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Рубрики 11-19 век; Версия для печати

Маркс и Энгельс о Беннигсене (по англ.)

Случилась в их бурной жизни такая небольшая халтурка, как написание статьи для одной американской энциклопедии (а может, и не одной, не знаю). С американских энциклопедий XIX века, как известно, спрос небольшой – именно в одной из них Ивана Грозного за жестокость прозвали «Васильевичем». В данной статье тоже коронный ляп: неверно написана фамилия того, о ком она – вместо Bennigsen авторы везде пишут Benningsen, да и последнее его имя по-немецки пишется без конечного “e” – Theophil. Тем не менее статья попала в Полное Собрание Сочинений Маркса и Энгельса – точно в немецкое и, скорее всего, в советское тоже. Однако до ПСС у меня пока руки не дошли – здесь я воспроизвожу статью по тексту в самой энциклопедии. В оригинале, помимо перевирания фамилий, манера ставить знаки препинания перед закрывающей кавычкой (этого я не сохранил – у меня сначала кавычки), немецкая манера ставить точку после порядковых числительных (убрал) и, вероятно, устаревшее написание слов 'despatched' и 'intrenched' (вместо 'dispatched' и 'entrenched' – это я сохранил). Кроме того, авторы пишут Dantzic и Leipzic вместо современного написания Dantzig и Leipzig, ну да здесь им уж точно виднее. Мои комментарии по фактологии даны в квадратных скобках.

Benningsen, Levin August Theophile, count, a Russian general, born in Brunswick [по другим источникам - в Бантельне], Feb. 10, 1745, where his farther served as colonel in the guards, died Oct. 3, 1826. As a page, he spent 5 years at the Hanoverian court of George II, entered the Hanoverian army, and having advanced to the rank of captain in the foot guards, participated in the last campaign of the 7 years’ war. His excessive passion for the fair sex at this time made more noise than his warlike exploits. In order to marry the daughter of the baron of Steinberg, the Hanoverian minister at the court of Vienna, he left the army, retired to his Hanoverian estate of Banteln, by dint of lavish expenditure got hopelessly in debt, and, on the death of his wife, resolved to restore his fortune by entering the Russian military service. Made by lieutenant-colonel by Catharine II [да, но в 1778, а в 1773 он был принят в чине премьер-майора, т.е. с понижением на одну ступень, как и было положено], he served first under Romanzoff [это они так обозвали Румянцева], against the Turks, and then under Suwaroff, against the rebel Pugatcheff [это товарищи нафантазировали – скорее всего, попутали Беннигсена с Михельсоном]. During a furlough, granted to him, he went to Hanover to carry off Mlle. von Schwiehelt [Wikipedia даёт написание Schwicheldt], a lady renowned for her beauty. On his return to Russia, the protection of Romanzoff and Potemkin procured for him the command of a regiment. Having distinguished himself at the siege of Otchakov, in 1788, he was appointed brigadier-general. In the Polish campaign of 1793-’94, he commanded a corps of light troops; was created general after the affairs of Orschani and Solli [трудно сказать, что имеется в виду под «Оршанами» – возможно, бой у Олиты; «Солли» – это Солы]; decided the victory of Vilna, by breaking up, at the head of the horse, the centre of the Polish army, and, in consequence of some bold surprises, successfully executed on the banks of the lower Niemen, was rewarded by Catharine II with the order of St. Vladimir, a sable of honor, and 200 serfs [на самом деле, свыше 1000 крепостных]. During his Polish campaign he exhibited the qualities of a good cavalry officer – fire, audacity, and quickness – but not the higher attainments indispensable for the chief of an army. After the Polish campaign, he was despatched to the army in Persia, where, by means of bombardment, lasting 10 days, he compelled Derbend, on the Caspian Sea, to surrender. The cross of the order of St. George of the second class, was the last gift he received from Catharine II [за Дербент он получил орден Св. Анны 1-й степени, а 2-ю степень ордена Св. Георгия Беннигсен получил за сражение у Пултуска в декабре 1806], after whose death he was recalled and disgraced by her successor. Count Pahlen, military governor of St. Petersburg, was organized at that time the conspiracy by which Paul lost his life. Pahlen, knowing the reckless character of Benningsen, let him into the secret, and gave him the post of honor – that of leading the conspirators in the emperor’s bedchamber. It was Benningsen who dragged Paul from the chimney, where he had secreted himself; and when the other conspirators hesitated, on Paul’s refusal to abdicate, Benningsen exclaimed, “Enough talk”, untied his own sash, rushed on Paul, and after a struggle, in which he was aided by the others, succeeded in strangling the victim. To shorter the process, Benningsen struck him on the head with a heavy silver snuff box [скорее всего, всё описанное было сделано, но не всё сделал Беннигсен]. Immediately on the accession of Alexander I, Benningsen received a military command in Lithuania. At the commencement of the campaign of 1806-‘7, he commanded a corps in the first army under Kamenski – the second being commanded by Buxhövden [по-русски Буксгевден] – he tried in vain to cover Warsaw against French, was forced to retreat to Pultusk on the Narev, and there, Dec. 24, 1806, proved able to repulse an attack of Lannes and Bernadotte [Бернадотта там не было], his forces being greatly superior [согласно Чандлеру, 35000 русских против 25000 французов], since Napoleon, with his main force, had marched upon the second Russian army. Benningsen forwarded vain – glorious reports to the emperor Alexander, and, by dint of intrigues against Kamenski and Buxhövden, soon gain the supreme command of the army destined to operate against Napoleon. At the end of January, 1807, he made an offensive movement against Napoleon’s winter quarters, and escaped by mere chance [казаки перехватили французского курьера с планом Наполеона] the snare Napoleon had laid for him, and then fought the battle of Eylau. Eylau having fallen on the 7th, the main battle, which, in order to break Napoleon’s violent pursuit, Benningsen was forced to accept, occurred on Feb. 8. The tenacity of the Russian troops, the arrival of the Prussians under Lestocq, and the slowness with which the single French corps appeared on the scene of action, made the victory doubtful. Both parties claimed it, and at any rate, the field of Eylau – as Napoleon himself said – was the bloodiest among all his battles. Benningsen had Te Deum sung, and received from the czar a Russian order [орден Андрея Первозванного], a pension of 12,000 rubles, and a letter of congratulation, praising him as “the vanquisher of the never vanquished captain”. In the spring, he entrenched himself at Heilsberg, and neglected to attack Napoleon, while part of the French army was still occupied with the siege of Dantzic; but, after the fall of Dantzic, and the junction of the French army [русский корпус, пытавшийся деблокировать Данциг с моря, тоже вернулся к своей армии], thought the time for attack had arrived. First delayed by Napoleon’s vanguard, which mustered the third part only of his own numerical force, he was soon manœuvred back by Napoleon into his intrenched camp. There Napoleon attacked him in June 10, with but two corps and some battalions of the guard, but on the next day induced him to abandon his camp and beat a retreat. Suddenly, however, and without waiting for a corps of 28,000 men, which already reached Tilsit, he returned to the offensive, occupied Friedland, and there drew up his army, with the river Alle in his rear, and the bridge of Friedland as his only line of retreat. Instead of quickly advancing, before Napoleon was able to concentrate his troops, he allowed himself to be amused for 5 or 6 hours by Lannes and Mortier, until, toward 5 o’clock, Napoleon had his forces ready, and then commanded the attack. The Russians were thrown on the river, Friedland was taken, and the bridge destroyed by the Russians themselves, although their whole right wing stood still on the opposite side. Thus the battle of Friedland, June 14, costing the Russian army above 20,000 men, was lost. It was said that Benningsen was at that time influenced by his wife, a Polish woman [эту оригинальную версию причин поражения при Фридланде я видел только у данных авторов]. During this whole campaign Benningsen committed fault upon fault, his whole conduct exhibit a strange compound of rash imprudence and weak irresolution. During the campaign of 1812, his principal activity was displayed at the head-quarters of the emperor Alexander, where he intrigued against Barclay de Tolly, with a view to get his place [Барклай де Толли командовал 1-й армией вплоть до Бородино, а Беннигсен после назначения Кутузова принял его предложение стать начальником штаба ]. In the campaign of 1813, he commanded a Russian army of reserve, and was created count by Alexander, on the battle field of Leipzic. Receiving afterwards the order to dislodge Davout from Hamburg, he beleaguered it until Napoleon’s abdication of April, 1814, put an end to hostilities. For the peaceful occupation of Hamburg, then effected by him, he claimed and received new honors and emoluments. After having held the command of the army of the south, in Bessarabia [большей частью на Украине], from 1814 to 1818, he finally retired to his Hanoverian estate, where he died, having squander most of his fortune, and leaving his children poor in Russian service [самый младший, Левин Александр, уехал с отцом в Ганновер, где и оставался – очевидно, это были «какие-то другие дети»].

Источник:
"The new American cyclopædia: a popular dictionary of general knowledge". Ed. by George Ripley and Charles A. Dana. Volume III. Beam-Browning. NY: D. Appleton and company, L: 16 Little Britain. 1858 (M.DCCC.LVIII.)