ARCH TO BE RAZED

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 275, 2 September 1936, Page 8

ARCH TO BE RAZED

A RELIC OF NAPOLEON. The Arch of Triumph, built by Alexander I to celebrate Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow, is to be razed to make way for traffic, says the “New York Times.” The arch, more than 100 years old, stands on Gorsky’s Street near the White Russian Railway Station, point of arrival and departure of tourist trJUIlg The Arch of Triumph, situtaed in the north-west quarter of Moscow, is a single archway constructed along the lines of the Arch of Titus at Rome. It was erected, according to an inscription upon it, “in commemoration of the deeds of Alexander 1 in 1812.” It was in this year that Napoleon’s Grand Army was routed. Statues of warriors and bas-reliefs adorn the arch, which is surmounted by a Victor in a six-horse chariot. The arch is two miles from the famous Iberian Gate. It not only commemorates an outstanding event in the history of Russia and constitutes a tribute to the military strategy of Alexander I, but it also symbolises what amounted to the turning point in the meteoric rise of Napoleon. The routing of Napoleon’s Grand Army saved Russia, from dowmination by France although it was accomplished with great loss of life and the destruction of invaluable property. Although Napoleon declared war on Russia on Juno 22, 1812, and entered the country with more than 400,000 men, it was not until September 14 that he reached Moscow. Although Napoleon met considerable resistance on the way to Moscow, especially at Borodino, where both sides lost about 40,000 men each, and at Smolensk, these battles took comparatively few lives, considering what was to come. Upon reaching Moscow Napoleon found a deserted city, and within two day the conflagration started, destroying the fruits of his victory. He lingered until October 19, when he started his retreat.

At every turn he was flanked by the Russians and was forced to retreat through the same barren and devastated country through which he had advanced. As a result of the mans battles the lack of food, and the intense cold, his army of 400,000 had been reduced to 40.000 when the border was recrossed.