Battle of Berezina

Battle of the Berezina
Part of the French invasion of Russia
Napoleon's crossing of the Berezina, a 1866 painting by January Suchodolski, oil on canvas, National Museum, Poznań
Date 26–29 November 1812 Location The Berezina river near Studienka, Russian Empire (currently Studenka, Barysaw District, Minsk Region, Belarus) 54°19′29″N 28°21′16″E / 54.32472°N 28.35444°E / 54.32472; 28.35444 Result See Aftermath
Belligerents
French Empire Duchy of Warsaw Italy Naples Bavaria Westphalia Württemberg Saxony Hesse	Russian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Napoleon I Nicolas Oudinot Claude Victor-Perrin Michel Ney	Peter Wittgenstein Pavel Chichagov Yefim Chaplits
Strength
~36,000 effectives[1] At least 40,000 stragglers[2] 250–300 guns[3]	61,500[4] to 64,000[1] Chichagov: 31,500 Wittgenstein: 30,000
Casualties and losses
20,000 to 30,000 combatants[5] 30,000 noncombatants[5]	10,000 killed[5] Many more wounded[5]
class=notpageimage| Location within Europe

French invasion of Russia

500km
300miles

Pultusk

15

Gorodeczno

14

Drohiczyn

13

Tauroggen

12

Riga

11

Tilsit

10

Warsaw

9

Berezina

8

Maloyaroslavets

7

Moscow

6

Borodino

5

Smolensk

4

Vitebsk

3

Vilna

2

Kowno

1

  

  current battle

  Prussian corps

  Napoleon

  Austrian corps

The Battle of (the) Berezina (or Beresina) took place from 26 to 29 November 1812, between Napoleon's Grande Armée and the Imperial Russian Army under Field Marshal Wittgenstein and Admiral Chichagov. Napoleon was retreating back toward Poland in chaos after the aborted occupation of Moscow and trying to cross the Berezina River at Borisov. The outcome of the battle was inconclusive as, despite heavy losses, Napoleon managed to cross the river and continue his retreat with the surviving remnants of his army.^[6]