PICTURE GALLERY "RUSSIAN CAMPAIGN OF 1812"

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Shooting in the Kremlin ("Arsonists") (The picture by Vereschagin) Every city taken by the enemy has to obey the winner. After entering Moscow Napoleon at once appointed some persons to keep order in this new-taken city. He appointed Marshal Mortier the General-Governor and former French Consul Lesseps the Commissary of the Moscow Province. But the troubles made by the terrible fire were redoubled by numerous robberies in that took part both the soldiers of the Great Army and many Russian criminals too that were dismissed from prisons by Moscow Governor Rostopchin just before Napoleon's army entered Moscow. The Moscow fire irritated the French very much and they needed somebody to vent their anger upon. Napoleon ordered to form the military courts and execute the captured arsonists without any mercy. And hunting for them began. It was enough only to be somewhere near the burning house to be suspected, captured, taken to the military court and executed... Maybe somebody of them were really sent by former Moscow General-Governor Rostopchin to set on fire the wooden buildings in Moscow, but, of course the main part of these wretches were guiltless.