On the 17th, a Sunday, there was no fighting except to the north of the town, where Blucher forced his way nearer to the town walls. Napo leon proposed an armistice to the Austrian Emperor, but received no answer from the Allies. who were encouraged by Bliieher's victory and expected to renew the contest on the following day with their forces increased to about 230,00o men by the arrival of a Russian army of 40,000 men under Bennigsen, two Austrian divisions under Colloredo, and the Army of the North under Bernadotte. Though all hope of victory was whose forces after the ar rival of Itegnier amounted to about 150.000 troops. inexplicably neglected the opportunity to effect his retreat by the way of Lindenau, and contented himself with drawing his lines closer to the town, swinging his army slightly to the north so as to form a curve facing almost due east. To the north on his extreme left was Ney, between whom and was the corps of Regnier with the Saxon troops; the centre was held by Victor, Lauriston, and Auge rem', with the Old and the Young Guard and Mural's cavalry; on the right were the Poles under Poniatowski. The battle of the 180 in volved no remarkable principles of strategy on either side. hut developed into a murderous eon tlict between dense bodies of men crowded together in the streets of the numerous villages surrounding Leipzig, and exposed for hours to the devastating lire of artillery. On the right and venire the French held• their own against the divisions of Colloredo, Kleist. and Witt genstein. the lighting being especially obstinate around the villages of Probstheida, where Napoleon held command. The village of Stiit teritz was bravely defended by Macdonald against the troops of hiennigson. But on the left Ney could not hold out against the forces of Midler, Bagration. and Bernadotte, and at a critical moment the Saxons in corps stationed at Patinsdnrf went over to the enemy. was
forced to fall hack on the town, in spite of reiinforeements dispatched by Napoleon. The retreat. however. was stubborn. though in the face of a tremendous cannon fire, the village of Schrinfeld being taken and retaken seven times. With nightfall the French retreated into the city, hard pressed by the enemy. There was heavy fighting in the suburbs and at the gates far into the night, and the contest was resumed in the early morning of October 19th. On the part of the French no adequate preparations had been made for effecting a safe retreat, and as division after division of the ex hausted troops abandoned the defense of the town to join in the line of march. the streets of Leipzig became clinked with fugitives, the only means of escape trom the town being by a solitary bridge across the Elster. Owing to a misunderstanding of orders, this bridge was blown up by a French sergeant before the rear guard had crossed. and 15,000 men were left in the hands of the enemy. Large numbers were drowned in attempting to swim the Eisler, among these being Prince Poniatowski. At noon the allied monarchs made their entry into Leipzig. The losses of the Allies in the battle are esti mated at about 53.000 in dead and wounded. of which the Prussians lost 10.000, the Austrians 14.500, and the Russians 21.900. The French lost 15,000 in dead. 15.000 wounded, 25,000 prisoners, and 23,000 men left behind in the hospitals. The battle of Leipzig effectively shat tered the power of Napoleon, and though his genius never shone more brightly than in his masterly retreat across Germany and his defense of the frontier of France, his fall had been rendered inevitable by the issue of this battle. Consult: Jomini, Life of Napoleon, iv. (New York, 18(i4 ) ; Gerlach. Die Selaaelit Lei Leipzig (new ed., Leipzig, 1392).