Date and place
- February 1st, 1814 at La Rothière, Aube department, in Champagne, France (now part of the Grand-Est region)..
Involved forces
- French army (36,000 men) under Emperor Napoleon the First.
- Prussian army (150,000 men) under Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher.
Casualties and losses
- French army: 6 to 8,000 men killed, lost, injured or prisoners.
- Allied army: 6 to 8,000 men killed, lost or injured.
Aerial panorama of La Rothière battlefield
The general situation
The day after the battle of Brienne (January 29, 1814), Napoleon remained in the town
Although his intention was to march west-southwest towards Troyes
The Emperor therefore took up a defensive position, hoping to withdraw before being attacked. His wide-ranging positions prevented the enemy from gaining access to the Brienne plain
The layout of the armies
French Army
The French were arranged as follows:
- General Gérard commanded the 7,000-strong French right wing. It was located on the right bank of the river Aube
L'Aube , west of La RothièreLa Rothière , between DienvilleDienville and UnienvilleUnienville . - Marshal Victor was in the center with just over 11,000 men. His divisions occupied the villages of La Gibrie [La Giberie]
La Giberie , Chauménil [Chaumesnil]Chaumesnil , Petit-Ménil [Petit-Mesnil]Petit-Mesnil and La Rothière, with Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de NansoutyÉtienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty 's cavalry blocking the interval between the last two. - Marshal Marmont, once arrived, would form the left wing with his 6,500 men.
- A reserve of 7,500 soldiers, under Marshal Ney, was established around
Surroundings of La Rothière the Beugné (or Bugney) farm [no longer existing today]Place where the Beugné farm was . One of its cavalry divisions was overseeing the reconstruction of the Lesmont bridge. - The cavalry reserves were stationed in the third line, under the command of General Emmanuel de Grouchy.
- Marshal Nicolas Oudinot was positioned in front of Brienne-la-Vieille.
Coalition army
Opposite, Field Marshal Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher's vastly superior forces were organized into three main groups:
- The left, 20,000 strong, was commanded by General Ignácz Gyulay
Ignácz Gyulay . It was behind TrannesTrannes and would march on Dienville. - General Fabian Gottlieb von Osten-Sacken
Fabian Gottlieb von Osten-Sacken was in charge of the center. 23,000 of his men were tasked with attacking La Rothière, supported by General Zakahr Dmitrievich Olsufiev (Захар Дмитриевич Олсуфьев)Zakahr Dmitrievich Olsufiev and a further 23,500 soldiers. - 4,500 Cossacks ensured the junction with the right.
- The right was led by Frederick William, Royal Prince of Württemberg (Wilhelm Friedrich Karl von Württemberg)
Wilhelm Friedrich Karl von Württemberg , who held 12,500 men behind EclanceEclance , waiting to attack Petit-Mesnil. - The reserve comprised no less than 12,000 men and was held to the right of Bossancourt
Bossancourt . - A second reserve of 53,000 men was available, but took no part in the battle. It was made up of the troops of russian General Mikhaïl Bogdanovich Barclay de Tolly (Михаи́л Богда́нович Баркла́й-де-То́лли), spread out between Trannes and Bar-sur-Aube
Bar-sur-Aube , and those of General Hieronymus von Colloredo-MansfeldHieronymus von Colloredo-Mansfeld , whose orders were to advance along the road from Dienville to Troyes. Fortunately for the French, he did not arrive at Vendeuvre-sur-BarseVendeuvre-sur-Barse until around 2 p.m. on February 1, too late to carry out the prescribed movement in good time.
All these troops were concentrated in the Trannes defile, which prevented them from attacking together.
The battle
January 30 passed, then January 31. All remained calm.
On February 1st, the weather was miserable. It had been freezing all night and the snow was now falling in heavy flakes. The ground, soaked by the heavy rains of the previous days, has been ploughed by troops and vehicles. A major Allied offensive seemed increasingly unlikely as the hours passed.
When the morning ended with no movement reported from the allies, Napoleon could believe for a moment that his wish would come true. Marmont had arrived in Morvilliers
So, at 11 a.m., the Emperor gave the order to retreat. Ney set off for Lesmont, with the other corps preparing to follow. It was now midday. Blücher chose this moment to engage the enemy.