retreat from Moscow
Grande Armée's catastrophe
A retreat from Moscow refers to Napoleon's catastrophic 1812 withdrawal from Russia, when his Grande Armée was decimated by harsh winter, starvation, and Russian attacks during the long march home.
The phrase has become shorthand for any disastrous, poorly planned withdrawal or spectacular failure following overreach: The company's expansion into Asia turned into a retreat from Moscow.
- NapoleonFrench emperor, military genius
- Grande ArméeNapoleon's principal army
- winterYear's coldest quarter
- snowFrozen crystalline precipitation
- frostThin ice coating
1812 · Russia · defeat · starvation · supply lines · dead horses · frozen · bitter cold · Smolensk · Cossacks · Russian winter · horses · exhaustion · forced march · disaster · rout · soldiers · ice
retreat from Moscowvictory march
Winner's celebratory procession
decisive victory · conquest · Roman triumph · unconditional surrender · D-Day invasion