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*****
"Messieurs, bienvenue à Moscou!"
Napoleon was proud of his capture. At the time, Saint-Petersburg was the capital of the Russian Empire. But Moscow was Moscow. The symbolism of the capture was too huge to ignore and not celebrate.
However, there was a problem. One that Napoleon didn't see at first. The glory of the conquest made him blind like a bright light shining out of nowhere. But now, his eyes were getting used to the light and what he saw made his smile vanish.
Moscow was in ruins.
Ashes covered the snow. The smoke intoxicated the air. The constructions that once were famous now laid in ruins.
Napoleon couldn't believe his eyes. His prize was no more.
"Fils de pute!" Cursed the Emperor. "Try to find something to salve. And be careful. The Russians are treacherous."
For days, the Grande Armée searched Moscow. All they found were ashes and destruction.
When Tsar Alexander I received news that the French would win the Battle of Borodino, he made a brave decision.
"Gentleman, we must evacuate Moscow. Remove the people and burn the city to the ground! That fucking French may win a battle, but he'll never defeat Russia nor capture Moscow! We will destroy everything, and in the end, we'll win, or he'll command piles of ashes! Russia will not fall! No one, NO ONE WILL DEFEAT RUSSIA!" The Tsar shouted the last phrase and inflamed his generals and advisors.
As per their orders, Moscow was evacuated and burned. Now, as the Tsar foresaw, Napoleon and the Grande Armée had nothing but ashes to brag.
Alexander I, even with the loss in Borodino, smiled. On the other hand, Napoleon couldn't savour his victory.
Even with the win and the capture, Moscow was the Grande Armée and Napoleon's first taste of defeat in Russia.
There were more to come.
*****
THE END
During the Napoleonic Wars, Moscow was occupied on 14 September 1812 by French Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte's Grande Armée. It marked the summit of the French invasion of Russia. During the occupation, which lasted 36 days, the city was devastated by fire for six days and looted.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_occupation_of_Moscow
