The Battle of Leipzig and the Betrayal that Decided the Fate of Europe
In 1813, a coalition of armies, led by Russian Tsar Alexander I and Austrian field marshal Karl Philipp, fought Napoleon’s forces at the Battle of Leipzig, from October 16th to 19th. They decisively defeated the French emperor after a mid-battle betrayal by his Saxon allies. After Napoleon’s catastrophic invasion of Russia in 1812, which he entered with 685,000 men, only to come out with 120,000 cold and hungry survivors, France’s dominance of Europe was shattered. Client states and subject nations rushed to shake off French hegemony. Napoleon raced back to France, and managed to raise an army equivalent in size to the one recently lost, but of lower quality and experience than the veteran force destroyed in Russia.
Napoleon marched into Germany to reassert French dominance. He won some victories, but was unable to follow them up with a decisive win because his enemies avoided battle with him. Instead, they fell upon his subordinates, whom they defeated as often as not. By October, 1813, the allies were confident enough to challenge Napoleon directly. The showdown took place at Leipzig between Napoleon’s forces of 225,000, and a 380,000 strong coalition of his enemies. Although outnumbered, Napoleon planned to take the offensive against the allies who sought to envelope him. He operated along interior lines, allowing him to concentrate against enemy sectors faster than they could be reinforced by his foes, who operated on exterior lines. Little did he know that a massive betrayal would decide the battle against him.