DNA From Dead Soldiers Sheds New Light on Napoleon’s Russian Nightmare

Napoleon’s withdrawal from Russia in 1812 was one of history’s most disastrous retreats. New research bolsters the theory that diseases made the calamitous situation even worse.

Researchers in France and Estonia have identified pathogens in the remains of soldiers who retreated from Russia that cause paratyphoid fever and relapsing fever. While the study doesn’t determine how widespread the diseases were, it identifies potential culprits behind the symptoms described in historical records…