The Retreat from Moscow

by Sergeant Bourgogne, John William Fortescue (Translator)

The famous retreat from Moscow, when Napoleon's army was defeated by the terrible Russian winter, is here described by one who was there. In the introduction, Vincent Cronin writes "many excellent reminiscences, diaries and letters describing the Russian campaign have survived, bu Bougogne's are among the few of perennial interest. Though they tell us less about military events than, say, Caulaincourt and Fezensac, they reveal much more about the participants' hopes and disappointments, their moments of courage and of panic, their will to survive, and the curious psychological aberrations that accompany intense, protracted physical suffering."

Introduction by Vincent Cronin. Illustrations in b/w.

262 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1985

Reviews

[Logan Noble · Rating 5 out of 5]

A soldier’s first hand account of a brutal retreat, of frozen death and so much worse. It’s a harrowing read.