It became a symbol of the sacrifices of Swiss mercenaries in foreign service following popularization as "Beresinalied" by Otto von Greyerz and Gonzague de Reynold, tying it to the Battle of Berezina. The context is that Oberleutnant Thomas Legler, (1782–1835, born in Glarus) who served in the II corps of Marshal Nicolas Oudinot in Napoleon Bonaparte's invasion army in Russia in his memoirs "Denkwürdigkeiten aus dem russischen Feldzug" tells how his commander during the Battle on 28 November 1812 reminded him of the song and asked him to sing it.