Minsk or Wilna being threatened or menaced, that the Duke de Belluno should march of his own authority to protect these two grand depôts of the army; that the Duke de Belluno, having the general command over all Lithuania and the governments of Smolensko and of Witepsk, should every where accelerate the progress of the administration, and especially take efficacious measures that the requisitions for corn and forage be carried into effect; that there are ovens at Mohilow, at Orsza, at Rasasna, and at Dubrowna; that he must get a great deal of biscuit ready, and put himself in a situation to have thirty days' provisions secured for his corps, without taking any thing from the military transports, or from the convoys which may be passing for the army. The Duke de Belluno will take care to keep up a correspondence at Witepsk: he is at liberty to send troops to support that point, and to maintain himself there; he can then go in person to Mohilow, to Witepsk, or Smolensko, to know the ground, and to expedite the administration. If, by any accident, the communication with Moscow should be intercepted, he would take care to send cavalry and infantry to open it again."

We had no longer either food or forage; men and horses were alike exhausted; retreat became indispensable. A question arose as to the means of carrying away our wounded. I began to be able to walk; on the 13th I went to the palace: Napoleon asked with kindness in what state my wounds were, how I was going on. He showed me the portrait of the King of Rome, which he had received at the moment we were going to begin the battle of the Moskowa. He had shown it to most of the Generals. I had to carry orders; the battle began; we had other things to attend to. He wished now to make me amends; he looked for the medallion, and observed, with a satisfaction which betrayed itself in his eyes:—"My son is the finest child in France."

A moment after, a memorial was brought from the Intendant-general, who required forty-five days to remove the wounded. "Forty-five days! he is deceived. If nothing were done, part would get well and part would die; there would only be the remainder to remove; and experience proves, that three months after a battle there remains but the sixth part of the wounded. I wish to remove them; I will not let them remain here exposed to the brutality of the Russians." We perceived from the saloon the workmen who were busy in taking away the cross of the great Ivan. "Do you see what a flock of ravens hover around that lump of old iron? Do they think to hinder us from taking it away? I will send that cross to Paris, I will have it placed on the dome of the Invalids."

It was the 18th of October; the departure was fixed for the 19th. My wound was not quite closed up. I mounted on horseback to see if I could bear the motion.

CHAPTER XXXIII

The next day I went early to the Kremlin. Scarcely had I reached the palace, when Napoleon came out of it to leave Moscow for ever; he perceived me. "I hope that you will not follow me on horseback, you are not in a fit state to do it; you can get into one of my carriages." I thanked him, and replied that I thought I should be in a condition to accompany him. We quitted this capital, and we took the road of Kaluga; when we were about three leagues distance, the Emperor stopped to wait for news from Mortier, who had orders to destroy the Kremlin on leaving the place. He was walking in a field with M. Daru; this gentleman left him; I was called. "Well, Rapp, we are going to retreat to the frontiers of Poland by the road of Kaluga: I shall take up good winter-quarters. I hope that Alexander will make peace."—"You have waited a long time, Sire; the inhabitants foretel that it will be a severe winter."—"Poh! poh! with your inhabitants. It is the 19th of October to-day, you see how fine it is. Do you not recognise my star? Besides, I could not leave without sending on all the sick and wounded. I was not to give them up to the rage of the Russians."—"I believe, Sire, that you would have done better to have left them at Moscow; the Russians would not have hurt them; whilst they are exposed for want of aid to die on the road." Napoleon was not of that opinion; but all that he said to me in the way of encouragement did not deceive even himself; his countenance bore the marks of uneasiness.

At last an officer despatched from the Marshal arrived: it was my aide-de-camp Turkheim, who informed us that Moscow was tranquil; that some pulks of Cossacks had appeared in the environs, but they took care not to approach the Kremlin, or any of the quarters still occupied by the French troops. We proceeded on our march. In the evening we arrived at Krasno Pachra. The look of the country was not encouraging to Napoleon. The hideous aspect, the wild air of the slaves, was revolting to eyes accustomed to other climates. "I would not leave a man there; I would give all the treasures of Russia not to leave a single wounded man behind. We must take horses, waggons, carriages—every thing to carry them on. Send me a secretary." The secretary came; it was to write to Mortier what he had just been telling me. It is of use to copy the despatch: these instructions are not unworthy to be known. Those who have so often declaimed against his indifference should study them.

"To the Major-General

"Acquaint the Duke de Treviso, that as soon as his business in Moscow is finished, that is, on the 23d at three o'clock in the morning, he is to begin to march, and that he must come on the 24th to Kubinskoe; and from that place, instead of going to Mojaisk, he is to proceed to Vereia, where he will arrive on the 25th. He will serve as an intermediate force between Mojaisk, where the Duke d'Abrantes is, and Borowsk, where the army will be. It will be right for him to send officers to Fominskoe to inform us of his march; he will take with him the Adjutant-commandant Bourmont, the Bavarians, and the Spaniards who are at the palace of Gallitzin. All the Westphalians of the first and second posts, and all the Westphalians that he can find, he must assemble and direct towards Mojaisk: if they are not in sufficient number, he will protect their passage with the cavalry. The Duke de Treviso will inform the Duke d'Abrantes of every thing relative to the surrender of Moscow. It is necessary that he write to us to-morrow the 22d, not by the road of Desma, but by that of Karapowo and Fominskoe. On the 23d he will send us a letter by the road of Mojaisk: his officer will leave the road at Kubinskoe to come to Fominskoe, as the head-quarters on the 23d are likely to be at Borowsk or at Fominskoe. Whether the Duke de Treviso perform his operation at three o'clock in the morning of to-morrow the 22d, or on the 23d at the same hour, as I have since ordered him, he is in either case to follow these same directions; by these means the Duke de Treviso may be considered as the rear-guard of the army. I cannot too strongly recommend to place on the waggons belonging to the young guard, or those belonging to the dismounted cavalry, in short, on all that can be found, the men who remain still in the hospitals. The Romans gave civic crowns to those who saved citizens; the Duke will deserve as many as he may save soldiers. He must mount them on his horses, and on those of all his people.

"This is what the Emperor did at the siege of Saint-Jean d'Acre. He ought the rather to take this step, because as soon as the convoy shall have joined the army, it will have waggons and horses, which the consumption of provisions will have rendered useless. The Emperor hopes that he shall have the pleasure of thanking the Duke de Treviso, for having saved five hundred men. He ought, as is but just, to begin with the officers, then the sub-officers, and to give the French the preference. He must assemble all the generals and officers, under his command, to make them sensible of the importance of this measure, and how much they will gain the Emperor's esteem, by saving for him five hundred men."

We marched on towards Borusk, where we arrived on the fourth day: the town was completely abandoned. In the mean time, Kutusow was peaceably engaged in issuing his proclamations: he was quite at ease in his camp at Tarentino; he kept up no watch, either on his front or wings; he had no idea at all of the movement we were making. He learned at last, that we were marching towards Kaluga; he soon broke up his cantonments, and appeared at Malojaroslawitz at the same time as our columns. The action began: we heard from Borusk a distant cannonade. I was suffering greatly from my wound, but I would not leave Napoleon: we mounted horse. We arrived towards evening in sight of the field of battle: they were still fighting; but the firing soon ceased. Prince Eugène had forced a position, which must have been defended to extremity. Our troops had covered themselves with glory. It is a day that the army of Italy ought to inscribe in its calendar. Napoleon bivouacked at a league and a half from the scene. The next day we took horse at half-past seven in the morning, to visit the ground on which the battle had been fought; the Emperor was placed between the Duke de Vicenza, Prince de Neuchâtel, and myself. We had scarcely quitted the huts where we had passed the night, when we perceived a cloud of Cossacks; they proceeded from a wood in advance on our right. They were drawn up in pretty regular files: we took them for French cavalry.

The Duke de Vicenza was the first who recognised them. "Sire, these are Cossacks."—"That is impossible," replied Napoleon. They rushed upon us shouting with all their might. I seized the Emperor's horse by the bridle; I turned it round myself. "But these are our troops?"—"They are the Cossacks; make speed."—"They are Cossacks, indeed," said Berthier.—"Without doubt," added Mouton. Napoleon gave some orders and withdrew. I advanced at the head of the squadron on duty: we were overthrown; my horse received a wound six inches deep, from a lance, and fell, with me under him: we were trampled under foot by these barbarians. Fortunately they perceived at some distance a troop of artillery; they ran towards the spot. Marshal Bessières had time to come up, with the horse grenadiers of the guard; he charged them, and retook from them the covered waggons and the pieces of cannon, which they were carrying away. I raised myself again on my legs; I was replaced in my saddle, and proceeded as far as the bivouac. When Napoleon saw my horse covered with blood, he feared that I had again been wounded: he asked me whether I was. I replied that I had got off with a few contusions. He then began to laugh at our adventure, which, nevertheless, I did not find very amusing.

I was well repaid by the account which he published of this affair; he loaded me with eulogiums: I never before experienced pleasure compared to that which I felt on reading the flattering things which he said of me. "General Rapp," says the bulletin, "had one horse killed under him in this charge. The intrepidity of which this general officer has given so many proofs, is manifested on all occasions." I repeat with pride the praises of this great man: I shall never forget them.

We returned to the field of battle: Napoleon wished to visit the place which had been the theatre of Prince Eugène's glory. He found that the position of the Russians had been excellent; he was astonished that they had allowed it to be forced. He perceived, from the appearance of the dead bodies, that the militia had been confounded with the troops of the line, and that if they had not fought with skill, they had gone to it at least with courage. The enemy's army retired some leagues, on the road to Kaluga, and encamped.

The retreat was intercepted: we threw ourselves to the right on Vereia; we arrived there early the next day, and slept there: it was in that town that Napoleon learned that the Kremlin had been blown up. General Winzengerode had not sufficiently restrained his impatience; he had ventured into this capital before our troops had evacuated it. They cut up his retreat; he tried to make them believe that he came to treat with them. He was born on the territory of the Confederation; he had no inclination to be made a prisoner; he was taken nevertheless, in spite of the white handkerchief that he was waving. Napoleon sent for him, and fell into a violent passion, treated him with contempt, branded him with the name of traitor, and threatened to punish him; he even told me that a commission must be named to proceed with the trial of the gentleman immediately; he had him escorted by chosen gendarmes, and ordered him to be confined au secret. Winzengerode sought several times to exculpate himself; but Napoleon would not hear him. It has been pretended in the Russian army that this general spoke with courage, and said very strong things to the Emperor. It is not the fact:—anxiety was marked on his countenance, every thing expressed the disorder of mind into which the Emperor's anger had thrown him. Each of us endeavoured to appease the Emperor; the King of Naples, the Duke de Vicenza particularly, suggested to him how much, in the present situation of things, any violence towards a man who hid his origin under the quality of a Russian general, would be to be lamented: there was no council of war, and the affair rested there. As for us, Winzengerode ought not to complain of our treatment: his situation inspired us all with interest. His aide-de-camp was treated with much kindness. Napoleon asked him his name. "Nareschkin," replied the young officer.—"Nareschkin! one of that name is not made to be the aide-de-camp of a deserter." We were hurt at this want of consideration; we sought every means imaginable to make the general forget it.

CHAPTER XXXIV

We set off the next day; and reached the great road from Moscow by Mojaisk.

The cold, the privations, were extreme; the hour of disasters had come on us! We found our wounded lying dead on the road, and the Russians waiting for us at Viasma. At the sight of these columns the soldiers collected a remnant of energy, fell upon them, and defeated them. But we were harassed by troops animated by abundance, and by hope of plunder. At every step we were obliged to halt, and fight; we slackened our march over a wasted country, which we should have gone over with the greatest rapidity. Cold, hunger, the Cossacks,—every scourge was let loose upon us. The army was sinking under the weight of its misfortunes; the road was strewed with the dead: our sufferings exceeded imagination. How many sick and wounded generals did I meet in this terrible retreat, whom I believed that I should never again see! Of this number was General Friant, whose wounds were still open; General Durosnel, who travelled with a nervous fever, almost continually delirious; and the brave General Belliard, who was wounded by a gun-shot, in the battle of the Moskowa. He had formerly penetrated nearly into Ethiopia; he had carried our colours farther than ever the Roman eagles had flown; he must have found a difference between the two climates.

We marched for Smolensko: it was to have been the end of our miseries; we were to have found there food and clothing, wherewith to defend ourselves from the pests which were consuming us: we were not more than eighteen leagues from it. Napoleon lodged in one of those little block-houses that had been constructed to receive detachments from fifty to sixty men, employed to protect the correspondence and communications. I was on duty: some time had elapsed since any despatches had arrived; at last one came. I delivered it to the Emperor. He opened the parcel with haste; a Moniteur was uppermost. He ran it over; the first article which caught his eye was the enterprise of Mallet; he had not read the despatches, he did not know what it was. "What is this! what! plots! conspiracies!" He opened his letters, they contained the detail of the attempt: he was thunderstruck. That police which knew every thing, which guessed at every thing, had suffered itself to be taken by surprise. Napoleon could not recover himself. "Savary in La Force! The minister of the police arrested, carried to a prison, and there shut up!" I went to transmit some orders. The event had already transpired. Surprise, astonishment were depicted on every countenance; and some reflections were made which till then had been withheld. The carelessness of the agents of the police was manifest. They are only alert because there is a general belief in their vigilance. Napoleon was not astonished that these wretches who frequent saloons and taverns, who obstruct every thing, who insinuate themselves every where, should not have found out the plot; but he could not conceive the weakness of Rovigo. "Why did he not rather let them kill him, than be arrested! Doucet and Hullin showed much more courage."

We proceeded on our journey; we crossed the Borysthenes. The Emperor fixed his head-quarters in a country-house that had been laid waste, twelve leagues from Smolensko, and one and a half behind the river. The banks, on the water-side, are very step in this part; they were covered with hoar frost. Napoleon was afraid that the artillery would not be able to get over them; he charged me to join Ney, who commanded the rear-guard, to remain with him till every thing was out of danger. I found the Marshal engaged in giving chase to the Cossacks: I communicated to him the orders that I had to transmit to him, and we retired to a block-house which was to support the passage, and where the head-quarters were fixed.

A part of the infantry crossed over, the remainder bivouacked in a little wood, on the bank where we were. We were engaged all night in getting the cannon across. The last was on the ascent, when the enemy appeared. They attacked immediately, with considerable masses; we received their charges without being shaken; but our end was attained: we had no object in fighting; we retreated. We left behind a few hundreds of men, whom wounds and exhaustion had put out of a condition to follow. Poor creatures! they complained, they groaned, and called for death; it was a heart-rending sight; but what could we do. Every one was bending under the burthen of life, and supported it with difficulty; no one had sufficient strength to share it with others. The Russians pursued us, they wished to pass by main force. Ney received them with that vigour, that impetuosity, which he always displayed in his attacks: they were repulsed, and the bridge became a prey to the flames. The firing ceased, we withdrew during the night. I joined Napoleon at Smolensko the day after the next in the evening. He knew that a ball had grazed my head, and that another had killed my horse; he observed to me: "You may be at ease now, you will not be killed this campaign."—"I hope that your Majesty may not be deceived; but you often gave the same assurance to poor Lannes, who nevertheless was killed."—"No! no! you will not be killed."—"I believe it; but I may be still frozen to death." The Emperor bestowed eulogiums on Marshal Ney. "What a man! what a soldier! what a vigorous fellow!" He only talked thus by exclamations; he could not find words to express the admiration which this intrepid Marshal inspired him with. The Prince de Neuchâtel entered; the conversation again turned on Mallet and Savary. Napoleon was merry at the expense of the Duke; his surprise, his arrest, were the subject of a thousand pleasantries; of which the burthen always was, that he should rather have been killed, than have allowed himself to be taken.

CHAPTER XXXV

The retreat had been disastrous. Every scourge that Nature has in store we had experienced; but every day brought us nearer to Smolensko: we were to find in that town repose and abundance. We were marching, hope sustained us; she too was going to abandon us; our misfortunes were to be as unheard-of as our victories. The fourth corps lost its cannon; Augereau's brigade was destroyed, and Witepsk taken; we had no more ammunition, or means of subsistence; we were in a frightful situation: it was necessary to be resigned. We put ourselves in motion; we arrived the following day at Krasnoi. Kutusow, who was bearing on us with all his forces, had already an advanced-guard there; it retired at the sight of our soldiers, and took post a league farther on, halting on the left on the borders of a forest, which it covered with fires. Napoleon sent for me, and said—"We have the Russian infantry quite close to us; it is the first time that they have shown so much boldness. I command you to charge them with the bayonet about midnight, surprise them, teach them not to be so desirous to approach so near to my head-quarters. I place at your disposal all that remains of the young guard." I had made all the preparations, I was waiting near the fire of a Polish bivouac till the hour should arrive, when General Narbonne came and said, "Give up your troops to the Duke de Treviso; his Majesty does not wish you to be killed in this affair; he reserves for you another destiny." I received this counter-order with pleasure, I did not conceal it. I was weakened by fatigue, by sufferings, and cold. I was not inclined to march against the enemy; moreover, his Cossacks had already given him the alarm; he was prepared; he received us as well as he could. He was nevertheless beaten and thrown back on his masses, which were in positions parallel to the road, and extended in some sort from Smolensko to Krasnoi; they attacked us in flank, they ought to have been able to defeat us. Fortunately the illusion of our glory still continued; we were protected by the remembrance of our victories. Kutusow saw from a distance our columns which were defiling on the road, but did not venture to attack them. He decided at last on running the risk; but a peasant informed him that Napoleon was at Krasnoi, that the guard occupied all the neighbourhood. This news damped his courage: he revoked the orders that he had despatched.