The National Register.
London, England, 1812-09-13 00:00:00

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brisk fire of musketry began , and at five, the divisions of Morand and
Guilin carried the entrenched enemy's suburbs, with a cool and rare
intrepidity, and pursued theta tc the covered-way, winch was covered
with Russian dead. Upon our left, the Duke of Lichingen attacked
the position which the enemy bad without the town, seized upon it, and
pursued the enemy to the Glacis.
At five o'clock, the communication of the town with the right bank
became difficult, and could only be accomplished by isi‘lated men.
Three batteries of breaching 12-poundeis were placed against the
walls at six in the evening ; one by Friant's division, and the two others
by Moraed and Gadin's divisions. We drove the enemy from all the'
towers by howitzers, which played upon them.
The General of artillery, Count Sorbier, rendered the occupation
of the covered way by the enemy impossible, by two of
it
daedon, batteer-
-
ries. Nevertheless the enemy, who, from two in the afteino p
ceived we had serious !Mentions against the town, sent two divisions,
and two regiments of infantry of the guards, to reinforce the four divi-
sions which were in the town. These united forces composed half of
the Russian army. The. battle continued the whole night ; three breach-
ing batteries played with the utmost activity ; two companies of miners
were cttached to the ramparts.
The town was now on fire in the middle of a fine August night.
Smolensko offered the French a spectacle similar to that winch an in up-
tion of Nrestivius presents to the inhabitants of Naples.
An hoar after midnight, the enemy abandoned the town, and re-
tired across the river. At two o'clock, the grenadiers who first led to
the attack no longer found resistance, the place was evacuated,
pieces of cannon, and one of the first towns in Russia-were in our power,
and that too in sight of the whole Russian army.
The comma of Smolensk°, which we might just term a battle, an
hundred thotriand men having been engaged on the different sides,
caused the Ru•sians a loss Of 4,700 men, left dead on the field of
battle ; of 2,000 prisoners, the greater part of whom are wounded; mid
r 4 7to 8,000 wounded. Amongst the dead were found five 11.issian
lienerals. Our loss amounts to 700 killed, and 3,100 or reeoo
wounded. Tile General of Brigade, Grabouski, was killed, and the
Generals of Brie.ade Grandeau and Dalton, wounded. All the troops
have rivalled each other iN intrepidity. The field of battle has of-
fered to the view of 200,000 persons, who can attest it, the sight of one
French corps laying upon the dead bodies of seven or eight Russians :
meanwhile the lcussians were protected by the musketry fire from their
trenches during a part of the days of the 16th and 17th.
On the 11;th, we established the bridges over the Borysthenes, which
the enemy had burnt, but did not succeed in quenching the fire which
consumed the town, until the day of the 13th, the French sappers
having worked with great activity. The Louses in the city were filled
with Russians dead and dying.
Of 12 divisions, which composed the Grand Russian army, two di•
visions have been broken and defeated in the combats of Ostrovno, two
have met with the same fate in the battle of Mohilow, and six in the
battle of Smolensk°. They have only two divi,ions of the guards
which remain eetite. The deeds of bravery which tedound honour on
the army, and which have distinguished such numbers of soldiers ir. the
battle of Sm-lerrsko, shall be the subject of a particular report. Never
has the French army shewn greater iter epidity than in this campaign
(31imiteur, Sept. 5.)

FOURTEENTH BULLETIN OF THE GRAND ARMY.
Smolenko, Aug. 2:3.
Somlensito may he considered as one of the finest Clues of Russia.
Had it not been h.r the circumstances of the war, which his carried
thither the, and consumed ionnense magazines of coloni.d mercliandiz-
end goods of all kind', this city would have been a grand resource for
the aria,. Even in it• present state, it may be of the greatest utility
in a military point of view. Tlwre are still large houses reinaintn,
which offer fine places roc the establishment of hospitals ; the province
of Smotensko is, very fine and fen.' e. and furnished with great re-ources
for subsistence and forage. The Russians intended, aecortring to the
. events eat the wAr, to raise a militia of pe .sant slaves, whom the y have
armed with ba.-1 pites. They had already united about 5000 of thew
at this place ; it was an obket of raillery and deri:ion even to the Rus-
. 'tan army itself. They had already stated, as the order of the day,
that Smolensko was to he the grave of the French and that althoisuli

• •
it had been deemed coniwilieot to e•ticttate !'"laud. yet it wa•s oeces-
sary to give battle at Sawleosko, to prevent this hairier ut Russia from
falling intr. our hands.
The cathedral ►if Smotenslto is one of tire most celebratrci Grecism
churches in all Itussia ; the episcopal palace forms a Lind ut town by
rit9elt.
The best is exces4ve, the thermometer having rigor t to 26 degrees; ,
the weather is n►uch hotter here that isly.