The battle of Saltanovka, also known as the Battle of Mogilev (French: ''Bataille de Mogilev''), took place on 23 July 1812 and was a battle during the early stages of the 1812 French invasion of Russia.

Prelude

Avoiding French

envelopment Envelopment is the military tactic of seizing objectives in the enemy's rear with the goal of destroying specific enemy forces and denying them the ability to withdraw. Rather than attacking an enemy head-on as in a frontal assault an envelopment ...

attempts at the beginning of the invasion, the Russian Second Western Army under Prince

Pyotr Bagration Prince Pyotr Ivanovich Bagration (10 July 1765 – 24 September 1812) was a Georgian general and prince serving in the Russian Empire, prominent during the Napoleonic Wars. Bagration, a member of the Bagrationi dynasty, was born in Tbilisi. Hi ...

was ordered on 7 July to join, via Mogilev, the First Western Army of

Barclay de Tolly Barclay de Tolly () is the name of a Baltic German noble family of Scottish origin (Clan Barclay). During the time of the Revolution of 1688 in Britain, the family migrated to Swedish Livonia from Towy (Towie) in Aberdeenshire. Its subsequent ...

. Bagration was threatened with

encirclement Encirclement is a military term for the situation when a force or target is isolated and surrounded by enemy forces. The situation is highly dangerous for the encircled force. At the strategic level, it cannot receive supplies or reinforcemen ...

by French

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

's forces under King

Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...

to the west and Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout's I

Corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

to the north. The Russian Prince moved rapidly to cross the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine an ...

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

at Mogilev to link up with Barclay. Davout was faster, however, and 28,000 of his troops took Mogilev on 20 July. The Russians arrived before Mogilev on 21 July and their

vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives f ...

under

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

Vasily Sysoev drove out Davout's forward detachments near the

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

of Dashkovka to the south of Mogilev.

Opposing forces

Russian

Bagration had 45,000 men available but assigned only General Nikolay Raevsky's 17,000–20,000-strong VII Corps to attack Davout. Bagration's order was essentially for an aggressive

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops ( skirmishe ...

in force. Depending on the strength of the French, Raevsky would either drive the French out and capture

Orsha Orsha ( be, О́рша, Во́рша, Orša, Vorša; russian: О́рша ; lt, Orša, pl, Orsza) is a city in Belarus in the Vitebsk Region, on the fork of the Dnieper and Arshytsa rivers. History Orsha was first mentioned in 1067 as R ...

, thereby covering the First Western Army's crossing of the Dnieper or delay them long enough for Bagration to cross south of Mogilev.

French

Weakened by the transferral of his troops elsewhere and fatigue, Davout had 21,500–28,000 effectives on hand at Mogilev, including 22,000

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

and 6,000

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in ...

, in three infantry division under generals Jean Dominique Compans, Joseph Marie Dessaix and

Michel Marie Claparède Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...

and cavalry under generals Étienne de Bordesoule and Valence.v Davout deployed his forces at Saltanovka, a naturally strong position. The left flank was covered by the

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

s of the Dnieper. A stream ran through a

ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion.earthworks to strengthen his line, fortified the buildings on the main road and set up

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

batteries. The bridge at Fatova was destroyed.

Battle

Initial stages

At 07:00 on 23 July, VII Corps' advance guard of two Jäger

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions ...

s under Colonel Andre Glebov drove out Davout's outposts on the French left flank. By 08:00, the bridge on the left was in Russian hands and the Jäger continued their advance. Davout deployed the 85th

Line Line most often refers to: * Line (geometry), object with zero thickness and curvature that stretches to infinity * Telephone line, a single-user circuit on a telephone communication system Line, lines, The Line, or LINE may also refer to: Art ...

Regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

for a

counterattack A counterattack is a tactic employed in response to an attack, with the term originating in "war games". The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy during attack, while the specific objectives typically seek ...

, backed by artillery. The Russian attack failed as crushing French artillery and infantry

firepower Firepower is the military capability to direct force at an enemy. (It is not to be confused with the concept of rate of fire, which describes the cycling of the firing mechanism in a weapon system.) Firepower involves the whole range of potenti ...

mowed down the unprotected Russian infantry, who died where they stood rather than break for cover. While the Russian attack was faltering, Bagration sent Raevsky a new order to storm Mogilev.

Fatova

The 26th Infantry Division under

Ivan Paskevich Count Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erevansky, Serene Prince of Warsaw (russian: Ива́н Фёдорович Паске́вич-Эриванский, светлейший князь Варшавский, tr. ; – ) was an Imperial Russian mi ...

assaulted Fatova in extended

column formation A military column is a formation of soldiers marching together in one or more files in which the file is significantly longer than the width of ranks in the formation. The column formation allows the unit rapid movement and a very effective charge ...

, forcing I/85 to retreat. Davout sent a battalion of the 108th Line Regiment and some artillery to help out. The two French battalions redeployed on the heights south of Fatova and defeated the Russian attacks. Backed by 12 guns, Paskevich opened another assault that bashed through the French defenders to take the village. Past Fatova, Davout had prepared an

ambush An ambush is a long-established military tactic in which a combatant uses an advantage of concealment or the element of surprise to attack unsuspecting enemy combatants from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind moun ...

with four battalions from the 108th Line, lying low amidst the

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...

fields behind the village. The concealed French troops launched a devastating counterattack that caused heavy losses on the Russians and threw them back in disarray. Fatova was recaptured by the French. Paskevich attacked and captured the village again. Davout now moved forward the 61st Line from his reserve. All Russian attacks were repulsed and on the right, two French battalions overran the Nizhniy-Novgorod and Orlov regiments, crossing the stream. Paskevich deployed the Poltava regiment to prevent his right flank from being enveloped.

Saltanovka

The Russian attack's main point of effort was Saltanovka. Raevsky personally led the Smolensk Infantry Regiment to capture a dam and shield the attack of his main force. The 6th and 42nd Jäger Regiments would act as support, along with artillery on both sides of the main road. Paskevich's assault on Fatova would take place at the same time. Raevsky blundered, however, not hearing the agreed-upon artillery fire that would signal the advance. His own attack started too late. French artillery inflicted huge losses on Raevsky's men. Raevsky personally led a charge, allegedly with his 11 and 16-year old sons Nikolai and Aleksandr (although Raevsky denied it), but the attempt failed regardless. French prisoners informed Raevsky that French reinforcements were on the way. Bagration ordered a full retreat to Dashkovka. Davout attacked the Russian rearguard later that day but did not achieve a result.

Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

gives an account of the storming of the dam in

War And Peace ''War and Peace'' (russian: Война и мир, translit=Voyna i mir; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy that mixes fictional narrative with chapters on history and philosophy. It was first published ...

, Book III, Chapter 12 when an officer describes the event to a sceptical Count Nikolai.

Aftermath

The Second Western Army constructed a bridge south of Mogilev at Novy Bikhov and crossed the Dnieper toward

Smolensk Smolensk ( rus, Смоленск, p=smɐˈlʲensk, a=smolensk_ru.ogg) is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River, west-southwest of Moscow. First mentioned in 863, it is one of the oldest ...

. The battle prevented Bagration from joining the First Western Army under Barclay de Tolly at

Vitebsk Vitebsk or Viciebsk (russian: Витебск, ; be, Ві́цебск, ; , ''Vitebsk'', lt, Vitebskas, pl, Witebsk), is a city in Belarus. The capital of the Vitebsk Region, it has 366,299 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-largest c ...

, forcing Bagration to retreat to Smolensk. Saltanovka is generally seen as a French victory but despite failing to link up with Barclay at Vitebsk, Bagration accomplished his objective of joining the main Russian force later at Smolensk, and avoided Napoleon's encirclement.

Casualties

The Russian losses were 2,584 men killed and wounded, although Marshal Davout officially declared that they lost 1,200 dead and 4,000 wounded. Davout admitted to only 900 casualties, which include 100 prisoners from the 108th line regiment and were officially reported by him. The Russians claimed French casualties of 4,134 killed, wounded and missing. Actual French losses were about 1,200.

Notes

References

* * * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saltanovka 1812 Battles of the French invasion of Russia Battles of the Napoleonic Wars Battles inscribed on the Arc de Triomphe Battles involving France Battles involving Russia 1812 in the Russian Empire 1812 in Belarus Conflicts in 1812 July 1812 events Military history of Belarus Mogilev Governorate