Almost two centuries, the inconspicuous lake in Vyazemsky district of the Smolensk region has attracted the attention of historians, scientists and ... treasure hunters. Here supposedly rest untold treasures, taken out by Napoleon from Moscow. At least so the French general de Seugur and the English novelist Walter Scott claimed.
October 19, 1812 the "great army" of Napoleon left the ruined Moscow. For the troops stretched endless rows of wagons, up to the top clogged with stolen goods. Subsequently, officials of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs calculated: the French seized 18 poods of gold, 325 poods of silver, many church utensils, precious stones, ancient weapons, furs, etc. in Moscow. Even a gold-plated cross was removed from the bell tower of Ivan the Great and two-headed eagles from the Kremlin towers. The most valuable prey Napoleon, of course, left himself, having placed in the "golden cart" under the guards guard. But before the Paris trophies never reached - they disappeared.
In 1824, the French General de Segur published his memoirs. It is unlikely that anyone would have remembered them today, if not for one phrase: "I had to leave the prey taken out of Moscow from Semilyovo Lake: guns, old weapons, Kremlin decorations and a cross from the bell tower of Ivan the Great." Seguru is echoed by Walter Scott in Bonaparte's biography: "He (Napoleon) ordered Moscow's booty - ancient armor, cannons and a large cross from Ivan the Great - to be thrown into Semlevskoye Lake as trophies ... which he could not carry with him."
In 1835 the Smolensk governor Nikolai Khmelnitsky, short of time reading Scott, drew attention to these lines. An energetic official was burning with a desire to find a treasure, the benefit of the Semlevsky Lake was in the territory of his province. Khmelnitsky immediately went to Vyazemsky district, got to the forest lake a couple of miles from the village of Semlyovo and three weeks he thoroughly "scoured." In vain. Then, in 1911, members of the Vyazma Committee tried to perpetuate the memory of the Patriotic War. The horse bones, wreckage of the wagon, a rusty saber - but not treasures - were extracted into the light of God.
Later, in 1960 and in 1979, the bottom of the Semlevskoye Lake and its surroundings were studied by two scientific expeditions: scientists investigated the banks, conducted water analyzes. How happy they were, finding in the northwestern part of the lake an increased content of precious metals! But no - another disappointment: nothing but stones and construction debris found. After another fiasco, scientists became thoughtful: was there a treasure? ..
We know about the flooding of the Moscow treasures in Semlevskoe Lake only with the words of de Segur and Walter Scott. Should they be trusted? The Briton did not go to Russia with Napoleon, he wrote his book on documents and eyewitness accounts. Most likely, Scott simply repeated the version of the "main witness" - de Segura. Some researchers accuse the general of lying, but is it fair?
200 years ago, the landscape in the Semlevo district was very different from today: besides Semlevsky Lake, there were many other reservoirs. French military maps could not boast of impeccable accuracy, because GPS has not yet been invented. Therefore, "Semlevsky" de Segur could call any of the local lakes and even swamps. In addition, those who got into the "history" were not up to geography with toponymy: the Russians were on their heels, and the French in a hurry could flood the values anywhere.
However, the words "anywhere" can be attributed not only to the Seleucian reservoirs: hungry, tired Frenchmen scattered prey from Maloyaroslavets to Berezina. Kutuzov wrote about this: "The enemy leaves his baggage in his flight, blows up boxes of shells and leaves the treasures, from the temples of God stolen." The old Smolensk road was strewn with values, a lot of good was dumped in the rivers. All of Russia turned into a huge, boundless "Semlevsky Lake", dragging to the bottom of the "great army" and its hitherto undefeated emperor.
The dashing Cossacks beat the French fiercely. Once they captured a noble prey from the enemy - 20 poods of silver. Kutuzov sent a valuable cargo to the Kazan Cathedral of St. Petersburg. Actively participated in the "disappearance" of Napoleon's "golden wagon" Don cousins - they extracted a fair amount of precious metals, donated to the temple in Novocherkassk.
So, the picture is clear. But no arguments can convince enthusiasts who are still searching for the legendary "treasure of Semlevsky Lake". And why did General de Segur only mention it?