Borodino, evening. Kutuzov orders the famous icon of the Mother of God of Smolensk, evacuated from the city, to be brought to the front lines. Orthodox popes and archimandrites are also present. By contrast, Napoleon’s army is entirely secular, born of the values of the French Revolution. It is entirely international: tens of thousands of Poles, Germans, and Italians are present. Napoleon’s speech and agenda mention neither religion nor patriotism. He appeals to the confidence of past battles and the glory of fighting “under the walls of Moscow.” From this perspective, the two cultures could not be more different.
