Badener in the Russian campaign in 1812

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From left to right: Baden infantry officer, infantryman from the body regiment , hunter and guard - grenadier from the year 1812 (uniform knowledge from Richard Knötel )
Badischer Hussar officer from 1812 (uniform knowledge from Richard Knötel)

The Badeners in the Russian campaign in 1812 belonged to the 9th Corps of the Grande Armée . The command of the corps was the French Marshal Claude-Victor Perrin gen. Victor . The Baden brigade was commanded by Count Wilhelm von Hochberg , a son of Grand Duke Karl Friedrich von Baden from his second marriage. Ludwig von Grolmann was chief of the general staff . Together with two regiments of Bergisch infantry, the Badeners formed the 26th division, which was commanded by General Daendels .

prehistory

Like many other German states, the Grand Duchy of Baden joined the Rhine Confederation in 1806 . It thereby committed itself to participate in all wars of the French Empire. In the same year troops from the Rhine Confederation were involved in the war against Prussia. From 1808 Baden troops took part in the war in Spain. In 1809 they were involved in the war against Austria and the suppression of the uprising in Tyrol .

Russian campaign in 1812

Documentation

In his summarizing view of the German contribution to the Russian campaign in 1812, Paul Holzhausen lists eight sources with written reports from Baden participants or with excerpts from reports from Baden participants in the list of sources in his book.

Initial troop strength of Baden

The command of the Baden troops was given to the almost 20-year-old Margrave Wilhelm von Baden in order to take part in Napoléon's Russian campaign. The commanded total strength of the troops was 7,666 men. The troops consisted of the body regiment no. 1, regiment no. 3, the light infantry battalion, the hussar regiment and 8 guns. The 2nd Infantry Regiment, also subordinate to it, had been in Danzig since 1811 . Wilhelm von Baden marched with his troops from Karlsruhe on February 16, 1812.

Participation in the sea blockade

From March 29th to July 28th, 1812, the Baden troops helped protect the Baltic Sea coast against smuggling and pirating of English ships and gradually shifted from Rügen via Greifswald and Stettin towards Danzig.

They reached Szczecin on April 2nd. On May 24th, there were shootings between the French and Baden. Incidents of this kind did not only occur between Baden and the French. The brigade left Szczecin on June 7th and arrived in Marienburg on June 16th. The Baden residents stayed there and initially did not take part in the Russian campaign. Carl Sachs, a lieutenant from Baden, wrote about the security tasks that they took on: “10. July - on patrol against the rabble that came from Poland ... In a short time we caught 250 vagabonds and brought 20 of them, who were real thieves, to Marienburg. "

During the deployment of Napoleon's army, a large part of the Polish food was requisitioned for the French army.

Baden troops to the 9th Army Corps

In Tilsit the mixed 9th Army Corps of the "Grande Armée" was assembled under Marshal Victor . On August 9, 1812, Wilhelm von Baden joined his 1st (Baden) Brigade from Danzig and became part of the 9th Army Corps. The Baden troops were battle-tested in the wars of 1806, 1807 and 1809 and were subsequently provided with ammunition, food, sleeping bags and boots in Danzig on July 22, 1812. The IX. Corps was intended as a reserve, only the 1st Battalion of the Baden Line Regiment No. 2 was attached to Napoleon's headquarters and took part in the campaign as far as Moscow.

“The 9th Army Corps presented itself as a strange mixture. It consisted of three infantry divisions, Daendels (26th), Partouneaux (28th), Girard (12th) and the Fournier cavalry division. The Daendels division, whose 1st (Baden) brigade was commanded by Count HOCHBERG (later Margrave WILHELM VON BADEN), was entirely German, while the 2nd (Bergische), in the person of General DAMAS, was led by a French. "

- Paul Holzhausen: The Germans in Russia 1812

March to Minsk

Routes of marching in and out of retreat, map from 1872

Only at the end of August did the IX. Corps to march to Russia. The people of Baden reached Ruschny on August 31, the first place in Russian Poland. The march continued via Kovno (today Kaunas) on September 3, Vilnius (today Vilnius) on September 8, Smorgoni on September 12 and to Minsk on September 15.

Beginning of the withdrawal

On September 28, the Baden Brigade reached Smolensk . Later the IX. Corps received the order to march against Marshal Oudinot's II Corps, which came from Polotsk (now Polatsk) , to support it, and then withdrew with this corps. On November 25, they met the remains of the Grande Armée near Losznitza.

" Losznitza, November 25th, 1812." Tomorrow we will march to Borisov and in all likelihood the Emperor will be in review before His Majesty. The commanders will do everything possible to put the battalions in as clean and beautiful a position as possible. ” A riot slip that I had drawn up for the emperor showed that my brigade was still 2,240 men under rifle - a quite respectable corps for the conditions at that time. "

- Strength of the Baden Brigade in Losznitza on November 25, 1812 after Wilhelm von Baden

Securing the retreat across the Beresina

Bridges over the Berezina
Watercolor of the retreat over the Beresina by the eyewitness Fournier

The army corps with the Badeners reached Borisov (today Baryssau) on the Beresina (today Bjaresina) on November 26th, 1812, found the bridge over the Beresina destroyed by the Russians and thus got no further in its retreat. In the battle of the Beresina , the 9th Corps, and thus also the Baden, played a decisive role. On November 27, they marched from Borisov to the village of Studianka, about ten kilometers to the north-west, where a smaller bridge had initially been built. The Baden Brigade crossed the river to the right bank of the river, but was sent back to the east bank shortly after midnight, i.e. on November 28, to keep the bridgehead open against the current of the troops flowing in. In the morning the attack of Russian troops began under General Wittgenstein , whom the IX. Corps successfully withstood the whole day. The Margrave Wilhelm von Baden and his Baden and Hessian troops were very distinguished. In doing so, they enabled the transition of many soldiers and civilians. It was not until the early morning hours of November 29 that the corps withdrew over the Beresina with the Badeners as rearguard. Of the two bridges, the small bridge was already unusable, the larger bridge was almost impassable due to a tangle of smashed wagons as well as killed and wounded people and horses. The bridge was destroyed immediately after the remnants of the army corps were rescued. About 10,000 isolated people as well as the wounded and sick remained on the left bank and left to their fate.

“At 7 o'clock the outermost guards were pulled over the bridges, against which these unfortunate people now rushed and caused new disorder. Since there was no enemy, the bridges were not opened until ½9. Clock destroyed. The left bank resounded with the desperate cries of those who remained behind; some threw themselves into the water to swim across the river, others tried to cross the weak ice above the bridge, but broke in; but most of them, especially the wounded and sick, surrendered to their fate, staring at the snow that was soon to become their grave. - "

- Ernst von Baumbach: Diary from 1812

Loss-making retreat as arrièregarde

From December 2, 1812, the Badeners were divided into the 9th Corps with the remnants of the 2nd Corps as Arrièregarde. The retreat towards Vilna was made more difficult by the fact that around 60,000 unarmed people crowded between the army and the Arrièregarde. They immediately looted the vehicles that were left behind in narrow spaces and halted the retreat. They also looted the villages near the route of retreat. The Arrièregarden found neither food nor wood nor straw when they reached the night camp.

In addition to the losses caused by the fighting in retreat and the loss of food, there were losses due to the extreme cold of "a few 20 degrees" on December 6, 1812. The cold had risen to "the highest" on December 7th. They killed many people in the bivouac in Oszmiana (today Ashyany) on the night of December 6th . The remnants of the troops could hardly be used as arrièregarde and arrived at the gates of Vilna on the evening of December 8th.

Delay in withdrawal in Vilnius

There was a terrible crowd at the entrance to Vilna. We stayed in the first house we came across and burned the chairs for lack of fuel. On December 9, it became clear that the officers in Baden were severely impaired in their ability to work due to wounds, exhaustion, freezing of hands and feet and snow blindness . Hochberg's right half of his face was frozen to death by the constant icy north wind. However, the soldiers from Baden received new clothing, shoes and money. On December 10th, the Baden residents left Wilna at 4 am in the "grim cold" through the gate leading to Kovno. They heard the sounds of the Russian attack on Vilna.

Retreat to Marienwerder

During the retreat to Kovno, dramatic scenes occurred on December 10th on the hill of Ponari, where an inextricable tangle of people and cars formed on a mirror-smooth road and 27 degrees Celsius (Reaumur, that is -33.75 degrees Celsius) and looters formed attacked those who had remained lying down in their own ranks. This unreal scene reached its climax on December 11th near Ciszmory, where people protected themselves from the cold in the cutting north wind in women's fur clothing, skins from freshly slaughtered sheep and robbed clothing from freezing people. The sick and wounded were pushed away at the narrow point of a railless bridge. Meat and horse liver were cut out of the freshly fallen horses. Due to the cold, the water shortage was very great.

The retreat continued via Kovno on December 12th, Wilkowski (today Vilkaviškis) , Gumbinnen (today Gussew) and Insterburg (today Chernyakhovsk) on December 15th. On December 18, Königsberg (today Kaliningrad) was reached, where there was a Baden depot with armaments and clothing. On December 19, a transport with the hussars went to Gdansk. On December 23rd it was very cold at Heiligenbeil (today Mamonowo) . On December 25th Wilhelm von Baden reached Marienwerder (today Kwidzyn) , the assembly point of the corps, with post horses . A climate change led to a thaw. On December 30, 1812, the Baden troops in Marienwerder numbered 537 men. Among them were 145 teams who had taken part in the campaign.

Withdrawal until dissolution

On January 10, 1813, the troops withdrew to the Vistula opposite Neuchâtel in West Prussia (now Nowe) and moved to Neuchâtel on January 12th. On January 15, the 9th Corps Association in Polish Kronau was disbanded. Via Stolenzyn, Rogasen (today Rogoźno) we went to Posen, where the troops arrived on January 18th. On January 21, the Baden troops in Posen (today Poznań) received the order to march back via Glogau (today Głogów) and arrived in Karlsruhe on February 18, 1813 .

losses

The Grand Duchy of Baden provided 7,166 soldiers for the war against Russia. The Baden soldiers suffered great losses in securing the retreat over the Beresina and in their participation in the Arrièregarde as far as Vilna. On December 30, the brigade in Marienwerder, including the depot crew, numbered 537 men. Those directly involved in the campaign numbered 145 men.

A proof of the “fate of the Baden officers and war officials of the Baden troop corps in Russia” is contained in Appendix 13 of the book by Philipp Röder von Diersburg. Accordingly, the number of returnees has also decreased because people were transferred to their homeland or to newly established regiments during the campaign, or because those who remained in Vilnius were captured, transported to the interior of Russia and only released in 1814.

Many of the fates of missing people could no longer be clarified.

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Paul Holzhausen: The Germans in Russia 1812. Life and suffering on the Moscow military expedition. Morawe & Scheffelt Verlag, Berlin 1912. Sources: Badener, p. 249
  2. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 33–34.
  3. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 39–42.
  4. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 41–44.
  5. ↑ Quoted from Paul Holzhausen: The Germans in Russia 1812. Life and suffering on the Moscow military expedition. Morawe & Scheffelt Verlag, Berlin 1912. Introduction p. XXI
  6. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. p. 60.
  7. ^ Ernst von Baumbach: Diary from 1812. Nechtersheim 1838, manuscript. Section X
  8. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 61–72.
  9. ^ Ernst von Baumbach: Diary from 1812. Nechtersheim 1838, manuscript. Section X. Handwritten manuscript p. 220
  10. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 72-84.
  11. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 85-86.
  12. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 87-89.
  13. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 89-92.
  14. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. p. 92.
  15. ↑ Philipp Röder von Diersburg (ed.): Memories of the General of the Infantry Margrave Wilhelm von Baden from the campaigns 1809 to 1815. According to his handwritten notes. With notes and side dishes. A. Bielefeld's Hofbuchhandlung, Karlsruhe 1864. pp. 220-233.

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