Austerlitz

a small town of Moravia. It lies about a hundred miles north of Vienna. The village has a population of about 3,500 people. There is pride in a palace belonging to a local prince, and in a beautiful church. Austerlitz is memorable for a battle fought here December 2, 1805. A French army of 60,000 men led by Soult, Murat, and Bernadotte completely defeated 80,000 Russians and Austrians under the command of Kutusoff. The French lost about 12,000 men; the allies over 30,000. The slaughter was heightened by the unexpected assault of Napoleon's reserves upon the Austrians as they were fleeing from the battlefield. This part of the battle deserves the name of massacre. The battle of Austerlitz is called sometimes the Battle of the Three Emperors. Three emperors, Napoleon, Francis, and Alexander I, were present. After the battle, Napoleon was able to dictate his own terms to his humbled opponents.