DNA Analysis from a Mass Grave Uncovers Pathogens that Affected Napoleon's Army in 1812

SadaNews - The withdrawal of Napoleon Bonaparte and his Grand Army from Russia in 1812 was a catastrophic event marking the beginning of the end for his empire and personal dominance in Europe, where around 300,000 soldiers perished from an initial force of about half a million.

A new study, relying on DNA analysis extracted from the teeth of 13 French soldiers buried in a mass grave in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius along the withdrawal route, provides deeper insight into the suffering of the Grand Army and reveals two pathogens that had not previously been documented in this historical event.

The discovery of bacteria causing paratyphoid fever and louse-borne relapsing fever, along with previous studies, indicates that several infections spread among the soldiers who were already exhausted due to cold, hunger, and fatigue.

The Vilnius site, discovered in 2001, contains the remains of between 2,000 and 3,000 soldiers from Napoleon's army.

Nicolas Raskovan, a molecular biologist and geneticist and head of the ancient microbial genomics unit at the Pasteur Institute in Paris and the main author of the study published in the journal Current Biology, said, "Vilnius was a pivotal stop on the withdrawal route in 1812, where a large number of soldiers arrived exhausted, hungry, and suffering from diseases. Many of them died and were buried in mass graves."

Raskovan added, "While previous studies focused on the effects of cold, hunger, and typhus, our findings reveal that paratyphoid fever and louse-borne relapsing fever were also prevalent and likely contributed to the soldiers' exhaustion and high mortality rates."

Paratyphoid fever is usually transmitted through food or water, with symptoms including fever, headache, abdominal pain, diarrhea or constipation, and weakness, sometimes accompanied by a rash. Louse-borne relapsing fever causes repeated bouts of high fever accompanied by headache, muscle pain, and weakness.

The study showed that 4 out of 13 soldiers tested positive for the bacteria causing paratyphoid fever, in addition to two with the bacteria causing relapsing fever. The symptoms of these two conditions match what is recorded in historical accounts of the withdrawal.

The new findings add precise details to the suffering of the French emperor's soldiers, indicating that the situation was not limited to one or two diseases, but there was a widespread outbreak of various infectious diseases.

The study highlights how ancient DNA analysis, which is witnessing rapid development, can open new horizons for understanding major historical events.

Source: Reuters