French invasion of RussiaThe French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon to force the Russian Empire back into the continental blockade of the United Kingdom. Napoleon's invasion of Russia is one of the best studied military campaigns in history and is listed among the most lethal military operations in world history. It is characterized by the massive toll on human life: in less than six months nearly a million soldiers and civilians died.
Grande Armée; ɡʀɑ̃d aʀme) was the main military component of the French Imperial Army commanded by Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte during the Napoleonic Wars. From 1804 to 1808, it won a series of military victories that allowed the French Empire to exercise unprecedented control over most of Europe. Widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest fighting forces ever assembled, it suffered enormous losses during the disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812, after which it never recovered its strategic superiority.
Alexander I of RussiaAlexander I (Aleksandr I Pavlovich, ɐljɪkˈsandr ˈpavləvjɪtɕ; – ), nicknamed "the Blessed", was the emperor of Russia from 1801, the first king of Congress Poland from 1815, and the grand duke of Finland from 1809 to his death in 1825. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son of Grand Duke Paul Petrovich, later Paul I, Alexander succeeded to the throne after his father was murdered. He ruled Russia during the chaotic period of the Napoleonic Wars.
Battle of AusterlitzThe Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important and decisive engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near the town of Austerlitz in the Austrian Empire (modern-day Slavkov u Brna in the Czech Republic). The decisive victory of Napoleon's Grande Armée at Austerlitz brought the War of the Third Coalition to a rapid end, with the Treaty of Pressburg signed by the Austrians later in the month.
Russian EmpireThe Russian Empire, also known as Imperial Russia, was the final period of the Russian monarchy from its proclamation in November 1721, until its dissolution in late 1917. It consisted of most of northern Eurasia. The Empire succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad. The rise of the Russian Empire coincided with the decline of neighbouring rival powers: the Swedish Empire, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Qajar Iran, the Ottoman Empire, and Qing China.
Carl von ClausewitzCarl Philipp Gottfried (or Gottlieb) von Clausewitz (ˌkaʁl fɔn ˈklaʊ̯zəvɪt͡s; 1 June 1780 – 16 November 1831) was a Prussian general and military theorist who stressed the "moral", in modern terms meaning psychological, and political aspects of waging war. His most notable work, Vom Kriege ("On War"), though unfinished at his death, is considered a seminal treatise on military strategy and science. Clausewitz was a realist in many different senses, including realpolitik, and while in some respects a romantic, he also drew heavily on the rationalist ideas of the European Enlightenment.
Battle of LeipzigThe Battle of Leipzig (Bataille de Leipsick; Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ˈfœlkɐˌʃlaxt baɪ̯ ˈlaɪ̯pt͡sɪç; Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations, was fought from 16 to 19 October 1813 at Leipzig, Saxony. The Coalition armies of Austria, Prussia, Sweden, and Russia, led by Tsar Alexander I and Karl von Schwarzenberg, decisively defeated the Grande Armée of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon's army also contained Polish and Italian troops, as well as Germans from the Confederation of the Rhine (mainly Saxony and Württemberg).
Leo TolstoyInfobox writer | name = Leo Tolstoy | image = Лев Толстой (Чертков, 1910) - 0003600121.jpg | alt = | caption = Tolstoy in 1910 by Vladimir Chertkov | pseudonym = | native_name = Лев Николаевич Толстой | birth_date = | birth_place = Yasnaya Polyana, Krapivensky Uyezd, Tula Governorate, Russian Empire | death_date = | death_place = Astapovo, Ranenburgsky Uyezd, Ryazan Governorate, Russian Empire | resting_place = Yasnaya Polyana, Tula | occupation = Writer, religious thinker | language = Russian | citizenship = | education = | alma_mater = Imperial Kazan University (not graduated) | period = Modern | movement = Realism | years_active = 1847–1910 | genres = | subjects = Christian anarchism, pacifism | notableworks = | awards = Griboyedov Prize (1892) | spouse = | children = 14 | parents = | relatives = | signature = Leo Tolstoy signature.
War and PeaceWar and Peace is a literary work by Russian author Leo Tolstoy. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, the work mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. First published serially beginning in 1865, the work was rewritten and published in its entirety in 1869. It is regarded as Tolstoy's finest literary achievement and remains an internationally praised classic of world literature. The novel chronicles the French invasion of Russia and the impact of the Napoleonic era on Tsarist society through the stories of five Russian aristocratic families.
Duchy of WarsawThe Duchy of Warsaw (Księstwo Warszawskie; Duché de Varsovie; Herzogtum Warschau), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. It initially comprised the ethnically Polish lands ceded to France by Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit, and was augmented in 1809 with territory ceded by Austria in the Treaty of Schönbrunn.
