The Battle of Austerlitz, one of the most important events in the history of Europe in the early 19th century, took place on December 2, 1805. Seventy five thousand French troops commanded by Emperor Napoleon I and the 90 000-strong allied armies of Tsar Alexander I of Russia and Emperor Franz I of Austria clashed in a gently undulating terrain to the east of Brno.The plan for the allied attack was masterminded by the Austrian General Weyrother, while the supreme commander of the allied forces, the Russian General Kutuzov, took practically no part in its preparation. Although weaker in numbers, the French came victorious from the battle, having struck a heavy blow to the allies.After the battle, which raged for several hours, probably up to 15,000 dead men remained on the battlefield. On December 6, 1805 a truce was agreed upon at the nearby Slavkov u Brna (Austerlitz) Chateau. Thanks to Napoleon's triumph the name Slavkov became part of the name of a bridge, boulevard and railway station in Paris and the
captured guns served as a material for the column which adorns Vendôme Square.The horrors of fighting in the surroundings of Slavkov provided a theme for Tolstoy's novel War and Peace. Apart from this the battle provided inspiration for the staging of commemorative events on the former battlefield. In 1931 an event called the Napoleonic Games was staged here for the first time. In 2005, on the occasion of the 200th anniversary of the battle, visitors could experience a reenactment of the battle involving 3,500 "troops" from twentyfour countries, with Mark Schneider, who has portrayed Napoleon on screen, cast in the role of the emperor. In 1912 the Peace Memorial was erected on Prace Hilltop. Visitors to the adjacent museum building can inspect a multimedia display dedicated to the battle.An educational trail runs through the important sites of the battlefield.
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