LON 
D O N. 
Wilkomirz. On Oudinot’s advance, the Ruffians ftill re¬ 
treated, and fet fire to their magazines at Wilkomirz. 
The French divifions continued to advance, and the 
Ruffians to purfue the plan of gradual retreat. The latter 
reached the Duna about the 7th of July, without any 
confiderable lofs, and began to concentrate on its banks. 
During thefe operations, the weather, from extreme heat, 
changed to cold and ftorm, w hich occafioned the lofs of 
ieveral thoufand horfes to the French army. Riga was 
now regarded as expofed to imminent danger, and its 
governor ififued a proclamation to encourage the inhabit¬ 
ants to a vigorous refiftance. Some Rritifh fhips of war 
had entered the harbour to affift in its defence. About 
this time, treaties of peace and friendfhip were ratified 
between the king of Great Britain and the emperor of 
Rufiia and the king of Sweden; thus fealing a bond of 
alliance which entirely changed the political fyftem of the 
north of Europe. 
On the 9th of July, the French advanced ports were on 
the Duna. Prince Bagrathion, the Ruffian commander, 
Bad been intercepted in his march towards Wilna, and 
had been obligsd to move towards the Dnieper, whilll the 
French poffefl'ed thernfelves of Novogrodek and Minfk. 
The great duchy of Lithuania was now confidered by them as 
nearly conquered; and Napoleon publifned an act, organ¬ 
izing a provifional government in it, with a national guard 
and a gendarmerie. The emperor of Auftria had at this 
time recalled his ambalfador from Peterfburgh, and had 
Lent his quota of troops as ally to France, under the 
command of the prince of Schwartzenberg, who had 
reached the Ruffian territory. The main Ruffian army, 
■which was collected in a ftrongly-entrenched camp at 
.Driffa on the Duna, evacuated it on the 18th, and 
moved eaftward towards Witepik, where the emperor 
Alexander was on the 19th. The king of Naples (Mu¬ 
rat) crofted the Duna without oppofition on the 20th, 
and fpread his cavalry along the right bank of that river. 
Various partial aftions had occurred during thefe move¬ 
ments, the circumftances of which are lo differently related 
in the bulletins on each fide, that nothing is left certain 
but the general refults. From thefe it appears, that the 
Ruffians ftill perfevered in their plan of retreat, but occa¬ 
sionally checked the temerity of the invaders, who began 
to experience a greater degree of refinance in proportion 
to their advance. The Prulfians, who compofed the chief 
force of marfhal Macdonald, had been advancing through 
Courland ; and a Ruffian corps at Mittau had been obliged 
to fight its way to Riga. This city was now thought in 
fuch immediate danger of a fiege, that its fuburbs were 
burnt down, with a vaft deftruftion of naval and building 
timber. The Ruffian army, when it quitted the entrenched 
camp at Driffa, conlified of five corps d’armee, one of 
which, under general Wittgenftein, remained to cover Pe¬ 
terfburgh, while the other four marched by Polotfk to 
Witepfk. On July the 25th, two French divifions under 
general Nanfouty, encountered the Ruffians in front of 
Oftrovno. On that and the two following days there was 
much (harp fighting in this quarter, the Itrength of the 
Ruffians being ftated in the French bulletin at 60,000 in¬ 
fantry and 15,000 cavalry. The lofs on both fides was 
confiderable, but the fruits of victory remained with the 
French, who took many prifoners and feverul pieces of 
cannon. On the evening of the 28th, the Ruffian army 
•was in full retreat towards Smolenlko ; and on that day 
the French entered Witepfk. During thefe tranlaclions, 
prince Bagrathion, on his march, was attacked by the 
prince of Eckmuhl (Davouft) near Mohilow, and an en¬ 
gagement enfued which continued the greateft part of the 
day. It concluded with the retreat of Bagrathion, unmo- 
lelted, in the direftion of Smolenlko, where he joined the 
grand army. The vicinity.of Polotfk was alfo near this 
time the fcene of fevere conteft. Marfhal Oudinot having 
croffed the Duna, with the view, it is luppofed, of com¬ 
ing round upon Riga, was attacked by count Wittgenftein 
on the 30th and 31ft, who, according to the Ruffian ac¬ 
counts, gained a complete victory. A French bulletin, how¬ 
ever, reprefents the refult of another aftion, on Auguft iff, 
to have reverfed this fortune, and left the Ruffians in the 
ftate of entire defeat. The capture by ftorm of the for- 
trefs of Dunaburg, on July the 30th, was a proof that, 
on the whole, fuccefs fiill continued to attend on the 
French arms. 
About the 12th of Auguft, the main body of the 
French forces, under the king of Naples and the prince of 
Eckmuhl, marched upon the Dnieper in order to obtain 
pofleffion of Smolenlko, at which city the principal force 
of the Ruffians was afl’embled. On Auguft the 161h, the 
heights of Smolenlko were commanded by the French 
troops; the place was reconnoitred by Napoleon in per- 
fon, and the army was arranged in its pofition. The 
particular operations which enfued are not intelligible 
without a plan ; bat it appears that the attack and defence 
were both conducted with vigour and refolution. On the 
night of the 17th, the town was fet fire to, and after mid¬ 
night abandoned, by the Ruffians, who retired acrofs the 
river. It was occupied on the i3th by the invaders, who 
at length fucceeded in extinguifhing the fire. The con- 
telt for this important place is laid to have engaged 100,000 
men on each fide; and the lofs of lives cot.Id not fail to 
be confiderable, but that of the Ruffians is, by the French 
accounts, ftated at triple their own. On the 19th the 
French crofting the Dniefter, made an attack on the Ruf¬ 
fian rear-guard, the laft column of which retreated to the 
fecond, which was ported on the heights of Valentina. 
An action was brought on to force this pofition, in which 
a large number of troops on each fide was engaged, and 
the point was obftinately contefted ; it terminated in an 
unmolefted retreat of the Ruffians. The banks of the 
Duna, near Polotfk, were the fcene of fome fevere en¬ 
counters on the i6thand 17th, between Wittgenftein and 
Oudinot, in which the fuccefs feems to have been nearly 
balanced. Of a number of inferior a&ions it is not worth 
while in this fketch to take notice. 
At the beginning of the invafion of Ruffia, it appeared 
to have been the defign of Napoleon to make a pufh at 
once for Peterfburgh, probably fuppofing that the immi¬ 
nent danger or capture of tins metropolis would terminate 
the war. But the plan purfued by the Ruffian comman¬ 
ders to draw the principal force of their antagonifts to¬ 
wards the Dnieper, neceffarily changed that of the invader, 
whofe objeirt now became the pofleffion of the ancient ca¬ 
pital of the empire, Mofcovv. Its central fituation amidit 
fome of the molt fertile provinces of Ruffia, its vaft extent, 
and its ready communication with Poland and tiie coun¬ 
tries of Europe to the weft, obviotifly rendered it a rnoft 
important flation for carrying on a war which was- now 
likely to be protra£led at lenft to another campaign. 
Smolenlko is in the direft road to Molcow, and at a Ids 
diftance from it than from Wilna; to have occupied that 
city was therefore a materia) point gained towards the 
further progrefs of the invading army. The advance of 
the latter, and the retreat of the Ruffians before them, de- 
ftroying or carry off theiv magazines, continued as before; 
and on the 29th, general Caulincourt entered Viafma, a 
confiderable town on the Mofcow road. At this time 
general Kutufoffhad taken the chief command of the Ruf¬ 
fian armies. 
Hitherto no oppofition of confequence had been given 
to the French in their approach towards the capital; but 
the time was now come in which an effort Was to be made 
worthy of the prize contended for—The Ruffians, had 
taken a ftror.g pofition at the village of Me.fk.wa, between 
Ghijat and Mojailk, where they were defcrisd by the 
French on September the 5th, as they had begun to form 
a redoubt upon a height. This was immediately attacked 
by Napoleon’s order, and carried. The next"day parted 
in reconnoitring ; and at day-break on the 7th, the French 
made an attack on the whole of the Ruffian pofition. 
They ftate the Ruffian forces to have amounted to 120 
or 130,000 men, and acknowledge an equal number of 
their 
