Battle of Lützen (1813)

The Battle of Lützen (May 2, 1813) was fought during the War of the Sixth Coalition of the Napoleonic Wars, pitting the French army against a combined Russian-Prussian army. After a day of intense fighting, the combined Prussia and Russia retreated, but the French were unable to pursue the defeated enemy due to their lack of cavalry.

Previous moves

Napoleon Bonaparte, after organizing a new army with the survivors of the Russian campaign, marched into Germany in April 1813 to confront the Russians and Prussians.

After uniting his forces with those of the Army of the Elbe, under the command of Eugene de Beauharnais stationed in Magdeburg, he advanced towards Leipzig in Saxony.

Napoleon arrived in Erfurt on April 25, while Marshal Ney achieved victory at the Battle of Weissenfels on April 29. The consequence of this first confrontation was that the allies were thrown to the right bank of the Saale River.

Napoleon moved his headquarters to Weissenfels and had three bridges built.

On May 1, Marshal Ney advances with a division and crosses the Poserna defile defended by six cannons and 15,000 cavalry. Behind Ney march the divisions of Gerard, Marchand, Brenier and Ricard, and in a few hours the 15,000 cavalry are overwhelmed by the 15,000 French infantry soldiers.

In this combat, Jean-Baptiste Bessieres, Duke of Istria, died from a cannon shot, whose loss was deeply felt by the Emperor.

On the night of May 1 to 2, Napoleon set up his base in Lützen. Ney, located in the center, occupied the village of Kaia. The left leaned on the Elster River and the young guard and the old guard formed the right surrounding Napoleon.

On the morning of May 2, the Russian-Prussian army appeared in sight of the French.

The battle

The main attack occurred in the French center. Numerous coalition soldiers marched in columns towards Kaia, favored by their numbers and the terrain. Numerous cavalry were also seen.

The village of Kaia was taken and recovered several times, in the end it ended up being in the hands of General Gerard, who, although wounded by several shots, did not want to leave the battlefield.

However, the Russians did not give up and marched again against the French center and made some French battalions retreat. The village of Kaia once again passed into coalition hands but Napoleon made an appearance and those same battalions fought again.

Then Napoleon goes on the attack. He entrusts Eugene de Beauharnais and Etienne Jacques Joseph MacDonald to attack the Russian-Prussian wings and reserve and to General Bertrand to occupy his troops on the battle front. Napoleon also orders that the young guard, under the command of Marshal Mortier, attack Kaia and finally orders that General Drouot place a battery of eighty cannons in front of the old guard and near the cavalry to hold the center.

These orders are carried out quickly. Drouot advanced his artillery until he was as close to the enemy line as possible and opened fire, causing great havoc in the Allied center. This close fire caused huge casualties, making entire ranks disappear.

Meanwhile the Young Guard, after overtaking the artillery on the left, marched against the Allied center. When they reached the Allied position, the enemy bodies were so crowded that the officers' horses did not even touch the ground. As the Guard advanced, the Russo-Prussian forces fled, leaving the field for the victorious French.

Mortier recovered Kaia without firing a shot and General Bertrand arrived in time to complete the victory. In the following days, French troops occupied Leipzig on May 3, Dresden on May 9 and Torgau on May 10.

The combined troops of Russia and Prussia lost thirty thousand men killed and wounded. The French had 10,000 casualties.