Battle of Tarutino

Part of French invasion of Russia (1812)

Battle of Tarutino, by Piter von Hess

Date	18 October 1812
Location	Tarutino, Russia
Result	Russian victory

Belligerents

Russian Empire

First French Empire

Commanders and leaders

Count Levin August von Bennigsen

King Joachim Murat

Strength

36,000;
13,000 actually participated in the battle.

26,000

Casualties and losses

1,200

2,500 dead,
2,000 captured,
38 cannon lost

The Battle of Tarutino (Russian: Тарутинo) was a part of Napoleon's invasion of Russia. The battle is sometimes called the Battle of Vinkovo or the Battle of Chernishnya after the local river. Many historians claim that the latter name is more fitting because the village of Tarutino was 8 km from the described events. In the battle Russian troops under the command of Bennigsen defeated French troops under the command of Joachim Murat.

After the battle of Borodino, Kutuzov realized that the Russian army would not survive one more large engagement and ordered the army to leave Moscow and retreat. At first it retreated in the south-east direction along the Ryazan road. When the army reached the Moskva River it crossed it and turned to the west to the Old Kaluga road. The army pitched camp in a village of Tarutino near Kaluga. At the same time small units of Cossacks continued moving along the Ryazan road misleading French troops under the command of Murat. When he discovered his error he did not retreat but made camp not far from Tarutino in order to keep his eye on the Russian camp.

On 18 October 1812 Kutuzov ordered Bennigsen and Miloradovich to attack Murat's corps (26,000 men) with two columns stealthily crossing the forest in the dead of night. Bennigsen's main column included three columns led by Vasily Orlov-Denisov, Karl Gustav von Baggehufwudt and Alexander Osterman-Tolstoy respectively. The other column was supposed to play an auxiliary role. In the darkness most of the troops got lost. By the morning only Cossack troops under the command of General Vasily Orlov-Denisov reached the original destination, suddenly attacked the French troops and captured the French camp with transports and cannons. Since other Russian units came late the French were able to recover. When the Russians emerged from the forest they came under French fire and suffered casualties (among others the commander of the 2nd Corps, General Baggehufwudt, was killed ). Murat was forced to retreat to escape being surrounded. The French forces suffered 2,500 dead and 2,000 prisoners, the Russians lost 1,200 dead.

...
Wikipedia