BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

25/11/2007

Remains Of Napoleon's 223 Soldiers Buried In Belarus

MINSK, Nov 25, 2007 (AFP) - The remains of 223 soldiers of Napoleon's army were buried Sunday in the village cemetery at Studenka, east of the capital Minsk, the French embassy said.

The soldiers, whose remains were unearthed some 100 kilometers (60 miles) away from the village, in the Vileiko region, apparently died in their sleep, possibly of cold.

The village where they were buried is close to a battlefield which saw a showdown between the Russian army and the withdrawing Napoleonic troops, which managed to cross the Berezina river in November 1812.

"May the Berezina, whose name even now echoes so painfully in the French people's memory and hearts, become the site of reconciliation," France's Ambassador Mireille Musso said.

Source:

http://www.adetocqueville.com/200711252055.lapktm501648.htm

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