Good morning, Whitewater.
Midweek in the city will be partly cloudy with a high of seventy-two. Sunrise is 6:35 AM and sunset 7:04 PM, for 12h 29m 46s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 98.2% of its visible disk illuminated.
There’s a Fire Department Business Meeting scheduled for tonight at 7 PM.
On this day in 1812, dictator & imperialist Napoleon captures Moscow, but doesn’t find what he expects:
On September 14, 1812, Napoleon moved into the empty city that was stripped of all supplies by its governor, Feodor Rostopchin. Relying on classical rules of warfare aiming at capturing the enemy’s capital (even though Saint Petersburg was the political capital at that time, Moscow was the spiritual capital of Russia), Napoleon had expected TsarAlexander I to offer his capitulation at the Poklonnaya Hill but the Russian command did not think of surrendering.
As Napoleon prepared to enter Moscow he was surprised to have received no delegation from the city. At the approach of a victorious general, the civil authorities customarily presented themselves at the gates of the city with the keys to the city in an attempt to safeguard the population and their property. As nobody received Napoleon he sent his aides into the city, seeking out officials with whom the arrangements for the occupation could be made. When none could be found, it became clear that the Russians had left the city unconditionally.[67]
In a normal surrender, the city officials would be forced to find billets and make arrangements for the feeding of the soldiers, but the situation caused a free-for-all in which every man was forced to find lodgings and sustenance for himself. Napoleon was secretly disappointed by the lack of custom as he felt it robbed him of a traditional victory over the Russians, especially in taking such a historically significant city.[67]
Before the order was received to evacuate Moscow, the city had a population of approximately 270,000 people. As much of the population pulled out, the remainder were burning or robbing the remaining stores of food, depriving the French of their use. As Napoleon entered the Kremlin, there still remained one-third of the original population, mainly consisting of foreign traders, servants and people who were unable or unwilling to flee. These, including the several hundred strong French colony, attempted to avoid the troops.
Napoleon would later retreat from Russia entirely, having lost most of the Grande Armée, and having caused on both sides the deaths of over one-half million people in the campaign.
For Wednesday, JigZone offers a cat puzzle: