Thus, at thirty-two years of age he was the darling of the troops; for his prowess in the field was not more marked than his care and foresight in the camp.

While other generals took little heed of their men, he saw to their comforts and cheered them by his jokes.

They felt that he was the embodiment of the patriotism, love of romantic exploit, and soaring ambition of the Great Russians.
They were right.

Already, as will appear in a later chapter, he was dreaming of the conquest of India; and, like Napoleon, he could not only see visions but also master details, from the principles of strategy to the routine of camp life, which made those visions realisable.

If ambition spurred him on towards Delhi, hatred of things Teutonic pointed him to Berlin.