GENERAL HISTORY. 



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out the empire, with the exception 

 of some provinces which had been 

 particular sufferers. That the losses 

 of the Russians, as well as those of 

 their invaders, must have been 

 very great during the campaign, 

 cannot be doubted; and it was 

 highly important that the blow in- 

 flicted on the French should be 

 followed up with vigour, and that 

 such a countenance should be 

 shown, as would deter their am- 

 bitious ruler from any future at- 

 tempt to carry the war into the 

 Russian territory. 



The pursuit was eagerly conti- 

 nued, and few days occurred in 

 which the fugitives did not expe- 

 rience some disaster. General Pla- 

 toff destroyed a column of the ene- 

 my near Wilna, on Dec. Uth, took 

 a general and upwards of a thou- 

 sand soldiers. On the 14th, com- 

 ing up with the French at Kowno, 

 a town on the Niemen, in which 

 was a garrison defended by en- 

 trenchments, and redoubts on the 

 heights, a cannonade was opened 

 on each side, which was main- 

 tained till dark. Platoff having 

 sent a regiment of Don Cossacks 

 across the Niemen on the ice, in 

 order to menace the enemy on the 

 opposite bank, two columns of 

 french made a sortie at the ap- 

 proach of night, which were at- 

 tacked by the Cossacks, and thrown 

 into disorder with considerable 

 Ims. One part of them fled along 

 the river, while the other took the 

 road to Wilkowski, still pursued 

 by their indefatigable foe. Kowno 

 was captured with all the French 

 who remained in it; and in the 

 pursuit of three successive days, 

 5,000 prisoners were made, and 21 

 pieces of cannon fell into the hands 

 of the victors. The total losses of 



the French by capture, up to the 

 26th of December, are stated in 

 the Russian accounts to amount to 

 41 generals, 1298 officers, 167,510 

 non-commissioned and privates, 

 and 1131 pieces of cannon. The 

 Emperor Alexander, onDec.22nd, 

 re-entered Wilna, which he had 

 quitted to the invader about six 

 months before. He issued thence 

 various regulations and decrees for 

 restoring order in the provinces 

 which had been occupied by the 

 enemy, and for the prevention of 

 infectious diseases from the wretch- 

 ed prisoners, and the heaps of un- 

 buried carcasses. He attentively 

 visited the hospitals, in which a 

 shocking mortality long prevailed. 



Marshal Macdonald retreated 

 from Riga, and was pursued by the 

 Marquis Paulucci, who, on Dec. 

 27th, occupied Memel, making 

 the garrison prisoners, and taking 

 possession of the magazines. The 

 main retreating army in the mean- 

 time was followed by general Wit- 

 genstein, and the Iletman Platofi". 

 The former, advancing along the 

 Niemen towards Tilsit, succeeded 

 in cutting off Macdonald from the 

 body of Prussians under general 

 D'Yorck, and reduced the latter to 

 enter into a convention, by which 

 he agreed to remain neutral with 

 the troops under his command, 

 consisting of about 15,000 men, in- 

 fantry and cavalry. The terms were 

 highly liberal towards the Prus- 

 sians, who at this time were 

 scarcely regarded as enemies by the 

 Russians ; and though the king of 

 Prussia was at present necessitated 

 to seem to disapprove the conduct 

 of D'Yorck, it can scarcely be 

 doubted that he secretly concurred 

 in it. On the other hand the 

 French, who probably regarded 



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