Armistice of Pläswitz — 4 juin 1813

After Lützen and Bautzen, Napoleon granted a two-month truce to rebuild his cavalry and await reinforcements. The Allies profited far more: Prussia and Russia doubled their strength, England paid the subsidies, Austria completed its mobilisation. The Emperor later acknowledged this armistice as the capital mistake of his career.

Two victories that decided nothing

In the spring of 1813 Napoleon had rebuilt an army by calling up conscripts in advance. It was young, poorly trained, and above all without cavalry: the squadrons had died in Russia, and horses cannot be replaced in six months.

Lützen on 2 May and Bautzen on 20-21 May were victories, but without pursuit: lacking cavalry, the beaten enemy withdrew in good order. Both armies were exhausted, and Napoleon accepted the truce proposed by Austria. The armistice was signed at Pläswitz, in Silesia, on 4 June 1813.

Who gained the time

The Emperor meant to rebuild his squadrons, bring up the depots and wait for reinforcements from Italy and Spain. His adversaries did far more.

Prussia finished arming her Landwehr, Russia brought up her reserves, Bernadotte's Sweden joined the coalition, and England signed at Reichenbach the subsidies that would fund the autumn campaign. Above all, Austria completed her mobilisation while offering her mediation: the truce gave her time to choose her side under arms.

An acknowledged mistake

Extended to 10 August, the armistice served as the framework for the Congress of Prague, where the peace terms would be presented and left unanswered. Austria declared war two days after the ultimatum expired.

Napoleon would later admit that the armistice of 1813 was one of the greatest mistakes of his life. At Dresden in August he still faced a coalition he might have beaten piecemeal in June; by October, at Leipzig, it outnumbered him three to one.