After the Battle of Borodino, on 13 September 1812, the chief commander of the Russian Army Michael Kutuzoff, against the will of most of his generals, issued an order to retreat from Moscow. Count Rostopchin, the Governor General of Moscow, received the news of the army's retreat at the last moment and was hard pressed to evacuate his own family with no time to organize the evacuation of the city. Nobody expected such a turn of events, least of all the citizens of Moscow, who, on one hand, were not morally ready to accept the power of Napoleon, but, on the other hand, had not undertaken any measures to evacuate the wounded and sick, or any tangible property. The Moscovites simply stood up and left the city.
The morning of 14 September 1812 was beautiful, there was â??the extraordinary autumn weather that always comes as a surprise, when the sun hangs low and gives more heat than in spring, when everything shines so brightly in the rare clear atmosphere that the eyes smart, when the lungs are strengthened and refreshed by inhaling the aromatic autumn air...â? (Leo Tolstoy War and Peace)
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