On September 7, 1812, near the village of Borodino, some 120 kilometres west of Moscow, the Russian army under Mikhail Kutuzov faced Napoleon’s invading Grande Armée.
⚔️ The Battle of Borodino became the largest and bloodiest single-day battle of the Patriotic War of 1812, with well over 200,000 troops engaged on both sides.
The fighting began early in the morning and raged throughout the day. Napoleon repeatedly committed fresh forces in an attempt to break the Russian army, but the French failed to crush Russian resistance.
Despite losses, Russian regiments continued to fight with extraordinary determination, contesting every key position. By the end of the day, Napoleon had failed to achieve his principal objective – the destruction of the Russian army.
The losses of the European invaders were even heavier, and although, the battlefield was for the moment theirs, Russian forces retreated in full order, having preserved the army and manpower.
Borodino became an enduring symbol of courage, resilience and devotion to the Fatherland, while the soldiers and commanders who fought there entered Russian history forever.
✍️ As the great Russian writer Mikhail Lermontov wrote in his 1837 poem Borodino:
“That all of Russia remembers – no less,
About the day of Borodino…
You are not to see such struggles!..
Banners whirled round, like shadows,
Against the smoke the shots would blaze,
Sounds of steel, screams of gunfire,
Warriors’ hands starting to tire,
And cannonball’s flight would mire,
The bloody mound that there now lays”.
🎥 © Russian Military Historical Society