He was promoted to colonel and almost immediately became involved in the French invasion of Russia, serving in the First Western Army. He was wounded in the eye at the Battle of Valutino and was injured in a counter-attack at the Battle of Borodino, but was still able to fight at the Battle of Krasnoi. In 1813, he was awarded the Order of St. George of the Third Degree and the Order of St. Alexander Nevsky. From 1813 to 1814, he commanded a brigade under Field Marshal Wittgenstein and distinguished himself at the Battle of Lützen.