User blog comment:Battlefan237/Mikhail Kutuzov vs. The 1st Duke of Wellington/@comment-5795750-20180530103807

BG1's "A 19th Century Cold War turned hot" Edges:

Short Range - It's a case of weight vs range here with these two swords and even without taking into account the brittle nature of the British Infantry Sword that Wass has mentioned, I am going for the Cossack Sabre as the superior sword simply because it's weight might make the difference when it comes to deadly strikes

EDGE: Kutuzov

Medium Range - It looks like both troops are gonna use the same weapon but actually I've done some digging and the pistols used by Kutuzov and his men were most likely the Pattern 1809 Pistol while Wellington and his men were using the New Land Cavalry Pistol. And in doing this deep digging, here's what I've found. The Russian flintlock pistol has a 10.5-inch barrel while the British flintlock pistol has only a 9-inch barrel; the former also fired a ball smaller than the barrel's diameter, weighed about 24g and was effective at a distance between 30-35 paces (idk what that would translate to in metric units). Not much info about the rounds fired by the latter flintlock pistol but when I read that it was disliked by British cavalry troops due to its extremely short range and woeful inaccuracy on horseback, I immediately jumped to the conclusion that plausibly, the Russian Pattern 1809 Pistol was superior.

EDGE: Kutuzov

Long Range - Since the Model 1808 Musket is based on the Charleville Musket based on what Wass says, I will assume that the former has similar stats to the latter. And boy do I feel like the results will be similar to that seen on the show... except in that instance the Brown Bess was paired with a superior Long Rifle to give it the edge; and I don't see something like that around here. So going by what info we have on the Model 1808, the Charleville musket and the Brown Bess I will have to say that while the Brown Bess has the bigger caliber and has an edge in durability, the Russian preference for the Charleville musket as the base model for the Model 1808 is certainly not unfounded. Hence why in this case I will give my edge to the Model 1808 Musket (oh and I forgot to mention that the bayonet in the end will be useful too).

EDGE: Kutuzov

Special - At first I was wondering why you didn't give the Duke of Wellington his more iconic Congreve Rockets but even with that he would still get an edge over his Russian counterpart considering that explosives > melee 95% of the time.

EDGE: Wellesley

X-Factors: Average of 86.75 for Kutuzov; Average of 86.25 for the Duke of Wellington

EDGE: Kutuzov (slightly)

Overall Winner: I'm actually gonna go for the Russians led by Mikhail Kutuzov as the victors in this match-up. Yes the Duke of Wellington may have better-trained troops and is better supplied but his time as a military leader is diminuitive in comparison to the well-versed Kutuzov and the Russians were certainly no slouches when it came to defeating Napoleon in Russia compared to the British at Waterloo - using creative and tactical approaches that ultimately destroyed the Grand Armee in the long run. Also I'd like to point out that Kutuzov survived two gunshots to the head early in his career and received brain surgery that, most historians would say, gave him the tactical abilities that allowed him to become the great Russian general that he is. Let me leave you with two opinion pieces about both Wellesley and Kutuzov that describe how the French viewed these defeaters of Napoleon:

"Wellington’s troops were admirable, but his plans were despicable; or should I rather say, that he formed none at all. He had placed himself in a situation in which it was impossible he could form any; and by a curious chance, this very circumstance saved him. If he could have commenced a retreat, he must infallibly have been lost. He certainly remained master of the field of battle; but was his success the result of his skill? He has reaped the fruit of a brilliant victory; but did his genius prepare it for him? His glory is wholly negative. His faults were enormous. He, the European Generalissimo, to whose hands so many interests were entrusted, and having before him an enemy so prompt and daring as myself, left his forces dispersed and slumbered in a capital until he was surprised."

- Memoirs of the Life, Exile and Conversations of the Emperor Napoleon

"As an officer, Kutuzov was experienced in war, was well-used to it, and was in a position to appraise a campaign strategy and the measures brought before him. He was capable of distinguishing between good advice and bad; he knew how to choose the right argument; he understood the best course of action, but such qualities were paralysed by indecision, an apathy in mind and body which prevented him from ordering or seeing anything...But this Kutuzov, so immoral in his behaviour and his principles, so mediocre as head of an army, had the quality (if one can indeed call it that) demanded by Cardinal Mazarin in all the generals in his service. He was lucky...Fortune constantly favoured him"

- Mémoires de Langeron, général d'infanterie dans l'armée russe, campagnes de 1812, 1813, 1814

Tl;dr explanation: Both Kutuzov and Wellesley were criticised by the French with regards to their military capabilities but Langeron gave Kutuzov a pass due to his pragmatism and adaptability while Napoleon thought Wellesley was undeserving of his glory, instead ceding that Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher of the Prussian Army was a more worthy opponent. Of course this is the sore loser in them talking but still...