Catch of Moscow

The occupation of Moscow by the army of Napoleon begins the September 14th 1812 and finishes the October 23rd 1812

The entry in the city

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, Napoleon, with his guard and the body, makes his entry in the old capital of the Moscovie. The city is deserted. Its governor, Fédor Rostoptchine, emptied it of any provision.

The following day the Emperor settles with the the Kremlin, the palate of the Tsar S located in the middle of the city. The marshal Mortier is named governor, with order of empécher plundering by all the means. Helps are given to the Russian casualties who encumber the hospitals, as with the Muscovites who did not want to follow the army of Koutousov.

Having taken what he regards as a capital, while basing himself on the rules of the war, Napoleon thinks that the Tsar Alexandre Ier will offer his capitulation to him on the Mont Poklonnaya. An armistice is granted to the Russians and Napoleon, extremely of his triumph, proposes peace with Alexandre. He receives only evasive answers vaguely letting hope for an arrangement, but which arrange the two parts. The French thus have time to take again forces, the Russians await the great colds which will oblige the French to evacuate Russia.

Before the order of evacuation, Moscow had approximately 270.000 inhabitants. The majority evacuated the city and the remainders were given the responsability to burn or conceal last stocks of food to deprive French of them. When Napoleon entered the Kremlin, there remained one the third of the population whose majority were foreign tradesmen, servants or people unable or not wanting to flee. Those Ci kept away from the troops, including the many French community present.

The fire

From September 14th to 18th of the Gregorian Calendar (from September 2nd to 6th of the Calendar Julien), of fires start in Moscow, and devastate the city, built primarily of wood, depriving the French of shelters. With a given signal, fire bursts in thousand places at the same time. It is in vain that the French try to extinguish the fire: the devastation of the flames stops only in the evening of September 20th, when nearly 7.000 houses out of wooden and 4.000 stone-built houses, the nine tenth of the city, are in ashes. 20.000 patients or wounded are victims of this disaster.

The retirement

Occupying a city in ruins, without to have received the Russian capitulation, vis-a-vis a Russian operation pushing it to leave Moscow, Napoleon starts his long retirement on October 18th.

Mortar with order to give up the Kremlin the 23, after having destroyed it, and not to leave behind neither wounded, nor sick. In its retrograde walk, the Large army is constantly badgered by the enemy.

Napoleon estimated later that its error had been not to leave Moscow earlier two weeks and to surprise the army of Koutouzov which camped in the vicinity, with Tarutino. Even if that would not have is enough to overcome Russia immediately, this one would have been then unable to face the French.

Extent of the disaster

Katayeva estimates the losses to the 3/4 of the buildings of the city:

6496 of the 9151 houses of private individual (including 6584 out of wood and 2567 out of bricks)
8251 trade and warehouses (of which most of Kitai-Gorod and of the district of business of Zamoskvorechye)
122 of the 329 churches

One estimates at: the 2000 number of wounded Russian soldiers who perished in the fires. The University of State of Moscow, the Buturlin library, the Petrovsky theaters and Arbatsky were completely destroyed; many works of art, in particular the original of says It campaign of Igor, disappeared forever. The orphanage of Moscow close to Kitai-Gorod, converted into hospital, was saved by the local police. The population of Moscow estimated in 1811 is with: 270000 heart, is of approximately: 215000 residents after the war, (it passes to: 349000 in 1840.

The charts established by the Russian authorities after the war (in particular of the military charts of 1817 reprinted for the public in 1831) show that the majority of the territory of Moscow was destroyed in the fire, except notable for the the Kremlin of Moscow, the orphanage, the northern district of Bely Gorod of the street Tverskaya to the street street Pokrovka, Patriarshy Ponds in the west, as well as establishments of the suburbs.

These charts which probably exaggerate the disaster, show certain districts as if they were destroyed. For example, the street Bolshaya Nikitskaya in the west of the ring road preserves many its intact residences; the occupying troops defend their own residences as well as the French theater and the French colony of Kuznetsky Most. The French even tried to save the Batashov palate, occupied by Murat, but after two days of baited fight, this one was destroyed in the fire of the district of Taganka.

Contrary to the declarations of the general of Marbot which claimed that the fire of Moscow was the leading cause of the failure of the countryside of 1812, the destruction of Moscow was not so total, so that it does not remain sufficient houses, of palate, churches or barracks to accommodate the whole of the army. Of more than many units were stationed apart from the city, in distant areas like the suburbs Ostankino (light cavalry) or Khimki (Italian body), others were sent to the south to make stoppings with the movements of the Russians.

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