Battle of Borodino 1812
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 7 September 1812 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1812 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | Russia | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Europe | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | French invasion of Russia | Wikidata P361 |
| Coordinates | 55.5167, 35.8167 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Battle of Borodino or the Battle of the Moskva took place on the outskirts of Moscow near the village of Borodino on 7 September 1812, during Napoleon's invasion of Russia. The Grande Armée fought against the Imperial Russian Army.
After the Russian retreat at the Battle of Smolensk, the road to Moscow lay open. Napoleon fought against General Mikhail Kutuzov, whom the Emperor Alexander I had appointed to replace Barclay de Tolly on 29 August after Smolensk was razed and captured by the French and Polish forces. Approximately a quarter of a million soldiers were involved in the battle, and it was the bloodiest single day of the Napoleonic Wars. In the battle, up to 50 French generals and marshals were killed or wounded, as well as 29 Russian generals; hence Sir Robert Wilson referred to it as the Battle of the Generals.
After the Battle of Borodino, Napoleon remained on the battlefield with his army; the Imperial Russian forces retreated southwards. What followed was the French occupation of Moscow, while the retreating Russians resorted to scorched earth tactics to trap Napoleon and his men within their own largest city.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Borodino (revision 1379952654), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; shortened by selecting paragraphs and trimming at a sentence boundary; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Battle at Borodino Field 1941 · 1 km
- Battle of Mozhaysk 1618 · 12 km
- Battle of Klushino 1610 · 58 km
- Battle of Tsaryovo-Zaymishche 1610 · 64 km
- Battle of Maloyaroslavets 1812 · 68 km
- Battle of Tarutino 1812 · 84 km
Other battles of the French invasion of Russia
- Battle of Berezina 1812
- Battle of Chashniki 1812
- Battle of Klyastitsy 1812
- Battle of Krasnoi 1812
- Battle of Liaskowa 1812
- Battle of Maloyaroslavets 1812
- Battle of Mir (1812) 1812
- Battle of Ostrovno 1812
- Battle of Saltanovka 1812
- Battle of Smolensk (1812) 1812
All 20 battles of the French invasion of Russia →
Browse more: battles in Russia · Europe · 19th century battles