Battle of Leipzig, ('The Battle of Nations'), 16-18 October 1813
Battle of Leipzig ('The Battle of Nations'), 16-18 October 1813
The battle of Leipzig was the largest battle of the
Napoleonic wars
and the largest battle in Europe until the
First World War
easily ranking as one of the largest battles in History. Napoleon, on the defensive after the disastrous
Russian campaign of 1812
was forced to fight the decisive battle of the Napoleonic Wars,a battle which involved five armies and nearly half a million men. In the aftermath of the 1812 campaign many of
Napoleon's
allies had deserted him, his cavalry had been decimated and he was forced to field an army mainly made up of raw but enthusiastic recruits to face a huge allied army of Austrians, Prussians, Russians and Swedes numbering around 300,000 including within the Swedish contingent a unit of British
Congreve Rockets
. The Swedish forces were commanded by one of Napoleons former Marshals,
Jean Bernadotte
who the French not surprisingly viewed as a traitor but who was to survive the Napoleonic Wars and found the Swedish Royal family.
The
campaign of 1813
started with two battles at
Lutzen
and then
Bautzen
but despite French victories they were unable too make anything of their success because they were too weak, and as the Autumn of 1813 began the stage was set for the battle of Leipzig. Napoleon was on the defensive but needed to attack to regain the initiative but he needed to decide which of the three allied armies he should attack first. His plan although good had a fatal flaw, it would require skilled commanders who could act independently. Napoleons autocratic leadership style and massive ego would tolerate no competition and he had very few Marshals with the independent ability he needed for his plan to work. On the 23rd August Napoleon attacked the Prussians at the
Battle of Grossbeeren
planning to destroy the Prussian Army and take Berlin. Although not a large battle the French were defeated and news of this soon spread, Napoleons star was about to fall.
On the 26-27th August Napoleon was in action again at the
Battle of Dresden
in which he was to gain his last victory on German soil. Other battles followed as Napoleon's commanders engaged the enemy including
Katzbach 26th August 1813
,
Kulm 29/30th August
,
Dennewitz 6th September
,
Wartenburg 3rd October 1813
and most famously
Liebertwolkwitz
14th October 1813 which was the greatest cavalry battle in history. By the 18th October Napoleon had concentrated his shrinking army at Leipzig. His army had been driven back after 3 heavy days of fighting. The Allied assault on the Town began at 10.30 as the French tried desperately to retreat through the town. Every gate, every street, even every building was defended and it was not an easy task for the Allies as then, as today fighting in an urban area is a very costly business.The French were tired and running low on ammunition and a retreat was unavoidable despite many acts of bravery from the defenders. The major blow was the Bridge over the Elster being destroyed early adding to the confusion and trapping 20,000 French troops in the city including
Prince Poniatowski
. Napoleon marched the remains of his Army back to France and it would be another year before his regime would fall, but his image of an invincible General had gone forever. French losses were in the region of 70,000 including around 30,000 prisoners with the Allies loosing around 54,000 killed and wounded.
How to cite this article:
Dugdale-Pointon, T. (23 March 2001),
Battle of Leipzig ('The Battle of Nations'), 16-18 October 1813
, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_leipzig.html