Editing Battle of Borodino (section)

=== First attacks on the Raevsky redoubt ===
[[File:Battle of Borodino panorama - detail 04.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Saxon cuirassiers and Polish lancers of [[Victor de Fay de La Tour-Maubourg|Latour-Maubourg]]'s cavalry corps clash with Russian cuirassiers. The rise of Raevsky redoubt is on the right, the steeple of Borodino church in the background. Detail from the ''Borodino Panorama''.]]
Prince Eugène de Beauharnais advanced his corps against Borodino, rushing the village and capturing it from the [[Egersky Guards Regiment|Russian Guard Jägers]].{{sfn|Hourtoulle|2000|p=33}} However, the advancing columns rapidly lost their cohesion; shortly after clearing Borodino, they faced fresh Russian assault columns and retreated back to the village. General [[Alexis Joseph Delzons|Delzons]] was posted to Borodino to prevent the Russians retaking it.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=248}}

[[Charles Antoine Morand|Morand]]'s division then crossed to the north side of the Semyenovka stream, while the remainder of Eugène's forces traversed three bridges across the Kolocha to the south, placing them on the same side of the stream as the Russians. He then deployed most of his artillery and began to push the Russians back toward the Raevsky redoubt. [[Jean-Baptiste Broussier|Broussier]] and Morand's divisions then advanced together with furious artillery support. The redoubt changed hands as Barclay was forced to personally rally Paskevitch's routed regiment.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=249}}

Kutuzov ordered Yermolov to take action; the general brought forward three horse artillery batteries that began to blast the open-ended redoubt, while the 3rd Battalion of the Ufa Regiment and two {{lang|de|italic=no|Jäger}} regiments brought up by Barclay rushed in with the bayonet to eliminate [[Charles Bonnamy|Bonnamy]]'s brigade.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=249}} The Russian reinforcements' assault returned the redoubt to Russian control.

[[File:Battery of Raevsky.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.4|French and Russian cavalry clash behind the Raevsky redoubt. Details from Roubaud's panoramic painting.]]
Eugène's artillery continued to pound Russian support columns, while Marshals Ney and Davout set up a crossfire with artillery positioned on the Semyonovskaya heights.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=250}} Barclay countered by moving the Prussian General [[Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1788–1857)|Eugen]] over to the right to support [[Mikhail Miloradovich|Miloradovich]] in his defense of the redoubt.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=251}} The French responded to this move by sending forward General [[Jean-Barthélemot Sorbier|Sorbier]], commander of the [[Imperial Guard (Napoleon I)|Imperial Guard]] artillery. Sorbier brought forth 36 artillery pieces from the Imperial Guard Artillery Park and also took command of 49 horse artillery pieces from [[Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty|Nansouty]]'s Ist Cavalry Corps and [[Victor de Fay de La Tour-Maubourg|La Tour Maubourg]]'s IV Cavalry Corps, as well as of Viceroy Eugène's own artillery, opening up a massive artillery barrage.{{sfn|Smith|2003|p=126}}

When Barclay brought up troops against an attacking French brigade, he described it as "a walk into [[Hell]]".{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=250}} During the height of the battle, Kutuzov's subordinates were making all of the tactical decisions for him; according to Colonel Carl von Clausewitz, famous for his work ''[[On War]]'', the Russian commander "seemed to be in a trance".{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=251}} With the death of General Kutaisov, Chief of Artillery, most of the Russian cannon sat useless on the heights to the rear and were never ordered into battle, while the French artillery wreaked havoc on the Russians.{{sfn|Riehn|1990|p=251}}