Serbs Guarding Russia: Vuichs in the Battles of Preussisch-Eylau and Friedland
| 27 January 2026
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УДК 94(47)+929.52
DOI 10.28995/2073-0101-2017-4-172-182
Vadim V. Kinshin
LLC “ETM,” St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
Serbs Guarding Russia: Vuichs in the Battles of Preussisch-Eylau and Friedland
Abstract
The article is dedicated to the 210th anniversary of the battles of 1807 in East Prussia: Battle of Preussisch-Eylau and Battle of Friedland, in which Russian army confronted Napol?on’s troops. As both battles are considered defeats of the Russian army, heroism of Russian soldiers and officers has been undeservedly forgotten. However, the Russian army was the first army to repel triumphant Napol?on marching across Europe, and to give a hope of liberation to the conquered European nations. These battles were forerunners of the Russian victories in the Patriotic War of 1812 and Russian foreign campaigns of 1813–1814. Studying biographies of those, who participated in these battles, their military service and feats, is a significant task. In the Russian army there were many officers of Serbian origin, a fact that remains little studied. Sons and grandsons of Serbs, who moved to Russia in 1751–1752, these officers spared nothing to protect their new homeland from its enemies. The article concludes a biographical research of officers from an old Serbian family of Vuyichs: chief of the 25th Jaeger Regiment of Colonel N. V. Vuich, squadron captain V. A. Vuich and cornet I. A. Vuich of the Tsesarevich's Dragoon Regiment; it reviews their participation in battles. The article draws on archival documents, Serbian sources, and works of scholars in the military history of the Russian Imperial Army, which allow a comprehensive study of feats of every Vuyich in battles of the 1807 campaign. In combat situation, they showed skill, nerve, exceptional spirit, courage, and fortitude. Their feats were not isolated, as all soldiers and officers of the Russian army did the same, and it was not their fault, that they had to withdraw from the battlefield. Therefore, exploits of our ancestors in the battles of Preussisch-Eylau and Friedland are worthy of kind remembrance. The article may be of interest to researchers of Russian military history.
Keywords
Serbs in Russia, Second War with Napol?on, Vuichs, Tsesarevich's Dragoon Regiment, 25th Jaeger Regiment.
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About author
Vadim Vodoslavovich Kinshin, PhD in Military Sciences, LLC “ETM,” St. Petersburg, deputy director, +7-812-773-21-70, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it