This diary was left to an American university by the descendants of Jakob Walter who had emigrated there. When 18-year-old Jakob Walter was conscripted into Napoleon's army, he had no idea of the trials that lay ahead. The long gruelling marches on Prussia and Poland sacrificed countless men to the Emperor's plans. But it was the disastrous advance on Russia which tested human endurance on an epic scale. This is an account of Jakob Walter's privations during the long retreat from Moscow. The book is illustrated with contemporary engravings and includes a chronology of European events.