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Welcome to the Age of Napoleon, Episode 102,

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Benigson's Gamble. Thanks

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we last left the narrative in early June 1807,

1:07

about four months after the harrowing

1:09

ordeal of Ilau. Napoleon

1:12

and the Grande Armée were in the province of East Prussia,

1:14

slightly north of the former border

1:17

with the Polish Commonwealth.

1:19

They had just fought another brutal battle

1:21

against the main coalition field army under

1:23

Count Levin August von Bennigsen, this

1:26

time at the town of Heilsburg, on the banks

1:28

of the Ala River.

1:30

Like most of the other major engagements of this campaign,

1:33

the fighting had been inconclusive.

1:36

However, although Napoleon had failed to

1:38

trap Bennigsen's army or inflict a major

1:40

defeat, the dynamics of the war had changed

1:43

since the cold, punishing winter.

1:45

The French had improved their supply and logistics

1:48

systems, enabling Napoleon to bring

1:50

more troops into the zone of combat.

1:53

He had scoured his empire for experienced

1:56

soldiers to rebuild his depleted field

1:58

army, and brought in more units.

1:59

units from Eastern Germany.

2:01

Now the Emperor had nearly 200,000 men at his

2:04

disposal.

2:07

Ennigsen had received reinforcements as well,

2:09

but they had been far fewer. He could

2:11

only call on about 100,000 men.

2:14

The previous winter, French and coalition

2:16

forces had been more or less evenly matched.

2:19

Now Napoleon enjoyed a decisive

2:22

numerical advantage.

2:23

Although in this poor country, with a

2:25

limited infrastructure network, he was

2:28

forced to keep his army spread out.

2:31

At Heilzburg, the coalition forces

2:33

had managed to stop the Grande Armée and

2:36

inflicted some serious casualties,

2:38

then retreated from the battlefield on their

2:40

own initiative in good order.

2:43

While

2:43

they had failed to gain a clear victory, Heilzburg

2:46

was not a bad result for the coalition army.

2:48

Their troops had fought well, they had held on

2:50

to their positions, and inflicted more casualties

2:53

on the French than they had suffered themselves.

2:56

However, if we zoom out and look at the broader

2:59

strategic picture, this relatively

3:01

good result had not done much to

3:03

improve Beniksen's position. With

3:06

Napoleon's 2-1 advantage and manpower,

3:08

the casualties at Heilzburg were actually proportionally

3:11

worse for the coalition army. Beniksen

3:14

had been forced to retreat to the right bank

3:16

of the Alla, placing the river between

3:18

his forces and the Grande Armée.

3:20

This got Napoleon off his back, but

3:23

it placed his army in a difficult position.

3:25

Heilzburg is almost

3:27

exactly due south of Königsberg,

3:30

the main base of operations for the coalition forces

3:32

in this region, and the only remaining

3:34

major city in Prussia still free from

3:36

French occupation.

3:38

As you may remember from previous episodes,

3:41

Königsberg was the great prize

3:43

of this phase of the war.

3:45

Almost all of the Grande Armée's movements over

3:47

the past six months had been aimed at

3:49

either taking the city or cutting off

3:51

Beniksen's connection to it.

3:54

As the two armies stood after Heilzburg,

3:57

Napoleon had a straight shot to the city.

4:00

due north, along a major road. It

4:02

was summer, and the conditions were finally right

4:04

for rapid movement. The coalition

4:07

army was on the right bank of the Alla, which

4:09

meanders north-northwest to the Baltic.

4:12

To use a racing metaphor, the French were

4:14

on the inside track. Beniksen

4:17

would have little hope of preventing Napoleon

4:19

from reaching Königsberg unless he crossed

4:21

back over to the left bank.

4:24

And so, for the first time in over half a

4:26

year, Napoleon and his army found

4:28

themselves in a very favorable position,

4:31

only about 80 kilometers or 50 miles

4:34

from the great prize of Königsberg, with

4:36

superior forces, and the enemy field

4:38

army in no position to stop them.

4:41

The few enemy units standing between the

4:43

Grande Armée and the city were mostly

4:45

weak and disorganized. Beniksen's

4:48

army abandoned their positions around Heilzburg

4:51

on June 12th, two days after the battle.

4:54

This was a blow to the men's morale.

4:57

A lot of sweat had gone into building

4:59

the field fortifications around the town,

5:01

and a lot of blood had been shed defending

5:03

them. It must have been galling

5:05

to simply abandon this position to the

5:08

enemy.

5:09

However, with Marshall de Vue marching around

5:11

his flank, Beniksen had little choice.

5:13

French

5:16

occupied the town, and Napoleon began

5:18

moving his units north. The race

5:20

to Königsberg was on.

5:22

The emperor believed Beniksen would cross

5:25

the Alla at some point south of Königsberg

5:27

to make one last attempt to prevent

5:30

the Grande Armée from reaching the city.

5:32

Studying his maps, he even had a rough

5:34

idea of where they might do this. Napoleon

5:37

hoped to forestall Beniksen, to

5:40

get to Königsberg before the enemy had

5:42

a chance to stop him, and maybe even

5:44

take the city by storm before

5:46

the coalition forces had time to react.

5:48

Some historians

5:51

have criticized Bonaparte for allowing

5:53

his units to become too spread out, but in

5:56

the days after Heilsberg, speed

5:58

was everything.

8:00

The Russian commander surveyed the ground around

8:02

Friedland, and liked what he saw.

8:05

The town itself was quite small, sitting

8:07

in a big lazy bend of the Otto River.

8:10

The land rose up from the river in a gentle

8:12

slope. Outside Friedland was

8:14

a mill pond with a small stream leading

8:16

back to the river, a few small

8:19

outlying settlements, and a forest. But

8:21

mostly, this area was just rolling

8:23

fields of grain.

8:25

It being early summer, the crops were about

8:27

waist-high, but that was no serious obstacle

8:30

to a marching army. A

8:32

plan began to emerge.

8:34

What if, instead of racing for Königsberg,

8:37

the coalition army could quickly cross

8:39

over the Alla, overwhelm Marshal

8:41

Lahn's weakened corps with superior numbers,

8:44

then cross back over to safety before

8:46

the French had time to react?

8:49

Remember, Beningsson had tried something similar

8:51

a week earlier, at the Battle of Guchtat-Depen,

8:54

where he had tried to isolate and pin

8:56

down Marshal Ney's corps.

8:58

That battle had been a failure, due to poor

9:00

planning and execution, but the overall

9:02

strategy had been sound. Napoleon

9:05

had a manpower advantage of nearly 2-1. If

9:08

Beningsson hoped to even the odds, he

9:10

needed to seize any opportunity to

9:12

attack isolated French units.

9:15

With the Grande Armée pushing north with

9:17

all possible speed,

9:19

attacking this single understrength

9:21

corps at Friedland, far south

9:23

of the main spearhead of the Grande Armée, would

9:25

be the last thing Napoleon expected.

9:28

The idea was inventive, bold,

9:30

and backed up by some solid strategic

9:33

thinking.

9:34

However, there were two absolutely huge

9:36

downsides.

9:37

First and foremost, attacking Lahn

9:40

outside Friedland would mean breaking

9:42

one of the cardinal rules of warfare. The

9:44

coalition army would be fighting with their backs

9:46

to a river.

9:48

If things went wrong, it would be very

9:50

difficult, maybe even impossible,

9:52

to get all of the army back over the Alla

9:54

to safety.

9:55

Bridges over the river would be like an Achilles

9:58

heel for the entire army.

9:59

the French somehow turned the tables

10:02

and captured or destroyed those bridges,

10:04

Beniksen's entire force might be

10:06

annihilated.

10:08

Second, the Russians did not actually

10:10

know much about the disposition of the Grande Armée.

10:13

This whole idea was predicated on

10:15

the fact that Lon's Corps was isolated,

10:18

but Beniksen did not actually know how

10:20

isolated it was.

10:21

Were the nearest major French units a

10:24

few hours march away, or a few

10:26

days march away? In a battle like

10:28

this, that could be the difference between a victory

10:31

that changes the course of a campaign and

10:33

a complete disaster that destroys the army.

10:37

With the coalition field army outnumbered

10:40

and Napoleon bearing down on their base

10:42

at Königsberg, the war seemed

10:44

to be turning in France's favour.

10:46

Beniksen had to do something to shift the

10:48

momentum. He decided to roll the dice

10:50

and attack Lon.

10:52

Less than a week earlier, Napoleon had written,

10:55

quote,

10:55

everything has the air of an impending massive

10:58

blow, end quote. He

11:00

didn't know it yet, but that blow would

11:02

come at Friedland.

11:04

Beniksen himself was in awful

11:07

shape.

11:07

As you may remember from last episode, he

11:10

was suffering badly from a mystery

11:12

ailment, probably a kidney stone.

11:15

This was still causing him incredible pain.

11:17

He couldn't even mount a horse.

11:19

Emperor Alexander's representative with

11:22

the army had actually already discussed

11:24

temporarily replacing him, but these plans

11:26

had not been put into effect.

11:29

The combination of constant pain and

11:31

constant physical activity had taken a

11:33

toll.

11:34

Beniksen had kept a punishing schedule

11:36

over the past few weeks.

11:38

He was 62 years old and

11:40

dealing with a severe medical condition.

11:42

No surprise, he was completely

11:44

exhausted.

11:45

The coming battle would not see him in top

11:48

form.

11:49

But if his officers questioned his judgement,

11:51

they kept it to themselves.

11:53

Russian engineers began assembling all

11:56

of the army's prefabricated temporary

11:58

bridges at Friedland.

12:00

This would maximize the speed at which he could

12:02

move his forces back and forth over the Alla,

12:05

but it also meant there would be no

12:07

possibility of building new bridges

12:10

if the position at Friedland fell to the French.

12:12

Beniksen was going all in on this

12:14

attack. For the Coalition Army, it

12:17

would be victory or death.

12:20

Napoleon and the rest of the French leadership

12:23

still had no idea.

12:24

They were fixated on Königsberg and

12:26

assumed any confrontation with Beniksen

12:29

and the enemy field army would come in the north,

12:31

near the city. As

12:33

the Russian engineers built their bridges at

12:35

Friedland, the few remaining coalition

12:38

forces on the left bank of the Alla were

12:40

engaged in desperate fighting.

12:42

The Prussian General, Lestak, and

12:44

his Chief of Staff, the very capable Colonel

12:46

Scharnhorst, took it upon themselves

12:48

to organize these forces and led

12:51

them in a desperate fighting retreat,

12:53

trying to hold off the advancing French

12:55

as they fell back towards Königsberg.

12:58

They actually did a very good job, all things

13:00

considered, but there was simply no stopping

13:02

the tidal wave of advancing French troops.

13:05

By

13:05

the afternoon of June 13th, Marshal

13:08

Murat's advance units had reached

13:10

the outskirts of Königsberg.

13:12

They attempted to storm the city, but

13:14

coalition forces fell back behind the

13:16

walls and were able to hold them off. Meanwhile

13:20

to the south, Beniksen's engineers completed

13:22

their bridges and the bulk of his forces

13:25

began assembling along the banks of the Alla,

13:27

waiting their turn to cross.

13:30

It had been a punishing two days for

13:32

the Coalition Army. Some units had

13:34

covered over 54 kilometers, or 34

13:37

miles, in less than 48 hours.

13:40

There had been no time to issue rations.

13:42

The disheartening retreat

13:45

from Heilzburg was still fresh

13:47

in everyone's minds.

13:49

Were they really prepared to risk the entire

13:51

campaign on a single lightning

13:53

attack?

13:54

On the other hand, as you know, this army

13:56

had proved it could persevere through

13:59

terrible hardship.

14:00

Ready or not, the crossing would soon begin.

14:05

Just as those captured French cavalry troopers

14:07

had said, Marshal L'Enne and his reserve

14:09

corps were now in the area just west of

14:12

Friedland.

14:12

It didn't take long for their light cavalry

14:15

scouts to notice enemy activity

14:17

in the town.

14:19

L'Enne still did not know Beniksen's entire

14:21

army was waiting just across the river,

14:23

but his scouts had seen enough to warrant

14:26

a message to the Emperor, warning

14:28

him that a significant number of enemy troops

14:30

were crossing the Alla at Friedland.

14:33

Napoleon received this message just before 9

14:36

in the evening.

14:37

This information put him in a bind.

14:39

If this was the entire enemy field

14:41

army moving to attack L'Enne, he

14:43

would need to get reinforcements to Friedland

14:45

as quickly as possible, to prevent

14:48

the reserve corps from being overwhelmed.

14:51

However, if this was only a small limited

14:53

offensive or a raid, it might

14:55

draw the Grande Armée away from Königsberg

14:58

at the key moment. And

15:00

so Napoleon would take a middle course,

15:02

diverting some units towards Friedland

15:05

while maintaining the drive north towards

15:07

Königsberg.

15:09

Here's how he explained the situation in

15:11

his response to Marshal L'Enne.

15:15

Your staff officer arrived here a moment ago,

15:17

but cannot give me sufficient information to

15:19

let me know whether it is the entire enemy

15:21

army that is deploying through Friedland, or

15:23

only apart. In any case,

15:26

Grouchy's division is already on the road, and

15:28

when he reaches you, he will immediately assume

15:30

command of the cavalry under your orders.

15:33

Marshal Mortier is also sending off his

15:35

cavalry in support of yours, and is about

15:37

to move off with his whole corps.

15:40

According to the news I receive, I may also

15:42

send Marshal L'Enne to your aid first thing

15:45

in the morning.

15:46

If, from the information extracted from your captives,

15:49

you are certain the enemy is not in force,

15:51

I expect you to attack Friedland

15:54

and make yourself master of this important position.

15:57

Write to me every two hours, send

15:59

me prisoners in terror.

15:59

reports.

16:03

So as you can see Napoleon was keeping

16:05

his options open, but as of yet,

16:07

he did not believe Beniksan was deploying

16:10

his entire force at Friedland,

16:12

although the Emperor was open to the possibility

16:15

that he was wrong and was already preparing

16:17

contingencies.

16:19

The Russians began crossing the river in earnest

16:21

after nightfall, hoping to mask their

16:24

numbers. By sunrise, there

16:26

were about 10,000 coalition troops

16:28

on the left bank of the river, with more arriving

16:30

by the minute.

16:32

The battle had not yet begun, but already

16:35

the numbers were not looking good for the coalition.

16:38

Beniksan was planning to quickly overwhelm

16:41

L'Anne with superior numbers, before

16:43

other French units had time to arrive. However,

16:46

unbeknownst to the Russian leadership, the

16:49

first French reinforcements had actually already

16:51

reached Marshal L'Anne,

16:53

a group of several thousand cavalry under

16:55

General Grouchy.

16:57

And so, as the two forces stood at sunrise,

17:00

the French actually had a slight

17:02

numerical advantage – 10,000 coalition

17:04

troops versus about 12,000 French.

17:08

Of course, Beniksan's reinforcements

17:11

were much closer – the rest of his army

17:13

was just across the river, waiting their turn

17:15

to cross.

17:16

However, they were finding it much more difficult

17:19

to get into position than their commanders had

17:21

anticipated. The narrow streets

17:23

of Friedland created a bottleneck, leading

17:25

to traffic jams on the bridges.

17:28

Once they finally got out of the town, they

17:30

discovered that the outlying terrain was

17:32

not quite as easy and open

17:35

as it had looked through Beniksan's spyglass.

17:38

The slope up from the riverbank

17:41

was quite gradual, but there was,

17:43

in fact, a significant difference in elevation.

17:46

The French held the high ground, and

17:48

the coalition units had to move uphill

17:50

to get into position.

17:52

Those gently rolling waves of grain,

17:55

Beniksan had observed from the other bank, turned

17:57

out to be covering up a broken landscape.

18:00

crisscrossed by ravines, gullies,

18:02

and hills.

18:04

That picturesque little country mill

18:06

stream was closer to a river.

18:08

It was fordable, but any unit crossing

18:11

it would have to slow down, break formation,

18:14

and then reform on the other side,

18:16

and it cut right through the center

18:18

of the position Beniksen was hoping to occupy.

18:21

Once the coalition army got into position,

18:24

it would be effectively split down the middle.

18:27

All told, there was actually only

18:29

a single narrow strip of open

18:31

country on the entire battlefield, about

18:33

half a mile, or 800 meters wide.

18:37

These were far from ideal conditions

18:39

for rapid movement. Nonetheless,

18:41

by now the die was cast. There

18:43

would be a battle outside Friedland on

18:46

the 14th of June, 1807.

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19:59

good reasons to start the day

20:01

with an attack. He wanted to expand

20:03

his bridgehead and engage the French, to

20:05

keep them pinned down in the vicinity of Friedland.

20:08

However, he warned his generals not

20:10

to push too hard. Beniksen

20:13

didn't want to drive the French from the battlefield

20:15

before he had a chance to launch his killing

20:17

blow, and he wouldn't be ready for that until

20:20

more of his army had crossed the Alla. If

20:22

the Russian generals pushed too hard, they

20:24

might miss their chance to destroy Lance Corps.

20:28

And so the Russian generals used extreme

20:30

caution, pulling their punches, and

20:32

declining to exploit their successes.

20:35

In fact, they may have actually been too cautious.

20:38

Watching these early enemy attacks, it

20:40

was immediately clear to the French leadership

20:42

that Beniksen was planning something, something

20:45

much bigger than a raid across the river.

20:48

Shortly after the attack began, two of Beniksen's

20:51

senior staff officers were wounded by

20:53

a near miss from a French artillery shell,

20:55

and had to be rushed off the battlefield.

20:58

Remember, Beniksen himself could

21:01

barely move. He was relying on

21:03

his staff to act for him on the front

21:05

lines. Losing two of his best

21:07

men at the very beginning of the battle was

21:09

a handicap for the coalition command structure.

21:12

The early fighting

21:14

was perhaps most intense in the northern

21:16

sector of the battlefield, along the left

21:19

of the French line, commanded by General

21:21

Emmanuel Gruschi, and on the right of

21:23

the Russian lines, commanded by General

21:25

Alexei Gorchikov.

21:28

As was often the case in Napoleonic

21:30

battles, much of the action in this area

21:32

focused on the only nearby settlement,

21:35

a small village called Heinrichstorf.

21:37

It was occupied by

21:39

French cuirassiers, but they were taken by surprise

21:42

when a large unit of Gorchikov's cossacks

21:45

galloped into the village. Many were cut

21:47

down, and the survivors fled in panic.

21:50

A small group of dismounted Frenchmen

21:52

were able to barricade themselves inside

21:54

the local inn and hold off the cossacks,

21:57

like something out of a western. With

22:00

his men falling back, the local French

22:02

commander General Nance-Soutis ordered

22:04

a retreat. His superior,

22:06

General Grouchy, was furious, and rode

22:09

out among the retreating heavy cavalry, trying

22:11

to countermand the order and rally the

22:13

men, but it was no use. Grouchy

22:16

rode back to his headquarters, and was soon met

22:18

by a messenger from the overall French commander,

22:20

Marshal Lain. The messenger told

22:23

him that the rest of the line was under severe

22:25

pressure, there could be no reinforcements,

22:28

and not only that, Grouchy and his troops

22:30

had to hold this position, to the last

22:33

man, or the entire force would

22:35

be outflanked.

22:37

Grouchy mostly had cavalry at his disposal,

22:40

and so, despite the odds, he decided

22:42

to attack.

22:43

He began preparing several units of Derguns

22:46

to charge towards Heinrichstorf. Hopefully

22:49

they could retake the village, and knock

22:51

the wind out of the enemy attack.

22:54

By now, the Russian Cossacks had been reinforced

22:56

by regular cavalry, several units

22:58

of Ullands, armed with lances.

23:01

As the French Derguns trotted forward, the

23:04

Ullands and some of the Cossacks rode out

23:06

to meet them.

23:07

Grouchy's Derguns advanced in a narrow

23:09

column, then fanned out at the last

23:12

minute.

23:13

The Russians didn't realize they were badly

23:15

outnumbered until it was far too late.

23:18

The French charge slammed home, and

23:20

the two forces engaged in hand-to-hand

23:22

combat. The outnumbered

23:24

Russians got the worst of it, and soon

23:27

the surviving Ullands and Cossacks

23:29

began looking for an exit. However,

23:31

the French were able to drive them against a wooden

23:33

fence on the outskirts of the village, and

23:36

many were cut down. Grouchy's

23:38

troopers were only gaining

23:40

momentum.

23:41

By now, the French heavy cavalry who had retreated

23:43

at the beginning of the battle were reforming

23:46

and joining the fight. Heinrich

23:48

Storf was retaken, and the French began

23:50

building barricades in the streets against

23:52

future attacks.

23:55

On the other side of the lines, General Gorchikov

23:57

launched a counterattack.

23:59

More cavalry.

23:59

but this time with infantry support.

24:03

This type of combined arms attack

24:05

could have done some real damage against a force

24:07

that was almost entirely cavalry, but

24:10

Gruschi was able to separate the Russian

24:12

horsemen from their infantry with a feign to

24:14

retreat, then countercharge them.

24:17

The ensuing fight caused horrible casualties

24:19

on both sides, but succeeded

24:21

in blunting the coalition advance.

24:25

Closer to the village, the Russian General

24:27

von Pollan led his men in a charge

24:29

against a group of French cuirassiers.

24:32

Pollan was a bold man, and led

24:34

from the front, galloping far ahead of his

24:36

troopers.

24:37

A brave French cuirassier rode out

24:39

to meet him, and the two engaged in single

24:42

combat.

24:43

Pollan slashed the cuirassier's face

24:45

with his sabre,

24:46

but the Frenchman ducked his head so

24:48

the blow landed on his helmet instead.

24:51

This took real toughness, getting whacked

24:54

in the head by roughly two pounds,

24:56

or a kilogram of steel by a man

24:58

on a galloping horse does not feel good,

25:01

even if it is only a glancing blow.

25:03

As the French cuirassier ducked, he lunged

25:05

forward with his heavy straight sword, catching

25:08

General Pollan in the torso.

25:10

The Russian commander seemed badly hit.

25:13

He staggered, then tried to wheel his horse

25:15

around to ride back to safety,

25:17

but it was too late. The French cuirassier

25:20

lunged forward again, this time running

25:22

him through, with such force that

25:24

Pollan's horse was wounded as well.

25:28

Seeing their general fall seems to have galvanized

25:30

the Russian horsemen, because they charged home

25:33

with a terrible ferocity, scattering

25:35

the French cuirassiers. However,

25:37

Gorchikov did not move forward any

25:39

of his infantry to exploit the gap, and

25:42

the moment soon passed.

25:45

Lombat continued like this in the northern

25:47

sector for hours, dominated by

25:49

cavalry, a non-stop back-and-forth

25:52

of charge and countercharge.

25:54

A Russian light cavalry officer said

25:56

that at Friedland his men were not hussars,

25:59

but eagles. Eagles

26:01

or not, the Coalition forces were

26:04

not able to retake Heinrich Storf.

26:07

General Gershies' bold charge had

26:09

saved the French left flank.

26:11

After the battle, Napoleon would be so

26:14

pleased with his performance he would make him

26:16

a Marshal of France.

26:19

Slightly to the south, there was a similar struggle

26:21

underway at another small village, Post-Anon.

26:25

A French officer described the action, quote.

26:28

The Grenadier Division

26:30

under General Udoinot, supported by General

26:32

Gershies' dragoons, had been engaged

26:35

since daybreak opposite the village of

26:37

Post-Anon, by way of which the Russians

26:39

were endeavouring to deploy, with a view

26:41

to a vigorous attack on us. Many

26:44

charges of cavalry had taken place on the

26:47

flanks of the village, whilst our infantry

26:49

had been driven from it five or six times

26:51

after taking possession of it. From

26:54

every one of these charges, our cuirassiers

26:56

brought back many prisoners, but the

26:58

enemy, still supposing they had but the

27:00

small body of men they could see to deal with,

27:03

directed a furious cannonade upon the

27:05

place.

27:06

End quote.

27:08

The southern quarter of the battlefield, along

27:11

the French right and Coalition left, was

27:13

dominated by woods, an area

27:15

known as the Sautlac Forest.

27:18

This type of terrain was the natural habitat

27:21

of the light infantry.

27:22

Napoleon's light infantry, the famous Voltigiers

27:25

of the Grand Armée, were known as some of the

27:27

best skirmishers in the world, but

27:30

light infantry tactics were not exactly

27:32

a specialty of the Russian army.

27:35

The coalition forces had superior numbers

27:37

in this sector, but whenever they cleared the

27:39

forest of the French, the Voltigiers would

27:41

simply reform and infiltrate

27:43

back into the woods, using the difficult

27:46

terrain to conceal their movements. Using

27:49

these tactics, a group of under

27:51

a thousand French light infantry were able

27:54

to hold off more than three times as many

27:56

Russians.

27:57

Finally, the local Russian commander

27:59

prints back Bagration called forward the

28:01

Siberian Jaeger Regiment, one of

28:03

the best light infantry units in the army,

28:06

but the Siberians chose to eschew

28:08

light infantry tactics. Instead of quietly

28:11

infiltrating the forest, they charged

28:13

Riot in with fixed bayonets, and

28:15

were finally able to take the position

28:17

for the coalition.

28:20

Bagration and his men had finally

28:22

achieved their first objective,

28:24

but it had come at a terrible cost. Not

28:26

only had it taken far longer and been

28:28

far bloodier than anyone had imagined, both

28:31

of Bagration's senior subordinates,

28:34

Generals Bagavot and Markov, had

28:36

been badly wounded and had to be taken

28:38

off the field.

28:40

Russian command and control in this area

28:42

would suffer for the rest of the day.

28:45

By now, there had been hard fighting around Friedland

28:47

for several hours, and Marshal Lahn's

28:50

officers reported more and more Russian

28:52

units appearing on the battlefield.

28:55

It was becoming clear to the French leadership

28:57

that something very serious was underway,

28:59

and they might be in grave danger if they were

29:01

not reinforced soon. At

29:03

around seven in the morning, Lahn turned

29:06

to one of his aides and told him, quote, Ride

29:09

your horse into the ground if you have

29:11

to, but tell the Emperor we're fighting

29:13

the entire Russian army, end quote.

29:16

Napoleon's

29:17

response indicated that

29:19

he had redirected more forces towards Friedland,

29:22

and that more French units would arrive on the battlefield

29:24

imminently.

29:25

However, he remained skeptical that the

29:27

entire Russian army was concentrating

29:30

at Friedland.

29:31

This would not be the first time a subordinate

29:33

under pressure from the enemy had overestimated

29:36

the size of the opposing force.

29:38

But Lahn and his senior officers could

29:41

see the masses of Russian troops with their

29:43

own eyes, and at least some of them were

29:45

growing impatient with Napoleon's skepticism.

29:48

One of Lahn's subordinates, General Nicolas

29:51

Udineau, wrote in his next report to the

29:53

Emperor, quote, Even my little

29:55

eyes can see this is the whole Russian

29:58

army, end quote.

29:59

Udunno did in fact have beady little

30:02

eyes.

30:03

The Emperor was still not entirely convinced,

30:05

but by now he himself was on his way

30:08

to Friedland.

30:09

Within a few hours, he would see for himself.

30:13

Meanwhile, back on the battlefield, Marshal

30:15

Lannes ordered his men to use the tall

30:17

fields of crops as camouflage,

30:19

to move back and forth in the face of the enemy,

30:22

to make it appear they were stronger than they really

30:24

were,

30:25

and hopefully to deter Beniksen

30:27

from attacking the French centre, which was critically

30:30

weakened after sending reinforcements to

30:32

both flanks.

30:34

This was the period of greatest danger

30:36

for Lannes and his men.

30:38

They had received some reinforcements,

30:40

mostly cavalry, who obviously could

30:42

get to the battlefield much faster than infantry.

30:44

By nine in the morning, Lannes

30:47

had about 17,000 men at his disposal,

30:49

about half infantry and half cavalry.

30:52

However, on the other side of the lines, Beniksen's

30:55

troops were finally starting to move a

30:57

little more efficiently. The

30:59

combination of daylight and the

31:01

expanding bridgehead around Friedland enabled

31:03

their units to get across the river and into

31:05

position much more quickly.

31:08

By nine o'clock, Beniksen had about 45,000

31:10

men across the Alla,

31:13

an advantage of nearly three to one.

31:16

These were the types of numbers Beniksen needed

31:18

if he wanted to realise his plan

31:20

of a quick, overwhelming assault on

31:22

Lannes.

31:23

However, as his men advanced, they struggled

31:26

to gain momentum.

31:27

They were moving uphill, often over broken

31:30

ground, towards an enemy they could not clearly

31:32

see.

31:33

They were repeatedly charged by French

31:35

cavalry, forcing them to stop

31:37

and form squares, then reform

31:40

their assault columns before they could continue

31:42

the attack.

31:43

According to Russian intelligence, Lannes'

31:46

corps included some of the weakest and

31:48

most depleted units in the whole Grande

31:50

Armée, but the French were fighting tenaciously.

31:54

Lannes and his men wore under tremendous pressure,

31:57

but with their enemies

31:59

advantages of high ground and good

32:02

terrain,

32:03

Lon was able to shuffle his units

32:05

around, to meet the enemy with

32:07

almost equal force wherever they appeared.

32:11

It must have been incredibly frustrating for the Russian

32:13

leadership. They had a 3-1

32:15

advantage over the enemy, but somehow,

32:18

whenever they pressed the attack, the French

32:20

had the manpower to hold them off.

32:23

Meanwhile, there were now tens of thousands

32:26

of French troops on the march, all

32:28

converging on Friedland.

32:30

The window in which Beniksen would enjoy

32:32

this numerical advantage would be very

32:34

small, and as his army struggled

32:37

to make any headway, that window

32:39

was already beginning to close.

32:43

Marcelin Marbeau, a young French

32:45

staff officer who we've quoted from in many

32:47

past episodes, had recently been transferred

32:50

to Marshal Lon's staff. At

32:52

around this time, Lon sent him to

32:54

the rear with another update for the Emperor.

32:57

Marbeau found Napoleon and his staff

32:59

on the road, and described the Emperor's

33:02

mood. Quote, I

33:04

found him radiating joy.

33:06

He placed me beside him, and as we

33:08

galloped onward, I explained what

33:10

had taken place before my departure from the

33:12

battlefield.

33:13

End quote. He then relates

33:16

a conversation he had with Napoleon. Quote,

33:19

When

33:19

my tale was told, the Emperor asked

33:21

me, smiling,

33:23

How good is your memory?

33:25

Passably sire.

33:27

Well then, what anniversary is today?

33:29

The 14th June? That

33:32

of Meringo?

33:33

Yes, yes, that of Meringo,

33:36

and I am going to beat the Russians, just

33:38

as I beat the Austrians.

33:40

End quote.

33:42

Marbeau then finishes the anecdote. Quote,

33:45

Napoleon was so convinced about this that

33:47

as he passed the columns, whose soldiers

33:49

saluted him with numerous cheers, he repeatedly

33:52

called out,

33:53

Today is a happy day. It is the

33:55

anniversary of Meringo.

33:57

End quote. Perhaps

33:59

not. the most appropriate attitude to

34:01

take, with thousands of people losing

34:04

their lives and being horribly maimed

34:06

with every passing hour. But after

34:08

fruitlessly chasing Beniksen and his army

34:11

for the better part of a year, perhaps we

34:13

can't blame the Emperor for feeling a little

34:15

joy, now that the end of this ruinous

34:17

war might finally be coming into sight.

34:21

Marboze is just one of several

34:23

accounts that describe Napoleon repeating

34:26

this line about the Battle of Morango. Bonaparte

34:29

really did believe in lucky dates, and

34:31

the idea of a repeat performance exactly

34:34

seven years after Morango seems

34:36

to have excited him. Just

34:39

after nine in the morning, Marshal Edouard

34:41

Mortier and his staff arrived on the battlefield,

34:44

followed by just under 13,000 men

34:47

of VIII Corps of the Grande Armée, one

34:49

division of veteran French troops and

34:51

one of Poles, members of the old

34:54

Polish Legion, bolstered by ex-insurgents

34:57

who had risen up against the Prussians and Russians

34:59

in the Greater Poland Uprising the previous

35:02

autumn.

35:03

These men were very tired, they had been

35:05

marching since one in the morning,

35:07

but they were ready to fight and went right

35:10

into action.

35:11

The mood was beginning to change in

35:13

the French lines.

35:15

Throughout the morning they had been focused on

35:17

survival, now it was beginning

35:19

to look like they had the chance to win a victory.

35:21

The first of Mortier's

35:24

infantry to arrive were his French veterans.

35:27

L'Enne ordered them to take up positions in

35:29

the center, the weakest part of his line.

35:32

Unfortunately for the French, the arrival

35:34

of these new troops only provoked the Russians,

35:37

who immediately launched an assault and

35:39

pushed them back considerably before they

35:41

finally ran out of steam.

35:43

Crucially, these charging Russian infantry

35:45

captured several French prisoners, who

35:48

were taken back to coalition headquarters

35:50

and interrogated. Beniksen

35:52

was now aware that Lon had received

35:54

significant reinforcements, and so

35:57

he began shifting his forces to a defensive.

35:59

There

36:02

were now over 30,000 French

36:04

troops deployed around Friedland.

36:06

Beniksen's numerical advantage had shrunk

36:08

dramatically, and Napoleon's

36:11

men occupied the better positions.

36:13

Beniksen had planned to quickly overwhelm

36:16

Lonn before any significant reinforcements

36:18

could arrive. There had been a

36:20

window of time in which the Russian army theoretically

36:23

had the numbers to make that plan work, but

36:26

with the difficult terrain and tenacious

36:29

French resistance, they had made little progress.

36:32

Now, after only a few hours, that

36:35

window was slamming shut.

36:38

Meanwhile, Mortier's Polish units were

36:40

moving into position.

36:41

They were urged on by their commander, General

36:44

Jan Henrik Dombrowski, who had

36:46

led them through Italy and back to their homeland.

36:49

Dombrowski had actually been wounded in the leg,

36:52

and the blood was dripping down his boot,

36:55

but he refused medical attention. He

36:57

called out to his soldiers, quote, Come

36:59

on, boys, come on. The reaping

37:01

is beginning. March, march, Poles.

37:04

Don't be downcast. Do your best, end

37:07

quote.

37:08

Dombrowski could see what was becoming clear

37:10

to many of the French officers and soldiers

37:13

outside Friedland. Lonn and his men

37:15

had weathered the storm, and the momentum

37:17

of the battle was shifting.

37:19

With Beniksen's forces moving onto the defensive,

37:22

by about 11 in the morning, the battle had

37:24

entered a lull.

37:25

There was still a lot of cannon fire, and

37:28

sniping, and low-intensity fighting

37:30

between small groups of skirmishers, but

37:32

no real action to speak of.

37:34

The coalition attacks had all run out of steam,

37:37

and the French were busy arranging their units,

37:40

incorporating all these fresh reinforcements

37:42

into the line.

37:43

The numbers were now more or less even, just

37:46

shy of 50,000 men on each side.

37:49

Napoleon himself arrived on the battlefield

37:51

shortly before noon.

37:52

Despite a huge amount of circumstantial

37:55

evidence and unanimous reports, he

37:57

was still not totally convinced the

37:59

entire

37:59

enemy army was attacking at Friedland.

38:02

I think at this stage he was overestimating

38:05

his opponent. He simply could not

38:07

believe Beniksen might have been so reckless

38:09

as to risk his entire army, perhaps

38:12

even the outcome of the war, on

38:14

this dubious attack.

38:16

As they approached the battlefield, the Emperor and

38:18

his staff were greeted by General Udunno,

38:21

who had been leading troops along Lon's right

38:23

flank since the morning.

38:25

Udunno looked like hell. He had been in

38:27

the thick of the fighting all day, and was covered

38:29

with sweat, blood, and dust.

38:31

His uniform was torn in several places

38:33

by near-misses from enemy muskets and

38:36

grapeshot, and he was bleeding

38:38

from several minor wounds.

38:40

He told Napoleon, quote, Hurry,

38:42

Sire, my grenadiers can do no more,

38:44

but give me reinforcements, and I will drive

38:47

the Russians into the water. End quote.

38:50

A French officer described the Emperor's arrival

38:52

on the battlefield.

38:54

Quote. Imagining that the

38:56

Russians had only made an attack to cover

38:58

the retreat of their rear guard, he was

39:00

very much surprised to hear a prolonged

39:03

and vigorous cannonade.

39:04

In his anxiety, he urged on his Arab

39:07

steed, with which few other horses

39:09

could keep up, and quickly found himself

39:11

among a number of wounded who were retreating towards

39:13

the ambulances.

39:15

Among them, he recognized Colonel Reynaud

39:17

of the 15th Regiment of the Line, and stopped

39:20

to ask him what had happened, if his

39:22

regiment had retreated, and under what circumstances

39:24

had he been wounded.

39:25

Reynaud, who had been struck by a bullet, replied

39:28

that, tired of seeing his regiment inactive

39:31

under a decimating fire, he had ordered

39:33

it to advance and charge the enemy's guns,

39:35

in hope of capturing some of them,

39:37

but that a gully he had not been able to see

39:39

had arrested the man, of whom he had lost

39:42

1500 on its brink.

39:44

End quote.

39:47

He then records a conversation between

39:49

Colonel Reynaud and Napoleon, starting

39:51

with the Colonel. Quote.

39:53

On the plateau of Friedland, behind the position

39:56

I had hoped to take, the enemy had just

39:58

amassed an immense number of

39:59

man,

40:00

certainly not less than eighty thousand.

40:03

The Emperor, still in error as to the

40:05

state of things, thought this account exaggerated,

40:07

and exclaimed,

40:09

That can't be true. To

40:10

which Rayno, irritated at being disbelieved,

40:13

answered, Well, I swear on

40:15

my head that the numbers I have stated

40:17

are there, and that there will be hot work.

40:20

The Emperor's only reply was to dash

40:23

his spurs into his Arab steed, which

40:25

bounded furiously forward, carrying

40:27

its master into the very midst of the sharpshooters.

40:31

The Emperor

40:33

found a piece of high ground with a good vantage

40:35

point, and began surveying the battlefield.

40:38

As always, his staff thought he was far

40:40

too close to the action. The occasional

40:43

Russian cannonball whizzed past, as

40:45

Napoleon studied the terrain, and the disposition

40:47

of the two forces.

40:50

The Emperor literally could not believe

40:52

what he saw.

40:53

How could Beniksen have been so foolish?

40:56

He sent his aides down closer to

40:58

the action, to confirm what he saw from

41:00

his spyglass.

41:01

He knew Beniksen was no slouch. He

41:04

had to be sure he wasn't missing something, but

41:06

the coalition army really was as vulnerable

41:09

as it looked.

41:10

Then, out of the blue, Napoleon expressed

41:13

his desire to eat lunch.

41:14

His aides scurried around the French rear,

41:17

and managed to find a chair and a loaf

41:19

of simple black bread.

41:20

Napoleon sat down and began munching

41:23

on his bread, while artillery fire sailed

41:25

overhead.

41:27

Someone finally got up the courage to

41:29

ask him to move further to the rear, at least

41:31

until he was finished eating. But the

41:33

Emperor dismissed him, gesturing towards

41:35

the fighting, he said, quote, They

41:38

will dine far less comfortably than I,

41:40

end quote. While

41:45

their leader ate his lunch, his staff

41:47

officers began to analyze the scene before

41:49

them. As more and more French units

41:51

converged on the battlefield, with their enemies'

41:54

backs to the river, it was increasingly

41:56

clear that the Grande Armée was in a position

41:58

to win a decisive victory.

42:00

if they could seize it. The only question

42:02

was how and when. Napoleon

42:05

himself was mostly absent from these

42:07

discussions. He finished his bread

42:09

and went back to studying the battlefield through

42:11

his bi-glass.

42:13

Soon a consensus emerged among

42:15

his staff officers. The French

42:17

army should spend the rest of the day gathering its

42:19

forces and then in the morning hit

42:22

Beniison's vulnerable army with everything they

42:24

had. Finally Napoleon

42:26

himself chimed in, quote,

42:29

no, no,

42:30

we can't hope to catch the enemy making

42:32

the same mistake twice, end quote.

42:35

Few people had as keen an eye for terrain

42:38

as the Emperor.

42:39

From his quick study of the battlefield he

42:41

had been able to see what Beniison had missed the

42:44

day before. The seemingly open

42:46

terrain around Friedland was in fact

42:49

quite constricting.

42:50

The coalition army was deployed much

42:52

more awkwardly than it looked at first glance.

42:56

They would find it very difficult to move

42:58

from their current positions and any

43:00

retreat across the Alla would be painfully

43:02

slow.

43:04

By crossing the river where they did, the coalition

43:07

army had put itself in terrible danger

43:09

and now Napoleon would make them pay

43:11

for their mistake.

43:14

Meanwhile on the other side of the lines the

43:16

Russian leadership was coming to a similar realization.

43:19

As their offensive stalled late

43:21

in the morning it became clear to Beniison

43:23

and his commanders that their bid to destroy

43:26

Lonscore before reinforcements could

43:28

arrive had failed.

43:30

As this lull settled over the battlefield

43:33

they could see more and more French troops arriving

43:35

and joining the lines on the heights

43:37

above their positions. Beniison

43:40

made what must have been a difficult decision.

43:42

The

43:43

army had to retreat.

43:45

The question was how?

43:47

As we saw earlier in the episode it had taken

43:50

hours of difficult maneuvers to get

43:52

so many men across the river and into

43:54

position.

43:55

With the French occupying the high ground

43:58

they would be able to see every moment. the

44:00

Russians made.

44:01

If they saw a retreat, they would immediately

44:04

start applying pressure to make it as difficult

44:06

as possible.

44:07

The coalition army would be forced to engage

44:10

in a fighting retreat, moving backwards

44:13

over that broken ground while holding

44:15

off the French.

44:17

A retreat from the battlefield in broad

44:19

daylight under pressure from the Grande Armée

44:22

was simply not realistic.

44:24

The only hope for the coalition forces

44:26

would be to hold out against superior numbers

44:29

until nightfall, and then try to

44:31

get as many men as possible over the river

44:33

under cover of darkness.

44:36

Beniksen had trapped his own army.

44:38

However, there was no panic among the coalition

44:41

leadership. All

44:42

they had to do was hold on until

44:44

nightfall, and they all agreed it

44:46

was unlikely the French would be able to

44:48

launch a major attack before then.

44:51

By the mid-afternoon, there were around 80,000 French

44:54

troops near Friedland, compared to less

44:57

than 60,000 coalition forces.

44:59

The tables had turned.

45:02

By now, a plan was beginning to form

45:04

at French headquarters. Marshal

45:07

Ney would attack the enemy left.

45:09

This was the part of their line closest

45:11

to the town of Friedland, and those all-important

45:14

bridges over the Alla. The nearby

45:16

Sotlak Forest would enable him to

45:18

begin his advance under cover.

45:20

He would be followed by a second wave

45:23

under General Victor, who had temporarily

45:25

replaced the wounded Bernadotte as

45:27

commander of First Corps.

45:29

They would be followed by a third wave of

45:32

the Imperial Guard, if necessary.

45:34

This would be the key maneuver

45:36

of the battle.

45:37

Ney's objective was to seize or

45:40

destroy the bridges at Friedland. With

45:42

those taken, the enemy army would be truly,

45:45

permanently trapped. Then,

45:47

the rest of the army would join in a general

45:49

offensive all along the line, thus

45:52

hopefully destroying the enemy.

45:55

Napoleon personally rode out to the Sotlak

45:58

Forest.

45:59

Despite the heat, He and Ne put

46:01

on overcoats to disguise their uniforms

46:03

and got right up close to the Russian positions.

46:06

The Emperor had to be sure that the

46:08

opportunity he saw through his spyglass

46:11

from his headquarters was still there

46:13

when he looked at it up close.

46:15

He liked what he saw. He instructed

46:18

Ne to wait for the signal to attack

46:20

and rode back up the hill. There

46:23

would not be much time to execute this

46:25

plan.

46:26

Napoleon had slated Ne's attack to

46:28

begin at around 5.30 in the evening, less

46:31

than four hours before sunset, but

46:33

as we know, if anyone could be trusted

46:36

to attack with speed and aggression,

46:38

it was Marshal Ne.

46:41

Meanwhile, the lull continued over

46:43

the whole battlefield, only interrupted by

46:45

artillery fire.

46:46

In some Russian units, the officers

46:48

allowed their men to sit or even

46:51

lie down. They were tired, and

46:53

the sweltering summer heat was taking a

46:55

toll.

46:57

Even at Russian headquarters, a more

46:59

relaxed attitude seemed to be taking hold.

47:01

A Russian officer explained, quote,

47:04

At four o'clock, as the battle seemed

47:06

to subside at all points and

47:08

only the cannon thundered away, General

47:11

Beniksen allowed a tablecloth to

47:13

be laid on the ground nearby, and a

47:15

cold meal to be served.

47:17

He himself laid on the ground, sliced

47:19

some herring, poured the glasses, and

47:21

invited the surrounding officers to eat

47:24

and drink.

47:25

At the same time, he received, with

47:27

the greatest coolness, the most important

47:29

reports, and issued general orders,

47:32

as the cannonballs were flying by, often

47:35

over the tablecloth, and a few even

47:37

knocked the glasses over.

47:39

End quote. Finally,

47:42

Beniksen's picnic was spoiled by a

47:44

report from one of his staff officers.

47:47

Even more French troops had moved into position

47:49

nearby, and they seemed to be preparing

47:51

for an attack.

47:53

The ailing general began preparing orders

47:55

to shrink the perimeter around Friedland,

47:58

to concentrate his forces for

47:59

proper defense.

48:01

But by the time these orders went out, it

48:04

would be too late.

48:06

Meanwhile, the always-aggressive Marshal

48:08

Ney was pestering Napoleon with

48:11

requests to attack, but the Emperor

48:13

kept brushing them off.

48:15

Finally, Ney became exasperated, and

48:17

declared that it was too late, and the attack

48:20

would be postponed until morning.

48:22

But almost as soon as he had spoken, he

48:24

heard the sound he had been waiting for. At

48:27

about five-thirty in the evening, a French

48:29

artillery battery fired a sudden salvo

48:32

towards the Coalition lines. This

48:34

was the signal for Ney and Sixth Corps

48:36

to begin the advance.

48:38

The bold, red-haired Marshal led

48:40

his men through the Sotlak Forest.

48:43

If they succeeded, they might win the war.

48:46

If they failed, there was a good chance

48:48

Beniksen would escape yet again.

48:52

Seeing enemy movement on his left, Beniksen

48:54

ordered an attack on his right, hoping

48:57

to put the French off balance and

48:59

maybe draw some of Napoleon's attention

49:01

away from Ney's attack.

49:03

It wasn't a bad idea, but this offensive

49:06

got nowhere and failed to achieve

49:08

the desired effect.

49:10

Sixth Corps emerged from the Sotlak

49:13

Forest along the Coalition left flank.

49:15

The enemy in this sector was led by Prince

49:17

Bagration, one of the most capable

49:20

leaders in the Coalition army.

49:22

The town of Friedland was tantalizingly

49:24

close. Ney's men could see

49:26

the tall, red-brick clock tower

49:29

of the town church, rising above the

49:31

smoke of battle.

49:33

However, this was the point where Ney's attack

49:35

was most vulnerable.

49:37

Here, the French had to fan out,

49:39

with some of their number pushing due north

49:42

to protect the flank of the main attack

49:44

as it veered northeast towards Friedland.

49:48

It would also take the French right past

49:50

a bend in the river, where it dipped towards

49:53

the battlefield.

49:54

The vast majority of the Russian artillery

49:56

was still on the right bank.

49:58

Until now, the trees of the

49:59

Sotlok Forest had shielded

50:02

Sixth Corps from their view, but as

50:04

they made their final push on Friedland,

50:06

they would have no choice but to march right

50:08

past a significant Russian artillery

50:10

battery.

50:12

Behind the lines, Napoleon walked

50:14

among the ranks of Victor's troops, trying

50:17

to raise their spirits as they waited to join

50:19

Ne in the attack. He

50:21

asked one of the men for a drink, and the presumably

50:24

surprised soldier handed the Emperor

50:26

a bottle.

50:27

Napoleon took a sip and exclaimed, quote,

50:29

By the devil, this is real French brandy.

50:32

They treat you like lords. End quote.

50:34

Apparently, this totally broke

50:36

the tension, and everyone with an earshot

50:38

burst out laughing. They might

50:40

not have laughed quite so hard if

50:43

they could have seen what was going on at the front

50:45

of the attack.

50:46

The Russian guns opened fire, and Ne's

50:49

men suffered terrible casualties.

50:51

Suddenly, everyone on the south of the battlefield

50:54

could hear a loud metallic clicking

50:56

sound, like hail on a metal

50:59

roof.

51:00

Sixth Corps were marching with their muskets

51:02

on their shoulders, with their fixed

51:04

bayonets high in the air. That

51:07

clicking was the sound of hundreds

51:09

of rounds of canister fire bouncing

51:12

off hundreds of raised bayonets.

51:15

Under this unbearable fire, the French

51:17

attack lost momentum.

51:19

Prince Bagratillon saw an opportunity.

51:21

He ordered a counterattack, first the

51:23

Cossacks in loose formation to

51:26

soften the enemy up, followed by regular

51:28

cavalry in a traditional charge, to

51:31

hopefully push them away from Friedland.

51:33

Ne's cavalry

51:35

countercharged and drove them back, but

51:38

the Russians regrouped, received reinforcements,

51:41

and charged again.

51:42

This time it worked. Blasted

51:45

by the Russian artillery on the far bank, and

51:47

now faced with thousands of charging

51:49

Russian horsemen, the men of Sixth Corps

51:51

wavered, then began falling back.

51:55

Marshal Ne galloped among his men, shouting,

51:57

Hold firm, but it was of little use.

52:01

Agration had chosen his moment well,

52:03

but not quite well enough. Just

52:06

as his cavalry were making headway, the

52:08

second wave of the French attack under

52:11

General Victor crashed right into

52:13

their right flank.

52:14

The Russian horsemen found themselves under

52:16

fire from three sides, and

52:19

were forced to retreat.

52:21

The French artillery commander on the scene,

52:23

General Saint-Arman, saw an opportunity and

52:26

ordered his men to move their guns forward.

52:28

Very far forward. In fact,

52:31

within about 600 paces of Bagration's

52:34

position.

52:35

This was very unorthodox. Artillery

52:38

units were incredibly vulnerable when they

52:40

were on the move, but Saint-Arman gambled

52:43

that with the Russian cavalry in disarray,

52:45

after their failed counterattack, no

52:47

Russian units would be able to respond before

52:50

his guns were set up and ready to open

52:52

fire.

52:54

From his headquarters, Napoleon watched

52:56

as Saint-Arman's gunners moved their

52:58

cannon awkwardly forward by hand,

53:01

and he was concerned. He sent a messenger

53:04

to advise caution, but Saint-Arman

53:06

brushed him off. Quote,

53:08

Leave me and my gunners alone. You can

53:10

hold me responsible.

53:12

End quote. It took guts

53:14

to respond to the Emperor that way, but

53:16

his firmness seems to have convinced Napoleon.

53:19

After hearing Saint-Arman's reply, Napoleon

53:22

said, quote,

53:23

There is one unpleasant fellow.

53:26

Let him be. End quote.

53:28

Saint-Arman was right. At this close

53:31

range, the French gunners were able to load

53:33

their cannon with case shot, effectively

53:35

giant shotgun shells loaded with

53:38

small metal projectiles about the size

53:40

of musket balls. Each cannon

53:42

would fire the equivalent of a musket volley

53:44

from a small infantry unit.

53:47

Bagration's men were packed tightly

53:49

together, all squeezed into the relatively

53:52

small space between that bend in the

53:54

river and the French lines. They

53:56

made a perfect target. Hundreds

53:59

of Russians were mowed down in the space of only

54:01

a few minutes.

54:02

Napoleon was so pleased with Saint-Arman

54:05

that after the battle he would award him a noble

54:07

title.

54:09

Amazingly, the men of the Russian left stood

54:11

and took this punishing bombardment

54:13

for nearly half an hour,

54:15

but no soldiers in the world could

54:17

stand indefinitely in the face of sustained

54:20

artillery fire.

54:21

Eventually they began to fall back.

54:24

The momentum had shifted back to the attackers.

54:27

Ney's men took the offensive, now joined

54:29

by troops from First Corps.

54:31

Soon French artillery fire was

54:33

landing in the town of Friedland.

54:36

The coalition army was now on the brink

54:39

of total disaster.

54:40

The French were only a few hundred paces

54:43

from their objective.

54:44

Soon they would be in a position to bombard

54:46

those all-important bridges and destroy

54:49

the coalition army's only possible

54:51

means of escape. Beniksen's

54:53

army was facing annihilation, but

54:56

there was still time to make one last

54:59

desperate attempt to stop the French.

55:02

Beniksen had the Imperial Guard in

55:04

his reserve. He ordered them to deploy

55:07

along the Russian left for a counterattack.

55:09

If there was anyone who could somehow

55:12

salvage this horrible fiasco, it

55:14

was the Russian Imperial Guard. These

55:16

were some of the best soldiers anywhere

55:18

in the world.

55:20

As they had at Austerlitz, the Russian guardsmen

55:22

charged with fixed bayonets.

55:25

Against all odds, they succeeded

55:27

in stopping and then rolling back

55:29

Ney's advanced units. One

55:32

of their commanders, General Nikolai Mazovsky,

55:34

urged his men forward, quote, My

55:36

friends, we will die or conquer

55:39

here. Forward, boys. End

55:41

quote. Mazovsky was wounded,

55:44

but stayed at the front, leading his troops.

55:46

He was hit again, but again

55:49

refused to seek medical care.

55:51

He was hit a third time and

55:53

finally went down, mortally wounded.

55:55

His

55:56

last words were, quote, My

55:58

friends, do not lose heart.

56:02

Nightfall was only a few hours away.

56:05

If the Russian guard could somehow roll

56:07

back this offensive and hold off

56:09

the French just for a few more hours,

56:12

just long enough for darkness to envelop

56:14

the battlefield, the coalition army

56:17

could still avoid disaster.

56:20

But it was not to be. The

56:22

French artillery tore bloody holes

56:24

into the guards' formation,

56:25

and other French units to the north redirected

56:28

their advance to push into the flank

56:31

and rear of the Russian guardsmen as

56:33

they advanced.

56:34

Soon, the guard was giving up ground,

56:37

and Nesmen were back on the advance.

56:41

By about 7 in the evening, the Russians

56:43

had been pushed back into the town of Friedland

56:45

itself.

56:46

The tightly packed buildings and narrow

56:48

streets made this a highly defensible

56:51

location.

56:52

But Nesmen didn't need to actually

56:54

take Friedland to accomplish their mission.

56:57

French artillery blasted Friedland, and

57:00

those all-important bridges.

57:02

Soon, the bridges were on fire,

57:05

along with much of the town.

57:07

Some sources claim these fires were

57:09

started by the French artillery,

57:10

others that the Russians started them

57:13

themselves, to prevent Nes troops

57:15

from chasing them over the river.

57:17

In any case, there was no conceivable

57:19

way to move tens of thousands

57:22

of men through the narrow streets of

57:24

this burning town, past the muskets

57:26

of Sixth Corps, and over the

57:28

flaming bridges to safety.

57:30

Beniksen's army was finally, truly,

57:33

trapped. Now,

57:37

the rest of the French line advanced. Morale

57:40

and the coalition ranks had plummeted.

57:42

The soldiers were tired, hungry, and

57:45

had been fighting fruitlessly in savage

57:47

combat for over 12 hours.

57:49

Many of these men were veterans. They could

57:51

understand that the army was in a precarious

57:54

position, and they knew the French

57:56

advance on Friedland meant almost

57:58

certain doom. Meanwhile,

58:01

it was the opposite story on the French lines.

58:04

From their high vantage points, they could see the

58:06

enemy was trapped, and a stunning victory

58:08

was at hand. And so, unsurprisingly,

58:11

the coalition forces fell back in the

58:13

face of ferocious French attacks.

58:16

The Russian bridgehead was shrinking.

58:19

Coalition officers told their troops to

58:22

hold, but surely every man

58:24

had the same word in the back of his mind.

58:27

Escape.

58:29

With their enemies increasingly panicked

58:31

and disorganized, the French artillery

58:33

moved closer to that shrinking bridgehead,

58:36

raking the helpless masses of coalition

58:38

troops with grapeshot. They

58:40

brought their cannons within 300 paces of the enemy.

58:44

Then 150 paces. Then

58:47

just 60 paces.

58:49

No one could miss from this range.

58:52

Just like at Eilau four months earlier, after

58:55

the battle, they would find piles of corpses

58:57

still in discernible formation,

58:59

where entire units had been mown down

59:02

all at once.

59:05

Some Russian troops were able to ignore

59:07

their instincts and tried to engage

59:09

the French in a fighting retreat, but

59:11

for others, the impulse to run was

59:13

too great.

59:15

Tragic and chaotic scenes played

59:18

out in the streets of Friedland.

59:20

The narrow alleys were choked with masses

59:22

of panicked men.

59:23

By now, the bridges were totally impassable,

59:26

engulfed in flames and sinking into

59:28

the a la.

59:29

But they were only visible from the town itself,

59:32

and so Russian soldiers continued streaming

59:35

into Friedland, unaware that there was

59:37

no escape to be had.

59:39

Meanwhile, the French continued to press

59:41

forward.

59:42

An officer of the Grande Armée remembered it this

59:44

way. Quote,

59:46

Every house in the little town of Friedland

59:48

was crowded with wounded Russians, and

59:51

the reserve forces at the enemy made superhuman

59:54

efforts to prevent us from entering it. But

59:56

we advanced all the same, and the fighting

59:58

went on in the streets.

1:00:00

which became literally choked with bodies

1:00:02

of manned horses killed by shot

1:00:05

or bayonet.

1:00:06

At last, as the sun went down, the

1:00:08

French found themselves masters of the town,

1:00:11

with no more enemies left to repulse."

1:00:15

In other places, coalition soldiers

1:00:17

stripped off their equipment and heavy wool

1:00:19

uniform jackets and took their

1:00:22

chances trying to swim the alla.

1:00:25

Some of them made it, many did

1:00:27

not.

1:00:28

For weeks after the battle, the local

1:00:30

peasants would be fishing bodies out of

1:00:32

the river. As

1:00:34

always, casualty estimates vary,

1:00:36

but most accounts of this battle agree

1:00:38

that at least a few thousand coalition

1:00:40

troops drowned in the river.

1:00:43

A French guardsman would later remember,

1:00:45

quote, the Russians fought like lions.

1:00:49

They preferred to be drowned rather than

1:00:51

to surrender, end quote.

1:00:53

Maybe that was true of some men, but for others,

1:00:56

panic must have played a role.

1:00:59

When Marshal Ney returned to French headquarters,

1:01:02

Napoleon threw his arms around him and kissed

1:01:04

him on both cheeks, saying, quote,

1:01:06

I am well pleased. You have won

1:01:08

us the battle, end quote.

1:01:10

Marshal Ney replied, quote, Sire,

1:01:13

we are all Frenchmen. We want together, end

1:01:16

quote.

1:01:17

Some coalition units were able to escape.

1:01:20

At the extreme right of the Russian line,

1:01:22

many regiments simply slipped around the

1:01:24

jaws of the French trap and marched to

1:01:27

safety.

1:01:28

Napoleon has been criticized by some historians

1:01:31

for not ordering any pursuit of these forces,

1:01:33

who might easily have been trapped and destroyed.

1:01:37

In the center right of the coalition line,

1:01:40

the Russians had identified an area where the

1:01:42

river was shallow and could be forded

1:01:44

on foot, although only with some time

1:01:47

and difficulty.

1:01:48

Many units in this sector were able to

1:01:50

make the crossing while brave comrades

1:01:52

held off the advancing French.

1:01:55

However, the vast majority of the men

1:01:57

who crossed over to the left bank of the Alla

1:01:59

during the night of the 13th and morning

1:02:01

of the 14th were killed, captured,

1:02:04

or drowned.

1:02:05

Battle of Friedland was over.

1:02:07

It was another crushing victory for Napoleon

1:02:10

and the Grand Armée,

1:02:11

maybe not on quite the same scale as

1:02:13

Yena or Austerlitz, but certainly

1:02:16

not far off. Beniksen

1:02:18

had taken a big gamble in bringing

1:02:20

his army over the Ala to face Marshal

1:02:22

Lond.

1:02:23

He had lost, and it cost him nearly

1:02:25

half his army.

1:02:27

After any major battle, we can analyze

1:02:29

dozens of different factors that influenced

1:02:32

events, but I do have to wonder

1:02:34

about General Beniksen's health.

1:02:36

His misjudgment of the situation

1:02:39

at Friedland is central to this story,

1:02:41

and we know that he was not at his best, totally

1:02:44

exhausted and suffering badly from

1:02:46

his kidney problems.

1:02:48

Some of his own officers later speculated

1:02:50

that if he had gotten a comfortable night's

1:02:53

sleep on the 13th, there would

1:02:55

never have been a battle at Friedland on the 14th.

1:02:57

It would be an exaggeration

1:03:00

to say that the fate of the continent was decided

1:03:02

by one man's kidney stone,

1:03:04

but it is amazing the way a small, seemingly

1:03:07

insignificant bit of trivia can help shape

1:03:09

important events.

1:03:12

Friedland was an absolute disaster

1:03:14

for the coalition, in almost every sense

1:03:16

imaginable.

1:03:17

But it could have been worse.

1:03:19

There was barely any organized pursuit

1:03:22

of the retreating enemy.

1:03:23

As we know from past episodes, after

1:03:26

a great victory, the cavalry were typically

1:03:28

unleashed to chase after the losing army.

1:03:31

This pursuit was often actually

1:03:33

more devastating than the defeat itself.

1:03:36

However, at Friedland, the remains of

1:03:38

Beniksen's army were able to flee the battlefield

1:03:40

in almost total safety.

1:03:43

I have seen several different explanations

1:03:45

for this.

1:03:46

It was already dark, and maybe Napoleon

1:03:48

did not think a pursuit would be fruitful.

1:03:51

Or the army was tired and hungry

1:03:53

from their forced marches to get to the battlefield.

1:03:56

Maybe they actually weren't able.

1:03:58

Or perhaps most Interestingly,

1:04:01

Napoleon might have been thinking about his diplomatic

1:04:03

position.

1:04:04

Remember, the goal of this whole campaign

1:04:07

was to bring the Russians over to his side.

1:04:10

Turning this victory into a massacre

1:04:12

might have had the opposite effect, stealing

1:04:15

their resolve and giving them a desire for

1:04:17

revenge.

1:04:19

In the case, the remains of the coalition forces

1:04:21

were able to flee the battlefield, but

1:04:23

they left behind tens of thousands

1:04:26

of their comrades, killed or captured

1:04:28

by the French.

1:04:29

Low estimates placed the coalition casualties

1:04:32

at around 20,000, high estimates at 40,000.

1:04:37

It should be said this was not a totally one-sided

1:04:39

victory.

1:04:40

The Russians had fought very hard, and

1:04:42

managed to inflict perhaps as many as 10,000 casualties

1:04:46

on the French.

1:04:47

Once again, the battle had been lost by

1:04:49

mistakes at the top, not by any

1:04:51

lack of courage or toughness among

1:04:54

the common soldiers.

1:04:56

When news of Beniksen's defeat reached

1:04:58

Königsberg, the garrison and the remains

1:05:00

of the Prussian government immediately began

1:05:03

evacuating the city.

1:05:04

This wasn't just because of freedom. With

1:05:07

two French corps just outside the

1:05:09

gates, preparations had already begun.

1:05:12

But with the main coalition army shattered,

1:05:14

there was no longer any hope of holding

1:05:16

on to this position for any length of time.

1:05:20

It must have been a particularly bitter moment

1:05:22

for the Prussian court.

1:05:23

Their country's terrible losses in the previous

1:05:26

autumn had left them almost entirely dependent

1:05:28

on their Russian allies.

1:05:30

But at Königsberg, they were

1:05:32

still technically on their own soil. They

1:05:35

could at least pretend that Napoleon's

1:05:37

conquest of their country was nothing more

1:05:39

than a temporary setback.

1:05:41

Now, King Frederick William III and his

1:05:43

court were being driven into exile.

1:05:46

There were a few remaining strongholds where Prussian

1:05:48

soldiers bravely held on against

1:05:50

besieging French forces. But with

1:05:52

the king fleeing abroad, there was

1:05:55

no longer any denying the fact that

1:05:57

Prussia was lost.

1:06:00

To his credit, the day after the battle,

1:06:02

Beniksen took responsibility for the disaster.

1:06:05

Quote, I freely admit

1:06:07

that I should have done better not to undertake

1:06:10

the affair of Friedland.

1:06:11

I had the power, and I would have been safer

1:06:14

to maintain my resolution not

1:06:16

to undertake a major battle, since it was

1:06:18

not necessary to ensure the safety of my

1:06:20

army's march.

1:06:22

However, false reports, with which

1:06:24

every general is often beset, had raised

1:06:26

in me the erroneous view which was

1:06:28

confirmed by all my intelligence that

1:06:31

Napoleon had, with the greater part of his

1:06:33

army, taken the road towards Königsberg.

1:06:36

End quote.

1:06:38

Interestingly, he seems not to have

1:06:40

understood the reason for his defeat. His

1:06:42

intelligence was, in fact, correct.

1:06:45

The bulk of the Grande Armée was on

1:06:47

the road to Königsberg when he launched his attack

1:06:50

on Marshal Long.

1:06:51

His mistake was underestimating the speed

1:06:53

at which they could redirect themselves towards

1:06:56

Friedland.

1:06:57

He was used to fighting the French in the Polish

1:06:59

winter, when bad weather and horrible

1:07:02

logistics problems had dramatically

1:07:04

limited the mobility of Napoleon's forces.

1:07:07

The Grande Armée's performance at Friedland

1:07:09

proved it was a very different story in

1:07:11

the summer. Obviously,

1:07:14

with hindsight, Beniksen's decision

1:07:16

to attack the French at this time and

1:07:18

place turned out to be extremely

1:07:21

bad.

1:07:22

However, I do find it understandable.

1:07:24

With Napoleon on the inside track

1:07:26

to Königsberg and the coalition forces

1:07:28

outnumbered 2-1, it was

1:07:31

not a bad idea to try to do something

1:07:33

unexpected and creative to try

1:07:35

to even the odds.

1:07:37

With the campaign slipping out of his grasp,

1:07:39

Beniksen had tried a high-risk gamble.

1:07:42

The time was right for a throw of the dice,

1:07:45

but Friedland was an awful

1:07:47

choice of venue.

1:07:49

In the days after the battle, the remains of the

1:07:51

coalition forces in Poland and

1:07:54

East Prussia marched northeast, towards

1:07:56

the town of Tilsit, on the Russian-Prussian

1:07:59

border.

1:08:00

The French pursued them, but without

1:08:02

much energy or aggression.

1:08:05

On June 18, four days after

1:08:07

Friedland, a Russian general arrived

1:08:09

at French headquarters under a flag of truce,

1:08:12

bearing a message from Emperor Alexander.

1:08:15

The Russians were ready to talk terms

1:08:17

for peace.

1:08:19

With his gamble at Friedland, not

1:08:21

only had Vennigsen lost nearly half his

1:08:23

army, he had lost the war.

1:08:27

Since December 1806, Napoleon

1:08:29

had been seeking a victory that would bring the

1:08:31

Russians to the negotiating table.

1:08:34

It had taken six months, but at Friedland,

1:08:36

he had finally achieved that goal.

1:08:39

Next episode, we'll discuss the diplomatic negotiations

1:08:42

between France and Russia, as Napoleon

1:08:44

and Alexander sought to build a

1:08:47

new geopolitical order for Europe. Until

1:08:50

then, thanks for listening.

1:08:59

Lastly, don't forget to check out other

1:09:01

podcasts on our network, like The

1:09:04

History of Egypt, Infamous America,

1:09:06

or Redacted

1:09:07

History. Thanks

1:09:27

for watching. you

1:10:30

you you

1:11:30

you you

1:12:30

you