After an unsuccessful military campaign for Napoleon in 1813, the troops of the opposing coalition crossed the Rhine and in January 1814 invaded France. The country's forces were already exhausted, the army, which it could send to meet the enemy armies, was five times inferior to them in number. But for a short time it seemed to everyone that Napoleon's military leader's genius was able to balance even such inequality.
Napoleon Bonaparte in 1814, Illustration from William Milligan Sloane's Life of Napoleon Bonaparte
The list of victories of the French emperor is capable of capturing any imagination. He begins his campaign on January 26th. On this day, his troops drive out the Prussian army from Saint-Dizier. And already on January 29, he defeats the Russian corps of Osten-Saken and the Prussian detachment allied to him at Brienne. On February 1, the 30,000-strong Napoleonic army, which did not have time to rest, meets with the main forces of the Austrian army of Schwarzenberg, which numbered 120,000 soldiers. The battle of La Rottier lasted a whole day, Napoleon was forced to retreat, but the Austrians did not even try to pursue him.
On February 10, Napoleon defeats Olsufiev's Russian corps: about 3,000 people, led by the commander, were taken prisoner.
February 11 is marked by a new victory of Napoleon over the Russians and the Prussians at Montmirail, and on February 12 he wins the battle at Château-Thierry.
On February 14, Napoleon destroys Blucher's vanguard at Voshan; on February 18, he defeats at Montreux.
Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher
In early March, Napoleon failed to win clashes with Vorontsov's corps and Blucher's army, but on March 13, the battle of Reims took place, in which Napoleon defeated the Russian-Prussian detachment of General Saint-Prix. The Viscount de Saint-Prix was badly wounded in the battle and died of the consequences of this injury at the age of 37.
Viscount de Saint-Prix, French emigrant, lieutenant general of the Russian service
On March 20, Napoleon's 30,000-strong army fought for 2 days with Schwarzenberg's 90,000-strong Austrian army at Ars-sur-Aube. Napoleon won again, but there was no strength to pursue the enemy.
Karl Philip Schwarzenberg
In this situation, the emperor decides to take the enemies out of France, going to their rear and cutting them off from the Rhine. Napoleon was sure that his opponents would not dare to leave him unattended, and would follow on his heels. So, most likely, it happened, if not for two circumstances. The first was the interception of a courier with a letter outlining a plan for a future campaign. The second is the betrayal of Talleyrand, who urged his allies to Paris.
Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, they said about him that he sold those who bought him all his life, and Napoleon once called him "mud in silk stockings."
It was only on March 28 that Napoleon learned that, taking advantage of his absence, two enemy armies united near Paris, and rushed to the capital. But it was too late. On March 25, Marshals Mortier and Marmont defending Paris were defeated at the Battle of Fer-Champenoise, and on March 29, a 150,000-strong Allied army approached the suburbs of Paris, Pantin and Romainville.
Marshal Mortier
On this day, Marshal Marmont received permission from Joseph Bonaparte to negotiate with the enemy, the purpose of which was to save Paris from plunder.
Joseph Bonaparte
Marmont August Frederic Louis de Villez
However, the defense of the capital continued for another day. Only on the night of March 30-31, Marmont concluded an armistice with the allies and withdrew the remnants of the troops south of the capital.
Friedrich Kamp, "The Allies March 29, 1814, Near Paris"
"Entry of the Allied Forces into Paris on March 31, 1814", engraving by an unknown artist
He did not know that on March 30 Napoleon arrived at Fontainebleau. The position of the emperor was more than threatening. Power slipped from his hands like water from the palms of his hands. On March 29, the Emperor's brother Joseph Bonaparte and the Empire's Minister of War, Clarke, fled Paris. Marshal Monsey, commander of the National Guard, did not send a single battalion to the aid of the enemy Mortier and Marmont, who fought with superior forces. Marshal MacDonald, who was covering the rearguard of the Napoleonic army, refused to attack Vitry, saying: "Let your guard do it first, sire!" The commander of the army in the south of the country, Augereau, abandoned all the artillery in Valence and surrendered Lyon without a fight. Murat, who dreamed of retaining power in Naples, joined the anti-Napoleonic coalition and now, together with the Austrians, advanced on the positions defended by Eugene Beauharnais.
Joachim Murat
Eugene de Beauharnais
Davout's corps was blocked in Hamburg. Marshal Suchet was in Spain, and Soult was at Toulouse, where his army would soon be defeated by Wellington's troops. The Senate has already issued a decree removing the emperor from power. But Napoleon was not going to capitulate. On April 1, under his command there were 36,000 people, on April 3, he already had an army of 60,000. In the near future, some other units that were nearby could also approach him. He also counted on Marmont, but he, not wanting to participate in the storming of Paris, which, in his opinion, was to take place on April 5, on the night of April 3-4, sent a letter to Schwarzenberg informing him of his readiness to leave Napoleon's army. At the same time, he demanded the provision of written guarantees of the preservation of weapons and ammunition from the units headed by him, as well as the preservation of life and freedom to Napoleon. And on April 4, Marshals Ney, Oudinot, Lefebvre, MacDonald and Monsey arrived at Napoleon at Fontainebleau. Berthier and Caulaincourt were already there. On behalf of all those present, Ney and Oudinot demanded the abdication of Napoleon.
Illustration from the book by W. Sloan "The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte", 1896: Napoleon signs the act of abdication. Next to him: Marmont, Ney, Caulaincourt, Oudinot, MacDonald
Horace Vernet, "Napoleon's Farewell to His Guards at Fontainebleau, April 20, 1814"
Fontainebleau, courtyard of the White Horse: Napoleon's farewell to his veterans took place here
The emperor had no way out. Having signed the act of abdication in favor of his three-year-old son during the regency of Empress Marie-Louise, Napoleon sent Ney, Caulaincourt and MacDonald, who was absent from Fontainebleau, to negotiate with their allies, to whom Marmont, who was absent from Fontainebleau, had the right to join. What happened next? Here the opinions of contemporaries diverge. Marmont himself in his memoirs claims that, having learned about Napoleon's abdication, he stopped negotiations with Schwarzenberg and, having ordered his generals Suam, Kompan and Bordyussul to hold the army in their positions, went to negotiations in Paris. Callencourt testifies that Marmont sent this order to his generals only after meeting with other delegates and in their presence. On April 4, the French delegation met with Alexander I, who postponed the decision on the options for Napoleon's abdication, citing the need for negotiations with the allies. However, on the night of April 5, an event occurred that radically changed the situation: at a new meeting, Alexander I announced that Marmont's corps surrendered to the enemy without any conditions. Now the allies demanded an unconditional abdication from Napoleon. What happened in the absence of Marmont? According to the version most popular with historians, Marmont had already made his choice at that time, and the negotiations were a simple formality: the order to hand over the army to the allies had already been given to them. According to another version, the generals of his army could not stand the nerves. The consciences of Marmont's generals were troubled. They understood perfectly well that, having entered into negotiations with the enemy unauthorized by the emperor, they had committed an act that could be interpreted as treason. Therefore, when, in the absence of the commander, Napoleon's adjutant arrived at his headquarters with an order to arrive at the main headquarters of Marmont or his deputy, they decided that the emperor knew everything and fell into a state of panic. As it turned out later, Napoleon, in anticipation of news from the delegation sent to Paris, decided to simply have dinner with one of his marshals or generals. But to the frightened conspirators, the imagination drew pictures of a court-martial and immediate execution. In addition, General Suam, who remained for the senior, had previously served under the command of the famous opponents of Napoleon - Generals Moreau and Pishegru, and spent several months in prison for communication with the latter. Therefore, Suam did not even hope for the condescension of Napoleon. Raising the alarm on the soldiers who decided that they were going to attack the Austrians, the generals moved the corps to Versailles. Only when they found themselves between the two lines of the Austrians, the soldiers understood everything and refused to obey the officers.
General Suam
The generals fled, and the remaining uncontrollable corps moved to Rambouillet. Hastily arrived, Marmont managed to restore order and send his troops to Mant, where they remained until the end of the negotiations. On Saint Helena, Napoleon told Dr. O'Meara: "If it had not been for Marmont's betrayal, I would have driven the Allies out of France." About Marmont himself he said that he: “Should become an object of disgust from the descendants. As long as France exists, the name of Marmont will not be mentioned without a shudder. " So, in general, what happened: Marmont received from the new king the title of peerage and the title of captain of the royal bodyguards (this unit was popularly called the "company of Judas"). Apparently, not counting on forgiveness, during the "100 days" of Napoleon, Marmont, one of the few republican generals and marshals, remained loyal to Louis XVIII and accompanied him to Ghent. Voted for the execution of Ney, which finally ruined his reputation in the army. In 1817, he suppressed an uprising in Lyon. During the revolution of 1830, he was appointed governor of Paris, hesitated for a long time before giving the order to use weapons, did not achieve success and was removed from his post. After the fall of the monarchy, Marmont left France for good. In Vienna, on the instructions of the Court, for 3 months he tried to turn the son of Napoleon and Maria Louise, Duke of Reichstadt, against his father, trying to convince him that his father was "an immoral, evil and bloodthirsty person."
Duke of Reichstadt (Napoleon II) as a child
Maria Louise
And not having suffered a single defeat, but abandoned by all, Napoleon on April 6, 1814 signed an act of abdication on the terms of the Allies.
Paul Delaroche. "Napoleon after the abdication at Fontainebleau"
On April 12, he made an unsuccessful attempt at poisoning, and on April 28 he already left for the place of his first exile - on the island of Elba. Less than a year later, Napoleon would set foot on French soil again and enter Paris on March 20, 1815. But that's a completely different story.
