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{{Short description|1814 campaign during the War of the Sixth Coalition}}
{{Distinguish|Six-Day War}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict=Six Days Campaign
|partof=the [[1814 campaign in north-east France]]
|image=Battle of Napoleon 6-day-war 1814.jpg
|image_size=300px
|caption= Lithograph of the [[Battle of Montmirail]]
|date=10–15 February 1814
|place=Northeastern [[France]]
|result=French victory (see [[#Analysis|Analysis]])
|combatant1={{flagcountry|First French Empire}}
|combatant2={{flagcountry|Prussia|1803}}<br>{{flagcountry|Russian Empire}}
|commander1={{flagicon|First French Empire}} [[Napoleon I]]
|commander2={{flagicon|Prussia|1803}} [[Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher|Gebhard von Blücher]]
|strength1=30,000 men{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}}
|strength2=50,000–56,000 men{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}}{{sfn|Petre|1994|pp=70–71}}
|casualties1=3,400 men<ref name=Chandler/>
|casualties2=17,750 men (in battle)<ref name=Chandler/><br/>28,500 (in all){{sfn|Nafziger|2015|pp=168–169}}<br/>36 guns{{sfn|Chandler|1966|pp=974–976}}
|campaignbox={{Campaignbox Six Days Campaign}}
 {{Campaignbox Campaign of France}}
 {{Campaignbox Sixth Coalition}}
}}
The '''Six Days Campaign''' (10–15 February 1814) was a final series of victories by the forces of [[Napoleon I of France]] as the [[War of the Sixth Coalition|Sixth Coalition]] closed in on [[Paris]].

The Six Days Campaign was fought from 10 February to 15 February during which time Napoleon inflicted four defeats on [[Gebhard von Blücher|Blücher's]] Army of Silesia in the [[Battle of Champaubert]], the [[Battle of Montmirail]], the [[Battle of Château-Thierry (1814)|Battle of Château-Thierry]], and the [[Battle of Vauchamps]]. Napoleon's 30,000-man{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}} army managed to inflict 17,750 casualties<ref name=Chandler/> on Blücher's force of 50,000–56,000.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}}{{sfn|Petre|1994|pp=70–71}}

The advance of the [[Army of Bohemia]] under Prince [[Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg|Schwarzenberg]] toward Paris compelled Napoleon to abandon his pursuit of Blücher's army, which, though badly beaten, was soon replenished by the arrival of reinforcements.{{sfn|Chandler|1966|pp=974–976}} Five days after the defeat at Vauchamps, the Army of Silesia was back on the offensive.{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}}

==Strategic situation==
{{main|Campaign in north-east France (1814)}}

By the start of 1814 the [[War of the Sixth Coalition|Sixth Coalition]] had defeated the French both in Germany (see [[German Campaign of 1813 ]]) and in Spain (see [[Peninsular War#End of the war in Spain|Peninsular War § End of the war in Spain]]), and were poised to invade France from the north-east and south-west.

On the north-eastern front three Coalition armies were preparing to invade France, however by the time that Six Days' Campaign ended only two armies had crossed the frontier into France:
* The ''Army of Bohemia'' or the ''Grand Army'', with 200,000{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}–210,000{{sfn|Hodgson|1841|p=504}} Austrian, Russian, Bavarian, and Wurttemberg soldiers under Prince [[Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg|Schwarzenberg]], passed through Swiss territory (violating the cantons' neutrality) and crossed the Rhine between Basel and Schafhausen on 20 December 1813.{{sfn|Hodgson|1841|p=504}}
* The ''Army of Silesia'', with 50,000–56,000{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=976}}{{sfn|Petre|1994|pp=70–71}} Prussians and Russians under Prince [[Gebhard von Blücher|Blücher]], crossed the Rhine between Rastadt and Koblenz  on 1 January 1814.{{sfn|Hodgson|1841|p=504}}

At the same time [[Duke of Wellington|Wellington]] [[Campaign in south-west France (1814)|invaded France over the Pyrenees]]. Leaving Marshals [[Marshal Soult|Soult]] and [[Marshal Suchet|Suchet]] to defend south-west France, Napoleon commanded the French resistance in north-east France.

Napoleon had about 200,000 men in all, of whom upwards of 100,000 were held by the [[Duke of Wellington]] on the Spanish frontier (see [[Campaign in south-west France (1814)|Invasion of south-west France]]), and 20,000 more were required to watch the [[Debouch#Military|debouch]]es from the Alps. Hence less than 80,000 remained available for the east and north-eastern frontier. If, however, he was weak in numbers, he was now operating in a friendly country, able to find food almost everywhere and had easy lines of communication.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

==Prelude==
The fighting in north-east France was indecisive during January and the first week of February. During the [[Battle of Brienne]] (29 January 1814) Napoleon surprised Blücher at his headquarters and nearly captured him. Having learnt that Napoleon was at hand Blücher fell back a few miles to the east the next morning to a strong position covering the exits from the Bar-sur-Aube [[defile (geography)|defile]]. There he was joined by the Austrian advance guard and together they decided to accept battle—indeed they had no alternative, as the roads in rear were so choked with traffic that retreat was out of the question. At about noon on 2 February Napoleon attacked them opening the [[Battle of La Rothière]]. The weather was terrible, and the ground so heavy that the French guns, the mainstay of Napoleon's whole system of warfare, were useless and in the drifts of snow which at intervals swept across the field, the columns lost their direction and many were severely handled by the Cossacks. Although the French inflicted more damage than they received, Napoleon retired to Lesmont, and from there to [[Troyes]], Marshal [[Auguste de Marmont|Marmont]] being left to observe the enemy.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

Owing to the state of the roads, or perhaps to the extraordinary lethargy which always characterized Schwarzenberg's headquarters, no pursuit was attempted. But on 4 February Blücher, chafing at this inaction, obtained the permission of his own sovereign,  King [[Frederick William III of Prussia|Frederick III Prussia]], to transfer his line of operations to the valley of the [[Marne (river)|Marne]]; [[Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen|Pahlen's]] corps of Cossacks were assigned to him to cover his left and maintain communication with the Austrians.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

Believing himself secure behind this screen, Blücher advanced from Vitry<!--is a dab page which one?--> along the roads leading down the valley of the Marne, with his columns widely separated for convenience of subsistence and shelter the latter being almost essential in the terrible weather prevailing. Blücher himself on the night of 7/8 February was at [[Sézanne]], on the exposed flank so as to be nearer to his sources of intelligence, and the rest of his army were distributed in four small corps at or near [[Épernay]], [[Montmirail, Marne|Montmirail]] and [[Étoges]]; reinforcements also were on their way to join him and were then about Vitry.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

In the night Blücher's headquarters were again surprised, and Blücher learnt that Napoleon himself with his main body was in full march to fall on his scattered detachments. At the same time he heard that Pahlen's Cossacks had been withdrawn forty-eight hours previously, thus completely exposing his flank. He himself retreated towards Étoges endeavouring to rally his scattered detachments.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

==Campaign==
{{See also|Six Days' Campaign order of battle}}

Napoleon was too quick for Blücher: he decimated Lieutenant General Olsufiev's Russian IX Corps at the [[Battle of Champaubert]] (10 February).{{sfn|Pawly|2012|pp=21–22}} There were 4,000 Russian casualties and Russian General [[Zakhar Dmitrievich Olsufiev]] taken prisoner, to approximately 200 French casualties.<ref name=Chandler>{{harvnb|Chandler|1999|pp=87, 90, 286–87, 459}}.</ref>

This placed the French army between Blücher's vanguard and his main body.{{sfn|Pawly|2012|p=22}} Napoleon turned his attention to the vanguard and defeated [[Fabian Gottlieb von Osten-Sacken|Osten-Sacken]] and [[Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg|Yorck]] at [[Battle of Montmirail|Montmirail]] on 11 February;{{sfn|Pawly|2012|p=22}} There were 4,000 Coalition casualties, to 2,000 French casualties.<ref name=Chandler/> Napoleon attacked and defeated them again the next day at the [[Battle of Château-Thierry (1814)|Battle of Château-Thierry]].{{sfn|Pawly|2012|p=23}} There were 1,250 Prussian, 1,500 Russian casualties and nine cannons lost, to approximately 600 French casualties.<ref name=Chandler/>

Napoleon then turned on the main body of the Army of Silesia and on 14 February defeated Blücher in the [[Battle of Vauchamps]] near [[Étoges]], pursuing the latter towards [[Vertus]].{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}} There were 7,000 Prussian casualties and 16 cannons lost, to approximately 600 French casualties.<ref name=Chandler/>{{sfn|Chandler|1966|p=975}}

These disasters compelled the retreat of the whole Silesian army, and Napoleon, leaving detachments with Marshals [[Édouard Adolphe Casimir Joseph Mortier|Mortier]] and Marmont to deal with them, hurried back to Troyes.{{sfn|Maude|1911|p=232}}

==Analysis==
Ralph Ashby wrote in ''Napoleon Against Great Odds'' (2010):
{{quote|Blücher’s Army of Silesia had been very roughly handled between February 10 and 14. The ebullient Prussian Field Marshal was temporarily chastened. Napoleon had beaten a larger force with a smaller one and had suffered only a fraction of the casualties he inflicted on the Russo-Prussian forces. Even given the massive Allied superiority in numbers, they had taken losses proportionately greater than the French. The Army of Silesia had lost about a third of its strength, and the remainder was whipped and demoralized. To add to Allied woes, French partisan warfare was beginning to take shape...{{sfn|Ashby|2010|p=102}} }}

David Zabecki wrote in ''Germany at War'' (2014):
{{quote|Later commentators noted that in this campaign Napoleon achieved unexpected and extraordinary results, including the elimination of approximately 20,000 enemy troops, which nearly halved the forces he then faced. Napoleon's troops had been greatly outnumbered, and he therefore fought by means of careful tactical manoeuvring, rather than using the sort of brute force characteristic of earlier French victories.

But the campaign rallied the Allies and helped end their internal bickering.{{sfn|Zabecki|2014|p=1206}}
}}
 
Michael Leggiere  in  ''Blücher: Scourge of Napoleon'' (2014) quotes [[Johann Nepomuk von Nostitz-Rieneck|Johann von Nostitz]] that the campaign displayed Napoleon's "talents as a field commander to the highest degree in defeating five enemy corps in sequence", but in failing to totally destroy Blücher's army and driving the remnants back into Germany, Napoleon missed his only opportunity of forcing the Coalition Powers to agree to anything other than peace on their terms.{{sfn|Leggiere|2014|p=439}}

==Aftermath==
Following his successful campaign against Blücher, Napoleon hurried south to face Schwarzenberg. Although his forces were outnumbering Napoleon's by six to one, Schwarzenberg ordered a retreat upon hearing of Napoleon's approach, and left a [[rearguard]] under the [[William I of Württemberg|Prince of Württemberg]] to fight the French at [[Battle of Montereau|Montereau]].{{sfn|Agha Al Barazi|2021}}

On 22 February, a council of war was held near [[Troyes]] by Coalition leaders. Frightened by his recent streak of victories, they offered Napoleon an [[armistice]] whose terms would allow him to keep his throne in exchange for the restoration of the French borders of 1791. Napoleon refused unless they agreed to the terms of the 1813 [[Frankfurt proposals]].{{sfn|Agha Al Barazi|2021}}

On 28 February, Coalition forces resumed their advance. Napoleon inflicted further defeats on both Schwarzenberg's and Blücher's armies. Thus after six weeks fighting the Coalition armies had hardly gained any ground. However, after the [[Battle of Arcis-sur-Aube]] on 20 March, where the Austrians outnumbered his dwindling army 80,000 to 28,000, Napoleon realised that he could no longer continue with his current strategy of defeating the Coalition armies in detail and decided to change his tactics. He had two options: he could fall back on Paris and hope that the Coalition members would come to terms, as capturing Paris with a French army under his command would be difficult and time-consuming; or he could copy the Russians and leave Paris to his enemies (as they had left Moscow to him two years earlier). He decided to move eastward to [[Saint-Dizier]], rally what garrisons he could find, and raise the whole country against the invaders and attack their lines of communications.{{sfn|Maude|1911|pp=232–233}}{{sfn|Lieven|2009|pp=262–263}}

A letter containing an outline of his plan of action was captured by his enemies. The Coalition commanders held a council of war at [[Pougy]] on the 23 March and initially decided to follow Napoleon, but the next day Tsar [[Alexander I of Russia]] and King Frederick of Prussia along with their advisers reconsidered, and realising the weakness of their opponent, decided to march to Paris (then an [[open city]]), and let Napoleon do his worst to their lines of communications.{{sfn|Maude|1911|pp=232–233}}{{sfn|Lieven|2009|p=263–265}}

The Coalition armies marched straight for the capital. Marmont and Mortier with what troops they could rally took up a position on [[Montmartre]] heights to oppose them. The [[Battle of Paris (1814)|Battle of Paris]] ended when the French commanders, seeing further resistance to be hopeless, surrendered the city on 31 March, just as Napoleon, with the wreck of the Guards and a mere handful of other detachments, was hurrying across the rear of the Austrians towards [[Fontainebleau]] to join them.{{sfn|Maude|1911|pp=232–233}}

Napoleon was forced to announce his unconditional abdication and sign the [[Treaty of Fontainebleau (1814)|Treaty of Fontainebleau]].{{sfn|Alison|1860|p=205}}{{sfn|Lamartine|1854|pp=202–207}} Napoleon was sent into exile on the island of [[Elba]]{{sfn|Lamartine|1854|pp=202–207}} and [[Louis XVIII of France|Louis XVIII]] became king.{{sfn|Turk|1999|p=68}} The [[Treaty of Paris (1814)|Treaty of Paris]], signed by representatives of the French monarchy and the Coalition powers, formally ended the [[War of the Sixth Coalition]] on 30 May 1814.{{sfn|Turk|1999|p=68}}

== Notes ==
{{Reflist|20em}}

==References==
*{{Citation |last=Alison |first=Archibald |year=1860 |title=History of Europe from the Commencement of the French Revolution to the Restoration of the Bourbons in 1815|edition=10th |publisher=W. Blackwood Alison}}
* {{citation |last=Ashby |first=Ralph |title=Napoleon Against Great Odds: The Emperor and the Defenders of France, 1814 |date=2010 |publisher=Greenwood Publishing group |isbn=978-0313381904  |page=102}} 
* {{Citation |last=Chandler |first=David |authorlink=David G. Chandler |year=1966 |title=The Campaigns of Napoleon |location=New York |publisher=Macmillan}}
*{{citation |last=Chandler |first=David |year=1999 |title=Dictionary of the Napoleonic wars |publisher=Wordsworth
|pages=87, 90, 286–87, 459}}
*{{Citation |last=Hodgson |first=William |year=1841 |title=The life of Napoleon Bonaparte, once Emperor of the French, who died in exile, at St. Helena, after a captivity of six years' duration |publisher=Orlando Hodgson |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SOlBAAAAcAAJ}}
*{{Citation |last=Lamartine |first=Alphonse de |year=1854 |title=The History of the Restoration of Monarchy in France |publisher= H. G. Bohn}}
*{{Citation |last=Leggiere |first=Michael V. |year=2014 |title=Blücher: Scourge of Napoleon |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|isbn=978-0-8061-4567-9 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=twXBAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA439 439]}}
*{{Citation |last=Lieven |first=Dominic |year=2009 |title=Russia Against Napoleon: The Battle for Europe, 1807 to 1814
|location=United Kingdom |publisher=Penguin |isbn=9780141947440 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=SIluE2igp5YC&pg=PT692 292]–695}}
*{{cite book|last=Nafziger |first=George |authorlink=George Nafziger |title=The End of Empire: Napoleon's 1814 Campaign |publisher=Helion & Company |location=Solihull, UK |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-909982-96-3 }}
*{{Citation |last=Pawly |first=Ronald |year=2012  |title=Napoleon's Scouts of the Imperial Guard |edition=unabridged |publisher=Osprey Publishing |isbn=9781780964157 |pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZcUccCt8b4sC&pg=PA21 21]–23}}
*{{Citation |last=Agha Al Barazi |first=Fahed Aslan |title=Napoléon Bonaparte|publisher=novum pro Verlag|year=2021 |isbn=978-3990648889|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GnlPEAAAQBAJ&dq=1814+vauchamps+arly+of+silesia&pg=PT116}}
*{{Citation |last=Petre |first=F. Loraine |authorlink=Francis Loraine Petre |title=Napoleon at Bay: 1814 |location=London |publisher=[[Lionel Leventhal]] Ltd. |year=1994 |orig-year=1914 |isbn=1-85367-163-0}}
*{{Citation |last=Turk |first=Eleanor |year=1999 |title=The History of Germany |edition=illustrated |publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |isbn=9780313302749 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/historyofgermany00turk }}
*{{Citation|last=Zabecki|first=David T.|title=Germany at War: 400 Years of Military History &#91;4 volumes&#93;: 400 Years of Military History |year=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-59884-981-3 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=rCWMBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1206 1206]}}

'''Attribution'''
*{{EB1911 |mode=cs2 |last=Maude |first=Frederic Natusch  |wstitle=Napoleonic Campaigns |volume=19 |pages=212–236}}

==External links==
*{{commons-inline}}
*{{cite web | title=La bataille de Champaubert, Montmirail-Marchais, Château-Thierry et Vauchamps | website=Accueil | url=http://www.lesbatailles.com/page10/page10.html |access-date=16 June 2017 |ref=none}}
*{{cite web |title=Napoléon's Six Days |website=HistoryNet |date=30 April 2014 |url=http://www.historynet.com/napoleons-six-days.htm |ref=none}}

[[Category:Campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars]]
[[Category:1814 in France]]
[[Category:February 1814]]
[[Category:Military campaigns involving Prussia]]
[[Category:Military campaigns involving Russia]]
[[Category:War of the Sixth Coalition]]