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THE BATTLE OF THE NATIONS: LEIPZIG 16-19 OCTOBER 1813
The largest battle of the Napoleonic Wars consisted of a series of bloody engagements around the city of Leipzig during which Napoleon, fighting against great odds, failed to beat the converging Allies. Allied attacks also failed, but as pressure grew and his Saxon troops defected, he withdrew across the Elster River. During the retreat Napoleon defeated a Bavarian attempt to intercept him at Hanau on 30-31 October and reached France with some 70,000 men in formed units and another 40,000 stragglers.
When fighting resumed on 14 August after Blucher had violated the armistice, Schwarzenberg managed to get the Allies to adopt a common strategy, the so-called Trachenberg Plan. Its basic idea was for whichever of the allied armies faced the emperor in person to refuse battle, while the others closed in. In general, this scheme was followed during the six weeks of indecisive fighting. Napoleon planned to divide the Allies by an advance on Berlin, while he contained the Austrians in Saxon~ Oudinot was given 120,000 men including Davout’s 35,000 at Hamburg, to threaten Berlin and defeat the Prussians and Swedes, Ney was given 85,000, and Napoleon commanded the largest army – 165,000. In practice Napoleon also commanded Ney’s force and drew on Oudinot when needed. Choosing Oudinot over Davout to command his second strongest army, away from the main force, was poor judgment. Davout, with proven ability for independent command, was far more suitable, but Napoleon left him in a near static role east of Hamburg. If Davout rather than Oudinot had commanded against Bernadotte, the outcome of the autumn campaign might have been different.
Oudinot won the early encounters, unnerving Bernadotte who proposed to evacuate Berlin. General von Bulow, his chief Prussian subordinate, refused and on 23 August, at Grossbeeren, 14 kilometres south of Berlin, threw back one of Oudinot’s corps. Oudinot retreated, compelling Davout, who had advanced eastwards, to fall back to Hamburg. Meanwhile, leaving 20,000 under St Cyr to hold Dresden, Napoleon had turned against Blucher’s Army of Silesia. Complying with the Trachenberg Plan, Blucher retired, while Schwarzenberg attacked Dresden. Receiving requests for urgent help, Napoleon reversed his army, assigning Macdonald to contain Blucher. With his young conscripts showing that they could not only fight but could also march, he arrived back in Dresden by 26 August. The next day 120,000 against 150,000 defeated Schwarzenberg, but again could not pursue effectively: Vandamme’s corps, sent to block the Austrian retreat, was isolated and destroyed at Kulm on the 29th. In the east Blucher had turned against Macdonald and on the 26th mauled him at the Katzbach. As for the Berlin front, where Ney superseded Oudinot in command, Ney again demonstrated his incapacity for independent command. On 6 September 50,000 Prussians defeated Ney at Dennewitz, 60 kilometres south-west of the Prussian capital, nullifying the effects of Napoleon’s victory at Dresden.
For the rest of the month Napoleon moved alternately against each of his foes, but could not bring them to battle. His German allies were wavering; Bavaria defected on 8 October. He had retired behind the Elbe on 24 September and on 12 October marched to make a stand at Leipzig. His strategic situation was bad, three allied armies were closing in, but Napoleon still hoped to defeat them in detail. The ‘Battle of the Nations’, 16-19 October, was a series of bloody actions, ultimately pitting 335,000 allied troops against 190,000 French. Schwarzenberg came into action first. He might have been defeated on the 15th, but Napoleon waited for Ney’s arrival. And with that the Austrians almost were beaten on the 16th, but saved by Blucher’s arrival. There was little action the following day, but on 18 October strong Russian reinforcements arrived and Bernadotte’s army finally came into line. Early on 19 October, undefeated but fearing encirclement, Napoleon began a phased retreat to the west. At about noon his Saxon and Baden troops went over to the enemy, while the only bridge leading west out of the town was blown up prematurely, leaving some 50,000 troops trapped in the city.
Napoleon was forced to evacuate Germany, Bavarians and Austrians under General Wrede tried to intercept him east of Frankfurt at Hanau on 29-30 October, but were pushed aside. Only 70,000 men crossed the Rhine in formed units, 40,000 straggled in at various points and some 90,000 still held fortresses east of the Rhine. Another 100,000 were fighting Wellington in southern France. Exhaustion and sickness ravaged armies on both sides. The Allies halted their pursuit on the Rhine, undecided whether to invade France. Austria and Sweden were willing to settle more or less for the ‘natural frontiers’ of France, the Russians and the Prussians wanted to remove the ‘Corsican Ogre’ and England backed war to the end. Early in November Metternich offered Napoleon’s representative a generous settlement, though it is not certain whether this offer had the consent of the other allies, especially England. But Napoleon delayed acceptance. When he was ready to do so, he found the offer withdrawn. Instead, on 22 December 1813, the allied armies began their invasion of France.
