Bagration's flashes is a concept that has become a symbol of the heroism of the Russian soldier, his courage, military skills. Eight times the illustrious commanders of Napoleon, having a huge superiority in manpower, tried to take these makeshift field fortifications. The battle for Bagration's flashes allowed the Russian soldiers to stand on the Borodino field. Our illustrious ancestors made it clear to the invincible Napoleon that the Russian soldiers intended to fight to the end and were not going to let the enemy pass so easily to their capital.
Concept
Before covering in detail the battles for Bagration's flashes, let's briefly talk about the concept.
Fleches - an old type of field fortification, consisting of two faces. The approximate length of each was 20-30 meters. Each was located at an angle, forming an arrow directed towards the enemy. This is where the name comes from: from French, the term is translated as “arrow”. Fleches were a kind of temporary field mini-fortresses that were erected in the most important areas. They housed a sufficient number of people and guns, which made it possible to withstand the onslaught of superiorenemy forces. In fact, fortified areas grew out of the blue, which had to be taken by storm with superior forces.
Historical and strategic names
Bagration's flashes - 4 field artillery fortifications at a height - were located near the village of Semyonovskoye. They were created to strengthen the position of the second Western army of Pyotr Ivanovich Bagration. On the strategic maps of the Russian command, they are called "Semyonov's flashes", and their historical name - Bagration's flashes - was given in honor of the famous hero of the battle. It was here that P. I. Bagration received his wound, which turned out to be fatal.
Bagration flushes: the situation on the Borodino field
Why did Napoleon keep trying to capture a powerful defensive redoubt? The fact is that the great French commander planned to deliver his main blow with infantry, supported by artillery, on the flank, near the village of Semyonovskoye. With such decisive actions, he hoped to crush the Russian defenses on the flank and go to the rear of our army.
Side Forces
Successful flank attack in the rear of the Russian army would allow us to press the main forces of ours to the river. This would allow them to be completely destroyed. Kutuzov also understood this: three artillery fortifications were created on a narrow strip. In total, Bagration allocated 50 guns and 8 thousand soldiers for this sector of the front.
Napoleon allocated 40 thousand people for a powerful flank attack. He believed that this should be enough forbreakthrough defensive flank fortifications. However, this time the Great Commander miscalculated badly: the narrow space in front of the defensive line did not allow him to properly take advantage of the numerical advantage. Also, the French did not take into account the resilience of Russian soldiers, who, unlike the European campaigns, this time are defending their native land from enemy aggression.
Flash attacks
The battles for Bagration's flushes began simultaneously with the attack of the enemy near the village of Borodino - about 6 o'clock in the morning. Half a kilometer southwest of the fortifications was the village of Utitsa. Between her and the flushes, Russian rangers hid in the forest to prevent the French from bypassing the fortifications through the forest.
Even before the battle, Marshal Davout at the edge of the Utitsky forest began to build columns for the attack. Here our artillery fired its first volley at the enemy almost at point-blank range, from a distance of 500 meters, preventing the enemy from freely forming into columns. The French began to suffer significant losses even before the battle began. The enemy also organized three batteries of 102 guns a kilometer from the flushes and began shelling them. However, all the attention of the Russian artillery was focused on the infantry columns.
When approaching a distance of 200 meters, the Russian artillery switched to frequent fire with buckshot. In fact, the cannons turned into machine guns, which shot at the enemy columns at point-blank range.
It must be understood that the tactics of battle at that time were very different from subsequent eras: into battle to the sound of drumscolumns of soldiers marched in a parade march. If the French, for example, were crawling or running, they would have taken the fortified area right off the bat. However, the battles always took place in open areas of the terrain, the Napoleonic column system always gave advantages. Here the situation was different: defensive redoubts stood in a narrow area of the terrain, which, as if from a machine gun, “mowed down” enemy columns.
After the Russian guns began to exterminate the ranks of the French with buckshot at close range, the latter began to doubt the advisability of a further attack. The last straw was the volley of rangers from the forest. The enemy began to retreat. However, the marshals and generals again sent soldiers to attack.
This is how the battle went: the French attacked, retreated, rebuilt, then attacked again, suffering huge losses. The Russians, on the contrary, did not suffer heavy losses in the first hours of the battle. Our infantry was encouraged to see that the enemy was taking losses.
In total, eight attacks were made on Bagration's flushes. The French not only lost their strength to take defensive lines, but also used up all their reserves, which were necessary to develop success in the event of a breakthrough of the defense. The marshals were discouraged, Napoleon was greatly oppressed, and his troops lost faith in their invincibility. The Russians continued to hold their positions.
Eighth attack
By lunchtime, it became clear that the main blow of the French was aimed at Bagration's flushes. About 400 guns began to move towards the Russian defensive redoubts. An additional 45,000Human. Bagration could only field 15,000 men and 300 guns.
Kutuzov also understood the importance of this section of the front. He ordered the light cavalry to outflank the enemy and hit the rear of the enemy. This was necessary in order to tie up the French reserve, to prevent them from throwing all their forces at Bagration. At the same time, the order was given to transfer all forces to the flank, but this required time. The French, on the other hand, launched a swift attack. This time, a significant superiority made it possible to break into flushes. Bagration also threw all his forces towards them, hand-to-hand ensued, in which the commander himself was mortally wounded. The flashes were taken, but the whole plan of Napoleon became clear: after that, the Russian troops began to form defenses based on the exact plans of the enemy.
Bagration's flashes: "War and Peace"
The most important events of the Battle of Borodino are reflected in Leo Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace". Bagration's flushes were "lost" somewhere in it. The author connects all the main events of the Battle of Borodino with the battle of Raevsky's battery, in which one of the main characters, Pierre Bezukhov, takes part.
Contradictory in the novel it is also said about Bagration himself: “He is stupid, but he has experience, an eye and determination …” (Volume 3, part 1, chapter VI.), but at the same time “… the best is Bagration, Napoleon himself recognized this … ". In the novel, the concept of "stupidity" is opposed to the concepts of "determination, courage". L. N. Tolstoy makes it cleardescendants that Bagration is a brave man, a brave warrior, but as a general he is not capable of cold-blooded calculation and successful command. This was indirectly confirmed in the battle: Bagration threw all his reserves on the flashes and went on the attack at the head of his army, receiving a mortal wound.
Results
In the article, we highlighted what Bagration's flushes are: they gave a definition, described the significance of the battle for them for the outcome of the Battle of Borodino, the strength of the parties. Yes, despite the heroism of the Russian soldiers, they lost the battle. However, this is the same case about which they say: "Losing the battle, but winning the whole war."
