Pevear and Volokhonsky (chapters 18-19): Kutuzov's strategy during the French retreat. Battle of Vyazma. Steady decomposition of the French army.
Briggs: The French run away in panic, and Napoleon comes near to being caught.
Translation:
XVIII.
With the time of the news about the output of the French from Moscow and to the end of the campaign, all the activity of Kutuzov concluded only in this, so that authority, tricks, and requests to hold his troops from useless offensives, maneuvers and collisions with the perishing enemy. Dohturov was going to Little-Yaroslav, but Kutuzov hesitates with all his army and gives back orders about the cleansing of Kaluga, the retreat behind which presents to him as quite possible.
Kutuzov everywhere retreats, but the enemy, not waiting for his retreats, runs backwards to the opposite side.
The historians of Napoleon describe to us his skillful manoeuvre at Tarutin and Little-Yaroslav and make assumptions about what would have been, if Napoleon would have had the time to penetrate in the rich middle provinces.
But not saying about how nothing hindered Napoleon to go in these middle provinces (as the Russian army gave him the road) historians forget that the army of Napoleon could not be saved by anything, because of how it in its very self carried already then the inevitable conditions of death. Why this army, finding abundant food in Moscow and not mighty to hold it, but worn out under its feet, this army, which, coming into Smolensk, did not assemble food, but robbed it, why this army could be mended in the Kaluga provinces, populated by those same Russians, as in Moscow and with that same property of fire to burn that what ignites?
The army could not be mended anywhere. It, from the Borodino battle and robbery of Moscow, carried in itself now as would the chemical conditions of decomposition.
The people of this former army ran with their own leaders themselves not knowing where, wishing (Napoleon and every soldier) for only one thing: to get out personally as soon as they can from this hopeless situation, which, although not clearly, they were all realizing.
Therefore only, in the advice at Little-Yaroslav, when pretending that they, the generals, meeting, giving different opinions, the last opinion of the ingenuous soldier Mouton, who said that what all thought, that it was needed only to leave as soon as they can, closing all mouths, and nothing, even Napoleon, could not say anything against this, by all realized truths.
Yet although all knew that it was needed to leave, still stayed the shame of the consciousness that it was needed to run. And the need was an outside push, which would conquer this shame. And this push appeared in the necessary time. This was so called in French, the imperial hoorah.965
On the next day after the council, Napoleon, early in the morning, pretending that he wanted to examine the troops and the field of a past and future battle, with a suite of marshals and convoy, rode by the middle lines of the location of the troops. The Cossacks, prowling about spoils, stumbled upon the emperor himself and a little bit did not catch him. Should the Cossacks not have caught in this time Napoleon, the same that saved him was what ruined the French: plunder, in which at Tarutin and here, leaving the people, threw the Cossacks. They, not turning attention to Napoleon, threw on the plunder, and Napoleon had time to leave.
When here the sons of the Don966 could catch the emperor himself in the middle of his army, it was clear that there was nothing more to do as only run as soon as they can by the nearest other road. Napoleon, with his 40-year old belly, not feeling in himself now the previous agility and courage, got this hint. And under the influence of fear, which he picked up from the Cossacks, immediately again agreed with Mouton, and gave, as speak historians, the order about the retreat backwards on the Smolensk road.
That Napoleon agreed with Mouton, and that the troops went backwards, does not prove that he ordered this, but that force acting on all the army, in the sense of its directions by the Mozhayck road, at the same time acted on Napoleon.
965 le Hourra de l’Empereur (the Hurray of the Emperor)
966 les enfants du Don (the children of the Don)
Mentioned: from that time on to the end of the campaign
Locations: Maly Yaroslavets
Mentioned: Kaluga, Tarutino, southern Governments (...provinces in Maude, Dunnigan, and Pevear and Volokhonsky. provinces of the south in Briggs.), Russian, Moscow, Smolensk, Borodino, French, Mozhaysk road
Pevear and Volokhonsky Notes: Kutuzov hangs back and even retreats, avoiding Napoleon as he retreats (the use of present tense here, as some other sections when describing military maneuvers should be noted, though I'm not sure what exactly to make of it). Tolstoy spends some time talking about Napoleon's historians and how they try to excuse his actions and then reiterating that the French troops were doomed and their only goal was to try to get themselves out of their situation.
An episode where the Cossacks nearly capture Napoleon but don't because they get distracted by loot serves as a push that allows the French to retreat back on the Smolensk road.
Characters (characters who do not appear, but are mentioned are placed in italics. First appearances are in Bold. First mentions are underlined. Final appearance denoted by *):
Kutuzof (because of the nature of the chapter, it is difficult to decide whether any of the four characters should be considered mentioned or included.)
Dokhturof
Napoleon (also "emperor". also his generals)
General Mouton
Abridged Versions: No break in Bell.
Gibian: line break instead of chapter break.
Fuller: Entire chapter is cut.
Komroff: Chapter cuts off when it is through reflecting on Kutuzov, not going to Napoleon's side. End of Book Thirteen.
Kropotkin: Chapter 6: What Dokhturof is doing is removed, as is the information about the historians of Napoleon. In fact, the entirety of the Napoleon section is removed, which cuts out almost the entire chapter. No break.
Simmons: chapter basically preserved. No break.
Additional Notes:
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