Battle of Leipzig

battle_name=Battle of Leipzig

Battle

The battle began on the 16th of October with an attack by 78,000 Allied troops from the south and 54,000 from the north, with Napoleon using the bulk of his army in the south. The allied offencives achieved little and were soon forced back, but in turn, Napoleon's outnumbered forces were unable to break the allied lines, resulting in a hard fought stalemate. The following day both forces merely skirmished as reinforcements arrived and were organized. The French however received only 14,000 additional troops, whereas 145,000 arrived for the Allies, greatly increasing their strength. On the 18th the Allies launched a huge assault from all sides. In over nine hours of fighting, in which both sides suffered heavy casualties and only the bravery of the French troops prevented a breakthrough, the French were slowly forced back towards Leipzig. Napoleon saw that the battle was a lost cause and on the night of the 18th-19th began to withdraw the majority of his army across the river Elster. The retreat went well until early afternoon when the single bridge was mistakenly destroyed, leaving the French rear guard to be caught by the Allies or drowning while trying to swim the river.

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