Barclay de Tolly (1761–1818) was a Baltic German Field Marshal and Minister of War of the Russian Empire during Napoleon's invasion in 1812. When the French invasion of Russia began in 1812, Barclay de Tolly was commander of the 1st Army of the West, the largest Army to face Napoleon. Barclay was appointed Commander-in-Chief and initiated a scorched earth policy from the beginning of the campaign, though this made him unpopular among Russians. After the Battle of Smolensk failed to halt the French and discontent among Russians continued to grow, Alexander I appointed Mikhail Kutuzov as Commander-in-Chief, though Barclay remained in charge of the 1st Army. However, Kutuzov continued the same scorched earth retreat up to Moscow where the Battle of Borodino took place nearby. Barclay commanded the right wing and center of the Russian army for the battle. After Napoleon's retreat, the eventual success of Barclay's tactics made him a hero among Russians. He became Commander-in-Chief once again in 1813 after the death of Kutuzov and led the taking of Paris, for which he was made a Field Marshal. [Wikipedia]
Here he is seen standing next to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan in St. Petersburg, Russia
Ст. Петербург - Барклай де Толли у Казанского собора
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Ст. Петербург - Медный всадник
From last year's visit to my beautiful hometown.
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The dome of St. Isaac's Cathedral is peeking from behind the houses along the Admiralty prospect in the very center of St. Petersburg.
Ст. Петербург, Адмиралтейский проспект. Самый хвост голубого часа.
I will be traveling for a few days, so no updates for a while. Don't worry, I have not abandoned Flickr just yet.
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