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A mass grave was discovered in late autumn 2001 in Vilnius, during constructions works. Preliminary observations led to the conclusion that this mass grave contained part of the Great Army of Napoleon I, and had been created during the Retreat from Russia (December, 1812). In March 2002, an extensive excavation was carried out on a first part of the mass grave, in the framework of a Franco-Lithuanian collaboration, completed by a second excavation of another trench in September 2002. The laboratory study of all the skeletal material ended in October 2002. These preliminary results bring new additional data to the historical knowledge of this major event in the European history; this exceptional sample represents the biggest historical mass grave discovered until now. To cite this article: M. Signoli et al., C. R. Palevol 3 (2004). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Many soldiers in Napoleon's Grand Army died of infectious diseases during its retreat from Russia. Because soldiers were commonly infested with body lice, it has been speculated that louse-borne infectious diseases, such as epidemic typhus (caused by Rickettsia prowazekii), were common., Methods: We investigated this possibility during recent excavations of a mass grave of Napoleon's soldiers in Vilnius, Lithuania. Segments of 5 body lice, identified morphologically and by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and sequencing, were found in earth from the grave that also contained fragments of soldiers' uniforms., Results: DNA of Bartonella quintana (the agent of trench fever) was identified by PCR and sequencing in 3 of the lice. Similarly, PCR and sequencing of dental pulp from the remains of 35 soldiers revealed DNA of B. quintana in 7 soldiers and DNA of R. prowazekii in 3 other soldiers., Conclusions: Our results show that louse-borne infectious diseases affected nearly one-third of Napoleon's soldiers buried in Vilnius and indicate that these diseases might have been a major factor in the French retreat from Russia.