In the autumn of 1812, a people’s militia was organized to defend the Russian Empire against Napoleon’s army. About half a million ordinary people — partisans, Cossacks, peasants — joined forces and doubled the strength of the Russian army. For the first time in his life, Napoleon Bonaparte was forced to retreat and refused to give battle to Field Marshal Mikhail Kutuzov.

The defeated French army retreated from Maloyaroslavets along the ravaged Smolensk road from October to December. This was a real disaster for the Grande Armée. From all sides they were surrounded by the people’s militia and could neither turn nor stop. Each day Napoleon’s army experienced losses due to severe frost, snow and famine, as well as attacks by the Russian army and partisans. Out of 650 thousand soldiers, only 30 thousand returned to France.

This is what Victor Hugo wrote about the retreat:

One of the most famous paintings of the exodus of Napoleon’s army from Russia was painted by the artist Illarion Pryanishnikov. He was born in 1840 in the village of Timashov, Kaluga Governorate, in the family of a poor merchant. Pryanishnikov loved to draw since childhood, at the age of 12 he entered the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, which he was soon forced to leave to work as a “boy” in a merchant’s shop. Three years later, thanks to his talent, Pryanishnikov was not only able to return to school but study there free of charge.

Illarion Pryanishnikov was one of the founders of the Peredvizhniki movement (Wanderers, Itinerants), whose members included the likes of Vasily Surikov, Ilya Repin, Vasily Polenov, Ivan Kramskoy, Ivan Shishkin and other artists. Pryanishnikov worked on his famous piece “In 1812” for more than five years. The artist made several versions of the painting, the best of which is kept in the Tretyakov Gallery.