Russia. Battle of Krasnyj or Krasnoi. The Russians win a narrow victory: Eugène’s and Davout’s corps suffer so many losses that they can no longer be considered fighting units. Napoleon is also forced to abandon Michel Ney’s rearguard to its fate. A group of 600 soldiers (of Ney’s corps of 15,000), led by Ney himself, manages to evade the Russians through the woods, cross the Dnieper, and rejoin Napoleon at Ursa on November 20. The intervention of Napoleon’s Guard averts a decisive defeat for Napoleon and allows him, the Guard, and part of his army to cross the Dnieper. From this point on, the Russians let Napoleon go, unable to extend their supply and communication lines and maintain the rapid pace of the French retreat.
