Statue of General Kutuzov in Křenovice
A great monument to a great man
The statue was revealed on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Austerlitz. Kutuzov was the commander-in-chief of the allied Austrian-Russian troops, i.e. Napoleon's adversary. In Křenovice he established his headquarters in today's Na Liškově street in Spáčil's farmhouse, house no. 65. The night before the battle, the main meeting of the allied commanders was held there and Kutuzov spent the night there.
Kutuzov experienced a painful defeat at Austerlitz in 1805, but seven years later he repaid Napoleon with interest when the great Frenchman marched on Moscow. The Russian marshal did retreat before Napoleon to the village of Borodino, where, as we know from the history class, a battle took place in 1812. After that, the general had to retreat further. Later, he had Moscow strategically cleared out, only for Napoleon to find it empty. The decimated soldiers did not find the desired refuge from the bitter Russian winter and Napoleon's Russian campaign failed miserably. And Kutuzov could report to the Tsar: "The war has ended with the complete annihilation of the enemy". Only 9,000 Frenchmen returned from Russia and Kutuzov triumphed.
