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Very good in Very good jacket. ix, [1], 253, [1] pages. Endpaper map. Illustrations. Maps. Sources. Select bibliography. Index. Parkinson earned a master's degree in War Studies at the University of London. He then was the Defence Correspondent for The Scotsman. He became a superb military biographer. This is the biography of General Kutuzov, Commander of the Russian Forces in 1805 and 1812 during two greatest battles of the Napoleonic conflicts-Austerlitz and Borodino. Letters and documents never previously translated from Russian contribute to a book to a fascinating examination of his career and attributes. Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov-Smolensky (16 September [O.S. 5 September] 1745-28 April [O.S. 16 April] 1813) was a Field Marshal of the Russian Empire. He served as a military officer and a diplomat under the reign of three Romanov monarchs: Empress Catherine II, and Emperors Paul I and Alexander I. Kutuzov was shot in the head twice while fighting the Turks (1774 and 1788) and survived the serious injuries seemingly against all odds. He defeated Napoleon as commander-in-chief using attrition warfare in the Patriotic war of 1812. Alexander I, the incumbent Tsar during Napoleon's invasion, would write that he would be remembered amongst Europe's most famous commanders and that Russia would never forget his worthiness. In Tolstoy's influential 1869 novel War and Peace, the elderly, sick Kutuzov plays a major role in the war sections. He is portrayed as a gentle spiritual man, far removed from the cold arrogance of Napoleon, but with a much clearer vision of the true nature of warfare. When Napoleon invaded Russia in 1812, Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly (then Minister of War), with his army being outnumbered 2: 1, chose to follow the scorched earth principle and retreat rather than to risk a major battle. His strategy aroused grudges among most of the generals and soldiers. As Alexander after the Battle of Smolensk had to choose a new general, there was only one choice: Kutuzov. He was popular among the troops mainly because he was Russian (most of the generals commanding Russian troops at that time were foreign), he was brave, had proven himself in battle, strongly believed in the Russian Orthodox Church, and he looked out for the troops' well-being. The nobles and clergy also regarded Kutuzov highly. Therefore, when Kutuzov was appointed commander-in-chief on the 17th and joined the army on 29 August 1812 at Tsaryovo-Zaymishche, Russians supported his appointment. Only Alexander, repulsed by Kutuzov's physique and irrationally holding him responsible for the defeat at Austerlitz, did not celebrate Kutuzov's commission. The day before he left he met with Madame de Stael, a strong opponent of Napoleon. Within a week Kutuzov decided to give major battle on the approaches to Moscow. He withdrew the troops still further to the east, deploying them for the upcoming battle. Two huge armies clashed near Borodino on 7 September 1812, involving nearly a quarter of a million soldiers, with a ratio about 1.1 French soldiers to 1 Russian soldier. The result of the battle of Borodino was a kind of pyrrhic victory for Napoleon, with near a third of the French army killed or wounded. Although the Russian losses were nearly 50% higher, the Russian army had not been destroyed. On 10 September the main quarter of the Russian army was situated at Bolshiye Vyazyomy. Kutuzov settled in a manor on the high road to Moscow. The owner was Dmitry Golitsyn, who entered military service again. The next day September 11th [O.S. August 30th] 1812 Tsar Alexander signed a document that Kutuzov was promoted General Field Marshal, the highest military rank. Russian sources suggest Kutuzov wrote a number of orders and letters to Rostopchin, the Moscow military governor, about saving the city or the army. On 12 September [O.S. 31 August] 1812, the main forces of Kutuzov departed from the village, now Golitsyno and camped near Odintsovo, 20...
