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THE  GREAT  WAE  OF  1870 
BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


> 

(SUCCESSOR  OF  PHELPS  &  WATSON), 


PUBLISHER  OF 

MAPS,  BOOKS,  CHARTS,  PRINTS,  Etc. 

16  JBeehman  Street^  Netv  York, 


SIZE  IN 
INCHES.      PEICE. 

Map  of  Hew  York  and  Adjacent  Cities,  showing  aii  the  late 

Railroads,  New  Wards,  New  Boulevard,  Central  Park,  Prospect  Park,  Brook- 
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&c. ;  and  Map  of  Long  Island. 

Varnished  and  mounted  on  rollers 40  x  52       $3  00. 

New  Map  of  Hew  York  State.  This  Township  and  County  Map 
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Hew  County,  Township  and  Sectional  Map  of  Missouri, 

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word  plain.  All  the  railroads  and  stations,  distances  between  stations  and 
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of  Chicago,  showing  all  the  streets,  railroads,  parks,  ward  numbers,  ic,  &c. 
There  is  also  an  Historical  Sketch  of  the  State,  population,  list  of  Congressmen, 
and  a  table  showing  the  growth  of  Chicago  for  the  past  few  years.  The  whole 
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MOUNTED  MAPS    SEhST   BY   EXPRESS,  AND   POCIiCET   MAPS   BY    MAIL,  ON 
RECEIPT  OF   PRiCE. 


THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18T0 


FRANCE     AND    GERMANY 


COMPRISING  A   HISTORY   OF   ITS    ORIGIN   AND  CArSES,  THE  BIOGRAPHIES   OF   THE   KING 
OF   PRUSSIA,  THE  EX-EMPEROR  OF  FRANCE,  AND  THE  STATESMEN  AND  GENERALS 
OF  THE    TWO  COUNTRIES  ;    THE   FINANCIAL,  SOCIAL,  AND   MILITARY    CON- 
DITION  OF    EACH,  THE    WEAPONS     IN    USE,  AND    AN    ACCURATE 
HISTORY   OF   ALL    THE    MILITARY   MOVEMENTS  AND  BAT- 
TLES OF  THE  WAR,   THE   REVOLUTION  IN 
FRANCE,    AND   THE   EFFORTS 
FOR  PEACE. 


BY 

L.   p/bROCKETT,   M.D., 

AUTHOB  OP  "  HISTOET  OF   THE    CIVIL  WAB,"   "  CAMP,  BATTLE-FIELD  AND  HOSPITAL," 
'  "woman's  WORK  IN  THE  CIVIL  WAR,"  "OUB  GBEAT  CAPTAINS,"  ETC.,  ETC.^ 


WITH  MAPS,  PLANS  OF  BATTLES,  AND  NUMEROUS  PORTRAITS 
AND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


55'etD  fork: 
GAYLORD  WATSON,  PUBLISHER, 

16  Beekman  Street. 
1871. 


EnterecT,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1870, 

Bt  L.  p.  BKOCKETT,  M.D. 

In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 


THE  LIBRARY 
OF  CONGRESS 

WASHINGTON 


McCREA  &  MlIiLEE, 

Electrotypers  and  Stereotypers, 
209  East  12th  street 


V 


PREFACE 


rpHE  war  between  France  and  Germany  has  excited 
sncli  intense  interest  in  this  country,  among  a  peo- 
ple bound  by  the  strongest  ties  of  kindred  and  friend- 
ship to  both  nationalities,  that  no  apology  can  be  needed 
for  this  effort  to  give,  in  a  succinct  yet  lucid  shape,  the 
history  and  progress  of  the  conflict. 

It  has  been  the  first  aim  of  the  writer  to  secure  as 
complete  accuracy  as  possible ;  and  hence  he  has  availed 
himself,  whenever  they  were  to  be  had,  of  oJficial  reports 
and  the  testimony  of  intelligent  eye-witnesses  of  the 
various  battles.  He  has  attempted,  further,  to  illustrate 
these  actions  by  plans  carefully  prepared  from  maps  and 
the  official  reports.  The  preliminary  chapters,  giving  the 
history  of  the  causes  of  the  war,  the  military,  naval,  and 
financial  position  of  the  two  countries,  the  description 
and  comparison  of  their  weapons,  and  biographical 
sketches  of  the  prominent  actors  in  the  war,  will  be 
found,  he  hopes,  to  possess  intrinsic  value,  irrespective 
of  the  war  itself     They  are  from  authentic  sources  in  all 


Q  PREFACE. 

cases,  and,  in  many  instances,  sucli  as  are  not  generally- 
accessible.  Tlie  map  is  compiled  from  tlie  best  German 
and  Frencli  sources,  and  is  believed  to  be  remarkably 
accurate.  The  portraits  are  also  from  undoubted  origi 
nals,  and  are  tlie  work  of  one  of  our  most  skilful  artists. 

It  remains  tkat  we  should  acknowledge  our  indebted- 
ness for  much  valuable  information,  and  several  impor- 
tant narratives  and  reports,  to  the  New  York  Tribune, 
Herald,  World,  and  Times ;  to  the  Army  and  Navy 
Journal  for  its  admirable  "  Diary  of  the  War ; "  to  the 
Courier  des  Etats  -  Unis  and  the  Cincinnati  Commercial 
for  War-sketches;  to  the  "  Statesman's  Manual"  for  18*fO 
and  Block's  Manuel  de  la  Geografie,  and  the  Leipzig  and 
Frankfurt  papers,  for  statistics  ;  and  Vapereau  s  Diction- 
naire  des  Contemporains  and  the  Tlnser  Zeit  for  bio- 
gra23hieal  materials.  Other  resources  have  been  drawn 
upon,  but  to  a  smaller  extent. 

Hoping  that  the  work  may  accomplish  its  object  of 
gratifying  the  natural  anxiety  to  know  more  fully  and 
accurately  the  particulars  of  the  greatest  of  modern  wars, 
the  writer  leaves  it  in  the  hands  of  the  public. 

L.  P.  B. 

Brooklyn,  N.  Y.,  ISTovember  15,  1870. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTEE  I. 

The  remote  and  proximate  causes  of  the  "War. — Ei"icroac]im.ents  of  Franco  iipon  Germany  in  the 

past  three  hiindred  years Alsace  and  Lorraine. — Westphalia  and  the  Rhine  Provinces 

Belgium. — Restoration  of  the  last  three  to  their  rightful  owners. — Avenging  Waterloo.— 
The  Rhine  and  Adriatic  boundary.— Movements  of  N"apoleon  III  to  accomplish  this.— His 
jealousy  of  Prussia. — Ilis  preparations  for  War. — The  introduction  of  the  ChassepiU  rifle  and 
the  Mitrailleuse. — The -want  of  genuine  preparation  for  the  "War  on  the  part  of  France. — 
Other  reasons  for  the  "War. — France  restive. — The  plebiscite. — Napoleon's  health. — Religious 
motives. — France  in  a  secondary  position. — The  occasion  of  "War.— The  Ilohenzollern  candi- 
dacy.— Sketch  of  Prince  Leopold. — Protest  of  the  French  Emperor.— His  interview  with 
General  Prim. — Declination  of  Prince  Leopold. — Kew  pretexts. — The  alleged  insult  to 
Count  Benedetti. — The  missives  sent  to  German  States  supposed  to  be  disailected. — The 
French  declaration  of^Var pp.  13-19. 


CHAPTER  II. 

Biographical  sketches. — Wilhelm  I,  King  of  Prussia. — His  birth,  education,  absolutist  princi- 
ples.— His  Accession  to  the  Throne. — His  personal  appearance,  manners  and  character. 

S'apoi.eon  IIL — His  parentage,  birth,  education.— Joins  the  Carbonari. — Involved  in  Italian 
Conspiracies. — Attempts  authorship. — Becomes  the  legal  heir  of  Napoleon  I. —The  Strasbourg 
affair  in  1836. — His  banishment  to  America. — Is  coldly  received  there.— His  return  to  Switzer- 
land.—Death  of  his  mother.— His  escape  to  England.— Publication  of  his  Xdees  KapoUonienncs 
and  liiveries  Politiques.~The  Boulogne  fiasco.— His  arrest,  trial,  and  sentence  to  imprison- 
ment at  Ham.— His  studies  and  writings  at  Ham.— Escape  to  England  in  1S4G.— His  life  in 
England.— The  Revolution  of  1848.- Election  of  Louis  Napoleon  to  the  National  Assembly — 
His  return  to  Franco.— His  election  as  President.— His  policy.— His  aspirations  for  permanent 
and  supreme  power. — Efforts  to  change  the  Constiiution.— Uneasiness  of  the  French  people. 
—The  coup  d'etat  ot  Dec.  2, 1851.— The  first  ^Ze&Maile.-Fui-ther  steps  toward  despotism.— 
Proclaims  himself  Emperor.— "  The  Empire  is  Peace."— His  Marriage.— Alliance  with  Eng- 
land.—The  Crimean  War.— His  policy  as  Emperor.— Birth  of  the  Prince  Imperial.— Over- 
estimation  of  Napoleon  III.— The  Italian  War.— His  mismanagement.- 'J'ho  compact  with 
Cavour.— The  threatening  attitude  of  Prussia.- Treaty  of  Villafranca.— Napoleon's  disap- 
pointment.—Acquisition  of  Savoy  and  Nice.— His  failing  health.— Troubles.— The  attempt  to 
intervene  in  behalf  of  the  Southern  Confederacy  .—The  War  with  Mexico.— He  makes  a  dupe 
of  Maximilian.— Sad  end  of  this  War.--The  Cochin  China  and  Chinese  Wars.— The  promise 
of  reforms.- The  Austro-Prussian  War.— Prussian  superiority  demonstrated.— His  oflTers 
to  and  demands  upon  each  of  the  belligerents.— Their  rejection.— His  Life  of  Cossar.— His 
determination  to  bring  on  a  War.— His  character  in  brief. pp.  20-38. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Biograpliical  stetobes  coutinued.— Count  von  Bismarck-Schonhatisen. — His  Ijirtli  and  education. 
— ^Entrance  upon  public  life.— A  Conservative. — His  pamphlet,  "  Prussia  and  the  Italian 
Question."— Minister  at  St.  Petersburg  and  Paris.— Premier,  and  Cabinet  Minister.— His 
bold  measures, — The  opposition  evoked. — The  Danish  War.— The  War  with  Austria,— The 
wisdom  of  his  measures  demonstrated. — His  extraordinary  abilities  and  foresight.— His  per- 
sonal appearance. — His  scholarship. — His  impaired  health. 

General  von  Moltke.— His  birth  and  education. — Military  studies  at  Copenhagen.— Straitened 
circumstances. — His  eminent  attainments. — His  rapid  promotion. — His  mission  to  Turkey 
and  Asia  Minor.— Authorship. — His  advancement  to  the  position  of  Chief  of  Staff. — His  hercu- 
lean labors. — His  remarkable  topographical  and  geological  knowledge. — His  extraordinary 
prescience  and  knowledge  of  the  character  of  his  antagonists. — His  personal  exploration  of 
military  routes.— His  interview  with  General  de  "Wimpffen.— Personal  appearance  and  man- 
ners. 

The  French  Premiers  and  War  Ministers.— Ollivier  and  Rouher.— General  Leboeuf. — Birth  and 
education. — Promotion. — Commandant  of  Polytechnic  School. — Chief  of  Artillery.- General 
of  Division,  1S57.— Distinguished  in  the  Italian  War.— Minister  of  War  in  1S07. — His  cor- 
rupt management  relative  to  the  Chassepot  rifle. — His  recklessness  and  dishonesty. 

Count  de  Palikao. — His  birth,  education  and  military  career. — His  experiences  in  Algeriai 
Prance  and  China. — His  stern  and  cruel  disposition. 

Other  French,  generals. — The  old  soldiers. — The  three  Marshals. — Marshal  MacMahon. — His 
birth  and  education.— Early  career  in  Africa. — ^His  courage  and  daring. — Ability  as  a 
tactician. — Capture  of  the  Malakoff. — His  skilful  strategy  at  Magenta. — Duke  of  Magenta. — 
Eeprescntative  of  France  at  King  Wilhelm's  coronation.— Subsequent  command  in  Prance 
and  Algeria. 

Marshal  Canrobert. — His  birth  and  education. — His  African  career. — Adhesion  to  Louis  Napo- 
leon.— Service  in  the  Crimean  War.— In  the  Italian  War.— Senator  of  Franco. 

Marshal  Bazaine. — His  education. — Military  experience  in  Algeria,  Spain,  and  the  Crimea. — His 
part  in  the  Mexican  Expedition.— His  cruelty,  greed,  and  mismanagement  there. — Hia 
corruption  and  rapacity. 

The  French  corps-commanders,  Frossard,  Do  Failly,  I'Admirault,  &:c.— General  de  Wimpffen.-r- 
Gen.  Troohu pp.  39-56. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Biographical  sketches  continued. — Prince  Friedrich  Karl.— Birth  and  education. — His  entrance 
into  the  Army. — His  fondness  for  military  studies. — Frederick  the  Great  his  exemplar. — A 
staff-officer  under  von  Wrangel  in  1S48,  in  the  first  Schleswig-Holstein  War,  and  the  Baden 
Campaign  in  1S49. — Commander  of  the  Prussian  Contingent  in  the  Danish  War  of  1864..— His 
gallantry  in  the  assault  on  Diippel.— His  command  of  the  first  Army  in  the  Austrian  War  of 
1866.— Sadowa. — His  pamphlet  on  improvements  in  military  organizations. — Tho  changes 
which  followed. — His  interview  with  von  Moltke. — Prince  Friedrich  Wilhelm.— Birth,  ed- 
ucation.— A  pupil  of  von  Moltke. — A  corps-commander  in  1S64.— Commander  of  the  Second 
Prussian  Army  in  1866,  and  the  hero  of  Sadowa.— His  ability  in  handling  large  bodies  of 
troops. 

General  von  Steinmetz.— Birth,  education.— Wounded  at  Dannegkow  in  1813.— Entered  Paris 
with  the  Allies  in  1S15. — "  The  Lion  of  Skalitz." — A  stern,  imperious  old  man. — The  Ger- 
man corps  and  army  commanders pp.  57-63. 

CHAPTER  V. 

Financial  condition  of  France  and  Germany. — DifBoulty  in  arriving  at  the  facts  relative  to  the 

French  finances The  latest  statistics  of  French  revenue  and  expenditure. — The  constant 

deficits.— Seven  loans  from  1854  to  1S70 Cost  of  the  Wars  during  the  reign  of  Napoleon  III 


CONTENTS.  9 

Imports  and  Exports — The  national  dett— Its  enormous  amount. — Valuation  of  property  in 
France. 

Financial  condition  of  the  North  German  Confederation Revenues   of  1S69-70 Ordinary 

and  Extraordinary  Expenditure.— Revenue  of  Prussia Her  Expenditure  with  about  the 

same  population — Her  Espendiliuo  only  two  sevenths  of  that  of  France No  deficits- 
Items  of  Expenditure. — The  national  debt  of  Prussia,  smalL 

Social  condition  of  the  two  countries.— Intelligence  and  Morals  in  Germany.— Condition  of  France 
in  these  respects.— Military  and  naval  strength  of  the  two  countries. — Over-statement  of 

French    military  strength.— Uuder-estimate  of  Prussian    military    power Causes.— The 

French  reports  of  their  Army.- Its  vast  numbers  and  presumed  efficient  condition The 

reserves,  National  Guard  and  Garde  Mobile Almost  two  millions  of  soldiers— on  paper. 

— The  actual  numbers. — One  half  the  Army  only  existing  on  paper The  German  Armies. 

Their  actual  numbers  in  each  arm  of  the  service. — Even  these  estimates  largely  exceeded. 

The  Navies  of  the  two  Nations — Great  number  of  vessels  in  the  French  Navy— 55  Iron-clad 

Steamers.— Analysis  of  the  character  of  these. — ^Their  efficiency  more  apparent  than  real 

Their  meagre  success. 

Prussian  Navy. — Vessels  few  in  number,  but  of  remarkable  efticiency. 

The  Cannon  of  the  German  Army.— Krupp's  rifled  breech-loaders.— Their  great  range  and 
accuracy. 

The  French  bronze  Napoleons— muzzle-loaders — The  Mitrailleuse,  its  character  and  destruc- 
tiveness — The  Needle-gun — Full  description  of  its  mechanism. — The  different  methods  of 

obturation  or  closing  of  the  cylinder  upon  the  barrel— The  Chassepot  rifle Its  construction. 

— Comparison  of  the  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  the  two pp.  64-91 . 


CEAPTER  VI, 


The  circumstances  attending  the  declaration  of  War,  in  detail. — Gen.  Prim's  visit  to  Napoleon 

III.— His  correspondence  with  Prince  Leopold His  acceptance  of  the  candidacy. The 

King  of  Prussia's  disapproval The  Prince's  persistence. — The  French  demand  on  Prussia, 

July  6. — Count  Benedetti's  instructions. — Mr.  Ripley's  account  of  the  interviews  of  Benedctti 

with  the  King — The  demand  of  the  French  Government The  offensive  way  in  which  they 

were  presented Napoleon's  preparations  for  immediate  "War. — The  declaration  of  War 

The  activity  which  followed,  all  over  Christendom. — Return  of  King  Wilhelm  from  Ems  to 

Berlin. — His  address  to  the  Prussian  Legislature War-loan  voted. — Address  of  Napoleon 

III Its  melodramatic  character. — His  address  to  the  Army  at  Metz,  July  28th. — The  circu- 
lar of  von  Bismarck  to  the  Prussian  representatives  at  the  courts  of  Foreign  Powers Efforts 

of  the  French  Government  to  counteract  the  damaging  effect  of  this  exposure Attempts  of 

other  European  Powers  to  effect  a  settlement — Their  futility Letter  of  Pope  Pius  IX  to 

Napoleon  III  and  King  Wilhelm.— King  Wilhelm's  reply. — Forward  movements  of  the 

French  advance-guard Skirmishing. — Circulation  of  addresses  by  the  Emperor   among 

the  South  Germans,  and  the  people  of  Schleswig-Holstein  and  Hanover. — Failure  of  these 
addresses  to  win  any  adherents  to  his  cause pp.  92-100. 


CHAPTER  YII. 


The  War  begun King  Wilhelm  takes  command  of  the  German  forces,  August  2d. — His  ad- 
dress to  the  troops,  at  Mayence Strength  and  position  of  the  French  forces  on  the  2d  of 

August.— The  German  forces  and  their  positions. — The  affair  at  Saarbruck. — The  Emperor's 

letter  to  the  Empress The  Tranquil  Infant's  baptism  of  Are. — Movements  of  the  two  armies. 

— The  French  fortify  the  Spicheren  Hills  back  of  Saarbruck. — MacMahon  advances  to  Weis- 
Benburg. — Battle  of  Weissenburg,  Aug.  4 The  Crown-Prince's  report  of  the  action — Ad- 


10  CONTENTS. 

dress  of  Prince  'Friedricli  Karl.— Gen.  von  Steinmetz's  address  to  the  First  German  Amy.— 
The  battle  of  Spicheren  heights  or  Forbach,  Aug.  6 — Report  of  von  Steinmetz — Account  of 
the  New  York  Tribune  correspondent— Casualties  of  the  battle — The  advance  of  the 
Crown-Prince  toward  Woerth.— The  Battle  of  Woerth — Attempts  of  theFrenoh  commander 

to  rally  his  troops— His  retreat  to  Saverne Marshal  MacMahon's  report  to  the  Emperor — 

King  Wilhelm's  despatch  to  the  Queen.— "  Our  Fritz."— Napoleon  Ill's  despatches.— "  He 

goes  to  the  Centre."— Gen.  Leboeuf's  report Attempts  to  keep  the  news  from  the  French 

people.— The  proclamation  of  the  Empress.— The  statement  of  the  Minister.— Changes  in 
the  French  government  and  military  commands PP- 107-129. 


CHAPTER    yill. 


Indications  of  a  coming  revolution. — Addresses  and  orders  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  the  King, 
and  von  Steinmetz. — Their  humane  tenor. — Strasbourg  summoned  to  surrender. — Proclama- 
tion of  Gen.  Uhrich  in  reply Proclamation  of  King  Wilhelm  to  the  French  people. — Par- 
ticulars of  MacMahon's  defeat  at  Woerth. — His  order  to  his  soldiers The  reiinforcements  he 

received  from  De  Failly,  Canrohert,  and  De  Caen. — His  march  towards  Paris. — Pursuit  by 
the  Crown-Prince  of  Prussia. — Bazaine  falls  back  upon  Metz,  and  decides  to  retreat  upon 
Yerdun  and  Paris,  leaving  a  large  garrison  at  Metz. — The  rapid  advance  and  severe  pressure 
of  the  German  armies  upon  his  rear. — Crossing  of  part  of  the  Second  Army  at  Pont  a  Mous- 

son Napoleon  III  quits  Metz,  leaving  an  address  to  the  inhabitants. — The  battle  of  Cour- 

celles,  east  of  the  Moselle Conflicting   accounts. — The   German  report Correspondents' 

reports.— King  Wilhelm's  despatches. — French  official  report — The  Emperor's  despatch  to 
Eugenie. — Bazaine's  necessity  for  retreat.— Critical  position — The  two  routes  to  Verdun — 
His  determination  to  seize  and  control  one  or  both. — The  battle  of  Yionville,  or  Mars-la- 
Tour,  on  the  IGthof  Angust.—Terriblefighting.— The  Mars-la-Toui- road  completely  blocked  by 
the  Second  German  Army Bazaine  falls  back  to  the  line  of  Gravelotte. — The  battle  inde- 
cisive.— Heavy  losses The   German  report. — Bazaine's  reports — Statement  published  in 

Paris. — Possibility  of  Bazaine's  retreat  by  the  Conflans  road. — Napoleon  III  leaves  Yerdun 
with  the  little  prince  for  Eheims.— The  battle  of  Gravelotte.— The  official  account  in  the 
Artny  and  Navy  Joxirnal. — King  Wilhelm's  despatches  from  Eezonville. — The  New  York 
Tribune  correspondent's  account. — Frightful  slaughter. — The  battle  continues  into  the  night. 
— Account  of  another  correspondent The  execution  done  by  the  Mitrailleuse  at  close  quar- 
ters.— French  and  German  artillery  practice pp.  130-107. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

Gen.  Trochu  appointed  Governor  of  Paris  by  the  Emperor. — His  proclamation  to  the  people  of 

Paris. — Organization  of  a  committee  of  defence Gen.  Trochu's  address  to  the  people  and 

appe.ll  to  the  soldiers. — Geiu  MacMahon's  movement  on  Chalons He  turns  northwestward 

to  Rheims The  attempt  to  raise  the  siege  of  Metz. — The  route  taken. — The  movement  a 

blunder. — Reasons  why. — Difficulty  of  the  country  for  rapidmarching MacMahon's  advance 

reaches  Rethel  and  M6zi6res. — The  pursuit  by  the  German  armies The  lines  on  which  they 

moved The  action  of  August  30 The  advantage  gained  by  the  Germans Crossing  the 

Meuse The  let  of  September. — The  intention  to  rest  the  German  troops  that  day. — Change 

of  plan Orders  issued. — The  plan  of  attack. — Position  of  the  German  armies The  French 

troops  forced  back  to  Sedan. — They  enter  the  town  with  the  French. — The  white  flag  raised.— 
King  Wilhelm's  account  of  the  battles  andsurrender. — The  terms  of  capitulation. — Telegrams 
from  the  King. — Gen.  von  Moltke's  order  for  carrying  out  the  capitulation. — Count  von  Bis- 
marck's letter  describing  his  part. — MacMahon  wounded  early  in  the  fight Do  'Wimpfren's 

address  to  his  soldiers. — Controversy  concerning  the  Emperor  and  de  Wimpffen. — Descrip- 
tion of  the  battle  and  surrender  by  a  French  officer. — Narrative  of  the  Tribune' a  correspond- 
ent with  the  German  army , pp.  167-223. 


CONTENTS.  11 

GHAPTEE  X. 

The  sortie  of  Marshal  Bazaine  on  the  81st  of  August  and  Sept.  Ist He  attempts  to  force  a  pass- 
age for  his  troops  to  the  northeast  of  Metz. — Why  this  direction  -was  taken. — Severe  fight- 
ing  He  is  beaten  hack  at  all  points  and  retires  behind  the  fortifications  of  Metz.— General 

Stiehle  (chief  of  staff  to  Prince  Friedrich  Karl)  telegraphs  the  repulse  of  the  sortie Gen- 
eral Manteuffel's  despatch. — The  minor  fortresses  still  holding  out Condition  of  affairs  at 

Paris. — The  people  deceived. — ^Their  sudden  awakening Great  excitement. — Cries  of  La 

Lecheanee Count  de  Palikao's  oflcial  statement. — The  vote  of  decheance  demanded. — The 

Eevolutionists  force  tbe  gates  of  the  Tuileries. — The  Empress  escapes. — The  three  proposi- 
tions before  the  Corps  Legislatif. — Adjournment  of  the  Chamber The  reassembling  of  the 

Chamber  amid  tbe  turmoil  of  the  mob. — Its  dissolution The  assembling  of  the  Republicans. 

— The  downfall  of  the  Empire  declared. — The  Republic  proclaimed  and  the  members  of  the 

government  announced. — Emmanuel  Arago  Mayor  of  Paris Rochefort  released  from  St. 

Pelagic  and  made  a  member. — Address  of  the  new  republican  government  to  the  people 

The  circular  of  M.  Jules  Favre  to  neutral  powers. — Its  defiant  spirit. — Its  folly M.  Favre's 

negotiations  for  peace, — His   interview  with  Bismarck The    preliminary  question  of  the 

power  of  the  Provisional  Government  to  bind  the  people  of  France. — Favre's  proposals,  and 

Bismarck's  rejoinders. — Rejection  of  Bismarck's  proposals  by  the  French  leaders Removal 

of  the  Government  to  Toul. — Their  proclamation  respecting  the  peace  negotiations. — Bis- 
marck's circular  on  the  same  subject. — His  reasons  for  the  claim  made Advance  of  the 

German  armies  toward  Paris. — Its  investment  complete  on  the  20th  of  September. — Surrender 
of  Toul,  Sept.  2Sd  and  of  Strasbourg,  Sept.  27tb. — The  condition  of  the  French  army  and  peo- 
ple.— Unwisdom  of  the  leaders The  suicidal  policy  of  suffering  an  army  of  430,000  men  and 

a  population  of  two  millions  to  be  besieged. — Losses  of  the  French. — Their  whole  available 
force. — The  want  of  leaders. — Condition  of  Paris. — Exaggeration  of  the  most  trifling  success 
and  manufacture  of  wholesale  falsehoods  in  regard  to  defeat  of  the  Prussians. — The  reaction 
in  the  feeling  of  sympathy  at  first  manifested  for  the  French  Republic  in  consequence  of 
these  falsehoods. — The  two-beaded  French  government. — Efibrts  to  raise  the  army  of  the 
Loire. — The  irregular  troops  of  the  Republic. — Sorties  from  Paris  and  Metz. — The  sortie 
from  Paris  of  the  19th  of  Sept Ducrot  defeated  and  routed. — Subsequent  sorties  unsuccess- 
ful.— The  German  troops  overrun  large  districts  of  France. — The  new  levies  unable  to  resist 
them.— The  report  of  the  German  commission  in  regard  to  operations  in  the  region  of  the 
Loire — The  Partisans  of  Gers — Capture  of  Orleans Its  vahxe  as  the  centre  of  a  rich  dis- 
trict from  which  supplies  could  be  drawn — Its  strategical  importance Other  towns  captured. 

— Predominance  of  Red  Republicanism  in  Marseilles  and  Lyons Fear  of  the  German 

troops  in  the  smaller  towns  of  France The  desolated  tract  between  the  Rhine  and  Paris 

Surrender  of  Metz. — Magnitude  of  the  surrender Statistics  of  ofiicers  surrendered The  in- 
dignation of  the  Provisional  Government  at  this  surrender Their  proclamation Bazaine 

denounced  as  a  traitor. — Understatement  of  their  condition  in  these  proclamations. — Want 

of  any  practical  common  sense  in  the  leaders Conclusion  of  the  history jSTote Attempt 

to  procure  an  armistice  of  25  days Unreasonable  demands  of  the  French  leadei's. — Failure 

of  the  armistice — More  proclamations A  slight  success  of  the  French  arms  at  last 

Orleans  recaptured — French  loss  2,000,  von   der  Tann's  667  killed  and  wounded,  and  1,500 

or  1,600  prisoners — Inspiriting  eflect  of  this  slight  victory  on  the  French.— Their  plans 

Its  real  importance  very  slight Tbe  army  of  the  Loire pp.  224-254. 


CHArTEE  XI. 

Review  of  the  whole   campaign The  maimer  and  bearing  of  the  French  Emperor  and  the 

Prussian  King  contrasted The  affair  at  Saarbruck A  great  boast  over  a  small  matter. — 

The  "Tranquil  Infant."— Terror  of  the  Emperor  at  the  defeats  of  Forbach,  Wiessenburg, 

and  Woerth — His  despatches Bazaine's  retreat  upon  Metz. — His  attempt  to  fall   back 

toward  Paris — Too  late The  sanguinary  battles  of  Courcelles,  Vionville,  and  Gravelotte. — 

The  great  blunder  of  MacMahon.— The  pursuit MacMahon  caoght  as'ride  tho  Mouse. — 


12  CONTENTS. 

Terrible  slaugMer  of  the  battle  of  Aug.  80 The  fighting  of  August  31st  and  Sept.  1st 

MacMahon's  army  forced  into  Sedan,  and  then  compelled  to  surrender Gon.  de  Wimpffen 

in  command — ^Napoleon's  Burrender. — The  French  revolution Folly  of  the  authorities. — 

The  rapid  succession  of  disasters The  cry  of  the  Provisional  Government God's  hand 

in  all pp.  255-260. 


APPENDIX. 


Philanthropy  of  the  War Organization  of  an  International  Sanitary  Commission  in  1866. — Its 

banner  and  badge Foi-mation  of  Ambulance  Corps  early  in  the  present  "War. — Activity  oi 

the  Empress  in  France The  zeal  of  Queen  Augusta,  the  Crown-Princess  Yictoria,  Princess 

Alice,  the  Grand-Duchess  Louise  of  Baden,  and  the  Oro-wn-Princess  Caroline  of  Saxony 

Liberal  assistance  of  others. — Labors  of  Dr.  Evans. — Munificence  of  Count  Henri  de  Chambord. 
—Contributions  for  both  Countries  from  America, 


THE  GEEAT  WAR  OP  1870. 


CHAPTER    I. 


THE  war  of  18Y0,  between  France  and  Germany,  is  often 
denonnced  as  "  wanton,"  "  canseless,"  and  "  unprovoked ;  " 
and  in  one  aspect  of  the  case  this  is  true ;  for  tlie  immediate 
canses  of  the  war  were  trivial,  and  could  only  have  led  to  a 
conflict  where  one  or  botli  parties  were  eager  for  a  pretext  for 
fighting.  Had  these  been  the  only  grounds  on  which  the  contest 
was  based,  it  could  not  have  occurred  ;  for,  if  the  rulers  had 
been  such  fools  as  to  knock  their  heads  together  on  the  question 
of  a  possible  Spanish  succession,  their  people  would  have  pro- 
tested against  it. 

The  true  origin  of  the  war,  though  perhaps  unjustifiable  on 
the  part  of  the  French  Emperor,  lies  farther  back,  and  appeals 
to  higher  motives  and  jealousies  than  a  petty  question  of  succes- 
sion to  a  foreign  throne.  Tliere  have  been,  for  two  hundred  and 
twenty  years  past,  almost  constant  encroachments  by  France 
upon  the  provinces  of  the  old  German  empire.  Some  of  these, 
like  the  old  provinces  of  Alsace  and  Lorraine  (the  old  Elsass  and 
Lothringen  of  the  Germans),  gained  by  treaty,  by  seizure,  by  the 
intrigues  of  French  Bishop-princes,  or  by  the  real  or  supposed 
exigencies  of  mercantile  policy,  France  has  been  allowed  to 
keep  ;  and  though  1,007,4-77  out  of  the  1,097,000  inhabitants  of 
Alsace,  and  351,681  out  of  the  1,291,000  inhabitants  of  Lorraine, 
were  Germans,  yet  the  severest  measures  of  oppression  have 


14:  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   IS'ZO 

been  resorted  to  by  the  Freneli  Government  to  compel  the  peo- 
ple to  abandon  all  nse  of  the  German  language,  customs,  and 
manners.  The  natural  boundary  between  France  and  Germany 
is  the  Yosges  range  of  mountains,  not  the  Ehine ;  and  though 
ISTapoleon  I,  among  his  other  conquests  of  territory  belonging  to 
other  nations,  seized  and  held,  for  six  or  eight  years,  the  German 
provinces  lying  west  of  the  Rhine  (Dusseldorf,  Cologne,  Aachen 
or  Ais-la-Chapelle,  Coblentz,  Hesse,  Treves,  Birkenfeld,  and  the 
Palatinate),  and  carved  out  from  them  the  kingdom  of  West- 
phalia, over  which  he  placed  his  brother  Jerome,  yet  the  in- 
justice of  their  being  torn  from  their  natural  affinities  wa,s  so 
great,  that,  by  the  treaty  of  1815,  they  were  restored  to  Ger- 
many. In  the  3,108,000  inhabitants  of  these  provinces,  there 
are  not  more  than  10,000  people  to  whom  French  is  their  mother- 
tongue. 

Napoleon  I  had  also  absorbed  Belgium,  with  its  2,667,000 
inhabitants  of  Flemish  origin,  in  his  conquests,  and,  uniting  it 
with  Holland,  had  placed  his  brother  Louis  over  it.  These  king- 
doms were  taken  from  France  by  the  treaty  of  1815,  and  have 
since,  under  different  designations,  maintained  a  separate  exist- 
ence. 

Under  the  Bourbons  of  the  Restoration,  and  under  Louis 
Philippe,  France  made  no  effort  to  recover  these  territories — 
Belgium,  Holland,  and  the  Rhenish  provinces — which  were  so 
alien  from  her  in  race  and  language,  and  which  she  had  possessed 
but  so  short  a  time.  Contenting  herself  with  increasing  wealth 
and  prosperity,  and  the  possession  of  Alsace  and  Lorraine,  which 
she  had  held  from  one  to  two  centuries,  her  policy  was  rather 
that  of  a  cordial  understanding  with  the  nations  adjacent  than 
one  of  territorial  aggression. 

But  after  the  Revolution  of  1848  and  the  accession  of  Louis 
ISTapoleon  to  the  Presidency,  and  especially  after  the  couj^  d^etai 
and  the  establishment  of  the  Empire,  the  hearts  of  the  French 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  I5 

people  were  fired  by  the  usurper  with  the  hope  of  regaining  all 
the  territory  they  had  ever  possessed  under  the  first  JSiapoleon. 

No  sooner  was  the  new  Emperor  firmly  seated  on  his  throne, 
than,  while  carefully  promulgating  his  declaration  that  "  the 
Empire  was  peace,"  he  began  to  plot  for  the  accomplishment  of 
his  long-cherished  purposes  of  avenging  Waterloo,  and  extending 
the  bounds  of  France  to  the  Rhine  on  the  east,  and  to  the  Adri- 
atic on  the  southeast.  Crafty  and  reticent,  yet  wboHy  unscrupu- 
lous, he  made  every  move  on  the  political  chess-board  with  a 
view  to  these  ends.  He  duped  England  into  an  alliance  which 
should  enure  to  his  benefit ;  made  war  with  Russia,  ostensibly 
on  behalf  of  Turkey,  but  really  to  cripple  her  resources  and  pre- 
vent her  interference  with  his  schemes ;  joined  Italy  in  a  war 
with  Austria,  in  the  hope  of  obtaming  a  large  slice  of  Italy  for 
his  reward ;  and  when  Prussia,  cognizant  of  his  plans,  declared 
tliat  the  Rhine  must  be  defended  on  the  Adige,  withdrew  and 
accepted,  somewhat  ungraciously,  Savoy  and  Nice  as  the  com- 
pensation for  his  services.  To  amuse  his  people  and  keep  them 
m  training  for  the  great  war  he  purposed  to  begin  as  soon  as  he 
felt  strong  enough  for  it,  he  made  war  upon  the  Cochin-Chinese, 
and  sent  liis  armies  to  Mexico  to  establish  a  throne  there  for 
Maximilian,  and  to  be  on  hand  to  interfere,  if  he  could  drag  any 
other  European  power  into  the  plot,  in  behalf  of  the  Southern 
Confederacy.  The  blunder  he  made  was  a  serious  one,  and  he 
felt  it  keenly.  Meantime,  his  old  foes,  the  Prussians  and  Austri- 
ans,  were  fighting  each  other,  and  he  ofiered  his  aid  to  each  in 
turn,  demanding,  as  his  price,  the  Rhine  provinces  and  Belgium. 
Austria  could  not,  and  Prussia,  strong  in  her  military  organiza,- 
tion  and  her  skilled  troops,  would  not,  entertain  his  proposals. 
When,  after  seven  weeks  of  hard  fighting,  he  found  Prussia  tri- 
umphant, Austria  humbled,  and  the  North-German  Confedera- 
tion an  accomplished  fact,  with  a  certainty  that  a  united  Ger- 
many would  follow  in  time,  he  was  greatly  enraged,  and  his  de- 


16  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

maiids  for  a  share  of  the  territory  wliicli  lie  had  done  nothing  to 
earn,  being  treated  with  contempt,  he  began  to  comprehend  that 
Prussia  was  becoming  too  strong  for  him. 

Thenceforward  he  commenced  preparations  for  a  desperate 
Btrup-gle  with  his  enemy,  the  time  and  place  of  commencement 
to  be  determined  by  circumstances.  But  even  in  this  prepara- 
tion he  blundered  sadly,  blinded  by  the  demoralizing  effects  of 
the  corruption  which  he  had  encouraged  in  the  nation.  The 
wonderful  success  of  Prussia  was  not,  as  he  supposed,  due  to  her 
needle-guns  or  her  improved  artillery,  excellent  as  they  were,  so 
much  as  to  her  admirable  military  organization,  which  made 
every  able-bodied  man  in  the  realm  an  experienced  soldier,  and 
which  required  of  every  officer  that  thorough  topographical 
knowledge  and  military  skill  which  enabled  them  to  handle  their 
troops  efficiently. 

For  the  needle-gun  the  French  Emperor  substituted  the 
chassepot  rifle,  in  some  respects  a  superior  weapon ;  his  bronze 
cannon  were  not  greatly  inferior  to  Krupp's  steel  artillery ;  and  he 
had  ia  the  mitrailleuse  a  weapon  very  efficient  at  short  range ; 
but  he  lacked  what  w^as  far  more  important — skilful  and  efficient 
officers,  men  of  thorough  honesty,  integrity,  and  military  ability  ; 
and  a  large  part  of  his  army  were  untrained  and  undisciplined. 

Official  peculation  and  falsehood  had  permeated  every  por- 
tion of  his  army  and  sapped  its  very  life-blood.  That  he  had 
converted  to  his  own  use  a  part  of  the  appropriations  for  the 
army,  was  but  a  small  part  of  the  trouble  ;  almost  every  officer, 
from  the  highest  to  the  lowest,  had  followed  his  example.  "Where 
he  supposed  he  had  a  hundred  soldiers  fully  armed  and  equipped, 
there  were  found  but  fifty,  and  these  imperfectly  supplied  with 
arms  and  ammunition.  His  officers  knew  nothing  of  the  topog- 
raphy of  France  or  Germany  ;  their  military  education  had  been 
acquired  either  in  Africa,  Cochin-China,  or  Mexico,  and  they  had 
no  experience  in  fighting  an  intelligent  and  educated  foe.     These 


w 


ILHELM,   KING  OF  PRUSSIA. 


y 

BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  ^Y 

things  the  Emperor  neglected  to  take  into  account ;  and,  infatu- 
ated with  his  hatred  of  Prussia,  he  sought  diligently  for  an  occa- 
sion to  declare  war,  meantime  endeavoring  to  imbue  the  French 
people  with  the  sentiment  that  the  Khine  was  the  onlj  true 
boundary  of  France  on  the  northeast. 

There  were  not  wanting  other  motives  to  lead  to  this  war. 
France  was  restive  under  his  system  of  repression  and  espionage. 
The  great  cities,  Paris,  Marseilles,  Lyons,  Bordeaux,  were  bitterly 
hostile  to  him.  The  Corps  Legislatif,  or  popular  branch  of  the 
Legislature,  was  at  each  election  increasing  the  number  of  oppo- 
sition members,  and  on  every  side  were  the  hoarse  growlings  of 
a  coming  storm.  The  artfully-phrased  ballot,  submitted  to  tho 
popular  vote  or  plebiscite  in  May,  1870,  was,  by  adroit  manage- 
ment and  no  little  direct  exertion  of  authority,  carried  in  his 
favor  by  a  majority  of  nearly  six  millions  ;  but  the  opposition 
was  nevertheless  strong  and  intelligent,  and  a  considerable  frac- 
tion of  his  army  voted  with  it.  Ilis  own  health  was  evidently 
failing,  and  the  only  prospect  for  his  dynast^^  lay  in  a  war  which 
should  rouse  the  old  enthusiasm  of  the  French,  and  drown  their 
dislike  of  him  in  their  love  of  military  glor}^. 

JSTor  were  religious  motives  lacking.  Eugenie,  whose  reli- 
gious zeal  increased  as  her  beauty  faded,  had  for  her  confessor  an 
artful  Jesuit,  high  in  rank  in  that  powerful  order.  The  condi- 
tion of  the  Pope  was  becoming  desperate.  Italy  was  in  revolt 
against  his  temporal  power  and  his  new  dogma  of  Infallibility  ; 
Austria  -was  no  longer  his  faithful  defender ;  Spain  was  in  revo- 
lution, and  there  remained  only  the  eldest  son  of  the  Church,  the 
Emperor  of  the  French,  on  whom  the  Pope  could  call  for  aid. 
Prussia,  the  leading  Protestant  nation,  was  gaining  strength 
every  day.  Its  pride  must  be  humbled,  and  this  could  only  be 
accomplished  by  a  great  war ;  and,  even  if  the  Erai^eror  should 
fall  in  the  fray,  she,  the  devout  daughter  of  the  Church,  and  tlic 
young  Prince  Imperial,  could,  under  Catholic  influence,  have  a 
2 


18  THE   GREAT   WAR   OF   ISTO 

better  and  stronger  hold  npon  the  nation  than  in  any  other  way. 
Such  were  the  arguments  addressed  to  the  Empress,  and  through 
her  to  the  Emperor,  hy  this  skilful  Jesuit.  « 

Apart  from  his  passion  for  the  perpetuation  of  his  dynasty, 
which  seemed  to  make  war  his  only  alternative,  the  Emperor 
may  reasonably  be  supposed  to  have  had  some  feeling  for  the 
position  of  France  as  one  of  the  great  powers  of  Europe.  Prus- 
sia had  humbled  Austria,  and  now  ranked,  or  would  soon  rank, 
first  among  the  European  powers,  where  she  had,  till  lately,  been 
fourth.  Her  position  menaced  France.  Should  she  relinquish 
her  prestige  to  a  State  so  lately  her  inferior  ?  If  she  would  not, 
she  must  subdue  this  proud,  haughty  nation  before  it  became  too 
strong  to  be  subdued. 

And  so,  after  years  of  waiting,  during  which  all  Europe  had 
been  kept  in  constant  alarm  by  the  defiant  attitude  of  the  French 
ruler,  now  threatening  one  and  now  another,  NajDoleon  III  be- 
lieved he  had  found  or  made  his  0]3portunity  for  a  war  with 
Prussia. 

Spain,  which,  in  the  autumn  of  1868,  had  overthrown  its 
Bourbon  dynasty  and  had  been  drifting  along  since  that  time 
under  a  Pegency  and  a  Provisional  Government,  had  sought 
widely,  but,  from  one  cause  or  another,  inefi'ectually,  for  a  suit- 
able candidate  for  her  vacant  throne.  To  all  who  were  named 
there  seemed  to  be  some  objection,  either  on  the  part  of  adjacent 
nations  and  rulers,  or  of  the  Spanish  people  themselves.  Gen- 
eral Prim,  the  real  though  not  the  nominal  ruler  of  Spain,  was  a 
personal  friend  of  Louis  ISTapoleon,  and  had  a  long  conference 
with  him  respecting  the  succession  to  the  throne  in  the  Spring 
of  18T0.  Soon  after  his  return  to  Madrid  it  was  given  out,  at 
first  semi-ofiicially,  and  afterward  by  the  Spanish  Government 
itself,  that  Prince  Leopold  Hohenzollern,  of  Sigmaringen,  would 
be  the  candidate  for  the  vacant  Spanish  throne,  and  on  a  canvass 
of  the  Constituent  Assembly,  it  was  ascertained  that  there  was 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  ig 

a  probability  of  his  election.  The  Prince  Leopold  was  a  cadet 
of  a  younger  branch,  and  sonaewhat  remotely  connected  with  the 
reigning  family  of  Prussia ;  his  mother  was  a  Beauharnais,  a 
niece,  we  believe,  of  Queen  Hortense,  the  mother  of  Louis  'Na,- 
poleon  ;  so  that  he  was  a  distant  relative  of  both  the  King  of 
Prussia  and  the  Emperor  of  France.  He  was,  however,  a 
younger  son  of  his  father,  the  ruling  prince  of  Sigmaringen,  and 
had  entered  the  Prussian  army,  where  he  had  risen  to  the  rani 
of  Colonel. 

Immediately  on  the  announcement  of  his  candidature,  the 
French  Emperor  protested  most  vigorously,  and  announced  his 
fixed  determination  to  make  any  eftbrt  to  put  a  Hohenzollern 
upon  the  Spanish  throne  a  cause  of  war  against  Prussia,  which 
power,  he  assumed,  had  prompted  the  movement  from  hostility 
to  him.  Prussia  promptly  disavowed  all  previous  knowledge  of 
Prince  Leopold's  candidature,  and  the  King  expressed  his  disap- 
proval of  it,  though,  from  the  relations  which  existed  between 
the  German  princes,  he  was  not  in  a  position  to  prohibit  it  abso- 
lutely. This  difficulty  was,  however,  soon  obviated  by  the 
prompt  declinature  of  the  candidacy  by  Prince  Leopold  himself, 
and  by  his  father  for  himX  It  really  looked,  for  the  time,  as  if 
there  would  be  no  war  after  all ;  and  there  were  not  a  few  states- 
men of  surrounding  nations  who  believed  that  the  whole  move- 
ment was  a  trap  into  which  Louis  IlTapoleon  and  General  Prim 
had  sought  to  inveigle  Prussia,  that  the  Emperor  might  have  a 
justifiable  pretext  for  declaring  war  agamst  her,  and  that  Prussia, 
understanding  the  trick,  was  determined  to  foil  it. 

But  the  inflammatory  circulars,  addresses,  and  proclamations 
distributed  by  the  French  Emperor  among  his  people,  had  roused 
such  bitter  hatred  against  Prussia  throughout  France,  that  war 
was  inevitable.  He  had  roused,  but  could  not  lay,  the  storm, 
even  if  he  desired  it.  The  apparent  aversion  of  Prussia  to  a  war 
made  him  more  anxious  to  compel  her  to  accept  its  arbitrament, 


20  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

and  making  demands  which  Prussia  could  not  accept — such  as, 
that  Prussia  should  give  substantial  guarantees  that  no  Prussian 
prince  should  ever  become  a  candidate  for  the  Spanish  throne, 
professing  that  otherwise  the  balance  of  power  was  likely  to  be 
disturbed.  The  French  Minister  at  Berlin  was  directed  to  press 
the  demands  offensively  upon  the  King  of  Prussia,  and  per- 
formed the  work  so  zealously  as  to  cause  his  dismissal  from  the 
Prussian  Court.  This  was  used  as  an  additional  grievance  by 
the  Emperor,  who  immediately  declared  war,  basing  his  justifica- 
tion on  these  grounds  :  the  insult  to  his  minister ;  the  refusal  of 
the  King  of  Prussia  to  prohibit,  absolutely.  Prince  Leopold's  can- 
didature, and  his  unwillingness  to  offer  material  guarantees  that 
he  would  not  permit  any  Prussian  prince  to  be  a  candidate  for 
the  Spanish  throne  in  the  future  ;  and,  finally,  the  danger  to  the 
peace  and  balance  of  power  in  Europe  from  the  action  of  the 
Prussian  King.  Every  nation  in  Europe  knew  that  Napoleon  III 
did  not  really  make  war  on  these  grounds,  but  because  he  wanted 
the  Rhenish  provinces  and  Belgium,  and  wanted  to  humble  Prus- 
sia and  her  great  statesman,  Bismarck  ;  and,  while  some  of  the 
European  powers  were  not  averse  to  seeing  Prussian  arrogance, 
as  they  phrased  it,  a  little  lowered,  they  were  all  aware  that  no 
justifiable  pretext  for  war  had  been  made  out, 

!N^apoleon  III  had  sent  his  emissaries  and  missives  throughout 
Bavaria,  Wurtemburg,  Baden,  and  Hanover,  in  the  hope  of 
alienating  them  from  the  Prussian  cause ;  but  he  met  with  no 
encouragement  from  that  quarter,  and  found,  when  it  was  too 
late,  that  he  had  all  Germany,  instead  of  Prussia,  to  fight. 

Such  was  the  origin  and  such  the  immediate  causes  of  the 
war  which,  in  six  weeks,  has  caused  a  slaughter  of  nearly  a  quar- 
ter of  a  million  of  men,  and  produced  extraordinary  changes  in 
the  condition  of  Europe.  Let  us  next  trace  the  personal  history 
jf  the  two  monarchs,  their  counsellors,  and  their  leading  com- 
manders. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GEEMANT.  £1 


CHAPTER    II. 

AMOJSTG  the  conspicuous  personages  in  tins  great  contest,  the, 
first  place  belongs  to  the  King  of  Prussia  by  right  of 
seniority.  He  is  not  a  man  of  as  remarkable  intellectual  abilities 
as  Bismarck,  nor  of  as  profound  military  knowledge  as  Yon 
Moltke  ;  but,  though  naturally,  and  as  a  result  of  his  early  edu- 
cation and  prejudices,  an  absolutist,  he  has,  through  the  influence 
of  his  ministers,  become  so  far  liberalized  as  to  grant  constitu- 
tional privileges  to  his  people  ;  and  his  manliness,  integrity,  and 
straightforwardness  have  so  endeared  him  to  his  people,  that  he 
may  justly  be  regarded  as  the  most  popular  monarch  in  Europe. 
WiLHELM  Fkiedeich  Ludwig,  better  known  as  William  I, 
King  of  Prussia,  was  born  March  22,  1797,  and  is,  therefore, 
seventy-three  years  old.  He  entered  the  military  service  veiy 
young.  As  a  child,  he  witnessed  the  humiliation  of  his  father 
by  the  first  I^apoleon,  and  he  engaged  in  the  avenging  cam- 
paigns of  1813  and  1814.  In  1810  he  was  appointed  governor 
of  Pomerania.  The  revolution  of  1848  drove  him  from  Prussia, 
for  he  was  at  that  time  a  bitter  hater  of  democracy.  After  nine 
months  in  England,  he  returned,  and  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  National  Assembly,  but  took  no  part.  In  the  same  year  he 
commanded  the  troops  that  put  down  the  Baden  insurrection. 
During  the  Crimean  war  he  was  anxious  to  have  Prussia  take 
sides  with  Pussia.  October  23,  1857,  owing  to  the  ill  health 
and  insanity  of  his  brother,  Frederick  William  lY,  the  govern- 
ment was  placed  in  his  hands  ;  October  9,  1858,  he  was  declared 
regent ;  January  2,  1861,  he  became  king.     For  the  first  four  or 


22  THE   GEE  AT  WAR  OF   1870 

five  years  of  Lis  reign  Ms  tendencies  to  absolutism  brought  liim 
into  repeated  collisions  with  the  popular  branch  of  the  Prussian 
legislature,  and  rendered  him  unpopular  as  a  king  ;  but  the  wise 
counsels  of  Count  Bismarck,  and  the  material  change  in  his 
policy,  have  of  late  greatly  endeared  him  to  his  people.  He  is 
described  as  stalwart,  deep-chested,  with  a  squai-e,  rugged  face, 
and  bristling  gray  mustache,  cold,  implacable  eyes,  and  a  heavy 
jaw ;  yet,  in  his  intercourse  with  his  people,  and  especially  with 
children,  the  grim  face  relaxes,  and  it  is  easy  to  see  that  the 
stern  old  man  has  a  kindly  and  tender  heart.  His  military 
education  was  very  thorough,  and  he  handles  large  bodies  of 
troops  with  great  ability.  During  the  war  of  1866,  as  well  as 
the  present  war,  his  despatches  from  the  field  of  battle  have 
always  been  modest,  frank,  and  truthful,  underrating  rather  than 
exaggerating  his  successes,  and  always  giving  full  credit  to 
others  for  victories.  His  messages  to  Queen  Augusta  have 
been  so  fraught  with  feeling,  and  so  free  from  any  thing  like 
elation  or  bombast,  as  to  be  models  of  what  war-despatches 
should  be. 

His  opx^onent,  the  originator  of  the  war,  though  a  younger 
man,  has  a  longer  and  more  eventful  record,  though  not  a  more 
creditable  one. 

With  his  usual  imperiousness,  ISTapoleon  I  compelled,  in 
1802,  his  brother,  Louis  Bonaparte,  to  marry  Hortense  Beau- 
harnais,  the  daughter  of  Josephine.  The  match  was  repugnant 
to  the  wishes  of  both  the  parties,  Louis  being  already  openly  the 
suitor  of  Emilie  Beauharnais,  Josephine's  niece,  and  Hortense 
secretly,  if  not  openly,  betrothed  to  General  Duroc.  As  might 
have  been  expected,  the  marriage  proved  an  unhappy  one,  and 
resulted  in  a  separation  in  1810.  Hortense  became  the  mother, 
in  this  period,  of  three  sons,  the  youngest  bearing  the  name  of 
Charles  Louis  JSTapoleon,  being  born  April  20,  1808.  King 
Louis  hesitated  long  before  acknowledging  the  legitimacy  of  this 


BETWEEN  PRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


23 


third  son,  and  only  consented  finally  at  the  urgent  solicitations 
and  threats  of  his  brother.  There  was  a  Dutch  admiral  at  that 
time  on  terms  of  intimacy  ^\'ith  Queen  Ilortense,  to  whom 
rumor  assigned  the  paternity  of  the  boy,  who  certainly  resem- 
bled him  more  strongly  than  he  did  any  of  the  Bonapartes. 
After  the  age  of  two  years,  his  residence  was  Avith  his  mother, 
at  Paris,  until  1815,  and  he  was,  as  a  child,  a  favorite  of  JSTapo- 
leon  I. 

After  the  Kestoration,  the  ex-Queen  Hortense  spent  her  sum- 
mer3  at  Augsburg,  or  at  the  castle  of  Areuenberg,  near  Lake 
Constance,  and  her  winters  in  Italy ;  and  her  two  sons  (the  eld- 
est child  had  died  in  1807),  who  accompanied  her,  received  but 
an  imperfect  and  desultory  education.  They  studied  German 
and  the  classics,  thougli  with  such  interruptions  that  they  never 
became  remarkable  proficients  in  any  thing.  Both  joined  the 
revolutionary  society  of  the  Carbonari,  in  Italy,  and  were  impli- 
cated in  several  of  the  Italian  conspiracies.  After  the  revolution 
of  July,  1830,  and  the  accession  of  Louis  Philippe  to  the  throne, 
the  younger  asked  permission  for  himself  and  family  to  return  to 
France ;  and  this  being  refused,  he  requested  to  be  allowed  to  serve 
as  a  private  soldier  in  tlie  French  army.  The  French  Govern- 
ment answered  these  requests  by  a  renewal  of  the  decree  for  his 
banishment.  He  concealed  his  chagrin  at  this  action  at  the  time, 
but  thenceforth  did  not  cease  to  plot  for  the  overthrow  of  the 
Orleans  dynasty.  In  the  beginning  of  1831,  he  and  his  brother 
left  Switzerland,  and  settled  in  Tuscany,  from  whence,  a  month 
later,  both  took  part  in  the  unsuccessful  insurrection  at  Komc. 
The  fatigues  and  exposures  of  that  period  led  to  the  death  of 
his  elder  brother  at  Forli,  March  lY,  1831 ;  and  Louis  ISTapoleon 
escaped  through  Italy  and  France  to  England,  where  he  re- 
mained a  short  time,  and  then  retired  to  the  castle  of  Arenen- 
burg,  where  his  mother  still  resided.  Soon  after  his  arrival 
there,  the  Duke  of  Reichstadt,  the  only  legitimate  son  of  Napo- 


24.  THE   GREAT  WAR    OF   1870 

leon  I,  died,  and  Louis  Napoleon  became  the  legal  heir  of  the 
family,  and  the  claimant  of  the  imperial  throne  of  France.  His 
efforts  were  secretly  directed,  from  this  time,  to  the  overthrow 
of  Louis  Philippe,  and  he  had  succeeded  in  winning  the  favor 
of  some  of  the  distinguished  men  of  the  time  to  his  projects. 
Outwardly,  during  this  time,  he  appeared  to  be  very  quiet.  He 
wrote,  between  1832  and  1835,  three  works,  which  attained  a 
small  and  limited  circulation  ;  but  he  was  never  sufficiently  well 
educated  to  be  master  of  a  good  French  style,  and  his  grammat- 
ical and  rhetorical  blunders  greatly  marred  the  effect  of  these 
and  all  other  of  his  literary  performances.  The  books  prepared 
at  this  time — "  Political  Keveries,"  "  Political  and  Military 
Considerations  in  Pegard  to  Switzerland,"  and  a  "  Manual  of 
Artillery  " — were  the  crude  productions  of  a  young  man  of 
imperfect  education,  unaccustomed  to  profound  thought,  and 
with  very  little  knowledge  of  human  nature.  The  "  Manual 
of  Artillery,"  a  mere  technical  book,  is  incomparably  the  best 
of  the  three,  and  received  from  som^e  of  the  military  journals  a 
favorable  notice. 

But  he  was  restless,  and  sick  of  this  quiet  life.  Some  of  his 
correspondents  in  France  had  encouraged  him  in  the  belief  that 
France  was  ripe  for  a  revolution,  and  he  resolved  to  attempt  it. 
There  was  always  a  melodramatic  tendency  m  his  mind,  and 
this  led  him  to  model  his  intended  attack  on  the  return  of 
Napoleon  I  from  Elba.  His  associates  in  the  plot  were  Colonel 
Vaudrey,  of  the  4:th  Artillery,  then  stationed  at  Strasbourg,  and 
M.  Yictor  Fialin,  afterward  better  known  as  the  Due  de  Per- 
signy. 

On  the  30th  of  October,  1836,  Louis  Napoleon  suddenly 
made  his  appearance  in  Strasbourg,  was  presented  to  a  part  of 
the  garrison  by  Colonel  Yaudrey,  who  at  the  same  time  an- 
nounced to  the  soldiers  that  a  revolution  had  taken  place  in 
Paris,  and  was  accepted  by  the  4th  Artillery  and  a  portion  of 


NAPOLEON    III.,    late   EMPEROR   OF   FRANCE. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  25 

some  other  regiments.  The  prompt  action  of  Gen.  Voirol  and 
Colonel  Tallandier  arrested  the  movement.  The  troops  hesi- 
tated ;  in  a  few  minutes  more,  the  epaulettes  and  decorations  of 
the  would-be  Emperor  were  torn  from  him.  He  was  arrested 
without  delay,  and  forwarded  to  Paris.  Louis  Philippe  felt  too 
secure  in  his  place  to  be  vindictive ;  the  attempt,  in  fact,  illus- 
trated its  own  impotence  ;  and  the  culprit  was  dealt  with  very 
leniently.  Within  three  weeks  he  was  shipped  to  ISTew  York, 
without  any  conditions  being  attached  to  his  release,  and  $3,000, 
the  gift  of  Louis  Philippe,  in  his  pocket.  He  was  first  taken  to 
Rio  Janeiro,  where  the  vessel  delayed  but  a  few  days,  and  then 
sailed  for  the  United  States.  He  was  landed  at  Norfolk,  in 
March,  1837,  and  thence  made  his  way  to  ISTew  York,  where  he 
remained  until  some  time  in  May.  His  residence  in  America 
was  not  marked  by  any  events  at  all  to  his  credit.  His  rela- 
tives, Joseph  Bonaparte,  at  Bordentown,  and  the  Patterson- 
Bonapartes  at  Baltimore,  turned  the  cold  shoulder  to  him.  His 
hare-brained  adventure  at  Strasbourg  had  stamped  him  as  an 
adventurer ;  his  personal  habits  were  reckless,  and  his  associa- 
tions not  at  all  respectable  ;  and  he  had  not  the  passport  to  good 
society. 

The  news  of  the  serious  illness  of  his  mother  recalled  him  to 
Switzerland.  Lie  reached  Arenenberg  shortly  before  her  death, 
which  occurred  on  the  3d  of  October.  In  the  following  year  his 
account  of  the  Strasbourg  afiair  was  published  by  Lieutenant 
Laity,  who  had  also  been  concerned  in  it.  Louis  Philippe  took 
offence  at  the  statements  it  contained,  and  demanded  his  extra- 
dition from  the  Swiss  Government,  which,  in  spite  of  Louis 
ITapoleon's  citizenship,  would  probably  have  been  compelled  to 
accede,  had  he  not  relieved  it  from  the  embarrassment  by 
migrating  to  England.  Here,  in  1839,  he  published  his  Idees 
NapoUoniennes,  which  were  widely  circulated.  They  reiterated 
the  assertion  of  his  Reveries  Politiques,  that  France  could  only 


26  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   18V0 

be  developed  hj  a  E"apoleonic  ruler,  and  assailed  both  tlie  policy 
of  the  Orleans  family  and  its  right  to  the  tlirone. 

Although,  in  1840,  the  Orleanist  rule  was  still  firmly  estab- 
lished in  France,  Louis  Napoleon,  yielding  less  to  the  impatience 
of  his  small  band  of  followers  in  London,  than  blindly  and  reck- 
lessly trusting  his  fortunes  to  chance,  organized  a  new  attempt. 
Accompanied  by  Count  Montholon  (one  of  the  companions  of 
J^apoleon  at  St.  Helena)  and  about  fifty  others,  he  crossed  the 
Chamiel  in  a  small  steamer,  and  landed  at  Boulogne.  One  of 
the  "  properties  "  of  the  expedition  was  a  tame  eagle,  which — 
according  to  the  gossip  of  the  day — had  been  trained  to  alight 
on  the  Prince's  head  by  the  lure  of  a  piece  of  raw  beefsteak 
attached  to  his  hat.  The  landing  was  made,  the  bluffs  ascended, 
and  the  garrison  summoned  to  acknowledge  their  legitimate 
commander  ;  but  the  eagle  forgot  his  lesson,  and  the  soldiers  had 
not  yet  learned  theirs.  The  first  alighted  upon  a  post,  instead 
of  the  selected  head,  and  the  second  charged  upon  their  self- 
styled  sovereign  and  his  adherents.  Plunging  into  the  sea  in 
his  endeavor  to  regain  the  steamer,  Louis  [N'apoleon  was  dragged 
out,  dripping  and  collapsed,  and  forwarded  a  second  time  to 
Paris.  This  attempt  was  even  more  disastrous  than  the  first ; 
for  at  Strasbourg  a  part  of  the  garrison  (deceived  by  Colonel 
Yaudrey)  had  actually  declared  for  him ;  whereas  at  Boulogne 
not  a  single  soldier  appears  to  have  done  him  reverence. 

Louis  Philippe,  it  must  be  admitted,  acted  with  great  moder- 
ation. The  life  of  the  conspirator,  who  had  abused  his  first 
forbearance,  was  in  his  power ;  but  he  brought  him  to  trial 
before  the  House  of  Peers,  where  he  was  defended  by  Berryer, 
then  the  first  advocate  in  France,  and  acquiesced  in-  the  sentence 
of  perpetual  imprisonment.  Kay,  more  ;  it  was  reported,  and 
generally  believed,  that  the  escape  in  1846  was  accomplished 
with  the  knowledge  and  tacit  connivance  of  the  French  Govern- 
ment.    Louis  Kapoleon's  imprisonment  in  Ham — a  small  place 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  27 

near  St.  Queutin,  about  balf-waj  between  Paris  and  the  Belgian 
frontier — was  voluntarily  shared  by  Dr.  Couneau,  a  physician 
who  had  faith  in  his  destiny.  During  the  six  years  at  Ham, 
however,  the  prisoner  was  not  idle.  He  occupied  himself 
chiefly  with  political  studies,  and  wrote  three  works — "  Historic 
Fragments  "  (published  in  1841),  a  comparison  between  the  fall 
of  the  Stuart  dynasty  in  England  and  certain  features  of  French 
history  ;  an  "  Analysis  of  the  Sugar  Question  "  (1842),  in  which 
he  took  ground  against  specially  favoring  production  in  the 
French  colonies ;  and,  finally,  an  essay  on  the  "  Extinction  of 
Pauperism,"  which  was  the  most  important  of  all,  inasmuch  as 
it  indirectly  favored  the  communistic  theories  which  were  then 
rapidly  taking  root  among  the  laboring  classes  of  France.  He 
proposed  that  the  Government  should  advance  funds  to  establish 
settlement  and  cultivation  in  all  the  waste  districts  of  the  coun- 
try, and  that  the  profits  of  the  undertaking  should  be  appropri- 
ated to  the  support  and  elevation  of  the  manufacturing  classes. 
He  asserted,  moreover,  his  own  intention  "  to  act  always  in  the 
interest  of  the  masses,  the  sources  of  all  right  and  of  all  wealth, 
although  destitute  of  the  one  and  without  any  guaranty  for 
attaining  the  other." 

Toward  the  end  of  1845,  the  ex-King  Louis,  then  ill  at  Flor- 
ence, made  an  appeal  to  the  French  Government  for  the  release 
of  the  only  son  who  bore  his  name.  After  a  long  consideration, 
the  appeal  was  refused ;  but  the  refusal  was  followed,  in  May, 
1846,  by  the  escape  of  Louis  ITapoleon  from  Ham.  "With  Dr. 
Conneau's  assistance,  disguised  as  a  workman,  he  walked  out  of 
the  fortress  carrying  a  board  upon  his  shoulder,  easily  made  liis 
way  to  the  Belgian  frontier,  and  thence  to  England. 

His  long  confinement,  and  the  evidence  of  literary  ability  in 
his  published  works,  had  by  this  time  partly  removed  the 
impression  of  folly  and  pretension  which  the  attempts  at  Stras- 
bourg and  Boulogne  had  cast  upon  his  name ;  and  during  his 


28  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

second  residence  in  England  he  appears  to  have  associated  with 
another  and  better  class  of  society.  He  was  welcomed  to  Lady 
Blessington's  receptions  at  Gore  House,  was  a  frequent  visitor  of 
Sir  John  (then  Dr.)  Bowriug's,  and  made  a  strong  impression 
on  Walter  Savage  Landor  at  Bath,  by  declaring  to  him,  confi- 
dentially, that  he  would  yet  reign  in  France.  Generally,  how- 
ever, he  was  reticent,  impassive,  and  abstracted  ;  his  destiny  was 
credited  by  very  few,  and  his  abilities  doubted  by  most.  Dis- 
appointment, ridicule,  exile,  imprisonment,  and  privation,  had 
taught  him  prudence. 

Then  came,  startling  all  Europe,  the  revolution  of  February, 
1848.  Louis  ISTapoleon's  shrewdness  and  self-control  at  such  a 
crisis  contrast  remarkably  with  his  former  recklessness.  The 
Bonapartist  faction  in  France  was  not  large  at  that  time,  but  it 
was  very  active.  Lamartine,  originally  a  Legitimist,  knew  the 
power  of  a  name  among  the  people,  and  the  Executive  Com- 
mittee (in  May),  probably  at  his  suggestion,  laid  before  the 
National  Assembly  a  proposal  to  renew  the  decree  of  1832,  and 
banish  the  Bonaparte  family  from  France.  This  was  rejected 
by  the  Assembly,  and  Louis  Napoleon,  who  had  been  brought 
before  the  people  as  a  candidate  by  his  followers,  and  had  been 
elected  Deputy  from  four  departments,  was  free  to  visit  Paris. 
Nevertheless,  he  still  delayed,  from  an  apparent  disinclination  to 
create  trouble.  After  having  announced  to  the  President  of  the 
National  Assembly,  on  the  14th  of  June,  that  he  was  ready  to 
perform  any  duty  with  which  the  people  might  charge  him,  he 
forwarded  a  letter,  the  following  day,  resigning  his  place  as 
Deputy  in  the  interest  of  peace  and  harmony.  This  step  greatly 
increased  his  popularity,  and  he  was  immediately  rechosen 
Deputy  by  four  other  departments. 

Thereupon  he  left  England,  reached  Paris  on  the  24th  of 
September,  and,  on  the  26th,  took  his  seat  in  the  National 
Assembly.     He  made  a  short  address,  taking  strong  ground  in 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


2S 


favor  of  tlie  preservation  of  order  and  the  development  of  demo- 
cratic institutions.  His  manner  as  a  speaker  was  stiff  and  un- 
impressive, his  accent  was  slightly  foreign,  and  General  Cavai- 
gnac,  then  temporary  dictator,  and  candidate  for  the  Presidency, 
seems  to  have  greatly  under-estimated  both  his  ability  and  the 
chances  of  his  popularity. 

The  Bonapartists  had  used  every  means  in  their  power  to 
unite  the  numerous  discordant  elements  in  the  nation  upon  him  ; 
and,  thanks  to  their  adroit  management  and  the  lack  of  any 
popular  name  for  a  rallying-cry  among  the  other  parties,  they 
were  successful.  The  election  was  held  on  the  10th  of  Decem- 
ber, 1848,  and  the  result  gave  evidence  of  an  almost  complete 
union  of  all  other  parties  against  that  of  the  Kepublic  of  Order 
represented  by  Cavaignac.  The  latter  received  1,460,000  votes  ; 
Louis  JSTapoleon,  5,500,000 ;  and  Lamartine  a  comparatively 
trifling  number.  The  two  monarchical  parties  designed  mak- 
ing use  of  Louis  l!Tapoleon  as  an  instrument  to  weaken  the 
Republicans,  trusting  that  his  own  incompetency  would  com- 
plete the  work,  and  hasten  a  counter-revolution.  When,  there- 
fore, on  the  20th  of  December,  he  was  installed  as  President 
of  the  French  Kepublic,  it  was  under  auspices  seemingly  very 
fortunate,  because  the  hostile  influences  were  temporarily  held 
in  abeyance.  Cavaignac,  a  noble  Spartan  nature,  had  restored 
France  to  order,  although  the  blood  he  had  shed  in  saving  the 
country  lost  the  country  to  him.  The  new  President,  with  no 
record  of  offence  except  against  the  banished  dynasty,  took  quiet 
possession  of  the  realm  which  another  had  made  ready  for  his 
hands. 

His  policy,  which  was  speedily  developed,  was  to  improve 
the  social  and  business  condition  of  France,  and  at  the  same 
time  to  pursue  a  gradually  increasing  system  of  repression,  till 
he  had  crushed  out  the  last  vestige  of  liberty.  The  French 
people  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes  love  to  be  ruled  with  a 


30  THE   GEE  AT  WAR   OF   1870 

strong  liancl,  so  that  their  social  prosperity  is  assured  and  their 
love  of  glory  gratified ;  ajid  he  succeeded  more  easily,  perhaps, 
than  even  he  had  anticipated.  A  system  of  internal  improve- 
ments was  planned  and  pnt  in  execution ;  industry  of  all  kinds 
revived,  and  the  change  from  the  depression  produced  by  the 
uncertainties  of  the  previous  year  was  felt  as  a  happy  relief  by 
the  whole  population.  All  this  time  the  liberty  secured  by  the 
^Constitution  was  steadily  contracted ;  tlie  Government  became 
firmer  and  more  repressive  in  its  character ;  the  restless-  move- 
ments of  factions  were  dealt  with  more  severely  as  the  mass  of 
the  people  became  more  contented  under  their  new  prosperity. 
Although  the  point  to  wdiich  this  policy  tended  was  now  toler- 
ably clear,  it  was  still  difficult  to  point  to  any  act  as  specially 
indicative  of  it.  While  violating  the  spirit  of  the  Constitution, 
while  advocating  or  opposing  universal  suffrage,  according  to 
the  exigencies  of  his  policy,  his  speeches  were  so  worded  as  to 
make  it  appear  that  he  was  the  sole  defender  of  the  Constitution, 
concerned  only  to  shield  it  from  the  aggressions  of  the  National 
Assembly. 

In  January,  1851,  a  completely  Bonapartist  Ministry  was 
appointed ;  but  the  Assembly,  having  voted  its  lack  of  confi- 
dence, another  Ministry  was  substituted.  An  attempt  was  then 
made  to  change  the  Constitution  in  such  a  manner  that  the 
President's  term  of  office  might  be  extended,  since  an  immediate 
reelection  was  prohibited ;  but,  after  a  very  fierce  and  stormy 
discussion,  the  proposition  failed  to  receive  the  requisite  major- 
ity of  three  fourths.  The  Assembly  was  soon  afterwards  ad- 
journed until  J^ovember,  which  gave  the  Prince-President  time 
to  mature  his  plans.  His  term  w^ould  expire  the  following 
Spring ;  the  Prince  de  Joinville  was  already  named  as  a  candi- 
date ;  the  elements  of  opposition,  although  without  combination, 
were  increasing  in  strength,  and  the  temper  of  the  French  peo- 
ple was  anxious  and  uneasy.     In  this  juncture,  he  called  about 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  3i 

Mm  men  wno  were  equally  cunning,  daring,  and  unprincipled — 
General  St.  Arnaud  (who  was  made  Minister  of  War  in  October, 
1851),  De  Morny,  Persigny,  and  Fleary.  All  of  these  appear 
to  have  been  made  acquainted  witii  his  plans,  and  two  of  them 
— St.  Arnaud  and  De  Mornj — were  his  chief  instruments  in 
carrying  them  into  execution. 

On  the  13th  of  I^ovember,  1851,  the  I^ational  Assembly,  by 
a  large  majority,  defeated  the  proposition  for  universal  suffrage, 
and  the  Prince-President  and  his  co-conspirators  speedily  deter- 
mined upon  a  desperate  measure.  Before  daylight  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  2d  of  December,  1851,  seventy-eight  prominent  men 
were  seized,  many  of  them  being  dragged  from  their  beds,  the 
l^ational  Assembly  forcibly  dissolved  (220  of  the  Deputies  hav- 
ing been  arrested  and  imprisoned  the  same  day),  Paris  declared 
in  a  state  of  siege,  and  the  people  called  upon  to  elect  a  Presi- 
dent for  ten  years,  with  power  to  select  his  own  Ministry,  and  a 
Government  consisting  of  two  Chambers,  with  limited  powers. 
All  legal  opposition  and  protest  was  crushed  under  foot.  Paris 
arose  against  the  outrage,  and,  until  the  night  of  December  4, 
its  streets  ran  with  blood.  Entire  quarters  of  the  city  were 
given  up  to  murder  and  plunder.  Men,  women,  and  children, 
natives  and  foreigners,  were  shot  and  bayoneted  indiscrimi- 
nately. The  greatest  pains  have  been  taken  to  suppress  the 
dreadful  details,  but  the  number  of  persons  butchered  cannot 
have  been  less  than  5,000,  and  may  have  been  twice  as  many. 
Within  the  next  month,  according  to  the  Bonapartist,  Granier 
de  Cassagnac,  26,500  persons  were  transported  to  the  penal 
colonies  of  Cayenne  and  Africa,  where  the  greater  number  of 
them  died. 

The  blow  was  so  sudden  and  terrible  that  the  spirit  of  the 
nation  was  utterly  paralyzed ;  even  indignation  was  lost  in  the 
deeper  sense  of  horror  and  fear.  The  mask  was  removed,  and 
the  Empire  in  a  nearly  absolute  form  already  existed.     The 


32  THE  GEEAT  WAR  OF   1810 

people  knew  this  when  they  were  called  upon  to  vote  upon  the 
questions  proposed  "by  Louis  ISTapoleon.  Public  opinion  was 
equally  suppressed  throughout  the  provinces ;  the  most  alarming 
socialistic  dangers  were  invented  and  threatened ;  every  promi- 
nent man  was  ordered  to  declare  himself  instantly  for  one  side 
or  the  other ;  the  business  classes  were  kept  excited  by  rumors 
of  plots  and  outbreaks ;  the  press  everywhere  was  efi'ectually 
muzzled ;  and  when  the  election  was  held,  a  few  days  later,  the 
result  was  :  7,500,000  yeas,  650,000  nays. 

In  January,  1852,  he  ordered  the  confiscation  of  all  the 
property  belonging  to  the  Orleans  family  ;  in  February,  the  last 
vestige  of  liberty  was  taken  from  tlie  press  ;  in  May,  the  Il^apo- 
leonic  eagles  were  distributed  to  the  army ;  and  in  December 
the  Prince-President,  Louis  ISTapoleon  Bonaparte,  became  Napo- 
leon III,  Emperor,  "  By  the  Grace  of  God  and  the  will  of  the 
French  people  "  !  Having  assured  himself  that  resistance  was 
paralyzed  for  a  time,  his  next  objects  were,  first,  to  allay  the 
distrust  of  the  other  European  powers  by  showing  that  the  Em- 
pire was  Peace ;  and  secondly,  to  bring  about  a  war,  in  order 
to  satisfy  his  army. 

After  various  unsuccessful  attempts  to  ally  himself  by  mar- 
riage with  some  of  the  reigning  houses  of  Europe,  he  abandoned 
the  quest,  and  in  January,  1853,  married  Eugenie  Marie  de 
Guzman,  Countess  de  Teba,  a  Spanish  lady,  though  descended, 
on  her  mother's  side,  from  a  Scottish  family. 

In  the  summer  of  1853  he  succeeded  in  forming  an  alliance 
with  England,  whicli,  a  few  months  later,  was  riveted  by  the 
Crimean  war.  In  this  war,  through  the  ability  of  his  generals 
and  the  inefiiciency  of  some  of  the  English  ofiicers,  he  managed 
to  secure  the  lion's  share  of  the  glory  for  France,  and,  under  a 
o-reat  show  of  disinterestedness,  to  cause  the  material  successes 
to  enure  to  his  owti  advantage,  while  the  heaviest  burdens  came 
upon  his  ally. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  oo 

Oo 

The  Empire  was  not  Peace,  but  it  seemed  to  be  Order.  The 
country  was  covered  with  a  network  of  railways,  harbors  were 
created,  a  fleet  built  and  manned,  Paris  was  pierced  in  all  direc- 
tions with  broad  and  splendid  streets,  the  Empress  inaugurated 
a  new  era  of  luxury,  labor  was  plentiful,  money  was  plentiful, 
morals  were  pleasantly  relaxed,  and  the  French  people  were  free 
to  enjoy  the  good  things  of  this  life,  so  long  as  they  abstained 
from  meddling  with  politics.  The  7naterial  justification  of  the 
Empire  became  popular  throughout  Europe,  and  even  with  many 
Americans.  An  Imperial  Prince  was  born  in  March,  1856 — an 
only  one,  and  again  a  resemblance  to  l^apoleon  !  Even  persons 
not  superstitious  began  to  incline  toward  the  theory  of  "  des- 
tiny." "With  his  positive  power  and  his  increasing  prestige,  it 
was  now  possil^le  to  relax  somewhat  of  his  former  caution,  and 
for  a  few  years  the  world,  convicted  of  having  undervalued  him, 
persisted  in  atoning  for  its  offence  by  interpreting  his  stolidity 
as  depth,  his  reticence  as  wisdom,  his  straining  after  theatrical 
effect  as  the  force  and  daring  of  genius.  From  1853  to  1861  he 
was  the  most  over-estimated  man  in  the  world.  Every  turn  and 
winding  of  his  apparently  subtile  policy,  every  new  disclosure 
of  his  seemingly  impenetrable  plans,  was  accepted  as  an  evidence 
of  greatness  by  a  majority  of  the  civilized  races. 

It  would,  perhaps,  be  unfair  to  say  that  sympathy  for  the 
Italian  cause  had  no  part  in  bringing  on  the  war  of  1859.  lie 
was  scarcely  insensible  to  so  many  early  associations  ;  he  knew 
the  tremendous  under-current  of  resistance  and  aspiration  in 
Lombardy,  the  Romagna,  and  the  Duchies,  and  felt  that  there 
were  the  seeds  of  great  popularity,  if  not  power,  in  his  policy. 
But  there  were  two  other  equally  powerful  considerations :  he 
would  abolish  the  relentless  determination  of  the  Carbonari,  and 
he  would  increase  the  territory  of  France  by  the  annexation  of 
Savoy.  (There  is  little  doubt  that  the  latter  clause  was  agreed 
upon  when  Cavour  visited  Kapoleon  III  at  Plombierfb,  before 
3 


34:  THE   GREAT   WAR   OF   1870 

the  war.)  His  course  being  decided,  tliere  remained  only  the 
finding  of  a  pretext,  which  Austria  blunderingly  furnished,  in 
April,  1859.  Although  ilSTapoleon's  Ministry  were  reported  to 
be  unfavorable  to  the  war,  it  was  hailed  with  great  enthusiasm 
by  the  masses  of  the  people. 

After  entering  Piedmont,  the  Emperor  delayed  tliree  weeks, 
plotting  and  j)lanning,  before  commencing  hostilities.  He  had 
an  interview  with  Kossuth,  and  agreed  with  the  latter  upon  a 
plan  for  cooperating  with  the  Magyar  and  Sclavonic  population 
of  Austria.  Tuscany  had  already  risen,  the  Romagna  was  stir- 
ring, and  there  were  movements  in  Naples  and  Sicily.  The 
Emperor's  design  was  to  secure  the  former  for  Prince  ITapoleon 
and  the  latter  for  the  Murats ;  a  united  Italy  was  the  farthest 
thing  possible  from  his  plans.  But  he  was  forced  to  simulate  a 
generosity  he  did  not  feel,  and  to  give  battle  with  no  other  gain 
than  Savoy  and  Nice  assured  in  advance.  After  a  small  engage- 
ment at  Montebello,  the  battle  of  Magenta,  on  the  4th  of  June, 
gave  Milan  and  Lombardy  to  the  French  and  Italian  armies. 
The  Emperor's  reception  in  Milan  was  warm  and  cordial,  but  a 
storm  of  uncontrollable  joy  surged  around  the  path  of  Victor 
Emanuel.  Tuscany  had  by  this  time  claimed  the  latter's  protec- 
torate, and  the  drift  of  popular  sentiment  throughoirt  Italy  was 
no  longer  to  be  mistaken.  The  Emperor  found  himself  em- 
barked on  a  new  current,  and  his  first  business  was  to  withdraw 
successfully. 

Taking  this  view  of  the  matter,  the  battle  of  Solferino  was  a 
piece  of  great  good  luck.  The  Sclavonic  conspiracy  had  so  far 
succeeded  that  the  Croat  regiments  in  the  Austrian  arm-y  refused 
to  serve ;  the  Emperor  Francis  Joseph  trusted  in  Gyulai,  the 
most  incompetent  of  generals ;  and  Yenice,  in  the  Austrian  rear, 
was  thoroughly  prepared,  and  only  awaited  the  signal  to  rise. 
On  the  other  hand,  Napoleon  III  appeared  to  the  world  as  com- 
mander of  the  united  French  and  Italian  armies.     His  mistake,? 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  35 

were  skilfully  concealed  by  his  Marshals,  and  even  tlie  blunder 
whicli  so  nearly  made  bim  an  Austrian  prisoner  was  so  retrieved 
as  to  make  it  seem  an  act  of  personal  daring.  The  victory  Avas 
more  complete  than  that  of  Magenta  ;  it  satisfied  French  vanity, 
gave  IsTapoleon  III  the  very  position  he  desired,  and  enabled  him 
to  convert  his  real  disappointment  into  apparent  forbearance. 

By  this  time  other  forces  were  fast  developing  into  form,  and 
he  took  good  note  of  them  while  seeming  impassive  and  imper- 
turbable. The  Pope,  in  spite  of  the  French  garrison  at  Eome, 
threatened  excommunication.  The  spirit  of  Germany  was  thor- 
oughly aroused,  and  even  in  Prussia  the  phrase  was  current, 
"  The  Ehine  must  be  defended  on  the  Adige."  This  was  geo- 
graj)hically  false,  but  politically  true  ;  for  the  plans  of  Napoleon 
III,  from  the  moment  his  rule  was  assured,  embraced  the  exten- 
sion of  France  to  the  Alps  (which  was  now  accomplished),  then 
to  the  Ehine,  from  Basle  to  the  sea,  including  Belgium.  This 
was  the  price  he  meant  to  pay  France  for  the  permanency  of  his 
dynasty.  Moreover,  had  he  not  already  said,  in  the  Idees  Na])o- 
leoniennes,  "  After  a  victory,  oil'er  peace  "  ?  The  peace  of  Yilla- 
franca,  which  cut  Italy  to  the  heart,  betrayed  Hungary  and 
Croatia,  bewildered  Europe,  but  gave  relief  to  the  anxious 
nations,  and  increased  prestige  to  the  Emperor,  was  the  inevitable 
result  of  his  policy. 

His  disappointment,  however,  was  bitter.  Basing  his  own 
imperial  power  upon  the  Plebiscite,  he  was  powerless  to  inter- 
fere, when  all  Italy,  except  the  little  Eoman  territory  held  by 
French  troops,  pronounced  for  a  united  nationality  under  Yictor 
Emanuel.  Savoy  and  Nice  were  acquired,  it  is  true  ;  the  names 
of  Magenta  and  Solferino  were  added  to  those  of  the  Alma  and 
the  Malakoff ;  the  influence  of  France  was  more  potent  than 
ever  in  the  councils  of  Europe :  but  more  than  this  was  neces- 
sary. The  doubt  in  the  permanence  of  his  dynasty  was  general, 
even  among  his  own  adherents.     The  French  appetite  for  glory, 


3G  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   18V0 

he  knew,  was  only  satisfied  for  a  little  while  by  such  minor 
results  as  he  had  obtained  in  the  Crimea  and  Lombardy ;  it 
craved  undiluted  success,  overwhelming  victory.  Meanwhile, 
the  benumbing  horror  of  the  gou]^  d'^etat  of  December,  1851, 
was  beginning  to  fade  from  men's  minds ;  the  undying  Eepub- 
lican  instinct  of  the  mind  of  France  began  to  show  signs  of  its 
life ;  and  even  the  intelligent  un-Republican  classes,  who  had 
acquiesced  in  the  Empire,  recognized  the  social  and  moral  de- 
generation which  had  followed  its  establishment.  His  great  suc- 
cesses were  beginning  to  be  followed  by  indications  of  a  change 
of  fortune.  His  own  health,  from  a  complication  of  disorders, 
was  precarious  ;  his  boy  had  been  frail  and  sickly  from  his  earli- 
est infancy ;  the  Empress,  with  the  already  perceptible  waning 
of  her  beauty,  was  coming  more  and  more  under  the  influence 
of  her  confessor  and  the  Jesuits  every  year ;  and  her  Spanish 
bigotry  was  loosing  her  hold — never  very  strong — upon  the 
hearts  of  the  nation.  The  Republican  element  was  becoming- 
strong  in  the  cities,  and  it  was  evident  that  something  must  be 
done,  or  there  was  slight  hope  for  the  continuance  of  his 
dynasty.  A  great  European  war  was  not  to  be  undertaken  with- 
out a  better  pretext  than  he  could  find  just  then  ;  but  he  sought 
a  quarrel  with  Mexico,  meaning  to  use  it  as  a  pretext  for  inter- 
fering in  our  war,  and  used  his  best  endeavors  to  drag  England 
into  a  bold  intervention  with  him  on  behalf  of  the  Southern 
Confederacy.  How  miserably  he  failed  in  both  projects,  is 
within  the  recollection  of  all ;  and  the  execution  of  the  gallant 
but  unfortunate  Maximilian,  whom  he  made  his  tool  and  dupe  in 
his  Mexican  enterprise,  and  the  plaintive  laments  and  lifelong 
insanity  of  the  hapless  Carlotta,  must  even  now  fill  his  soul  with 
horror  for  his  treachery. 

He  also  made  some  small  experiments  in  the  way  of  war  in 
Cochin-China  and  China,  but  his  success  was  not  commensurate 
with  his  expenditure,  and  there  was  not  glory  enough  to  satisfy 


BETWEEN  FRANCE   AND   GERMANY.  37 

the  greed  of  the  French  nation.  He  promised  constitutional 
and  political  reforms,  the  freedom  of  the  press,  the  liberty  of 
interpellation,  the  partial  control  of  the  finances  by  the  Corps 
LSgislaiif^  or  House  of  Representatives ;  but  his  reforms  were 
so  much  less  than  his  promises,  that  they  only  excited  discontent 
and  induced  no  gratitude. 

In  the  midst  of  these  vain  strivings  after  a  success  which 
constantly  eluded  his  grasp,  a  severer  blow  fell  upon  him  than 
any  he  had  yet  experienced.  Prussia,  which  he  had  ever  re- 
garded as  a  second-rate  power,  declared  war  against  Austria  in 
1866,  and  his  tender  of  assistance  to  Austria  for  a  consideration 
(the  Rhine  provinces  and  Belgium)  being  rejected,  he  offered  his 
assistance  to  Prussia  on  similar  terms  (Baden  and  Wurtemberg 
being  substituted  in  this  case  for  the  Rhenish  provinces),  only  to 
have  it  rejected  with  contempt.  In  seven  weeks  Prussia  had 
thoroughly  defeated  Austria,  fighting  a  great  battle  (that  of 
Sadowa),  which  entirely  overshadowed  his  own  battles  of 
Magenta  and  Solferino ;  and  this  seven  weeks'  war  had  led  to 
changes  in  the  map  of  Europe  the  most  important  which  had 
occurred  since  1815  ;  changes,  too,  in  regard  to  which  he  had 
not  been  consulted.  He  was  rash  and  foolish  enough  to  demand 
from  the  victorious  party  a  share  of  their  territory ;  but  his 
demand  was  promptly  and  justly  refused. 

It  had  been  his  boast  that  he  had  made  his  uncle,  ISTapoleon 
I,  his  model,  and  he  had  written  a  "  Life  of  Caesar,"  for  the 
purpose  of  demonstrating  the  divine  right  of  great  commanders 
to  absolute  authority  over  the  people,  and  their  right  and  duty 
to  transmit  this  power  to  their  nephews,  or  other  heirs ;  but  here 
was  a  state  of  things  to  which  there  was  no  parallel  in  his 
uncle's  career,  and  he  was  wholly  at  fault.  The  prestige  of  the 
Bonaparte  name  was  fast  passing  away  both  at  home  and 
abroad,  and  it  was  a  serious  question  how  it  could  be  recovered. 
From  the  day  of  the  rejection  of  his  proposed  treaty  with  Prus- 


38  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

sia,  in  1867,  it  liad  been  evident  to  liim  that  he  must  fight  Prus- 
sia, and  seize  and  hold  the  Ehenish  provinces  and  Belgium,  or 
lose  his  throne.  The  measures  he  had  taken  for  the  reorganiza- 
tion of  his  army,  and  for  arming  them  with  improved  weapons, 
we  have  already  detailed.  What  the  result  was,  we  shall  see 
presently.  It  is,  nevertheless,  a  sad  commentary  on  our  boast- 
ed progress  in  the  nineteenth  century,  that  an  unprincipled 
adventurer,  with  no  higher  intellectual  ability  than  Louis  Napo- 
leon possessed,  and  guilty  of  so  many  and  so  great  crimes,  could 
have  ruled  one  of  the  foremost  nations  of  the  world  for  twenty- 
one  years,  and  have  been  recognized  by  the  other  monarchs  of 
Europe  as  their  peer. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  39 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  ruling  spirit  of  Prussia,  since  1862,  has  been  Count 
Karl  Otto  voisr  Bismaeck-Schonhausen,  one  of  tlie  most 
able  and  remarkable  statesmen  of  the  present  century.  His 
great  ability  has  been  shown  quite  as  much  in  his  skill  in  lead- 
ing, controlling,  and  influencing  King  William  I  to  adopt  meas- 
ures which  were  directly  in  opposition  to  his  views  and  preju- 
dices, as  in  any  of  his  direct  ministerial  acts.  The  King  was, 
partly  by  nature  and  partly  as  a  result  of  his  education,  a  firm 
believer  in  the  divine  right  of  kings,  an  intense  absolutist,  opin- 
ionated, wilful,  and  stubborn,  and  it  required  the  utmost  tact 
and  magnetic  power  to  lead  him  in  any  other  direction  than  that 
in  which  he  had  determined  to  go.  But  this  stern,  positive, 
wilful  old  man  has  been  moulded  by  Count  Yon  Bisma,rck  into 
almost  another  being,  and  has  nov*^  the  personal  love  of  those 
who,  in  1864:  and  1865,  were  bitterly  hostile  to  his  measures. 
The  man  who  could  accomplish  such  results,  and,  while  keej)ing 
peace  between  king  and  peoj)le,  lead  both  forward  in  unity,  har- 
mony, and  progress,  to  a  higher  and  better  condition  as  ruler 
and  ruled,  is  deserving  of  honor  and  fame  as  a  great  statesman. 

Kael  Otto  voisr  Bismaeck  was  born  at  Schonhausen,  in  the 
province  of  Saxony,  April  1,  1814.  He  was  of  an  ancient  and 
noble  family,  who  had  long  been  in  the  service  of  the  Prussian 
and  Saxon  rulers.  He  was  educated  for  the  legal  profession,  at 
Gottingen,  Berlin,  and  Greifswald,  and  entered  the  army  for  a 
time  after  obtaining  his  degree  of  Doctor  of  Philosophy,  serving- 
first  in  the  light  infantry,  and  afterward  as  an  oflicer  of  the 


40  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   IS'ZO 

Landwelir,  or  Reserves.  He  did  not  enter  on  public  political 
life  till  his  thirty -second  year,  being  elected  to  the  Diet  of  Sax- 
ony in  1846,  and  to  the  general  or  United  Diet  in  1847.  In  the 
latter  he  soon  became  the  leader  of  the  Jnnkers,  or  conservative 
party,  and  distinguished  himself  for  eloquence  and  logical  abil- 
ity. He  opposed  the  adoption  of  the  constitution  offered  to 
Prussia,  fought  most  vehemently  against  the  prevalent  democ- 
racy of  the  period,  and,  it  is  said,  declared,  in  one  of  his  most 
brilliant  speeches,  that  the  great  cities  of  Europe  ought  to  be 
razed  to  the  ground,  because  they  were  the  centres  of  democracy 
and  constitutionalism.  He  has  grown,  since  that  time,  to  like  a 
constitutional  government  better  than  he  did,  but  he  is,  to-day, 
far  from  being  a  democrat. 

His  course  in  the  Diet  attracted  the  attention  of  the  King, 
Frederick  William  TV,  and,  in  1851,  he  assigned  him  to  the 
difficult  and  important  post  of  Privy  Councillor  to  the  Prussian 
embassy  at  Frankfort.  In  this  position  he  laid  down  the  princi- 
ple that  Prussia  could  not  fulfil  her  mission  in  Germany  until 
Austria  should  be  driven  out  of  the  Confederation.  In  1852  he 
was  sent  on  a  special  mission  to  Yienna,  and  there,  as  at  Frank- 
fort, showed  himself  the  constant  and  vigilant  adversary  of 
Count  Rechberg,  the  Austrian  premier.  A  pamphlet,  written 
with  great  ability,  appeared  in  1858,  entitled  "  Prussia  and  the 
Italian  Question,"  and  was  very  generally — and  probably  cor- 
rectly— attributed  to  him.  It  had  no  small  influence  in  shaping 
the  subsequent  course  of  Prussia  in  the  war  between  Austria 
and  France  and  Italy,  in  the  ensuing  year.  In  1859,  Von  Bis- 
marck was  Minister  to  St.  Petersburg,  and  in  1860  he  visited 
Paris.  In  May,  1862,  he  was  transferred  by  the  present  King 
of  Prussia  to  the  French  embassy,  but  remained  at  Paris  only 
till  SejDtember,  when  he  was  summoned  to  Berlin  as  premier  of 
the  new  Cabinet,  with  the  double  duty  of  Governor  of  the 
King's  household  and  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


41 


He  had  already  attained,  liigh  distinction  as  a  diplomatist  and 
parliamentarian,  but  liis  new  position  was  one  of  much  greater 
difficulty,  and  requiring  a  higher  order  of  talent,  than  any  he 
had  previously  filled.  He  inherited  from  the  Ministry  which 
had  preceded  him  a  chronic  quarrel  with  the  House  of  Deputies 
(answering  to  our  House  of  Eepresentatives)  of  the  Prussian 
Legislature.  The  King  and  his  Cabinet  had  deemed  it  indispen- 
sable to  reorganize  the  army,  and  substitute  for  the  militia  a 
system  of  military  training  which  should  make  every  able-bodied 
man  in  the  realm  an  educated  soldier,  owing  and  giving  to  the 
nation  three  years  of  military  service,  and  subsequently  forming 
a  member  of  the  Landwehr,  or  reserve  force,  liable  to  be  called 
upon  for  service  in  actual  war.  Connected  with  this  were 
changes  promoting  greater  efficiency  among  the  officers  of  the 
army,  and  training  the  whole  nation  in  the  use  of  arms.  The 
necessity  of  this  reorganization  grew  out  of  the  position  of  Prus- 
sia in  relation  to  Germany.  Either  she,  a  nearly  pure  German 
power,  or  Austria,  whose  population  was  largely  made  up  of 
non-German  nationalities,  must  lead  Germany.  If  Prussia  was 
to  take  this  place,  she  must  be  prepared  to  fight  for  it ;  if  she 
yielded  it  to  Austria,  she  became  only  a  second-rate  power, 
without  any  considerable  influence  in  Europe.  If,  as  was  prob- 
able, Austria  would  not  relinquish  her  position  without  fighting, 
Prussia  must  be  prepared  to  contend  with  a  power  superior  to 
her  in  numbers  and  her  equal  in  resources.  It  was  the  duty  of 
the  Prussian  Government  to  be  prepared  for  such  a  conflict,  yet 
to  give  any  hint  of  its  probability  would  be  to  court  defeat. 
The  King,  therefore,  under  Bismarck's  advice,  though  himself 
opposed  to  a  war  with  Austria  for  any  cause,  went  forward  and 
reorganized  the  army,  expending  large  sums  and  doing  his  work 
very  thoroughly,  and  then  demanded  from  the  Diet  the  neces- 
sary appropriations  for  it.  These  the  House  of  Deputies  per- 
sistently refused,  and,  when  the  House  of  Nobles  voted  them. 


42  THE   GREAT   WAR   OF   18'70 

impeaclied  their  action  as  illegal.  The  Ministry  insisted  on  the 
appropriations,  and  were  vehemently  denounced  by  the  Depu- 
ties. At  length  the  King,  finding  the  Deputies  intractable, 
closed  their  session  by  a  message  through  Bismarck.  The  next 
House  elected  under  this  excitement  proved  equally  intractable  ; 
they  could  not  or  would  not  understand  the  necessity  for  this 
reorganization  of  the  army,  and  urgently  demanded  that  no 
money  should  be  withdrawn  from  the  Treasury  for  the  purpose. 
Bismarck  was  firm  and  decided  against  all  this  opposition,  and, 
when  the  press  became  abusive,  he  warned  and  finally  sup- 
pressed the  most  noisy  of  the  papers.  Meanwhile  the  war  with 
Denmark  drew  off  a  part  of  the  opposition  ;  and  when,  in  1866, 
the  crisis  came,  and  Prussia,  having  formed  an  alliance  with 
Italy,  declared  war  with  Austria,  defeated  her  in  seven  weeks, 
and  reorganized  the  German  Confederation,  with  herself  at  its 
head,  and  all  the  German  States,  except  Austria,  either  confed-' 
erated  or  bound  to  her  by  treaties  oflfensive  and  defensive,  the 
wisdom  of  Bismarck's  course  became  obvious,  and  those  who 
had  denounced  Mm  most  bitterly  were  now  loudest  in  his  praise. 
Gifted  with  a  remarkable  insight  into  the  motives  of  men,  and 
especially  of  monarchs  and  political  leaders,  Count  Yon  Bis- 
marck has  measured  his  strength  as  a  diplomatist  with  the  ablest 
men  in  Europe,  and  has  invariably  maintained  his  position.  He 
was  aware,  after  the  battle  of  Sadowa,  that  war  with  France 
would  come  as  soon  as  Louis  ISTapoleon  could  find  a  tolerable 
pretext  for  it ;  and,  while  carefully  avoiding  any  act  of  provoca- 
tion, he  had  been  quietly  using  all  his  energies  in  making  ready 
for  it.  Thus  it  happened  that,  when  the  declaration  of  war 
came,  Prussia  was  all  ready  to  take  the  field,  and  France  was 
not. 

In  person,  Bismarck  is  a  portly  but  intellectual-looking  man, 
with  a  keen,  brilliant  eye,  great  self-command,  yet  with  a  quick, 
nervous  manner,  partly  perhaps  the  result  of  ill  health.     He  is  a 


BETWEEN  FRANGE  AND  GERMANY. 


43 


fine  scliolar,  thoroiiglily  familiar  with  most  of  the  languages  of 
Europe,  and  speaking  them  fluently,  and  even  idiomatically. 
His  herculean  labors  for  the  past  five  years  have  permanently 
impaired  his  health,  and  compelled  him  to  take  long  vacations 
for  its  partial  restoration  ;  but  he  possesses  great  esecntive  abil- 
ity and  remarkable  powers  of  endui-ance. 

While  Germany  is  indebted  to  Count  Yon  Bismarck  for  the 
political  and  diplomatic  measures  which  accompanied  and  fol- 
lowed her  recent  remarkable  reorganization,  the  strategical  plans 
of  the  successful  war  of  1866,  as  well  as  those  of  the  Franco- 
German  war  of  1870,  are  due  to  the  extraordinary  scientific  and 
military  ability  of  General  Yon  Moltke,  a  man  every  way  as 
remarkable  in  his  special  department  as  Yon  Bismarck  is  in  his. 

KLakl  Hellmuth  Bbknhaed,  Baron  Yon  Moltke,  was  born  in 
Parchim,  Mecklenburg,  October  26,  1800.  He  was  from  an  old 
and  distinguished  Mecklenburg  fixmily,  which  had  contributed 
several  statesmen  to  both  Denmark  and  Germany.  Soon  after 
his  birth,  his  father,  a  military  officer,  left  Mecklenburg,  and 
acquired  an  estate  in  Holstein,  where  young  Yon  Moltke  spent 
the  first  twelve  years  of  his  life ;  and  this  has  led  some  of  his 
biographers  incorrectly  to  speak  of  him  as  a  native  of  Holstein. 
He  and  his  brother  were  sent  to  the  Military  Academy  in  Copen- 
hagen, and  the  iron  discipline,  thorough  training,  and  military 
frugality  of  that  institution,  exerted  a  favorable  efiect  upon  a 
mind  constituted  as  his  was,  and  laid  the  foundation  of  an  admi- 
rable character.  In  1822  he  entered  the  Prussian  army  as  cor- 
net. His  parents  having  at  this  period  lost  their  entire  fortune, 
he  was  left  without  any  means  whatever,  and  suffered  very  many 
hardships  in  maintaining  himself  in  his  position,  the  pay  of  the 
subordinate  officers  in  the  Prussian  army  being  at  this  time  very 
small ;  yet  he  managed  to  save  enough  to  acquhe  a  very  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  the  modern  languages  of  Europe,  which  sub- 
sequently proved  of   great   advantage  to  him.      His  favorite 


44  THE   GEEAT  WAR  OF   1870 

studies,  liowever,  tlien  and  since,  were  tlie  physical  sciences. 
IIsTot  Alexander  Von  Humboldt  himself  studied  with  more  care 
and  zeal  the  minute  topography  and  the  geological  structure  of 
the  adjacent  countries,  than  did  this  young  and  accomplished 
officer.  Though  without  powerful  friends  to  facilitate  his  promo- 
tion, his  eminent  abilities  soon  procured  him  a  favorable  position 
in  the  general  staff ;  and  his  advance,  solely  from  his  merit,  was 
remarkably  rapid  for  a  Prussian  staff-officer.  In  1835  he  was 
sent  by  the  Prussian  Government  to  Turkey  and  Asia  Minor,  to 
make  inquiry  concerning  the  war  between  the  Sultan  and  Me- 
hemet  Ali.  He  remained  in  the  East  for  four  years,  and  his 
report  shows  that  he  had  made  himself  a  complete  master  of  the 
whole  Oriental  question. 

After  his  return,  he  published  anonymously  several  works  of 
great  merit,  descriptive  of  the  country  and  the  Egyptian  war. 
He  was  advanced,  in  a  short  time,  through  the  different  ranks 
to  that  of  lieutenant-general,  and,  finally,  to  be  chief  of  the  gen- 
eral staff  of  the  Prussian  army.  In  this  capacity  he  drew  up, 
even  to  its  minutest  details,  the  plan  of  the  reorganization  of  the 
Prussian  army  and  Landwehr,  or  Peserve,  and  to  the  perfection 
of  this  plan  is  unquestionably  due  much  of  the  success  which  has 
since  attended  the  Prussian  warfare.  At  the  commencement  of 
the  Austro-Prussian  war  of  1866,  his  wonderful  topographical 
knowledge  was  made  manifest.  His  plans  for  the  movement  of 
the  Prussian  armies  indicated  a  most  intimate  and  thorough 
acquaintance  with  every  hill,  mountain,  defile,  ravine,  and 
stream  in  their  course.  Even  their  places  of  encampment  were 
designated,  and  the  progress  they  would  be  expected  to  make 
and  the  obstacles  they  would  have  to  encounter,  were  all  desig- 
nated. His  strategic  prescience  was  equally  remarkable.  He 
foresaw  the  fatal  delays  of  Benedek  and  the  unavailing  impetu- 
osity of  Clam-Gallas,  and  had  so  arranged  the  time  of  marching 
of  the  different  armies  as  to  render  their  junction  at  the  right 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


45 


time  morally  certain.  The  unexpected  obstacles  which  delayed 
the  Crown-Prince,  and  prevented  his  reaching  the  battle-held  of 
Sadowa  till  afternoon,  had  well-nigh  produced  a  disaster ;  but 
even  here  Yon  Moltke's  careful  allowance  of  time  brought  all 
right  in  the  end.  Both  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  and  the  Crown- 
Prince  had  been  his  pupils  in  military  science,  and  especially  in 
strategics ;  and  the  latter  especially  was  a  great  favorite  witli 
him.  That  he  had  for  years  foreseen  the  Franco-Prussian  war 
of  1870,  is  certain ;  and  more  than  one  of  the  French  peasants 
and  bom'geois  have  recognized  in  the  grave,  silent  general-in- 
chief,  so  absorbed  in  his  maps,  a  venerable  Professor  of  Geology, 
who,  some  three  years  ago,  hammer  in  hand,  and  with  a  younger 
companion  (the  present  Crown-Prince)  who  had  a  great  predilec- 
tion for  botany,  rambled  over  the  ramparts  and  suburbs  of  Stras- 
bourg, Weissenburg,  Toul,  and  Metz,  examining  most  carefully 
the  fortifications,  chipping  off  here  and  there  a  bit  of  stone  as  a 
geological  specimen,  and,  with  liis  companion,  exploring  every 
stream,  ravine,  and  hill,  in  search  of  botanical  specimens  for 
their  herbariums.  So  careful  w^as  their  survey,  that,  with  the 
aid  of  their  excellent  maps,  they  were  far  more  familiar  with  the 
minute  topography  of  the  entire  theatre  of  the  war,  and  the 
weak  points  of  all  the  fortifications,  than  all  the  French  staff 
together. 

When  General  Wimpffen  hesitated  in  regard  to  surrendering 
at  Sedan,  General  Yon  Moltke  demonstrated  to  him,  in  the  few- 
est possible  words,  that  such  was  the  position  of  the  German 
troops,  and  so  complete  their  command  of  every  avenue  of 
escape  or  of  resistance,  that  his  surrender  had  been  a  foregone 
conclusion  since  the  previous  day. 

General  You  Moltke  is  a  man  of  dignified  and  imposing  per- 
sonal appearance,  but  of  great  modesty  and  simplicity  of  man- 
ners. He  is  reserved  and  taciturn,  but  always,  whether  in  con- 
versation, in  giving  commands  to  his  officers,  or  in  the  heat  of 


46  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   ISVO 

battle,  maintains  the  same  composure  and  equanimity.  The 
army  have  given  him  the  surname  of  "  The  Silent ;  "  but  when 
he  does  speak,  his  words  are  well  worth  hearing.  He  is  said 
to  be,  to  this  day,  more  fond  of  physical  than  military  science ; 
but  his  reputation  in  the  fature  will  rest  mainly  on  the  fact  that 
he  has  been,  in  a  much  higher  sense  than  the  distinguished 
Carnot,  "  an  organizer  of  victories." 

Of  the  French  premiers,  war  ministers,  and  chiefs  of  staff  in 
the  last  days  of  the  Empire,  there  were  none  who  compared 
with  Bismarck  and  Yon  Moltke  for  ability  or  diplomatic  skill. 
The  diplomacy  was  of  less  consequence^  since  the  Emperor  him- 
self managed  the  intercourse  of  France  with  foreign  powers, 
and  inspired  the  correspondence,  which,  his  Ministers  put  in  form. 

The  position  of  Chief  of  Staff,  which  was  often,  in  France, 
associated  with  the  office  of  War  Minister,  was  one  of  great 
importance  and  responsibility ;  but  IsTapoleon  Ill's  theory  of 
government  required  that  this  officer  also  should  be  his  tool  and 
do  his  bidding.  It  resulted  from  this  theory  that,  whether  the 
premier  were  Ollivier  or  Eouher,  and  the  chief  of  staff  Leboeuf 
or  De  Palikao,  they  were  alike  the  creatures  of  their  master, 
bound  to  do  his  will  and  discarded  at  his  pleasure. 

Of  Ollivier  and  Eouher  it  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  much. 
The  latter  was  a  man  of  considerable  abilit}^,  but  intensely  abso- 
lutist in  his  views,  and  the  supple  tool  and  mouthpiece  of  J^apo- 
leon  III.  Ollivier  had  been  a  Republican,  and  for  some  years  a 
leader  of  the  Opposition,  but,  since  1863,  his  fidelity  to  that  party 
had  been  suspected.  He  continued  from  that  time  to  cultivate 
more  and  more  friendly  relations  toward  the  Emperor,  whom  he 
had  formerly  attacked  with  great  bitterness,  and,  after  receiving 
from  him  several  lucrative  temporary  appointments,  he  was,  in 
the  winter  of  1870,  called  to  take  Kouher's  place  as  Prime 
Minister.  His  administration  was  every  way  weak  and  unfortu- 
nate.    Irritable,  and  possessing  little  dignity  of  manner  or  char- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


4:7 


acter,  he  was  goaded  most  immercifnlly  by  his  former  associates, 
the  Kepuhlicans  ;  and,  uneasy  in  his  position,  which  he  could  not 
but  feel  was  a  false  one,  he  lost  his  temper  under  their  sharp 
questioning,  and  alternately  wrangled  and  threatened,  till  he 
presented  a  most  pitiable  spectacle.  Questioned  concerning 
government  delinquencies  Vtdiich  he  knew,  but  had  neither  the 
tact  to  conceal  or  defend,  he  became,  at  times,  furious  in  his 
threats,  which  ho  had  not  the  courage  to  put  in  execution.  At 
the  declaration  of  war,  there  was  a  momentary  hush  of  the  dis- 
cord ;  the  feeling  of  patriotism  for  the  time  dominated  over  the 
hostility  of  the  Opposition  to  the  Emperor,  and  a  man  of  shrewd- 
]iess  and  tact  would  have  availed  himself  of  this  opportunity  to 
regain  the  prestige  he  had  lost ;  but  Ollivier  had  not  the  ability 
to  accomplish  this,  and  very  soon  he  was  again  wrangling  with 
Tavre,  Gambetta,  and  the  other  Kepublican  leaders. 

At  his  first  reverses  the  Emperor  did  not  hesitate  to  throw 
overboard,  this  man,  who  had  sacrificed  his  reputation  and  char- 
acter for  his  favor,  and  for  a  brief  period  the  Count  of  Palikao 
took  his  place  as  premier. 

Of  the  Count  we  shall  have  occasion  to  speak  hereafter. 

General  Edmond  Leboeuf,  Minister  of  War  and  Chief  of 
Staff  of  the  French  army  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  had  a 
good,  though  by  no  means  the  higliest,  reputation  as  a  military 
leader  among  the  French  generals.  He  was  born  ]N"ovember  5, 
1809,  and  received  his  military  education  at  the  Polytechnic 
School  in  Paris  and  the  School  of  Artillery  at  Metz.  At 
twenty-eight  years  of  age  he  was  a  captain,  and,  nine  years  later, 
major  of  a  regiment  of  artillery.  In  1848  he  was  made  assistant 
commandant  of  the  Polytechnic  School,  where  he  remained  till 
1850.  In  1862  he  was  promoted  to  a  colonelcy,  and  during  the 
whole  of  the  Crimean  war  served  as  chief  of  artillery.  In  1854 
he  was  made  brigadier-general,  and  in  1857,  general  of  division. 
In  the  Italian  war  of  1859  he  was  asfain  chief  of  the  laro-e  artil- 


48  THE   GREAT   WAR   OF  18V0 

lery  force  there  engaged,  and  distinguished  himself  for  bravery 
and  skill,  receiving  the  rank  of  Grand  Officer  of  the  Legion  of 
Honor  from  the  Emperor  in  August,  1859.  He  was  subsequent- 
ly appointed  aide-de-camp  to  the  Emperor,  and  made  head  of 
the  Artillery  Bureau.  On  the  death  of  Marshal  ]S[iel,  in  1869, 
he  was  made  Minister  of  War,  and  introduced  some  essential  re- 
forms in  the  organization  of  the  army.  The  taint  of  corruption, 
however,  had  attached  to  him.  On  the  appointment  of  a  com- 
mission to  decide  upon  a  new  breech-loading  rifle  for  the  Erench 
army,  there  were  many  patterns  offered,  but  he  excluded  all 
except  the  chassepot,  in  the  manufacture  of  which  he  had  a 
large  interest ;  and  this  gun,  though  inferior  to  several  of  the 
others,  was  supplied  in  immense  quantities  to  the  Erench  army. 
With  his  downfall,  the  reputation  of  the  rifle  fell  also ;  and  in 
the  midst  of  the  war,  the  Erench  Provisional  Government,  and, 
indeed,  the  successor  of  Leboeuf,  began  to  order  American  pat- 
terns of  rifles,  which  stood  the  test  of  actual  warfare  much  bet- 
ter, but  which  Leboeuf  had  rejected  because  he  could  make  no 
profit  on  them.  It  is  averred,  also,  that  large  quantities  of  the 
chassepot  rifles,  of  imperfect  and  defective  construction,  were 
passed  by  the  inspectors  and  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  soldiers, 
by  the  orders  of  this  corrupt  War-Minister.  Subsequently  to 
his  removal  from  office,  he  is  said  to  have  acknowledged  that  he 
knew  that  neither  the  nation  nor  the  army  were  prepared  for 
war,  but  that  he  did  not  dare  to  tell  the  Emperor  so,  lest  he 
should  excite  his  displeasure. 

Charles  Guillaume  Marie  Appolinaire  Antoine,  Cousin-Mon- 
TAUBAN,  CoMTE  DE  Palikao,  the  succcssor  of  Leboeuf  as  Minister 
of  War,  and  subsequently  for  a  brief  period  also  premier,  is  an 
old  man  of  higher  military  reputation,  more  executive  ability, 
and  probably  of  greater  honesty  and  integrity,  than  his  prede- 
cessor ;  but,  educated  in  the  Algerian  wars,  and  naturally  of  a 
stern  and  cruel  nature,  he  was  not  the  man  to  be  the  leadei 


BETWEEN  1<RANCE  AND   GERMANY. 


49 


either  in  war  or  diplomacy  of  a  great  and  generous  people.  He 
was  born  June  24,  1796  ;  educated  at  the  Polytechnic  school. 
At  twenty-eight  years  of  age  he  was  a  cavahy  officer,  and  had 
won  distinction  in  Algeria.  At  forty  years  of  age  he  was 
major ;  and,  nine  years  later,  colonel  of  Spahis  (the  irregular 
but  terrible  dragoons  of  the  African  army).  In  1851  he  had 
been  promoted  to  be  brigadier-general,  but  was  actually  in  com- 
mand of  a  division.  His  promotion  to  the  rank  of  major-gen- 
eral came  in  1855,  and  with  it  the  military  governorship  of  Con- 
stantine.  Not  long  after,  he  was  recalled  to  France  and  placed 
in  command  of  one  of  the  grand  military  divisions — a  post  to 
which  his  forty  years  of  active  service  entitled  him.  In  1860 
he  was  appointed  commander-in-chief  of  the  joint  expedition 
against  China  of  the  French  and  English  forces.  His  move- 
ments here  were  marked  by  great  celerity  and  success.  The 
forts  of  Taku,  at  the  mouth  of  Peiho,  were  captured,  after  a 
severe  engagement,  on  the  20th  of  August ;  the  successful  battle 
of  Palikao  fought  September  21st;  the  summer  palace  of 
the^  Chinese  Emperor  destroyed,  and  the  victorious  troops  en- 
tered Peking,  October  12th ;  the  treaty  of  peace  negotiated,  and 
General  Montauban  left  China  in  December  of  the  same  year. 
Abundant  honors  were  heaped  upon  him  for  this  service.  The 
Grand  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honor  (its  highest  decoration)  was 
conferred  upon  him  in  December,  1860.  He  was  appointed 
Senator  in  1861,  and  created  Count  of  Palikao  in  1862,  with  a 
liberal  dotation,  which,  however,  was  strongly  resisted  by  the 
Corps  Legislatif.  He  was  made  commander  of  the  Fourth 
Army  Corps  in  1865,  and  a  member  of  the  Cabinet  in  1870. 
His  lifelong  experience  in  fighting  Kabyles,  Berbers,  and  Chi- 
nese, had  not  qualified  him  specially  for  civilized  warfare,  and 
it  was  alleged  by  the  Prussians  that  to  his  counsel  was  largely 
due  the  employment  in  this  war  of  the  savage  Turcos  and  Spa- 
his, whose  excesses  and  brutality  have  here,  as  elsewhere, 
4 


50  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1810 

brought  down  upon  them  the  reprobation  ^of  the  civilized 
world. 

Of  the  French  military  commanders  distinguished  in  former 
wars,  several,  as  General  Changarnier — a  Kepublican  in  politics, 
but  one  of  the  ablest  of  the  French  generals  in  his  day — Marshals 
Raudon,  Yaillant,  and  Baraguey  d'Plilliers,  and  the  Count  De 
Palikao,  were  too  old  for  active  service  ;  others,  as  General  Tro- 
chu,  were  not  specially  in  favor  with  the  Emperor,  and  were  only 
grudgingly  allowed  inferior  commands.  Those  designated  to  the 
three  armies  were  Marshals  MacMahon,  Canrobert,  and  Bazaine. 
A  brief  sketch  of  the  previous  career  of  these  men  may  be  of 
interest,  as  throwing  light  upon  their  action  during  the  war. 

Marshal  Marie  Edme  Patrick  MArEicE  de  MacMahon, 
Duke  of  Magenta,  born  at  Sully,  July  13,  1808,  is  a  descendant 
of  an  old  Irish  Catholic  family  attached  to  the  Stuarts.  He 
entered  the  military  school  of  St.  Cyr  in  1825,  won  his  first 
laurels  in  Algeria,  where  he  fought  in  numerous  battles  and 
minor  engagements.  An  incident  in  the  African  campaign 
shows  his  intrepid  character.  At  the  close  of  the  successful 
battle  of  Terchia,  General  Achard  wished  to  send  an  order  to 
Colonel  Rulhieres,  at  Blidah,  between  three  and  four  miles  off, 
to  change  the  order  of  his  march.  This  commission  he  entrust- 
ed to  MacMahon,  and  offered  him  a  squadron  of  mounted  chas- 
seurs as  an  escort.  He  declined  their  protection,  and  rode  off 
alone.  His  journey  lay  entirely  through  the  enemy's  country, 
which  was  rugged  and  irregular.  About  six  hundred  yards 
from  Blidah  was  a  ravine,  broad,  deep,  and  precipitous.  Mac- 
Mahon had  ridden  close  to  the  ravine,  when  suddenly  he  beheld  a 
host  of  Arabs  in  full  pursuit  of  him  from  every  side.  One  look 
told  him  his  chances.  There  was  no  alternative  but  to  jump 
the  treacherous  abyss  or  be  butchered  by  his  pursuers.  He  set 
his  horse's  head  at  the  leap,  put  spur  and  whip  to  it,  and  cleared 
the  ravine  at  a  bound.    The  pursuing  Arabs,  dismayed,  ventured 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


51 


no  further,  and  only  sent  after  the  daring  soldier  a  shower  of 
bullets  as  horse  and  rider  rolled  over  on  the  other  side,  with  the 
poor  steed's  leg  broken.  At  the  attack  on  Constantino  he  re- 
ceived further  promotion.  His  superiority  as  a  tactician  became 
soon  apparent,  and  was  fully  appreciated  and  rewarded  by 
rapid  advancement.  His  long  career  as  a  military  commander 
in  the  colony,  and  his  never-ceasing  activity  in  behalf  of  the 
firm  establishment  of  French  authority  in  !N"orthern  Africa, 
were  interrupted,  for  some  time  at  least,  by  his  recall  to  France 
in  1855.  It  was  not,  however,  the  intention  of  the  Government 
to  let  him  remain  inactive ;  he  was,  on  the  contrary,  imme- 
diately assigned  to  the  command  of  a  division  of  infantry  form- 
ing part  of  the  army  under  Marshal  Bosquet.  Here  he  laid  the 
foundation  of  his  military  glory.  On  the  8th  of  September,  the 
perilous  honor  devolved  on  him  of  carrying  the  Malakoff,  which 
formed  the  key  of  the  defences  of  Sebastopol.  The  impetuous 
ardor  of  his  troops  proved  irresistible.  They  entered  the  works 
and  maintained  for  hours  a  desperate  conflict  with  the  Russians. 
Pellissier,  the  commander-in-chief,  believed  the  fort  was  mined. 
He  sent  MacMahon  orders  to  retire.  "  I  will  hold  my  ground," 
was  the  reply,  "  dead  or  alive."  Success  crowned  his  bravery, 
and  the  tricolor  soon  floated  above  the  fortress.  In  1857  he 
returned  to  Algeria,  forced  the  revolting  Kabyles  into  submis- 
sion, and  was  soon  after  appointed  commander-in-chief  of  all  the 
French  forces  there  on  land  and  sea.  The  outbreak  of  the  Ital- 
ian war,  in  1859,  caused  his  return  to  France,  when  he  was 
assigned  to  the  command  of  the  Second  Corps  of  the  Army  of 
the  Alps.  Here  his  brilliant  movement  on  the  Austrians,  turn- 
ing a  threatened  defeat  into  a  victory  at  Magenta,  and  conceal- 
ing the  blunders  of  his  imperial  master,  were  rewarded  by  the 
conferring  on  him  the  titles  of  Duke  of  Magenta  and  Marshal 
of  France,  on  the  field  of  battle.  In  ISf^ovember,  1861,  he  was 
sent  to  Berlin  to  represent  France  at  the  coronation  of  William 


52  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

I,  the  present  King  of  Prussia ;  and  in  the  splendor  of  his 
appointments,  and,  the  magnificence  of  his  retinue,  ontshone  all 
the  other  representatives  of  foreign  conrts.  In  October,  1862. 
he  succeeded  Marshal  Canrobert  in  the  command  of  the  Third 
Army  Corps ;  and,  two  yeai*s  later,  was  made  governor-general 
of  Algeria,  where  he  introduced  many  administrative  reforms. 
He  was  recalled  from  Algeria  shortly  before  the  opening  of  the 
Franco-German  ^var,  and  took  an  active  part  in  organizing  the 
army  for  service.  Marshal  MacMahon  bears  the  reputation  of  a 
gallant,  manly,  and  honest  officer ;  and  though  his  long  expe- 
rience in  Algeria  had  partially  disqualified  him  for  civilized 
vv^arfare,  and  made  him  reckless  of  those  details  on  which,  in  a 
contest  with  an  able  and  intelligent  foe,  all  success  depends,  yet 
he  deserves  the  reputation  of  being  the  best  of  the  French  army 
commanders. 

Marshal  Feanqois  Certain  Canrobert,  born  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  Gers,  June  27,  1809,  was  admitted  to  the  military 
school  of  St.  Cyr  in  1825,  which  he  left  in  1828,  to  enter  the 
4:7th  Regiment  of  the  Line  as  second  lieutenant,  and  soon  after 
joined  the  military  expedition  to  Mascara,  fought  .bravely  in 
several  eno-asrements  against  the  hostile  tribes  in  I^orthern 
Africa,  and  assisted  at  the  storming  of  Constantino  in  1837.  He 
was  sent  back  to  France  in  1839,  for  the  purpose  of  forming  a 
battalion  for  the  foreign  legion  out  of  the  dispersed  bands  of 
Carlists.  He  succeeded  in  this,  and  returned  to  Africa  in  1841, 
where  he  was  entrusted  with  the  command  of  a  battalion  of 
light  infantry  and  of  the  64th  Eegiment  of  the  Line,  suppressed 
the  rebellion  of  Bon  Maza,  and,  during  eight  months  of  desper- 
ate fighting,  forced  most  of  the  revolting  tribes  of  Kabyles  into 
submission.  He  was  engaged  in  various  parts  of  Northern 
Africa  for  nearly  eight  years,  led  some  of  the  most  daring  and 
adventurous  expeditions  into  the  interior,  and  everywhere  distin- 
guished himself  by  his  coolness,  bravery,  and  quick  adaptation 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  53 

to  the  warfare  to  whicli  lie  had  to  resort.  Eeturning  to  France, 
lie  proved,  by  liis  services  to  Louis  ISTapoleon,  that  he  meant  to 
be  a  firm  supporter  of  the  new  regime^  and  has  ever  since  been 
one  of  the  stanchest  friends  and  adherents  of  the  second  empire. 
He  was  made  general  of  division  in  1853,  took  part  in  tlie  expe- 
dition to  the  Crimea,  and  when  Marshal  St.  Arnaud  felt  his  end 
approaching,  he  transmitted  the  command  of  the  entire  French 
army  to  Canrobert.  This  was  in  accordance  with  an  order 
given  in  a  private  letter  by  the  Emperor  ]S[apoleon  himself. 
Having  won  new  laurels  at  the  sanguinary  battles  of  Inlier- 
mann,  Balaldava,  and  Eui3atoria,  he  conferred  with  Lord  Rag- 
lan, commander  of  the  British  forces,  and  urged  him  to  partici- 
pate in  an  immediate  assault  on  Sebastopol.  The  two  command- 
ers being  unable  to  agree,  and  Lord  Kaglan  sternly  refusing  to 
cooperate  in  the  intended  movement,  Canrobert  resigned  in 
favor  of  General  Pelissier,  and  left  the  Crimea  two  months  after. 
During  the  Italian  campaign,  in  1859,  he  commanded  the  Third 
Army  Corps,  fought  at  Magenta,  and  afterwards  contributed 
most  essentially  to  the  decisive  victory  of  the  French  army  at 
the  battle  of  Solferino,  sustaining  Marshal  Niel  at  a  critical 
moment  against  the  furious  assault  of  a  powerful  Austrian 
column.  By  virtue  of  his  rank  as  Marshal  (to  which  he  was 
promoted  in  1856),  Canrobert  is  a  Senator  of  France,  and,  in 
that  capacity,  opposed  strongly  the  maintenance  of  the  temporal 
power  of  the  Pope  in  March,  1861.  He  commanded  the  camp 
at  Chalons  from  June  to  October,  1862,  and  was  then  promoted 
fco  the  command  of  the  Fourth  Army  Corps  at  Lyons,  which  he 
yielded,  two  years  later,  to  Marshal  MacMahon.  During  a  few 
years  past  he  has  been  residing  in  Paris,  attending  the  sessions 
of  the  Senate,  and  watching  over  the  interests  of  the  army.  He 
is  a  man  of  considerable  ability,  but  not  free  from  the  taint  of 
the  corruption  and  demoralization  which  has  pervaded  all 
classes  m  connection  with  the  imperial  court. 


54  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1810 

T]ie  third  of  tliese  armj-commanders,  and  incomparably  the 
worst,  was  Marshal  FKANgois  Achille  Bazaine,  born  February 
13,  1811,  a  descendant  of  a  family  well  known  in  French  mili- 
tary history,  who  studied  at  the  Polytechnic  School  in  Paris, 
and  entered  the  army  in  Africa  when  twenty  years  old.  After 
six  years  of  uninterrupted  warfare  against  the  Kabyles  and 
other  hostile  tribes,  he  was  assigned  to  the  foreign  legion,  and 
sent  into  Spain,  in  1837,  to  suppress  tlie  Carlist  movement  in 
that  country.  He  returned  to  Algeria  in  1839,  joined  the  expe- 
dition against  Milianah  and  Morocco,  and  was  for  several  years 
governor  of  the  Arabian  subdivision  of  Tlemcen.  During  the 
Crimean  war,  where  he  was  in  command  of  a  brigade  of  infan- 
try, he  is  said  to  have  distinguished  himself  by  his  bravery  and 
by  his  talent  for  organization.  When  the  Russians  had  evacu- 
ated Sebastopol,  Bazaine  was  made  Governor  of  the  place.  He 
took'  no  part  in  tlie  campaign  against  Austria  in  1859,  but  was 
entrusted  Avith  the  command  of  the  first  division  of  infantry  of 
the  expedition  to  Mexico,  in  1862.  The  Emperor  Napoleon, 
ta-king  advantage  of  the  civil  war  then  raging  in  the  United 
States,  conceived  the  idea  of  establishing  an  empire  at  our 
Southern  frontier,  hoping  thus  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  final 
supremacy  of  the  Latin  race  on  this  continent.  The  attempt 
proved  a  failure.  French  pride  was  humiliated,  and  the  army 
compelled  to  reem1>ark,  towards  the  close  of  1866. 

General  Bazaine  succeeded  Marshal  Forey  in  the  command 
of  the  expedition  in  October^  1863,  and  continued  to  be  its  chief 
till  his  hasty  departure  in  1866.  His  whole  course  was  marked 
by  a  cruelty  and  barbarity  which  would  have  been  disgraceful 
in  a  savage  chief.  Regarding  the  Mexicans  as  barbarians,  he 
showed  himself  far  more  cruel  than  they.  He  organized,  from 
the  vilest  desperadoes  he  could  hire,  what  he  called  "  counter- 
guerilla  bands,"  to  fight  the  irregular  Mexican  troops ;  and  the 
atrocities  committed  by  these  wretches,  and  never  reproved  by 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  55 

him,  exceed  belief.  His  unscrupulous  rapacity,  and  his  constant 
intrigues  against  the  heroic  Maximilian,  would  of  themselves  be 
sufficient  to  stain  a  character  none  too  fair  without  these  blots. 
In  1864,  Bazaine-  was  made  Marshal  of  France,  having,  the  year 
before,  received  the  Grand  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honor.  Cor- 
rupt, rapacious,  and  false  even  to  his  friends,  Bazaine's  appoint- 
ment to  a  high  command  in  the  army  in  the  war  of  1870  was 
the  most  discreditable  to  the  Emperor  of  any  act  of  his  in  con- 
nection with  the  war ;  and  it  is  no  more  than  fair  to  believe  that 
it  was  only  because  l^apoleon  HI  was  too  fully  in  the  power  of 
this  bold,  bad  man,  to  help  himself,  that  he  assigned  him  to  this 
position. 

Of  the  corps-commanders,  General  Frossard,  the  late  chief 
of  the  Emperor's  household,  and  governor  of  the  Prince  Im- 
perial ;  General  De  Eailly,  first  distinguished  in  the  Italian  war, 
and  subsequently  (in  1867)  sent  to  Rome  to  put  down  the  Gari- 
baldian  movement ;  Count  Ladmirault,  late  commander  of  the 
Second  Army  Corps ;  General  Douay,  an  active  officer  of  the 
Mexican  expedition,  and  General  Bourbaki,  an  officer  of  Greek 
family,  distinguished  both  in  the  Crimean  and  Italian  wars,  were 
the  most  prominent. 

Later  in  the  war,  General  De  "Wimpffen",  a  brave  and  gal- 
lant officer,  came  from  Algeria,  where  he  had  served  for  several 
years,  to  join  MacMahon's  army,  to  take  command  in  conse- 
quence of  MacMahon's  being  severely  wounded,  and  to  surren- 
der the  army,  all  within  thirty-six  hours. 

General  Teochu,  who  was  at  first  ignored  as  being  out  of 
favor  with  the  Emperor,  but  eventually,  in  the  time  of  his  dis- 
tress, assigned  to  the  command  of  Paris  and  its  fortifications, 
bears  the  reputation  of  being  an  honest,  brave,  and  capable 
officer,  on  whose  character,  public  or  private,  there  is  no  stain. 
He  was  born  in  the  department  of  the  Morbihan,  March  12, 
1815 ;    was  educated   at  St.   Cyr,  and  at  the  stafi- school.      A 


56  THE  GKEAT  WAR  OF  18V0 

lieutenant  in  1840  and  a  captain  in  1843,  he  was  attached  to 
Marshal  Bugeaiid's  staff  in  Algeria,  and,  like  all  the  rest  of  the 
French  officers,  took  his  ten  years'  or  more  of  training  there. 
In  1853  he  was  aide-de-camp  to  Marshal  St.  Arnand  in  the 
Crimea,  with  the  rank  of  colonel ;  and,  in  1854,  had  risen  to 
the  rank  of  brigadier-generaL  In  1859,  as  major-general,  he 
went  through  the  Italian  campaign,  winning  distinction  for 
bravery  and  military  skilL  He  was  made  grand  officer  of  the 
Legion  of  Honor  in  1861.  As  we  shall  see  further  on  in  this 
history,  he  has  displayed,  since  tlie  commencement  of  his  com- 
mand in  Paris,  great  skill  and  remarkable  executive  ability 
under  the  most  trying  circumstances  in  which  a  commander 
could  be  placed,  and  has  won  the  confidence  of  all  as  a  patriot, 
who  sought  his  country's  good  in  preference  to  his  own,  or  that 
of  any  aspirant  to  power.  Such  men  are  so  rare,  that  it  is  but 
right  that  their  names  should  be  honored  when  they  are  found. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  57 


CHAPTER   IV. 

WITH  brief  sketches  of  a  few  of  the  principal  German  com- 
manders, we  hasten  to  the  consideration  of  another  branch 
of  onr  subject. 

The  ablest  of  the  Prussian  commanding  generals — the  ven- 
erable chief  of  stajff  always  excepted — though  bj  no  means  the 
oldest,  is  Prince  Fkiedeich  Karl  Alexander,  son  of  Prince 
Karl,  and  nephew  of  tlie  King  of  Prussia.  He  was  born  March 
20,  1828.  Like  all  Prussian  princes,  Priedrich  Karl  had  to 
enter  the  Prussian  army  when  scarcely  ten  years  old,  it  being 
considered  necessary  that  every  descendant  of  the  house  of 
Hohenzollern,  no  matter  what  his  individual  inclination  may 
be,  should  become  fully  acquainted  with  the  military  service  of 
his  country,  and  that,  whatever  career  he  may  ultimately  follow, 
he  may  be  called  upon  at  any  moment  to  draw  his  sword  for 
the  defence  of  Fatherland  in  times  of  danger.  With  Friedrich 
Karl,  however,  there  was  no  need  of  compulsion.  The  war- 
like spirit  of  his  ancestors  animated  him  even  in  his  earliest 
youth,  and  induced  him  to  devote  himself  with  enthusiasm  to 
his  military  studies.  The  result  of  this  innate  love  of  every 
thing  connected  with  the  army  soon  became  ap^^arent  in  the 
rapid  progress  he  made  in  the  military  school  of  instruction. 
The  study  of  the  life  and  glorious  deeds  of  Frederick  the  Great 
filled  his  leisure  hours,  and  it  is  said  that  he  was  on  several  occa- 
sions severely  reprimanded  for  passing  entire  nights  over  the 
history  of  the  "  Seven  Years'  War,"  and  the  study  of  the  plans 
of  battle  adopted  by  that  illustrious  ca.ptain.     At  the  outbreak 


5S  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18T0 

of  tlie  first  war  of  ScUeswig-Holstem,  in  1848,  lie  was  assigned 
to  the  stafi"  of  tlie  commander-in-cliief  of  the  Prussian  forces. 
General  Von  Wrangel,  when,  at  the  battle  of  Schleswig,  his 
impetuositj  and  his  entire  disregard  of  all  danger,  Yv-hile  im- 
perilling his  life  at  every  instant,  did  not  fail  to  encourage  the 
troops,  and  materially  aided  in  securing  the  victory  to  the  Prus- 
sian eagle.  During  the  campaign  in  Baden  in  1849,  he  likewise 
distinguished  himself  on  various  occasions.  Fifteen  years  of 
peace  now  followed,  during  which  the  Prince  resumed  his  theo- 
retical studies  of  the  science  of  war,  made  himself  familiar  with 
all  branches  of  the  army,  and  showed  conclusively  his  superior 
talent  for  the  organization  as  well  as  for  the  skilful  disposition 
of  large  armies.  The  disregard  of  treaties  by  Denmark  result- 
ing in  a  declaration  of  war  against  that  power  by  Austria  and 
Prussia,  the  second  campaign  in  Schleswig-Holstein  was  soon 
entered  upon,  and,  although  General  Yon  Wrangel  was  at  first 
appointed  commander-in-chief  of  the  combined  armies,  the  com- 
mand of  the  Prussian  division  was  intrusted  to  Prince  Friedrich 
Karl,  December  15,  1863.  He  at  once  recognized  the  forti- 
fied place  of  Diippel  to  be  one  of  the  greatest  Danish  strong- 
holds, and  a  formidable  barrier  to  the  advance  of  the  German 
armies  into  Danish  territory.  He  therefore  decided  upon  a 
regular  siege  and  investment  of  the  position.  The  severity  of 
the  winter  in  these  northern  latitudes  interfered  considerably 
with  his  operations,  and  it  was  not  until  April,  1864,  that  he 
thought  safe  to  order  first  the  bombardment  and  then  the  storm- 
ing of  the  fortifications.  Twice  the  assault  was  repulsed  with 
serious  slaughter,  until,  at  last,  the  intrepid  commander  grasped 
the  flag  of  the  regiment  of  Poyal  Guards,  and,  personally  lead- 
ing his  troops  to  a  third  attack,  drove  the  enemy  out  of  his 
stronghold  and  gained  a  decided  victory,  the  Danes  losing  over 
5,000  men  and  118  pieces  of  artillery.  Being  defeated  in  several 
Dther  important  engagements,  the  Danes  saw  the  impossibility 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  59 

of  furtlier  resistance,  and  a  treaty  of  peace  was  signed  on  Octo- 
ber 30,  1S64.  At  tlie  outbreak  of  liostilities  between  Prussia 
and  Austria  in  1866,  Prince  Friedrich.  Karl  was  called  to 
the  command  of  the  first  division  of  the  Prussian  army,  imme- 
diately marched  his  troops  to  the  frontier,  which  he  crossed  on 
June  23,  and,  in  ordering  the  attack  upon  tlie  forces  of  the 
enemy,  addressed  his  men  with  the  words :  "  May  your  hearts 
beat  toward  God,  and  your  fists  upon  tlie  enemy."  A  succes- 
sion of  splendid  victories  at  Liebenau,  Turnau,  Podol,  Mimch- 
engratz,  and  Gitschin,  having  forced  tlie  enemy  into  the  interior 
of  Bohemia,  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  who  knew  the  Austrians 
to  liave  occupied  a  formidable  position  on  the  heights  beyond 
the  Bistiitz,  requested  the  Crovfii-Prince  Friedrich.  Wilhelm  to 
come  to  his  assistance  with  the  second  division  of  the  army,  but 
attacked  the  enemy  on  the  morning  of  July  3,  without  awaiting 
his  arrival.  The  Prussians  fought  desperately,  but  the  position 
of  the  enemy  was  so  well  chosen  and  their  artillery  so  favorably 
placed,  that  the  Prince  could  not  gain  a  decided  advantage  over 
them,  and  it  was  not  uutil  the  arrival  of  the  second  division, 
under  the  Crown-Prince,  that  the  enemy  lost  ground,  retreated 
under  the  deadly  fire  of  the  Prussians,  and  was  finally  com- 
pletely routed,  running  in  all  directions  and  in  the  wildest  con- 
fusion. This  ended  the  celebrated  battle  of  Sadowa.  The 
enemy  was  pursued  from  the  5tli  to  the  12th.  Briinn  Avas  taken, 
and  the  Prussian  troops  found  themselves  near  the  capital  of 
Austria,  ready,  at  a  moment's  notice,  to  march  upon  Yienna. 
The  interference  of  France  resultiug  in  the  treaty  of  Prague, 
this  ever-memorable  campaign  was  at  an  end,  Austria  humili- 
ated, and  her  former  military  prestige  lost  forever.  As  might 
be  anticipated  from  a  man  who  had  taken  such  a  conspicuous 
part  in  the  brilliant  achievements  of  the  Prussian  army,  our 
hero,  although  proud  of  his  troops,  and  willingly  admitting  their 
superiority  over  any  European  army  which  could  then  be  mar- 


60  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1810 

slialled  against  them,  had  nevertheless  become  aware  of  some 
serious  drawbacks  and  errors  hitherto  overlooked  in  the  organi- 
zation of  the  Prussian  army,  and  at  once  concluded  to  advocate 
such  reforms  as  his  experience  had  convinced  him  to  be  abso- 
lutely necessary.  Meeting  witb  opposition  in  high  quarters,  he 
is  said  to  have  resolved  to  submit  his  oj)inions  to  the  approval 
of  the  highest  military  authorities ;  and  it  is  generally  believed 
that  he  is  the  author  of  an  anonymous  pamphlet  published  in 
Frankfort,  which  has  attracted  the  greatest  attention  from  the 
Government,  and  has  been  the  cause  of  the  recent  important 
reforms  in  the  Prussian  army. 

It  appears  that  the  views  expressed  in  this  publication  gained 
the  approbation  of  the  Chief  of  Staff,  "Von  Moltke ;  and  the 
consequence  was  that,  after  a  free  conference  with  the  Prince, 
changes  were  made  which  have,  during  the  recent  campaign, 
demonstrated  that  the  Prussian  army  is  in  every  respect  by  far 
the  best  in  Europe.  Of  the  part  taken  by  the  Prince  in  the  war 
of  18'70,  we  shall  bave  occasion  to  speak  hereafter. 

Scarcely  inferior  to  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  in  general  military 
ability,  and,  judging  from  his  admirable  generalship  in  the 
recent  campaign,  fully  his  equal  in  handling  his  troops,  is  the 
Crown-Prince  Fkiedbich  "Wilhelm,  eldest  son  of  the  King  of 
Prussia,  and  heir-apparent  to  the  German  tbrone.  The  Crown- 
Prince  was  born  October  18,  1831,  and  received  the  thorough 
scientific  and  military  education  which  all  the  Prussian  princes 
are  required  to  obtain.  He  was  a  diligent  student,  and  particu- 
larly fond  of  physical  science.  Later,  be  was  a  pupil  of  Yon 
Moltke,  and  learned  from  him  the  principles  of  strategy  and 
tactics  which  he  has  since  so  skilfully  reduced  to  practice.  He 
took  part  as  a  corps-commander  in  the  Danish  war  of  1864, 
came  to  the  rescue  at  Sadowa  in  1866,  and  turned  what  had 
nearly  been  a  drawn  battle,  if  not  a  defeat,  into  an  overwhelm- 
ing victory.     In  the  campaign  of  18T0,  as  we  shall  see,  he  has 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GEEMANY. 


Gl 


had  tlie  command  of  tlie  army  which  has  done  the  hardest  fight- 
ing ;  and,  in  the  full  prime  of  manhood  and  the  maturity  of  his 
powers,  he  has  displayed  a  tact,  judgment,  and  skill  in  handling 
his  troops,  and  in  his  rapid  movements  and  persistent  pursuit  of 
his  enemy,  which  rank  him  among  the  great  generals  of  our 
time. 

The  other  general  who  has  been  most  distinguished  in  the 
campaign  of  1870  is  the  veteran  Kakl  Fkiedkich  Yon  Stein- 
METZ,  "  The  Lion  of  Skalitz,"  He  is  one  of  the  veterans  of  the 
I^apoleonic  wars  (1812-15),  and,  though  a  little  too  much  inclined 
to  adhere  to  the  old  traditions  of  the  Prussian  army,  is  never- 
theless a. very  able  and  skilful  officer.  Von  Steinmetz  was  born 
December  27,  1796,  was  sent  to  the  military  school  at  Culm  at 
the  age  of  ten  years,  and  soon  showed  a  decided  predilection  for 
the  army.  He  was  a  little  over  sixteen  years  old  when  he  was 
ordered  to  Berlin  and  assigned  to  the  corps  of  General  York. 
Two  years  later  he  received  his  commission  as  lieutenant,  was 
wounded  at  the  battle  of  Dannigkow,  fought  with  distinction  at 
Konigswartha,  where  a  ball  took  away  one  of  his  fingers,  while 
another  wounded  him  severely  in  the  thigh.  But  such  was  the 
ardor  of  his  warlike  temper,  that,  although  unable  to  walk,  he 
insisted  upon  taking  part  in  the  battle  at  Bautzen,  in  May,  1813, 
on  horseback.  He  fought  in  France  in  nearly  all  the  engage- 
ments of  1814,  and  entered  Paris  with  the  armies  of  the  Allies. 
During  the  long  term  of  peace  which  now  followed,  he  studied 
military  science  to  great  advantage,  and,  after  advancing  rap- 
idly to  the  rank  of  captain,  he  was  soon  after  assigned  to  the 
staff.  During  the  dispute  between  Austria  and  Prussia,  in 
1850,  on  account  of  the  Electorate  of  Hesse,  Yon  Steinmetz  was 
ordered  to  Cassel,  and  afterward  appointed  commandant  of  the 
place.  Although  it  was  his  earnest  desire  to  ^participate  in  the 
second  campaign  in  Schleswig-Holstein  in  1864,  he  was  ordered 
elsewhere,  and  had  to  remain  inactive  against  his  will.     During 


62  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

the  campaign  against  Austria,  Von  Steinmetz  commanded  the 
Fifth  Army  Corps,  and  vanquished  and  dispersed  three  different 
Austrian  army-corps  within  tlie  ahnost  incredible  short  space  of 
four  days.  Here  it  was  that  the  Prussian  cavahy,  who  had  been 
hitherto  considered  as  inferior  to  the  Austrian,  or  rather  Hunga- 
rian, horsemen,  proved  that  they  were  not  only  their  equal,  but 
in  many  respects  their  superiors.  His  triumphant  victory  at 
Skalitz,  against  forces  of  more  than  twice  the  numerical  strength 
of  the  corps  he  commanded,  procured  for  him  the  name,  "  The 
Lion  of  Skalitz."  Throughout  the  entire  campaign  Yon  Stein- 
metz did  not  meet  with  a  single  reverse,  although  he  was  often 
compelled  to  fight  with  the  odds  decidedly  against  him.  He  has 
been  accused,  like  many  other  great  generals,  of  being  too  reck- 
less of  the  lives  of  his  troops  when  intent  upon  gaining  a  vic- 
tory, and  this  fault  is  said  to  have  led  to  his  being  relieved  of 
the  command  after  the  battle  of  Gravelotte ;  but  while  there 
may  be  truth  in  the  charge,  these  men  of  relentless  wills,  after 
all,  sacrifice  fewer  lives  by  delay,  sickness,  and  despondency, 
than  men  of  less  decided  purpose  and  energy.  At  the  begin- 
ning of  the  war  General  Yon  Steinmetz  w^as  assigned  to  the 
command  of  the  First  German  Army,  consisting  of  the  First, 
Seventh,  and  Eighth  Army  Corps ;  the  Second  Army  being 
under  the  command  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  and  including  the 
Second,  Third,  ISTinth,  and  Tenth  Army  Corps ;  and  the  Third 
Army  under  the  Crown-Prince  of  Prussia,  composed  of  the 
Fifth,  Sixth,  and  Eleventh,  and  the  two  Bavarian  Army  Corps. 
There  was  also  a  Fourth  Army,  composed  of  the  Fourth  and 
Twelfth  Army  Corps  and  the  Saxon  and  Prussian  Guards,  under 
the  command  of  Friedrich  August  Albert,  Crown-Prince  of 
Saxony,  a  well-educated  and  skilful  ofiicer,  born  in  1828,  and 
who  commanded  the  Saxon  contingent  of  Austria  in  the  war  of 
1866.  A  Fifth  Army,  composed  of  the  "Wurtemberg  and  Baden 
contingents,  under  the  command  of  General  Werden,  has  also 


BETWEEN  FRAI^CE  AND  GERMANY. 


63 


participated  in  the  war,  being  engaged  in  tlie  siege  of  Stras- 
bourg ;  while  the  Landwehr,  or  Reserves,  formed  tlie  Sixth  and 
Seventh  Armies,  the  former  nnder  the  command  of  Friedrich 
Franz,  Grand  Dnke  of  Mecklenbm'g-Schwerin,  a  brave  and 
accomplished  officer,  and  the  latter  nnder  General  Yon  Canstein, 
at  Berlin,  and  General  Loewenfeld,  in  Silesia.  The  corps-com- 
manders were  all  men  of  experience  and  ability ;  and  the  whole 
army,  composed  as  it  was  of  different  nationalities  of  the  Ger- 
man race,  manifested  the  most  remarkable  harmony  and  obe- 
dience. 


Q4:  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF   1810 


CHAPTER  Y. 

THE  financial  condition  of  the  two  countries  which  are  the 
principals  in  this  war  is  an  important  item  in  its  relations 
to  their  ability  to  endure  a  great  war.  It  is,  however,  a  matter 
of  no  small  difficulty  to  arrive  at  the  exact  facts  in  relation  to 
the  financial  condition  of  France,  since  the  statements  of  her 
Ministers  of  Finance  under  the  empire  were  irreconcilable  with 
themselves  and  with  each  other.  In  the  first  place,  they  gave 
the  "  project  of  the  budget,"  or  estimate  of  the  receipts  and 
expenses  of  the  next  year  ;  then,  a  year  or  two  later,  the  "  recti- 
fied budget,"  or  corrected  estimate  for  the  same  year ;  and,  a 
year  or  two  later  still,  the  "  definitive  budget,"  or  ascertained 
amount  of  the  expenses  of  perhaps  three  years  before ;  and 
these  estimates  would  vary  from  forty-five  to  fifty  millions  of 
dollars  from  each  other.  And,  what  was  worse  even,  these  de- 
finitive statements  did  not  represent  the  actual  expenditure ; 
and,  in  the  course  of  sixteen  years,  loans  were  contracted  in  all 
to  the  amount  of  five  hundred  and  fifty  million  dollars,  to  sup- 
plement the  current  revenue.  There  is  too  much  reason  to 
believe  that  fraud  and  peculation  were  rife  in  every  department 
of  the  Government.  As  nearly  as  can  be  ascertained,  however, 
the  following  statement  represents  pretty  accurately  the  financial 
condition  of  France  in  the  beginning  of  1870. 

The  total  revenue  received  in  France,  in  1869,  was  $425,- 
744,360,   being   $64,800,612  in   excess  of  that  of  the  United 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  65 

States.  This  sum  was  raised  by  customs  duties  and  an  elaborate 
system  of  inland  revenue,  wliicli  directly  affects  all  interests  in 
the  empire. 

The  principal  items  of  this  revenue  were : 

Direct  taxes $65,903,733 

Eegistration,  duties,  and  stamj)3 86,789,200 

Customs  and  salt  duties 20,724,600 

Departmental  and  Communal  taxes 45,649,166 

Wine  and  spirit  duties 46,943,200 

Tobacco  monopoly 49,531,600 

These  figures  serve  to  show  the  sources  relied  upon  for  reve- 
nue in  France,  and  Avhich  will  have  to  bear,  in  the  future,  a 
large  portion  of  the  present  war  expenditure. 

The  estimated  expenditure  for  the  same  period  was  $44:0,- 
668,130,  formed  of  items  such  as  the  following : 

Interest  on  the  funded  and  floating  debt |74,449,153 

Ministry  of  the  Interior 40,049,587 

Ministry  of  War 74,172,155 

Ministry  of  Finance 23,889,565 

Ministry  of  Marine  and  Colonies 32,267,684 

Collection  of  revenue 46,855,022 

The  military  expenditure  of  France  during  a  year  of  pro- 
found peace  was,  it  appears,  in  round  numbers,  $74,000,000 ; 
such  being  the  burden  entailed  by  the  French  standing  army  of 
404,000  men,  irrespective  of  their  forced  withdrawal  from  pro- 
ductive industry.  The  marine,  in  addition,  exacted,  including 
colonial  expenditure,  the  sum  of  $32,267,684.  In  the  presence 
of  this  large  revenue  it  cannot  be  said  that  France  has  been,  as 
the  United  States  were  at  the  commencement  of  hostilities,  free 
for  years  from  heavy  taxation,  and  consequently  all  the  better 
prepared  to  meet  the  burdens  of  war.  On  the  contrary,  her 
expenditure  was  augmented  in  tlie  following  extraordinary  pro- 
portions, and  has  since  these  years  rather  increased  than  dimin- 
ished. 

5 


QQ  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

1853 $371,000,000 

1853 441,600,000 

1854 •. 416,800,000 

1855 434,000,000 

1856 422,400,000 

1857 457,400,000 

The  ordinary  revenue  in  the  twelve  years  from  the  establish- 
ment of  the  empire  till  the  end  of  1863,  increased  from  $297,- 
400,000  to  $452,800,000 ;  while  the  expenditures  augmented  in 
the  same  twelve  years  from  $302,600,000  to  $457,400,000. 
With  the  exception  of  1855,  when  the  revenue  was  raised  high 
above  the  average  by  special  means,  there  was  not  a  year  with- 
out a  large  deficit.  To  cover  the  ever-recurring  financial  de- 
ficits, the  Government,  between  the  years  1854  and  1870,  pro- 
cured a  series  of  loans,  seven  in  number,  in  sums,  as  to  nominal 
capital,  varying  between  $50,000,000  and  $150,000,000.  These 
loans  were  raised  on  a  new  principle — that  of  borrowing  not 
from  a  few  large  banking-houses  acting  as  agents,  but  directly 
from  tbe  people,  or  the  mass  of  small  capitalists,  both  in  France 
and  other  countries.  This  course  was  highly  successful.  The 
fifth  loan,  for  instance,  which  was  offered  in  1859  and  issued  at 
QQ  francs,  30  centimes— bearing  3  per  cent,  interest,  was  received 
v^ith  the  ofi"er,  on  the  part  of  half  a  million  persons,  of 
4,487,000,000  francs,  or  sixteen  times  the  amount  required. 

The  following  shows  the  cost  of  the  three  principal  wars  of 
the  empire,  and  the  drain  upon  the  population  which  they 
caused : 

Cost.  Loss  of  men. 

Crimean  war $1,700,000,000  80,000 

Austrian  war 300,000,000  60,000 

CMnese  and  Mexican  wars 200,000,000  65,000 

Total $2,200,000,000  205,000 

In  connection  with  the  increased  expenditure  referred  to,  it 
should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  material  wealth  of  France  has 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


67 


rapid! J  increased,  mainly  owing  to  the  intervals  of  peace  which 
she  enjoyed.  Her  home  industries  have  snflered  from  the  opera- 
tion of  the  commercial  treaty  with  England,  but,  despite  that, 
their  expansion  has  been  great  and  general,  if  we  except  ship- 
building. The  imports  and  exports  in  1860  and  1868  contrast  as 
follows : 

Imports.  Exports.  Total. 

1860 $379,466,965         §455,425,223        $834,893,188 

1868 679,714,400  581,358,000        1,261,073,400 

One  legacy  which  iN'apoleoa  III  will  leave  France  is  an 
enormous  increase  in  her  national  debt.  It  was,  in  1853, 
$1,103,238,940.  lu  1868  it  was  $2,766,344,622,  or  two  and  a 
half  times  greater.  This  is  exclusive  of  a  floating  debt  amount- 
ing to  about  $173,200,000,  consisting  of  Treasury  bil]s,  funds 
from  savings  banks,  the  Army  Dotation  Fund,  and  other  liabil- 
ities. 

This  debt,  as  stated  in  the  revenue  returns,  entails  an  annual 
interest  of  $74,449,153,  which  is,  liowever,  much  below  tlie  total 
expenditure,  on  account  of  interest,  pensions,  and  annuities, 
which,  in  1869,  amounted  to  $128,225,000,  or  very  nearly  the 
interest  on  our  debt  the  same  year.  Despite  the  increase  in  the 
national  debt,  French  credit  has  improved.  On  June  29,  1870, 
before  the  fears  of  war  awakened  the  tremulous  capitalists. 
Rentes  bearing  4|-  per  cent,  interest  sold  for  104,  and  3  per 
cents,  for  72.65. 

The  computed  value  of  the  real  property  in  France  is 
$16,000,000,000  :  the  rural  properties  are  valued  at  $10,000,- 
000,000,  and  the  town  properties  and  buildings  at  $6,000,000,000. 

Turning  now  to  the  financial  condition  of  Germany  and 
Prussia,  we  find  a  different  state  of  affairs.  The  finances  of 
both  the  Nortli  German  Confederation  and  the  Prussian  king- 
dom were  in  a  good  condition,  and  the  debt  comparatively  smalh 


gg  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1870 

The  revenue  and  expenditure  of  tte  ITortli  German  Confed- 
eration for  federal  purposes  is  not  large.  The  federal  budget  for 
the  year  1870,  passed  by  the  Diet,  April  24, 1869,  was  based  upon 
an  estimate  of  expenditure,  in  round  numbers,  of  $56,000,000, 
to  be  covered  to  the  extent  of  $39,000,000  by  Prussia,  and  the 
remainder  by  the  other  States  of  the  Union.  The  total  expendi- 
ture for  1869  was  calculated  at  T2,Y34,601  thalers,  or  about 
$54,550,950,  of  which  the  ordinary  and  extraordinary  disburse- 
ments were  distributed  as  follows : 

Thalers. 

For  the  Federal  Chancellery,  &c 193,913  =     $145,435 

For  Consulates 275,650  =       206,738 

For  the  Federal  Army 66,340,275  =  49,755,206 

For  the  Federal  Navy 1,868,979  =    1,401,734 

EXTRAOKDrNAEY  EXPENDITUEE. 

Thalers. 

For  the  Federal  Chancellery 150,000  =  $112,500 

For  the  General  Post  Administration  27,999  =  21,000 

For  Telegraphs 322,780  =  242,085 

For  the  Federal  Navy 3,550,000  =  S;662,500 

The  estimates  for  this  year  are,  of  course,  now  far  below 
what  will  be  required. 

The  revenue  of  Prussia,  according  to  the  budget  accounts  in 
1869,  was  $125,652,370,  and  the  expenditure  the  same.  The 
revenue  and  expenditure  of  Prussia  has,  since  1865,  been  almost 
stationary,  and  no  deficits  have  marked  her  annual  financial 
returns — a  feature  unusual  in  most  European  budgets.  This 
revenue,  in  1869,  was  raised  to  the  extent  of  $31,500,000,  from 
direct  and  indirect  taxes,  to  the  amount  of  $14,180,443,  which 
includes  the  share  of  the  ZoUverein  customs. 

The  State  railroads,  mines,  forges,  and  other  Government 
monopolies,  yielded  the  greater  part  of  the  balance.  In  the 
estimate  for  1869,  the  branches  of  expenditure  were  as  follows : 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  gg 

EXFENDITtTRE  FOR  THE  YEAH   1869. 

Current  Expenditure. 

Thalers. 

Ministry  of  Finance 17,617,117 

Ministry  of  Commerce  and  Public 

Works 41,603,775 

Ministry  of  State 73,256 

Total  current  expenditure 59,294,148 

Administrative  Expenditure. 

Ministry  of  Finance 32,026,658 

Ministry  of  Commerce  and  Public 

Works 9,018,874 

Ministry  of  Justice 15,943,780 

Ministry  of  tlie  Interior 8,242,488 

Ministry  of  Agriculture 2,283,648 

Ministry    of    Public    Instruction 

and  Ecclesiastical  Affairs 6,222,004 

Ministry  of  State 394,659 

Ministry  of  Foreign  Affairs . .  914,630 

Charges  for  the  HohenzoUern  ter- 
ritory   220,628 

Total  administrative  expenditure.  75,267,369 

Charges  on  Consolidated  Fund. 

Addition  to  the  "  Krondotation  " 

of  the  King 1,500,000 

Interest  on  Public  Debt,  includ- 
ing railway  debt 16,973,637 

Sinking  fund  of  debt 8,178,433 

Annuities 429,753 

Chamber  of  Lords 40,910 

Chamber  of  Deputies 243,000 

Miscellaneous 122,807 

Total  charges  on  Consolidated 

Fund  ... _ 37,488,540 

Total  ordinary  expenditure 163,050,057  =  $127,537,543 

Extraordinary  expenditure 5,486,437  =        4,114,828 

167,536,494  =  $125,653,371 


70  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

The  public  debt  of  Prussia  is  very  ligbt,  and  has  been  almost 
entirely  incurred  since  1850.  While  six  and  a  half  years  of  the 
large  French  annual  revenue  is  represented  by  the  amount  of  the 
French  debt,  that  of  Prussia  amounts  to  only  one  and  a  half 
years  of  her  moderate  annual  receipts.  The  total  debt  of  the 
kingdom,  both  old  and  new  provinces,  amounts  to  $188,497,520, 
exclusive  of  the  small  liabilities  incurred  by  the  annexed  prov- 
inces for  the  establishment  of  State  railroads. 

The  revenue  and  expenditure  of  the  other  German  States  is 
unimportant.  The  same  economy  is  apparent  in  their  financial 
affairs  as  in  the  Prussian,  the  standing  armies  being  the  only 
serious  burden. 

It  follows,  from  the  solvency  and  well-managed  finances  of 
Prussia,  that  her  credit  is  untarnished.  During  fifty-five  years 
the  German  people  have  (excepting  the  recent  Austrian  war) 
been  undisturbed  by  war,  and  have  been  enabled  to  develop  the 
immense  resources  of  their  fertile  territory  and  accumulate 
large  material  wealth. 

The  social  condition  of  the  two  countries  offers  an  equally 
striking  contrast.  In  Germany,  and  especially  in  Prussia,  edu- 
cation is  well-nigh  universal.  The  population  of  the  North 
German  Confederation,  in  1867,  was  29,653,038,  and  that  of 
South  Germany  8,869,328  ;  making  a  total  of  38,522,366.  Of 
this  population,  only  an  infinitesimal  proportion  are  unable  to 
read  and  write,  while  the  greater  part  have  a  good  public-school 
education. 

The  sreat  advantages  of  this  thorough  education  have  made 
themselves  visible  in  the  improved  social  condition  and  greater 
intelligence  of  the  masses,  and  have  made  them  vastly  better 
soldiers  in  a  cause  where  their  patriotic  feelings  were  enlisted. 
It  has  resulted,  too,  in  a  larger  measure  of  thrift  and  business 
enterprise  throughout  the  whole  of  Germany.  Nearly  every 
town  has  its  thriving  manufactory  ;  and  though  the  price  of 


BETWEEN  FKANCE  AND  GERMANT.  f^i 

labor  is  low,  it  ia-  advancing,  and  with  it  the  wealth  of  the  com- 
uinnity. 

The  social  condition  of  France  is  not  so  good.  The  wealth, 
intelligence,  and  business  activity  of  the  countiy,  and,  to  a  large 
extent,  its  poverty  and  crime  also,  have  been  concentrated  in 
Paris  and  two  or  three  other  large  cities.  Education  is  very 
much  neglected.  Thirty  per  cent,  of  the  conscripts  (who  repre- 
sent very  fully  the  male  adult  population  of  France)  cannot  read 
or  write.  The  school-age  of  children  is  only  from  seven  to  thir- 
teen, and  nearly  a  million,  or  about  one  fifth  of  the  entire  num- 
ber of  children  between  these  ages,  do  not  attend  school. 
Morals  are,  as  is  well  known,  at  a  very  low  ebb.  One  eighth  of 
the  births  (taking  city  and  country  together)  are  known  to  be 
illegitimate,  and  a  still  larger  proportion  are  concealed  by  infan- 
ticide, which  is  so  prevalent  as  to  make  the  percentage  of 
increase  of  population  in  France  smaller  than  that  of  any  other 
European  State.  As  a  nation,  the  French  are  brave,  full  of 
dash,  and,  when  properly  trained,  good  soldiers ;  but  under 
existing  circumstances  they  have  been  badly  led  and  but  indif- 
ferently trained,  and  the  lack  of  high  intelligence  has  made 
them  less  effective  as  soldiers  than  the  Germans.  The  country 
communes  are,  for  the  most  part,  very  poor,  and  there  is  much 
less  intelligence  and  enterprise  than  in  Germany.  The  peas- 
antry in  Germany  do  not  live  any  too  well,  but  they  have  more 
and  better  food  than  the  same  class  in  France. 

The  statements  which  were  at  first  put  forth  in  regard  to  the 
mihtary  and  naval  strength  of  the  two  counb'ies  proved  subse- 
quently to  be  erroneous,  the  errors  being,  however,  in  opposite 
directions — the  army  of  France  being  greatly  overrated,  and 
that  of  Prussia  and  the  North  German  Confederation  singularly 
understated.  In  regard  to  France,  the  overestimate  was  the 
result  of  two  causes  :  one,  the  national  tendency  to  exaggeration, 
and  to  regard  the  ofiicial  statements  of  the  army  on  paper  as 


72  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   IS'ZO 

having  their  full  equivalent  in  the  actual  depots  and  barracks ; 
and  the  other,  that  neither  the  public,  the  Emperor,  nor  any  one 
of  his  officials,  knew  the  full  extent  of  the  system  of  frauds 
which  had  pervaded  every  dejDartment  of  the  service. 

The  underestimate  of  the  Prussian  Government  of  its  forces 
was  also  attributable  to  two  causes  :  the  natural  cautiousness  of 
the  Prussians  leading  them  to  make  allowances  beyond  the 
actual  deficiencies  ;  and  the  indisposition  on  the  part  of  the  Gov- 
ernment to  lay  before  the  people  the  vast  amount  of  their  mili- 
tary strength,  lest,  as  in  previous  years,  it  should  be  regarded  as 
in  excess  of  their  need,  and  a  useless  expenditure. 

The  French  army,  it  was  reported,  when  war  was  first  de- 
clared, including  the  active  army,  the  reserve,  the  National 
Guard,  and  the  numerous  less  important  branches,  would  make 
up  the  imposing  array  of  1,350,000  men.  The  active  army, 
according  to  the  official  statistics,  comprised :  stafi",  1,082  ;  gen- 
darmes, 24,548  ;  infantry,  250,900 ;  cavalry,  61,583  ;  artillery, 
37,959 ;  engineers,  7,845  ;  military  train,  8,954 ;  commissariat, 
11,208.  It  was  said  to  be  commanded  by  8  marshals,  86  gen- 
erals of  division,  and  160  generals  of  brigade.  To  this  active 
army  of  404,794  men  was  to  be  added  the  reserve  of  400,000 ; 
318  battalions  of  infantry  of  the  l^ational  Guard,  numbering 
508,800  men  in  all,  and  123  batteries  of  artillery,  and  5  compa- 
nies of  pontoniers,  numbering  together  29,923  men. 

Beyond  this  vast  force,  it  was  said,  were  the  Garde  Mobile, 
answering  to  the  English  disembodied  militia,  as  the  National 
Guard  did  to  the  Yolunteers.  The  Garde  Mobile  consisted,  it 
was  said,  of  about  600,000  men,  who  had  a  skeleton  organization 
of  officers,  but  had  not  been  called  out  for  any  actual  service ; 
but  it  was  believed  by  the  French  people  that  they  would  be  a 
very  formidable  addition  to  their  military  force,  and  probably  be 
fully  capable  of  meeting  on  equal  terms  the  German  soldiers  of 
the  line.     Here,  then,  were  military  organizations  which  could. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  ^3 

on  an  emergency,  throw  nearly  two  million  soldiers  into  the 
field.  This  was  not,  to  be  sure,  an  extravagant  estimate,  as  the 
population  of  France  was  about  thirty-eight  millions.  But  the 
sanguine  French  people  forgot,  or  rather  did  not  know,  that 
such  had  been  the  facilities  for  procuring  substitutes  by  a  money 
payment,  that  not  less  than  one  fifth  of  the  conscripts  of  any 
year  released  themselves  from  service  by  the  payment  of  a  com- 
mutation, which,  instead  of  being  employed  by  the  Government 
in  hiring  substitutes,  was  perverted  to  private  purposes ;  another 
fifth  was  declared  exempt  for  various  causes  more  or  less  just ; 
and  a  third  fifth,  though  nominally  on  the  rolls,  and  pay  and 
rations  drawn  for  them,  had  their  existence  only  there.  Thus  it 
happened  that,  of  a  conscription  nominally  of  125,000  men,  not 
over  50,000  or  55,000  were  actually  in  the  service.  Thus, 
though,  as  stated  above,  the  army  on  the  peace-footing  amounts 
to  404,000  men,  and  the  first  reserves  to  as  many  more,  yet  from 
both  there  were  at  no  time  more  than  350,000  men  to  take  the 
field,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  even  this  number  ever  actually  rej)ort- 
ed  for  duty. 

On  the  2d  of  August  the  strength  and  position  of  the  French 
army  were  reported  as  follows  : 

First  Corps,  MacMahon's,  45,000  men,  at  Strasbourg ;  the 
Second  Corps,  Frossard's,  30,000  men,  at  St.  Auld ;  the  Third 
Corps,  Bazaine's,  30,000  men,  at  Metz ;  Fourth  Corps,  L'Admi- 
rault's,  30,000  men,  at  Thionville ;  Fifth  Corps,  De  Failly's, 
30,000  men,  at  Bitche  and  Saorguemines ;  Sixth  Corps,  Can- 
robert's,  30,000  men,  at  Chalons ;  Seventh  Corps,  Douay's, 
30,000  men,  at  Besancon  and  Belfort ;  the  Eighth  Corps,  Bour- 
baki's,  30,000  men,  at  Metz.  (This  was  the  Imperial  Guard.) 
Cavalry,  34,000.  Total,  309,000.  With  artillery  and  the  re- 
serve cavalry,  nearly  350,000  men.  It  is  not  probable  that  these 
army-corps  were  all  full,  or,  indeed,  very  nearly  so.  Far  sooner 
than  should  have  been  necessary,  both  the  National  Guard  and 


fjf4.  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18Y0 

tlie  Garde  Mobile  were  called  out ;  and  yet,  outside  of  the  gar- 
rison of  Paris  and  tlie  other  great  cities,  it  wonld  seem  to  have 
been  impossible  to  keep  np  an  armj  of  much  more  than  300,500 
men.  Early  in  the  vv^ar  there  were  bands  of  Fixmc-tireurs,  a 
kind  of  guerillas,  not  uniformed,  and  recognizing  no  special  alle- 
giance to  any  particular  corps,  organized  in  all  parts  of  France  ; 
and  these,  like  guerillas  generally,  while  fighting  in  their  irregu- 
lar way  the  common  enemy,  took  occasion  also  to  do  some  plun- 
dering on  their  own  account  among  their  countrymen.  Includ- 
ing these  irregular  troops,  the  armies  in  the  field,  and  the  garri- 
sons of  Paris  and  other  cities,  there  may  have  been  possibly  a 
million  of  men  in  all  in  the  field  ;  but  deducting  the  dead, 
wounded,  and  prisoners,  and  the  deserters,  it  is  doubtful  if  there 
were,  on  the  15th  of  October,  650,000  French  troops  under  arms. 
The  following  statement  of  the  military  strength  of  Germany 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war  is  condensed  from  an  elaborate  ar- 
ticle in  the  Frankfurter  Zeitung  {Fran'kfort  Gazette),  the  Iiighest 
German  authority  on  the  subject,  and  is  undoubtedly  drawn 
from  official  sources.  It  is  evident,  from  several  circumstances, 
that  the  computation  was  made  in  April,  1870,  and,  therefore, 
when  there  was  no  immediate  prospect  of  war.  It  is  remark- 
able that,  before  the  1st  of  October,  the  King  of  Prussia  should 
have  been  able  to  bring  into  the  field  a  force  considerably  ex- 
ceeding this  computation,  notwithstanding  the  inevitable  shrink- 
age of  troops  when  called  into  the  field. 

The  IN'orth  German  Confederation  comprises  23  States,  in- 
cluding Hesse,  the  northern  part  of  which  alone  belongs  to  the 
Confederation.  Prussia  has  military  conventions  with  the  king- 
dom of  Saxony,  with  several  Thuringian  States,  with  Hesse, 
Mecklenberg-Schwerin  and  Strelitz,  with  Oldenburg,  &c.,  where- 
by the  armies  of  all  these  States  are  closely  bound  up  with  the 
Prussian  forces. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  /j'5 

The  forces  of  the  l^ortli  German  Confederation  are  as  fol- 
lows : 

Line. — Infantry :  4  Prussian  regiments  of  Foot  Guards,  4 
Prussian  regiments  of  Grenadier  Guards,  1  Prussian  regiment 
of  Fusilier  Guards,  15  regiments  of  Grenadiers  of  tlie  line,  T7 
regiments  of  Infantry,  13  regiments  of  Fusiliers,  4  Hessian  regi- 
ments of  2  battalions  each,  1  Prussian  battalion  of  Chasseurs  of 
the  Guard,  1  battalion  Sharpsbooters,  16  battalions  of  Chas- 
seurs ;  total  infantry,  118  regiments  and  18  battalions — 368 
battalions  in  all. 

Cavalry  :  10  regiments  Cuirassiers  (including  two  regiments 
of  Guards),  11  regiments  Dragoons  (including  2  regiments  of 
Guards),  18  regiments  Hussars  (including  1  regiment  of  Guards), 
21  regiments  Lancers  (Ublanen),  (including  3  regiments  of 
Guards),  6  regiments  Light  Cavalry  (including  2  regiments  of 
Guards).     Total  cavalry,  1Q  regiments. 

Artillery :  1  regiment  of  Field  Artillery  (Guards),  12  regi- 
ments of  Field  Artillery,  1  Hessian  division  of  Field  Artillery, 
1  regiment  of  Siege  Artillery  (Festungs  Artillerie)  (Guards), 
8  regiments  of  Siege  Artillery,  4  divisions  of  Siege  Artillery,  1 
division  Rocket  Train  ;  in  all,  13  regiments  and  1  division  Field 
Artillery,  and  9  regiments  and  1  division  of  Siege  Artillery. 

Engineers :  1  battalion  of  Pioneers  of  the  Guard,  12  bat- 
talions of  Pioneers,  1  Hessian  company  of  Pioneers. 

Train :  13  battalions  and  1  division  of  Baggage,  Ammuni- 
tion, &c..  Train. 

Landwehe. — 97  regiments  of  infantry,  two  battalions  eacb — 
194  battalions ;  12  reserve  battalions — 12  battalions  ;  4  regi- 
ments of  the  Guard,  three  battalions  eacb — 12  battalions. 
Total,  218  battalions. 

If  we  summarize  tbe  foregoing,  we  have  the  following  result : 

Field- Akmt.— Infantry,  394,310  men ;  Cavalry,  63,528  men ; 
Artillery,  1,212  pieces. 


76  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1810 

Eeseeve.— Infantry,  145,944  men;  Cavalry,  18,991  men; 
Artillery,  234  pieces. 

Gaekisoit  Tkoops.— Infantry,  143,924  men  ;  Cavalry,  10,208 
men  ;  Artillery,  234  pieces. 

In  the  above  computation  are  not  reckoned  the  armies  of  the 
allied  South  German  States,  which  now  follow  : 

Bavaeia, — 16  regiments  of  Infantry  of  3  battalions  each ; 
10  battalions  Chasseurs ;  10  regiments  of  Cavalry  ;  2  brigades 
of  Artillery  ;  which  give  69,064  men  in  Field  troops,  25,T57 
men  Eeserve,  and  22,614  Garrison  troops;  making,  in  all, 
117,435  men  and  240  guns. 

"WtTETEMBEEG. — 8  regiments  of  Infantry  of  2  battalions  each ; 
2  battalions  of  Chasseurs  ;  4  regiments  of  Cavalry  ;  2  regiments 
of  Artillery ;  which  give,  in  Field  troops,  22,076  men ;  Reserve, 
6,540  ;  Garrison  troops,  5,064 ;  making,  in  all,  34,680  men  and 
6Q  guns. 

Baden. — 6  regiments  of  Infantry  of  3  battalions  each ;  3 
regiments  of  Cavalry  ;  3  Field  divisions  of  Artillery ;  giving 
16,656  Field  troops  ;  3,995  Eeserve,  and  9,640  Garrison  troops  ; 
making,  in  all,  30,291  men  and  64  guns. 

Thus  the  auxiliary  troops  which  the  three  South  German 
States  would  bring  to  the  aid  of  the  North  German  Confedera- 
tion amount  to  the  respectable  figure  of  169,802  men,  and  370 
guns. 

The  aggregates  are :  Field  Aemt,  555,634  men  and  1,584 
guns  ;  Reseeves  {Zandwehr),  201,207  men  and  234  field-pieces ; 
Gaeeison  teoops,  192,450  men  and  234  pieces  of  artillery. 
Grand  total,  949,291  men  and  2,052  guns.  That  the  German 
army  in  the  field  since  the  beginning  of  the  war  has  consider- 
ably exceeded  1,200,000  men,  does  not  admit  of  a  doubt. 

But  if  the  Germans  had  a  decided  preponderance  in  military 
strength,  the  French  were,  in  turn,  greatly  their  superiors  in 
naval  power.     In  this  direction,  indeed,  France  claimed  to  be 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  YY 

.second  to  no  nation  in  the  world,  and  only  equalled  by  Great 
Britain,  wliicL  for  so  long  a  period  had  boasted  of  "  ruling  tlie 
waves."  The  French  people,  it  is  true,  do  not  naturally  take 
to  maritime  pursuits ;  their  commercial  marine  has  been  at  all 
times  smaller  and  less  efficiently  manned  than  that  of  many 
smaller  nations,  and  their  very  large  and  well-appointed  navy 
was  not  so  well  manned  as  that  of  Great  Britain,  its  vessels 
being  supplied  with  crews  by  conscription,  and  these  not  always 
from  the  coasts ;  so  that,  though  the  French  navy  has  had  no 
important  naval  battles  to  test  its  prowess,  it  is  hardly  to  be  sup- 
posed that  it  would  be  found  much  superior  in  fighting  ability 
to  its  old  reputation. 

The  French  naval  force  consisted,  in  January,  1870,  of 
74:,664:  officers  and  men.  There  were  2  admirals,  C.  Regnauld 
de  Genouilly  and  F.  T.  Trehouart ;  6  active  vice-admirals,  and 
30  acti^'e  counter-admirals.  The  fleet,  on  the  1st  of  January, 
1870,  was  composed  as  follows  : 

Number.  Guns. 

Screw  steamers,  iron-clad 55  1,033 

Screw  steamers,  non-iron-clad 233  3,618 

Wheel  steamers 51  116 

Sailing-vessels 100  914 

Total 439  4,680 

Besides  these  there  were  8  screw  steamers,  iron-clad,  with 
68  gims,  and  23  non-iron-clad,  with  144  guns,  building. 

If  this  large  number  of  vessels  were  all  in  commission,  or 
capable  of  being  rendered  readily  effective,  it  would  indeed 
have  been  the  most  powerful  of  navies ;  but  this  was  very  far 
from  being  the  case.  A  little  analysis  of  the  vessels  composing 
the  navy  will  readily  demonstrate  this.  Of  the  63  iron-clads 
afloat  and  building  in  1869,  2  only  were  ships  of  the  line — the 
Magenta  and  Solferino  ;  18  were  u'on-clad  frigates,  varying  from 
800  to  950  horse-power,  carrying  from  12  to  32  guns,  and  having 
crews  of  from  570  to  600  men,  and  the  greater  part  were  costly 


78  THE  GREAT  WAR  OP  1870 

experiments  of  imtried  models ;  9  ■were  iron-clad  gunboats,  of 
several  different  models,  carrjdng  usually  12  guns  and  310  men, 
and  probably,  for  real  service,  the  most  efficient  vessels  of  the 
navy ;  Y,  described  as  iron-clad  coast-guards,  were  of  very 
varied  capacity  and  horse-power,  for  the  most  part  carrying 
only  1  or  2  guns.  Among  these  was  the  Kochambeau,  origi- 
nally named  the  Dunderberg,  built  in  IsTew  York  for  our  Gov- 
ernment, but,  not  exactly  meeting  its  views,  sold,  in  1867,  to 
the  French  Emperor  ;  another  was  a  cupola-ship  with  a  powerful 
ram,  named  the  Taureau.  The  remaining  27  were  floating  bat- 
teries, of  use  for  the  protection  of  their  own  rivers  and  coasts, 
but  not  adapted  to  offensive  warfare.  Of  these,  12  were  so 
constructed  that  they  could  be  taken  to  pieces  and  transported 
overland  to  navigable  rivers  for  warfare  along  their  banks :  6 
or  8  of  these  were  sent  to  Strasbourg,  to  be  put  together  there 
and  sent  down  the  Khine,  but  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Ger- 
]nans  on  the  capture  of  that  city.  Of  the  non-armored  screw 
steamers  very  few  were  in  commission,  27  of  the  29  ships  of  the 
line  of  this  class  being  laid  up  in  ordinary,  with  very  little 
probability  of  their  ever  being  commissioned  again ;  112  were 
despatch  boats  or  transports,  as  were  M  of  the  paddle  steamers. 
The  100  sailing-vessels  were  mostly  employed  as  guards  of  the 
fisheries.  Still,  after  making  these  deductions,  there  remained 
a  formidable  naval  force,  from  which  great  things  were  expected. 
The  blockade  of  the  German  coast  was  assigned  to  16  of  the 
iron-clads,  mostly  of  the  frigate  class,  and  to  11  of  the  best  of 
the  despatch  boats  not  armored.  Other  vessels  of  the  navy 
hovered  around  neutral  ports,  like  Liverpool  and  New  York,  in 
the  hope  of  catching  some  of  the  German  steamers.  Owing  to 
their  great  draught,  however,  the  iron-clads  were  not  capable  of 
approaching  near  enough  to  the  German  ports  to  do  any  mis- 
chief, and  their  only  exploits  up  to  the  16th  of  October  had 
been  the  capture  of  15  or  20  unarmed  merchantmen. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  ^9 

The  Prussian  navy  was  small,  but  its  vessels  were  well  con- 
structed, and  some  of  tliem  were  more  tlian  a  match  for  any 
single  vessel  of  the  French  navj.  The  following  was  their  num- 
ber, January  1,  1870 : 

Number.  Guns. 

Iron-clada 6  70 

Frigates  and  corvettes 9  203 

Gunboats 23  54 

Yachts 1  3 

Paddle-corvettes 3  15 

Sailing-vessels 59  315 

Total 101  658 

The  aggregate  horse-power  of  the  steam  portion  of  the  fleet 
was  7,020,  and  the  crews,  officers,  and  marines  numbered  3,878 
men.  The  great  success  of  the  Prussian  armies  soon  rendered 
naval  action  of  very  little  importance,  and,  shortly  after  the 
revolution  occurred,  the  blockade  of  the  German  ports — never 
very  effective — was  practically  abandoned.  Let  us  next  con- 
sider, as  one  of  the  problems  materially  affecting  the  success  of 
the  war,  the  armament  of  these  forces,  whether  on  the  land  or 
the  sea.  It  has  often  been  said,  though  incorrectly,  that  Prussia 
owed  her  victories  over  Austria,  in  1866,  to  her  superior  artillery 
and  her  needle-guns.  These  victories  were  due,  in  the  first 
place,  to  the  genius  of  von  Moltke  and  the  thorough  organiza- 
tion and  training  of  the  Prussian  forces ;  but  it  is  not  to  be 
denied  that  the  artillery  and  needle-guns  in  the  hands  of  thor- 
oughly trained  soldiers  contributed  largely  to  the  result. 

The  cannon  in  use  in  the  German  army  are  mostly  of  steel, 
breech-loaders,  of  different  sizes  and  calibres  as  required,  but 
mostly  of  one  general  pattern,  devised  by  Herr  Krupp,  a  Prus-  ' 
sian  founder,  at  whose  extensive  works  most  of  them  were  made. 
The  steel  of  which  they  are  made  is  of  the  low  but  malleable 
grade  produced  by  the  Bessemer  and  other  kindred  processes. 
Most  of  these  cannon  are  rifled,  and  their  range,  accuracy,  and 


80  THE   GEEAT   WAR  OF   18Y0 

toughness  is  extraordinary.  A  French  authority,  writing  of  the 
battles  around  Sedan,  states  that,  on  the  morning  of  the  surren- 
der, the  Emperor  was,  with  his  staff,  suddenly  subjected  to  a 
terribly  severe  cannonade,  the  shot  and  shell  being  thrown  with 
most  uncomfortable  accuracy,  and,  on  inquiry,  found  that  they 
came  from  a  Prussian  battery  4,900  metres  (a  little  more  than 
three  miles)  distant.  One  of  the  best  of  the  French  batteries 
was  put  in  position  to  reply  to  it,  but  its  shot  and  shells  fell  into 
the  Moselle,  not  over  1,500  metres,  or  less  than  one  mile,  from 
the  battery. 

The  French  cannon  are  mostly  of  bronze,  muzzle-loaders, 
and  of  the  pattern  claimed  by  the  Emperor  as  his  own,  and 
named  "  ^Napoleons."  They  are  greatly  inferior  to  the  Prussian 
guns  in  range,  accuracy,  and  ease  of  handling,  and  not  superior 
to  them  in  tenacity.  The  French,  in  the  war  of  18'70,  have, 
however,  introduced  one  weapon  which,  with  some  modifica- 
tions, seems  likely  to  play  an  important  part  in  wars  hereafter. 
It  is  the  mitrailleuse^  or,  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  the  mitra- 
illeur,  a  weapon  analogous  to,  though  hardly  as  effective  as,  our 
Gatling  battery.  The  principle  of  this  new  and  destructive 
weapon  is  somewhat  like  that  of  the  revolver,  or  the  many- 
chambered  pistol,  applied  to  a  species  of  field-piece.  A  num- 
ber of  barrels  of  a  calibre  snfiicient  for  an  inch-ball  are  grouped 
around  a  central  steel  staff",  and,  metallic  cartridges  being  sup- 
plied, they  are,  by  a  simple  crank-movement,  forced  into  the 
several  barrels,  and  discharged  with  great  rapidity,  from  two  to 
three  hundred  per  minute.  The  range  which  presents  any  con- 
siderable accuracy,  in  the  French  mitrailleuse,  does  not  much 
■  exceed  a  mile,  but  within  this  range  the  weapon  is  exceedingly 
destructive.  The  Prussians  had  examined  the  Gatlicg  battery, 
acknowledged  to  be  the  most  eff'ective  of  all  the  guns  of  this 
class,  but  had  not  been  favorably  impressed  by  it ;  but  their 
late   experiences  have  probably   changed  their   opinion.      The 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


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82  THE  GREAT  WAR  OP   18Y0 

Fosbeny  "battery,  or  mitraillense,  does  not  seem  to  be  tlie  most 
perfect  form  of  this  destructiye  weapon,  experiments  in  England 
proving  the  decided  snperioritj  of  the  Gatling  battery  to  it  in 
all  respects  ;  but  there  can.  be  no  doubt  that  it  will  in  some  form 
add  a  formidable  weapon  to  the  armament  of  civilized  nations. 
It  will  not  take  the  place  of  cannon,  and  it  will  be  liable  to  be 
destroyed  by  cannon-shot  and  shell  at  long  range  ;  yet  the  expe- 
rience of  the  war  proves  that  it  has  its  place,  and  an  important 
one,  in  both  offensive  and  defensive  warfare.  There  have  been 
rumors  of  a  steam  mitrailleuse  worked  with  the  frightful  velocity 
of  which  that  powerful  agent  is  capable,  but  there  are  evidently 
difficulties  to  be  overcome  before  this  combination  can  be  made 
practicable. 

The  weapons  v/ith  which  the  rank  and  file  of  the  two  armies 
were  provided  also  deserve  our  attention.  The  Nddelgewehr, 
or  needle-gun  of  the  Prussians,  has  now  been  in  use  in  their 
armies  more  thp.n  twenty  years.  It  has  been  slightly  modified 
and  improved  in  such  a  way  as  to  increase  its  certainty  of  dis- 
charge, and,  perhaps,  slightly  its  accuracy,  but  the  principle  of 
the  gun  is  the  same  as  in  1848. 

The  Prussian  needle-gun  is  the  invention  of  Heee  Deeyse, 
a  gun-manufacturer,  who  spent  thirty  years  in  trying  to  con- 
struct a  perfect  breech-loading  rifle  that  would  be  of  practical 
use  in  war. 

There  is  no  necessary  connection  between  a  breech-loading 
gun  and  the  method  of  firing  by  the  penetration  of  a  needle 
into  a  detonating  cap  or  fulminating  powder  within  the  cartridge ; 
but  the  desire  to  dispense  with  the  separate  application  of  the 
percussion  cap,  as  his  predecessors  had  done  with  the  more 
clumsy  mechanism  of  the  flint  and  match-locks,  led  Herr  Dreyse 
to  seek  the  best  and  simplest  method  of  combining  these  two 
qualities — loading  at  the  breech,  and  firing  by  a  needle.  The- 
greatest,  as  it  was  the  earliest,  objection  to  breech-loading  fire- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GEEMANY. 


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84  THE  GREAT  WAR  OE   18V0 

arms  has  been  their  tendency  to  foul  by  the  escape  of  a  portion 
of  the  gases  of  the  powder  and  the  residuum  of  water  and  in- 
combustible, or,  at  least,  unconsumed  matters  left  after  repeated 
firing.  There  are  two  methods  of  overcoming  this  diflSculty, 
which  is  in  danger  of  preventing  the  perfect  closure  of  the 
breech  upon  the  barrel.  The  first  is  by  a  method  of  closing 
which  shall  effectually  prevent  the  escape  of  gas  at  the  breech  ; 
the  second,  by  the  adoption  of  a  cartridge  which  shall  cleanse 
the  barrel  and  joint  at  each  discharge.  There  are  difiiculties  in 
both.  Obturation,  or  the  complete  closing  of  the  breech  upon 
the  barrel,  is  effected  in  three  distinct  ways  : 

1.  By  inserting  a  cylinder  into  the  barrel,  or  by  inside  or 
internal  obturation. 

2.  By  shoving  the  open  end  of  the  barrel  into  the  movable 
closing-piece  so  that  the  latter  encompasses  the  end  of  the  barrel, 
called  outside  or  external  obturation. 

3.  By  closing  the  end  of  the  barrel  with  a  flat,  massive  j)iece 
of  metal,  which  method  is  denominated  flat  obturation,  and  can 
only  be  resorted  to  where  metallic  cartridges  are  used,  like  those 
invented  for  the  Lefancheux  gun,  the  Spencer  or  Henry  rifle, 
&c.,  &(i. 

Of  these  three  methods  of  obturation,  the  first  is  objection- 
Nable  and  imperfect,  inasmuch  as  the  cylinder  to  be  inserted  into 
the  barrel  of  the  gun  comes  into  immediate  contact  with  the 
gas-development,  and  with  the  dirty  residue  of  the  powder,  in 
consequence  of  which  the  free  forward  and  backward  movement 
of  the  closing  mechanism  is  soon  materially  checked,  and  the 
rapid  loading  of  the  gun  seriously  interfered  with.  The  third 
method  depends  wholly  upon  the  use  of  metallic  cartridges,  which 
are  too  expensive  for  a  large  army.  The  firing  of  these  breech- 
loaders is  also  much  less  rapid  than  that  of  the  Prussian  needle  - 
gun  and  the  Chassepot,  as  it  is  necessary,  after  each  discharge 
of  the  gun,  to  remove  the  metallic  cap  or  the  cartridge,  often 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


85 


firmly  inclosed  in  tlie  rear  end  of  the  barrel,  except  where,  as 
is  the  case  with  some  American  rifles,  there  is  an  automatic 
arrangement  for  throwing  ont  each  shell  by  the  firing  of  its 
successor. 

The  Prussian  needle-gnn  is,  we  believe,  up  to  this  day,  the 
only  one  in  the  manufacture  of  which  the  external  obturation 
has  been  resorted  to,  in  preference  to  the  other  methods.  And 
just  to  the  application  of  this  system  one  of  the  most  essential 
advantages  of  the  needle-gun  can  be  attributed,  as  the  metallic 
plates  coming  into  contact  in  the  process  of  obturatioii  are  not 
directly  exposed  to  the  danger  of  becoming  overheated,  and  the 
closing  mechanism  is  kept  free  from  all  obstruction  by  the  resi- 
due of  powder,  from  which  the  Chassepot,  with  its  internal 
obturation,  suffers  so  severely.  This  inconvenience,  which  is 
called,  in  French,  "  craclieinent^''  has  been  partly  overcome  by 
the  application  of  India-rubber  knobs,  which,  however,  become 
in  their  turn  dangerous  to  the  working  of  the  needle. 

The  needle-gun  consists,  as  regards  its  breech  apparatus  and 
needle-lock,  of  three  concentric  hollow  cylinders,  with  a  solid 
cylindrical  bolt,  to  which  the  needle  is  affixed,  inside  the  inner- 
most. The  rear  end  of  the  barrel  is  firmly  screwed  into  the 
head  of  the  chamber  which  is  fixed  to  the  stock  of  the  piece, 
and  is  open  at  the  rear  end.  The  upper  half  of  the  cylinder  is 
■cut  away  at  the  front  end  for  rather  more  than  the  length  of  the 
cartridge,  to  secure  its  ready  admission.  From  the  rear  of  this 
opening  to  the  back  of  the  chamber  a  groove  is  cut  sufficiently 
wide  to  allow  the  square  pillar  of  the  breech-handle  to  pass 
along  it.  In  the  middle  of  this  groove  is  a  right-angled  shunt 
stopping  the  breech-handle  when  drawn  backwards,  unless  it  is 
turned  downwards,  when  it  may  be  completely  drawn  out  at 
the  rear  end.  This  breech-handle  is  connected  with  and  forms 
part  of  the  breech-piece,  a  solid  steel  cylinder  moving  within 
the  cL amber,  and  having  its  front  end  bevelled  with  an  inward 


3g  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

slope  to  fit  tlie  external  bevel  of  tlie  rear  end  of  the  barrel,  tliiis 
closing  it  perfectly,  and   forming  the   external  obturation  of 
which  we  have  already  spoken.      Firmly  screwed  within  the 
breech-piece  is  a  solid  block  of  metal,  with  a  conical  projection 
extending  to  the  base  of  the  cartridge,  called  a  tige,  or  pillar. 
Through  this  block  is  the  channel  in  which  the  needle  works. 
Inside  the  breeeli-piece  cylinder  is  another,  with  its  springs  con- 
stituting the  lock  of  the  gun.     It  slides  within  the  breech-piecCj 
and  is  retained  from  falling  out  by  a  spring,  which  catches  in 
a  notch  at  the  rear  end  of  the  breech-piece.     Along  the  bottom 
of  this  cylinder  is  a  groove  to  admit  the  passage  of  the  trigger, 
and  at  the  back  of  the  chamber  is  a  short  upright  handle,  by 
means  of  which  the  weapon  is  cocked.     Lastly,  within  the  lock 
is  a  solid  steel  bolt  having  the  needle  firmly  fastened  in  its  front 
end,  and  its  motions  regulated  by  a  strong  spiral  spring.     When 
the  cartridge  (which  is  of  paper)  is  thrust  into  the  chamber,  and 
moved  forward  by  the  act  of  half-cocking  to  its  place,  the  point 
of  the  needle  and  the  end  of  the  tige  touch  the  base  of  the 
cartridge,  but  the  spiral  spring  is  relaxed,  and  without  power ; 
when  the  gun  is  at  full-cock,  the  spring  is  compressed,  the  bolt 
to  which  it  is  attached  drawn  back  and  held  in  place  by  the 
trigger,  which  catches  upon  a  shoulder  of  the  bolt  in  front  of 
the  spring.     In  the  act  of  filing,  the  trigger  releases  this  shoulder 
of  the  bolt,  the  spring  asserts  its  power,  and  the  bolt  shoots 
forward,  driving  the  needle  unerringly  to  the  fulminate  in  the 
centre  of  the  cartridge.     Here  is  no  opportunity  of  fouling,  for 
the  cartridge  wipes  out  the  barrel,  and  the  closely-fitting  bevel 
allows  no  escape  of  gas.     The  construction  of  the  gun  is  so  sim- 
ple, that,  without  screw-driver  or  any  other  implement,  it  can 
readily  be  taken  to  pieces  and  cleaned  or  repaired.     Its  weight 
— eleven  or  twelve  pounds — is  an  objection  to  it,  but  it  has  good 
qualities  sufiicient  to  balance  this. 

The  Chassepot  rifle  is  a  needle-gun,  but  varying  in'  many 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


8T 


and  important  particulars  from  tlie  Zund  nadelgewehr,  or  Prus- 
sian needle-gun.  It  was  invented  by  M.  Cliassepot,  the  French 
Inspector-General  of  arms,  in  1863  (but  improved  in  1866),  to 
supply  the  demand  of  the  Frencli  Government  for  a  gun  wbicli 
should  be  diiierent  from,  yet  equal  to,  the  Prussian  weapon.  A 
much  smaller  amount  of  time  has  been  expended  over  it  than 
over  its  rival,  and  it  has  several  serious  defects.  Its  method  of 
closing  the  breech  is  by  internal  obturation,  or  the  thrusting  the 
chamber  into  the  barrel ;  and  hence,  for  the  reasons  already 
stated,  is  more  liable  to  foul,  and  to  have  its  free  movement  in 
loading  checked  and  obstructed.  This  difficulty  has  proved  so 
great  in  the  war  of  1870,  that  the  French  have  abandoned  the 
gun,  and  are  supplying  their  troops  as  fast  as  possible  vvdth  the 
Remington  rifle,  an  American  weapon.  Its  spiral  spring  is 
shorter  and' weaker  than  the  Prussian,  and  hence  more  liable  to 
fail ;  and  the  rubber  knob  on  the  end  of  the  cylinder,  intended 
to  close  the  joint  completely  against  fouling,  is  apt  to  press  on 
the  needle  and  form  a  crust,  which  interferes  with  its  free 
motion.  The  French  fire  rapidly,  and  after  a  number  of  rounds, 
in  all  the  recent  battles,  they  invariably  manifested  their  im- 
patience at  the  foulness  and  obstruction  of  their  rifles  by  blow- 
ing into  them,  shaking  them,  and  trying  to  clear  them — which 
only  made  them  worse. 

M.  Ignatius  JSTeumann,  of  Liege,  Belgium,  a  gun-manufacturer 
of  great  intelligence  and  experience,  an  acknowledged  atuhority 
on  all  subjects  relating  to  fire-arms,  after  long  experimenting 
with  the  two  guns,  thus  gives  his  verdict  in  regard  to  them  : 


THE   NEEDLE-GUISr. 

"  1.  It  is  impossible  to  open 
the  gun  as  long  as  the  spiral 
spring  is  strained,  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  spring  cannot 


IHE    CHASSEPOT. 

"  1.  The  mechanism  of  the 
gun  is  such  as  to  necessitate  the 
straining  of  the  spiral  spring 
previous  to  the  opening  of  the 


THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1810 


he  strained  unless  tlie  gun  is 
completely  closed.  Thus  all" 
danger  from  want  of  precaution 
in  opening  and  in  closing  the 
gun  is  averted,  and  it  is  just 
as  fully  secured  against  an  un- 
foreseen or  accidental  explosion 
when  loaded  as  when  unloaded. 
This  may  he  considered  the 
hest  and  most  perfect  "rest." 


"  3.  The  Prussian  needle-gun 
is  the  only  breech-loader  which 
has  the  external  obturation,  by 
which  it  is  protected  against  all 
'  crachement^  as  well  as  against 
all  other  obstructions  to  the  free 
movement  of  its  closing  mechan- 
ism. 


"  3.  The  gun  can  be  taken 
apart  by  any  soldier  without  the 


chamber.  Therefore,  the  load- 
ing of  the  gun  takes  place,  and 
all  the  movements  of  the  cylin- 
der have  to  be  executed,  with 
strained  spring ;  and  the  slight- 
est touch  on  the  trigger  is  sure 
to  cause  the  projecting  of  the 
needle  into  the  percussion-wa- 
fer, thus  exploding  the  gun  and 
endangering  the  lives  of  those 
around.  Admitting  the  Chas- 
sepot  to  be  a  weapon  the  effi- 
ciency of  which  it  would  be  im- 
prudent to  question  or  to  sneer 
at,  we  cannot  be  blind  to  the 
fact  that,  in  the  hands  of  a  nerv- 
ous and  excited  French  soldier, 
it  may  eventually  prove  almost 
as  dangerous  to  his  own  com- 
rades and  superiors  as  to  the 
enemy. 

"  2.  The  internal  obturation 
produces  '■  cracliement^  and  in- 
terferes with  the  proper  loading 
of  the  gun  through  accumula- 
tion of  dht  from  powder-resi- 
due and  gas.  This  takes  place 
as  soon  as  the  India-rubber  knob 
at  the  head  of  the  cjdinder  loses 
its  elasticity  and  is  not  replaced 
in  due  time. 

"  3.  The  closing  mechanism 
is  not  as  easily  taken  apart  as 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


89 


necessity  of  using  special  tools 
for  that  purpose ;  its  cleaning 
is  very  easy,  and  repairs,  while 
seldom  necessary,  require  but 
little  time  and  skill. 


"  4,  The  cartridge  is  undoubt- 
edly the  best  hitherto  invented, 
while  its  manufacture  is  easy 
for  the  initiated ;  the  igniting 
material  lies  in  the  solid  case  of 
the  fulminate,  cannot  be  pushed 
forward  through  the  action  of 
the  needle,  and  is  sure  to  cause 
the  explosion  of  the  powder- 
charge  without  fail.  The  posi- 
tion of  the  fulminate,  between 
the  projectile  and  the  powder, 
insures  its  instantaneous  remov- 
al from  the  barrel  of  the  gun  at 
every  shot. 

"  5.  The  needle-gun  is  of  sim- 
ple and  solid  construction,  and 
just  heavy  enough  to  make  it 
useful  in  a  bayonet-charge  when- 
ever the  contending  armies  come 
into  close  contact." 


is  the  case  with  the  Prussian 
weapon.  The  closing  cylinder 
moves  up  and  down  in  its  en- 
casement on  a  little  screw,  which 
is  easily  broken  by  any  impru- 
dent or  too  forcible  pull,  when 
the  gun  is  rendered  unfit  for  use. 
"  4.  The  cartridge  is  of  diffi- 
cult construction,  and  is  not 
sufficiently  protected  against 
spoiling  when  on  the  road  for 
any  length  of  time.  The  pro- 
jectile does  not  always  get  free 
from  its  paper  cover  in  due 
time,  in  all  which  cases  the  ball 
drops  short  of  its  destination. 


"6.  The  Chassepot  is  too 
light,  and  its  construction  is  not 
sufficiently  solid  for  a  weapon 
of  thrust.  In  a  close  encounter 
its  inferiority  will  no  doubt  soon 
become  apparent." 


Besides  the  defects  and  disadvantages  above  enumerated,  the 
Chassepot  labors  under  another  serious  drawback  in  the  rapid 
formation  of  a  crust  on  and  near  the  point  of  the  needle,  com- 
posed of  India-rubber  and  the  residue  of  the  igniting  matter 


90  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1870 

and  the  powdei-'Cliarge ;  tlie  needle  "becomes  useless,  as  it  fails 
to  effect  the  explosion  of  the  powder  through  the  percussion- 
wafer.  If  the  percussion-v/afer  was  placed  in  front  of  the 
powder-charge,  so  that  the  needle  would  have  to  pierce  through 
the  same  before  reaching  the  igniting  matter  (as  is  the  case  Vvdth 
the  Prussian  needle-gun),  the  needle  would  not  become  ineffi- 
cient, and  would  remain  clean  without  any  interference  on  the 
part  of  the  soldier.  But  the  spiral  spring  of  the  Chassep6t  is 
too  short  and  too  weak  to  admit  of  any  such  change  of  con- 
struction. The  objection  recently  made  to  the  Prussian  needle- 
gun,  that  its  spii-al  spring  was  apt  to  get  weakened  and  unable 
to  propel  the  needle  with  sufficient  force  to  pierce  the  cartridge, 
is  futile,  as  nothing  occurred  either  during  the  campaign  in 
Schleswig-Holstein  in  1864,  or  during  the  memorable  ten  days' 
campaign  in  Bohemia  in  1866,  to  warrant  such  a  surmise.  It 
is  also  asserted  that  the  calibre  of  the  Prussian  gun  is  too  large, 
and  the  projectile  consequently  too  heavy,  rendering  the  carry- 
ing of  a  great  number  of  cartridges  extremely  onerous  to  the 
soldier.  We  are  enabled  to  refute  this  statement  also,  for  the 
construction  of  the  needle-gun  is  such  as  to  admit  of  the  use  of 
small  projectiles  in  spite  of  the  large  calibre.  The  circumstance 
that  the  ball  is  imbedded  in  the  fulminate,  wherewith  it  forms 
one  compact  mass,  and  obtains  its  rotation  by  means  of  the 
fulminate  entering  into  the  four  grooves  of  the  barrel,  facilitates 
the  firing  of  smaller  projectiles  than  those  originally  used.  To 
sum  up,  I^Teumann  says  : 

"The  Prussian  needle-gun  does  not  shoot  better  nor  fire 
further  than  any  other  breech-loader,  but  its  material  advan- 
tages over  all  those  invented  in  France,  Belgium,  England,  and 
elsewhere,  cannot  be  denied.  It  is  entirely  erroneous  to  suppose 
that  it  was  not  introduced  into  the  armies  of  other  European 
powers  on  account  of  its  real  or  alleged  shortcomings  or  defects. 
France  especially  was  actuated  in  its  decision  in  the  premises  by 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  91 

petty  jealousy  only.  They  didn't  want  it  because  fhey  did  not 
want  it ;  they  were  unwilling  to  admit  its  superiority  because 
somebody  else  had  possessed  it  before  them  whom  they  couldn't 
think  of  ever  imitating.     Such  is  human  nature." 


92  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 


CHAPTER    YL 

'E  have  deemed  it  necessary,  to  a  full  understanding  of  tlie 
position  of  the  two  contending  powers,  to  go  thus  fully 
into  the  history  of  their  antecedents,  their  financial,  social,  and 
military  condition,  the  history  of  their  leaders,  and  the  peculiar 
weapons  of  the  opposing  parties.  "We  now  proceed  with  the 
narrative  of  the  opening  of  the  war.  There  had  sprung  up, 
partly,  perhaps,  from  the  coldness  and  jealousies  of  France,  a 
very  cordial  feeling  between  the  Spanish  Government  since  the 
revolution  of  1868,  and  Prussia,  and  there  had  been  a  more  than 
usually  frequent  interchange  of  civilities.  General  Prim,  who 
was  personally  very  friendly  to  the  French  Emperor,  had  sounded 
the  Prussian  Minister  to  Spain  in  regard  to  the  candidacy  of 
one  of  the  Ilohenzollern  princes  for  the  Spanish  throne,  indi- 
cating his  preference  for  the  elder  brother  of  the  family  of 
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen,  but  the  proposition  not  being  very 
favorably  received,  it  had  been  allowed  to  drop,  not,  however, 
till  the  General  had  alluded  to  its  possibility  before  the  Cortes. 
In  May,  or  early  in  June,  General  Prim  had  an  interview  with 
the  French  Emperor  at  Biarritz,  and,  almost  immediately  after 
his  return,  pro]30sed  to  the  Spanish  Cortes  the  name  of  Prince 
Leopold,  second  son  of  Prince  Carl  Anton,  the  head  of  the 
house  of  Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen,  for  the  vacant  throne  of 
Spain,  and  a  large  majority  of  the  Cortes  accepted  his  candi- 
dacy. A  correspondence  with  the  Prince  resulted  in  his  expres- 
sion of  his  willingness  to  be  the  candidate  of  the  Cortes  for  the 
position. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  93 

Prince  Leopold  was  from  an  independent  branch,  of  tlie 
Holienzollern  family,  having  no  claims  on  the  succession  to  the 
Prussian  throne,  and  were  not  in  any  sense  directly  responsible  to 
it  for  their  action,  unless  it  was  treasonable  to  the  reigning  house 
of  Prussia  to  the  Prussian  King.  The  Prince  was  about  thirty- 
five  years  of  age,  highly  educated,  very  wealthy,  and  a  Catholic, 
and  held  the  nominal  rank  of  colonel  in  the  Prussian  army. 
The  King  of  Prussia  was,  when  the  matter  was  laid  before  him, 
prompt  to  express  his  disapprobation  of  it,  believing  that  it 
would  prove  another  Maximilian  afiPair,  and  that  the  Prince 
wonld  lose  his  head. 

In  spite  of  this  disapproval,  the  Prince  gave  his  consent  to 
be  a  candidate.  On  the  4:th  of  July,  1870,  General  Prim  ad- 
vised Senor  Olozaga,  Spanish  Minister  at  Paris,  of  his  selection 
of  Prince  Leopold,  and  the  sanction  of  it  by  the  Cortes.  On 
the  5th  of  July,  Baron  "Werther,  Prussian  Minister  at  Paris, 
left  that  city  for  Ems  to  consult  with  the  King  relative  to  this 
affair.  On  the  6th  of  July,  the  French  Government  sent  a  note 
to  Count  Benedetti,  the  Emperor's  Minister  at  Berlin,  instruct- 
ing him  to  demand  the  disavowal  of  Prince  Leopold's  candidacy 
by  Prussia,  and  the  withdrawal  of  his  name  from  the  list  of 
candidates  for  the  Spanish  crown,  on  the  ground  that  France 
wonld  consider  his  elevation  to  that  position  as  a  check  and 
menace  to  her,  which  she  would  not  under  any  pretext  permit. 

Count  Benedetti,  himself  a  Corsican,  and  of  very  fiery  tem- 
per, acting  also  evidently  under  instructions  from  the  Emperor, 
made  haste  to  present  tlie  matter  as  offensively  as  possible  to 
the  King  of  Prussia.  Mr.  George  Ptipley,  of  the  Tribune  staff, 
was  in  Berlin  at  this  time,  and  has  given  a  most  accurate  and 
graphic  account  of  the  series  of  interviews  between  tLe  Count 
and  the  King,  the  truth  of  which  is  certified  to  by  the  King  and 
his  personal  suite. 

The  first  audience,  Mr.  Eipley  says,  took  place  on  July  9, 


94:  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   ISVO 

at  the  request  of  Count  Benedetti.  It  was  demanded  by  him 
that  the  King  should  require  the  Prince  of  Hohenzollern  to 
withdraw  his  acceptance  of  the  Spanish  crown.  The  King  re- 
plied that,  as  in  the  whole  affair,  he  had  been  addressed  only  as 
the  head  of  the  family,  and  never  as  the  King  of  Prussia,  and 
had,  accordingly,  given  no  command  for  the  acceptance  of  the 
candidature,  he  could  also  give  no  command  for  withdrawal. 
On  the  11th  of  July,  Count  Benedetti  requested  a  second  audi- 
ence, which  was  granted.  In  this  interview  he  was  urgent  with, 
the  .King  to  prevail  upon  Prince  Leopold  to  renounce  the  crown. 
The  King  replied  that  the  Prince  was  perfectly  free  to  decide 
for  himself,  and  that,  moreover,  he  ?lid  not  even  know  where  he 
was  at  that  moment,  as  he  was  about  to  take  a  journey  among 
the  Alps.  On  the  morning  of  July  13,  the  King  met  Benedetti 
on  tlie  public  promenade  before  the  fountain,  and  gave  him  an 
extra  sheet  of  The  Cologne  Gazette^  whicb  he  had  just  received, 
with  a  private  telegram  fi'om  Sigmaringen,  relating  the  with- 
drawal of  the  Prince,  remarking,  at  the  same  time,  that  he  him- 
self had  heard  nothing  from  Sigmaringen,  but  should  expect 
letters  that  day.  Count  Benedetti  replied  that  he  had  already 
received  the  information  the  evening  before  from  Paris,  and,  as 
the  King  regarded  the  matter  as  thus  settled,  the  Count  wholly 
nnexpectedly  made  a  new  demand,  proposing  to  the  King  that 
he  should  expressly  pledge  himself  never  to  give  his  consent  in 
case  the  question  of  the  candidature  sliould  at  any  subsequent 
time  be  revived.  The  King  decidedly  refused  to  comply  with 
any  such  demand,  and,  when  Benedetti  returned  to  his  proposal 
with  increasing  importunity,  stood  by  his  answer.  In  spite  of 
this,  a  few  hours  after,  the  Count  requested  a  third  audience. 
Upon  being  asked  what  subject  was  to  be  considered,  he  gave 
for  answer  that  he  wished  to  renew  the  discussion  of  the  morn- 
ing.  The  King  declined  another  audience,  as  lie  had  no  answer 
but  that  already  given,  and,  moreover,  all  negotiations  must 


BETWEEN  PRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


95 


now  take  place  through  the  Ministry.  Benedetti  requested 
permission  to  take  leave  of  the  King  npon  his  departure  from 
Ems,  y^^hich  was  so  far  granted  that  the  King  Lowed  to  him  as 
the  latter  was  leaving  the  railway  station  the  next  day  for 
Coblenz.  Each  of  the  interviews  of  Benedetti  with  the  King- 
had  the  character  of  a  private  conversation.  The  Count  did 
not  once  pretend  to  he  acting  in  his  ofiicial  capacity. 

In  the  preceding  statement,  which  is  sanctioned  by  the  King 
himself,  no  m.ention  is  made  of  the  rudeness  of  Benedetti  in 
forcing  himself  upon  His  Majesty  while  indulging  in  the  recrea- 
tion of  a  walk  on  the  crowded  promenade  of  Ems.  It  is  gen- 
erally regarded,  however,  as  a  studied  insult  on  the  part  of  the 
French  Minister,  and  is  commented  on  with  indignation  by  the 
German  press.  Such  a  violation  of  diplomatic  courtesy  could 
hardly  have  been  accidental.  ITot  even  the  excitement  of  a 
sudden  surprise  could  excuse  the  incivility  ;  but  there  was  no 
surprise  in  the  case ;  the  Count  had  received  the  news  the  night 
before,  and  had  at  least  twelve  hours  to  meditate  his  course  of 
action.  The  affair  was  witnessed  with  astonishment  by  the 
numerous  spectators  of  the  scene,  who  drew  their  own  augury 
of  its  probable  consequences.  It  was  interpreted  as  a  sign  of 
hostility  toward  Prussia,  and  two  days  after  came  the  declaration 
of  war. 

The  actual  demands  of  the  French  Government  upon  the 
King  are  contained  in  a  subsequent  despatch  from  Baron 
Werther,  the  Prussian  Minister  at  Paris.  In  a  conversation 
with  the  Duke  de  Gramont,  the  latter  remarked  that  he  re- 
garded the  withdrawal  of  Prince  Leopold  as  a  matter  of  second- 
ary importance,  but  he  feared  that  the  course  of  Prussia  in 
regard  to  it  would  occasion  a  permanent  misunderstanding  be- 
tween the  two  countries.  It  was  .necessary  to  guard  against  this 
by  destroying  the  germ.  The  conduct  of  Prussia  toward  France 
had  been  unfriendly.     This  was  admitted,  to  his  certain  know- 


96  THE   GKEAT  WAR  OF  ISVO 

Jedge,  by  all  tke  great  powers.  To  speak  frankly,  lie  did  not 
wish  for  war,  but  would  ratber  preserve  amicable  relations  with 
Prussia.  He  hoped  that  Prussia  had  similar  dispositions.  He 
was  satisfied  with  the  intentions  of  the  Prussian  Minister,  and 
they  could  accordingly  freely  discuss  the  conditions  of  recon- 
ciliation. He  would  suggest  the  writing  of  a  letter  to  the  Em- 
peror by  the  King,  disavowing  all  purpose  of  infringing  upon 
the  interests  or  the  dignity  of  France  in  his  authorizing  the 
acceptance  of  the  Spanish  crown  by  Prince  Leopold.  The  King 
should  confirm  the  withdrawal  of  the  Prince,  and  express  the 
hope  that  all  ground  of  complaint  between  the  two  Govern- 
ments would  thus  be  removed.  !Nothing  should  be  said  in  the 
letter  concerning  the  family  relations  between  Prince  Leopold 
and  the  Emperor. 

The  refusal  of  the  King  to  accept  the  humiliating  conditions 
proposed  by  the  French  Government  has  called  forth  the  liveliest 
approval  and  sympathy  in  all  parts  of  Germany. 

As  early  as  the  8th  of  July,  the  Emperor  had  ordered  two 
corps  Warmee  to  be  ready  for  immediate  movement,  one  under 
the  command  of  Bazaine,  the  other  of  Lebceuf.  This,  it  will 
be  noticed,  was  the  day  before  Benedetti's  first  interview  with 
the  King.  On  the  12th,  French  troops  passed  through  Paris  on 
their  way  to  the  frontier.  On  the  14:th,  the  French  fleet  sailed 
to  blockade  the  German  ports.  On  the  15th,  war  was  declared 
by  the  French  Corps  Legislatif  against  Prussia,  at  1.50  p.  m.,  on 
these  grounds :  Fii'st,  the  insult  offered  at  Ems  to  Count  Bene- 
detti,  the  French  Minister,  and  its  approval  by  the  Prussian 
Government ;  second,  the  refusal  of  the  King  of  Prussia  to 
compel  the  withdrawal  of  Prince  Leopold's  name  as  a  candidate 
for  the  Spanish  throne ;  and  third,  the  fact  that  the  King  per- 
sisted in  giving  the  Prince  liberty  to  accept  the  crown. 

On  the  same  day  Count  Bismarck  warned  German  vessels  to 
hasten  to  ports  of  shelter  ;  Holland  ordered  the  mobilization  of 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  9^ 

her  army ;  Austria  professed  neutrality,  unless  a  third  power 
intervenes ;  King  William  returned  to  Berlin  from  Ems ;  the 
German  army  was  ordered  to  be  put  in  motion ;  the  President 
of  the  United  States  recommended  to  Congress  a  temporary  and 
partial  relaxation  of  the  navigation  laws. 

On  leaving  Ems  at  an  earlv  hour  on  the  morning  of  the 
15th,  King  Wilhelm  found  a  great  crowd  of  citizens  assembled 
to  witness  his  departure,  and  said  to  them  in  parting,  "  God  is 
my  witness  that  I  have  not  desired  war ;  but  if  1  am  forced  into 
it,  I  will  maintain  the  honor  of  Germany  to  the  last  man."  The 
enthusiasm  for  the  war,  forced  upon  them  by  France,  was  intense 
throughout  Germany,  the  jDatriotism  and  war-like  spirit  of  the 
people  of  South  Germany  and  Schleswig-Holstein,  both  of  which 
had  been  a  few  years  before  at  war  with  Prussia,  apparently 
rising  higher  even  than  that  of  the  citizens  of  the  ISTorth  Ger- 
man Confederation.  Addi^esses  of  the  most  earnest  character  to 
the  King  were  adopted  everywhere,  and  the  legend,  "  With  God 
for  King  and  Fatherland,"  blazed  out  all  over  Germany.  The 
Prussian  Legislature,  called  in  extraordinary  session  at  Berlin, 
was  a  unit  for  prompt  and  vigorous  war.  The  King  opened  the 
session  with  a  brief  address,  which  was  greeted  with  the  wildest 
enthusiasm.  The  King  said  Prussia  had  no  interest  in  the  selec 
tion  of  the  Prince  of  Hohenzollern  for  the  Spanish  throne, 
except  that  it  might  bring  peace  to  a  friendly  ]3eople.  It  had, 
nevertheless,  furnished  the  Emperor  of  the  French  with  a  pre- 
text for  war  unknown  to  diplomacy,  and,  scorning  peace,  he  had 
indulged  in  language  to  Germany  which  could  only  have  been 
prompted  by  a  miscalculation  of  her  strength.  Germany  was 
powerful  enough  to  resent  such  language  and  repel  such  violence. 
He  said  so  in  all  reverence,  knowing  that  the  event  was  in  God's 
hands.  He  had  fully  weighed  the  responsibility  which  rested 
on  the  man  who  drives  into  war  and  havoc  two  great  and  tran- 
quil nations  yearning  for  j)eace  and  the  enjoyment  of  the  com- 
1 


98  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1810 

mon  blessings  of  Christian  civilization  and  prosperity,  and  for 
contests  more  salutary  than  those  of  blood.  Those  who  rule 
France  have  shrevrdly  studied  the  proper  methods  of  hitting  the 
sensitive  pride  of  that  great  neighbor-nation,  and,  to  promote 
selfish  interests,  have  misguided  it.  "  Then,"  concluded  the 
King,  "  as  our  fathers  before  us  have  done,  let  us  fight  for  liberty 
and  our  rights  against  the  wrongs  inflicted  by  a  foreign  con- 
queror ;  and  as  He  was  with  our  fathers,  so  God  will  be  with 
us  in  a  struggle  without  which  Europe  can  never  enjoy  lasting 
peace." 

After  the  King's  speech  had  been  delivered,  a  loan  of 
120,000,000  thalers  was  carried  unanimously,  amid  the  wildest 
expressions  of  enthusiasm  by  all  parties.  The  enthusiasm  was 
not  so  great  in  France,  nor  the  Legislature  so  unanimous  ;  there 
were  a  considerable  number  of  the  Republican  members  who 
perceived  that  the  war  was  proclaimed  in  the  interests  of  the 
E'apoleonic  dynasty,  and  therefore  opposed  it ;  but  the  French 
people  are  excitable,  and  the  cry  of  glory  and  conquest  rendered 
most  of  them  deaf  to  reason  for  the  time,  and  the  war  could  be 
said,  in  general,  to  be  popular  with  them. 

As  we  have  already  said,  the  Emperor  delayed  his  departure, 
as  it  was  thought  at  the  time  very  singularly,  from  Paris,  after 
the  declaration  of  war.  It  is  now  known  that  he  was  astounded 
to  find  how  utterly  unprepared  his  army  was  for  moving,  and 
made  vain  and  desperate  efforts  to  undo  the  evil  wrought  by 
years  of  corruption  and  fi:'aud.  Finding,  at  length,  that  his 
enemy  was  fully  ready  for  him  on  the  frontier,  he  issued,  on 
the  23d  of  July,  the  following  address  to  the  people  of  France : 

"  Feekchmen  :  There  are  in  the  life  of  a  people  solemn  mo- 
ments, when  the  national  honor,  violently  excited,  arouses  itself 
irresistibly,  rises  above  all  other  interests,  and  applies  itself  with 
the  single  purpose  of  directing  the  destinies  of  the  nation.     One 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  99 

of  those  decisive  hours  has  now  arrived  for  France.  Prussia,  to 
whom  we  have  given  evidence,  during  and  since  the  war  of  1856, 
of  the  most  conciliatory  disposition,  has  held  our  good-will  of 
no  account,  and  has  returned  our  forbearance  by  encroachments. 
She  has  aroused  distrust  in  all  quarters,  necessitating  exaggerated 
armaments,  and  has  made  of  Europe  a  camp  where  reign  dis- 
quiet and  fear  of  the  morrow.  A  final  incident  'has  disclosed 
the  instability  of  the  international  understanding,  and  shown 
the  gravity  of  the  situation.  In  the  presence  of  her  new  pre- 
tensions, Prussia  was  made  to  understand  our  claims.  They 
were  evaded  and  followed  with  contemptvious  treatment.  Our 
country  manifested  profound  displeasure  at  this  action,  and 
quickly  a  war-cry  resounded  from  one  end  of  France  to  the 
other. 

"  There  remains  for  us  nothing  but  to  confide  our  destinies 
to  the  chance  of  arms.  We  do  not  make  war  upon  Germany, 
whose  independence  we  respect.  We  pledge  ourselves  that  the 
people  composing  the  great  Germanic  nationalities  shall  dispose 
freely  of  their  destinies.  As  for  us,  we  demand  the  establish- 
ment of  a  state  of  things  guaranteeing  our  security  and  assuring 
the  future.  We  wish  to  conquer  a  durable  peace,  based  on  the 
true  interests  of  the  people,  and  to  assist  in  abolishing  that  j)re- 
carious  condition  of  things  when  all  nations  are  forced  to  employ 
their  resources  in  arming  against  each  other. 

"  The  glorious  flag  of  France  which  we  once  more  unfurl 
in  the  face  of  our  challengers,  is  the  same  which  has  borne  over 
Europe  the  civilizing  ideas  of  our  great  revolution.  It  repre- 
sents the  same  principles ;  it  will  inspire  the  same  devotion. 

"  Frenchmen  :  I  go  to  place  myself  at  the  head  of  that  gal- 
lant army,  which  is  animated  by  love  of  country  and  devotion 
to  duty.  That  army  knows  its  worth,  for  it  has  seen  victory 
follow  its  footsteps  in  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe.  I  take 
with  me  my  son.     Despite  his  tender  years,  he  knows  the  duty 


100  THE    GREAT   WAR  OF   1810 

his  name  imposes  upon  him,  and  he  is  proud  to  bear  his  part  in 
the  dangers  of  those  who  fight  for  our  country.  May  God  bless 
our  efforts,     A  great  people  defending  a  just  cause  is  invincible. 

"  ISTapoleon." 

In  this  address  there  is  evident  not  only  a  disposition  to  mis- 
represent the  real  causes  of  the  war,  but  a  somewhat  flippant 
appeal  to  the  French  passion  for  glory,  and  a  manifestation  of 
that  tendency  to  theatrical  effect  which  has  given  a  tinge  of  the 
ludicrous  to  so  many  of  his  public  performances.  The  allusion 
to  his  son,  a  backward  and  very  mediocre  boy  of  fourteen,  was, 
to  say  the  least,  in  very  bad  taste. 

The  Emperor  did  not,  however,  leave  at  once  on  the  promul- 
gation of  this  address  ;  at  least,  he  did  not  reach  Metz,  with  his 
very  luxurious  and  amply  provided  train,  until  the  28th  of  July, 
when  he  at  once  issued  the  following  address  to  the  soldiers  on 
taking  command  of  the  army.  When  we  consider  that  he  knew 
fiilly  the  condition  and  weakness  of  his  army,  and  was,  at  least, 
tolerably  informed  concerning  the  powerful  and  perfectly  organ- 
ized foe  with  whom  he  had  to  contend,  some  of  its  assertions  will 
be  thought  remarkable : 

"  Soldiers  :  I  come  to  take  my  place  at  your  head  to  defend 
the  honor  of  the  soil  of  our  country.  You  go  to  combat  against 
one  of  the  best-armed  of  European  countries ;  but  other  coun- 
tries, as  valiant  as  this,  have  not  been  able  to  resist  your  valor. 
It  will  be  the  same  to-day.  The  war  which  now  commences 
will  be  long  and  hardly  contested,  for  its  theatre  will  be  places 
hedged  with  obstacles  and  thick  with  fortresses ;  but  nothing  is 
beyond  the  persevering  efforts  of  the  soldiers  of  Africa,  Italy, 
and  Mexico.  You  will  prove  once  more  what  the  Erench  army 
is  able  to  accomplish,  animated  by  a  sentiment  of  duty,  main- 
tained by  discipline,  influenced  by  love  of  country.     Whatever 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


101 


road  we  may  take  across  our  frontiers,  we  will  find  upon  it 
glorious  traces  of  our  fathers,  and  we  will  show  ourselves  worthy 
of  them. 

"  All  France  follows  you  with  ardent  prayers,  and  the  eyes 
of  the  universe  are  upon  you.  Upon  our  success  depends  the 
fate  of  liberty  and  civilization.  Soldiers,  let  each  one  do  his 
duty,  and  the  God  of  Battles  will  be  with  us. 

"  ISTapoleon. 
"  At  the  General  Headquarters  at  Metz,  July  28,  1870." 

During  this  period,  when  both  nations  were  summoning 
their  forces  into  the  field,  but  before  any  serious  conflicts  had 
occurred,  Count  von  Bismarck,  the  Prussian  Premier,  on  the 
29th  of  July,  addressed  to  the  Eepresentatives  of  Prussia  at  the 
Courts  of  neutral  powers  a  circular  giving  an  expose  of  secret 
propositions  made  by  ITapoleon  III  to  Prussia  in  May  1866,  and 
since  repeated  with  slight  variations,  and  always  accompanied 
with  threats,  which  showed  most  conclusively  what  were  the 
motives  which  prompted  him  to  declare  the  war  just  com- 
menced. 

Before  the  Danish  war,  says  Count  Bismarck,  the  French 
Legation  at  Berlin  urged  an  alliance  between  France  and  Prus- 
sia for  purposes  of  mutual  aggrandizement.  France,  antici- 
pating war  with  Austria  as  a  consequence  of  the  Danish  war, 
made  overtures  relative  to  the  restoration  of  the  Luxembourg 
frontier  of  1814,  the  acquisition  of  Saarburg  and  Landau,  while 
a  broader  settlement  of  the  boundary  question  on  the  basis  of 
language  was  not  to  be  excluded.  These  instances,  in  May, 
1866,  took  the  form  of  propositions  for  an  alliance  offensive  and 
defensive,  the  manuscript  original  of  which  is  in  the  Foreign 
Office  here.     These  propositions  are  as  follows  : 

-First.    Should  the  Congress  of  the  powers  assemble,  Italy  to 
have  Yenetia  and  Prussia  the  Duchies. 


102  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

Second.  Should  tlie  Congress  disagree,  alliance  offensive  and 
defensive  will  be  made  between.  France  and  Prussia. 

Third.  Prussia  to  open  hostilities  against  Austria  within  ten 
days  after  the  dissolution  of  the  Congress. 

Fourth.  Should  no  Congress  meet,  Prussia  to  attack  Austria 
within  thirty  days  after  the  signature  of  the  present  treaty. 

Fifth.  Napoleon  to  begin  hostilities  against  Austria  as  soon 
as  Prussia  begins,  despatching  300,000  men  during  the  first 
month  across  the  Phine. 

Sixth.  ]Sfo  separate  treaty  shall  be  made  by  either  power 
with  Austria.  When  a  joint  treaty  is  made,  the  following  are 
to  be  the  conditions :  1.  Yenetia  to  go  to  Italy.  2.  Prussia  to 
select  German  territory  at  will  for  annexation,  the  number  of 
inhabitants  not  to  exceed  8,000,000  of  souls ;  the  territory  thus 
acquired  to  become  a  part  of  the  kingdom  of  Prussia,  without 
federal  rights.  3.  France  to  have  a  liberal  share  of  the  Phine 
provinces. 

Seventh.  A  military  and  maritime  allegiance  to  be  made 
between  France  and  Prussia,  to  which  Italy  may  be  a  party 
should  she  so  desire. 

This  programme,  the  circular  states,  was  rejected  in  June, 
1866,  in  spite  of  the  threatening  urgency  of  France.  The  pro- 
posals were  incessantly  renewed  with  modifications  sacrificing 
Belgium  and  South  Germany,  but  they  were  never  seriously 
entertained  by  Prussia.  For  the  sake  of  peace,  however,  it  was 
thought  best  to  leave  Napoleon  to  his  delusions.  No  word 
implying  approval  was  returned  ;  time  was  counted  on  to  revo- 
lutionize France,  and  extinguish  the  scheme ;  hence  the  long 
delay  and  silence.  The  attempt  against  Luxembourg  failing, 
France  repeated  her  former  propositions,  making  the  specifica- 
tions clear  in  regard  to  the  acquisition  of  Belgium  by  France, 
and  South  Germany  by  Prussia.  These  last  propositions  were 
formulated  by  Count  Benedetti  himself,  and  it  is  improbable 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  IQ3 

tliat  lie  wrote  tliem  witliout  the  authority  of  tlie  Emperor,  as 
they  are  the  same  which  were  made  four  years  ago  mider  threat 
of  war  as  the  alternative  of  theu'  refusal.  Any  one  acquainted 
with  these  antecedents  must  have  known  that,  had  Prussia 
acquiesced  in  the  seizure  of  Belgium,  France  would  soon  have 
found  another  Belgium  in  Prussian  territor}^ 

Some  effort  was  made  by  the  imperial  Government  to  weaken 
the  force  of  this  damaging  exposure,  and  to  convince  the  neutral 
powers  that  the  propositions  had  been  suggested  by  Prussia ; 
but  the  falsity  of  this  was  so  apparent  that  it  obtained  no  cre- 
dence from  any  body.  The  neutral  powers,  which  had  at  first 
given  indications  of  sympathy  with  the  Emperor,  were,  after 
the  publication  of  this  document,  and  the  circulation  of  photo- 
graphic copies  of  the  manuscript  of  Benedetti,  much  less  dis- 
posed to  depart  from  the  strictest  neutrality,  and  thus  the  eon- 
test  was  narrowed  down  to  the  two  belligerents. 

Efforts,  however,  were  not  wanting  on  the  part  of  other 
powers  to  effect  a  reconciliation,  and  to  avert  a  war  which,  it 
was  evident,  must  be  so  terrible  in  its  results.  Great  Britain, 
Eussia,  and  Austria  exerted  all  their  power  with  both  parties, 
but  in  vain ;  the  French  Emperor  would  not,  and  Prussia,  as 
she  was  situated,  could  not,  make  any  such  concessions  as  would 
have  secured  peace.  One  of  the  most  noteworthy  of  these  efforts 
for  reconciliation  was  that  of  Pope  Pius  IX,  who,  in  the  midst 
of  troubles  which  shortly  after  deprived  him  of  his  temporal 
power,  which  France  had  for  some  years  maintained  for  him, 
addressed  letters  both  to  the  Emperor  and  King  Wilhelm,  of 
which  latter  the  following  is  a  copy : 

"  YouE  Majesty  :  In  the  present  grave  circumstances  it  may 
ap]3ear  an  unusual  thing  to  receive  a  letter  from  me ;  but,  as  the 
Yicar  on  earth  of  God  and  peace,  I  cannot  do  less  than  offer  my 
mediation. 


104:  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   18T0 

"  It  is  my  desire  to  witness  the  cessation  of  war-like  prepara- 
tions, and  to  stop  the  evils — their  inevitable  consequences.  My 
mediation  is  that  of  a  sovereign  whose  small  dominion  excites 
no  jealousy,  and  who  inspires  confidence  by  the  moral  and  reli- 
gions influence  he  personifies. 

"  May  God  lend  an  ear  to  my  wishes,  and  listen  also  to  those 
I  form  for  your  Majesty,  to  whom  I  would  be  united  in  the 
bonds  of  charity. 

"  Pius. 
"  Given  at  the  Vatican,  July  22, 1870." 

A  postscript  adds : 

"  I  have  written  identically  to  the  Emperor." 

What  reply,  if  any,  the  Emperor  made  to  the  letter  addressed 
to  him,  is  not  known ;  but  the  King  of  Prussia  promptly  re- 
turned the  following  courteous  answer,  which,  however,  efi'ect- 
ually  forbade  all  hope  of  any  successful  result  from  the  proffered 
mediation : 

"  Most  AtratrsT  Pontiff  :  I  am  not  surprised,  but  profoundly 
moved  at  the  touching  words  traced  by  your  hand. 

"  They  cause  the  voice  of  God  and  of  peace  to  be  heard. 
How  could  my  heart  refuse  to  listen  to  so  powerful  an  appeal  ? 
God  witnesses  that  neither  I  nor  my  people  desired  or  provoked 
war. 

"  Obeying  the  sacred  duties  which  God  imposes  on  sovereigns 
and  nations,  we  take  up  the  sword  to  defend  the  independence 
and  honor  of  our  country,  ready  to  lay  it  down  the  moment 
those  treasures  are  secure. 

"  If  your  Holiness  could  offer  me,  from  him  w;ho  so  unex- 
pectedly declared  war,  assurances  of  sincerely  pacific  dispositions, 
and  guarantees  against  a  similar  attempt  upon  the  peace  and 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  105 

tranquillity  of  Europe,  it  certainly  will  not  be  I  wlio  will  refase 
to  receive  them  from  your  venerable  hands,  united  as  I  am  with 
you  in  bonds  of  Christian  charity  and  sincere  friendship. 

(Signed)  "  Wilhelm." 

The  blockading  fleet  sailed  from  Cherbourg  on  the  25th  of 
July,  and  the  Emperor  being  unable  to  be  present  at  their 
departure,  sent  the  Empress  with  a  proclamation  to  be  read  to 
the  officers  and  crews.  The  Vice-Admiral  of  the  squadron 
having  delivered  a  somewhat  boastful  address,  full  of  laudation 
of  the  imperial  family,  the  Empress  read,  it  was  said,  in  tones 
full  of  emotion,  the  Emperor's  proclamation,  as  follows  : 

"  Officers  and  Seamen  :  Although  I  am  not  in  your  midst, 
nay  thoughts  will  follow  you  npon  those  seas  where  your  valor 
is  about  to  be  displayed.  The  French  navy  has  glorious  remi- 
niscences. It  will  prove  itself  worthy  of  the  past.  AVhen,  far 
from  the  soil  of  our  country,  you  are  face  to  face  with  the 
enemy,  remember  that  France  is  with  you ;  that  her  heart  throbs 
with  yours  ;  that  she  invokes  npon  your  arms  the  protection  of 
Heaven.  While  you  are  combating  at  sea,  your  brethren  in 
arms  will  be  struggling  with  the  same  ardor  for  the  same  cause 
as  yourselves.  Do  you  reciprocally  second  each  other's  efforts, 
the  same  success  will  crown  them.  Go  !  display  with  pride  our 
national  colors.  On  beholding  the  tri-colored  flag  floating  over 
our  ships,  the  enemy  will  know  that  in  its  folds  it  bears  every- 
where tbe  honor  and  tbe  genius  of  France. 

"  Kapoleon. 
«  Palace  of  St.  Cloud,  23d  July,  1870." 

The  headquarters  of  the  French  army  and  its  Emperor  and 
commander  were  at  Metz,  but  the  advance  was  thrown  forward 
to  the  Rhine  as  early  as  July  19,  though  in  small  force.  On 
that  day  a  company  of  French  skirmishers  crossed  the  frontier 


106  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

and  seized  a  small  custom-liouse  on  tlie  frontier  near  Saarbruck. 
Ko  resistance  was  offered.  On  tlie  20tli  a  Frencli  soldier  was 
shot  by  a  Prussian  fusileer.  On  tlie  23d  a  Prussian  force  from 
Saar-Louis  crossed  tlie  border,  and  made  a  reconnoissance  in  the 
direction  of  St.  Avoid  and  Metz.  There  was  some  skirmisliing, 
but  no  serious  engagement.  On  the  26th  there  was  another 
slight  engagement,  and  the  French  were  repulsed.  The  27th  of 
July  was  observed  as  a  day  of  fasting  and  prayer  throughout 
the  E'ortli  German  Confederation.  The  period  between  the 
declaration  of  war  and  the  1st  of  August  was  industriously 
occupied  by  the  agents  of  the  Emperor  in  circulating  hundreds 
of  thousands  of  addresses  to  the  people  of  South  Germany,  of 
Hanover,  and  of  Schleswig-Holstein,  urging  them  to  unite  with 
France  against  their  old  enemy,  Prussia,  or  at  least  to  paralyze 
her  by  their  determined  neutrality.  ISTever  was  so  vast  an 
amount  of  advice  so  perfectly  wasted.  Without  a  dissenting 
voice,  the  South  German  States — Hanover,  and  foremost  of  all 
Schleswig-Holstein — had  hastened  to  declare  their  adherence  to 
Prussia  and  Germany  in  this  war  for  God,  King,  and  Father- 
land, and  there  was  no  evidence  that,  among  those  twelve  mil- 
lions of  people,  the  Emperor  ISTapoleon  HI  had  a  single  adherent. 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  |()7 


CHAPTER    YIT. 

S  we  have  already  said,  tlie  Emperor  readied  his  head- 
quarters at  Metz  and  took  command  of  the  army  in  jDerson 
on  the  28th  of  Jnly.  King  Wilhehn  left  Berlin  for  the  frout 
with  his  chief  of  staff,  General  von  Moltke,  on  the  31st,  and, 
arriving  at  his  temporary  headquarters  at  Mayenee  on  the  2d 
of  August,  issued  the  next  day  the  following  brief  address  to  his 
troops : 

"  All  Germany  stands  united  against  a  neighboring  state, 
which  has  surprised  us  by  declaring  war  without  justification. 
The  safety  of  the  fatherland  is  threatened.  Our  honors  and  on.v 
hearths  are  at  stake.  To-day  I  assume  command  of  the  whole 
army.  I  advance  cheerfally  to  a  contest  like  that  in  which,  id 
former  times,  our  fathers,  under  similar  circumstances,  fought 
gloriously.  The  whole  fatherland  and  myself  trust  with  confi- 
dence in  you.     The  Lord  God  will  be  with  our  righteous  cause." 

On  the  1st  of  August  the  French  attacked  the  Germans  near 
Saarbruck  in  small  force,  and  after  some  fighting  were  repulsed. 

On  the  2d  of  August  the  strength  and  position  of  the  con- 
tending armies  were  reported  as  follows  : 

The  French  army. — First  Corps,  MacMahon,  45,000  men,  at 
Strasbourg.  Second  Corps,  Frossard,  30,000  men,  at  St.  Avoid . 
Third  Corps,  Bazaine,  30,000  men,  at  Metz.  Fourth  Corps, 
I'Admirault,  30,000  men,  at  Thionville.  Fifth  Corps,  De  Failly, 
30,000  men,  at  Bitche  and  Saarguemines.     Sixth  Corps,  Can 


108  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  ISTO 

robert,  30,000  men,  at  Chalons.  Seventh  Corps,  Douay,  30,000 
men,  at  Besancon  and  Belfort.  Eighth  Corps  (Guards),  Bour- 
baki,  30,000  men,  at  Metz.  Cavalry,  34,000.  Total,  309,000. 
With  artillery  and  reserve  cavalry,  about  350,000  men. 

The  left  wing  had  before  it  at  this  time  the  Moselle  and  the 
French  Nied,  the  centre  the  Saar,  and  the  right  wing  the  Lauter 
in  front. 

The  German  armies  having  been  assembled  at  camps  on  the 
Khine,  began  to  move  forward.  The  entire  regular  German 
force  consisted  of  eighteen  corjps  d'armee,  containing  40,000  men 
each  at  their  normal  strength.  The  First  Army,  under  Stein- 
metz,  had  the  First,  Seventh,  and  Eighth  Corps ;  the  Second 
Army,  under  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  the  Second,  Third,  ISTinth, 
and  Tenth  Corps  ;  the  Third  Army,  under  the  Prussian  Crown- 
Prince,  the  Fifth,  Sixth,  and  Eleventh  Corps,  and  the  two  Ba- 
varian Corps.  The  Fourth  Army,  under  the  Crown-Prince  of 
Saxony,  containing  the  Fourth  and  Twelfth  Corps,  and  the 
Saxon  and  Prussian  guard,  occupied  in  the  regular  advance  the 
right  of  the  Crown-Prince ;  the  Fifth  Army,  under  General 
Werden,  had  the  "Wurtemberg  and  Baden  divisions,  engaged  in 
the  siege  of  Strasbourg ;  the  reserves  were  composed  of  the 
Sixth  Army,  under  the  Grand  Duke  of  Mecklenberg-Sehwerin, 
on  the  Bhine,  and  the  Seventh  Army,  under  Generals  von  Can- 
stein  at  Berlin,  and  Loewenfeld  in  Silesia.  The  defence  of  the 
northern  coast  was  committed  to  these  reserves.  The  advance 
to  the  French  lines  was  made  by  the  First  Army,  against  the 
French  left  wing ;  Second  Army,  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  against 
the  centre ;  and  the  Third  Army,  Crown-Prince  of  Prussia, 
against  the  French  right  wing. 

The  French  forces  being  scattered  over  a  line  of  eighty-five 
to  ninety  miles  in  length,  MacMahon,  after  a  council  at  Metz, 
received  orders  to  make  a  fiank  march  toward  De  Failly,  at 
Bitche.     He  sent  the  corps  of  General  Douay  to  "Weissenburg 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  109 

to  cover  the  movement.  General  Frossard,  with  the  Second 
Corps,  advanced  on  Saarbruck,  and,  after  seven  hours'  fighting, 
drove  out  the  three  battalions  of  infantry,  three  squadrons  of 
cavalry,  and  three  guns,  which  formed  the  German  force  there. 
The  Emperor  was  present  with  the  Prince  Imperial. 

On  his  return  to  Metz,  after  the  battle,  the  Emperor  sent  the 
following  despatch  to  the  Empress  : 

"  Louis  has  received  his  baptism  of  fire.  He  was  admirably 
cool  and  little  impressed.  A  division  of  Frossard's  command 
carried  the  heights  overlooking  the  Saar.  The  Prussians  made 
a  brief  resistance.  Louis  and  I  were  in  front,  where  the  bullets 
fell  about  us.  Louis  keeps  a  ball  he  picked  up.  The  soldiers 
wept  at  his  tranquillity.     We  lost  an  officer  and  ten  men." 

On  the  3d  of  August  the  French  commenced  fortifying  the 
Spicheren  hills,  back  of  Saarbruck.  The  next  day,  August  4th, 
the  Third  German  Army,  under  the  Crown-Prince  of  Prussia, 
crossed  the  Lauter  and  advanced  upon  the  corps  of  General 
Douay,  posted  behind  the  fortifications  of  Weissenburg,  thus 
entering  upon  French  territory  as  the  French  had  the  day  pre- 
vious invaded  Germany.  A  glance  at  the  map  and  a  reference 
to  the  position  of  the  two  armies  will  show  that  this  movement 
was  made  by  the  advance-guard  of  the  German  army  of  the  left, 
under  the  Crown-Prince  of  Prussia,  against  the  French  right, 
under  Marshal  MacMahon.  The  defences  behind  which  the 
French  general  and  his  troops  were  posted  extended  from  the 
town  of  Lauterburg,  northwesterly  to  "Weissenburg.  After  cross- 
ing the  Phine  at  Maxau,  the  Baden  and  Wurtemberg  troops 
marched  against  Lauterburg ;  the  Fifth  and  Eleventh  Prussian 
Corps  marched  west  of  the  Phine  against  the  centre  of  the 
works  ;  and  the  Bavarian  Fourth  Division  against  Weissenburg. 
The  first  shot  was  fired  at  8.30  A.  m.  The  Crown-Prince  stood 
on  the  Schweigen  hill,  north  of  the  town.     Weissenburg  was 


110  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   18'70 

occupied  by  the  Seventy-fonrtli  Frencli  regiment,  and  on  the 
Gaisberg  bill,  south  of  the  place,  were  the  First  Turco  regiment, 
Fifth  and  Fiftieth  line,  three  light  batteries  of  artiller}^,  and  one 
of  mitraillenrs.  These  troops  also  occupied  Altstadt,  on  the 
right  of  the  French  position.  Altstadt  was  quickly  taken  by 
the  Ninth  Prussian  Division ;  Weissenburg,  after  sharp  resist- 
ance, by  the  Bavarians  and  some  battalions  of  the  Forty-seventh 
and  Forty-eighth  regiments,  and  the  Grenadiers  marched  against 
the  Schafenburg  hill,  where  the  mitraillenrs  were  stationed. 
The  mitrailleurs  did  not,  in  this  action,  do  the  terrible  execution 
expected  of  them  ;  the  German  columns  steadily  advanced  with- 
out firing  a  shot,  and  the  position  Avas  taken.  There  was  no 
fight  at  Lauterburg,  which  was  found  to  be  unoccupied  by  the 
French,  and,  after  midday,  all  the  German  troops  were  concen- 
trated for  the  action  at  "Weisscnburg.  The  defeat  of  the  French 
became  a  rout,  which  was  continued  in  disorder  to  "Woerth. 
Thus  in  this  first  combat  between  the  veteran  troops  of  the 
French  and  the  citizen-soldiers  of  Prussia,  the  former  were  not 
only  completely  beaten,  bu.t  showed  an  ominous  lack  of  steadi- 
ness and  morale.  The  German  losses  were  over  700  in  killed 
and  wounded.  The  French  losses  were  much  greater  in  killed 
and  wounded,  and  one  gun  and  1,000  prisoners  were  also  taken 
from  them. 

The  report  of  this  action,  made  to  the  King  by  the  Crown- 
Prince  of  Prussia,  adds  the  following  particulars  : 

"  The  French  infantry  in  action  at  "Weisscnburg  and  Gais- 
berg belonged  to  the  First  Corps,  the  cavalry  to  the  Fifth  Corps. 
Except  an  attack  undertaken  to  cover  the  retreat,  the  French 
stood  on  the  defensive  during  the  whole  engagement.  Most  of 
the  French  troops  in  the  engagement  conducted  themselves  with 
much  spirit,  and  held  their  ground  manfully.  Only  after  retreat 
had  become  inevitable  did  they  appear  as  if  seized  by  a  sudden 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  HX 

panic.  At  tliis  crisis  troops  of  tlie  Corps  MacMalion,  wliicli 
liad  not  yet  been  under  fire,  threw  away  tlieir  caps,  knapsacks, 
tents,  &c.,  and  decamped,  leaving  even  their  provisions  behind 
them.  The  Algerian  troops  exhibited  the  same  temper  as  the 
French.  There  was  no  perceptible  difference  between  them  and 
their  European  comrades. 

"  The  infantry,  whose  battalions  were  not  above  800  strong, 
opened  fire  at  1,500  paces.  Tliis  makes  hitting  a  mere  matter 
of  chance,  and  has  a  tendency  to  demoralize  a  man  in  the  use 
of  his  weapon.  Our  practice  of  forming  company  columns  and 
outflanking  the  enemy's  tirailleurs  has  fully  answered.  The 
French  cavalry,  even  if  numerically  equal  to  our  own,  invari- 
ably declined  attack.  Our  artillery  fired  slower,  but  much  more 
effectively  than  the  French.  The  mitrailleuse  battery  fired  three 
rounds  at  a  distance  of  1,800  paces  against  our  artillery,  but  did 
no  damage.     It  was  soon  silenced  by  our  guns." 

The  next  day,  in  their  onw^ard  march,  the  Third  German 
Army  (the  left  wing)  found  all  the  villages  filled  •with  French 
wounded,  and  the  impression  made  by  the  defeat  at  Weissenburg 
far  more  profound  than  they  had  expected.  The  inhabitants  of 
these  villages  had  believed  a  defeat  of  the  French  impossible. 
Leaving  the  left  wing  of  the  German  forces  to  pursue  their 
enemy  to  Woerth,  let  us  turn  our  attention  westward  along  the 
German  line  to  Homburg,  in  Rhenish-Bavaria,  almost  forty 
miles  distant,  where  the  German  centre  (the  Second  Army, 
under  Prince  Friedrich  Karl)  are  preparing  to  cross  the  Saar. 
The  Prince,  who  is  accounted  the  ablest  of  the  Prussian  gen- 
erals, issued,  on  the  5th  of  August,  the  following  order  to  his 
troops : 

"  Soldiers  :  By  command  of  the  King  you  begin  to-day  the 
forward  march  against  the  enemy.     The  sons  of  Prussia  have 


112  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   18'70 

always  distinguished  themselves  in  presence  of  the  enemy.  On 
this  occasion,  too,  you  will  win  laurels,  so  that  the  fatherland 
can  look  upon  you  with  pride.  Show,  by  a  calm  demeanor 
toward  friend  and  foe,  that  you  are  worthy  children  of  Prussia." 

The  point  toward  which  this  army,  like  the  others,  is  march- 
ing, is  Metz,  then  the  headquarters  of  the  French  armies  ;  but  all 
three  of  the  armies  on  the  frontier  are  destined  to  see  severe 
fighting  before  they  reach  that  city. 

The  First  German  Army,  under  the  veteran  General  von 
Steinmetz,  also  move  forw^ard  upon  Saarbruck,  crossing  the  Saar 
on  the  5th  of  August,  and  as  they  are  about  to  come  into  con- 
flict with  the  enemy,  the  lion-hearted  old  commander  addresses 
them  in  these  words  : 

"  Soldiers  :  You  Vil]  very  shortly  have  the  opportunity  of 
standing  in  presence  of  the  enemy.  "With  God's  help  you  will 
maintain  your  old  fame,  and  add  new  laurels  to  those  on  your 
standards  of  the  year  1866,  when  I  had  the  "honor  to  lead  you  ; 
and  the  fatherland  w'ill  look  with  pride  upon  her  sons.  Show 
that  you  belong  to  an  army  worthy  of  the  civilization  of  cen- 
turies, by  a  calm  and  friendly  demeanor,  temperate  bearing, 
respecting  the  positions  of  strangers,  whether  friend  or  foe.  On 
each  one  of  you  rests  the  responsibility  of  maintaining  the  honor 
and  fame  of  the  whole  fatherland." 

Sooner  even  than  their  commander  had  expected,  the  First 
German  Army  was  called  to  a  fierce  and  bloody  battle ;  one 
fought  at  such  odds,  and  under  such  discouraging  circumstances, 
that  it  is  a  wonder  that  the  Germans  could  ever  have  won  the 
victory.  The  losses  on  both  sides  wxre  very  heavy ;  heaviest, 
of  course,  on  the  German  side,  since  they  were  the  attacking 
party,  and  had  to  climb  the  very  steep  Spicheren  hills  under 


BETWEEN  FRANCE   AND   GERMANY.  II3 

a  terrible  fire ;  but  their  victory  was  complete.  The  battle  is 
known  as  the  battle  of  Spicheren  heights,  or  as  the  battle  of 
Forbach.  The  ofiicial  report  of  the  battle  by  von  Steinmetz 
states  the  facts  without  exaggeration,  and  with  more  complete 
fairness  than  most  reports  of  its  class.     It  is  as  follows  : 

"  On  the  forenoon  of  August  6,  the  Seventh  Corps  d'Armee 
pushed  its  vanguard  to  Herchenbach,  one  and  a  quarter  German 
miles  northwest  of  Saarbruck,  with  outposts  stretching  as  far  as 
the  river  Saar.  The  preceding  night  the  enemy  had  evacuated 
its  position  on  the  drilling-ground  of  Saarbruck. 

"Toward  noon  the  cavalry  division  under  General  Khein- 
haben  passed  through  the  town.  Two  squadrons  formed  the 
van.  The  moment  they  reached  the  highest  point  of  the  drill- 
ing-ground, and  became  visible  to  spectators  on  the  south,  they 
were  fired  at  from  the  hills  near  Spicheren. 

"  The  drilling-ground  ridge  overhangs  a  deep  valley  stretch- 
ing toward  Forbach  and  Spicheren,  and  bordered  on  the  other 
side  by  the  steep  and  partly-wooded  height  named  after  the 
latter  village.  These  hills,  rising  in  almost  perpendicular  ascent 
several  hundred  feet  above  the  valley,  form  a  natural  fortress, 
which  needed  no  addition  from  art  to  be  all  but  impregnable. 
Like  so  many  bastions,  the  mountains  project  into  the  valley, 
facing  it  on  all  sides,  and  afibrding  the  strongest  imaginable 
position  for  defence.  French  officers  who  were  taken  prisoners 
on  this  spot  confess  to  having  smiled  at  the  idea  of  the  Prussians 
attacking  them  in  this  stronghold.  There  was  not  a  man  in  the 
Second  Frencb  Corps  who  was  not  persuaded  in  his  own  mind 
that  to  attempt  the  Spicheren  hills  must  lead  to  the  utter  anni- 
hilation of  the  besiegers. 

"  Between  12  and  1  o'clock  the  Fourteenth  Division  arrived 
at  Saarbruck.  Immediately  proceeding  south,  it  encountered  a 
strong  force  of  the  enemy  in  the  valley  between  Saarbi'uck  and 
8 


11^  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   ISTO 

Spiclieren,  and  opened  fire  fortliwitli.  Upon  tliis  General  Frofe- 
sard,  wlio  was  in  the  act  of  withdrawing  a  portion  of  liis  troops 
when  the  Prussians  arrived,  turned  ronnd  and  reoccnpied  the 
Spicheren  hills  with,  his  entire  force.  A  division  of  the  Third 
Corps,  under  General  Bazaine,  came  up  in  time  to  support  Mm. 

"  The  Fourteentli  Division  at  first  had  to  deal  with  far  supe- 
rior numbers.  To  limit  the  attack  to  the  enemy's  front  would 
have  been  useless.  General  von  Kamecke,  therefore,  wliile 
eno-af>"ing  the  front,  also  attempted  to  turn  the  left  flank  of  the 
enemy  by  Stiring  ;  but  the  five  battalions  be  could  spare  for  this 
operation  were  too  weak  to  make  an  impression  upon  the  much 
stronger  numbers  of  the  French.  Two  successive  attacks  on 
his  left  were  repulsed  by  General  Frossard.  Toward  3  o'clock, 
when  all  the  troops  of  the  division  were  under  fire,  the  engage- 
ment assumed  a  very  sharps  and  serious  aspect. 

"  Eventually,  however,  the  roar  of  the  cannon  attracted 
several  other  Prussian  detacbments.  .  The  division  under  Gen- 
eral von  Barkenow  was  the  first  to  be  drawn  to  the  spot.  Two 
of  its  batteries  came  dashing  up  at  full  speed  to  relieve  their 
struggling  comrades.  They  were  promptly  followed  by  the 
Fortietb  Infantry,  under  Colonel  Kex,  and  three  squadrons  of 
the  ]N"intli  Hussars.  At  this  moment  the  vanguard  of  the  Fifth 
Division  was  espied  on  the  Winterberg  Hill.  General  Stiilp- 
nao-el,  whose  van  had  been  stationed  at  Sultzbach  the  same 
morning,  had  been  ordered  by  General  von  Alvensleben  to 
march  his  entire  division  in  the  direction  from  which  the  sound 
of  cannon  proceeded.  Two  batteries  advanced  in  a  forced  march 
on  the  high  road.  The  infantry  were  partly  sent  by  rail  from 
IsTuenkirchen  to  Saarbruck. 

"  At  about  3.30  o'clock  the  division  of  Kamecke  had  been 
sufiiciently  reenforced  to  enable  General  von  Gciben,  who  had 
arrived  in  the  meantime  and  assumed  the  command,  to  make  a 
vigorous  onslaught  on  the  enemy's  front.     The  chief  aim  of  the 


BE^'WEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  II5 

attack  was  tlie  wooded  portion  of  tlie  declivity.  The  Fortieth 
Infantry,  supported  on  its  right  by  troops  of  the  Fourteenth 
Division,  and  on  its  left  by  four  battalions  of  the  Fifth  Division, 
made  the  assault.  A  reserve  was  formed  of  some  battalions  of 
the  Fifth  and  Sixteenth  Divisions  as  they  came  up. 

"  The  charge  was  a  success.  The  wood  was  occupied,  the 
enemy  expelled.  Penetrating  further,  always  on  the  ascent,  the 
troops  pushed  the  French  before  them  as  far  as  the  southern 
outskirts  of  the  wood.  Here  the  French  made  a  stand,  and, 
combiniug  the  three  arms  of  the  service  for  a  united  attack, 
endeavored  to  retrieve  the  day.  But  our  infantry  were  not  to 
be  shaken.  At  this  juncture  the  artillery  of  the  Fifth  Division 
accomplished  a  rare  and  most  daring  feat.  Two  batteries  liter- 
ally clambered  up  the  hills  of  Spicheren  by  a  narrow  and  pre- 
cipitous mountain-path.  "With  their  help  a  fresh  attack  of  the 
enemy  was  repulsed.  A  flank  attack  directed  against  our  left 
from  Aislingen  and  Spicheren  was  warded  off  in  time  by  bat- 
talions of  the  Fifth  Division  stationed  in  reserve. 

"  The  fighting,  which  for  hours  had  been  conducted  with  the 
utmost  obstinacy  on  both  sides,  now  reached  its  climax.  Once 
more  the  enemy,  superior  still  in  numbers,  rallied  his  entire 
forces  for  a  grand  and  impetuous  charge.  It  was  his  third 
attack  after  we  had  occupied  the  wood  ;  but,  like  the  preceding 
ones,  this  last  effort  was  shortened  by  the  imperturbable  calm- 
ness of  our  infantry  and  artillery.  Like  waves  dashing  and 
breaking  against  a  rock,  the  enemy's  battalions  were  scattered 
by  our  gallant  troops.  After  this  last  failure  the  enemy  beat  a 
rapid  retreat ;  fifty-two  French  battalions,  with  the  artillery  of 
an  entire  corps,  stationed  in  an  almost  unassailable  position,  had 
thus  been  defeated  by  twenty-seven  Prussian  battalions,  sup- 
ported by  but  the  artillery  of  one  division.  It  was  a  brilliant 
victory  indeed.  We  had  every  thing  against  us — numbers, 
guns,  and  the  natm-e  of  the  locality — yet  we  prevailed. 


116  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   ISIO 

"Darkness  fast  setting  in  afforded  its  valuable  aid  to  the 
enemy  in  effecting  his  retreat.  To  cover  this  backward  move- 
ment the  French  artillery  were  stationed  on  the  hills  skirting  the 
battle-field  on  the  south,  where  they  kept  up  a  continuous  but 
harmless  fire  for  a  considerable  time. 

"  The  ground  was  too  difficult  for  the  cavalry  to  take  any 
part  in  the  action.  Nevertheless,  the  fruits  of  the  victory  were 
very  remarkable.  The  corps  under  General  Frossard  being 
entirely  demoralized,  dispersed.  The  road  it  took  in  its  hasty 
flight  was  marked  by  numerous  wagons  with  jDrovisions  and 
clothing;  the  woods  were  filled  with  hosts  of  stragglers,  wan- 
dering about  in  a  purposeless  way,  and  large  stores  and  quan- 
tities of  goods  of  every  description  fell  into  our  hands. 

"  AVhile  the  battle  was  raging  at  Spicheren  Hill,  the  Thir- 
teenth Division  crossed  the  Saar  at  Werden,  occupied  Forbach, 
seized  vast  magazines  of  food  and  clothing,  and  thus  forced 
General  Frossard,  whose  retreat  was  covered  by  two  divisions 
of  General  Bazaine,  which  had  come  up  for  this  purpose,  to 
withdraw  to  the  southwest,  and  leave  free  the  road  to  St. 
Avoid. 

"The  losses  were  very  serious  on  both  sides.  The  Fifth 
Division  alone  has  230  dead,  and  about  1,800  wounded.  The 
Twelfth  Infantry  has  82  officers  and  800  men  dead  or  wounded ; 
next  to  this  the  Fortieth,  Eighth,  Forty-eighth,  Thirty-ninth,  and 
Seventy-fourth  have  suffered  most.  The  batteries,  too,  have 
encountered  terrible  loss.  The  number  of  killed  and  wounded 
on  the  enemy's  side  is  at  least  equal  to  our  own.  The  un- 
wounded  prisoners  in  our  hands  already  exceed  2,000,  and  are 
increasing  hourly.  "We  have  also  captured  40  pontoons  and  the 
tents  of  the  camp." 

A  correspondent  of  the  'New  York  Tribune,  who  was  on  the 
field  four  days  later,  and  carefully  gleaned  the  particulars  of  the 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


117 


"battle,  sent  to  that  paper  a  very  graphic  description  of  it.     Un- 
der date  of  August  11,  he  says : 

"  Yesterday  I  went  over  the  field  of  Spicheren,  where  there 
was  a  very  sharp  fight  on  Saturday — in  fact,  what  would  have 
been  called  a  battle  before  the  present  century,  there  having 
been  more  than  20,000  men  on  each  side  engaged.  Taking  the 
road  from  Saarbruck  to  Forbach,  one  climbs  a  hill  which  com- 
mands the  town,  and  which  w^as  used  by  the  French,  in  their 
attack,  as  a  place  for  their  batteries.  Once  on  top  of  the  hill, 
a  level  plateau,  from  1,000  to  1,200  yards  deep,  extends  as  far 
as  the  hills  which  rise  to  the  left  of  the  village  of  Spicheren. 
On  these  hills  the  French  took  position  on  Saturday  last,  their 
line  extending  for  about  a  mile  from  the  hills,  across  the  high- 
road for  Forbach,  in  front  of  a  manufactory,  and  down  to  the 
railway-cutting.  They  were  enabled  completely  to  sweep  the 
plain  in  front  of  them ;  and,  looking  at  its  level,  unbroken  ex- 
panse, one  wonders  how  a  single  Prussian  ever  passed  it  alive. 

"  The  French  position  on  the  hills  was  naturally  a  very 
strong  one,  and  that  on  the  plain  had  been  strengthened  by  an 
intrenchment  thrown  up  in  front  of  the  troops.  About  10 
o'clock  in  the  morning  the  Prussians  began  the  attack  with 
eight  pieces  of  artillery  in  position  on  the  crest  of  the  hill  above 
Saarbruck.  But  these  pieces  did  small  execution,  as  their  fire 
had  little  effect  on  the  French  sharpshooters  on  the  rocks  above 
them. 

"  After  about  an  hour  of  artillery-fire  from  the  Prussians, 
with  slight  effect,  the  heights  were  ordered  to  be  stormed  by 
two  battalions  of  the  Fourteenth  Eegiment  (from  Pomerania) ; 
these  men,  some  2,000  strong,  flung  down  their  knapsacks  and 
rushed  across  the  intervening  plain  and  up  the  hill,  the  artillery 
and  the  rest  of  the  division  covering  the  advance  by  their  fire. 
But  the  French  fire  from  the  brow  of  the  hill  was  too  fearful. 


118  THE   GEEAT  WAR  OF   1810 

and,  in  spite  of  the  leading  companies  having  actually  reached 
the  top,  it  was  impossible  to  drive  out  the  French  ;  nor  was  the 
attack  on  the  plain  directed  against  the  village  of  Spicheren 
more  successful.  The  French  were  strongly  posted  in  a  manu- 
factory at  the  entrance  to  the  village,  and  swept  all  the  plain 
for  nearly  a  mile  with  their  Chassepots.  After  a  little  time  the 
Seventy-fourth  Eegiment,  Hanoverian  (this  should  he  noted  as 
showing  how  little  foundation  there  is  for  the  idea  that  the 
Hanoverians  will  not  fight  against  the  French),  went  at  the 
heights  again.  They  succeeded  in  gaining  the  top,  but  could 
only  just  maintain  themselves  there,  and  were  thinking  of  retir- 
ing, as  night  was  coming  on  and  the  French  had  brought  three 
mitrailleuses,  which  did  much  execution  at  close  quarters,  into 
action.  Suddenly  drums  were  heard  on  the  right  of  the  French 
position,  in  a  wood  which  they  believed  would  eflPectually  pro- 
tect their  left  flank.  This  was  the  advance-guard  of  General 
Zastrow's  corps,  and  their  arrival  settled  the  battle,  the  French 
being  completely  outflanked,  and  compelled  to  retire  in  some 
disorder  to  Forbach,  losing  many  prisoners,  as  some  of  their  men 
were  caught  between  the  two  bodies  of  Prussians. 

"  But  the  Prussian  victory  was  not  obtained  without  terrible 
loss  on  their  side.  Of  some  20,000  men  engaged,  there  were 
over  2,000  killed  and  wounded,  or  more  than  one  in  ten.  On 
Wednesday,  when  I  visited  the  heights,  there  were  still  many 
French  and  Prussians  unburied,  some  of  them  looking  as  if  only 
asleep.  "What  has  been  said  about  the  frightful  eifect  of  the 
Chassepot  bullet  does  not  seem  to  have  been  exaggerated,  for 
niany  of  the  wounds  on  the  Prussian  bodies  Avere  horrible  to 
look  at.  I  noticed  one  man  whose  whole  face  was  one  big 
wound,  a  ball  having  struck  him  just  under  the  eye  and  made 
a  hole  one  could  have  put  one's  fist  into.  There  was  little  con- 
tortion in  the  bodies,  as  was  to  be  expected,  most  of  the  wounds 
being  gunshot  ones.     There  was,  however,  some  hand-to-hand 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


119 


fighting  in  the  final  struggle  for  the  top  of  the  hill.  The  mus- 
kets and  bayonets  which  covered  the  ground  were  broken  and 
bent  with  blows  given  and  received.  Even  the  French  officers 
taken  prisoners  admit  the  great  dash  and  bravery  shown  by  the 
Prussians  in  their  attack  on  hills  which  I  can  say  from  expe- 
rience were  diflicult  to  climb  without  an  alpenstock.  They  own 
that  the  mitrailleuses  used  by  the  Erench  were  very  deadly  at 
close  quarters,  but  they  affirm  that  at  any.  distance  the  balls  fly 
60  wide  that  they  are  little  to  be  dreaded.  Though  some  of  the 
bodies  are  still  unburied,  most  of  them  are  interred,  and  pious 
hands  have  raised  rough  wooden  crosses  above  the  graves,  with 
the  names  of  those  who  sleep  below  inscribed  on  them.  Fros- 
sard's  division  made  so  precipitate  a  retreat  from  Forbach,  that 
they  left  many  baggage-wagons  and  the  whole  of  their  pontoon- 
train  behind  them.  Thus  it  happened  that  they  did  not  break 
the  rail vf ay  up  at  Forbach ;  not  a  rail,  as  far  as  I  can  see — and 
I  have  been  all  along  the  line  from  St.  Avoid  to  Saarbruck — has 
been  disturbed." 

The  casualties  of  this  battle,  as  subsequently  ascertained, 
were  :  General  Francois,  killed  ;  the  French  (Frossard's  Second 
Corps)  retreated  in  great  disorder,  losing  3,000  to  4,000  prison- 
ers, and  probably  as  many  more  in  killed  and  wounded ;  quan- 
tities of  stores,  trains,  and  camps  were  captured.  The  Fifth 
German  Division  lost  239  dead,  and  1,800  wounded;  the  Twelfth 
Regiment,  832  dead  and  wounded  ;  other  regiments  and  the  bat- 
teries also  lost  very  heavily. 

"While  this  severe  fighting  was  in  progress  between  Saar- 
bruck and  Forbach,  and  the  First  German  Army  were  gallantly 
and  successfully  struggling  against  superior  numbers,  a  greater 
and  more  destru.ctive  battle  was  raging  the  same  day  between 
the  Third  German  Army  (the  left  wing,  commanded  by  the 
Crown-Prince,  Friedrich  Wilhelm,  of  Prussia)  and  the  French 


120  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

riglit  wing,  led  by  Marshal  MacMalion,  the  bravest  and  ablest 
of  the  French  generals. 

We  left  the  Crown-Prince  in  close  pursuit  of  the  French, 
whom  he  had  defeated  and  routed  on  the  4th  of  August  at  Weis- 
senbnrg,  and  who  fled  toward  "Woerth.  This  is  a  village  of 
about  1,300  inhabitants,  on  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Yosges, 
twelve  miles  S.  "W.  of  Weissenburg.  On  the  heights  west  of 
Woerth  the  French  found  a  favorable  situation  to  make  a  stand 
against  the  Crown-Prince,  and  being  largely  reenforced,  and 
commanded  by  MacMahon  in  person,  they  were  sanguine  of 
victory.  Nowhere  during  the  war  did  the  French  troops  mani- 
fest more  determined  and  desperate  valor,  and  nowhere  did  they 
approach  more  nearly  to  a  great  success  than  in  this  battle. 
The  Crown-Prince's  report  of  it  does  full  justice  to  the  bravery 
and  skill  of  his  antagonist.     He  says : 

"  On  the  5th  of  August  reliable  intelligence  was  received  at 
tlie  headquarters  of  the  Third  Army,  that  Marshal  MacMahon 
was  busily  engaged  in  concentrating  his  troops  on  the  hills  west 
of  Woerth,  and  that  he  was  being  reenforced  by  constant  arrivals 
by  railway.  In  consequence  of  these  advices  it  was  resolved  to 
lose  no  time  in  effecting  a  change  of  front,  which  had  been  de- 
termined upon  a  few  days  previously,  but  not  yet  executed. 
The  Second  Bavarian  and  the  Fifth  Prussian  Corps  were  to 
remain  in  their  respective  positions  at  Lembach  and  Prensch- 
dorf ;  the  Eleventh  Prussian  Corps  was  to  wheel  to  the  right 
and  encamp  at  Holschloch,  with  van  pushed  forward  toward  the 
river  Saner ;  and  the  First  Bavarian  Corps  was  to  advance  into 
the  neighborhood  of  Lobsann  and  Lampertsloch.  The  Cavalry 
Division  remained  at  Schonenburg,  fronting  west.  The  Corps 
Werder  (Wiirtemberg  and  Baden  Divisions)  marched  to  Eeimers- 
willer,  with  patrols  facing  the  Haguenau  forest. 

"The  Fifth  Prussian   Corps,   on  the  evening  of  the   5th, 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  121 

pushed  its  van  from  its  bivouac  at  Prenschdorf  on  to  the  height 
east  of  Woerth.  On  the  other  side  of  the  Sauer  numerous 
camp-fires  of  the  enemy  were  visible  during  the  night,  the 
French  outposts  occupying  the  heights  west  of  the  Sauer,  oppo- 
site Woerth  and  Gunstett.  At  dawn  of  the  6th  skirmishes  com- 
menced along  the  line  of  the  outposts,  which  caused  the  Prussian 
vanguard  to  send  a  battalion  into  Woerth.  At  8  o'clock  steady 
firing  was  heard  on  the  right  (Bavarian)  flank.  This,  and  the 
fire  the  enemy  directed  against  Woerth,  caused  us  to  station  the 
entire  artillery  of  the  Fifth  Prussian  Corps  on  the  heights  east 
of  this  place,  and  try  to  relieve  the  Bavarians.  A  little  later 
the  Fifth  Corps  was  ordered  to  break  off  the  engagement,  it 
being  the  intention  of  our  generals  to  begin  the  battle  against 
the  concentrated  forces  of  the  enemy  only  when  the  change  of 
front  had  been  effected,  and  the  entire  German  army  was  ready 
to  be  brought  into  action.  At  7.45  o'clock  the  Fourth  Division 
(Bothmer)  of  the  Second  Bavarian  Corps  (Hartmann),  induced 
by  the  heavy  fire  of  the  outposts  near  Woerth,  had  left  their 
bivouac  at  Lembach,  and,  proceeding  by  Mattstall  and  Langen- 
Salzbach,  after  a  sharp  engagement  penetrated  as  far  as  I^esch- 
willer,  where  they  spread,  fronting  to  the  south.  At  10.30 
o'clock  this  Bavarian  Corps,  supposing  the  order  to  break  off 
the  engagement,  which  had  been  given  to  the  Fifth  Prussians, 
to  extend  to  themselves,  withdrew  to  Langen-Salzbach.  Tlie 
enemy  being  thus  no  longer  pressed  on  his  left,  turned  all  his 
strength  with  the  greatest  energy  against  the  Fifth  Prussians 
at  Woerth.  Eeenforcements  were  continually  thrown  in  by  rail. 
Finding  the  enemy  in  earnest  on  this  point,  and  perceiving  the 
Eleventh  Prussians  to  approach  vigorously  in  the  direction  of 
Gunstett,  the  Fifth  Prussians  immediately  proceeded  to  the 
attack,  so  as  to  defeat  the  enemy,  if  possible,  before  he  had  time 
to  concentrate.  The  Twentieth  Brigade  was  the  first  to  defile 
through  Woerth,  and  marched  toward  Elsasshausen  and  Frosch- 


122  THE  GREAT  WAR  OP   1810 

wilier ;  it  was  promptly  followed  by  tlie  Nineteenth.  Brigade. 
Tlie  Frencli  stood  tlieir  ground  with  the  utmost  pertinacity,  and 
their  fire  was  crushing.  Whatever  the  gallantry  of  our  Tenth 
DivisioUj  it  did  not  succeed  in  overcoming  the  obstinate  resist- 
ance of  the  enemy.  Eventually,  the  Ninth  Division  having  been 
drawn  into  the  fight,  the  whole  Fifth  Corps  found  itself  involved 
in  the  sanguinary  conflict  raging  along  the  heights  west  of 
Woerth. 

"At  1.15  p.  M.  orders  were  given  to  the  First  Bavarian  Corps 
(Yon  der  Tann)  to  leave  one  of  its  two  divisions  where  it  stood, 
and,  sending  on  the  other  as  quick  as  j)ossible  by  Lobsann  and 
Lampertsloch,  seize  upon  the  enemy's  front  in  the  gap  between 
the  Second  Bavarian  Corps  at  Langen-Salzbach  and  the  Fifth 
Prussian  Corps  at  Woerth.  The  Eleventh  Prussians  were  or- 
dered to  advance  to  Elsasshausen,  skirt  the  forest  of  Niederwald, 
and  operate  against  Froschwiller.  The  "Wiirtemberg  Division 
was  to  proceed  to  Gunstett  and  follow  the  Eleventh  Prussians 
across  the  Sauer ;  the  Baden  Division  was  to  remain  at  Sauer- 
burg. 

"  At  2  o'clock  the  combat  had  extended  along  the  entire  line. 
It  was  a  severe  struggle.  The  Fifth  Prussians  fought  at  "Woerth, 
the  Eleventh  Prussians  near  Elsasshausen.  In  his  strong  posi- 
tion on  and  near  the  heights  of  Froschwiller,  the  enemy  offered 
us  a  most  intense  resistance.  The  First  Bavarian  Corps  reached 
Gorsdorfi,  but  could  not  lay  hold  of  the  enemy  fast  enough ; 
the  Second  Bavarian  had  to  exchange  the  exhausted  troo23S  of 
the  Division  Bothmer,  who  had  spent  their  ammunition  in  the 
fierce  fights  of  the  morning,  for  the  Division  "Walther.  "While 
the  Division  Bothmer  fell  back,  the  Brigade  Scleich  of  the 
Division  "Walther  marched  upon  Langen-Salzbach.  The  Wiir- 
temberg Division  approached  Gunstett. 

"  At  2  o'clock  fresh  orders  were  given.  The  Wiirtemberg 
Division  was  to  tnrn  toward  Eeichshofen  by  way  of  Ebersbach, 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  123 

to  threaten  the  enemy's  line  of  retreat.  The  Pirst  Bavarian  was 
to  attack  at  once  and  dislodge  tlie  enemy  from  his  position  at 
Froschwiller  and  in  the  neighboring  vineyards.  Between  2  and 
3  o'clock  the  enemy,  bringing  fresh  troops  into  the  field,  and  ad- 
vancing with  consummate  bravery,  assumed  the  offensive  against 
the  Fifth  and  Eleventh  Prussian  Corps.  But  all  his  assaults 
were  beaten  off.  Thus  the  fight  was  briskly  going  on  at  Woerth, 
neither  party  making  much  progress,  till  at  length  the  brilliant 
attack  of  the  First  Bavarian  Corps  at  Gorsdorif,  and  of  the  First 
"Wiirtemberg  Brigade  on  the  extreme  left  at  Ebersbach,  decided 
the  fate  of  the  day. 

"  Toward  the  close  of  the  battle  the  French  attempted  a 
grand  cavalry  charge  against  the  Fifth  and  Eleventh  Corps, 
especially  against  the  artillery  of  these  troops.  Our  artillery 
awaited  them  in  a  stationary  position,  and  repulsed  them  with 
severe  loss.  The  infantry  did  so  likewise.  This  last  experiment 
having  failed,  the  enemy,  at  4  o'clock,  evacuated  Froschwiller, 
and  retreated  through  the  mountain-passes  in  the  direction  of 
Bitche.  The  cavalry  of  all  our  divisions  were  despatched  in 
pursuit. 

"  The  cavalry  division  which,  on  account  of  the  difficult 
ground,  which  allowed  little  scope  for  its  manoeuvres,  had  been 
left  at  Schonburg,  were  ordered,  at  3.30  o'clock,  to  advance  to 
Gunstett.  On  the  morning  of  the  Yth  this  cavalry  cor23S  began 
the  pursuit  in  the  direction  of  Ingweiler  and  Bronstweiler.  All 
the  troops  who  had  taken  part  in  the  engagement  bivouacked 
on  the  battle-field,  the  cavalry  at  Gunstett,  the  Baden  Division 
at  Sauerburg. 

"  Our  losses  are  great,  but  cannot,  as  yet,  be  exactly  esti- 
mated. The  enemy  lost  5,000  unwounded  prisoners,  thirty  guns, 
six  mitrailleuses,  and  two  eagles.  The  enemy's  troops  arrayed 
against  us  were  General  JVIacMahon's  army,  and  the  Second  and 
Third  Divisions  of  the  Sixth  Corps." 


124:  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

The  Frencli  attempted  to  make  a  stand  at  Niederbronn  witli 
tbeir  artilleiy,  but  the  guns  were  captured  by  the  Bavarian 
troops,  and  active  pursuit  was  made  on  all  the  roads  by  the 
German  forces,  the  French  flying  in  confusion.  Tlie  military 
chest  of  the  Fourth  French  Division  was  captured.  At  Saverne, 
twenty-five  miles  S.  "W".  of  Woerth,  Marshal  MacMahon  rallied 
his  disheartened  troops,  and  from  thence,  on  the  Yth  of  August, 
despatched  his  official  report  to  the  Emperor.  As  the  army  of 
the  Crown-Prince,  however,  occupied  the  territory  between  him 
and  Metz,  his  communication  with  the  Emperor  was  broken, 
and  was  not  resumed  for  several  days ;  so  that,  for  ten  days  or 
more,  the  right  wing  of  the  French  army  was  entirely  cut  off 
from  the  remainder. 

The  Marshal's  report  was  as  follows  : 

"  Savekne,  August  7. 
"  Sere  :  I  have  the  honor  to  acquaint  your  Majesty,  that,  on 
the  6th  of  August,  after  having  been  obliged  to  evacuate  "Weis- 
senburg  on  the  previous  evening,  the  First  Corps,  with  the  object 
of  covering  the  raihvay  from  Strasbourg  to  Bitsche,  and  the  prin- 
cipal roads  connecting  the  eastern  and  the  western  slopes  of  the 
Yosges,  occupied  the  following  positions :  The  First  Division 
was  placed,  its  right  in  advance  of  Freichsweiller,  and  its  left 
in  the  direction  of  Keichshoffen,  resting  upon  a  wood  which 
covers  that  village.  Two  companies  were  detached  to  Neun- 
viller,  and  one  company  to  Joegersthal.  The  Third  Division 
occupied,  with  the  First  Brigade,  some  low  hills  which  run  from 
Freichsweiller  and  slope  toward  Guersdorff.  The  Second  Bri- 
gade rested  its  left  on  Freichsweiller,  and  its  right  on  the  village 
of  Elsasshausen.  The  Fourth  Brigade  formed  an  uneven  line 
to  the  right  of  the  Third  Division,  its  First  Brigade  facing 
toward  Gunstedt,  and  its  Second  Brigade  opposite  the  village 
of  Marsbroun,  which,  on  account  of  insufficient  strength,  it  was 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GEEMANY.  125 

unable  to  occupy.  The  Division  Dumesnil,  of  tlie  Seventli 
Corps,  whicli  had  rallied  to  me  early  on  the  morning  of  the  6tli, 
was  placed  in  rear  of  the  Fourth  Division.  There  were  held  in 
reserve  the  Second  Division,  in  rear  of  the  Second  Brigade  of 
the  Third  Division,  and  the  First  Brigade  of  the  Fourth  Divi- 
sion. Finally,  still  further  in  the  rear,  was  the  Brigade  of  Light 
Cavalry,  under  the  command  of  General  Septeuil,  and  Division 
of  Cuirassiers,  under  General  de  Bonnemain.  Michel's  Cavalry 
Brigade,  under  the  command  of  General  Dechesmes,  was  sta- 
tioned in  the  rear  of  the  right  wing  of  the  Fourth  Division. 
At  7  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  enemy  appeared  before  the 
heights  of  Guersdorif,  and  opened  the  action  with  a  cannonade, 
which  he  immediately  supported  with  a  sustained  fire  from  his 
tirailleurs  upon  the  First  and  Third  Divisions.  The  attack  was 
so  vehement  that  the  First  Division  was  obliged  to  effect  a 
change  of  front,  advancing  upon  its  right  wing,  in  order  to 
prevent  the  enemy  from  turning  the  general  position.  A  little 
later  the  enemy  largely  increased  the  number  of  his  batteries, 
and  opened  fire  upon  the  other  position  which  we  occupied  on 
the  right  bank  of  the  Sauerbach.  Although  even  more  heavy 
and  more  strongly  marked  than  the  first,  which  was  still  main- 
tained, this  second  demonstration  was  but  a  feigned  attack, 
which  was  warmly  repulsed.  Toward  noon  the  enemy  directed 
his  attack  toward  our  right.  Clouds  of  sharpshooters,  supported 
by  considerable  masses  of  infantry,  and  protected  by  upward  of 
sixty  pieces  of  artillery  placed  upon  the  heights  of  Gunstedt, 
rushed  upon  the  Second  Division  and  upon  the  Second  Brigade 
of  the  Third  Division,  which  occupied  the  village  of  Elsass- 
hausen.  Despite  repeated  offensive  movements  vigorously  exe- 
cuted, and  notwithstanding  the  well-directed  fire  of  the  artillery 
and  several  brilliant  cavalry  charges,  our  right  was  broken  after 
many  hours'  obstinate  resistance.  It  was  4  o'clock.  I  ordered 
a  retreat.     It  was  protected  by  the  First  and  Second,  which  pre- 


126  THE   GREAT   WAR  OF   1870 

sented  a  bold  front,  and  enabled  the  other  troops  to  retire  with- 
out being  too  closely  harassed.  The  retreat  was  eifected  npon 
Saverne  by  Mederbronn,  where  the  Division  of  General  Gnyot 
de  Lespard,  belonging  to  the  Fifth  Corps,  which  had  just  arrived 
there,  took  np  position,  and  did  not  withdraw  nntil  nightfall. 
I  submit  inclosed  with  this  report  to  His  Majesty  the  names  of 
officers  Avounded,  killed,  or  missing,  which  have  been  reported 
to  me.  This  list  is  incomplete,  and  I  will  forward  a  complete 
return  as  soon  as  I  shall  be  in  a  position  to  do  so. 

"  MacMahoi7." 

King  Wilhelm  telegraphed  to  the  Queen,  on  the  night  after 
this  battle,  as  follows  : 

"  Good  news.  A  great  victory  has  been  won  by  our  Fritz. 
God  be  praised  for  His  mercy.  We  captured  4,000  prisoners, 
thirty  guns,  two  standards,  and  six  mitraiUeurs.  MacMahon, 
during  the  fight,  was  heavily  reenforced  from  the  main  army. 
The  contest  Avas  very  severe,  and  lasted  from  11  o'clock  in  the 
morning  until  9  o'clock  at  night,  when  the  French  retreated, 
leaving  the  field  to  us.     Our  losses  were  heavy." 

The  two  defeats  (of  Frossard  and  MacMahon),  both  occur- 
ring on  the  same  day,  were  a  very  severe  blow  to  ISTapoleon 
III,  but,  with  his  accustomed  stoicism,  he  telegraphed  to  the 
Empress : 

"  Marshal  MacMahon  has  lost  a  battle.  General  Frossard, 
on  the  Saar,  has  been  obliged  to  retire.  His  retreat  was  eifected 
in  good  order.     All  can  be  reestablished." 

The  next  day  further  disasters  to  the  French  cause  were 
repprted.     Haguenau,  a  considerable  town  of  Alsace,  was  cap- 


BETWEEI^  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  12Y 

tured  bj  the  Baden  Cavaliy,  the  French  taken  prisoners,  or 
driven  out,  and  the  town  occupied  "by  the  Germans.  The  same 
cavalry  overran  the  greater  part  of  Alsace,  taking  many  pris- 
oners, and  beleaguering  Pfalzburg,  Bitche,  and  Lnneville.  At 
the  west,  Saargemund  was  occupied,  and  Forbach  taken  after  a 
slight  action.  On  the  Tth  of  August  the  Emperor  telegraphed 
to  the  Empress : 

"My  communication  with  MacMahon  being  broken,  I  had, 
until  yesterday,  but  little  news  of  him.  General  Laigle  informed 
me  that  MacMahon  had  lost  a  battle  against  very  considerable 
forces  of  the  enemy,  and  that  he  had  withdrawn  in  good  order. 
The  battle  began  at  1  o'clock,  and  did  not  appear  very  serious 
iintil  gradually  increasing  reenforcements  came-  up  on  the  ene- 
my's side,  without,  however,  compelling  the  Second  Corps  to 
fall  back.  Only  between  6  and  Y  o'clock,  as  the  enemy  became 
constantly  more  compact,  did  the  Second  Corps,  and  the  regi- 
ments from  other  corps  which  served  as  his  supports,  fall  back 
upon  the  hills.  The  night  was  quiet.  I  go  to  the  centre  of  our 
position." 

Major-General  Lebceuf,  commanding  the  French  forces,  re- 
ported the  same  clay  to  the  Minister  of  the  Interior : 

"  After  a  series  of  engagements,  in  which  the  enemy  brought 
heavy  forces  into  the  field.  Marshal  MacMahon  was  forced  to 
fall  back  from  his  first  line.  The  Corps  of  General  Frossard  had 
a  fight  yesterday,  from  2  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  with  an  entire 
army  of  the  enemy.  Having  held  his  position  until  6  o'clock, 
he  ordered  a  retreat,  which  was  made  in  good  order." 

Up  to  the  evening  of  the  Tth  of  August  all  unfavorable  news 
had  been  carefully  kept  from  the  people  of  Paris.     The  battle 


128  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   18V0 

of  Weissenburg  had  been  represented  as  a  French  victory  ;  but 
this  deception  was  suspected  and  resented  by  the  people,  and 
the  Empress  found  herself  compelled  to  acknowledge  partially 
the  misfortunes  which  had  befallen  the  army.  Accordingly,  the 
following  proclamation  was  made  public  in  the  eveniDg,  though 
dated  in  the  morning. 

"  Feenchmen  :  The  opening  of  the  Avar  has  not  been  favor- 
able to  us.  We  have  suffered  a  check.  Let  us  be  firm  under 
this  reverse,  and  let  us  hasten  to  repair  it.  Let  there  be  but  one 
party  in  the  land — that  of  France ;  a  single  flag — that  of  the 
national  honor.  I  come  among  you,  faithful  to  my  mission  and 
duty.  You  will  see  me  the  first  in  danger  to  defend  the  flag  of 
France.  I  adjure  all  good  citizens  to  maintain  order.  To  agi- 
tate would  be  to  conspire  with  our  enemies. 

"  Done  at  the  Palace  of  the  Tuileries,  the  7th  day  of  August, 
1870,  at  11  o'clock  a.  m. 

(Signed)  "  The  Empress  Eegent, 

"  Eugenie." 

This  proving  unsatisfactory,  as  giving  no  details,  the  Minis- 
ters very  reluctantly  published  the  despatches  of  the  Emperor 
and  Marshal  Leboeuf ;  and  as  they  were  by  this  time  thoroughly 
alarmed,  they  appended  also  the  following  appeal,  signed  by  the 
Ministers  then  in  Paris. 

"  Details  of  our  losses  are  wanting.  Our  troops  are  full  of 
elan.  The  situation  is  not  compromised ;  but  the  enemy  is  on 
our  territory,  and  a  serious  effort  is  necessary.  A  battle  ap-^ 
pears  imminent.  In  the  presence  of  this  grave  news  our  duty 
is  plain.  We  appeal  to  the  patriotism  and  the  energy  of  all. 
The  Chambers  have  been  convoked.  We  are  placing  Paris  with 
all  possible  haste  in  a  state  of  defence.     In  order  to  facilitate  the 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY,  229 

execution  of  military  preparations,  we  declare  the  capital  in  a 
state  of  siege.  There  must  be  no  faint-heartedness,  no  divisions. 
Our  resources  are  immense.  Let  us  pursue  the  struggle  without 
flinching,  aud  the  country  will  be  saved, 

"  Paris,  the  7th  of  August,  1870,  at  10  p.  m. 

"  By  order  of  the  Empress  Regent." 

In  connection  with  these  demonstrations,  other  changes 
were  dictated  by  JSTapoleon  III  and  made  by  the  Government. 
Among  these  were  the  dismission  of  Marshal  Lebosuf  from  the 
command  of  the  army, and  the  appointment  of  Marshal  Bazaine 
in  his  place,  and  the  promotion  of  General  Trochu  to  be  Major- 
General  in  the  army  and  commander  of  Paris.  Ollivier  was 
also  compelled  to  resign  his  premiership,  and  Palikao  made 
Premier. 

9 


130  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18T0 


CHAPTEK   YIII. 

THERE  were,  indeed,  at  this  time,  indications  of  the  speedy 
approacli  of  a  revolution  in  Paris,  lioarse  mutterings  of  the 
coming  storm  wliicli  was  destined  to  overtlirow  tlie  dynasty  of 
the  Man  of  December — the  despot  who  for  twenty-one  years  had 
crushed  pitilessly  the  liberty  which  he  professed  to  cherish,  and 
to  which  he  owed  his  own  elevation  to  power.  A  few  days  more 
of  grace  were  left  to  him,  but  most  of  them  were  passed  in  fierce 
battles  and  overwhelming  defeats. 

"We  resume  our  narrative  in  chronological  order.  While  the 
First  Army  (General  von  Steinmetz's)  and  the  Third  Army  (the 
Crown-Prince  Friedrich  "Wilhelm's)  had  both  done  some  des- 
perate fighting  with  the  French,  and  the  latter,  in  particular, 
had  signalized  its  valor  both  at  "Weissenburg  and  "Woerth,  the 
Second,  or  Army  of  the  Centre,  commanded  by  Prince  Friedrich 
Karl,  and  with  which  the  King  of  Prussia  had  his  headquarters, 
had  not  been  in  any  engagement.  Indeed,  they  did  not  leave 
their  position  around  Homburg,  in  Rhenish-Bavaria,  until  the 
6th  of  August,  and  the  King  did  not  move  forward  until  the  8th 
or  9th.  On  the  6th,  before  marching  to  the  frontier-hne  on  the 
Saar,  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  issued  the  following  order,  bearing 
evidence,  like  most  of  the  German  proclamations,  of  the  desire 
of  the  German  commanders  to  conduct  the  war  on  civilized  and 
Christian  principles : 

"  Soldiers  of  the  Second  Akmy  :  You  enter  upon  the  soil 
of  France.    The  Emperor  Kapoleon  has,  without  any  reason, 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  13t 

declared  war  upon  Germany,  and  his  army  are  our  enemies. 
The  French  people  has  not  been  asked  if  it  wished  to  carry  on 
a  bloody  war  with  its  German  neighbors,  A  reason  for  enmity 
is  not  to  be  found.  Meet  the  feeling  of  the  peaceable  inhab- 
itants of  France  with  a  like  sentiment ;  show  them  that,  in  our 
century,  two  civilized  people  do  not  forget  their  humanity  even 
in  warring  with  each  other.  Bear  always  in  mind  how  your 
fathers  would  have  felt  if  an  enemy — which  God  forbid  ! — over- 
ran our  provinces.  Show  the  French  that  the  German  people 
confronting  its  enemy  is  not  only  great  and  brave,  but  also  well 
controlled  and  noble-minded." 

Two  days  later  the  King  issued  from  his  headquarters  at 
Homburg  the  following  general  order  to  all  the  armies  in  the 
field : 

"  Soldiers  :  The  pursuit  of  the  enemy,  forced  back  after 
bloody  fighting,  has  already  carried  a  great  part  of  our  army 
over  the  frontier.  Many  corps  will  enter  upon  the  French  soil 
to-day  and  to-morrow.  I  expect  that  the  self-discipline  with 
which  you  have  heretofore  distinguished  yourself  will  be  also 
especially  maintained  in  the  enemy's  territory.  We  carry  on 
no  war  against  the  peaceable  inhabitants  of  the  land ;  it  is,  on 
the  contrary,  the  duty  of  every  honest  soldier  to  protect  private 
property,  and  not  to  allow  the  good  reputation  of  our  army  to 
be  marred  by  even  one  example  of  lawlessness.  I  depend  upon 
the  excellent  feeling  which  possesses  the  army,  but  also  upon 
the  vigilance  and  rigor  of  all  commanders." 

On  the  same  day  the  veteran  von  Steinmetz,  from  his  head- 
quarters at  Saarbruck,  addressed  his  troops,  already  baptized  in 
blood  in  the  fierce  fight  for  the  possession  of  the  heights  of 
Spicheren,  in  the  following  determined  language : 


132  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

"Soldiers  of  the  First  Army:  By  command  .of  His 
Majesty  tlie  King,  the  First  Army  will  to-morrow  cross  tlie 
Frencli  boundary.  Let  us  greet  this  first  result  of  our  previous 
efforts  as  we  enter  upon  the  enemy's  territory  with  a  hearty 
hurrah  for  our  wise,  supreme  war-leader.  Of  your  good  conduct 
in  the  struggle  which  awaits  us  with  an  equally  brave  army,  I 
am  assured  by  your  love  of  the  fatherland,  your  courage,  and 
your  just  pride,  which  forbid  you  to  suffer  the  insults  cast  upon 
us  by  an  intemperate  opponent,  to  remain  unnoticed.  But  the 
peace-loving  citizen  and  countryman,  as  you  will  say  yourselves, 
stands  under  the  protection  of  the  humanity  which  is  compre- 
hended in  Prussian  discipline.  I  trust  that  you  will  never 
falsify  either  the  one  or  the  other  by  excesses  which  can  never 
be  countenanced  by  your  superiors.  When  and  where  the 
enemy  confronts  us,  I  expect  that  he  will  be  attacked  with  the 
greatest  determination.  For  the  cavalry  it  is  already  a  principle 
of  long  standing  that  it  always  attacks  first.  The  excuse,  that 
there  was  nothing  to  be  done,  I  can  never  allow,  when  the 
thunder  of  the  cannon  can  be  heard.  On  the  contrary,  each 
detachment  of  troops  must  march  toward  that  direction,  and, 
arrived  upon  the  battle-field,  inform  itself  upon  the  condition 
of  the  fight,  in  order  to  attack  at  once,  in  the  best  way.  The 
same  sound  must  also  serve  as  a  guide  to  each  superior  com- 
mander in  a  pitched  battle.  One  thing  more.  What  can  be 
done  on  one  day  must  never  be  distributed  over  two  days. 
Only  with  the  greatest  energy  can  great  results  be  attained,  and, 
with  them,  the  peace  which  God  will  give  us  after  victorious 
combat." 

On  the  9th  of  August  the  Baden  contingent  of  the  German 
army  approached  Strasbourg,  and  summoned  it  to  surrender. 
General  Uhrich,  the  French  commander,  refused,  and  the  next 
day  issued  the  following  proclamation: 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  IS 3 

"  Disturbing  rumors  and  panics  have  been  spread,  either  bj 
accident  or  design,  within  the  past  few  days  in  our  brave  city. 
Some  individuals  have  dared  to  express  the  opinion  that  the 
place  would  surrender  without  a  blow.  "We  protest  energetic- 
ally, in  the  name  of  a  population  courageous  and  French,  against 
these  weak  and  criminal  forebodings.  The  ramparts  are  armed 
with  400  cannon.  The  garrison  consists  of  11,000  men,  without 
reckoning  the  stationary  National  Guard.  If  Strasbourg  is 
attacked,  Strasbourg  will  defend  herself  as  long  as  there  shall 
remain  a  soldier,  a  biscuit,  or  a  cartridge.  The  well-affected 
may  reaigsure  themselves ;  as  to  others,  they  have  but  to  with- 
draw. 

"  The  General  of  Division,  Uhkich. 

"  The  Prefect  of  the  Bas-Rhin,  Baron  Peon. 
"  Strasbourg,  August  10." 

On  the  11th  of  August  the  three  German  armies  forming 
the  advance  all  stood  upon  French  soil,  and  King  Wilhelm 
addressed  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  departments  then  in  posses- 
sion of  the  German  army  the  following  proclamation  : 

"  We,  Wilhelm,  King  of  Prussia,  give  notice  to  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  French  departments  in  possession  of  the  German 
army  as  follows :  After  the  Emperor  ISTapoleon  had  attacked 
by  sea  and  by  land  the  German  nation,  which  desired,  and  still 
desires,  to  live  at  peace  with  the  French  people,  I  assumed  the 
chief  command  over  the  German  armies  in  order  to  repel  this 
attack.  In  the  progress  of  events  I  have  had  occasion  to  cross 
the  French  boundary,  I  make  war  with  the  French  soldiers, 
and  not  with  the  citizens  of  France.  These  will,  therefore,  con- 
tinue to  enjoy  a  perfect  security  of  their  persons  and  their 
property  just  so  long  as  they  do  not  deprive  me,  by  their  own 
hostile  acts  against  the  German  troops,  of  the  right  to  extend 


134  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1810 

to  them  my  protection.  The  generals  who  command  the  dif- 
ferent corps  will  establish  by  especial  regulations,  which  shall 
be  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  public,  the  measures  which 
are  to  be  taken  against  communities  or  against  single  persons, 
who  set  themselves  in  opposition  to  the  usages  of  war.  They 
will  in  similar  manner  fix  every  thing  in  regard  to  requisitions 
which  shall  be  demanded  by  the  necessities  of  the  troops.  They 
will  also  fix  the  rate  of  exchange  between  German  and  French 
currency,  in  order  to  make  the  single  transactions  between  the 
troops  and  the  people  easy." 

The  defeat  of  Marshal  MacMahon  at  "Woerth,  with  the  sub- 
sequent slight  but  disastrous  engagements  at  !N"iederbronn  and 
Eeichshofen,  was  found  to  be  even  more  appalling  tlian  was  at 
first  supposed.  His  losses,  as  ascertained  some  days  later,  were 
more  than  9,000  killed  and  wounded,  and  6,500  prisoners, 
besides  a  very  considerable  number  of  deserters.  Making  the 
best  of  this  great  yet  inevitable  misfortune,  he  issued,  on  the 
9th  of  August,  the  following  order  of  the  day  to  his  remnant  of 
an  army : 

"Soldiers:  In  the  battle  of  the  6th  of  August,  fortune 
betrayed  your  courage,  but  you  yielded  your  positions  only 
after  a  heroic  resistance  which  lasted  not  less  than  nine  hours. 
You  were  35,000  against  140,000,  and  were  overwhelmed  by 
force  of  numbers.  Under  these  conditions  defeat  is  glorious, 
and  history  will  say  that  in  the  battle  of  Froschweiler  the 
French  showed  the  greatest  valor.  Tou  have  suffered  heavy 
losses,  but  those  of  the  enemy  are  much  greater.  Although  you 
have  not  been  successful,  you  see  a  cause  for  your  misfortune 
Avhich  makes  the  Emperor  satisfied  with  you,  and  the  entire 
country  recognize  that  you  have  worthily  sustained  the  honor 
of  the  flag.     Let  us  show  that,  though  subjected  to  the  severest 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY. 


135 


tests,  tlie  First  Corps,  forgetting  tliese,  closes  up  its  ranks,  and, 
God  aiding  iis,  let  us  seize  great  and  brilliant  revenge." 

The  necessity  for  strong  reenforcements  compelled  MacMalion 
to  summon  to  Ms  aid  General  De  Faillj  (a  portion  of  whose 
corps  had  already  been  with  him  at  Woerth)  and  Generals  Can- 
I'obert  and  De  Caen,  both  of  whom  were  in  southern  Alsace. 
With  all  these  troops,  however,  he  could  only  gather  from 
50,000  to  60,000  men,  so  far  had  the  real  numbers  of  the  French 
army-corps  fallen  below  their  nominal  standard,  and  so  numer- 
ous, even  in  this  first  stage  of  the  war,  were  the  deserters.  The 
nominal  strength  of  these  four  army-corps  had  been  200,000 
men.  Having  obtained  these  reenforcements,  MacMahon  fell 
back  to  ISTaney  and  Toul,  his  objective  being  Paris  by  way  of 
Bar-le-Duc  and  Chalons,  as  he  saw  very  clearly  that,  unless  a 
strong  force  was  interposed  between  Paris  and  the  Prussian 
armies,  they  could  not  be  checked  in  their  victorious  march 
toward  the  French  capital ;  and  the  probability  of  their  reach- 
ing that  city  was  much  greater  than  that  of  the  French  entering 
Berlin  as  conquerors,  as  the  Emperor  had  promised  them  at  the 
beginning  of  the  war.  It  was  necessary,  moreover,  that  he 
should  be  in  a  position  to  receive  the  large  reenforcements  yet 
to  be  sent  out  from  Paris,  that  he  might  attack  the  Prussians  in 
flank,  while  Bazaine,  who  was  now  in  chief  command  under  the 
Emperor,  and  was  gathering  a  large  army  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Metz,  should  attack  them  in  front.  These  plans,  however, 
were  destined  to  be  suddenly  and  completely  frustrated.  The 
Crown-Prince  of  Prussia,  who,  after  the  battle  of  Woerth,  ascer- 
tained what  was  the  line  upon  which  MacMahon  was  retreating, 
and  had  drawn  his  own  army  northward  to  Saar-union,  to  within 
reach  of  the  other  armies,  commenced  a  relentless  pursuit  of  the 
French  general  through  IS'ancy  and  Toul,  leaving  to  the  German 
reserves  the  siege  and  reduction  of  the  small  fortified  places  on 


j[36  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF    1870 

the  route,  and  pressed  on  his  rear  through  Commerey,  Bar-le- 
Duc,  and  Chalons,  not  relinquishing  the  pursuit  when  Mac- 
Mahon  turned  northward  and  attempted  to  create  a  diversion  in 
favor  of  Bazaine. 

Meanwhile,  as  we  have  already  intimated,  Bazaine,  falling 
back  from  St.  Avoid,  which  had  been  for  a  time  his  headquar- 
ters, concentrates  as  large  a  force  as  possible  in  the  vicinity  of 
Metz,  the  strongest  and  best-provided  of  the  French  fortresses, 
but  found,  to  his  great  annoyance  and  dismay  when  he  reached 
the  Moselle,  that  an  infantry  force,  the  advance  of  Prince  Fried- 
rich  Karl's  army,  had  Secured  an  eligible  location  for  crossing 
that  river  at  Pont-a-Mousson,  less  than  twenty  miles  south  of 
Metz.  "With  his  large  army,  now  numbering  probably  150,000 
or  more  troops,  it  would  not  answer  for  him  to  be  shut  up  and 
besieged  in  Metz  by  the  Prussian  armies ;  yet  he  was  in  great 
peril  of  being  caught  there,  for  General  Frossard,  who  came  in 
with  his  corps  from  St.  Avoid  on  the  13th  of  August,  reported 
himself  pressed  closely  all  the  way  by  the  Germans ;  the  ad- 
vance of  von  Steinmetz's  army  and  the  Second  German  Army 
(Prince  Friedrich  Karl's)  were  known  to  be  coming  in  great 
force  from  the  south.  The  Emperor  and  the  Prince  Imperial 
thought  it  necessary  to  leave  Metz,  and  did  so  at  11  a.  m.  on 
Sunday,  going,  however,  no  farther  than  Longueville,  near  Metz, 
that  day.  He  left  the  following  address  to  the  inhabitants  of 
Metz,  which  was  posted  about  the  city  after  his  departure : 

"  On  quitting  you  to  fight  the  invaders,  I  confide  to  your 
patriotism  the  defence  of  this  great  city.  Ton  will  never  allow 
the  enemy  to  take  possession  of  this  bulwark  of  France,  and  I 
trust  you  will  rival  the  army  in  loyalty  and  courage.  I  shall 
ever  remember  with  gratitude  the  reception  1  have  found  within 
your  walls,  and  I  hope  that  in  more  joyous  times  I  may  be  able 
to  return  to  thank  you  for  your  noble  conduct." 


7'Aio?t'Ui^lle 


138  THE  GREAT   WAR   OF    IS'JO 

This  effort  to  withdraw  Bazaine's  army  from  Metz  had  been 
in  spite  of  tlie  attempted  secrecy,  observed  by  the  Prussian  com- 
manders, and  a  reconnoissance  in  force  ordered  to  prevent 
it.  Bazaine  was  moving  his  advance  across  the  Moselle,  on 
the  Yerdun  road,  when  the  advance-guard  of  the  First  Army 
(von  Steinmetz's)  fell  upon  his  rear-guard  about  4  p.  m,,  and 
comj)elled  some  of  his  divisions  to  face  about  to  resist  the  attack. 
The  First  and  Seventh  Corps  of  the  First  Army  soon  came  up 
to  support  the  attack ;  and  the  Ninth  Corps  of  the  Second 
Army,  having  arrived  from  Pont-a-Mousson,  joined  in.  The 
foregoing  plan  of  the  roads  and  villages  west  of  Metz,  and  of 
the  position  of  the  Prussian  and  French  forces,  will  materially 
aid  our  understanding  of  this  and  the  battles  of  the  following 
days. 

The  battle  of  Sunday,  August  14th,  was  most  severe  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Moselle,  toward  which  the  different  corps  of  the 
First  Army  were  rapidly  marching  to  cross  the  river  at  Jouy. 
Coiney,  and  various  other  points  between  Metz  and  Pont-a-Mous 
son.  Bazaine,  desirous  of  making  good  his  retreat  upon  Yer- 
dun, and  finding  that  the  Prussians  were  in  large  force  in  the 
woods  around  Borny,  a  small  village  east  of  the  Moselle,  at  the 
junction  of  the  Boulay,  St.  Avoid,  and  Forbach  roads,  and  in 
the  villages  to  the  northeast  of  that  village,  determined  to  re- 
pulse their  attack  ;  and  when  they  opened  fire  upon  the  out- 
works of  Metz,  I'Admirault's  corps,  which  was  just  starting  for 
Yerdun,  together  with  the  Third  Corps,  De  Caen's,  and  the 
Imperial  Guard,  under  General  Bourbaki,  and  the  garrison  of 
Fort  St.  Quentin,  advanced  to  the  attack.  The  battle  raged 
from  a  little  after  4  p.  m.  to  nearly  9  p.  m.  The  French  make  no 
mention  of  their  position  at  the  beginning  of  the  fight,  but  only 
speak  of  the  German  force  as  near  Borny  ;  but  the  Germans  say 
that  the  French  line  at  the  beginning  was  Nouilly,  IsToisseville, 
Montay,  and  Colombey,  and  that  they  were  forced  back  into  the 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  139 

fortifications  of  Metz,  and  held  there  by  the  threatening  position 
of  the  Second  Array,  which  was  across  the  Moselle,  and  com- 
manded the  road  to  Yerdun  by  Mars-la-Tour.  The  accounts  of 
the  two  parties  are  conflicting,  but  both  agree  that  it  w^as  a  very 
severe  action,  and  that  the  losses  were  heaviest  on  the  side  of 
the  Prussians,  though  they  accomplished  their  object  of  detain- 
ing the  French  in  Metz  until  they  could  bring  tlicir  own  troops 
across  the  Moselle,  and  flank  and  defeat  all  the  efiorts  of  the 
French  general  to  retreat  toward  Paris. 

The  German  account  of  t]ie  battle,  which  is  official,  but  gives 
very  few  details,  is  as  follows : 

"  The  combats  of  the  14th,  16th,  and  18th  of  August  are 
closely  connected  with  each  other.  After  the  defeat  sustained 
by  their  advanced  guard  at  Saarbruck  on  the  6th,  and  in  conse- 
quence of  the  complete  dissolution  of  their  right  wing  under 
Marslml  MacMalion,  the  bulk  of  the  hostile  army  retreated  on 
tlie  line  of  the  Moselle.  The  fortress  of  Thionville  and  the  very 
important  position  of  Metz,  with  its  intrenched  camp,  gave 
extraordinary  strength  to  this  line.  A  direct  attack  upon  it 
would  have  been  difficult.  The  armies  were,  therefore,  directed 
south  of  Metz  toward  the  Moselle,  in  order  to  jDass  the  river 
above  the  fortress,  and  so  attack  the  enemy.  The  movement  of 
great  masses,  wliich  could  only  be  carried  on  in  a  considerable 
breadth  of  country,  had  to  be  secured  by  special  precautions. 
The  First  Army,  consequently,  undertook  to  cover  this  march. 

"  As  the  enemy  for  a  time  seemed  disposed  to  await  an  attack 
on  the  east  side  of  Metz,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Moselle,  in  a 
strong  position  on  the  French  side,  the  nearest  divisions  of  the 
Second  Array  wore  so  approximated  to  the  First  Army  as  to  be 
able  promptly  to  support  it.  Meantime  the  other  corps  of  the 
Second  Army  had  already  crossed  the  Moselle.  The  enemy 
consequently  saw  himself  forced,  in  order  not  to  lose  his  com- 


J  40  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   IS'ZO 

mimieations  with  Paris,  to  evacuate  tlie  riglit  bank  of  the 
Moselle  before  Metz,  as  he  could  not  venture  to  attempt  an 
attack  on  our  movement.  The  advanced  guard  of  the  First 
Army,  pushing  on  toward  him,  promptly  discovered  this  retreat, 
and  in  the  encounter  of  the  14th  of  August  threw  itself  on  the 
French  rear-guard,  forcing  it  forward  on  the  marching  columns 
of  their  main  army.  The  enemy  was  obliged  to  move  round 
some  of  his  divisions  to  support  it,  while  on  our  side  the  entire 
First  and  Seventh  Corps,  and  some  detachments  of  the  nearest 
(Ninth)  Army  Corps  of  the  Second  Army,  joined  in  the  engage- 
ment. The  enemy  was  forced  back  and  pursued  till  under 
shelter  of  the  cannons  of  the  Metz  forts  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Moselle.  This  combat  had,  moreover,  this  great  advantage, 
that  it  delayed  the  enemy's  retreat.  This  advantage  it  was  pos- 
sible to  profit  by." 

Correspondents  on  both  sides  supply  the  following  additional 
items  resj)ecting  the  battle : 

"  With  all  the  caution  used  by  the  French  in  attempting  to 
conduct  the  evacuation  secretly,  they  could  not  escape  the  vigi- 
lant Germans.  About  4  p.  m.  the  prej^arations  of  the  troops 
lying  among  the  advanced  works  of  Metz  were  so  apparent,  that 
two  divisions  were  ordered  to  reconnoitre  these  troops.  One 
division  marched  along  the  highway  from  St.  Avoid,  the  other 
by  another  road  south  of  the  former.  The  latter  got  into  action 
first,  and  attacked  so  boldly  that  De  Caen's  corps,  and  parts  of 
Frossard's,  were  forced  to  face  about.  The  French  occupied,  in 
the  beginning,  Servigny,  Noisseville,  Montay,  Colombey.  On 
the  right  (German)  wing  the  First  Army-Corps  advanced  against 
IToisseville  and  Montay,  and  on  the  left  wing  the  Seventh  and 
liaK  of  the  Ninth  Corps  were  engaged.  While  the  infantry 
were  maintaining  a  heavy  fight,  the  artillery  of  the  First  and 


BETWEEN  ERANCE  AND  GERMANY.  I4.I 

Thirteentli  Divisions,  fourteen  batteries  in  all,  succeeded  in 
taking  np  a  position  in  the  general  form  of  a  liorse-shoe  on  the 
hills  north  of  Montaj,  and  ponred  a  concentric  and  well-deliv- 
ered fire  until  nightfall  upon  the  enemy's  line,  which  t)roved 
very  effective,  in  spite  of  the  setting  sun  and  an  unfavorable 
wind.  The  French  showed  less  skill  in  using  their  guns.  The 
French  were  gradually  driven  backwards,  and  their  positions 
repeatedly  stormed.  Toward  evening  General  I'Admirault, 
determining,  as  a  last  resort,  to  make  an  offensive  movement, 
attempted  with  his  Fourth  Corps  to  turn  the  right  wing  of  his 
enemy  toward  Servigny ;  but  General  Manteuffel,  bringing  up 
his  reserves,  repulsed  the  attack.  At  10  o'clock  the  Germans 
returned  to  their  bivouacs.  The  French  were  held  back  for  a 
day  more,  which  invaluable  time  was  put  to  good  use  by  the 
troops  hurrying  over  the  Moselle  at  Font-a-Mousson,  where 
Prince  Friedrich  Karl  was  pushing  northeastward  toward  the 
French  line  of  retreat.  Losses  heavy  on  both  sides.  French 
accounts  say  that  most  of  thek  men  were  wounded  in  the  feet. 
Marshal  Bazaine  was  said  to  be  slightly  wounded  in  the  foot  by 
a  shell  Avhich  killed  lils  horse  :  1,200  to  1,500  of  their  wounded 
were  brought  back  in  Metz.  The  Germans  were  thought  to 
have  lost  2,600  to  3,500. 

"  The  regiments  most  closely  engaged  on  the  French  side 
were  the  Sixty-ninth,  Ninetieth,  Forty-fourth,  Sixtieth,  Eighti- 
eth, Thirty-third,  Fifty-fourth,  Sixty-fifth,  and  Eighty-fifth  of  the 
line ;  the  Eleventh  and  Fifteenth  Foot  Chasseurs ;  and  the  Eighth, 
J^inth,  and  Tenth  batteries  of  the  First  Regiment  of  Artillery. 
Those  which  suffered  most  were  the  Forty-fourth  and  Ninetieth 
of  the  line,  and  the  Fifteenth  Foot  Chasseurs.  The  colonel  of 
the  Forty-fourth  was  killed  ;  the  colonel  of  the  Third  Horse  Chas- 
seurs, and  Generals  Duplessis  and  Castanier,  were  wounded." 

King  Wilhelm  sent  the  following  despatches  on  the  15th  : 


142  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1810 

"  Yesterday  eyening  victorious  combat  near  Metz,  by  troops 
of  tbe  Seventh  and  First  Army-Corps.  Details  still  wanting. 
I  am  ffoino;  at  once  to  tlie  battle-field. 

"  The  advance-guard  of  the  Seventh  Corps  attacked,  last 
evening  towards  5  o'clock,  the  retreating  enemy,  who  took  up 
a  position  and  called  reenforcements  from  the  fortress.  Parts 
of  the  Thirteenth  and  Fourteenth  Divisions,  and  of  the  First 
Corps,  supported  the  advance-guard.  A  very  bloody  fight 
spread  along  the  whole  line  ;  the  enemy  was  thrown  back  at  all 
points,  and  the  pursuit  was  carried  as  far  as  the  glacis  of  the 
outworks.  The  neighborhood  of  the  fortress  permitted  the 
enemy  to  cover  his  wounded  to  a  great  extent.  After  our 
wounded  were  cared  for,  the  troops  withdrew  at  daybreak  into 
their  old  bivouacs.  The  troops  are  reported  to  have  all  of  them 
tbught  with  a  wonderful  energy  and  gayety  not  to  be  expected. 
I  have  seen  many  of  them,  and  have  thanked  them  from  my 
heart.  The  joy  was  overpowering,  I  spoke  with  Generals 
Steinmetz,  Zastrow,  Manteufi'el,  and  Goben." 

The  French  official  account  is  less  extravagant  than  that  of 
the  correspondents,  but  greatly  exq,ggerates  the  Prussian  losses, 
while  underrating  its  own. 

"  On  taking  command,  Marshal  Bazaine,  seeing  the  country 
invaded  on  three  sides  by  the  armies  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl, 
Prince  Friedrich  Wilhelm,  and  Marshal  Steinmetz,  contemplated 
uniting  the  scattered  French  troops  at  Metz,  in  order  to  be  able 
to  confront  the  enemy.  One  point  in  this  movement  was  at 
Borny,  a  small  village  at  the  junction  of  the  Boulay,  St.  Avoid, 
and  Forbach  roads.  There  the  enemy  advanced,  confident  of 
triumph  after  his  easy  victory  at  Styring.  While,  therefore,  on 
Sunday,  August  14th,  the  enemy  had  decided  to  cross  the  Mo- 
selle and  leave  Metz  behind  him,  a  great  movement  was  taking 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  I4.3 

place  in  tlie  French  camp.  General  I'Admirault  was  preparing 
to  turn  Metz  on  the  north,  and  thus  separate  himself  from  Ge'n- 
eral  De  Caen,  who  would  enter  the  city,  when  the  enemy,  who 
was  well  posted  at  Noisseville,  Montay,  and  Coiney,  had  the 
boldness  to  open  fire  on  ns.  The  troops  halted.  The  soldiers 
of  I'Admirault,  who  had  already  left  by  the  ravine  of  Valliere, 
returned  and  advanced  toward  the  Prussians.  In  an  instant  the 
fire  thus  opened  from  Yalliere  to  Grigy  by  way  of  Borny,  being 
a  length  of  nearly  six  miles.  The  Prussians  never  resist  such 
an  attack.  The  cannonade  continued  from  4  to  5  o'clock.  It 
ceased  then  for  an  hour,  to  allow  the  infantry  and  mitrailleuses 
to  do  their  work,  and  recommenced  at  6.30,  ceasing  only  when 
the  enemy  had  entirely  abandoned  their  positions.  It  was  one 
of  the  most  glorious  feats  of  the  war.  The  enemy  left  8,000 
dead  on  the  field,  while  our  loss  was  scarcely  1,000.  General 
Picard,  commander  of  one  of  the  divisions  of  the  Imperial 
Guard,  told  me,  next  day,  that  he  had  never  seen  any  thing  so 
terrible  as  the  battle-field  of  Borny.  Eows  of  men  were  lying 
in  the  order  they  stood ;  and  the  wounded  were,  in  some  cases, 
under  the  dead.  This  was  the  work  of  the  French  mitrailleuses. 
It  must  be  said,  however,  that  the  Prussian  steel-cannons  did  us 
considerable  damage." 

The  Emperor  sent  the  following  despatch  to  Eugenie,  dated 
at  Longueville,  on  Sunday  night,  at  10  o'clock: 

"  The  army  began  to  cross  to  the  left  bank  of  the  Moselle 
this  morning.  Our  advance-guard  had  no  knowledge  of  the 
presence  of  any  force  of  the  enemy.  When  half  of  om-  army 
had  crossed  over,  the  Prussians  suddenly  attacked  in  great  force. 
After  a  fight  of  four  hours,  they  were  repulsed  with  great  loss 
to  them. 

"  I^APOLEON." 


144:  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

Eut,  tliougli  boasting  of  liis  success  in  repulsing  tlae  enemy, 
Bazaine  was  too  skilful  a  general  not  to  be  aware  tbat  it  was  a 
vital  necessity  of  liis  position  to  be  able  to  retreat  to  Yerdun. 
After  tbis  severe  battle,  tben,  the  whole  night  of  the  14:th  was 
spent  in  moving  his  army  across  the  Moselle,  leaving  General 
Changarnier  with  a  strong  garrison  in  Metz.  An  armistice  of 
twenty-four  hours  was  asked  by  the  Germans,  to  bury  their 
dead  who  had  fallen  the  previous  day  in  the  battle  of  Borny, 
but  their  reconnoissances  demonstrated  the  fact  that  all  the 
French  army  except  the  garrison  had  left  Metz,  and  been  placed 
by  Bazaine  in  echelon  right  and  left  from  Eezonville,  facing 
southwest  ward,  with  headcparters  of  the  Emperor  and  Marshal 
Bazaine  in  Gravelotte.  The  Guards,  Second,  Third,  and  Fourth 
Corps  of  the  French  army,  lay  between  Metz  and  Doncourt  in 
two  lines,  facing  southwest.  The  two  roads  leading  to  Yerdun, 
the  one  by  Mars-la-Tour,  the  other  by  Conflans,  have  their  point 
of  junction  at  Gravelotte.  The  possession  of  one  or  both  these 
roads  was  indispensable  to  Bazaine,  and  he  was  prepared  to 
fight  fiercely  and  persistently  for  it. 

He  knew  that  the  Second  German  Army  (Prince  Friedrich 
Karl's)  had  been,  since  the  13th,  diligently  and  rapidly  pushed 
forward  from  Pont-a-Mousson  across  the  Moselle  to  Thiancourt, 
and  thence  to  Mars-la-Tour,  and  that  it  was  blocking  the  south- 
ernmost of  these  roads ;  but  he  was  not  probably  aware  that 
the  left  and  centre  had  been,  since  Sunday,  crossing  the  Moselle 
south  of  Metz,  and  were  taking  position  east  of  the  Second 
Army,  but  within  supporting  distance  of  it ;  nor  was  he  aware 
of  the  other  important  fact,  destined  to  turn  the  fortunes  of  the 
terrible  battle  of  the  18th,  that  the  right  wing  of  the  First 
Army,  under  the  immediate  command  of  von  Steinmetz  him- 
self, was  at  this  very  time  (the  15th  and  16th  of  August)  pon- 
tooning  the  Moselle  north  of  Metz  and  between  that  city  and 
Thionville.  and  would  at   a  critical  moment  be  hurled  with 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  145 

crnsMng  force  on  his  right  wing,  effectually  cutting  him  off 
from  the  Couflans  road.  For  the  present,  however,  he  was 
simply  concerned  to  regain  possession  of  the  Yerdun  road  by 
Mars-la-Tour,  and  for  this,  on  Tuesday,  August  16th,  he  fought 
another  desperate  battle.  The  advance-guard  of  Prince  Fried- 
rich  Karl,  which  had  been  hurrying  forward  by  forced  marches 
from  the  right  bank  of  the  Moselle,  reached  the  southernmost 
Yerdun  road  near  Mars-la-Tour  early  on  the  morning  of  the 
16th,  and  attacked  the  left  wing  of  the  French  army.  General 
von  Alvensleben,  with  the  Third  Corps,  opened  the  conflict,  and 
a  bloody  battle,  with  divisions  from  all  the  corps  under  Bazaine's 
command,  was  gradually  developed  as  the  troops  on  each  side 
came  up.  The  Fifth  German  Division  (General  Stiilpnagel) 
fought  from  9  a.  m.  until  3  p.  m.  without  supports.  Then  the 
Tenth  Corps,  the  Seventeenth  Division  of  the  I^inth  Corps,  and 
the  Hessian  Twenty-fifth  Division,  one  after  the  other,  (^ame  up, 
and  after  six  hours  more  the  defeat  of  the  French  was  complete. 
The  positions  they  had  occupied  were  in  the  hands  of  the  Ger- 
mans. They  lost  2,000  prisoners,  among  whom  were  two  gen- 
erals, and  seven  guns.  The  victory  was  claimed  by  both  sides  ; 
by  Bazaine,  because  he  had  nearly  held  his  position  (he  was 
driven  back  nearly  to  Gravelotte) ;  by  the  Prussians,  with  more 
reason,  because  they  had  held  possession  of  the  road,  and  had 
inflicted  on  the  French  much  heavier  losses  than  they  had  sus- 
tained. It  was  clear,  however,  that  the  battle  was  indecisive, 
and  that  another  must  be  fought  before  it  could  be  determined 
which  side  should  finally  win. 

The  German  ofiicial  report  was  as  follows : 

"  Two  roads  lead  from  Metz  to  Yerdun,  the  direction  which 

the  French  army  had  to  take  in  case  of  a  retreat  upon  Paris. 

Those  corps  of  the  Second  Army  which  had  already  passed  the 

Moselle  were  immediately  directed  against  the  southern  road, 

10 


I^Q  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1810 

the  one  most  easily  reached,  in  order,  if  possible,  to  arrest  the 
enemy's  flank-march  on  that  side.  This  important  task  was 
brilliantly  accomplished  through  a  bloodj^  and  victorious  battle. 
The  Fifth  Division  (Stiilpnagel)  threw  itself  on  the  Frossard 
Corps,  which  covered  the  enemy's  flank.  The  French  army, 
with  almost  all  its  corps,  was  gradually  engaged,  while,  on  the 
Prussian  side,  the  rest  of  the  Third  Army-Corps,  the  Tenth 
Army-Corps,  a  regiment  of  the  ISTinth  Corps,  and  a  brigade  of 
the  Eighth,  took  part.  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  assumed  the  com- 
mand. The  ground  first  won  by  us  in  a  twelve  hours'  struggle 
was  victoriously  held,  the  south  road  from  Metz  to  Yerdun  was 
gained  and  retained,  and  the  enemy's  retreat  to  Paris  by  this 
road  cut  off.  The  conduct  of  our  troops  was  truly  heroic.  Our 
loss  was  very  considerable,  but  that  of  the  enemy  infinitely 
greater,  as  could  be  seen  by  examination  of  the  battle-field. 
Until  the  19th  it  was  impossible  to  bury  the  French  dead,  and 
the  great  number  of  corpses  of  the  Imperial  Guard  evidenced 
the  enormous  losses  of  that  elite  force.  In  the  French  official 
account  the  strength  of  our  troops  is  reckoned  at  double  its 
actual  numbers.  The  Emperor's  proclamation  on  leaving  Metz, 
as  also  other  French  official  documents,  leaves  no  doubt  that  the 
main  army  had  the  certainly  quite  natural  intention  of  retreat- 
ing to  Yerdun." 

On  the  other  hand,  Bazaine  reports  : 

"  This  morning  the  army  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  directed 
•  a  spirited  attack  against  the  left  wing  of  our  position.  The 
Cavalry  Division  (Torton)  and  the  Second  Corps  (Frossard) 
maintained  a  stout  resistance  to  the  attack.  The  corps,  w^hich 
were  placed  in  echelon  right  and  left  from  Rezonviile,  appeared 
gradually  upon  the  battle-field,  and  took  part  in  the  combat, 
which  continued  until   nightfall.      The   enemy  had  deployed 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY,  147 

Iieavy  masses  of  men,  and  attempted  several  attacks,  wliicli 
were  stontly  repulsed.  Toward  evening  appeared  a  new  army- 
corps,  whicli  attempted  to  cut  off  onr  left  wing.  We  have 
everywhere  maintained  our  position,  and  inflicted  heavy  losses 
npon  the  enemy ;  our  losses  are  also  great.  At  the  moment 
when  the  battle  raged  at  its  height,  a  regiment  of  Uhlans  at- 
tacked the  general  staff  of  the  Marshal ;  twenty  men  of  the 
escort  were  put  hors  de  comhat,  the  captain  commanding  killed. 
At  8  o'clock  the  enemy  was  repulsed  on  the  whole  line." 

On  the  17th  Bazaine  writes  again : 

"  Yesterday,  during  the  entire  day,  I  gave  battle  between 
Yionville  and  Doncourt.  The  enemy  was  repulsed.  We 
remained  in  our  positions.  I  interrupted  my  movement  for 
some  hours  in  order  to  bring  up  ammunition.  We  have  had 
Friedrich  Karl  and  Steinmetz  before  us." 

The  following  additional  details  of  this  battle  were  published 
in  Paris : 

"  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  attacked  our  right,  and  was  firmly 
met.  The  corps  of  General  Argand,  at  Rezonville,  hastened 
into  the  action,  which  ceased  only  with  night.  The  Prussians 
repeatedly  attacked  us,  and  were  as  often  repulsed.  Toward 
night  a  fresh  corps  sought  to  turn  our  position,  but  was  beaten 
off.  Our  losses  are  serious.  General  Battaille  is  wounded. 
By  8  o'clock  in  the  evening  the  enemy  were  repulsed  along  the 
entire  line.     He  had  120,000  men  engaged." 

Vionville  is  nine  miles  west  of  Metz ;  Doncourt  three  miles 
north  of  Yionville,  The  French  General  Le  Grand  was  killed  ; 
he  was  commander  of  a  cavalry  division.  Fourth  Corps.     The 


148  THE   GEEAT  WAR  OF   1870 

Emperor,  after  leaving  Metz  on  the  14tli,  proceeded  no  further 
than.  Gravelotte,  eight  miles.  Leaving  that  place  on  Monday,  he 
passes,  in  advance  of  his  escort,  throngh  Jarny,  fifteen  miles 
from  Metz,  on  his  way  to  Verdnn.  Hardly  was  he  out  of  sight, 
when  the  town  was  in  the  hands  of  the  German  dragoons. 

The  ilank-march  by  the  north  road,  or  by  mating  a  wide 
detour  further  north,  still  remained  possible.  Although  such  a 
retreat  entailed  on  the  French  commander  great  dangers,  it 
appeared  possible  that  he  would  undertake  it,  as  the  only  mode 
of  escape  from  a  highly  unfavorable  position,  since  otherwise 
the  army  was  cut  off  from  Paris  and  all  its  means  of  assistance. 
On  the  Prussian  side,  the  17th  was  turned  to  account  in  bring- 
ing forward  for  a  final  struggle  the  necessary  corps,  i3art  of 
whom  were  abeady  over  the  Moselle,  while  part  had,  in  the 
night,  thrown  various  bridges  over  it  above  Metz.  At  the  same 
time  the  movements  of  the  French  forces  were  carefully  watched 
by  the  German  cavalry.  King  Wilhelm  remained  on  the  spot 
until,  from  the  advanced  hour  of  the  day,  no  further  movement 
of  the  enemy  was  to  be  expected. 

On  the  17th,  ISTapoleon  III,  not  deeming  himself  or  the  little 
Prince  safe  at  Verdun,  proceeded  to  Hheims. 

On  Thursday,  the  18th,  the  final  struggle  of  this  week  of 
battles  occurred.  The  most  complete  and  intelligible  account 
of  this  fearful  battle  of  Gravelotte,  evidently  compiled  from 
official  sources,  is  that  of  the  Army  and  Navy  Journal  of  Sep- 
tember 24,  1870,  which  we  append  : 

"  At  daybreak  the  First  German  Army,  with  the  First, 
Seventh,  and  Eighth  Corps,  stood  off  the  hills  south  of  Rezon- 
ville.  The  Second  Army,  with  the  Third,  Kinth,  Tenth,  Twelftli, 
and  Guard  Corps,  were  on  the  left  flank  south  of  Mars-la-Tour 
and  Vionville.  The  southern  branch  of  the  Yerdun  road,  west 
of  Kezonville,  was  in  the  hands  of  the  Germans.     The  northern 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  149 

branch,  as  far  as  Cautre  was  held  by  the  French,  whose  line 
extended  from  Amanvillers,  through  Yerneville  and  Gravelotte, 
to  the  Forest  of  Yaux.  Towards  10  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
after  having  already  spent  six  hours  in  visiting  the  corps  in 
position,  the  King,  from  the  heights  of  Fiavigny,  ordered  the 
JSTinth  Corps,  in  position  there,  to  move  toward  the  woods  be 
hind  St.  Marcel ;  while  the  Seventh  and  Eighth  Corps  marched 
against  the  Forest  of  Yaux,  south  of  Gravelotte.  The  latter 
had  orders  to  push  the  enemy  very  slowly,  in  order  to  give  time 
to  the  Guards  and  Twelfth  Corps  to  make  a  long  detour  ou  the 
left,  by  way  of  Jouaville,  Batilly,  and  Ste.  Marie.  The  Third 
and  Tenth  Corps  were  in  reserve,  and  but  few  of  their  troops 
were  in  the  fight,  these  being  mostly  artillery.  The  principal 
movement  was  that  on  the  left.  Preceded  by  Prussian  and 
Saxon  cavalry,  the  Second  Army  advanced,  still  maintaining 
communication  on  the  right  with  the  First  Army.  The  TAvelfth 
Corps  took  the  direction  by  Mars-la-Tour  and  Jarny,  while  the 
Guards  advanced  between  Mars-la-Tour  and  Yionville  on  Don- 
court,  and  the  Kinth  Corps  crossed  the  highway  to  the  west  of 
Eezonville,  toward  Cautre  farm,  north  of  St.  Marcel.  Their 
purpose  was  to  gain  the  central  and  northern  roads.  They 
quickly  found  that  the  French  were  not  retreating,  and  moved 
to  the  right,  meeting  at  Ste.  Marie  and  Eoncourt  resistance, 
which  was  overcome,  and,  after  another  struggle  among  the 
steep  hills  at  St.  Privat-la-Montagne,  that  place  was  gained. 
The  right  flank  of  this  Second  Army,  holding  the  centre  of  the 
whole  German  line,  had  been  earlier  engaged  with  some  ad- 
vanced forces  of  the  French,  and  toward  noon  the  ISTinth  Corps 
was  engaged  at  Yerneville.  The  Guards  and  Twelfth  Corps 
reached  St.  Privat  about  4  p.  m,,  and  immediately  moved  south 
and  east  against  Amanvillers.  The  fighting  here  was  exceed- 
ingly severe.  The  Germans  lay  in  a  long  curve,  sweeping  from 
St.  Privat,  where  the  Saxons  fought  on  the  extreme  left,  through 


150  THE  GREAT   WAR  OF  18'70 

Ste.  Marie  and  St.  Ail  (Guards),  Yerneville  (N'iutL.  Corps), 
Gravelotte  (Eighth  Corps),  and  Forest  of  Yaux  (Seventh  Corps), 
across  the  Moselle,  on  the  right  bank  of  which  a  brigade  of  the 
First  Corps  and  artillery  from  the  reserves  were  engaged.  The 
French  army  fonght  with  its  back  to  Germany ;  the  Germans 
had  Paris  in  their  rear.  Bazaine's  entire  army  was  in  line, 
including  those  troops  which  had  been  prepared  for  the  Baltic 
expedition.  On  the  left  wing  the  flanking  column,  after  meet- 
ing with  resistance  at  every  point,  pushed  its  enemy  back 
through  Ste.  Marie,  Roncourt,  St.  Privat,  St.  Ail,  Habonville, 
the  wood  of  La  Cusse,  and  Yerneville,  until,  toward  evening, 
two  small  outworks  of  Metz  lying  northeast  of  Gravelotte,  and 
named  Leipsio  and  Ifoscou,  were  reached.  All  three  roads  out 
of  Metz  were  then  firmly  in  the  grasp  of  the  Germans. 

"  The  right  wing  had  great  difficulties  to  overcome.  Early 
in  the  day  its  work  was  to  press  the  French  lightly  in  the  Forest 
of  Yaux.  Back  of  this  wood  was  the  strongest  part  of  the 
French  position.  It  was  covered  by  a  deep  road  with  sides  fifty 
feet  high,  back  of  which  was  a  plateau  325  to  600  feet  in  height. 
Behind  this  is  the  Kozieriulles  hill,  along  the  slopes  of  which 
the  highway  to  Metz  runs.  This  whole  steep  was  covered  Avith 
rifle-pits  in  three  tiers.  Behind  these  were  the  infantry  ;  behind 
the  infantry  the  artillery.  The  highway  as  it  runs  along  this 
hill  is  only  5,000  yards  in  a  straight  line  from  Fort  St.  Quentin, 
one  of  the  strong  outworks  of  Metz.  But  the  crest  of  the  hill 
intervenes  between  them,  and  by  the  road  the  distance  is  nearly 
twice  as  great.  The  French  soldiers,  driven  from  this  last  posi- 
tion and  crossing  the  ridge,  would  find  themselves  directly  under 
the  guns  of  their  forts.  When  news  of  the  successes  on  the  left, 
and  the  evident  abandonment  of  the  retreat  by  the  French,  was 
brought  to  the  King,  he  moved  forward  to  a  hill  near  !Rezon- 
viile,  and  ordered  more  positive  action  on  the  right  wing.  The 
French,  however,  maintained  their  post  with  great  determina- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  151 

tion.  Driven  from  it  at  one  time,  they  retook  it  by  a  counter- 
charge. The  King,  to  whom  news  of  the  success  had  been  sent, 
arrived  on  the  hill  back  of  Gravelotte  only  to  see  his  cavalry  on 
the  wi'ong  side  of  the  defile,  on  the  opposite  side  of  which  the 
enemy  stood.  The  fire  of  the  artillery  ceased ;  the  troops  had 
lost  so  heavily  that  the  position  seemed  to  be  beyond  their  grasp. 
The  King,  however,  ordered  another  attempt,  and  after  an  hour, 
during  which  night  came  on,  the  troops  were  re-formed.  They 
were  no  sooner  in  motion,  than  the  whole  face  of  the  hill  re- 
vealed such  rows  of  artillery  and  infantry  delivering  an  ex- 
tremely rapid  and  deadly  fire,  that  General  von  Moltke  sent  an 
officer  to  recall  the  troops.  Before  he  was  out  of  sight  the  men 
appeared  themselves,  returning  down  the  hillside,  fully  repulsed. 
Just  then  the  Second  Corps,  which  had  been  on  the  march  since 
2  o'clock  in  the  morning,  came  up,  and  as  soon  as  enough  regi- 
ments showed  themselves,  they  were  sent  to  take  the  hill  fi-om 
which  their  comrades  had  so  often  returned  in  failure.  Follow- 
ing the  withdrawing  storming  party  came  the  French  in  counter- 
attack. Their  success  was  so  great,  that  the  German  troops 
showed  symptoms  of  serious  disorder.  Some  parts  of  the  line 
began  a  disorderly  retreat,  and  the  moment  was  critical.  Gen- 
eral von  Moltke,  who  had  anxiously  awaited  the  coming  of  the 
Second  Corps,  rushed  up,  and  himself  gave  them  the  word  to 
advance.  They  sprang  forward  after  him,  and  when  the  reen- 
forcement  was  well  up  the  hill,  the  repulsed  troops  were  again 
sent  forward,  going  through  their  terrible  experience  for  the  last 
time,  as  it  proved,  with  great  steadiness  and  spirit.  This  attack 
succeeded,  and  at  8.30  o'clock  the  last  position  of  the  French 
was  in  the  hands  of  their  enemy.  During  the  night  they  with- 
drew completely  into  Metz.  The  losses  in  this  battle,  as  in  the 
encounters  immediately  preceding  it,  were  immense.  Even  now 
they  are  not  ofiicially  known,  though  an  account  from  Paris  says 
that  Bazaine  officially  reported  his  wounded  at  Gravelotte  at 


152  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF  1870 

18,000 ;  but  this  probably  includes  the  losses  in  all  the  battles 
west  of  Metz,  Estimating  the  dead  at  5,000,  and  adding  the 
captured  wounded,  3,000  (up  to  August  22d),  the  whole  French 
loss  would  be  23,000.  From  6,000  to  10,000  prisoners  were 
taken  in  the  battles  east  and  west  of  Metz.  On  the  German 
side,  with  the  exception  of  prisoners,  the  losses  must  have  been 
still  greater ;  and  for  18,000  killed  and  wounded  that  Bazaine 
lost,  his  enemy  must  have  lost  at  least  25,000.  An  official  report 
of  the  losses  on  the  16th  of  August  has  been  published.  It 
shows  that  there  were  626  officers  and  15,925  men  placed  Tiors 
de  conibat  Eighteen  hundred  and  thirty-two  horses  were  lost, 
not  including  those  of  several  South  German  cavalry  regiments." 

The  King's  despatch  from  Eezomdlle  says  : 

"  The  French  army  attacked  to-day  in  a  very  strong  position 
west  of  Metz,  under  my  leadership,  in  nine  hours'  battle  com- 
pletely beaten,  cut  ofi"  from  its  communications  with  Paris,  and 
thrown  back  on  Metz." 

He  writes,  on  the  19th,  from  Eezonville : 

"  That  was  a  new  day  of  victory  yesterday,  the  consequences 
of  which  are  not  yet  to  be  estimated.  Early  yesterday  the 
Twelfth  Guards  and  Ninth  Corps  proceeded  toward  the  north- 
ern road  from  Metz  to  Yerdun  as  far  as  St.  Marcel  and  Don- 
court,  followed  by  the  Third  and  Tenth  Corps ;  while  the 
Seventh  and  Eighth,  and  finally  the  Second,  remained  opposite 
Metz,  As  the  former  swerved  to  the  right,  in  thickly-wooded 
ground,  toward  Yerneville  and  St.  Privat,  the  latter  began  the 
attack  upon  Gravelotte,  not  heavily,  in  order  to  wait  until  the 
long  flank-march  upon  the  strong  position,  Amanvillers-Chatel, 
should  be  accomplished   as   far   as   the  Metz  highway.     This 


BETWEEN  rRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  153 

column  did  not  get  into  action  until  4  o'clock  witli  the  Pivot 
Corps ;  the  Ninth  at  12  o'clock.  The  enemy  put  forth  stout 
resistance  in  the  woods,  so^that  ground  was  gained  only  slowly. 
St.  Privat  was  taken  by  the  Guards,  Yerneville  by  the  Ninth 
Corps  ;  the  Twelfth  Corps  and  artillery  of  the  Third  then  went 
into  action.  Gravelotte  and  the  woods  on  both  sides  were  taken 
and  held  by  troops  of  the  Seventh  and  Eighth  Corps,  and  with 
great  losses.  In  order  to  attack  again  the  enemy,  who  had  been 
driven  back  by  the  flank-attack,  an  advance  beyond  Gravelotte 
was  undertaken  at  dusk,  which  came  upon  such  a  terrible  fire 
from  behind  rifle-pits  en  Stage,  and  artillery-fire,  that  the  Second 
Corps,  which  just  then  came  up,  was  forced  to  attack  the  enemy 
with  the  bayonet,  and  completely  took  and  held  the  strong 
position.  It  was  8.30  o'clock  before  the  firing  gradually  silenced 
itself  in  all  quarters.  By  this  last  advance  the  historical  shells 
of  Koniggriitz  were  not  wanting  near  me,  from  which,  this  time, 
Minister  von  Roon  removed  me.  All  troops  that  I  saw  greeted 
me  with  enthusiastic  hurrahs.  They  did  wonders  of  bravery 
against  an  equally  brave  enemy,  who  defended  every  step,  and 
often  attempted  off'ensive  attacks,  which  were  each  time  repulsed. 
What  the  fate  of  the  enemy  will  now  be,  pushed  into  the  in- 
trenched, very  strong  position  of  the  fortress  of  Metz,  is  still 
impossible  to  determine.  I  dread  to  ask  about  the  losses,  and 
to  give  names  ;  for  only  too  many  acquaintances  will  be  named, 
and  often  incorrectly.  Tour  regiment  (the  Queen's)  is  said  to 
have  fought  brilliantly.  "Waldersee  is  wounded  severely,  but 
not  fatally,  as  I  am  told.  I  expected  to  bivouac  here,  but  found, 
after  some  hours,  a  room  where  I  rested  on  the  royal  ambu- 
lance which  I  had  brought  with  me ;  and  since  I  have  not  a 
particle  of  my  baggage  from  Pont-a-Mousson,  I  have  not  been 
undressed  for  thirty  hours.  I  thank  God  that  he  vouchsafed  us 
the  victory. 

"  WiLHELM." 


154  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1810 

In  sucli  a  battle,  extending  over  thirty  or  forty  square  miles, 
no  eye-witness  can  see  tlie  whole,  or  can  com]3rehend  fully  all 
the  movements  of  the  various  cor23S  and  divisions.  "What  one 
man  could  see,  however,  of  this  battle,  which  up  to  its  date 
must  be  considered  the  severest  of  modern  times,  a  corre- 
spondent of  the  N^ew  York  Tribune  has  described  with  wonder- 
ful accuracy  and  life-likeness.  Portions  of  his  description  are 
not  necessary  to  our  work,  but  those  which  portray  the  actual 
incidents  of  the  battle  we  gladly  transfer  to  our  pages. 

"  The  troops,"  says  this  correspondent,  "  had  been  passing 
through  Pont-a-Mousson  almost  continually  for  several  days 
previously ;  but  now  the  tramp  through  every  street  and  by- 
way made  between  midnight  and  dawn  a  perpetual  roar. 
Hastily  dressing,  I  ran  out  into  the  darkness  and  managed  to 
get  a  seat  on  a  wagon  that  was  going  in  the  direction  of  the 
front,  now  understood  to  be  a  mile  or  two  beyond  the  village 
of  Gorze,  some  twelve  miles  from  Pont-a-Mousson.  On  our 
way  we  met  a  considerable  batch  of  French  prisoners,  who  were 
looked  upon  with  curiosity  by  the  continuous  line  of  German 
soldiers  with  whom  we  advanced.  The  way  was  so  blocked 
with  wagons  that  I  got  out  of  my  wagon  and  began  to  walk 
and  run  swiftly  ahead.  At  Mouvient,  on  the  Moselle,  about 
half-way  to  Metz,  I  found  vast  bodies  of  cavalry — Uhlans  and 
Hussars^crossing  the  river  by  a  pontoon-bridge,  and  hurrying 
at  the  top  of  their  sjoeed  towards  Gorze.  Quickening  my  own 
steps,  I  first  heard  the  thunder  of  the  cannonade,  seemingly 
coming  from  the  heart  of  a  range  of  hills  on  the  right.  Pass- 
ing through  the  village  and  ascending  the  high  plain  beyond,  I 
found  myself  suddenly  in  a  battle-field,  strewn  thickly,  so  far 
as  my  eye  could  reach,  with  dead  bodies.  In  one  or  two  parts 
of  the  field  companies  were  still  burying  the  dead,  chiefly  Prus- 
sians.     The  French,  being  necessarily  buried  last,   were  still 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  155 

lying  in  vast  numbers  on  the  ground.  A  few  of  those  that  I 
saw  were  not  yet  dead. 

"  As  I  hurried  on,  a  splendid  regiment  of  cavalry  came  up 
from  behind  me,  and  when  they  reached  the  brow  of  the  hill 
they  broke  out  with  a  wild  hurrali,  and  dashed  forward.  A  few 
more  steps  and  I  gained  the  summit,  and  saw  the  scene  which 
had  evoked  their  cry,  and  seemed  to  thrill  even  their  horses. 

"  From  the  hill  to  which  I  had  been  directed  by  good 
authority  to  come,  the  entire  sweep  of  the  Prussian  and  French 
centres  could  be  seen,  and  a  considerable  part  of  their  wings. 
The  spot  where  I  stood  was  fearful.  It  was  amid  ghastly 
corpses,  and  the  air  was  burdened  with  the  stench  of  dead 
horses,  of  which  there  were  great  numbers.  I  was  standing 
on  the  battle-field  of  the  16th — the  Prussian  side.  On  the  left 
stretched,  like  a  silver  thread,  the  road  to  Yerdun — to  Paris  also 
— for  the  possession  of  which  this  series  of  battles  had  begun. 
It  was  between  the  lines  of  poplars  which  stood  against  the 
horizon  on  my  left ;  and  on,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach, 
toward  Metz,  with  military  regularity,  strung  on  this  road  like 
beads,  were  the  pretty  villages,  each  with  its  church-tovv^er,  all 
of  which  are  really  only  a  hundred  yards  apart,  although  they 
have  separate  names — Mars-la-Tour,  Flavigny,  a  little  south  of 
the  road,  Yionville,  Pezonville,  and  Gravelotte,  which  is  divided 
into  Great  and  Little  Gravelotte.  On  my  right  were  the  thickly- 
wooded  hills  behind  which  lies  the  most  important  village  of 
the  neighborhood,  which  I  had  just  left — Gorze.  So  environed 
was  the  foreground  of  the  battle,  which  should,  one  would  say, 
be  called  the  battle  of  Gravelotte,  for  it  was  mainly  over  and 
around  that  devoted  little  town  that  it  raged.  The  area  I  have 
indicated  is  perhaps  four  miles  square. 

"  I  arrived  just  as  the  battle  waxed  warm.  It  was  about 
noon  of  the  18th.  The  headquarters  of  the  King  of  Prussia 
were  then  at  the  spot  which  I  have  described.     The  great  repre- 


156  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

sentative  men  of  Prussia,  soldiers  and  statesmen,  were  standing 
on  the  ground  watching  the  conflict  just  begun.  Among  them 
I  recognized  the  King,  Bismarck,  General  von  Moltke,  Prince 
Priedrich  Karl,  Prince  Karl,  Prince  Adalbert,  and  Adjutant 
Kranski.  Lieutenant-General  Sheridan,  of  the  United  States 
Army,  was  also  present.  At  the  moment  the  French  were 
making  a  miost  desperate  efibrt  to  hold  on  to  the  last  bit  of  the 
Yerdun  road — that  between  Pezonville  and  Gravelotte,  or  that 
part  of  Gravelotte  which  in  some  maps  is  called  St.  Marcel. 
The  struggle  was  desperate  but  unavailing,  for  every  one  man 
in  the  French  army  had  two  to  cope  with,  and  their  line  was 
already  beginning  to  waver.  Soon  it  was  plain  that  this  wing 
— the  French  right — was  withdrawing  to  a  new  position.  This 
was  swiftly  taken  up  under  cover  of  a  continuous  fire  of  their 
artillery  from  the  heights  beyond  the  village.  The  movement 
was  made  in  good  order,  and  the  position,  which  was  reached 
at  1.30  o'clock,  would,  I  believe,  have  been  pronounced  impreg- 
nable by  nine  out  of  ten  military  men.  When  once  this  move- 
ment had  been  efiected,  the  French  retreating  from  the  pressure 
of  the  Prussian  artillery-fire,  and  the  Prussians  as  rapidly  ad- 
vancing, the  battle-field  was  no  longer  about  Pezonville,  but 
had  been  transferred  and  pushed  forward  to  Gravelotte,  the 
junction  of  the  two  branching  roads  to  Yerdun.  The  fields  in 
front  of  that  village  were  completely  covered  by  the  Prussian 
reserves,  and  interminable  lines  of  soldiers  were  steadily  march- 
ing onward,  disappearing  into  the  village,  and  emerging  on  the 
other  side  of  it  with  flaming  volleys. 

"  The  second  battle-field  was  less  extensive  than  the  first, 
and  brought  the  opposing  forces  into  fearfully  close  quarters. 
The  peculiarity  of  it  is  that  it  consists  of  two  heights  intersected 
by  a  deep  ravine.  This  woody  ravine  is  over  one  hundred  feet 
deep,  and,  at  the  top,  three  hundred  yards  wide.  The  side  of 
the  chasm  next  to  Gravelotte,  where  the  Prussians  stood,  is 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  15Y 

mucli  lower  than  the  other  side,  which  gradually  ascends  to  a 
great  height.  From  their  commanding  eminence  the  French 
held  their  enemies  fairly  beneath  them,  and  ponred  down  upon 
them  a  scorching  iire.  The  French  guns  were  in  position  far  up 
by  the  Metz  road,  hidden  and  covered  among  the  trees.  There 
was  not  an  instant's  cessation  of  the  roar.  Easily  distinguish- 
able amid  all  was  the  curious  grunting  roll  of  the  mitrailleuse. 
The  Prussian  artillery  was  posted  to  the  north  and  south  of  the 
village,  the  guns  on  the  latter  side  being  necessarily  raised  for 
an  awkward  half-vertical  fire. 

"  The  French  stood  their  ground  and  died ;  tlie  Prussians 
stood  their  ground  and  died — both  by  hundreds,  I  had  almost 
said  thousands.  This,  for  an  hour  or  two  that  seemed  ages,  so 
constant  was  the  slaughter.  The  hill  where  I  stood  commanded 
chiefly  the  conflict  behind  the  village  and  to  the  south  of  it. 
The  Prussian  reenforcements,  coming  up  on  their  right,  filed 
out  of  the  Bois  des  Ognons ;  and  it  was  at  that  point,  as  they 
marched  on  to  the  field,  that  one  could  perhaps  get  the  best  idea 
of  the  magnitude  of  the  invading  army  now  in  the  heart  of 
France.  There  was  no  break  whatever  for  four  hours  in  the 
march  of  men  out  of  that  wood.  It  seemed  almost  as  if  all  the 
killed  and  wounded  revived  and  came  back  and  marched  forth 
again.  Birnam  Wood  advancing  to  Dunsinane  Hill  was  not  a 
more  ominous  sight  to  Macbeth  than  these  men  of  General 
Goben's  army  to  Bazaine,  shielded  as  they  were  by  the  woods 
till  they  were  fairly  within  range  and  reach  of  their  enemy's 
guns.  So  the  French  must  have  felt;  for  between  4:  and  5 
o'clock  they  concentrated  upon  that  spot  their  heaviest  fire, 
massing  all  available  guns,  and  shelling  the  woods  unremit- 
tingly. Their  fire  reached  the  Prussian  lines  and  tore  through 
them ;  and  though  the  men  were  steady,  it  was  a  test  to  which 
no  general  cares  to  subject  his  troops  long.  They  presently 
swerved  a  little  from  that  line  of  advance,  and  there  was  no 


158  THE  GREAT  "WAR  OF  ISVO 

longer  a  contmiioiis  column  of  infantrj  ponring  out  of  those 
woods. 

"  The  attack  of  the  Prussians  in  the  centre  was  clearly 
checked.  About  6  o'clock,  however,  a  brigade  of  fresh  infantry 
was  again  formed  in  the  wood,  and  emerged  from  its  cover. 
Once  out  from  under  the  trees,  they  advanced  at  double-quick. 
Tlie  French  guns  had  not  lost  the  range  of  the  wood,  nor  of  the 
ground  in  front.  Seen  at  a  distance  through  a  powerful  glass, 
the  brigade  was  a  huge  serpent,  bending  with  the  undulations 
of  the  field.  But  it  left  a  dark  track  behind  it,  and  the  glass 
resolved  the  dark  track  into  falling  and  dying  and  dead  men. 
Many  of  those  who  had  fallen  leaped  up  again,  and  ran  forward 
a  little  way,  striving  still  to  go  on  with  their  comrades.  Of 
those  who  went  backward  instead  of  forward  there  were  few, 
though  many  fell  as  they  painfully  endeavored  to  follow  the 
advance. 

"  Half  an  hour  afterwards  great  numbers  of  troops  began  to 
march  over  the  hill  where  I  was  standing,  and  moved  forward 
toward  the  field  where  so  hard  a  struggle  had  been  so  long  pro- 
tracted. These  also  were,  I  think,  a  portion  of  General  Go- 
ben's  troops,  who  had  been  directed  upon  a  less  dangerous  route. 

"  The  battle  from  this  point  on  the  Prussian  left  became  so 
fierce  that  it  was  soon  lost  to  us,  or  nearly  lost,  by  reason  of 
the  smoke.  Now  and  then  the  thick  cloud  would  open  a  little 
and  drift  away  on  the  wind,  and  then  we  could  see  the  French 
sorely  tried.  To  get  a  better  view  of  this  part  of  the  field  I 
went  forward  about  half  a  mile,  and  from  this  new  standpoint 
found  myself  not  far  from  Malmaison.  The  French  line  on 
the  hills  was  still  unbroken,  and  to  all  appearances  they  were 
having  the  best  of  the  battle.  But  this  appearance  was  due, 
perhaps,  to  the  fact  that  the  French  were  more  clearly  visible 
in  their  broad  height,  and  fighting  with  such  singular  obstinacy. 
They  plainly  silenced  a  Prussian  battery  now  and  then.     But 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  159 

the  Prussian  line  also  was  strengtliened  by  degrees  on  this  north- 
ern point.  Infantry  and  artillery  were  brought  up,  and  from 
far  in  the  reai',  away  seemingly  in  the  direction  of  Verneville, 
shot  and  shell  began  reaching  the  French  ranks*  These  were 
the  men  and  these  were  the'  guns  of  Steinmetz,  who  there  and 
then  efiected  his  junction  with  the  army  of  Prince  Friedrich 
Karl,  and  completed  the  investment  of  Metz  to  the  northwest. 

"  "With  reenforcements  for  the  Prussians  thus  continually 
arriving  on  both  sides  of  the  field,  the  battle  grew  more  and 
more  obstinate.  There  could  be  no  doubt  that  the  French  well 
understood  the  meaning  of  the  movements  of  the  Prussians, 
and  of  the  gradual  development  of  their  line  to  the  north. 

"  Steinmetz  was  able  to  extend  his  line  gradually  further 
and  further  until  the  French  were  outflanked,  and  began  to  be 
threatened,  as  it  appeared,  with  an  attack  on  the  rear  of  their 
extreme  right  wing.  So  long  as  the  smoke  from  the  Prussian 
guns  hovered  only  over  their  front,  the  French  clung  to  their 
position.  The  distance  from  headquarters  to  where  the  Prus- 
sian flank-attack  stretched  forward  was  great,  and,  to  add  to  the 
difiiculty  of  clearly  seeing  the  battle,  the  darkness  was  coming 
on.  The  puffs  of  smoke  from  the  French  guns,  mingled  with 
the  flashes,  brightening  as  the  darkness  increased,  receded  grad- 
ually. The  pillars  of  cloud  and  flame  from  the  north  as  grad- 
ually and  steadily  approached.  With  that  advance  the  French 
fire  every  moment  grew  more  slack.  It  was  not  far  from  9 
o'clock  when  the  ground  was  yielded  finally  on  the  north,  and 
the  last  shots  fired  on  that  terrible  evening  were  heard  in  that 
direction, 

"  The  King's  face,  as  he  stood  gazing  upon  the  battle-field, 
had  something  almost  plaintive  in  it.  He  hardly  said  a  word, 
but  I  noticed  that  his  attention  was  divided  between  the  exciting 
scenes  in  the  distance,  and  the  dismal  scene  nearer  his  feet,  where 
they  were  iust  beginning  what  must  yet  be  a  long  task — to 


160  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

biiiy  the  French  who  fell  in  Tuesday's  battle.  On  them  he 
gazed  silentlj,  and,  I  thought,  sadly. 

"  Count  Bismarck  could  not  conceal  his  excitement  and 
anxiety.  If  it  had  not  been  for  the  King,  the  Count  would 
clearly  have  gone  forward  where  the  fighting  was.  His  tower- 
ing form  was  always  a  little  in  advance  of  the  rest. 

"  When  the  French  completely  gave  up  their  hold  upon  the 
road  up  to  Gravelotte,  the  horses  of  the  headquarters  party  were 
hastily  called,  the  entire  party  mounting,  and,  with  the  King  at 
their  head,  dashed  down  to  a  point  not  very  far  from  the  village. 
Then  shouts  and  cheers  arose,  and  followed  them  wherever  they 
passed. 

"  A  little  after  4  o'clock  a  strange  episode  occurred.  From 
the  region  where  Steinmetz  was  supposed  to  be,  a  magnificent 
regiment  of  cavalry  galloped  out.  They  paused  a  moment  at 
the  point  where  the  Conflans  road  joins  that  to  Metz.  Then 
they  dashed  up  the  road  toward  Metz.  This  road  between 
Gravelotte  and  St.  Hubert's  is  cut  through  the  hill,  and  on  each 
side  of  it  rise  clifis  from  forty  to  sixty  feet  high,  except  at  the 
point  where  it  traverses  the  deep  ravine  behind  the  village. 
When  it  is  remembered  that  at  the  time  the  culminating  point 
to  which  that  road  ascends  was  held  by  the  French,  it  will  not 
be  wondered  at  that  only  half  that  regiment  survived.  Their 
plunge  into  that  deep  cut  on  the  hillside,  where  next  day  I  saw 
so  many  of  them  and  their  horses  lying,  was  of  that  brave, 
unhesitating,  unfaltering  kind  which  is  so  characteristic  of  Ger- 
man soldiers,  among  whom  stragglers  and  deserters  seem  to  be 
absolutely  unknown, 

"  At  a  moment  that  seemed  critical,  there  appeared  on  the 
field,  occupying  ground  before  held  by  a  portion  of  the  forces 
of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  a  large  body  of  troops.  They  moved 
mto  position  under  the  eyes  of  the  King,  yet  neither  the  King 
nor  any  of  his  staff  could  account  for  their  appearance.     They 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  161 

passed  the  point  wLicIi  in  the  morning  had  been  the  royal  head- 
quarters. Their  march  was  begmi  at  the  time  I  have  mentioned, 
and  their  advance  did  not  cease  till  dark  ;  bnt  the  mystery  that 
hnng  over  them  was  not  dispelled.  "Whose  was  this  new  army  ? 
"Whence  did  it  come?  The  staff  insisted  that  at  the  point 
whence  it  moved  there  were,  or  at  any  rate  ought  to  be,  no 
troops  of  the  armies  of  either  Steinmetz  or  of  Prince  Friedrich 
Karl.  The  rumor  began  and  spread  among  the  group"  of  men 
who  surrounded  the  King  that  this  fresh,  mysterious  force  was 
a  part  of  the  army  of  the  Crown-Prince,  and  that  a  new  junc- 
tion had  been  effected.  I  know  of  no  reason  to  suppose  this 
true.  Doubtless  the  staff  soon  cleared  up  the  matter  to  their 
own  satisfaction,  but  it  happened  that  I  was  away  in  another 
part  of  the  field  before  the  riddle  was  solved. 

"  In  any  event,  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  presence  of 
that  large  body  of  men  made  itself  felt  upon  the  fortunes  of 
the  field.  They  were  visible  to  the  French  as  well  as  to  us. 
Here  was  another  example  of  the  moral  effect  that  may  be  and 
so  often  is  exerted  in  battle  by  masses  of  men  whose  presence 
is  known  to  the  enemy,  but  who  may  not  fire  a  shot  in  the 
actual  conflict.  From  their  line  of  march  it  is  clear  that  the 
divisions  were  finally  posted  a  little  in  the  rear  and  on  the  left 
of  the  Prussian  centre  at  the  time  when  the  attacks  so  long 
directed  against  the  key  of  the  French  lines  had  ceased — in 
fact,  had  failed  for  the  time.  It  was  ]30ssible  that  the  French, 
having  suffered  far  less  in  holding  their  ground  than  the  Prus- 
sians in  attacking,  might  have  advanced  in  their  turn  and  have 
undertaken  a  vigorous  offensive  movement.  If  they  had  any 
such  purpose,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  they  abandoned  it  on  sight 
of  the  Prussian  reenforcements. 

"  Instead  of  advancing,   the  French  now  contented  them- 
selves with  the  mere  occupation  of  the  ground  to  which,  earlier 
in  the  day,  they  had  been  driven  back.    At  no  time  did  they 
11 


IQ2  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF   18V0 

seriously  strive  to  regain  tlie  •vresternmost  line  of  hills  wMcii 
had  been  theirs  in  the  morning.  At  no  time  did  thej  recover, 
or  seek  to  recover,  by  any  vigorous  forward  movement,  the 
junction  of  the  roads  at  Gravelotte.  From  7  to  8  o'clock  the 
weight  of  the  battle  tended  more  and  more  to  the  north  of  the 
road.  There  was  a  lull,  the  meaning  of  which  the  French  failed 
apparently  to  interpret.  By  7  o'clock  they  may  have  believed 
themselves  partly  victorious.  They  were  still,  perhaps,  in  con- 
dition to  renew  on  the  morrow  the  struggle  that  had  gone  on  all 
day  for  that  fated  road  from  Metz  to  Yerdun.  If  they  had  not 
gained  the  road  or  the  battle,  they  had  not  clearly  lost  the  latter. 
Two  hours  later  they  had  lost  both. 

"  A  little  before  8  o'clock  a  large  white  house  on  the  height 
beyond  Gravelotte  caught  fire.  It  seemed  through  the  gloom 
to  be  a  church.  Its  spire  grew  into  flames,  and  a  vast,  black 
cloud  of  smoke  arose,  contrasting  strangely  with  the  white 
smoke  of  the  battle.  More  and  more  picturesque  grew  the 
whole  field.  As  evening  fell,  the  movements  of  the  troops 
could  be  followed  now  by  the  lines  of  fire  that  ran  fiickering 
along  the  front  of  a  regiment  as  it  went  into  action.  Tongues 
of  fire  pierced  through  and  illuminated  the  smoke  out  of  the 
cannons'  mouths,  and  the  fuses  of  the  shells  left  long  trains  of 
fire  like  falling  stars.  ISTo  general  likes  fighting  by  night  in 
ordinary  circumstances,  for  chance  takes  then  the  place  of  skill ; 
but  the  flanking  movement  on  the  French  right  had  been 
resolved  on  by  daylight,  and  it  was  the  necessity  of  moving 
troops  to  a  great  distance  over  difficult  ground  which  delayed 
its  execution,  and  brought  about  what  seemed  a  renewal  of  the 
battle  after  the  day  was  done. 

"  To  leave  the  French  in  their  positions  during  the  night 
would  have  been  to  imperil  the  plan  on  which  the  Prussian 
commander  had  resolved.  So,  from  8,  or  8.30  to  9  o'clock,  the 
decisive  blow  was  struck.    When  the  battle  of  Gravelotte  had 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY,  163 

actually  ended,  we  knew  that  the  Prussians  held  the  strong 
heights  beyond  the  Forest  of  Yaux,  which  commanded  the  sur- 
rounding country  to  the  limits  of  artillery-range  from  Metz  ;  we 
knew  that  two  great  Prussian  armies  lay  across  the  only  road  by 
which  Bazaine  could  march  to  Paris  for  its  relief,  or  for  his  own 
escape ;  we  knew  that  a  victory  greater  than  that  of  Sunday, 
and  more  decisive  than  the  triumph  of  Tuesday,  had  been  won. 
We  believed  that  the  French  army,  which  had  fought  as  val- 
iantly and  as  vainly  as  before,  was  now  hopelessly  shut  up  in 
its  fortress. 

"  As  I  went  back  to  the  village  of  Gorze  to  pass  the  night, 
I  turned  at  the  last  point  to  look  upon  the  battle-field.  It  was 
a  long,  earth-bound  cloud,  with  two  vast  fires  of  burnmg  build- 
ings at  either  end.  The  day  had  been  beautiful  so  far  as  ISTature 
was  concerned,  and  the  stars  now  looked  down  in  splendor  upon 
a  work  of  agony  and  death  such  as  no  one  could  ever  wish  to 
see  again." 

Another  correspondeat  who  witnessed  the  battle,  and  also 
went  over  the  battle-ground  on  the  following  day,  after  stating 
that  the  battle  will  rank  with  the  bloodiest  and  most  hardly- 
contested  that  have  ever  been  fought  in  Europe,  goes  on  to  say : 

"As  I  rode  up  the  hill  leading  to  the  French  position,  I 
wondered  not  at  the  frightful  files  of  corpses  all  around  me,  but 
that  such  a  position  could  be  taken  at  all.  On  the  further  side 
of  the  road  the  French  had  thrown  up  twelve  small  6paulements 
about  breast-high ;  in  eight  of  them  tliey  had  placed  mitra- 
illeuses, for  the  empty  cases  were  scattered  all  about.  In  one 
epaulemeut  alone  I  counted  forty-three  empty  cartridge-holders. 
!Now,  as  each  of  these  boxes  contains  twenty-five  cartridges, 
1,0Y5  shots  are  fired  by  one  during  the  day.  Doubtless  many 
more  had  actually  been  fired,  for  nearly  every  one  did  as  I  did. 


Ig4  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  ISTO 

and  carried  off  an  empty  case  as  a  relic.  The  slope  imme- 
diately beneath  the  French  position,  on  the  Yerdun,  was  a 
frightful  spectacle.  Hundreds  of  Prussian  corpses  were  strewed 
in  quite  a  small  space  on  the  fatal  slope.  Where  the  Prussian 
battery  had  been  placed  (of  which  I  spoke  in  my  last),  there 
were  thirty  horses  lying  almost  touching  one  another,  many 
with  the  drivers  beside  them,  still  grasping  their  whips.  Most 
of  the  corpses  were  on  their  backs,  with  their  hands  clenched. 
This  position  was  explained  by  the  fact  that  most  of  the  men 
had  been  shot  grasping  their  muskets,  and  their  hands  clenched 
as  they  dropped  their  weapons  and  fell.  Many  corpses  of  Prus- 
sian officers  lay  by  those  of  their  men,  with  theu'  white  glove 
on  their  left  hands,  the  right  ones  being  bare,  in  order  better  to 
grasp  the  sword.  In  the  hollow  road  itself  the  bodies  of  men 
and  horses  also  lay  thick  ;  the  corpses  all  along  the  sides  of  the 
road,  for  nearly  1,000  yards,  made  one  continually  unbroken 
row.  A  little  lower  down  I  found  the  tirailleur  corpses.  Many 
of  these  men  had  still  their  muskets  in  their  hands,  many  fore- 
fingers being  stiff  on  the  trigger.  On  the  left  of  the  Preneh 
position  were  two  small  cottages  which  had  been  a  mark  for  the 
Prussian  cannon,  and  their  shells  had  made  a  complete  ruin  of 
the  buildings.  One  roof  was  completely  gone,  and  the  whole 
front  wall  of  the  upper  story  of  the  other  had  been  blown  in. 
On  the  plateau  behind  the  French  earthworks  all  the  ground 
was  ploughed  and  torn  by  the  Prussian  shells,  which,  when  they 
got  the  range,  were  admirably  aimed.  One  third  of  its  horses 
lay  dead  beside  it.  A  shell  had  burst  beneath  one  of  the  horses, 
and  had  blown  him,  the  limber,  and  one  of  the  gunners,  all  to 
pieces.  All  the  French  prisoners  Avith  whom  I  have  spoken 
agree  in  asserting  that  it  was  the  terrible  accuracy  of  the  Prussian 
artillery  which  forced  them  to  yield  their  position.  The  farm- 
house of  La  Yillette  once  stormed  and  held  by  the  Prussians, 
the  earthworks  on  the  Yerdun  road  became  untenable,  as  from 


BETWEEIf  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  165 

the  yard  of  La  Villette  the  Prussian  jaegers  could  slioot  right 
into  the  twelve  French  earthworks.  Seeing  this,  one  could  not 
help  asking  why  so  terrible  a  sacrifice  of  life  was  made  by  send- 
ing the  infantry  straight  up  the  road  at  the  French  works. 
Perhaps  it  may  have  been  thought  necessary  to  make  a  moral 
impression  on  the  French,  and  to  show  them  that  nothing  would 
stop  the  Prussian  infantry. 

"  It  is  admitted  here  that  the  mitrailleuses  did  much  execu- 
tion at  close  quarters.  That  the  stories  about  their  doing  execu- 
tion at  2,000  metres  were  pure  invention,  I  now  know  ;  for,  had 
they  really  shot  that  distance,  I  should,  in  all  probability,  not 
be  writing  this  now,  for  I  was  within  1,500  yards  of  them,  and 
never  heard  of  any  of  their  balls  coming  near  us.  All  that  did 
come  were  Chassepots.  After  all  the  talk  we  had  been  treated 
to  about  their  great  superiority,  one  would  have  expected  them  . 
to  do  better.  But  the  fact  is,  the  French  soldiers  do  not  do 
justice  to  their  weapon,  which  is  undoubtedly  better  than  the 
needle-gun — a  totally  superannuated  weapon,  though  it  is  made 
to  do  all  it  is  capable  of  by  the  Germans,  who  never  dream  of 
drawing  trigger  until  they  feel  sure  of  their  aim.  Their  fire  is, 
therefore,  less  rapid  than  that  of  the  French,  but  far  more 
deadly.  ISTow,  nothing  so  encourages  young  troops  as  to  find 
that  the  '  swish,'  '  swish '  of  balls  is  not  followed  by  any  very 
serious  results.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  not  at  all  encouraging 
to  find  that  nearly  every  shot  fired  by  the  enemy  tells.  So 
much  so  was  this  the  case  on  Thursday,  that  those  who  were  at 
the  '  taking '  of  Saarbruck  by  the  '  infant  Louis,'  remarked  that 
the  French  artillery-practice  against  the  station  was  good,  and 
in  some  cases  excellent.  But  yesterday  it  is  said  to  have  been 
much  inferior  to  what  it  was  at  Saarbruck,  when  they  had 
greater  opposition.  I  myself  thought  the  Prussian  artillery- 
practice  slow ;  but  when  I  got  up  on  the  top  of  the  plateau 
occupied  by  the  French,  I  saw  how  accurate  it  had  been." 


■^QQ  THE  GREAT   WAR  OF  1810 

On  the  19tli  tlie  Frencli  army  of  Marshal  Bazaiue,  which 
had,  during  the  night,  rested  on  its  arms  near  the  western  out- 
works of  Metz,  withdrew  sullenly  into  its  fortifications,  having 
lost  in  the  three  days'  fighting,  in  killed,  wounded,  and  prison- 
ers, not  far  from  60,000  men.  Their  own  reports  acknowledge 
12  000  dead  and  6,000  unwounded  prisoners ;  while  the  Ger- 
mans have  sent  into  Germany  full  twice  that  number,  besides 
the  many  thousands  of  the  wounded.  The  French  name  the 
battles  of  the  14th,  16th,  and  18th  of  August  respectively,  Cour- 
celles,  Yionville,  and  Gravelotte.  A  general  order  of  Marshal 
Bazaine,  bearing  date  Gravelotte,  August  16th,  was  found  on 
the  battle-field,  which  gives  directions  to  the  ofiieers  of  the 
several  army-corps  for  the  marching  of  their  troops  to  Yerdun 
by  the  two  roads  via  Conflans  and  Mars-la-Tour. 

On  the  19th  the  two  German  armies  completely  enveloped 
Metz,  and  its  siege  was  formally  commenced. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY,  107 


CHAPTEE  IX. 

FROM  Chalons,  to  wliicli  city  lie  liad  betaken  himself  early  in 
this  week  of  battles,  the  Emperor,  on  the  17th  of  August, 
sent  to  Paris  the  following  decree : 

"  The  General  Trochn  is  named  Governor  of  Paris  and  Com- 
mandant-in-Chief  of  all  the  forces  charged  to  provide  for  the 
defence  of  the  capital. 

"  Done  at  Chalons.  [NTapoleon." 


On  the  18th  General  Trochn  issued  the  following  proclama- 
tion to  the  people  of  Paris  : 

"  Inhabitants  of  Paeis  :  Amid  the  peril  in  which  the 
country  is,  I  am  named  Governor  of  Paris  and  Commandant- 
in-Chief  of  the  forces  charged  to  defend  the  capital  in  a  state 
of  siege.  Paris  seizes  the  part  which  belongs  to  it,  and  it  wishes 
to  be  the  centre  of  grand  efforts,  of  grand  sacrifices,  and  of 
grand  examj)les.  I  come  to  join  in  them  with  all  my  heart. 
That  will  be  the  honor  of  my  life,  and  the  proud  crowning  of  a 
career  which,  until  this  day,  has  remained  unknown,  for  the 
most  part,  to  you. 

"  I  have  faith  the  most  complete  in  the  success  of  our  glo- 
rious enterprise ;  but  it  is  ujDon  one  condition,  the  character  of 
which  is  imperious,  and  without  which  our  common  efforts  will 
be  struck  with  impotence. 

"  I  refer  to  good  order ;  and  I  mean,  by  that,  not  merely 


168  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18'70 

calmness  in  the  street,  but  calmness  at  your  firesides,  calmnesf 
of  your  spirits,  deference  to  tlie  orders  of  tLe  responsible  author- 
ities, resignation  in  presence  of  the  trials  inseparable  from  the 
situation,  and,  finally,  the  serenity,  grave  and  collected,  of  a 
great  military  nation,  •which  takes  in  its  hand,  with  a  firm  reso- 
lution, amid  solemn  circumstances,  the  conduct  of  its  destiny. 
And  to  establish  the  situation  in  that  equilibrium  so  desirable,  I 
do  not  turn  to  the  powers  which  I  hold  by  the  state  of  siege  and 
from  the  law.  I  demand  it  of  your  patriotism,  and  I  will  obtain 
it  from  your  confidence,  in  showing  myself,  to  the  population  of 
Paris,  a  confidence  without  limit. 

"  I  appeal  to  all  men  of  all  parties,  belonging  to  none  myself. 
In  the  army  no  other  party  is  known  than  that  of  the  country. 

"  I  appeal  to  their  devotion.  1  demand  of  them  to  hold  in 
bounds,  by  moral  force,  the  hot  spirits  Vv^ho  do  not  know  how  to 
restrain  themselves,  and  to  do  justice  with  their  own  hands  to 
those  men  who  are  of  no  party,  and  who  see  in  the  public  mis- 
fortune only  an  occasion  to  satisfy  detestable  appetites. 

"  And  to  accomplish  my  task,  after  which,  I  afiirm,  I  will 
reenter  into  the  obscurity  from  which  I  emerge,  I  adopt  one  of 
the  old  devices  of  the  province  of  Brittany,  where  I  was  born : 
'  With  the  aid  of  God,  for  the  fatherland  ! ' 

"  At  Paris.  General  Teochu." 

On  the  19th,  by  imperial  order,  a  Committee  of  Defence  was 
formed  in  Paris,  consisting  of  General  Trochu,  president ;  Mar- 
shal Yaillant,  Admiral  Rigault  de  Genouilly,  Baron  Jerome 
David,  General  De  La  Tour,  General  Guiod,  General  d'Aute- 
marre  d'Erville,  and  General  Soumain.  It  possessed  the  fullest 
powers,  and  had  a  special  executive  committee  that  met  daily  in 
the  "War  Office,  receiving  reports  on  the  state  of  the  defensive 
works,  armament,  munitions,  and  provisions  in  store,  and  all 
operations.    These  reports  went  subsequently  to  the  Minister  of 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  169 

War,  and  thence  to  the  Council.  All  the  acts  of  the  Corps 
Legislatif  were  to  take  effect  without  imperial  decrees  confirm- 
ing them  or  directing  their  execution. 

On  the  20th.  General  Trochu  published  an  address  to  the 
people,  explaining  how  he  desired  to  aid  them.  In  this  address 
he  said : 

"  The  idea  of  maintaining  order  by  force  of  the  bayonet  and 
the  sword  in  Paris,  which  is  so  agitated  and  given  up  to  grief, 
fills  me  with  horror  and  disgust.  The  maintenance  of  order  by 
the  ascendency  of  patriotism,  freely  expressed  by  the  knowledge 
of  the  evident  danger  of  the  country,  fills  me  with  hope  and 
serenity.  But  this  problem  is  arduous,  and  I  cannot  solve  it 
alone,  but  I  can  with  the  aid  of  those  having  such  sentiments. 
That  is  what  I  term  moral  aid.  The  moment  may  arrive  when 
malefactors,  seeing  us  defending  the  city,  will  seek  to  pillage. 
Those  the  honest  must  seize.  The  error  of  all  Governments  I 
have  ever  known  is  to  consider  force  the  ultimate  power.  The 
only  decisive  power  in  the  moment  of  danger  is  moral  force." 

On  the  21st  he  issued  the  following  appeal : 

"  To  the  National  Guard^  to  the  Garde  MoMle^  to  the  Troojps 
and  Seamen  in  the  Army  of  Paris,  to  all  the  Defenders  of 
the  Capital : 

"  In  the  midst  of  events  of  the  highest  importance  I  have 
been  appointed  •  Governor.  The  honor  is  great,  the  perils  also. 
I  depend  on  your  patriotism.  Should  Paris  be  subjected  to  a 
siege,  never  was  there  a  more  magnificent  opportunity  to  prove 
to  the  world  that  long  prosperity  has  not  effeminated  the  coun- 
try. Tou  have  before  you  the  example  of  an  army  which  has 
fought  one  against  three.  Their  heroic  struggle  compels  the 
admiration  of  all.  Show  by  your  conduct  that  you  have  the 
feeling  of  the  profound  responsibility  resting  upon  you." 


lYO  THE  GKEAT  WAR  OF  1870 

The  German  reserves,  to  tlie  number  of  200,000,  were  now 
called  ont  to  fill  np  the  gaps  in  the  regiments  and  occupy  the 
territory  which  had  been  run  over,  so  as  to  enable  the  soldiers 
of  the  line  to  go  to  the  front.  The  bombardment  of  Strasbourg 
commenced  on  the  19th,  and  continued  for  several  days.  Vitry, 
a  fortified  town  of  some  importance  on  the  Marne,  on  the  rail- 
road from  Chalons  to  Nancy,  surrendered,  and  with  it  a  large 
amount  of  arms,  cannon,  and  ammunition.  The  French  mined 
and  destroyed  at  several  places  the  railroad  between  Sedan  and 
Thionville. 

Since  the  8th  of  August  Marshal  MacMahon  had  been  en- 
gaged in  collecting  all  the  troops  in  Alsace  and  Lorraine  which 
could  be  spared,  and  had  received  large  reenforcements  from 
Paris  and  elsewhere,  till  his  army  numbered  somewhat  more 
than  150,000  men.  With  this  army  he  pushed  on  as  rapidly  as 
possible  on  the  route  to  Paris  as  far  as  Chalons,  the  Crown- 
Prince  of  Prussia  pursuing  him,  and  often  pressing  him  closely. 
Up  to  the  24:th  of  August  MacMahon  remained  at  Chalons. 
The  German  cavalry  had  pushed  on  in  advance,  and  some  bat- 
talions of  Uhlans  (Lancers)  had  appeared  around  Epernay.  The 
Third  German  Army,  after  the  battle  of  Gravelotte,  had  been 
joined  by  the  Guards,  Fourth  and  Twelfth  Corps,  which  were 
organized  as  a  Fourth  Army  under  the  Crown-Prince  of  Saxony, 
and  preparations  were  made  for  the  immediate  investment  of 
Chalons. 

On  the  25th  the  German  forces  learned  that,  the  night  be- 
fore, MacMahon  had  evacuated  Chalons,  and,  instead  of  march- 
ing upon  Eperng,y,  had  gone  northwestward  to  Kheims,  where 
the  Emperor  had  preceded  him  on  the  21st.  The  Emperor 
meantime  had  gone  on  to  Kethel.  The  object  of  this  movement 
was  evidently  to  draw  the  German  army  northward,  and  aid 
Bazaine  in  raising  the  siege  or  environment  of  Metz.  There 
were  several  strategical  difiiculties  in  the  way  of  this  movement, 


172  THE   GREAT  "WAR  OF  1810 

wMch  should  have  made  a  skilful  commander  hesitate  long  be- 
fore attempting  it.  It  required  a  very  considerable  detour,  and 
it  is  not  easy  to  take  a  large  force  rapidly  over  a  long  road, — 
especially  when,  as  was  the  case  here,  it  is  much  of  it  a  forest, 
and  traversed  with  difficulty, — when  it  is  constantly  pressed  by  a 
foe  fiilly  equal  and  possibly  superior  in  numbers,  and  flushed 
with  victory.  Then,  again,  the  route  lay  for  a  considerable 
portion  of  the  way  close  to  the  Belgian  frontier,  the  territory 
of  a  neutral ;  and  their  enemy,  approaching  them  from  the 
south,  could  easily  force  them  over  the  line,  where  they  would 
be  disarmed  and  held  as  prisoners.  The  German  forces  around 
Metz,  the  First  and  Second  Armies,  were  more  than  sufficient  to 
hold  Bazaine  in  check,  and  were  being  largely  reenforced  from 
the  reserves,  so  that  they  could  easily  spare  from  50,000  to 
100,000  men  to  take  the  French  in  front,  while  the  Third  and 
Fourth  Armies  were  pressing  upon  their  flank.  The  opportu- 
nity was  too  tempting  a  one  for  the  Germans  not  to  avail  them- 
selves of  it,  and,  conquering  the  French  armies  in  detail,  soon 
make  themselves  masters  of  France. 

MacMahon  and  his  army  were  making  a  rapid  progress 
northward  toward  Bethel  and  Mezieres,  having  passed  the  first- 
named  point  with  part  of  his  force  on  the  27th,  while  the  re- 
mainder was  marching  in  a  line  with  it  eastward  toward  the 
Mouse.  The  country  is  difficult ;  the  Argonnes  forest,  better 
known  as  the  forest  of  Ardennes,  occupying  at  least  one  half 
the  territory,  and  the  country  being  hilly  and  broken. 

The  movement  of  the  German  armies  to  cut  MacMahon  off 
from  a  junction  with  Bazaine  commenced  on  the  26th  of  August. 
At  then'  commencement  eight  and  a  half  army-corps  lay  in  a 
long  line,  north  and  south.  This  front  had  to  be  changed  for 
one  at  right  angles  to  it — a  task  the  difficulty  of  which  was 
greatly  increased  by  the  fact  that  the  line  of  march  lay  partly 
amid  the  forests  of  the  Argonnes.  The  operations  were  so 
directed  as  not  only  to  prevent  MacMahon  from  reaching  Metz, 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  173 

but  also  to  cut  him  off  from  returning  to  Paris,  thus  compelling 
him  to  fight  with  the  alternative  of  surrender,  or  of  retreat  to 
Belgium  in  case  of  defeat. 

"Within  the  next  three  days,  notwithstanding  these  difficulties, 
the  front  of  this  great  army  had  not  only  been  changed,  but 
they  had  pushed  forward  until  their  advance-guard,  part  of  the 
Twelfth  (Saxon)  Corps,  had  reached  ISTouart,  and  the  whole 
army  were  occupying  a  line  nearly  parallel  with  the  Meuse,  and 
extending  from  near  Stenay  westward  beyond  Youziers.  A 
skirmish  took  place  at  ISTouart,  seven  miles  southwest  of  Stenay, 
on  the  29th  of  August,  between  the  Saxon  advance-guard  and 
the  head  of  the  French  column  (Fifth  Corps),  which  was  attempt- 
ing to  reach  the  Meuse.  The  French  troops  w^ere  stopped  and 
cut  off  from  the  road  by  which  they  were  marching.  Yoncq 
was  also  stormed  the  same  day  by  two  dismounted  squadrons  of 
German  hussars,  and  a  large  number  of  prisoners  taken. 

Pressed  thus  closely  by  his  enemy,  MacMahon  had  only  the 
alternative  of  giving  battle  in  this  forest,  and  retreating  into 
Belgium  in  case  of  defeat,  or  of  crossing  the  Meuse  if  he  could, 
and  resting  on  Sedan.  By  this  movement,  though  brought  still 
nearer  to  the  Belgian  frontier,  he  would  have  a  strong  fortress 
to  protect  his  right  wing,  and  the  advantage  of  a  more  open 
country  to  fight  in.  He  chose  the  latter  alternative,  but  found 
himself  so  hard  pressed  that  he  was  obliged  to  accept  the  battle 
forced  on  him  on  the  30th,  before  he  could  cross  the  Meuse. 
MacMahon's  army  lay  between  the  Ardennes  mountains  and 
the  river  Aisne,  the  left,  formerly  the  right  wing  (since  they  had 
"faced  the  other  way  in  this  movement),  resting  below  Tourteron, 
while  the  right  wing  was  attempting  to  cross  the  Meuse  at 
Mouzon.  The  lines  on  which  the  various  corps  and  divisions  of 
the  German  armies  moved,  and  their  action  through  the  day, 
are  given  as  follows  in  their  reports.  (For  the  places,  see  plan 
on  page  171.) 


;[Y4:  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   18^0 

"  According  to  the  orders  given  tlie  TMrd  Army,  the  First 
Bavarian  Corps,  which  on  the  27th  had  "been  advanced  past 
Vouziers,  on  the  road  to  Stenay,  as  far  as  Bar  and  Buzancy,  was 
to  ffo  ma  Sommanthe  toward  Beaumont.  The  Second  Bavarian 
Corps  followed  behind  the  First.  The  Fifth  Prussian  Corps 
moved  from  Breguenay  and  Authe  toward  Pierremont  and 
Oclies,  and  formed,  therefore,  the  left  wing  of  the  Third  Army. 
The  AViirtemberg  Division  directed  itself  from  Boult-aux-Bois, 
via  Chatillon,  against  La  Chene.  The  Second  Prussian  Corps 
moved  on  the  left  of  the  Wiirtembergers,  via  Youziers  and 
Quatre  Champs ;  and  a  side  column  of  this  corps  occupied 
Voncq  on  the  Aisne.  The  Sixth  Corps  was  to  extend  itself 
from  Youziers  southwesterly,  or  toward  Chalons.  The  Fifth 
Cavalry  Division  marched  toward  Tourteron,  the  Fourth  toward 
Chatillon,  the  Sixth  toward  Semuy,  with  advance  troops  toward 
Bouvellemont,  cutting  the  road  to  Mezieres.  The  Second  Divi- 
sion, of  Cavalry  moved  toward  Buzancy.  Headquarters  of  the 
Crown-Prince  were  moved  at  8.30  o'clock  from  Cernuc,  via 
Grand  Pre  (where  the  King's  quarters  were),  toward  Breguenay, 
before  which  place  three  regiments  and  some  artillery  lay  in  two 
rows  about  half  a  mile  long.  Precisely  at  noon  came  the  first 
shot  from  the  hills  before  Oches,  where  some  French  artillery 
had  posted  itself,  and  was  directed  against  the  German  artillery 
back  of  Buzancy,  nearly  5,000  paces  distant.  There  was,  how- 
ever, no  attempt  to  make  a  stand,  and  the  position  was  deserted 
so  soon  as  German  cavalry  approached.  The  artillery  retreated, 
following  the  chain  of  hills  on  which  it  lay,  back  to  Stonne,  its 
highest  point.  Although  the  ground  here  was  very  favorable, 
the  retreat  was  soon  continued  toward  Beaumont,  where  the 
French  centre  had  been  driven  in  after  a  sharj)  fight.  The  bat- 
tle here  was  opened  about  midday  by  the  Fourth  Corps,  which, 
making  a  sudden  attack  upon  Beaumont,  swept  so  suddenly 
upon  the  French,  that  a  camp  from  which  not  an  article  had 


BETWEEN  TRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  I75 

"been  removed  fell  into  their  hands.  This  corps  was  supported 
on  the  left  by  the  First  Bavarian  Corps,  placed  in  the  Petit- 
Dienlet  wood,  where,  being  attacked  on  its  left  flank,  a  return 
attack  was  made,  and  the  enemy  thrown  back  on  La  Besace. 
On  the  right  of  the  Fourth  was  the  Twelfth  Corps,  operating 
against  Letanne.  Beaumont  having  been  brilliantly  seized,  the 
Fourth  and  Twelfth  Corps  of  the  Fourth  Army  moved  against 
the  Givodeau  wood  and  Yillemontry,  fighting  at  every  step,  and 
steadily  extending  its  left  wing,  in  order  to  occupy  the  hills 
which  enclose  Mouzon.  From  6  to  8  o'clock  a  tremendous  artil- 
lery and  mitrailleur  battle  was  kept  up  here,  to  which  night 
alone  put  an  end.  The  Fourth  Corps  then  occupied  the  place. 
As  the  bridge  here  was  the  line  of  retreat  for  a  great  part  of  the 
French  army,  its  crowded  columns  suffered  terribly  in  crossing. 
Large  quantities  of  baggage  and  material  were  also  abandoned. 
Meanwhile,  the  western  wing  of  the  French  army,  formerly  the 
right,  now  the  left  wing,  crossed  the  river  at  Bazeilles.  Part  of 
the  First  Bavarian  Cor]3S  having  advanced  in  a  northeasterly 
direction  toward  Yoncq,  driving  back  on  its  way  a  force  that 
had  been  withdrawn  without  a  fight  from  a  strong  position  at 
Stonne,  attacked  them  late  in  the  day,  and  in  its  turn  won  guns 
and  prisoners,  and  inflicted  severe  loss  on  the  retreating  columns. 
The  German  army  bivouacked  on  the  line  Eaucourt- Yillemontry. 
The  advantages  gained  during  this  day  were,  the  winning  of  so 
much  ground  that  the  passes  of  the  Ardennes  remained  entirely 
in  German  hands,  and  an  approach  to  the  frontier  so  close  that 
the  gi'ound  between  it  and  the  Meuse  could  be  occupied  as  a 
base  of  operations.  In  addition,  the  number  of  guns  and  pris- 
oners taken  was  enormous,  amounting  to  more  than  thirty  guns 
and  5,000  prisoners.  The  French  appeared  to  have  withdrawn 
toward  Sedan,  the  main  body  having  crossed  the  Meuse  at 
Mouzon,  under  cover  of  heavy  artillery-fire  from  the  high  right 
bank  of  the  river.     Mouzon  is  six  miles  north  of  Beaumont  and 


176  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF  18'70 

ten  miles  southeast  of  Sedan.     Bazeilles  is   about  four  miles 
southeast  of  Sedan." 

The  next  dav,  August  31st,  the  King  telegraphed  to  the 
Queen : 

"  We  had  yesterday  a  victorious  action  by  the  Fourth, 
Twelfth  (Saxon),  and  First  Bavarian  Corps.  MacMahon  beaten 
and  pushed  back  from  Beaumont  over  the  Mense  to  Mouzon. 
Twelve  guns,  some  thousands  of  prisoners,  and  a  great  deal  of 
material,  in  our  hands.  Losses  moderate.  I  return  immediately 
to  the  battle-field  in  order  to  follow  up  the  fruits  of  the  victory. 
May  God  graciously  help  us  further,  as  thus  far.       "Wilhelm." 

This  despatch  shows  that  the  Fourth  Army,  under  the 
Crown-Prince  of  Saxony,  which  was  moving  between  the 
Crown-Prince  and  MacMahon,  had  been  reenforced  from  the 
Third  Army. 

This  battle  was  of  great  importance  to  the  German  armies, 
as,  although  the  greater  part  of  MacMahon's  army  was  not 
engaged  in  the  fight,  only  De  Failly's  corps  suffering  largely, 
yet  the  whole  French  army  was  held  back  and  prevented  from 
concentrating  so  speedily  as  its  commander  had  intended  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Mouse,  and  more  time  was  given  to  the  Germans 
to  close  around  it,  and,  by  hemming  it  in  at  Sedan,  compel  its 
surrender. 

The  olst  of  August  was  mainly  occupied  by  the  Germans  in 
bringing  their  forces  across  the  Meuse,  and  by  MacMahon  in 
concentrating  his  forces  around  Sedan,  most  of  them  having, 
during  the  night  of  the  30th  and  the  morning  of  the  31st,  crossed 
at  Bazeilles  and  Eemilly.  There  was,  however,  some  hard  fight- 
ing by  the  Twelfth  (Saxon)  Corps  from  5  a.  m.  to  about  10  A.  ii., 
in  the  vicinity  of  Douzy.     There  was  also  a  long  artillery  com- 


BETWEEK  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  177 

bat  at  Eemilly  between  the  First  Bavarian  Corx3S  and  tbe  Frenebj 
which  resulted  in  the  latter  being  driven  back,  and  the  former 
occupying  the  position  ready  for  crossing. 

On  the  morning  of  the  1st  of  September  the  two  contending 
armies  occupied  the  positions  indicated  in  the  annexed  map. 

As  the  German  troops  had  been  making  forced  marches  and 
fighting  for  three  days,  and  it  was  evident  that  MacMahou  was 
in  a  trap  from  which  he  could  not  escape,  it  had  been  the  pur- 
pose of  the  King  of  Prussia  to  give  his  troops  a  day  of  rest  on 
the  1st  of  September,  before  dealing  the  finishing  stroke  to  the 
French  army  ;  but  the  enthusiasm  and  ardor  of  the  men  were  so 
great,  and  their  desire  to  complete  the  work  so  earnest,  that,  late 
in  the  night  of  August  31st,  the  decision  was  made  to  move 
forward  the  ensuing  day. 

At  midnight  the  necessary  orders  were  issued  by  the  Crown- 
Prince  of  Saxony,  and  the  battle  was  to  begin  at  5  o'clock  in 
the  morning.  His  army  occupied  the  right  flank,  the  Twelfth 
Corps  as  advance-guard,  behmd  them  the  Fourth,  then  the 
Guards,  and,  finally,  the  Fourth  Cavalry  Division.  Those 
troops  which  remained  west  of  the  river  were  to  cross  at  Douzy. 
On  the  left,  and  lying  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Mouse,  were  the 
First  and  Second  Bavarian  Corps ;  their  bridge  was  thrown  over 
opposite  Bazeilles.  On  the  left  flank  the  Eleventh  Prussian 
Corps  laid  down  its  bridge,  1,000  paces  below  Donchery,  and 
close  by  the  Fifth  Corps  crossed ;  on  the  extreme  left  flank  the 
Wiirtemberg  troops  crossed,  at  the  village  Dom-le-Mesnil.  The 
Sixth  Corps  was  in  reserve  between  Attigny  and  Le  Chene. 
Opposed  to  these  bodies  were  the  French  corps  of  MacMahon, 
Failly,  Canrobert,  the  remains  of  General  Douay's  forces,  and 
the  newly-formed  Twelfth  Corps.  Sedan  was  the  centre  of  their 
position,  and  their  lines  extended  from  Givonne  on  the  left,  along 
the  spurs  of  the  Ardennes  which  lie  behind  the  fortress,  to  the 
neighborhood  of  Mezieres,  upon  which  their  right  flank  rested. 
12 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  179 

Headquarters  of  the  Crown-Prince  were  established  on  a  hiL 
near  Chateau  Donchery,  from  which  not  only  the  positions  of 
all  the  German  troops,  but  all  the  developments  of  the  battle, 
could  be  plainly  seen. 

A  tliick  fog  overhung  the  country  as  the  Fourth  Army  put 
itself  in  motion,  a  little  after  5  o'clock,  and  at  6.30  steady  artil- 
lery-fire was  heard  from  behind  Sedan,  where  the  right  wing 
had  attacked  the  enemy  on  his  left  flank.  His  position  here 
was  very  strong,  lying  in  a  wooded  and  hilly  country  by  the 
villages  Floing,  Illy,  La  Chapelle,  and  Yillers,  and  traversed  by 
the  valley  in  which  lies  the  village  of  La  Givonne.  In  spite  of 
stout  efforts  on  the  part  of  the  Germans,  the  conflict  at  lengtii 
came  to  a  standstill  for  an  hour.  During  this  time  the  Eleventh 
Corps  pressed  forward  over  the  small  hills  whicb  lie  on  the  plain 
between  Donchery  and  Sedan,  and  the  Fifth  Corps  undertook' 
the  tactical  march  of  the  day,  passing  along  the  high  hills  north- 
west of  the  fortress  to  the  rear  of  the  enemy.  Its  object  was  to 
unite  with  the  extreme  right  of  the  Fourth  Army,  and  thus 
envelope  the  French.  The  "Wiirtemberg  troops,  and,  later,  the 
Fourth  Cavalry  Division  also,  were  to  hold  the  plain  against  any 
sortie  of  the  enemy — an  event  that  could  hardly  have  proven 
fortunate  for  him,  as  the  river-crossings  all  lay  in  the  hands  of 
the  Germans. 

The  Wiirtemberg  troops  were  also  chai'ged  with  repulsing 
any  movement  made  from  Mezieres.  It  was  directed  to  cross  at 
Kouvion,  on  the  right  bank,  and  take  position  near  Yiviers-au- 
Court  on  the  road  from  Sedan  to  Mezieres.  Breaking  camp  at 
6  o'clock  in  the  morning,  the  river  was  crossed  on  a  pontoon 
bridge  which  had  been  thrown  across  at  daybreak,  and  at  9 
o'clock  Viviers-au-Court  was  reached.  Here  they  were  ordered 
to  advance  eastward,  toward  Brigne-aux-Bois  in  battle-order. 
In  front  of  the  latter  place  the  Fifth  and  Eleventh  Prussian 
Corps  were  met,  who  were  in  march  toward  St.  Menges.     At 


180  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1810 

10.30  o'clock  tlie  order  was  to  take  up  position  near  Doncliery.. 
"While  in  this  place,  at  3  p.  m.,  word  came  that  a  column  from 
Mezieres  was  marching  in  the  direction  of  the  pontoon  bridge, 
and  a  detail  of  one  regiment  infantry,  one  squadron  cavalry, 
and  a  field-battery,  was  sent  to  head  it  oif,  which  was  success- 
fully done.  Toward  5  p.  m.  the  artillery  was  advanced  to  a 
point  west  of  Sedan,  for  the  purpose  of  bombarding  the  place. 

To  go  back  to  the  main  operations  :  At  9.15  o'clock  the 
Eleventh  Corps  had  finished  its  extension  in  the  ground  west  of 
Sedan,  and  begun  a  heavy  fire  from  its  batteries.  At  this  signal 
the  Saxon  troops  on  the  right  flank,  who  had  not  before  exhib- 
ited their  full  strength,  attacked  in  force,  and  even  at  this  early 
hour  the  French  showed  in  some  points  a  disposition  to  retreat. 
But  the  troops  who  resorted  to  this  movement  only  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  flanking  columns.  West  of  Sedau,  where  the 
Eleventh  Corps  had  posted  strong  batteries,  the  French  made 
two  cavalry  attacks,  which  were  conducted  with  great  courage, 
and,  by  some  regiments,  as  the  Chasseurs  d'Afrique,  with  the 
grea.test  valor.  The  infantry,  however,  showed  less  spirit,  and 
the  number  of  men  taken  without  arms  in  their  hands  was  con- 
siderable even  at  noon.  In  the  meantime  the  Fifth  Corps  had 
accomplished  its  flanking  march,  falling  in,  toward  the  end  of 
its  movement,  with  those  portions  of  the  Fifth  French  Corps 
which  had  begun  the  retreat.  Tlie  artillery,  which,  by  the 
Emperor's  orders,  had  been  directed  against  this  flanking  corps, 
was  quickly  driven  back,  and  the  commander  sent  word  that  at 
the  most  only  a  few  disordered  bands  could  have  found  their 
way  to  the  frontier. 

The  attention  of  the  German  leaders  was  now  directed  to 
Sedan  itself  and  the  ground  near  it,  the  only  remaining  refuge 
for  an  army  that  had  retreated  from  so  mau}^  fields.  But  even 
this  line  of  retreat  was  rapidly  cut  off.  The  batteries  of  the 
right. and  left  flanks  approached  each  other  rapidly.     In  this 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  181 

* 

part  of  tbe  field  lay  Bazeilles,  a  village  which  became  the  scene 
of  one  of  the  most  terrible  events  of  the  war.  Already,  on 
August  31st,  some  houses  had  been  fired  by  sheliB,  because  they 
harbored  French  soldiers,  who  endeavored  to  oppose  the  crossing 
of  the  river.  During  this  day's  battle  some  Bavarians  advar^ced 
against  the  town,  but  met  with  so  destructive  a  fire  from  some 
houses  that  these,  too,  had  to  be  burned.  The  fight  afterward 
extended  through  the  streets,  and,  after  several  hours  of  very 
bloody  work,  tlie  place  was  taken.  Members  of  the  Sanitary 
Corps  advanced  to  bring  off  the  w^ounded  who  were  lying  in 
the  streets.  The  Germans  report  that  these  were  received  with 
a  murderous  fire,  and  six  of  them  were  wounded.  Some  troops 
then  advanced  to  scour  the  town,  and  men,  women,  and  children 
were  driven  from  the  houses  with  arms  in  their  hands.  But  the 
French  seemed  determined  to  make  a  Saragossa  of  the  place. 
No  sooner  had  the  soldiers  passed  by  than  the  houses  filled 
again,  and  firing  from  the  windows  was  resumed.  Sevei-al  sol- 
diers were  shot,  and  orders  were  given  for  the  destruction  of  the 
place.  In  the  terrib^  scene  which  followed — soldiers,  citizens, 
women,  and  children  were  burned  to  death ;  and  for  days  after- 
ward the  place  is  said  to  have  been  noisome  with  the  stench  of 
half-roasted,  half-putrid  flesh.  Scenes  of  dreadful  cruelty  oc- 
curred ;  and  each  side  charges  the  other  with  dragging  and 
throwing  the  living  into  the  flames. 

Continuing  on,  the  Bavarians  took  the  village  Balan,  and 
towards  midday  Yillette  was  shelled  from  one  of  their  batteries. 
The  church-tower  was  immediately  in  flames^  the  French  artil- 
lery withdrew ;  and  the  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Corps  had  now 
Qothing  in  their  way  to  Sedan.  The  French  were  hastening  in 
Jark  masses  to  the  fortress,  and  at  the  same  time  beyond  the 
line  of  German  troops  thousands  of  prisoners  were  descending 
the  hills  to  be  collected  in  squads  m  the  plain  and  transported 
to  tiie  rear.     A  little  before  2  o'clock  the  junction  of  the  right 


J  82  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

and  left  wings  Lad  been  accomplished,  and  a  double  line  of  Ger- 
mans stood  around  the  town  and  its  crowded  refugees.  In  iso- 
lated positions  a  few  troops  still  kept  np  the  contest ;  but  the 
great  cannonade  had  ceased,  and  a  pause  began,  during  which 
the  conquerors  awaited  the  course  of  their  enemy.  No  sign  was 
made,  and  at  4.30  o'clock  the  batteries  were  ordered  to  open 
again.  In  a  quarter  of  an  hour  a  straw-magazine  was  in  flames; 
and  immediately  after  a  white  flag  appeared  upon  the  fortifica- 
tions. The  further  history  of  this  important  event  we  will  leave 
to  be  told  by  King  Wilhelm,  General  von  Moltke,  and  Count 
Bismarck,  who  have  written  accounts  in  every  way  remarkable, 
of  the  surrender,  and  the  extraordinary  occurrences  which  pre- 
ceded and  followed  it. 

The  letter  from  the  King  says : 

"  Vendkesse,  September  3d,  1870. 

"^  You  now  know  from  my  three  telegrams  the  entire  extent 
of  the  great  historical  event  that  has  occurred.  It  is  like  a 
dream,  even  when  one  has  seen  it  develophour  by  hour. 

"  When  I  remember  that,  after  a  great,  fortunate  war,  I  had 
nothing  more  glorious  to  expect  during  my  reign,  and  now  see 
this  world-historic  act  completed,  I  bow  myself  before  God,  who 
Elone,  my  Lord  and  my  Helper,  has  chosen  me  to  fulfil  this 
work,  and  has  ordained  ns  to  be  instruments  of  His  will.  Only 
in  this  sense  did  I  venture  to  undertake  the  work — that  in 
humility  I  might  praise  God's  guidance  and  mercy. 

"  Now  for  a  picture  of  the  battle  and  its  consequences,  in 
condensed  terms : 

"  The  army  had  arrived,  on  the  evening  of  the  31st,  and 
early  on  the  1st,  in  the  positions  before  described,  round  about 
Sedan.  The  Bavarians  had  the  left  wing  at  Bazeilles  on  the 
Meuse  ;  near  them  the  Saxons,  toward  Moncelles  and  Daign^^ ; 
the  Guards  still  on  the  march  toward  Givonne ;  the  Fifth  and 


BETWEEN  PEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  183 

Eleventh  Corps  toward  St.  Menges  and  Fleigneux.  The  Meuse 
makes  here  a  sharp  curve,  and  therefore  from  St.  Menges  to 
DoDcherj  there  was  no  corps  placed,  but  in  the  latter  town 
Wiirtembergers,  who  at  the  same  time  covered  the  rear  against 
attacks  from  Mezieres.  The  Cavalry  Division  of  Count  Stolberg 
was  in  the  plain  of  Doncherj  as  right  wing  ;  in  the  front  toward 
Sedan,  the  rest  of  the  Bavarians. 

"  The  battle  began  at  Bazeilles  early  on  the  1st  in  spite  of  a 
thick  fog,  and  a  very  heavy  fight  gradually  spread,  in  which  we 
were  obliged  to  take  house  by  house,  which  lasted  nearly  the 
whole  day,  and  in  which  Scholer's  Erfurt  Division  (from  the 
reserve  Fourth  Corps)  had  to  take  part.  Just  as  I  arrived  on 
the  front  before  Sedan,  at  8  o'clock,  the  great  battery  began  its 
fire  against  the  fortifications.  A  tremendous  artillery  battle 
now  sj^read  on  all  sides,  continuing  for  hours,  and  during  which 
ground  was  gradually  won  by  our  side.  The  villages  named 
were  taken. 

"Yery  deep-cut  ravines  with  woods  made  the  advance  of 
the  infantry  difficult,  and  favored  the  defence.  The  villages  of 
Illy  and  Floing  were  taken,  and  the  ring  of  fire  drew  itself 
gradually  closer  and  closer  around  Sedan.  It  was  a  grand  sight 
from  our  position  on  a  commanding  height  behind  the  before- 
named  battery,  before  and  on  the  right  of  Frenois  village,  above 
St.  Torcy. 

"  The  determined  resistance  of  the  enemy  began  gradually 
to  slacken,  as  we  could  discover  by  the  disordered  battalions 
which  ran  hastily  back  out  of  the  woods  and  villages.  The 
cavalry  tried  an  attack  against  some  battalions  of  our  Fifth 
Corps,  which  maintained  an  excellent  bearing;  the  cavalry 
rushed  through  the  intervals  between  the  battalions,  then  turned 
around  and  back  by  the  same  way ;  which  was  repeated  three 
times  by  different  regiments,  so  that  the  field  was  strewn  with 
corpses  and  horses,  all  of  which  we  could  clearly  see  from  our 


184  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   18V0 

standpoint.     I  have  not  yet  been  able  to  ascertain  the  number 
of  this  brave  regiment. 

"  Inasmuch  as  the  retreat  of  the  enemy  lapsed  in  many 
places  into  flight,  and  every  thing — infantry,  cavalry,  and  artil- 
lery— crowded  into  the  city  and  immediate  neighborhood,  but 
still  no  sign  that  the  enemy  proposed  to  withdraw  himself  by 
capitulation  out  of  this  dubious  position  showed  itself,  nothing 
remained  but  to  order  the  bombardment  of  the  city  by  the 
above-mentioned  battery.  After  about  twenty  minutes  it  was 
already  on  fire  in  many  places,  which,  with  the  numerous  burn- 
ing villages  in  the  whole  ring  of  battle,  made  a  shuddering 
impression.  I  therefore  ordered  the  fire  to  cease,  and  sent 
Lieutenant-Colonel  von  Bronsart  of  the  general  stafi"  as  flag  of 
truce,  to  propose  the  capitulation  of  the  army  and  fortress.  He 
was  immediately  met  by  a  Bavarian  ofiicer,  who  informed  me 
that  a  French  flag  of  truce  had  presented  itself  at  the  gate. 
Lieutenant- Colon  el  von  Bronsart  was  admitted,  and  upon  his 
inquiring  for  the  general-in-chief  he  was  unexpectedly  led  before 
the  Emperor,  who  wished  to  give  him  at  once  a  letter  to  me. 
When  the  Emperor  asked  what  messages  he  had,  and  received 
for  answer,  '  To  demand  the  surrender  of  army  and  fortress,'  he 
replied  that  for  that  j)i-^rpose  he  must  apply  to  General  de 
Wimpfi'en,  who  had  just  then  taken  command  in  place  of  the 
wounded  Marshal  MacMahon,  and  that  he  would  also  send  his 
Adjutant-General  Keille  with  the  letter  to  me.  It  was  7  o'clock 
when  Reille  and  Bronsart  came  to  me.  The  latter  came  a  little 
in  advance,  and  from  him  we  first  learned  with  certainty  that 
the  Emperor  was  present.  You  can  imagine  the  impression  it 
made  upon  me,  above  all,  and  upon  all !  Eeille  sprang  from 
the  saddle,  and  handed  me  the  letter  of  his  Emperor,  adding 
that  besides  that  he  had  no  message.  Before  I  opened  the 
letter  I  said  to  him,  '  But  I  demand  as  the  first  condition  that 
the  army  lay  down  its  arms.'     The  letter  began  in  this  way : 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  185 

/N'ayant  pas  pu  mourir  a  la  tete  de  mes  tronpes,  je  depose  mou 
epee  a  Yotre  Majeste ' — (ISTot  Laving  been  able  to  die  at  the  head 
of  my  troops,  I  lay  down  my  sword  to  your  Majesty) ;  confid- 
ing all  the  rest  to  me  in  secrecy. 

"  J\Iy  reply  was,  that  I  complained  of  the  style  of  our  inter- 
course, and  desired  the  sending  of  an  authorized  representative 
with  whom  the  capitulation  could  be  concluded.  After  I  had 
given  the  letter  to  General  Eeille,  I  spoke  some  words  with  him 
as  an  old  acquaintance,  and  so  ended  this  act.  I  empowered 
Moltke  as  commissioner,  and  instructed  Bismarck  to  remain 
behind,  in  case  political  questions  came  up ;  rode  then  to  my 
Wagon,  and  drove  here,  greeted  eveiywhei-e  on  the  road  with 
stormy  hurrahs  from  the  advancing  trains,  while  everywhere 
the  popular  hymns  rose  in  chorus.  It  was  thrilling !  All  had 
struck  lights,  so  that  one  drove  for  a  time  in  an  improvised 
illumination.  At  11  o'clock  I  was  here,  and  drank  with  those 
around  me  to  the  health  of  the  army  which  had  fought  out  such 
a  conclusion. 

"  Since  I  had  received  on  the  mornino;  of  the  2d  no  in- 
formation  from  Moltke  upon  the  terms  of  the  capitulation  which 
should  have  taken  place  in  Donchery,  I  drove  somewhat  down- 
cast toward  the  battle-field.  At  8  o'clock  in  the  morning  I  met 
Moltke,  who  came  to  me  to  obtain  my  acquiescence  in  the 
capitulation  which  he  presented,  and  at  the  same  time  pointed 
out  that  the  Emperor  had  left  Sedan  at  5  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing, and  had  also  come  to  Donchery.  Since  he  wished  to  speak 
to  me,  and  there  was  a  little  castle  in  the  park,  I  chose  this  for 
the  meeting.  At  10  o'clock  I  arrived  on  the  height  before 
Sedan.  At  12  o'clock  Moltke  and  Bismarck  appeared  with  the 
completed  terms  of  capitulation.  At  1  'o'clock  I  placed  myself 
in  motion  with  Fritz,  accompanied  by  the  staff  cavalry  escort. 
I  alighted  before  the  castle,  where  the  Emperor  came  to  meet 
me.     The  visit  lasted  a  quarter  of  an  hour.     We  were  both 


1QQ  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1810 

very  mucli  moved  at  thus  seeing  each  other  again.  All  that  I 
felt,  after  liaving  seen  Napoleon  only  three  years  before  at  the 
summit  of  his  power,  I  cannot  describe. 

"  After  this  meeting  I  rode  from  2.30  to  T.30  o'clock  through 
the  entire  army  around  Sedan. 

"The  reception  by  the  troops,  the  sight  of  the  decimated 
Guards — all  that,  I  cannot  describe  to  you  to-day.  I  was  pro- 
foundly moved  by  so  many  proofs  of  love  and  fidelity. 

"  Now,  lebe  wohl.  "With  an  agitated  heart  at  the  end  of  such 
a  letter, 

"  WiLHELM." 

According  to  Trench  papers,  the  terms  of  capitulation  were  : 

"  Between  the  undersigned,  Chief  of  the  General  Staff  of 
King  "Wilhelm,  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  German  armies, 
and  the  General  commanding  the  French  army,  both  furnished 
with  full  powers  from  their  Majesties,  the  King  Wilhelm  and 
the  Emperor  Kapoleon,  the  following  convention  has  been  con- 
cluded : 

"  Article  I.  The  French  army  placed  nnder  the  orders  of 
General  Wimpffen,  finding  itself  actually  sm-rounded  by  the 
superior  troops  about  Sedan,  is  prisoner  of  war. 

"  Article  11.  Considering  the  valorous  defence  of  that  French 
army,  exemption  for  all  the  generals  and  officers,  also  for  all  the 
superior  officials  having  the  rank  of  officers,  who  give  their 
parole  of  honor  in  writing  not  to  carry  arms  against  Germany, 
and  not  to  act  in  any  manner  against  her  interests,  up  to  the 
end  of  the  present  war.  The  officers  and  officials  w^ho  accept 
these  conditions  retain  their  arms,  and  the  effects  which  belong 
to  them  personally. 

"  Article  III.  All  the  arms,  as  well  as  the  material  of  the 
army,  consisting  of  flags,  eagles,  cannon,  munitions,  &c.,  shall 


BETWEEN  FRAifCE  AKD  GERMANY.  187 

be  delivered  at  Sedan  to  a  militaiy  commission  appointed  bj 
the  general-in-cliief,  to  be  sent  immediately  to  the  German  com- 
missioners. 

"  Article  lY.  The  place  of  Sedan  shall  be  placed  in  its 
present  condition,  and  at  the  latest  on  the  evening  of  the  2d, 
at  the  disposal  of  his  Majesty  the  King  Wilhelm. 

"  Article  V.  The  officers  who  do  not  accept  the  engagement 
mentioned  in  Article  II,  as  well  as  all  the  troops,  disarmed, 
shall  be  conducted,  ranged  according  to  their  regiments  or  corps, 
in  military  order.  This  measure  will  commence  the  2d  of  Sep- 
tember, and  be  finished  the  3d.  These  detachments  shall  be 
conducted  to  the  ground  bounded  by  the  Mouse  near  Iges,  to  be 
delivered  to  the  German  commissioners  by  their  officers,  who 
will  then  surrender  their  command  to  their  under-officers.  The 
surgeons  shall  without  exception  remain  at  the  rear  to  attend 
the  wounded. 

"  At  Frenois,  September  2,  1870. 

"  MoLTKE  and  De  "Wevipffen." 

The  King's  telegram  announcing  the  success  of  his  army  was : 

"  Since  7.30  o'clock  continuously  advancing  battle  round 
about  Sedan,  Guards,  Fourth,  Fifth,  Twelfth  Corps,  and  Bava- 
rian.    Enemy  almost  entirely  thrown  back  on  the  city. 

"  Wilhelm." 

The  King  also  sent  the  following  desjpatches  from  Sedan  at 
1.30  p.  M. : 

"  The  capitulation  by  which  the  entire  army  in  Sedan  [be- 
come] prisoners  of  war,  is  just  now  coiicluded  with  General 
"Wimpffen,  who  takes  command  in  the  place  of  the  wounded 
Marshal  MacMahon.     The  Emperor  has  surrendered  only  him- 


188  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

self  to  me,  since  lie  does  not  occupy  the  command,  and  hands 
over  every  thing  to  the  regency  in  Paris.  I  shall  determine  his 
residence  after  I  have  seen  him  at  a  rendezvous  which  takes 
place  immediately.  "What  a  change  of  fortune  through  God's 
guidance ! 

"WiLHELM." 

"  What  a  thrilling  moment,  that  of  the  meeting  with  Na- 
poleon !  He  was  bowed,  but  dignified  and  resigned.  I  have 
given  him  Wilhelmshohe,  near  Cassel,  for  a  residence.  Our 
meeting  took  place  in  a  little  castle  before  the  western  glacis  of 
Sedan.  From  there  I  rode  through  the  army  about  Sedan. 
You  can  imagine  the  reception  by  the  troops— indescribable ! 
At  dusk — Y.80  o'clock — I  had  finished  the  five  hours'  ride,  but 
returned  here  only  at  1  o'clock.     God  help  further  ! 

"WlLHELM." 

On  the  2d  of  September  General  von  Moltke,  the  Chief  of 
Staff  of  the  Prussian  army,  issued  the  following  order  for  carry- 
ing out  the  capitulation : 

"Headquarters,  Frenois,  September  2, 1870. 
"  The  French  army  lying  in  and  about  Sedan  has  capitu- 
lated. Officers  will  be  liberated  on  their  word  of  honor ;  the 
under-oflficers  and  common  soldiers  are  prisoners  of  war.  Arms 
and  army  material  will  be  given  up."  (Here  follows  the  text 
of  the  capitulation  already  given.)  "  The  prisoners  of  war, 
whose  number  is  not  yet  ascertained,  will  be  assembled  in  the 
bend  of  the  Meuse,  near  Yillette  and  Iges,  and  afterward  con- 
ducted away  in  echelons.  The  Eleventh  and  Twelfth  Royal 
Bavarian  Army-Corps,  under  the  generar command  of  General 
von  der  Tann,  are  appointed  to  the  first  guard.  The  su23plying 
of  the  prisoners,  for  which,  according  to  the  promise  of  the 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  JgQ 

Frencli  general  commanding,  stores  are  to  "be  brouglit  from 
Mezieres  to  near  Donchery  by  railroad,  will  also  be  regulated 
by  General  von  der  Tann.  That  no  difficulty  in  tlie  a]3proacli 
of  trains  is  laid  in  the  way,  is  carefully  to  be  observed.  An 
infantry  regiment  from  the  Eleventh  Corps  will  be  placed  in  the 
fortress  as  garrison  to-morrow  after  Sedan  shall  have  been  evacu- 
ated. 

"  The  withdrawal  of  the  prisoners  in  two  lines  by  way  of 
Stenay,  Etain,  and  Grorze  to  Hemilly,  and  Buzancy,  Clermont, 
and  St.  Mihiel  to  Pont-a-Mousson,  will  be  conducted  by  the 
army  under  his  Royal  Highness  the  Crown-Prince  of  Saxony 
and  the  royal  commander-in-chief  of  the  Third  Army,  according 
to  the  order  of  this  morning.  In  order  to  avoid  every  doubt,  it 
is  to  be  remarked  that  the  French  officers  captured  yesterday  in 
battle,  and  to-day  before  the  close  of  the  capitulation  at  11 
o'clock,  are  to  be  treated  in  accordance  with  the  rules  previously 
in  force. 

"  Officers  and  officials  who  give  tlieir  parole  must  themselves 
prejpare  the  proper  notification.  Both  classes  must  report  as 
soon  as  possible  to  the  quartermaster-general  of  the  army.  The 
horses  to  be  delivered  on  the  part  of  the  French  army  shall,  in 
accordance  with  the  orders  of  his  Majesty  the  King,  be  distrib- 
uted for  the  benefit  of  all  the  active  German  forces,  and  the 
army  commanders  will  be  hereafter  informed  upon  their  respec- 
tive quotas. 

"  The  clearing  up  of  the  battle-field  is  the  duty  of  the  Gen- 
eral of  Depot-Inspection  of  the  army  of  his  Koyal  Highness  the 
Crown-Prince  of  Saxony,  The  burial  of  the  dead  is  to  be  hast- 
ened by  means  of  the  civil  authorities. 

"Yon  Moltke." 

The  following  letter  from  Count  von  Bismarck  describes  his 
part  in  the  negotiations  : 


X90  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

"DoNCHERT,  September  3,  1870. 
"  After  I  had  come  here  yesterday  evening,  according  to  your 
Majesty's  order,  to  take  part  in  the  negotiations  upon  the  capitu- 
hition,  the  latter  were  interrupted  until  about  1  o'clock  at  night 
by  the  grantuig  of  time  for  consideration,  which  General  Wimpf- 
fen  begged  after  General  von  Moltke  had  decidedly  declared 
that  no  other  condition  than  the  laying  down  of  the  anus  would 
be  accepted,  and  that  the  bombardment  would  begin  again  at  9 
o'clock  tlie  next  morning  if  the  capitulation  were  not  concluded 
by  that  time.  At  6  o'clock  this  morning  General  Reille  was 
announced,  who  informed  me  that  the  Emperor  desired  to  see 
me,  and  was  already  on  the  way  here  from  Sedan.  The  General 
returned  immediately  in  order  to  inform  his  Majesty  that  I  fol- 
lowed him,  and  shortly  after  I  found  myself  perhaps  half-way 
between  here  and  Sedan  in  the  neighborhood  of  Frenois,  in  pres- 
ence of  the  Emperor.  His  Majesty  was  in  an  open  carriage 
with  three  superior  officers,  and  an  equal  number  in  the  saddle 
near  by.  Of  the  latter,  Generals  Castelnau,  Eeille,  Yaubert, 
and  Moskowa  were  personally  known  to  me,  the  last-named 
appearing  to  be  wounded  in  the  foot.  An-ived  at  the  carriage, 
I  dismounted  from  the  horse,  stepped  to  the  side  of  the  Empe- 
ror, and,  standing  on  the  carriage-step,  inquired  after  the  orders 
of  his  Majesty.  The  Emperor  then  expressed  the  wish  to  see 
your  Eoyal  Majesty,  apparently  under  the  impression  that  your 
Majesty  was  also  in  Donchery.  After  I  replied  that  the  head- 
quarters of  your  Majesty  were  at  present  fifteen  miles  distant,  in 
Yendresse,  the  Emperor  inquired  if  your  Majesty  had  fixed 
upon  a  place  to  which  he  should  go  at  once,  and  afterward  what 
my  views  thereupon  were.  I  answered  him  that  I  had  come 
here  in  full  darkness,  and  the  neighborhood  was  therefore  un- 
known to  me,  and  placed  at  his  disposal  the  house  occupied  by 
me  in  Donchery,  which  I  would  immediately  leave.  The  Empe- 
ror accepted  this,  and  rode  slowly  toward  Donchery,  but  drew 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  191 

up  some  hundred  paces  before  the  bridge  leading  over  the  Meuse 
into  the  city,  in  front  of  a  laborer's  house  standing  alone,  and 
asked  me  if  he  could  not  descend  there.  1  had  the  house  in- 
spected by  Councillor  of  Legation  Count  Bohlen-Bismarck,  who 
had  meantime  followed  me.  After  he  had  reported  that  its  inte- 
rior was  very  bare  and  small,  but  that  the  house  was  free  from 
wounded,  the  Emperor  descended,  and  desired  me  to  follow  him 
within.  Here,  in  a  very  small  room,  containing  a  table  and  two 
chairs,  I  had  a  conversation  of  about  an  hour  with  the  Emperor. 
His  Majesty  expressed  chiefly  the  wish  to  obtain  more  favorable 
terms  of  capitulation  for  the  army.  I  declined  absolutely  to 
consider  this  subject  with  his  Majesty,  as  this  purely  military 
question  was  to  be  settled  between  General  von  Moltke  and 
General  de  "WimpiFen.  In  return  I  asked  the  Emperor  if  Iiis 
Majesty  was  inclined  to  negotiations  for  peace.  The  Emperor 
replied  that,  as  prisoner,  he  w^as  not  now  in  a  condition  [to  treat 
for  peace]  ;  and  to  my  further  question  to  whom,  according  to 
his  views,  the  Government  of  France  would  now  revert,  his 
Majesty  referred  me  to  the  existing  Government  in  Paris.  After 
explanation  of  this  point,  which  was  not  to  be  decided  with  cer- 
tainty from  yesterday's  letter  of  the  Emperor  to  your  Ma^jesty, 
I  perceived  that  the  situation  to-day,  as  yesterday,  offered  no 
other  practical  question  than  the  military  one ;  nor  did  I  conceal 
this  from  the  Emperor,  but  expressed  the  necessity  which  result- 
ed therefrom  to  us  of  obtaining  before  all  things,  by  the  capitu- 
lation, a  substantial  means  of  securing  the  military  results  which 
we  had  won.  I  had  already,  yesterday  evening,  weighed  the 
question  in  every  direction  with  General  von  Moltke,  whether  it 
would  be  possible,  without  injury  to  German  interests,  to  offer 
better  terms  than  those  fixed  upon  to  the  members  of  an  army 
that  had  fought  well.  After  due  consideration,  we  were  both 
forced  to  hold  the  negative  of  this  question.  When,  therefore, 
General  von  Moltke,  who  meanwhile  had  approached  from  the 


IQ2  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

city,  v.'ent  to  your  Majesty  in  order  to  lay  before  your  Majesty 
the  wish  of  the  Emperor,  this  was  done,  as  your  Majesty  knows, 
not  with  the  purpose  of  supporting  the  same. 

"  The  Emperor  next  went  into  the  open  air,  and  invited  me 
to  seat  myself  near  him  before  the  door  of  the  house.  His 
Majesty  laid  before  me  the  question  whether  it  were  not  possible 
to  allow  the  French  army  to  go  over  the  Belgian  frontier,  in 
order  to  have  it  disarmed  and  disposed  of  there.  I  had  also  dis- 
cussed this  possibility  with  General  von  Moltke  the  evening 
before,  and  quoting  the  motives  indicated  above,  I  declined  to 
go  into  the  discussion  of  this  method.  In  regard  to  the  political 
situation,  I  took,  for  my  part,  no  initiative,  and  the  Emperor 
only  in  so  far  as  he  bewailed  the  misfortune  of  the  war,  and 
declared  that  he  himself  had  not  desired  the  war,  but  had  been 
forced  to  it  by  the  ^jressure  of  public  opinion  in  France. 

"  From  information  received  in  the  city,  and  especially 
through  examination  by  the  officers  of  the  general  staff,  it  was, 
in  the  meantime,  between  9  and  10  o'clock,  ascertained  that 
Bellevue  Castle,  near  Frenois,  was  suited  to  the  reception  of  the 
Emperor,  and  also  that  it  was  not  yet  filled  with  wounded.  I 
reported  this  to  his  Majesty,  in  the  form  that  I  pointed  out  Fre- 
nois as  the  place  which  I  Avould  submit  to  your  Majesty  for  the 
interview,  and  therefore  put  it  to  the  Emperor  if  his  Majesty 
would  go  there  at  once,  inasmuch  as  a  stay  in  the  small  laborer's 
house  was  inconvenient,  and  the  Emperor  Avould  perhaps  require 
some  rest.  This  his  Majesty  willingly  entered  into ;  and  I 
escorted  the  Emperor,  who  was  preceded  by  an  escort  of  honor 
from  your  Majesty's  body-guard  of  cuirassiers,  to  Bellevue  Cas- 
tle, where,  meanwhile,  the  remainder  of  the  suite  and  the  equi- 
pages of  the  Emperor,  whose  arrival  from  the  city  appeared  to 
have  been  considered  uncertain  until  then,  had  gone.  Also 
General  de  Wimpffen,  with  whom,  in  expectation  of  the  return 
of  General  von  Moltke,  the  discussion  of  the  negotiations  rela- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  I93 

tive  to  a  capitulation,  which  had  been  interrupted  yesterday, 
were  resumed  by  General  von  Podbielsld,  in  presence  of  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel von  Yerdy  and  the  chief  of  staff  of  General  de 
Wimpffen,  which  two  officers  were  charged  with  the  treaty.  I 
took  part  only  in  the  beginning,  by  laying  down  the  political 
and  legal  conditions  in  accordance  with  the  revelations  furnished 
nie  by  the  Emperor  himself,  inasmuch  as  I  immediately  there- 
after received,  through  Count  von  Kostitz,  as  messenger  from 
General  von  Moltke,  the  information  that  your  Majesty  would 
not  see  the  Emperor  until  after  tlie  close  of  the  capitulation  of 
the  army — a  notification  by  which  the  hope  of  receiving  any 
other  terms  than  those  previously  decided  upon  had  to  be  given 
up.  I  then  rode,  with  the  intention  of  reporting  to  your 
Majesty  the  position  of  the  afiair,  toward  your  Majesty  at  Che- 
hery  ;  met  on  the  way  General  von  Moltke  with  the  text  of  the 
capitulation  signed  by  your  Majesty,  which,  after  we  had  en- 
tered Erenois  with  him,  was  at  once  accepted  without  opposi- 
tion, and  signed.  The  bearing  of  General  de  "Wimpffen,  as  well 
as  that  of  the  other  French  generals,  the  night  before,  was  very 
dignified  ;  and  this  brave  officer  could  not  restrain  himself  from 
expressing  to  me  his  deep  pain  that  he  should  be  just  the  one  to 
be  called,  forty-eight  hours  after  his  arrival  from  Africa,  and 
half  a  day  after  assuming  the  command,  to  place  his  name  under 
a  capitulation  so  ominous  to  French  arms ;  nevertheless,  the  lack 
of  provisions  and  munitions,  and  the  absolute  impossibility  of 
any  further  defence,  laid  upon  him  the  duty,  as  general,  of  re- 
straining his  personal  feelings,  since,  in  the  existing  situation,  a 
further  shedding  of  blood  could  alter  nothing.  The  acquies- 
cence in  the  dismissal  of  the  officers  upon  their  word  of  honor 
was  recognized  with  great  thankfulness,  as  an  expression  of  your 
Majesty's  intention  not  to  trample  upon  the  feelings  of  an  army 
which  had  fought  bravely,  beyond  the  line  which,'  in  view  of 
our  political    and    military  interests,   was    n-ecessarily  drawn. 


194  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1810 

General  de  WimpfFen  has  also  subsequently  given  expression  to 
this  feeling,  in  a  letter  in  which  he  spoke  his  thanks  to  General 
von  Moltke  for  the  considerate  forms  in  which  the  negotiations 
have  been  carried  on  from  his  side. 

"  Count  Bismaece." 

The  severe  wound  received  by  Marshal  MacMahon  on  the 
31st  of  August  prevented  his  presence  in  the  final  battle  or  the 
capitulation,  and  also  prevented  his  rendering  any  report  of  the 
battle.  General  de  Wimpffen,  who  was  in  command  during  the 
battle,  issued  an  address  to  his  soldiers  after  the  capitulation,  of 
which  the  following  is  a  translation  : 

"Sedan,  September  3,  1870. 
"  SoLDiEES  :  On  Thursday  you  fought  against  a  force  greatly 
superior  in  numbers,  from  daybreak  until  dark.  You  resisted 
the  enemy  with  the  utmost  bravery.  "When  you  had  fired  your 
last  cartridge,  were  worn  out  with  fighting,  and  not  being  able 
to  respond  to  the  call  of  generals  and  officers  to  attempt  to  rejoin 
Marshal  Bazaine  on  the  road  to  Montmedy,  you  were  forced  to 
retreat  on  Sedan.  In  this  desperate  effort  but  2,000  men  could 
be  got  together,  and  your  General  deemed  the  attempt  utterly 
hopeless  and  impracticable.  Tour  General  found,  with  deep 
regret,  when  the  army  was  reunited  within  the  walls  of  the 
town,  that  it  had  supplies  neither  of  food  nor  ammunition; 
could  neither  leave  the  place  nor  defend  it,  means  of  existence 
being  alike  wanting  for  the  population.  I  was  therefore  reduced 
to  the  sad  alternative  of  treating  with  the  enemy.  I  sent,  yes- 
terday, to  the  Prussian  headquarters,  with  full  powers  from  the 
Emperor,  but  could  not  at  first  bring  myself  to  accept  the  con- 
ditions imposed  by  the  enemy.  This  morning,  however,  men- 
aced by  a  bombardment  to  which  we  could  not  reply,  I  decided 
to  make  a  fresh  attempt  to  get  honorable  terms.     I  have  ob- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  I95 

tained  conditions  by  whicli  we  are  saved  mucli  of  tlie  possible 
annoying  and  insulting  formalities  which  the  usages  of  war  gen- 
erally impose. 

"  Under  the  circumstances  in  which  we  find  ourselves,  it 
only  remains  for  us,  officers  and  soldiers,  to  accept  with  resigna- 
tion the  consequences  of  this  surrender.  "We  have  at  least  the 
consolation  of  knowing  a  useless  massacre  has  been  avoided,  and 
we  yield  only  under  circumstances  against  which  no  army  could 
fight,  namely,  want  of  food  and  ammunition.  I^ow,  soldiers,  in 
conclusion,  let  me  say,  that  you  are  still  able  to  render  brilliant 
services  to  your  country,  without  being  needlessly  slaughtered. 

"  De  "WlMPFFElSr, 

"  General  Commanding-in-CliiefP 

A  member  of  General  de  Wimpffen's  staff  soon  after  the 
battle  published  an  account  of  the  General's  part  in  it,  reflecting 
very  severely  on  the  management  of  the  whole  matter  by  the 
Emperor,  asserting  that  he  refused  to  De  Wimpffen  the  opportu- 
nity of  making  an  escape  with  the  greater  part  of  the  army, 
and,  when  he  sought  to  resign,  compelled  him  to  continue  in  the 
command  and  capitulate  in  consequence  of  his  own  blunders. 
To  these  charges  the  Emperor's  adjutant-generals  replied,  and, 
though  admitting  his  offer  of  resignation,  demonstrated  the  im- 
possibility and  folly  of  his  attempting  to  escape  with  any  consid- 
erable portion  of  his  force. 

But  though  there  are  no  official  reports  of  the  battle  and  sur- 
render by  French  officers,  there  are  not  wanting  graphic  and 
unusually  accurate  descriptions  of  both  by  Erench  correspond- 
ents. One  of  these,  from  the  pen  of  a  Erench  officer,  a  corre- 
spondent of  the  Tribune,  we  append,  as  perhaps  the  best  account 
extant  from  a  Erench  standpoint : 

"  I  pass  over  all  that  has  happened  since  I  wrote  you  from 


IQQ  THE  GEE  AT  WAR  OE   1870 

Mezieres,  to  come  at  once  to  the  events  of  August  31st  and  Sep- 
tember 1st — the  latter  the  saddest  day  the  French  arms  have 
ever  witnessed. 

"  Early  in  the  morning  of  the  31st  orders  were  given  to 
bring  into  Sedan  all  the  wagon-trains  and  oxen  which  had  been 
left  outside  the  glacis.  By  this  time  the  streets  were  blocked  up 
by  troops  of  every  kind,  which  had  entered  the  town  during  the 
night,  I  tried  to  ride  down  to  the  Porte  de  Paris,  where  the 
train  was  stationed,  to  carry  the  orders.  I  was  obliged  to  get 
off  my  horse  and  make  my  way  as  best  I  could  between  the 
horses  and  caissons,  which  choked  up  every  street  and  square  of 
the  town.  As  I  reached  the  Porte  de  Paris,  I  met  the  wagon- 
train  entering  as  fast  as  possible,  followed  closely  by  the  rushing 
oxen,  and  intermingled  with  the  weeping  and  terror-stricken 
peasantry  of  the  neighborhood  flying  into  the  town  for  protec- 
tion. They  little  knew  that  it  was  about  the  worst  place  they 
could  have  chosen.  The  gates  on  that  side  were  immediately 
afterward  closed,  while  the  troops  slowly  filed  out  through  the 
opposite  gate  toward  Douzy,  where  all  MacMahon's  forces  were 
posted,  expecting  to  be  again  attacked  by  the  Prussians,  who 
had  closely  followed  up  the  French  army. 

"  About  10  o'clock  that  morning  cannonading  was  heard  six 
or  seven  miles  away,  toward  the  village  of  Bazeille.  I  went  up 
on  the  rampart  overlooking  the  country  in  that  direction. 
Thencs  I  could  see  the  Prussian  position,  and,  with  my  field- 
glass,  could  watch  the  firing ;  but  I  could  not  see  the  French 
lines,  which  Avere  hid  from  me  by  trees  about  a  mile  from  the 
town.  I  therefore,  at  noon,  walked  out  of  the  town  at  the  Porte 
de  Balan,  and  ascended,  on  my  left,  the  rising  ground  which  is 
close  by  the  town.  N^ot  more  than  half  a  mile  from  the  gate  I 
passed  through  regiments  of  reserve  infantr^^  Their  arms  were 
piled  and  the  fires  smoking,  the  soup  not  having  long  been 
eaten.     I  continued  ascending,  and  everywhere  passed  reserve 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  197 

corps  of  infantry  and  artillery.  I  got  higher  and  Mglier,  froin 
hillock  to  hillock,  till  I  reached  a  battery  of  reserve,  the  guns  of 
"Ci^hich  were  unlimbered  and  placed  facing  the  rear  of  the  French 
left.  This  battery  was  so  pointed  as  to  fire  over  the  crest  of  the 
rising  ground  on  which  I  stood.  About  a  quarter  of  a  mile  dis- 
tant, in  front  of  a  little  churchyard,  stood  also  several  officers  of 
the  different  corps  which  were  stationed  on  my  right  and  left,  all 
being  of  the  reserve. 

"  From  the  point  I  had  now  reached  a  charming  prospect 
was  within  view.  The  French  line  of  battle  extended  right  in 
front,  spreading  on  the  slope  of  the  ground  which  forms  one  side 
of  this  basin  of  the  Mouse.  In  front  of  the  centre  of  the  French 
lines,  and  lower  down  in  the  vale,  was  the  village  of  Bazeille, 
which  was  then  beginning  to  burn,  the  Prussian  shells  having  set 
fire  to  it.  Parallel  almost  to  the  front  of  the  French  positions 
ran  the  Mouse,  crossed  by  a  bridge  a  little  to  the  left  of  Bazeille. 
The  French  right  was  upon  a  knot  of  wooded  ground  held  by 
tirailleurs,  the  wooded  ground  extending  nearly  to  the  grounds 
of  Sedan.  The  left  was  lost  to  my  sight  behind  the  inequalities 
of  the  gTOund  toward  the  road  to  Bouillon.  As  far  as  I  could 
see,  on  the  right  and  left  and  in  front  of  me,  were  massed  regi- 
ments of  all  arms ;  but  toward  the  left,  on  the  second  line,  was 
a  very  large  force  of  heavy  cavahy — dragoons  and  cuirassiers. 

'•  The  sun  was  shining  brightly,  and  every  thing  was  plainly 
visible.  The  glittering  of  weapons,  the  bright  and  showy  colors 
of  the  French  uniforms,  the  white  smoke  curling  under  the  blue 
sky,  or  lingering  like  vapor  beneath  the  trees,  the  lurid  flames 
rising  from  the  burning  village  of  Bazeille,  all  seen  from  a  com- 
manding position,  formed  a  spectacle  such  as  one  has  but  rarely 
the  opportunity  to  witness.  The  principal  Prussian  batteries 
were  directly  opposite  the  French  centre,  on  a  plateau  or  table- 
Land  which  terminated  abruptly,  and  made  it  a  very  strong  posi- 
cion. 


j^9g  THE  GEEAT  WAR  OF  1810 

"  For  some  time  cannonading  continued  on  both  sides.  At  2 
o'clock  a  force  of  Prussian  infantry  advanced  across  tlie  bridge 
in  the  village  of  Doiizy,  and  immediately  there  began  a  very 
sharp  fusillade,  lasting,  however,  not  more  than  ten  minutes.  I 
think  the  French  must  have  lost  ground  in  that  encounter, 
although  I  could  not  see  it,  because  of  some  trees  that  inter- 
vened ;  but  a  battery  of  six  mitrailleuses  advanced  and  opened 
fire  through  the  trees.  Six  volleys  came  all  at  once.  The  Prus- 
sians fell  hurriedly  back,  leaving  whole  ranks  behind,  which  had 
gone  down  like  those  leaden  soldiers  which  children  play  with. 

"  At  about  4.30  o'clock  the  firing  had  ceased  everywhere. 
The  village,  which  had  been  blazing  all  day,  was  still  smoking. 
The  French  remained  in  the  same  position.  Though  the  day  had 
apparently  been  without  result,  its  description  is  a  necessary  pre- 
lude to  the  bitter  story  of  the  morrow.  At  5.30  o'clock  I  re- 
turned to  the  town. 

"  The  Emperor,  who  had  arrived  during  the  night,  had  issued 
a  proclamation  which  was  posted  on  the  walls,  saying  that  he 
had  confided  the  command  of  the  armies  to  the  generals  whom 
public  opinion  had  seemed  to  select  as  most  capable  of  leading 
them,  and  that  he  himself  intended  to  fight  as  an  officer,  forget- 
ting for  a  while  his  position  as  a  sovereign. 

"  The  next  morning — Thursday,  September  1st — I  returned, 
as  soon  as  the  gates  of  the  town  were  opened,  to  my  post  of  ob- 
servation on  the  elevated  ground  where  the  battery  was  still 
placed.  The  French  positions  did  not  seem  to  me  much  altered, 
but  the  right  was  now  on  the  other  side  of  Sedan.  At  7  o'clock 
the  cannonade  began  in  earnest,  some  slight  firing  having  taken 
place  earlier.  The  Prussian  batteries  facing  us  appeared  to  me 
much  more  numerous  ;  indeed,  it  seemed  to  me  there  were  bat- 
teries everywhere.  They  roared  from  every  point  of  the  Prus- 
sian line,  which  then  stretched  nearly  parallel  in  front  of  the 
French.     I  could  follow  the  falling  of  their  shells,  which  ex- 


BETWEEN  FKANCE  AND  GERMANY.  199 

plocled  as  tliey  touched  the  ground,  and  fell  with  wonderful  pre- 
cision. I  noticed,  also,  how  quickly  they  changed  and  corrected 
their  lire.  As  soon  as  a  French  corps  took  up  a  position,  it  was 
instantly  assailed  by  shells.  The  first  would  perhaps  fall  a  few 
feet  short  or  beyond,  but  the  second  or  third  was  sure  to  find  its 
way  to  the  troops  and  do  its  awful  work  among  them.  The 
French  shells,  on  the  contrary,  exploded  generally  before  they 
reached  the  ground,  and  the  smoke  of  the  explosion  formed 
innumerable  little  clouds  at  difi'erent  heights,  some  at  such  an 
elevation  that  the  shell  could  do  no  harm,  I  should  think,  to  the 
enemy. 

"  I  noticed  some  inexplicable  movements.  A  few  squadrons 
of  Prussian  cavalry  made  as  if  they  would  charge  a  French  force 
which  was  toward  the  left.  Immediately  two  regiments  of 
French  cavalry  charged  in  turn  upon  the  Prussian  squadrons, 
which  fell  back  and  fled.  But  at  the  same  moment  a  Prussian 
corps  of  infantry  opened  a  murderous  fire  upon  those  too  eager 
French  cavalry  regiments,  and  they  came  back  sadly  shattered 
from  their  rash  pursuit.  About  9  o'clock  I  could  not  help  fan- 
cying that  the  Prussians  were  extending  farther  to  the  left ;  for, 
on  asking  whether  certain  new  batteries  were  French,  I  was  told 
they  were  Prussian.  The  Prussian  line  was  evidently  curling 
around  us. 

"  I  have  learned  since  that  the  Crown-Prince  liad  crossed  the 
Meuse  during  the  night  about  five  leagues  from  Sedan,  aud  that 
this  had  not  been  known  to  MacMahon.  A  large  force  of  Bava- 
rians must  also  have  arrived  after  the  commencement  of  the  bat- 
tle, for  it  was  Bavarian  troops  who  began  pounding  us  from  the 
left.  At  10.30  o'clock  the  advance  of  the  Prussians  was  percep- 
tible on  both  wings  at  the  same  time.  Some  French  infantry 
which  was  close  to  the  town  on  the  east  side  gave  way,  as  it 
seemed  to  me,  rather  quickly.  Soon  afterward  shells  were  com- 
ing from  behind  my  left,  and  it  became  evident  that  the  French 


200  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   18V0 

position  had  been  turned,  and  that  a  fresli  German  corps  had 
taken  a  position  in  our  rear. 

"  The  reserves  were  now  necessarily  directed  against  these 
points.  The  battery  near  which  I  stood  was  abeady  in  action, 
and  I  thought  it  quite  time  to  beat  a  retreat.  The  place  was 
becoming  as  dangerous  as  any  in  the  field.  Among  the  guns 
close  to  me,  the  Prussian  shells  began  falling  Avith  their  usual 
beautiful  precision  ;  so  I  got  on  the  other  side  of  the  slope,  and 
made  my  way  toward  the  town. 

"  As  the  road  to  Bouillon,  which  crossed  the  Held  of  battle, 
was  wholly  closed  to  me  now,  I  also  perceived  that  I  should  be 
shut  up  in  that  circle  which  the  Prussians  had  been  drawing 
about  the  army  and  the  town,  and  which  was  ultimately  com- 
pleted. I  made  my  way  as  fast  as  I  could,  by  the  safest  paths. 
When  I  reached  the  suburb  before  the  Porte  de  Balan,  I  found 
it  encumbered  with  soldiers  of  all  corps,  hastening,  as  I  was,  into 
the  town.  It  was  a  defeat,  evidently,  yet  it  was  not  11  o'clock, 
and  the  battle  was  destined  to  continue  at  various  points  for 
some  time  longer,  though  continuing  without  any  real  hope  of 
victory. 

"  To  one  entering  the  town  as  I  did,  there  was  no  longer  any 
battle  to  describe.  It  was  first  a  retreat,  and  too  soon  a  rout.  I 
thought  myself  lucky  to  get  away  from  the  field  as  I  did ;  for, 
an  hour  afterward,  the  rout  of  those  forces  that  had  been  near 
by  me  was  complete.  Ah'eady  soldiers  were  crushing  against 
each  other  in  the  struggle  to  get  inside  the  town.  Dismounted 
cavalry  were  trying  to  make  their  way,  some  even  by  the  ram- 
parts, leaping  down  from  the  counterscarp,  others  forcing  their 
way  in  by  the  postern  gates.  Prom  a  nook  of  the  ramparts, 
where  I  rested  a  moment,  I  saw  also  cuirassiers  jumping — horses 
and  all — into  the  moat,  the  horses  breaking  their  legs  and  ribs. 
Men  were  scrambling  over  each  other.  There  were  ofiicers  of 
all  ranks — colonels,  and  even  generals,  in  uniforms  whicli  it  was 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  201 

impossil)le  to  mistake — mixed  in  this  sliameful  melee.  JBeliind 
all  came  guns,  with  their  heavy  carriages  and  powerful  horses, 
forcing  their  way  into  the  throng,  maiming  and  crushing  the 
fugitives  on  foot. 

"  To  add  to  the  confusion  and  horror,  the  Prussian  batteries 
had  by  this  time  advanced  within  range,  and  the  Prussian  shells 
began  falling  among  the  struggling  masses  of  men.  On  the 
ramparts  were  the  I^Tational  Guards  manning  the  guns  of  the 
town,  and  replying  with  more  or  less  effect  to  the  nearest  Prus- 
sian batteries.  It  was  a  scene  horrible  enough  to  have  suited 
the  fancy  of  Gustave  Dore  himself.  I  could  form  but  one  idea 
of  our  unhappy  army — that  it  was  at  the  bottom  of  a  seething 
caldron. 

"  I  hurried  back  as  best  I  could  to  my  hotel,  following  the 
narrow  streets,  where  the  shells  were  least  likely  to  reach  the 
ground.  Wherever  there  was  a  square  or  open  place,  I  came 
upon  the  bodies  of  horses  and  men  quite  dead  or  still  quivering, 
mown  to  pieces  by  bursting  shells.  Eeaching  my  hotel,  I  found 
the  street  in  which  it  stood  choked,  like  the  ]-est,  with  wagons, 
guns,  horses,  and  men.  Most  luckily,  at  this  moment  the  Prus- 
sian fire  did  not  enfilade  this  street ;  for  a  train  of  caissons  filled 
with  powder  blocked  the  whole  way,  itself  unable  to  move  back- 
ward or  forward.  There  was  every  chance  that  these  caissons 
would  explode,  the  town  being  then  on  fire  in  two  places  ;  and 
I  began  to  think  Sedan  was  a  place  more  uncomfortable  than 
even  the  battle-field  over  which  a  victorious  enemy  was  swiftly 
advancing. 

"  From  friends  whom  I  found  at  the  hotel  I  learned  that  the 
Emperor,  who  had  started  early  in  the  morning  for  the  field  of 
battle,  had  returned  about  the  same  time  that  I  did,  and  passed 
through  the  streets  with  his  staff.  One  of  my  friends  was  near 
him  on  the  Place  Turenne,  when  a  shell  fell  under  the  Em])eror's 
horse,  and,  bursting,  killed  the  horse  of  a  general  who  was  be- 


202  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF   1870 

hind  liim.  He  himself  was  untouched,  and  turned  around  and 
smiled;  though  my  friend  thought  he  saw  tears  in  his  eyes, 
which  he  wiped  away  with  his  glove.  Indeed,  he  had  cause 
enough  for  tears  on  that  fatal  1st  of  September. 

"  Meantime,  shells  began  to  fall  in  the  direction  of  our  street 
and  hotel.  We  all  stood  under  the  vaulted  stone  entrance,  as 
the  safest  shelter  we  could  find.  I  trembled  on  account  of  the 
caissons  still  standing  in  the  street,  and  filling  all  the  space  from 
end  to  end.  It  was  at  this  time  when  we  waited,  watchiug  pain- 
fully for  the  shell  which  would  have  sent  us  all  together  into 
another  world,  that  General  de  "Wimpfien  came  past,  making  a 
vain  efibrt  to  rally  and  inspirit  his  flying  troops.  He  shouted, 
'  Yivs  la  France  I  En  avant ! '  But  there  was  no  response. 
He  cried  out  that  Bazaine  was  taking  the  Prussians  in  the  rear. 
Kews  which  had  been  current  all  the  morning  at  intervals,  com- 
ing now  from  the  mouth  of  General  de  "Wimpffen,  seemed  to  be 
believed,  and  a  few  thousand  men  were  rallied,  and  followed  him 
out  of  the  town.  People  began  to  have  hope,  and  for  one  brief 
moment  we  believed  the  day  might  yet  be  saved.  ISTeed  I  say 
that  this  intelligence  was  a  patriotic  falsehood  of  brave  General 
de  Wimpffen  ?  Mad  with  anguish,  and  in  direct  opposition  to 
the  Emperor's  orders,  he  had  resolved  to  rally  what  men  he 
could,  and  make  a  stand.  He  could  not  have  known  that  he 
was  bound  in  the  grasp  of  at  least  300,000  men. 

"  The  bugle  and  the  trumpet  ring  out  on  all  sides.  A  few 
thousand  men  hearken  to  the  sound.  My  friend  Rene  de  Gui- 
roye,  of  the  Chasseurs  d'Afrique,  whom  I  have  just  met,  after 
losing  sight  of  him  for  ten  or  twelve  years,  got  on  horseback 
again  and  joined  the  General.  The  sortie  took  place  thus : 
They  went  out  at  the  Porte  de  Balan.  The  houses  of  the 
suburb  are  already  full  of  Prussians,  who  fire  on  the  French 
out  of  every  window.  The  church,  especially,  is  strongly  gar- 
risoned, and  its  heavy  doors  are  closed.     The  General  sent  off 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  203 

De  Guiroje  to  bring  two  pieces  of  cannon.  These  soon  arrived, 
and  with  them  the  door  of  the  church  was  blown  in,  and  200 
Prussians  were  captured  and  brought  back  with  the  French, 
who,  in  spite  of  all  efforts,  were  themselves  soon  obliged  to 
retire  into  the  town.  It  was  the  last  incident  of  the  battle — 
the  last  struggle. 

"  While  this  took  place  at  the  Porte  de  Balan,  the  Prussian 
shelling  went  on,  and  the  shells  began  to  fall  into  the  hotel. 
Shocking  scenes  followed.  A  boy,  the  son  of  a  tradesman 
around  the  corner  of  the  street,  came  in  crying,  and  asking  for 
a  surgeon.  His  father's  leg  had  been  shot  oif.  A  woman  in 
front  of  the  house  met  the  same  fate.  The  doctor  who  went  to 
the  tradesman  found  him  dead ;  and,  returning,  attempted  to 
carry  the  woman  to  an  ambulance.  He  had  scarcely  made  a 
step,  when  she  was  shot  dead  in  his  arms.  Those  of  us  who 
stand  in  the  gateway  and  witness  such  scenes  have  got  beyond 
the  feeling  of  personal  fear.  Any  one  of  us,  I  will  venture  to 
say,  would  give  his  life  to  spare  France  on  this  dreadful  day. 
Tet  we  stand  pale  and  shuddering  at  the  sight  of  the  fate  which 
befals  the  poor  people  of  the  town. 

"  I  care  not  to  dwell  upon  horrors,  which,  nevertheless,  I 
shall  never  be  able  to  forget.  I  can  mention  more  than  one 
brave  officer  who  did  not  fear  to  own  that  he  shrank  from  the 
sight  of  what  had  become  a  mere  massacre.  Those  who  w^ere 
safely  out  of  the  way  as  prisoners,  whether  officers  or  men,  need- 
ed no  pity.  "When,  after  a  time,  it  became  clear  that  there  was 
no  sign  of  Bazaine,  the  hopes  of  the  French  again  departed.  A 
sullen  sort  of  fight  still  went  on.  The  guns  of  the  town  an- 
swered the  Prussians.  An  aid-de-camp  of  the  Emperor  went  by 
on  foot,  and  I  heard  him  ask  the  officers  near  by  to  help  him  in 
putting  an  end  to  the  fire.  Such  being  the  Emperor's  wish,  at 
length  the  white  flag  was  hoisted  on  the  citadel.  The  cannonade 
ceased  suddenly  about  4.30  o'clock.     Eager  as  we  were  to  know 


204  THE   GREAT   WAR   OF  ISVO 

the  cause,  we  cannot  leave  the  house,  for  the  street  is  impassable, 
and  we  have  to  be  content  with  learning  the  mere  fact  of  the 
surrender.  As  night  drew  on,  the  crowd  a  little  diminished, 
and  by  some  effort  it  was  possible  to  make  one's  way  about  the 
town.  The  spectacle  it  offered  was  more  horrible  than  war. 
Dead  were  lying  everywhere ;  civilians  and  soldiers  mingled  in 
the  slaughter.  In  one  suburb  I  counted  more  than  fifty  bodies 
of  peasants  and  bourgeois — a  few  women  among  them,  and  one 
child.  The  ground  was  strewn  with  splinters  of  shells.  Starv- 
ing soldiers  were  cutting  ,up  the  dead  horses  to  cook  and  eat,  for 
provision  had  again  failed  us,  as  every  thing  has  failed  since  this 
campaign  began.  I  was  glad  to  get  away  from  the  sight  of  our 
disasters,  and  lose  their  remembrance  in  a  few  hours  of  sleep. 

"  The  next  day  we  were  told  that  the  Emperor  had  gone  to 
the  King's  headquarters  to  treat  for  a  surrender.  At  11  o'clock 
his  household  and  carriages  left  the  town,  and  we  knew  that  he 
was  a  prisoner,  and  the  Empire  no  more.  About  the  same  hour 
there  was  posted  in  the  streets  a  proclamation  from  General 
de  Wimpffen,  saying  that,  notwithstanding  prodigies  of  courage, 
the  army,  having  no  more  ammunition,  found  itself  unable  to 
respond  to  the  summons  of  its  chiefs  and  force  its  way  to  Mont- 
medy.  That  being  surrounded,  he  had  made  the  best  conditions 
he  could — conditions  such  as  would  inflict  no  humiliation  on  the 
army. 

"  These  conditions  prove  to  be  the  surrender  of  the  whole 
army,  not  less  than  100,000  men,  as  prisoners  of  war,  with  all 
their  arms,  baggage,  horses,  standards,  and  guns.  The  officers 
who  sign  an  engagement  not  to  serve  against  Prussia  during  the 
war  may  return  to  their  homes,  the  remainder  to  be  sent  to  Ger- 
man towns  in  Germany.  Many  officers  refuse  to  sign,  preferring 
to  share  the  captivity  of  their  men. 

"  On  Saturday  the  whole  force  laid  down  their  arms.  IN'ot  a 
few  soldiers,  in  their  rage,  broke  rather  than  give  up  their  arms, 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  205 

and  the  streets  were  littered  witli  fragments  of  all  kinds  of  weap- 
ons broken :  swords,  rifles,  pistols,  lancers,  helmets,  cuirasses, 
even  mitrailleuses  covered  the  ground  ;  and  in  one  place,  where 
the  Meuse  runs  through  the  town,  the  heaps  of  such  fragments 
choked  the  stream  and  rose  above  the  surface.  The  mud  of  the 
streets  was  black  with  gunpowder.  The  horses  had  been  tied  to 
the  houses  and  gun-carriages,  but  nobody  remembered  to  feed  or 
water  them,  aud  in  the  frenzy  of  hunger  and  thirst  they  broke 
loose  and  ran  wild  through  the  town.  "Whoever  liked  might 
have  a  horse — even  officers'  horses,  which  were  private  property 
— for  the  trouble  of  catching  them. 

"  When  the  Prussians  came  into  the  town  they  were  very 
sore  and  angry  at  the  sight  of  all  this  destruction  and  waste. 
What  must  have  pleased  theln  still  less,  was  the  state  in  which 
they  found  the  military  chest.  As  soon  as  the  surrender  was 
resolved  on,  the  French  officers  were  told  to  make  out  the  best 
accounts  they  could,  present  them,  and  receive  payment.  Natu- 
rally, the  statements  thus  brought  in  soon  proved  sufficient  to 
empty  the  treasury.  I  know  of  officers  who  demanded  and 
received  payment  for  horses  that  were  not  killed  and  baggage 
which  had  not  been  lost.  Demoralization  showed  itself  in  every 
way.  Even  the  standards  were  burned  or  buried — an  act  of  bad 
faith,  not  to  be  palliated  even  by  the  rage  of  a  beaten  army. 

"  Their  rage  is  greater  against  no  one  than  General  de  Failly. 
He  had  a  room  in  the  hotel  where  I  was  staying.  On  Friday  a 
great  multitude  of  soldiers  gathered  before  the  house,  the  doors 
of  which  were  closed,  demanding  General  de  Failly  with  such 
shouts  and  menaces  that  the  landlord  thought  it  prudent  to 
hurry  him  out  of  a  back  window.  The  soldiers,  conld  they  have 
reached  him,  would  have  torn  him  to  pieces.  Since  then  I  have 
heard  the  report  that  he  was  shot  by  one  of  his  own  men ;  but 
no  such  event  had  happened  on  Saturday,  and  could  not  well 
happen  later. 


2QQ  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

"  It  was  a  relief  on  Saturday  -wlien  the  Prussians  came  in 
and  occupied  the  town,  and  restored  order.  I  am  sorry  to  have 
to  acknowledge  that  all  through  the  campaign  the  French  have 
acted  much  more  like  a  conquering  army,  in  a  hostile  country, 
than  the  Prussians.  All  the  annoyance  I  have  experienced  per- 
sonally came  from  my  own  conntrymen — from  the  peasants,  who, 
above  all,  saw  a  spy  in  every  stranger.  When  I  fell  into  the 
hands  of  the  Prussians,  I  found  them  courtesy  itself.  On  leav- 
ing Sedan,  and  thence  to  the  frontier,  in  passing  through  the 
Prussian  posts,  I  was  stopped  often.  I  had  but  to  say,  '  I  am  the 
correspondent  of  an  American  journal,'  and  I  was  at  once  sent 
kindly  forward.  On  the  back  of  my  French  military  pass  the 
Prussian  Staff  had  endorsed  a  Prussian  safe-conduct.  Often  I 
was  not  obliged  even  to  show  my  papers — ^my  word  was  taken  ; 
and,  once  out  of  Sedan,  I  was  speedily  through. 

"  When  I  left  Sedan  on  Sunday  morning  things  were  rapidly 
scettins:  in  order.  The  streets  were  cleared  of  dead  horses  and 
men.  The  indescribable  filth  of  the  town  was  swept  into  the 
river.  The  shops  were  opening  again.  Discipline  had  taken 
the  place  of  disorder.  I  saw  enough  of  Prussian  organization 
and  energy  to  change,  if  the  grievous  defeat  of  a  noble  army 
had  not  already  changed,  the  opinion  I  have  so  often  expressed, 
that  ultimate  victory  for  France  was  sure. 

"  I  have  followed  MacMahon  from  the  day  when  I  found  him 
reorganizing  his  army  at  Chalons  to  the  fatal  day  at  Sedan,  when 
he  surrendered  the  last  organized  force  in  France,  save  the  rem- 
nant of  that  which  is  shut  up  in  Metz.  Certainly,  when  I  was 
at  the  camp  of  Chalons,  and  then  at  Eheims,  I  had  observed 
that  the  number  of  stragglers  was  enormous,  and  I  continually 
met  soldiers  who  did  not  know  where  their  regiments  were.  I 
had  seen  men  and  officers  disabled  by  wounds  which  French 
soldiers  of  other  days  would  have  despised ;  I  had  remarked  how 
untidy  and  careless  the  men  were  allowed  to  be  about  their  dress 


BETWEEN  FKANCE  AND  GERMANY.  207 

and  equipments.  These  tilings,  slight,  but  significant  to  a  mili- 
tary eye,  had  caused  me,  no  doubt,  some  misgivings  as  to  the 
rapidity  of  the  success  we  had  a  right  to  expect.  I  saw,  also, 
how  prone  French  officers  were  to  avoid  the  fatigues  of  long 
marches  and  the  discomfort  of  bivouacs.  I  remember  how  often 
I  have  traversed  the  French  lines  at  dead  of  night  and  at  early 
dawn,  and  never  heard  a  challenge,  never  came  across  a  French 
vedette,  never  have  fallen  in  with  a  party  of  scouts.  On  the 
other  hand,  I  have  seen  officers  spend  the  time  that  ought  to 
have  been  given  to  their  men,  in  cafes  or  in  poor  village  inns. 
Often  even  officers  of  the  staff  seemed  to  neglect  their  duties  for 
paltry  amusements,  showing  themselves  ignorant,  sometimes, 
even  of  the  name  of  the  Department  in  which  they  were ;  so 
that  I  have  known  a  French  General  obliged  to  ask  his  way  from 
peasants  at  the  meeting  of  two  roads.  I  struggled  long  against 
all  this  kind  of  evidence,  but  the  end  is  only  too  clear.  Painful 
it  is  to  me,  but  I  am  bound  to  declare  my  belief  that  any  further 
effort  France  may  make  can  only  cause  useless  bloodshed ;  and 
that  a  means  of  escape  from  her  peril  must  now  be  sought  other- 
wise than  by  force  of  arms." 

Kot  less  vivid  and  graphic  are  the  descriptions  of  the  battle 
and  surrender  from  correspondents  who  were  in  the  Prussian 
headquarters  and  on  the  field  during  the  whole  of  that  terrible 
day.  One  of  these  descriptions,  from  the  same  pen  that  fur- 
nished to  the  Tribune  the  glowing  description  of  the  battle  of 
Gravelotte,  is  deserving  of  a  place.     We  give  portions  of  it : 

"  On  the  evening  of  Wednesday,  from  5  to  8  o'clock,  I  was 
at  the  Crown-Prince's  quarters  at  Chemery,  a  village  some  thir- 
teen miles  from  Sedan  to  the  south-southwest  on  the  main  road. 
At  5.30  we  saw  that  there  was  a  great  movement  among  the 
troops  encamped  all  around  us,  and  we  thought,  at  first,  that  the 


208 


THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   1870 


King  was  riding  througli  the  bivouacs ;  but  soon  the  3Ttli  regi- 
ment came  pouring  through  the  village,  their  band  playing  '  Die 
vjaoht  am  JRhein  '  as  thej  marched  along  with  a  swinging  stride. 
I  saw  at  once,  by  the  men's  faces,  that  something  extraordinary 
was  going  on.  It  was  soon  plain  that  the  troops  were  in  the 
lio-htest  possible  marching  order.  All  their  knapsacks  were  left 
behind,  and  they  were  carrying  nothing  but  cloaks,  slung  around 
their  shoulders,  except  that  one  or  two  Iton  mvants  had  retained 
their  camp-kettles.  But  if  the  camp-kettles  were  left  behind, 
the  cartouche-cases  were  tliere — hanging  heavily  in  front  of  the 
men's  belts,  unbalanced,  as  they  ought  to  be,  by  the  knapsacks. 
Soon  I  learned  that  the  whole  Prussian  corps — those  lent  from 
Prince  Friedrich  Karl's  army,  the  Second  Army,  and  the  Crown- 
Prince's — were  making  a  forced  march  to  the  left,  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Donchery  and  Mezieres,  in  order  to  shut  in  MacMalion's 
army  in  the  west,  and  so  drive  them  against  the  Belgian  fron- 
tier. I  learned  from  the  officers  of  the  Crown-Prince's  staff,  that 
at  the  same  time,  while  we  were  watching  regiment  after  regi- 
ment pass  througli  Chemery,  the  Saxons  and  the  Guards,  80,000 
strong,  on  the  Prussian  right,  under  Prince  Albert  of  Saxony, 
were  also  marching  rapidly  to  close  on  the  doomed  French  army 
on  the  right  bank  of  the  Meuse,  which  they  had  crossed  at  Ee- 
milly  on  Tuesday,  the  30th,  in  the  direction  of  La  Chapelle,  a 
small  village  of  930  inhabitants,  on  the  road  from  Sedan  to 
Bouillon,  in  Belgium,  and  the  last  village  before  crossing  the 
frontier. 

"  Any  thing  more  splendid  than  the  men's  marching  it  would 
be  impossible  to  imagine.  I  saw  men  lame  in  both  feet  hobbling 
along  in  the  ranks,  kind  comrades,  less  footsore,  carrying  their 
needle-guns.  Those  who  were  actually  incapable  of  putting  one 
foot  before  another,  had  pressed  peasants'  wagons  and  every 
available  conveyance  into  service,  and  were  following  in  the 
rear,  so  as  to  be  ready  for  the  great  battle,  which  all  felt  sure 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  .  GERMANY.  2()9 

would  come  off  on  the  morrow.  The  Bavarians,  who,  it  is  gen- 
erally believed,  do  not  march  so  well  as  they  fight,  were  in  the 
centre,  between  us  at  Chemery  and  Sedan,  encamped  around  the 
woods  of  La  Marfee,  famous  for  a  great  battle  in  1641,  during 
the  wars  of  the  League.  When  I  had  seen  the  last  regiment 
dash  through — for  the  pace  at  which  they  went  can  really  not 
be  called  '  marching,'  in  the  ordinary  sense, — I  rode  off,  about  a 
quarter  past  eight  in  the  evening,  for  Yendresse,  where  the 
King's  headquarters  were,  and  where  I  hoped  to  find  house-room 
for  man  and  beast,  especially  the  latter,  as  being  far  the  most 
important  on  the  eve  of  a  great  battle. 

"  When  I  got  within  about  half  a  mile  of  Yendresse,  going 
at  a  steady  trot,  a  sharp  '  Halt '  rang  out  through  the  clear  air. 
I  brought  my  horse  to  a  stand-still,  knowing  that  Prussian  sen- 
tries are  not  to  be  trifled  with.  As  I  pulled  up,  twenty  yards  off, 
I  heard  the  clicks  of  their  locks  as  they  brought  their  weapons 
to  full  cock  and  covered  me.  My  reply  being  satisfactory,  I 
jogged  on  into  Yendresse,  and  my  mare  and  myself  had  soon 
forgotten  sentinels,  forced  marches,  and  coming  battles,  one  of 
us  on  the  straw,  the  other  on  the  floor. 

"  At  7  o'clock  on  Thursday  morning  my  servant  came  to 
wake  me,  saying  that  the  King's  horses  were  harnessing,  and 
that  His  Majesty  would  leave  in  half  an  hour  for  the  battle- 
field ;  and  as  a  cannonade  had  already  been  heard  near  Sedan, 
I  jumped  up,  seized  crusts  of  bread,  wine,  cigars,  &c.,  and 
crammed  them  into  my  holster,  taking  my  breakfast  on  the  way. 

"  Just  as  I  got  to  my  horse,  King  Wilhelm  drove  out  in  an 
open  carriage  with  four  horses,  for  Chevange,  about  three  and  a 
half  miles  south  of  Sedan.  Much  against  my  -will,  I  was  com- 
pelled to  allow  the  King's  staff  to  precede  me  on  the  road  to  the 
scene  of  action,  where  I  amved  myself  soon  after  9  o'clock,  t, 
was  impossible  to  ride  fast,  all  the  roads  being  blocked  with 
artillery,  ammunition  wagons,  ambulances,  &c.  As  I  rode  on  tc 
14 


210  THE   GREAT   WAR  OF   1870 

the  crest  of  tlie  hill  wliich  rises  sharply  about  600  or  TOO  feet 
above  the  little  hamlet  of  Chevange,  nestled  in  a  grove  below,  a 
most  glorious  panorama  burst  on  my  view.  As  General  For- 
syth, of  the  United  States  Army,  remarked  to  me  later  in  the 
day,  it  would  have  been  worth  the  coming,  merely  to  see  so 
splendid  a  scene,  without  '  battle's  magnificently  stern  array.' 
In  the  lovely  valley  below  us,  from  the  knoll  on  which  I  stood 
with  the  King  and  his  staff,  we  could  see  not  only  the  whole 
Yalley  of  the  Me.use  (or  Maas,  as  the  Germans  love  to  call  the 
river  that  Louis  XIY  stole  from  them),  but  also  beyond  the  great 
woods  of  Bois  de  Loup  and  Francheval,  into  Belgium,  and  as  far 
as  the  hilly  forest  of  Kumo,  on  the  other  side  of  the  frontier. 
Eight  at  our  feet  lay  the  little  town  of  Sedan,  famous  for  its  for- 
tifications by  Yauban,  and  as  the  birthplace  of  Turenne,  the 
great  Marshal.  It  is  known,  also,  as  the  place  where  sedan 
chairs  originated.  As  we  were  only  about  two  and  a  quarter 
miles  from  the  town,  we  could  easily  distinguish  its  principal 
edifices  without  the  aid  of  our  field-glasses.  On  the  left  was  a 
pretty  chm-ch,  its  Gothic  spire  of  sandstone  ofifering  a  conspicu- 
ous target  for  the  Prussian  guns,  had  General  Moltke  thought  fit 
to  bombard  the  town.  To  the  right,  on  the  southeast  of  the 
church,  was  a  large  barrack,  with  the  fortifications  of  the  citadel. 
Behind  it  and  beyond  this  to  the  southeast  again  was  the  old 
chateau  of  Sedan,  with  picturesque,  round-turreted  towers  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  very  useless,  even  against  four-pounder  Krupp 
field-pieces.  This  building,  I  believe,  is  now  an  arsenal.  Be- 
yond this  was  the  citadel — the  heart  of  Sedan,  on  a  rising  hill 
above  the  Meuse  to  the  southeast,  but  completely  commanded 
by  the  hills  on  both  sides  the  river,  which  runs  in  front  of  the 
citadel. 

"  The  French  had  flooded  the  low  meadows  in  the  valley 
before  coming  to  the  railway  bridge  at  Bazeille,  in  order  to  stop 
the  Germans  from  advancing  on  the  town  in  that   direction. 


BETWEEN  PRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  211 

With  their  usual  stupidity  (for  one  can  find  no  other  word  for  it), 
the  French  had  failed  to  mine  the  bridge  at  Bazeille,  and  it  was 
of  immense  service  to  the  Prussians  throughout  the  battle.  The 
Prussians  actually  threw  up  earthworks  on  the  iron  bridge  itself 
to  protect  it  from  the  French,  who  more  than  once  attempted 
early  in  the  day  to  storm  the  bridge,  in  the  hope  of  breaking  the 
Bavarian  communication  between  the  right  and  left  banks  of  the 
Meuse.  This  they  were  unable  to  do  ;  and  although  their  can- 
non-shot have  almost  demolished  the  parapet,  the  bridge  itself 
was  never  materially  damaged, 

"^On  the  projecting  spurs  of  the  hill,  crowned  by  the  woods 
of  La  Marfee,  of  which  I  have  already  spoken,  the  Bavarians  had 
posted  two  batteries  of  six-pounder  rifled  breech-loading  steel 
Krupp  guns,  which  kept  up  a  duello  till  the  very  end  of  the  day 
with  the  siege-guns  of  Sedan  across  the  Meuse.  Still  further  to 
the  right  flank,  or  rather  to  the  east  (for  our  line  was  a  circular 
one — a  crescent  at  first,  with  Sedan  in  the  centre,  like  the  star  on 
the  Turkish  standard),  was  an  undulating  plain  above  the  village 
of  Bazeille.  Terminating  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Sedan, 
at  the  woods  near  Rubecourt,  midway — that  is  to  say,  in  a  line 
from  Bazeille  north — there  is  a  ravine  watered  by  a  tiny  brook, 
which  was  the  scene  of  the  most  desperate  struggle  and  of  the 
most  frightful  slaughter  of  the  whole  battle.  This  stream,  whose 
name  I  have  forgotten,  if  it  ever  had  one,  runs  right  behind  the 
town  of  Sedan. 

"  From  the  woods  of  Fleigreuse  on  the  north,  behind  the 
town  rises  a  hill  dotted  with  cottages  and  fruit-laden  orchards, 
and  crowned  by  the  wood  of  La  Givonne,  which  runs  down  to 
the  valley  of  which  I  have  just  spoken.  Between  this  wood  and 
the  town  were  several  French  camps,  their  white  shelter-tents 
standing  out  clear  among  the  dark  fruit-trees.  In  these  camps 
one  could  see  throughout  the  day  huge  masses  of  troops  which 
were  never  used.     Even  during  the  height  of  the  battle  they 


2]^ 2  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

Stood  as  idle  as  Fitz-John  Porter's  at  tlie  secocd  battle  of  Bidl- 
Kiin.  We  imagined  that  they  must  have  been  undisciplined 
Gardes  Mobiles,  whom  the  French  Generals  dared  not  bring  out 
against  their  enemy. 

"  To  the  Prussian  left  of  these  French  camps,  separated  from 
them  by  a  wooded  ravine,  was  a  long  bare  hill,  something  like 
one  of  the  hills  on  Long  Island.  This  hill,  on  which  was  some 
of  the  hardest  fighting  of  the  day,  formed  one  of  the  keys  of  the 
position  of  the  French  army.  When  once  its  crests  were  cov- 
ered with  Prussian  artillery,  the  whole  town  of  Sedan  was  com- 
pletely at  the  mercy  of  the  German  guns,  as  they  were  not  only 
above  the  town,  but  the  town  was  almost  within  musket-range 
of  them. 

"  Still  further  to  the  left  lay  the  village  of  Illy,  set  on  fire 
early  in  the  day  by  the  French  shells.  South  of  this  the  broken 
railway-bridge,  blown  up  by  the  French  to  protect  their  right, 
was  a  conspicuous  object. 

"  Right  above  the  railway-bridge,  on  the  line  to  Mezieres, 
was  the  wooded  hill  crowded  by  the  new  and  most  hideous 
'  chateau,'  as  he  calls  it,  of  one  Monsieur  Pave.  It  was  here  the 
Crown-Prince  and  his  staff  stood  during  the  day,  having  a  rather 
more  extensive  but  less  central  view,  and  therefore  less  desirable 
than  ours,  where  stood  the  King,  Count  Bismarck,  von  Eoon,  the 
War  Minister,  General  Moltke,  and  Generals  Sheridan  and  For- 
syth— to  say  nothing  of  your  correspondent. 

"  Having  thus  endeavored  to  give  some  faint  idea  of  the 
scene  of  what  is,  in  all  probability,  the  decisive  battle  of  the 
war,  I  will  next  give  an  account  of  the  position  of  the  different 
corps  at  the  commencement  of  the  action,  premising  that  all  the 
movements  were  of  the  simplest  possible  nature,  the  object  of  the 
Prussian  Generals  being  merely  to  close  the  crescent  of  troops 
with  which  they  began  into  a  circle,  by  efi'eeting  a  junction  be- 
tween the  Saxon  corps  on  their  right  and  the  Prussian  corps  on 


BETWEEN"  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  213 

their  left.  This  junction  took  place  about  noon,  near  the  little 
village  of  Ollev,  on  the  Bazeille  ravine,  behind  Sedan,  of  which 
I  have  already  spoken.  Once  their  terrible  circle  formed  and 
well  soldered  together,  it  grew  steadily  smaller  and  smaller,  until 
at  last  the  fortifications  of  Sedan  itself  were  entered. 

"  On  the  extreme  right  were  the  Saxons — one  corps  d'armee, 
with  King  Wilhelm's  Guards ;  also  a  corps  d'armee  in  reserve 
behind  them.  The  Guards  had  suffered  terribly  at  Gravelotte, 
where  they  met  the  Imperial  Guard  ;  and  the  King  would  not 
allow  them  to  be  again  so  cruelly  decimated.  Justice  compels 
me  to  state  that  this  arrangement  was  very  far,  indeed,  from 
being  pleasing  to  the  Guards  themselves,  who  are  ever  anxious  to 
be  in  the  forefront  of  the  battle. 

"  The  Guards  and  Saxons,  then  about  75,000  strong,  were  all 
day  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Meuse,  between  Rubecourt  and  La 
Chapelle,  at  which  latter  village  Prince  Albert  of  Saxony,  who 
was  in  command  of  the  two  corps  which  have  been  formed  into 
a  little  extra  army  by  themselves,  passed  the  night  of  Thursday. 

"  The  ground  from  Eubecourt  to  the  Meuse  was  occupied  by 
the  First  Bavarian  Corps.  The  Second  Bavarian  Corps  extended 
their  front  from  near  the  Bazeille  railway-bridge  to  a  point  on  the 
high  road  from  Donchery  to  Sedan,  not  far  from  the  little  village 
of  Torcy.  Below  the  hill  on  wliich  the  Crown-Prince  was 
placed,  the  ground  from  Torcy  to  Illy,  through  the  large  village 
of  Floing,  was  held  by  the  First  and  Third  Prussian  Corps,  be- 
longing to  the  army  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  and  temporarily 
attached  to  the  army  of  the  Crown-Prince. 

"  This  was  the  position  of  the  troops  about  9  o'clock  on 
Thursday  morning,  September  1,  and  no  great  advance  took 
place  till  later  than  that,  for  the  artillery  had  at  first  all  the 
work  to  do.  Still  further  to  the  left,  near  Donchery,  there  were 
20,000  Wlirtembergers  ready  to  cut  off  the  French  from  Mezi- 
eres,  in  case  of  their  making  a  push  for  that  fortress. 


214  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

"  The  number  of  the  Prussian  troops  engaged  was  estimated 
by  General  ]\foltke  at  240,000,  and  that  of  the  French  at  120,000. 
We  know  that  MacMahon  had  with  him  on  Tuesday  120,000 
men,  that  is,  four  corps ;  his  own,  that  lately  commanded  by 
General  de  Failly,  now  under  General  Le  Brun ;  that  of  Felix 
Douay,  brother  of  General  Abel  Douay,  killed  at  Weissenburg ; 
and  a  fourth  corps,  principally  com]30sed  of  Garde  Mobile,  the 
name  of  whose  commander  has  escaped  me.  MacMahon,  al- 
though wounded,  commanded  in  chief  on  the  French  side. 

"  It  is  almost  needless  to  say  that  the  real  commander-in-chief 
of  the  Prussians  on  that  day  was  von  Moltke,  with  the  Crown- 
Prince  and  Prince  Albert  of  Saxony,  immediately  next  in  com- 
mand. 

"  There  were  a  few  stray  cannon-shots  fired,  merely  to  obtain 
the  range,  as  soon  as  it  was  light;  but  the  real  battle  did  not 
begin  until  6  o'clock,  becoming  a  sharp  artillery-fight  at  9,  when 
the  batteries  had  each  got  within  easy  range,  and  the  shells  be- 
gan to  do  serious  mischief.  At  11.55  the  musketry-fire  in  the 
valley  behind  Sedan,  which  had  opened  about  11.25,  became 
exceedingly  lively — being  one  continuous  rattle,  only  broken  by 
the  loud  growling  of  the  mitrailleuses,  which  played  with  deadly 
effect  upon  the  Saxon  and  Bavarian  columns.  General  Sheridan, 
by  whose  side  I  was  standing  at  the  time,  told  me  that  he  did 
not  remember  ever  to  have  heard  such  a  well-sustained  fire  of 
small-arms.  It  made  itself  heard  above  the  roar  of  the  batteries 
at  our  feet. 

"  At  12  o'clock  precisely  the  Prussian  battery  of  six  guns,  on 
the  slope  above  the  broken  railway-bridge  over  the  Meuse,  near 
La  Yillette,  had  silenced  two  batteries  of  French  guns  at  the 
foot  of  the  bare  hill  already  mentioned,  near  the  village  of  Flo- 
ing.  At  12.10  the  French  infantry,  no  longer  supported  by  their 
artillery,  were  compelled  to  retire  to  Floing,  and  soon  afterward 
the  junction  between  the  Saxons  and  Prussians  behind  Sedan 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  216 

was  announced  to  lis  hj  General  von  Eoon,  eagerly  peering 
throiigli  a  large  telescope,  as  being  safely  completed. 

"  From  this  moment  the  result  of  the  battle  could  no  longer 
be  doubtful.  The  French  were  completely  surrounded  and 
brought  to  bay.  At  12.25  we  were  all  astonished  to  see  clouds 
of  retreating  French  infantry  on  the  hill  betw^een  Floing  and 
Sedan,  a  Prussian  battery  in  front  of  St.  Menges  making  accu- 
rate practice  with  percussion  shells  among  the  receding  ranks. 
The  whole  hill,  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  was  literally  covered 
with  Frenchmen  running  rapidly. 

"  Less  than  half  an  hour  afterward — at  12.50 — General  von 
Boon  called  our  attention  to  another  Frencb  column  in  full 
retreat  to  the  right  of  Sedan,  on  the  road  leading  from  Bazeille 
to  the  La  Givonne  wood.  They  never  halted  until  they  came  to 
a  red-roofed  house  on  the  outskirts  of  Sedan  itself.  Almost  at 
the  same  moment  General  Sheridan,  who  was  using  my  opera- 
glass,  asked  me  to  look  at  a  third  French  column  moving  up  a 
broad,  grass-covered  road  through  the  La  Givonne  wood,  imme- 
diately above  Sedan,  doubtless  to  support  the  troops  who  were 
defending  the  important  Bazeille  ravine  to  the  northeast  of  the 
town. 

"  At  1  o'clock  the  French  batteries  on  the  edge  of  the  wood 
toward  Torcy  and  above  it  opened  a  vigorous  fire  on  the  advanc- 
ing Prussian  columns  of  the  Third  Corps,  whose  evident  inten- 
tion it  was  to  storm  the  hill  northwest  of  La  Givonne,  and  so 
gain  the  key  of  the  position  on  that  side.  At  1.05  yet  another 
French  battery  near  the  wood  opened  on  the  Prussian  columns, 
which  were  compelled  to  keep  shifting  their  ground  till  ready  for 
their  final  rush  at  the  hills,  in  order  to  avoid  offering  so  good  a 
mark  to  the  French  shells.  Shortly  afterward  we  saw  the  first 
Prussian  skirmishers  on  the  crest  of  the  La  Givonne  hills,  above 
Torcy.  They  did  not  seem  to  be  in  strength,  and  General  Sheri- 
dan, standing  behind  me,  exclaimed,  '  Ah !  the  beggars  are  too 


216  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

weak ;  they  can  never  hold  that  position  against  all  those 
French.' 

"  The  General's  prophecy  soon  proved  correct,  for  the  French 
advanced  at  least  six  to  one ;  and  the  Prussians  were  forced  to 
retreat  down  the  hill  to  seek  reenforcements  from  the  columns 
which  were  hurrying  to  their  support.  In  five  minutes  they 
came  back  again,  this  time  in  greater  force,  but  still  terribly  in- 
ferior to  those  huge  French  masses. 

"  *  Good  heavens  !  The  French  cuirassiers  are  going  to 
charge  them,'  cried  General  Sheridan ;  and  sure  enough,  the 
regiment  of  cuirassiers,  their  helmets  and  breast-plates  flashing 
in  the  September  sun,  formed  in  sections  of  squadrons  and 
dashed  down  on  the  scattered  Prussian  skirmishers,  without 
deigning  to  form  a  line.  Squares  are  never  used  by  the  Prus- 
sians, and  the  infantry  received  the  cuirassiers  with  a  crushing 
'  quick-fire  ' — schneUfeuer — at  about  a  hundred  yards'  distance, 
loading  and  firing  with  extreme  rapidity,  and  shooting  with  un- 
failing precision  into  the  dense  French  squadrons.  The  efi*ect 
was  startling.  Over  went  horses  and  men  in  numbers,  in  masses, 
in  hundreds ;  and  the  regiment  of  proud  French  cuirassiers  went 
hurriedly  back  in  disorder  ;  went  back  faster  than  it  came  ;  went 
back  scarcely  a  regiment  in  strength,  and  not  at  all  a  regiment 
in  form.  Its  comely  array  was  suddenly  changed  into  shapeless 
and  helpless  crowds  of  flying  men. 

"  The  moment  the  cuirassiers  turned  back  the  brave  Prussians 
actually  dashed  forward  in  hot  pursuit  at  double-quick,  infantry 
evidently  pursuing  flying  cavalry.  Such  a  thing  has  not  often 
been  recorded  in  the  annals  of  war.  I  know  not  when  an  ex- 
ample to  compare  precisely  with  this  has  occurred.  There  was 
no  more  striking  episode  in  the  battle. 

"  AVhen  the  French  infantry  saw  their  cavalry  thus  fleeing 
before  foot-soldiers,  they  in  their  turn  came  forward  and  attacked 
the  Prussians.     The  Prussians  waited  quietly,  patiently  enduring 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  217 

a  rapid  and  telling  fire  from  the  Chassep6ts,  until  tlieir  enemies 
had  drawn  so  near  as  to  be  witliin  a  hundred  yards  of  them. 
Then  to  the  fire  of  the  Chassepots  they  returned  a  fire  as  rapid 
from  their  needle-guns  ;  and  the  French  infantry  could  no  more 
endure  this  Prussian  fire  than  the  cavalry,  to  whose  rescue  they 
had  come.  The  infantry  fled  in  its  turn,  and  followed  th?  cav- 
alry to  the  place  whence  they  came,  that  is,  behind  a  ridge, 
about  500  yards  on  the  way  to  Sedan,  where  the  Prussian  fire 
could  no  longer  reach  them. 

"  The  great  object  of  the  Prussians  was  gained,  since  they 
were  not  driven  from  the  crest  of  the  hill  they  fought  to  hold. 
Holding  it  thus  against  cavalry,  the  Prussians  persuaded  them- 
selves that  it  was  possible  to  establish  artillery  on  this  hill. 

"  '  There  will  be  a  devil  of  a  fight  for  that  crest  before  it  is 
won  or  lost,'  said  Sheridan,  straining  his  eyes  through  his  field- 
glass  at  the  hill,  which  was  not  three  miles  from  us.  The  full 
sun  was  shining  upon  that  hill ;  we,  gazing  upon  it,  had  the  sun 
behind  us. 

"  At  1.30  French  cavalry — this  time,  I  presume,  a  regiment 
of  carabiniers — made  another  dash  at  the  Prussians,  who,  on 
their  part,  were  receiving  reenforcements  every  moment ;  but 
the  carabiniers  met  with  the  same  fate  as  their  brethren  in  iron 
jackets,  and  were  sent  to  the  right-about  with  heavy  loss.  The 
Prussians  took  advantage  of  their  flight  to  advance  their  line 
about  200  yards  nearer  the  line  which  the  French  infantry  held. 

"  This  body  of  adventurous  Prussians  S23lit  into  two  portions, 
the  two  parts  leaving  a  break  of  a  hundred  yards  in  their  line. 
We  were  not  long  in  perceiving  the  object  of  this  movement,  for 
the  little  white  pus's  from  the  crest  behind  the  skirmishers,  fol- 
lowed by  a  commotion  in  the  dense  French  masses,  show  us  that 
these  '  diablcs  de  Prussians '  have  contrived.  Heaven  only  knows 
how,  to  get  two  four-pounders  up  the  steep  ground,  and  have 
opened  fire  on  the  French.     Something  must  at  this  point  have 


21Q  THE  GEEAT  WAR  OF   1810 

been  very  mucli  mismanaged  with  the  French  infantry;  for, 
instead  of  attacking  the  Prussians,  whom  they  still  outnumbered 
by  at  least  two  to  one,  they  remained  in  column  on  the  hill ;  and, 
though  seeing  their  only  hope  of  retrieving  the  day  vanishing 
from  before  tlieir  eyes,  still  they  did  not  stir.  Then  the  French 
cavalry  tried  to  do  a  little  Balaklava  business — tried,  but  without 
the  success  of  the  immortal  six  hundred,  Vtdio  took  the  guns  on 
which  they  charged.  The  cuirassiers  came  down  once  more,  this 
time  riding  straight  for  the  two  field-pieces ;  but  before  they 
came  within  200  yards  of  the  guns,  the  Prussians  formed  line,  as 
if  on  parade,  and,  waiting  till  those  furious  French  horsemen  had 
ridden  to  a  point  not  fifty  yards  away,  they  fired.  The  volley 
seemed  to  us  to  empty  the  saddles  of  almost  the  whole  of  the 
leading  squadron.  The  dead  so  strewed  the  ground  as  to  block 
the  path  of  the  squadron  following,  and  close  before  them  the 
direct  and  dangerous  road  they  had  meant  to  follow.  Their  dash 
at  the  guns  became  a  halt. 

"  When  once  this  last  effort  of  the  French  horse  had  been 
made  and  had  failed— failed,  though  pushed  gallantly  so  far  as 
men  and  horses  could  go — the  French  infantry  fell  swiftly  back 
toward  Sedan.  It  fell  back  because  it  saw  that  the  chance  of  its 
carrying  that  fiercely-contested  hill  was  gone,  and  saw,  also,  that 
the  Prussians  holding  the  hill  were  crowning  it  with  guns,  so 
that  their  own  line  could  not  much  longer  be  held  facing  it.  In 
an  instant,  as  the  French  retired,  the  whole  slope  of  the  ground 
was  covered  by  swarms  of  Prussian  tirailleurs,  who  seemed  to 
rise  out  of  the  ground,  and  push  forward  by  help  of  every  slight 
roughness  or  depression  in  the  surface  of  the  hill.  As  fast  as 
the  French  went  back  these  active  enemies  followed.  After  the 
last  desperate  charge  of  the  French  cavalry.  General  Sheridan 
remarked  to  me  that  he  never  saw  any  thing  so  reckless,  so 
utterly  foolish,  as  that  last  charge.     '  It  was  sheer  murder.' 

"The  Prussians,  after  the   French  infantry  fell  back,   ad- 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  219 

vanced  rapidly — so  rapidly  that  the  retreating  squadrons  of 
French  eavahy,  being  too  closely  pressed,  turned  suddenly  round 
and  charged  desperately  once  again.  But  it  was  all  no  use. 
The  days  of  breaking  squares  are  over.  The  thin  blue  line  soon 
stopped  the  Gallic  onset. 

"  It  struck  me  as  most  extraordinary  that  at  this  point  the 
French  had  neither  artillery  nor  mitrailleuses,  especially  the  lat- 
ter, on  the  field  to  cover  their  infantry.  The  position  was  a  most 
important  one,  and  certainly  worth  straining  every  nerve  to  de- 
fend. One  thing  was  clear  enough,  that  the  French  infantry, 
after  once  meeting  the  Prussians,  declined  to  try  conclusions 
with  them  again,  and  that  the  cavalry  were  seeking  to  encour- 
age them  by  their  example.  About  2  o'clock  still  other  re- 
enforcements  came  to  the  Prussians  over  this  long-disputed  hill 
between  Torcy  and  Sedan  to  support  the  regiments  already 
established  there. 

"  All  the  time  that  this  great  conflict  was  going  on  under 
Fritz's  eyes,  another  was  fought  not  less  severe  and  as  murderous 
for  the  Bavarians  as  the  one  I  have  attempted  to  describe  was 
for  the  French.  If  there  was  a  want  of  mitrailleuses  on  the  hill 
above  Torcy,  there  was  certainly  no  lack  of  them  in  the  Bazeille 
ravine.  On  that  side  there  was,  for  more  than  an  hour,  one  con- 
tinuous roar  of  musketry  and  mitrailleuses.  Two  Bavarian  ofii- 
cers  told  me  that  the  loss  in  their  regiments  was  terrific,  and  that 
it  was  the  mitrailleuses  which  made  the  havoc. 

"  At  2.05  in  the  afternoon  the  French  totally  abandoned  the 
hill  between  Torcy  and  Sedan,  and  fell  back  on  the  faubourg  of 
Caval,  just  outside  the  ramparts  of  the  town.  'I!Tow  the  battle 
is  lost  for  the  French,'  said  General  Sheridan,  to  the  delight  of 
the  Prussian  ofiicers.  One  would  almost  have  imagined  that  the 
French  had  heard  his  words — they  had  hardly  been  uttered,  when 
there  came  a  lull  in  the  firing  all  along  the  line,  or  rather  circle, 
as  such  it  had  now  become. 


220  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

"  Count  Bismarck  chose  that  moment  to  come  and  have  a 
talk  with  his  English  and  American  friends.  I  was  anxious  to 
know  what  the  Federal  Chancellor  had  done  about  the  neutrality 
of  Belgium,  now  threatened,  and  my  curiosity  was  soon  gratified. 
'  I  have  told  the  Belgian  Minister  of  War,'  said  Count  Bismarck, 
'  that,  so  long  as  the  Belgian  troops  do  their  utmost  to  disarm 
any  number  of  French  soldiers  who  may  cross  the  frontier,  I  will 
strictly  respect  the  neutrality  of  Belgium ;  but  if,  on  the  con- 
trary, the  Belgians,  either  through  negligence  or  inability,  do 
not  disarm  and  capture  every  man  in  French  uniform  who  sets 
his  foot  in  their  country,  we  shall  at  once  follow  the  enemy  into 
neutral  territory  with  our  troops,  considering  that  the  French 
have  been  the  first  to  violate  the  Belgian  soil.  I  have  been 
down  to  have  a  look  at  the  Belgian  troops  near  the  frontier,' 
added  Count  Bismarck,  '  and  I  confess  they  do  not  inspire  me 
with  a  very  high  opinion  of  their  martial  ardor  or  discipline. 
When  they  have  their  great-coats  on,  one  can  see  a  great  deal  of 
paletot,  but  hardly  any  soldier.' 

"  I  asked  His  Excellency  where  he  thought  the  Emperor  was : 
'  In  Sedan  ? '  '  Oh,  no  ! '  was  the  reply  ;  '  Napoleon  is  not  very 
wise,  but  he  is  not  so  foolish  as  to  put  himself  in  Sedan  just  now.' 
For  once  in  his  life  Count  Bismarck  was  wrong. 

"  At  2.45  the  King  came  to  the  place  where  I  was  standing. 
He  remarked  that  he  thought  the  French  were  about  to  try  to 
break  out  just  beneath  us,  in  front  of  the  Second  Bavarian  Corps. 
At  3.50  General  Sheridan  told  me  that  Napoleon  and  Louis  were 
in  Sedan. 

"  At  3.20  the  Bavarians  below  us  not  only  contrived  to  get 
themselves  inside  the  fortifications  of  Sedan,  but  to  maintain 
themselves  there,  working  their  way  forward  from  house  to  house. 
About  4  o'clock  there  was  a  great  fight  for  the  possession  of  the 
ridge  above  Bazeille.  That  carried,  Sedan  was  swept  on  all 
sides  by  the  Prussian  cannon.     This  point  of  vantage  was  car- 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  221 

ried  at  4.40.     When  carried  there  could  no  longer  be  a  shade  of 
doubt  as  to  the  ultimate  fate  of  Sedan. 

"  About  5  o'clock  there  was  again  a  sudden  suspension  of  the 
cannonade  along  the  whole  line.  Many  were  the  speculations  as 
to  the  cause,  but  nobody  seemed  to  divine  the  truth.  You  must 
judge  of  our  surprise  when,  five  minutes  later,  we  saw  a  French 
officer,  escorted  by  two  Uhlans,  coming  at  a  handsome  trot  up 
the  steep  bridle-path  from  Sedan  to  our  post,  one  of  the  Uhlans 
carrying  a  white  duster  on  a  faggot-stick  as  a  flag  of  truce.  The 
messenger  turned  out  to  be  a  French  colonel,  come  to  ask  for 
terms  of  surrender.  After  a  very  short  consultation  between  the 
King  and  General  von  Moltke,  the  messenger  was  told  by  the 
General  that,  in  a  matter  so  important  as  the  surrender  of  at 
least  80,000  men,  and  an  important  fortress,  it  was  necessary  to 
send  an  officer  of  high  rank.  '  You  are,  therefore,'  said  the  Gen- 
eral, '  to  return  to  Sedan  and  tell  the  Governor  of  the  town  to 
report  himself  immediately  to  the  King  of  Prussia.  If  he  does 
not  arrive  within  an  hour,  our  guns  will  again  open  fire.  You 
may  tell  the  commandant  that  there  is  no  use  of  his  trying  to 
obtain  any  other  terms  than  unconditional  surrender.'  Tlie^ar- 
lementaire  rode  back  with  this  message.  When  he  was  fairly 
out  of  ear-shot  his  mission  was  most  eagerly  canvassed. 

"At  6,30  there  arose  a  sudden  cry  among  the  members  of 
the  King's  stafi",  ^  Der  Kaiser  ist  daf  and  then  came  a  loud 
hurrah.  Soon  we  began  to  look  anxiously  for  the  arrival  of  the 
second  flag  of  truce.  In  ten  minutes  more  General  Keilly  rode 
up  with  a  letter  for  the  King  of  Prussia. 

"As  soon  as  the  French  General  was  in  sight,  the  slender 
escort  of  cuirassiers  and  dragoons  we  had  with  us  was  drawn  up 
in  line,  two  deep.  Behind  the  King,  in  front  of  the  escort,  was 
the  staff;  and  ten  yards  in  front  of  them  again,  stood  His 
Majesty,  King  Wilhelm  of  Prussia,  ready  to  receive  General 
Reilly.    That  officer,  as  we  soon  learned,  was  the  bearer  of  an 


222  THE   GEEAT  WAR  OF   ISTO 

autograpli  letter  from  the  Emperor  N"apoleon  to  King  Wilhelm. 
The  Emperor  of  the  French  wrote  :  '  As  I  cannot  die  at  the  head 
of  my  army,  I  lay  my  sword  at  the  feet  of  your  Majesty  ' — ['  Ne 
pouvant  'pas  mourir  a  la  tete  de  mon  armee^  je  t^iens  mettre  mon 
epee  auxpieds  de  voire  JfajestS ']. 

"  "Why  J^apoleon  III  conld  not  die,  as  did  thousands  of  his 
soldiers,  sword  in  hand,  with  his  face  to  the  foe,  is  not  so  clear. 

"  On  receipt  of  this  most  astounding  letter,  there  was  a  brief 
consultation  between  the  King,  the  Crown-Prince,  who  had  come 
over  from  his  hill  on  the  arrival  of  the  flag  of  truce,  Count  Bis 
marck.  General  von  Moltke,  and  General  von  Roon.  After  a 
few  minutes'  conversation,  the  King  sat  down  on  a  rush-bot- 
tomed chair,  and  wrote  a  note  (on  another  chair  held  as  a  table 
by  two  aides-de-camp)  to  the  Emperor,  asking  him  to  come  next 
morning  to  the  King  of  Prussia's  headquarters  at  Yendresse. 

"  While  the  King  was  writing  this  note  Count  Bismarck  came 
up  to  Generals  Sheridan  and  Eorsyth,  and  myself,  and  heartily 
shook  our  hands.  '  Let  me  congratulate  you  most  sincerely. 
Count,'  said  General  Sheridan.  '  I  can  only  compare  the  sur- 
render of  E'apoleon  to  that  of  General  Lee  at  Appomattox 
Court-House.' 

"  When  it  came  my  turn  to  grasp  the  Chancellor's  hand,  I 
could  not  help  saying,  after  I  had  warmly  congratulated  him, 
'  You  cannot  but  feel  a  pride.  Count  Bismarck,  in  having  con- 
tributed so  largely  to  the  winning  of  to-day's  victory.'  '  Oh ! 
no,  my  dear  sir,'  was  the  mild  answer ;  '  I  am  no  strategist,  and 
have  nothing  to  do  with  the  winning  of  battles.  What  I  am 
proud  of  is,  that  the  Bavarians,  the  Saxons,  and  the  Wurtem- 
bergers  have  not  only  been  on  our  side,  but  have  had  so  large  a 
share — the  largest  share — in  the  glory  of  the  day  ;  that  they  are 
with  us,  and  not  against  us.  That  is  my  doing.  I  don't  think 
the  French  will  say  now  that  the  South  Germans  will  not  fight 
for  our  common  Fatherland.' 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  223 

"  I  asked  His  Excellency  wlietlier  Louis  was  taken  with,  his 
papa,  and  was  told  that  no  one  knew  ;  and  I  think  that  no  one 
much  cared  where  that  little  man  was. 

"  "When  the  King  had  wiitten  his  letter,  he  himself  handed 
it  to  General  Reilly,  who  stood  bareheaded  to  receive  it — the 
Italian  and  Crimean  medals  glittering  on  his  breast  in  the  fading 
sunlight.  Queen  Yictoria's  image  and  superscription  have  not 
often  been  seen  on  the  uniforms  of  men  surrendering  without 
conditions. 

"  At  7.40  General  Keilly  left  for  the  beleaguered  town,  es- 
corted bj  the  Uhlans.  The  duster  which  had  served  as  a  flag  of 
truce  was  ofi'ered  to  me  as  a  souvenir  of  that  memorable  day ; 
but  it  had  a  strong  resemblance  to  other  dusters,  and  I  declined 
the  proflfered  relic. 

"  As  soon  as  General  Reilly  was  gone  I  was  most  anxious  to 
be  off  to  the  Belgian  frontier,  in  the  hope  of  getting  messages 
through  ;  but  Count  Bismarck's  aid-de-camp  assured  me  that  it 
was  physically  impossible  to  go  that  night,  and  that  I  must  wait 
till  morning,  and  even  then  must  be  careful  not  to  fall  into  the 
hands  of  stray  French  soldiers,  who  were  known  to  be  dispersed 
in  all  directions  along  the  Belgian  frontier,  and  to  be  little  better 
than  bandits.  So  I  slept  at  the  village  of  Chevange,  a  mile  be- 
hind our  post,  after  a  little  hunting  for  quarters,  actually  getting 
a  bed. 

"  'Next  morning  early  I  started  for  Belgium.  As  I  rode  along 
I  suddenly  came  first  on  a  knot  of  Uhlans  ;  then  on  two  lackeys 
in  the  green  and  gold  Imperial  livery.  Directly  behind  them 
came  His  Majesty  ISTapoleon  III,  in  his  travelling  carriage,  on 
his  way  to  report  himself  a  prisoner  at  King  Wilhelm's  head- 
quarters at  Yendresse,  a  little  dirty  village  some  eighty  miles 
from  Sedan." 


224  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18tO 


CHAPTEK  X. 

WHILE  tMs  desperate  fighting,  terminating  in  an  inevitable, 
if  not  an  inglorious,  surrender,  was  going  on  around  Se- 
dan, Marshal  Bazaine,  for  whose  benefit  and  release  MacMahon 
had  perilled  and  lost  his  army,  attempted  to  break  out  of  Metz 
by  a  sortie  from  the  northeast.  Why  he  selected  this  point, 
which  would,  if  successful,  have  carried  him  still  farther  away 
from  MacMahon's  army,  does  not  exactly  appear;  possibly 
because  he  may  have  believed  the  German  investing  force  weak- 
est at  that  point. 

The  sortie  was  commenced  on  the  morning  of  August  31st, 
at  which  time  the  army  of  Marshal  MacMahon  was  not  less 
than  seventy  miles  distant,  and  the  railroad  connections  broken 
and  in  the  hands  of  the  Prussians.  The  German  force  on  the 
east  side  of  the  Moselle  besieging,  or  rather  isolating,  Metz, 
belonged  to  the  Second  Army,  and  that  corps,  consisting  almost 
entirely  of  East-Prussian  line-troops  and  Landwehr,  was  under 
the  special  command  of  General  von  Manteuffel.  This  corps 
lay  in  almost  a  semicircle  from  Malvoy  and  Olgy,  eight  or  nine 
miles  north  of  Metz,  to  the  river  Sille,  three  miles  south  of  the  city., 

The  fighting  commenced  between  9  and  10  o'clock  in  the 
morning  of  August  31st,  the  French  troops  massing  heavily,  and 
hurling  themselves  on  the  German  left  wing  just  at  Colombey 
and  Bellecroix,  villages  nearly  due  east  from  Metz.  They  were 
vigorously  supported  by  the  fire  from  Fort  Bellecroix  and  Fort 
St.  Julien,  as  well  as  from  some  batteries  hitherto  masked. 
There  was  a  feint  of  attacking  the  German  right  wing  lying 
between  Malvoy  and  Charly,  but  it  was  only  a  feint.     About  3 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  225 

P.  M.  the  French,  under  command  of  General  Leboeuf  in  person, 
made  a  most  determined  and  resolute  attack  upon  the  German 
centre  at  Servigny,  Eetonfay,  and  IToisseville,  supported  by 
concealed  batteries  and  the  forts.  The  fighting  was  of  the  most 
desperate  and  obstinate  character.  Servigny,  ISToisseville,  Ee- 
tonfay,  and  Poixe  were  each  taken  and  retaken  several  times, 
much  of  the  fighting  on  tlie  German  side  being  done  with  the 
bayonet.  The  battle  did  not  cease  till  11  p.  m.,  and  the  troops 
on  both  sides  rested  on  their  arms. 

Fighting  was  resumed  the  next  morning  at  4  a.  m.,  although 
the  whole  field  was  covered  with  a  thick  fog.  The  ground  about 
the  village  of  l!^oisseville  was  again  fought  over  obstinately,  the 
village  itself  being  captured  and  lost  three  times  by  each  party. 
On  the  left  flank,  Flanville  and  Corney  were  captured  by  the 
Germans  ;  and  on  the  right,  after  desperate  fighting,  the  French 
were  driven  southward  and  into  Metz,  being  pushed  into  and 
through  the  Grimont  wood,  and  Grimont  itself,  under  the  guns 
of  Fort  St.  Julien.  Once  more  the  French  centre  advanced 
against  Servigny,  and  its  right  flank  took  and  retook,  but  finally 
lost,  Mercy  le  Haut ;  but  their  attacks  were  delivered  with  less 
force  than  at  first,  and  finally  ceased  about  midday,  September 
1st.  The  loss  on  the  German  side  was  about  3,000,  ofiicers  and 
men ;  on  the  French  side,  considerably  heavier.  The  full  reports 
of  these  battles  have  not  yet,  we  believe,  been  published,  but 
we  subjoin  the  despatches  of  two  of  the  German  generals. 

From  Malaincourt  General  Stiehle  (chief  of  staff  to  Prince 
Friedrich  Karl)  telegraphed  on  the  2d  of  September : 

"  From  the  morning  of  August  31st  to  midday  of  September 
1st  Marshal  Bazaine  has  almost  unceasingly  attempted,  with 
several  corps  from  Metz,  to  break  through  toward  the  north. 
General  Manteujffel,  under  chief  command  of  Prince  Friedrich 
Karl,  has  repulsed  all  these  attempts  in  glorious  battles,  which 
15 


226  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18'70 

may  be  united  under  the  name  of  Battle  of  ^N'oisseviUe.  The 
enemy  was  again  thrown  back  into  the  fortress.  The  First  and 
Kinth  Corps,  Kummer's  Division  (line  and  Landwehr),  and  the 
Twenty-eighth  Infantry  Brigade,  took  part  in  the  battle.  The 
principal  fighting  took  place  at  Servigny,  Noisseville,  and  Eeton- 
fay.  JN'ight-surprises  were  repnlsed  with  East-Prussian  bayonets 
and  clubbed  muskets.  Our  losses  not  yet  ascertained,  but  not 
very  large  proportionally  ;  those  of  the  enemy  heavy." 

General  Manteuffel  telegraphed : 

"  Since  yesterday  morning  Marshal  Bazaine  has  been  in  bat- 
tle day  and  night  with  his  entire  army,  against  the  First  Army- 
Corps  and  Kummer's  Division  ;  and  yesterday  night  and  to-day 
he  has  been  everywhere  driven  back.  The  French  have  fought 
with  the  greatest  courage,  but  have  to  give  way  to  the  East- 
Prussians.  Prince  Friedrich  Xarl,  the  commander-in-chief  of 
the  blockading  troops,  has  yesterday  and  to-day  expressed  his 
recognition  and  his  good  wishes  for  both  victories.  The  Fourth 
Landwehr  Division  took  a  distinguished  part  in  to-day's  victory. 

"  VON  Manteuffel." 

The  French  troops,  finding  all  their  efforts  to  break  through 
the  cordon  of  troops  which  surrounded  them  unavailing,  with- 
drew, in  the  afternoon  of  September  1st,  within  their  fortified 
lines. 

Strasbourg,  Laon,  Toul,  and  Pfalzburg  still  held  out,  and 
these,  with  Metz,  detained  nearly  200,000  German  troops  to 
isolate  and  besiege  them.  There  was,  however,  no  lack  of  Ger- 
man soldiers,  notwithstanding  the  terrible  slaughter  of  the  bat- 
tles already  fought.  On  the  4th  of  September  the  King  of 
Prussia,  at  the  head  of  the  First,  Third,  and  Fourth  Armies — 
a  force  of  not  less  than  800,000  men — was  marching  toward 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  227 

Paris.  Subsequent  reenforcements  brought  up  the  entire  Ger- 
man armies  in  France  to  above  T00,000  men,  notwithstanding  all 
Josses. 

While  this  surrender  was  going  on  at  Sedan,  and  the  at- 
tempted sortie  at  Metz  was  proving  unsuccessful,  what  was  the 
condition  of  affairs  at  Paris  ?  There  had  not  been  wantins:  indi- 
cations  of  the  speedy  downfall  of  the  Empire.  Even  as  early  as 
the  battle  of  "Woerth,  on  the  6th  of  August,  the  Ollivier  Minis- 
try had  tried  in  vain  to  repress  the  bold  questioning  and  the 
daring  and  inconvenient  interpellation  of  the  Radicals  in  the 
Corps  Legislatif;  and  after  the  downfall  of  that  Cabinet,  the 
Palikao  Ministry  found  themselves  compelled  to  allow  the  Radi- 
cal members  a  share  in  the  Committee  of  Defence.  Denuncia- 
tions of  the  Emperoi^s  policy  and  generalship  had  become  alarm- 
ingly frequent,  and,  though  the  Palikao  Ministry  had  persistent- 
ly deceived  the  people,  representing  nearly  every  defeat  as  either 
a  victory,  or,  at  most,  a  drawn  battle,  and  on  the  very  day  of 
the  surrender,  and  at  least  an  hour  after  the  preliminaries  of  the 
capitulation  had  been  agreed  upon,  had  published  a  despatch 
from  the  Emperor,  saying,  "  All  goes  wonderfully  well ;  our 
plans  all  succeed,"  yet  there  was  a  restlessness  and  impatience 
which  betokened  the  coming  storm.  And  a  fearful  storm  it 
proved. 

"  The  commotion,"  says  an  eye-witness,  "  commenced  on 
Saturday,  September  3d.  The  news  of  the  Emperor's  surrender, 
and  the  capitulation  of  MacMahon's  army,  were  made  known  to 
the  Empress  at  T  o'clock  in  the  evening.  She  immediately  re- 
tired into  her  apartment,  and  refused  to  receive  even  intimate 
friends.  Toward  9  o'clock  the  broad  facts  were  known  to  a  few 
persons  only,  but  a  general  uneasiness  prevailed,  and  angry 
groups  assembled.  At  11  o'clock  on  Sunday,  while  the  Mobiles, 
on  their  way  to  camp  at  Saint  Maur,  accompanied  by  a  small 


228  THE   GREAT   WAR  OF   1870 

crowd,  were  proceeding  up  the  Boulevards  toward  tlie  Bastille, 
they  sung  the  Marseillaise,  and  some  shouted,  '  La  Decheance  I ' 
— '  The  Overthrow '  (of  the  Empire).  This  cry  had  been  already 
heard  in  other  localities. 

"  Opposite  the  guard-house  of  the  Police  Sergeants,  on  the 
Boulevard  Bonne  Novelle,  the  police  charged  a  crowd  with 
drawn  swords  and  revolvers,  killing  a  Garde  Mobile,  a  National 
Guard,  and  injuring  several  people.  The  mob  turned  upon  the 
police  and  drove  them  back.  The  news  of  this  act  excited  great 
indignation,  and  cries  of  '  Down  with  the  Police  Sergeants ! ' 
were  heard  everywhere.  The  crowd  had  also  assembled  in  the 
Place  de  la  Concorde  and  about  the  Chamber  of  Deputies. 
This  crowd  was  also  charged  by  the  police,  and  many  individu- 
als were  hurt.  The  bridge  was  barred  to  the  public,  and 
paraded  by  the  police  and  troops  till  midnight. 

"  At  the  sitting  of  the  Chamber,  at  noon.  Count  de  Palikao 
made  the  following  official  statement  of  the  disaster  to  Mac- 
Mahon's  army,  and  the  capture  of  the  Emperor  : 

"  '  Frenchmen  :  France  has  encountered  a  great  misfortune  ! 
After  three  days'  heroic  fighting  by  MacMahon  against  300,000 
enemies,  40,000  men  were  made  prisoners.  General  Wimpffen, 
who  had  assumed  the  chief  command  of  the  army  in  the  place 
of  the  severely-wounded  Marshal  MacMahon,  subscribed  the 
capitulation.  This  terrible  misfortune  shall  not  shake  our  cour- 
age. Paris  is  to-day  in  a  state  of  defence.  The  military  forces 
of  the  land  are  organizing  themselves,  and  within  a  few  days  a 
new  army  will  stand  under  the  walls  of  Paris.  Another  army  is 
forming  on  the  banks  of  the  Loire.  Your  patriotism,  your 
unanimity,  your  energy,  will  save  France.  The  Emperor  was 
made  prisoner  in  this  battle.  The  Government  unites  with  the 
great  bodies  of  state.  They  will  take  every  measure  which  the 
gravity  of  the  occasion  demands.' 


BETWEEN  PRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  229 

"  Jules  Favre  demanded  a  vote  of  decheance^  but  the  Cham 
ber  adjourned  till  next  day  at  12  o'clock.  The  news  was  not 
generally  known  till  after  9  o'clock  on  Sunday  morning,  when 
the  Ministerial  statement  appeared  on  the  walls  and  in  the 
morning  papers.  Soon  immense  excitement  was  apparent  every- 
where. By  noon  the  Place  de  la  Concorde  was  crowded,  and 
tlie  passage  of  the  bridge  interrupted  to  the  public  by  the  Police 
Sergeants,  gendarmerie  on  horseback,  and  the  troops  on  the 
bridge  and  around  the  Chamber.  Popular  Deputies  were  recog- 
nized, and  met  with  acclamations  and  cries  of  ^La  DecMance  !  ' 
and  '  Ywe  la  Hepuhlique !  '  As  the  day  wore  on  the  crowds 
augmented.  On  tiie  passage  of  companies  of  ^National  Guards, 
the  people  shouted,  '  Vive  National  Garde !  '  '  Vive  la  Repu- 
hlique!  '  and  the  Guards  reciprocated. 

"  At  2  p.  M,  the  gates  of  the  Tuileries  garden  were  closed, 
and  had  remained  so  since  morning,  watched  by  the  Zouaves 
and  other  detachments  of  the  Imperial  Guard.  The  people  on 
the  outside  were  trying  to  shake  the  gates  on  the  side  of  the 
Place  de  la  Concorde.  At  2.30  o'clock  a  rush  was  made  by  a 
part  of  the  crowd,  headed  by  some  of  the  ITational  Guard.  The 
Police  Sergeants  and  gendarmerie  made  an  armed  demonstration 
of  resistance,  but  suddenly  yielded,  and  the  crowd  rushed  by, 
shouting,  '■La  "DecMance  I '  and  '  Vive  la  HS^ublique  !  '  People 
fraternized  with  the  gendarmes  and  troops,  and  these  with  the 
National  Guard.  There  was  no  resisting  the  masses  who  fol- 
lowed, and  soon  they  surrounded  the  Chamber,  and  finally 
invaded  it.  At  3  o'clock  shouting  and  commotion  in  front  of 
the  Chamber  w^ere  heard.  I  saw  the  crowd  from  the  Place  de  la 
Concorde.  A  procession  marched  slowly  along  the  quay.  The 
members  of  the  Left  recognized  that  they  were  being  escorted 
to  the  Hotel  de  Yille.  Then  came  a  rush  of  the  mob  from  the 
other  side  of  the  bridge,  the  National  Guards,  the  Mobiles,  and 
the  troops  shouting,  ^La  DecMance  ! '  and  '  Vive  la,  Rejpvhlique  ! ' 


230  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  1810 

"  It  becomes  known  that  the  Emperor  is  deposed  by  the 
Chamber,  and  that  the  Kepublic  is  declared.  The  people  rush 
■upon  the  Police  Sergeants  and  disarm  them.  One  National 
Guard  has  his  head  gashed  with  a  sword,  and  is  led  away.  The 
Police  Sergeants  get  off  the  best  way  they  can.  The  people 
assail  the  gates  of  the  Tuileries.  The  Guards,  after  a  menace, 
consent  to  a  parley.  The  men  clamber  up  and  wren<?;h  off  the 
eagles  from  the  gates.  The  gates  are  presently  opened,  and  the 
people  flock  in,  going  toward  the  palace.  The  flag  is  still  flying 
from  the  top  of  the  central  pavilion.  The  crowd  approaches 
the  private  garden.  There  is  a  detachment  of  troops  there. 
The  officer  is  summoned  to  open  the  gates.  He  refuses,  but 
says  he  can  let  his  men  be  replaced  by  the  National  Guard. 
This  is  done,  and  the  officer  saves  his  honor.  The  people  walk 
in,  and  immediately  invade  the  interior  of  the  palace.  The  flag 
is  torn  and  handed  down.  The  Empress  has  left.  The  Mobiles 
and  people  amiise  themselves  looking  at  the  albums  and  the 
Prince  Imperial's  playthings.  They  notice  that  the  draperies  of 
the  windows  are  partly  removed.  The  people  write  with  chalk, 
*  Death  to  Thieves.'  They  respect  property.  The  whole  palace 
is  visited,  but  nothing  removed. 

"  Meanwhile,  in  the  morning,  at  an  earlier  hour,  the  Depu- 
ties were  returning  to  appoint  a  committee  to  consider  the  three 
proposals  submitted  by  Palikao,  Thiers,  and  Pavre.  These  were 
as  follows.  That  of  Jules  Favre,  presented  the  previous  day, 
was :  . 

"  '  Article  I.  Louis  Napoleon  Bonaparte  and  his  dynasty  are 
declared  incapable  of  the  powers  which  the  Constitution  has  con- 
ferred upon  them. 

"  '  Article  II.  A  Commission  of  Government  will  be  nomi- 
nated by  the  Corps  Legislatif,  composed  of  ...  ,  which 
will  be  invested  with  all  the  powers  of  Government,  and  which 


BETWEEN"  FRANCE  AND  GEEMANY.  231 

lias  for  its  express  mission  to  resist  invasion  to  the  nttermostj  and 
to  chase  the  enemy  from  the  country. 

" '  Article  III.  M.  the  General  Trochn  is  retained  in  the 
fimctions  of  Governor-General  of  the  city  of  Paris.' 

"This  was  signed  by  twenty-eight  members.  The  sitting 
adjourned  at  miduight, 

"  Meeting  again  at  noon,  the  Minister  of  War,  Count  Pali- 
kao,  read  the  following  proposition  for  a  law : 

"  '  Article  I.  A  Council  of  Government  and  of  ISTational 
Defence  is  instituted.  This  Council  is  composed  of  five  mem- 
bers. Each  member  of  the  Council  is  named  by  a  majority 
absolute  of  the  Corps  Legislatif. 

"  '  Article  II.  The  Ministers  are  named  subject  to  the  ap- 
proval of  the  members  of  the  Council. 

"  '  Article  III.  The  General,  Count  Palikao,  is  named  Lieu- 
tenant-General  of  this  Council. 

"  '  Done  in  the  Council  of  the  Ministers  the  4:th  September, 

1870,  for  the  Emperor,  and  in  virtue  of  the  powers  which 

he  has  confided  to  us. 

" '  Eugenie.' 

"  M.  Thiers  then  read  the  following  proposal,  signed  by  forty- 
five  or  forty-six  members : 

"  '  In  view  of  the  circumstances,  the  Chamber  names  a  Com- 
mission of  Government  and  of  l^ational  Defence.  A  constituent 
assembly  will  be  convoked  as  soon  as  the  circumstances  per- 
mit it.' 

"  The  Minister  of  "War  announced  that  the  Government  was 
perfectly  willing  to  consult  the  country.  It  is  agreed  to  discuss 
the  three  propositions  together.  The  Chamber  adjourned  for  a 
short  time.     A  company  of  ISTational  Guards  having  charge  of 


232  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18*70 

the  gates  shouted,  ^La  DechSance  !  '  and,  as  the  Deputies  passed, 
some  few  Nationals  mounted  the  steps  of  the  Palace  of  the 
Corps  Legislatif,  and  signalled  their  comrades  from  the  Pont  de 
la  Concorde.  Presently  the  latter  rushed  forward,  followed  by 
the  crowd,  all  classes  intermixed,  and  shouting  '  Yive  la  HSjpVr 
hlique  !  '  Once  inside  the  palace-gates,  the  people  spread  them- 
selves all  over  the  building,  except  the  hall  where  the  sessions  of 
the  Deputies  are  held.  The  next  hall  was  occupied  by  troops, 
who  fraternized  with  the  people. 

"  Cremieux  addresses  the  people.  They  demand  the  with- 
drawal of  the  troops.  Palikao  appears,  and  promises  that  the 
troops  shall  be  removed.  Schneider,  president  of  the  Corps 
Legislatif,  led  by  two  officers,  crosses  the  courtyard,  pale,  hag- 
gard, and  with  tears  in  his  eyes.  He  disappears  into  the  hall 
where  the  sessions  are  held.  Attempts  are  made  to  force  its 
doors.  General  Motterouge  orders  the  National  Guards  to  de- 
fend the  entry.  There  are  loud  cries  of  ^  DecJieance !  ^  and 
'  Vive  la  Bepublique!  '  The  Deputies  of  the  Left  pass  out  and 
receive  acclamation.  Gambetta  recommends  calmness,  and  says, 
'  The  majority  must  proclaim  the  DechSance.^ 

"  In  one  of  the  galleries  somebody  begins  a  speech.  A  few 
Deputies  of  the  Pight  enter,  but  suddenly,  as  if  panic-stricken, 
they  retreat  precipitately.  Schneider  now  appears.  He  at- 
tempts to  speak  ;  grows  foggy ;  becomes  unnerved  ;  puts  on  his 
hat  and  leaves  the  chair.  At  this  moment  a  small  side-door 
under  the  galleries  opens,  and  about  thirty  push  through.  A 
National  Guard  causes  them  to  withdraw,  and  closes  the  door, 
locking  it.  On  the  tribune  there  are  shouts  and  gesticulations. 
Every  body  speaks  at  once. 

"  Another  party  of  citizens  forces  its  way  in.  The  presi- 
dent's cry  of  '  Order ! '  is  drowned  by  shouts  of  '  Vive  la  Repu- 
Hique ! '  Palikao  endeavors  to  obtain  a  hearing,  and,  failing, 
puts  on  his  hat  and  quits  the  Chambers.     The  president  tries 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  233 

unsuccessfully  to  allay  tlie  uproar,  two  Deputies  going  to  his 
assistance,  and  all  three  very  violently  gesticulating.  The 
Deputies  of  the  Left  address  the  people,  striving  to  quell  the 
tumult.  Then  Gambetta  appeals  to  them  to  preserve  order,  and 
to  await  the  arrival  of  the  Representatives,  as  they  will  bring  in 
the  question  of  Decheance. 

"  It  is  now  3  o'clock.  Suddenly  a  crowd  of  people  rush  into 
the  hall.  The  Deputies  try  to  keep  them  back,  but  the  hall  is 
entirely  invaded.  The  president  puts  on  his  hat  and  leaves  the 
hall,  declaring  the  session  closed.  As  he  quits  his  seat,  ISTational 
Guards  and  people  come  crowding  in.  There  are  general  cries 
of  '  Vive  la  Hepiiblique  !  '  The  Deputies  of  the  Left  mix  with 
the  people,  and  all  cry,  '  To  the  Hotel  de  Yille ! '  Gambetta 
and  other  Republican  leaders  leave  the  Chambers  and  go  in 
procession  down  the  Pont  de  la  Concorde,  followed  by  the 
crowd. 

"  Meanwhile,  outside  the  Chambers  men  climb  up  to  the 
statue  of  Law,  over  the  portal,  and  destroy  the  eagle  which 
adorns  the  baton  in  the  hands  of  the  image.  Then  it  is  itself 
destroyed — the  head  first,  then  the  arms.  Gambetta  and  the 
procession  pass  down  the  Quai  des  Tuileries.  Soldiers  applaud 
and  shout  with  the  crowd.  A  lieutenant-colonel  cries,  '  Vive  la 
Itefxibligiie  ! '  The  procession  stops  and  fraternizes.  The  Tur- 
cos  and  the  Spahis  at  the  barracks  of  the  Quai  d'Orsay  wave 
their  turbans.  The  flag  over  the  pavilion  of  the  Tuileries  is 
hauled  down.  In  front  of  the  Prefecture  there  are  cries  of 
'  Down  with  Pietri ! '     The  Prefecture  is  closely  shut. 

"  Arrived  in  front  Of  the  Hotel  de  Yille,  the  crowd  forces  its 
way  in.  Jules  Favre  and  Jules  Ferry  go  to  the  further  end  of 
the  great  hall.  Two  Gardes  Mobiles,  with  drawn  swords,  clam- 
ber up  the  ornamental  chimney  and  seat  themselves  in  the  lap 
of  a  marble  nymph.  Gambetta,  Cremieux,  and  Keratry  press 
in  and  take  a  place  beside  Favre,  followed  by  Picard,  Etienne 


234  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF   1870 

Arago,  Glais-Bizoin,  Schoelcher,  and  otliers.  Gambetta,  Cre- 
mieux,  and  Keratiy  are  "by  tliemselves  at  the  Mayor's  table. 

"  Amid  the  tumult,  Gambetta  declares  the  Republic  a  fact, 
and  that  Emmanuel  Arago  is  appointed  Mayor  of  Paris.  The  peo- 
ple shout  approval.  The  Bureau  is  constituted.  Keratry  is  ap- 
pointed Prefect  of  Police.  The  Bureau  retires  to  constitute  a 
Provisional  Government  and  Ministry.  At  4  o'clock  the  Bureau 
returns,  and  Gambetta  declares  the  Provisional  Government, 
constituted  under  the  title  of  Government  for  the  ISTational 
Defence,  consisting  of  Arago,  Cremieus,  Favre,  Simon,  Gam- 
betta, Ferry,  Glais-Bizoin,  and  Garnier-Pages.  The  people 
shout  Rochefort's  name.  It  is  added  amid  acclamation.  .  The 
members  of  Government  again  retire.  There  is  a  discussion 
whether  the  tri-color  or  the  red  flag  is  to  be  adopted.  Schoel- 
cher  says  '  tri-color,  '  and  it  is  adopted. 

"  The  Eochefort  episode  vv^as  as  follows :  A  hundred  of 
Rochefort's  constituents  met,  by  appointment,  at  3  p.  m.,  at  the 
Great  Market  Hall.  At  a  given  signal  the  leader  raised  a  cane 
with  a  flag  attached  to  it,  and,  with  a  shout,  '  To  Sainte  Pela- 
gic ! '  ascended.  The  group  was  joined  by  other  men  w^ho  up  to 
that  time  had  been  lurking  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  making  in 
all  about  300  when  they  reached  the  prison.  There  were  three 
marines  aeting  as  sentries  outside.  One  of  them  made  believe 
to  lower  his  bayonet.  It  was  raised  by  his  comrade.  The 
crowd  took  the  guns  and  broke  them,  but  fraternized  with  the 
marines.  There  was  no  opposition  from  the  wardens.  Rochefort's 
cell-doors  were  burst  in,  and  he  was  taken  out. 

"There  was  no  coach  at  the  door.  A  lady  passing  in  one  got 
out  of  it,  and  made  Rochefort  get  in.  He  was  driven  to  the 
H6tel  de  Yille,  arriving  there  at  5  o'clock,  and  was  carried  in 
triumph  to  the  throne-room,  where,  amid  the  shouts  and  con- 
gratulations of  friends,  he  learns  that  he  is  a  member  of  the  new 
Republican  Government," 


BETWEEN"  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  235 

The  first  act  of  tlie  ne'v  Republican  Government  was  to  issue 
tlie  following  address : 

"  To  THE  Aemy  :  When  a  general  has  compromised  his  com- 
mand, it  is  withdrawn  from  him.  When  a  Government  has 
placed  the  weal  of  the  fatherland  in  danger  by  its  mistakes,  it  is 
set  aside.  That  is  what  France  has  just  done.  In  displacing  a 
dynasty  which  is  responsible  for  our  misfortunes,  it  has  at  one 
stroke  completed  a  great  act  of  justice  in  the  eyes  of  the  world. 
France  has  executed  the  judgment  which  had  long  been  secretly 
expected  of  her  by  all.  France  has  at  the  same  time  performed 
an  act  of  salvation.  The  nation  has  for  its  preservation  only  the 
necessity  of  raising  itself,  and,  besides  that,  to  hold  to  two 
things  :  its  determination,  which  is  unconquerable  ;  and  its  hero- 
ism, which  has  not  its  equal,  and  which  has  aroused  tlie  aston- 
ishment of  the  world  during  undeserved  disasters.  Soldiers,  in 
the  terrible  crisis  through  which  we  are  hastening,  we  have 
seized  the  helm,  but  with  it  we  have  not  in  any  way  sought 
party  ends.  We  find  ourselves  not  at  the  helm,  but  in  battle. 
We  are  the  Government  of  no  party,  but  we  are  a  Government 
of  the  ^National  Defence.  We  have  only  one  object,  only  one 
desire  :  the  good  of  the  fatherland  by  the  army  and  the  nation, 
which  gathers  around  the  glorious  symbol  which  eighty  years 
ago  drove  back  Europe.  To-day,  as  then,  the  name  Republic 
means :  Thorough  concord  between  army  and  people  for  the 
defence  of  the  fatherland. 


"  General  Tkochu, 

Gaeniee-Pages, 

Emmanuel  Aeago, 

Glais-Bizoin, 

Ceemieux, 

Pelletan, 

Jules  Favee, 

E.    PiCAED, 

Jules  Feeet, 

POCHEFOET, 

Gambetta, 

Jules  Simon." 

236  THE  GREAT   WAR   OF   18Y0 

Jules  Favre,  as  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  notwithstanding 
the  gloomy  outlook  in  regard  to  the  war,  issued  the  following 
circular,  which  bears  the  appearance  of  expressing  a  courage  and 
resolution  which  he  could  hardly  have  felt : 

"  The  policy  of  France  is  peace,  leaving  Germany  the  master 
of  her  own  destinies.  The  King  of  Prussia  had  said  that  he 
made  war  against  the  dynasty,  and  not  against  France  ;  yet  the 
dynasty  is  gone,  and  France  is  free,  yet  is  this  impious  war  con- 
tinued. Will  the  King  face  this  responsibility  before  the  world 
and  before  history?  France  yields  not  one  foot  of  soil,  not  a 
stone  of  a  fortress.  A  shameless  peace  means  the  extermination 
of  our  cause  and  that  of  Europe.  We  are  undismayed.  The 
army  is  resolute  and  provided.  Three  hundred  thousand  com- 
batants can  hold  Paris  to  the  last.  They  can  hold  the  city  for 
three  months,  and  conquer.  If  crushed,  France  will  arise  and 
avenge  it.  Let  Europe  know  that  the  Ministry  have  no  other 
aim  or  ambition  than  peace ;  but,  war  proving  inevitable,  we 
will  continue  the  struggle,  confident  of  the  triumph  of  justice." 

One  of  the  first  things  which  engaged  the  attention  of  the 
new  Government,  as  being  more  pressing  even  than  the  reorgan- 
ization of  labor — the  favorite  hobby  of  French  Republicans — 
was  the  necessity  of  some  negotiations  for  peace.  They  had, 
unfortunately,  committed  themselves,  at  the  outset,  to  the  posi- 
tion that  they  would  not  relinquish  a  foot  of  territory  or  a  stone 
of  any  fortress.  Thus  hampered,  M.  Jules  Favi'e,  while  solicit- 
ing the  good  ofiices  of  the  neutral  powers  to  aid  in  his  efforts  for 
peace,  sought  and  obtained  an  interview  with  the  Prussian  Pre- 
mier, von  Bismarck.  He  was  met  at  once  by  a  serious  prelimi- 
nary difiiculty  :  on  the  supposition  that  he  and  Bismarck  might 
agree  upon  some  terms  for  peace,  who  was  to  guarantee  their  ful- 
filment ?    The  Provisional  Government  was  merely  the  rule  of  a 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GEEMANY.  237 

few  self-cliosen  persons,  who  had  taken  advantage  of  the  confu- 
sion of  the  period  to  place  themselves  in  power.  They  had  no 
vote  of  the  people  to  sustain  them  in  their  position,  not. even  the 
sanction  of  the  popular  voice  in  the  cities  of  France.  They 
were  wholly  irresponsible — much  more  so,  even,  than  the  impe- 
rial dynasty  they  had  assumed  to  displace.  M.  Favre  urged 
that,  if  they  could  agree  upon  terms,  they  might  be  submitted 
to  a  popular  vote  within  four  or  six  weeks ;  but  Bismarck  re- 
plied, that  this  was  asking  too  much  ;  that,  if  their  treaty  should 
be  rejected,  and  the  Germans  had  remained  inactive  while  wait- 
ing for  the  decision,  they  would  be  greatly  worse  off  than  to  go 
on  as  they  were  now  doing ;  they  would,  in  fact,  be  thereby 
relinquishing  almost  the  entire  results  of  their  victories  thus  far. 
He  insisted,  as  the  necessary  condition  of  an  armistice  looking 
to  peace-negotiations,  that  they  must  have  material  guarantees 
of  the  good  faith  of  France,  and  named,  among  these,  the  pos- 
session of  Metz  and  Strasbourg — both  of  which  must  soon  capit- 
ulate at  all  events — and  the  temporary  occupation  of  some  one 
of  the  forts  of  the  outer  cordon  around  Paris.  As  M.  Favre  did 
not  dare  to  accept  these  propositions,  the  interview  terminated  ; 
Count  von  Bismarck  intimating  that  any  treaty  of  peace  must 
include  the  surrender  of  the  two  fortresses  of  Metz  and  Stras- 
bourg, and  perhaps  some  other  territory,  together  with  a  consid- 
erable money  indemnity. 

On  M.  Favre's  return,  the  propositions  of  Count  von  Bis- 
marck were  indignantly  rejected  by  his  colleagues,  and  M. 
Favre  was  rebuked  by  them  for  even  listening  to  them  ;  and  on 
the  24:th  of  September  the  following  was  issued  from  Tours,  to 
which  city,  since  Paris  was  placed  in  a  state  of  siege,  the  Gov- 
ernment had  migrated : 

'■^Proclamation  to  France  :  Before  the  siege  of  Paris,  Jules 
Favre  desired  to  see  Count  von  Bismarck,  to  know  the  inten- 


238  THE   GKEAT  WAR  OF   1870 

tions  of  the  enemy.  The  following  is  the  declaration  of  the 
enemy :  Prussia  wishes  to  continue  the  war  in  order  to  reduce 
France  to  a  second-rate  power.  Prussia  demands  Alsace  and 
Lorraine  as  far  as  Metz,  by  right  of  conquest.  Prussia,  before 
consenting  to  an  armistice,  demands  the  rendition  of  Strasbourg, 
Toul,  and  Mont  Yalerien.  Paris  is  exasperated,  and  will  rather 
bury  herself  beneath  her  ruins.  To  so  insolent  pretensions  we 
can  respond  but  by  resistance  to  the  last  extremity.  France 
accepts  the  struggle,  and  counts  upon  her  children. 

"  Ckemieux, 
Glais-Bizoin, 
foueichok." 

Meanwhile,  von  Bismarck  addressed  to  each  of  the  Korth- 
German  representatives  abroad  the  following  Circular  : 

"Meaitx,  Friday,  September  16,  1870. 

"  Tour  Excellency  is  familiar  with  the  Circular  which  M. 
Jules  Favre  has  addressed  to  the  foreign  representatives  of 
France  in  the  name  of  the  men  at  present  holding  power  in 
Paris,  and  who  call  themselves  ^Le  Gouvernement  de  la  Defense 
National.^  I  have  learned  simultaneously  that  M.  Thiers  has 
entered  upon  a  confidential  mission  to  the  foreign  courts  ;  and  I 
may  presume  that  he  will  endeavor,  on  the  one  side,  to  create  a 
belief  in  the  love  for  peace  of  the  present  Parisian  Government, 
and,  on  the  other  side,  will,  request  the  intervention  of  the  neu- 
tral powers  in  favor  of  a  peace  which  shall  deprive  Germany  of 
the  fruits  of  her  victories,  and  for  the  purpose  of  preventing 
every  basis  of  peace  which  would  make  the  next  attack  of 
France  on  Germany  more  difficult. 

"  We  cannot  believe  in  the  sincerity  of  the  desire  of  the  pres- 
ent Parisian  Government  to  make  peace  so  long  as  it  continues, 
by  its  language  and  its  acts  at  home,  to  excite  the  passions  of 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  239 

the  people  and  to  increase  the  hatred  and  bitterness  of  a  popula- 
tion stung  by  the  snfiferings  of  war,  and  to  repudiate  in  advance 
every  basis  acceptable  to  Germany  as'  unacceptable  by  France. 
By  such  a  course  it  becomes  impossible  to  make  peace.  The 
people  should  be  prepared  by  calm  words,  and  in  terms  corre- 
sponding to  the  gravity  of  the  situation. 

"  If  we  are  to  believe  that  negotiations  with  us  for  peace  are 
honestly  intended,  the  demand  that  we  should  conclude  an 
armistice  without  any  guarantees  for  our  conditions  of  peace 
could  be  meant  seriously  only  on  the  supposition  that  we  lack 
military  or  political  judgment,  or  are  indifferent  to  the  interests 
of  Germany.  Moreover,  the  hope  entertained  by  the  present 
rulers  in  Paris  of  a  diplomatic  or  material  intervention  of  the 
neutral  powers  in  favor  of  France,  prevents  the  French  nation 
from  seeing  the  necessity  of  j)eace.  "When  the  French  nation 
become  convinced  that,  as  they  have  wantonly  conjured  up  the 
war  alone,  and  Germany  has  had  to  fight  it  out  alone,  they  must 
also  settle  their  account  with  Germany  alone,  they  will  soon  put 
an  end  to  their  resistance,  now  surely  unavailing. 

"  It  would  be  an  act  of  cruelty  to  the  French  Government 
by  tlie  neutral  powers  to  permit  the  Parisian  Government  to 
nourish  among  the  people  hopes  of  intervention  that  cannot  be 
realized,  and  thereby  lengthen  the  contest. 

"  We  are  far  from  any  inclination  to  mix  in  the  internal 
affairs  of  France.  It  is  immaterial  to  us  what  kind  of  a  Gov- 
ernment the  French  people  shall  formally  establish  for  them- 
selves. The  Government  of  the  Emperor  ISTapoleon  has  hitherto 
been  the  only  one  recognized  by  us.  Our  conditions  of  peace, 
with  whatever  Government  legislating  for  the  purpose  we  may 
have  to  negotiate  with,  are  wholly  independent  of  the  question 
how  or  by  whom  the  French  nation  is  governed.  They  are  pre- 
scribed to  us  by  the  nature  of  things,  and  by  the  law  of  self- 
defence  against  a  violent  and  hostile  neighbor. 


24-0  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

"  The  unanimous  voice  of  tlie  Germanic  Governments  and 
the  German  people  demands  that  Germany  shall  be  protected  by 
better  boundaries  than  we  have  hitherto  had  against  the  dangers 
and  violence  we  have  experienced  from  all  French  Governments 
for  centuries.  So  long  as  France  remains  in  possession  of  Stras- 
bourg and  Metz,  so  long  is  its  offensive  strategically  stronger 
than  our  defensive,  so  far  as  all  South  Germany  and  North  Ger- 
many on  the  left  bank  of  the  Miine  are  concerned.  Strasbourg 
in  the  possession  of  France,  is  a  gate  wide  open  for  attack  on 
South  Germany.  In  the  hands  of  Germany,  Strasbourg  and 
Metz  obtain  a  defensive  character. 

"  In  more  than  twenty  wars  we  have  never  been  the  aggres- 
sors of  France ;  and  we  demand  of  the  latter  nothing  else  than 
our  safety  in  our  own  land,  so  often  threatened  by  it.  France, 
on  the  other  hand,  will  regard  any  peace  that  may  be  made  now 
as  an  armistice  only,  and,  in  order  to  avenge  the  present  defeat, 
will  attack  us  in  the  same  quarrelsome  and  wanton  manner  as 
this  year,  as  soon  as  it  feels  strong  enough  in  its  own  resources 
or  in  foreign  alliances. 

"  In  rendering  it  difficult  for  France,  from  whose  initiative 
alone  hitherto  the  disturbances  of  Europe  have  resulted,  to  re- 
sume the  offensive,  we  at  the  same  time  act  in  the  interest  of 
Europe,  which  is  that  of  peace.  From  Germany  no  disturbance 
of  the  European  peace  is  to  be  feared.  Although  France  had 
been  trying  to  force  the  war  u]3on  ns  for  four  years,  we,  by  our 
care,  and  by  restraining  the  feelings  of  our  national  self-respect, 
so  incessantly  outraged  by  France,  had  prevented  its  occurrence. 
We  mean  now,  for  our  future  safety,  to  demand  the  price  of  our 
mighty  efforts.  "We  shall  demand  only  that  which  we  must 
have  for  our  defence.  IsTobody  will  be  able  to  accuse  us  of  want 
of  moderation,  if  we  insist  upon  this  just  and  equitable  demand. 

"  Your  Excellency  will  make  these  views  your  own,  and 
advocate  them  in  discussions.  Bismakck." 


BETWEEN  FRANCE   AND  GERMANY.  241 

During  this  period  of  ineffectual  negotiation  tlie  Germans 
were  by  no  means  inactive.  The  Fii'st,  Third,  and  Fom*th 
Armies,  largely  reenforced,  pressed  on  toward  Paris,  and  on  the 
20th  of  September  the  investment  of  Paris  was  complete.  On 
the  23d,  Toul  surrendered,  and  Strasbom'g  followed  on  the  27th 
of  September.  The  garrison  of  Toul  was  very  small  (only  about 
2,350),  but  the  fortifications  were  of  such  strength  that  they  had 
endured  a  long  siege.  The  amount  of  war-material  surrendered 
was  large.  The  garrison  of  Strasbourg  numbered  17,000  men 
and  451  officers,  aside  from  the  large  population  of  the  city. 

The  events  of  the  1st  and  2d  of  September,  followed  by  the 
revolution  of  the  4th  of  September,  seemed  to  have  so  confused 
and  stunned  the  minds  of  the  French  leaders  and  people  as  to 
render  them  incapable  of  any  judicious  action.  Even  General 
Trochu,  the  only  one  of  their  leaders  who  had  any  clear  idea  of 
their  difficulties  and  dangers,  confined  his  efforts  to  fortifying 
Paris,  regardless  of  the  fact  that,  with  a  population  of  two  mil- 
lions in  the  city,  and  an  army  of  430,000  cut  off  by  the  siege 
from  any  active  movements,  a  capitulation  must  be  inevitable 
within  a  short  period — not  more,  certainly,  than  ten  or  twelve 
weeks — and  that  capitulation  would  involve  the  surrender  of 
this  great  army,  and  the  virtual  annihilation  of  the  entire  French 
military  power.  Of  the  entire  armed  force  which  France  had 
been  able  to  put  into  the  field,  or  could  in  any  emergency  bring 
into  service,  estimating  it  in  round  numbers  at  1,000,000  men — 
though  that  number  was  never  under  arms  at  once  during  the 
war — not  less  than  150,000  were  hors  de  comlat  from  sickness, 
wounds,  or  death  on  the  field  of  battle.  60,000  men  had  been 
taken  prisoners  previous  to  the  surrender  at  Sedan ;  over  100,000 
were  made  prisoners  there ;  nearly  30,000  at  Metz,  in  the  battles 
of  August  31st  and  September  1st,  and  the  subsequent  capitula- 
tions of  Toul,  Strasbourg,  &c.  More  than  200,000  more  were 
shut  up  in  Metz  and  eventually  surrendered ;  and  these  430,000 
16 


242  THE   GREAT  WAR   OF   18Y0 

being  withdrawn  from  active  service,  there  would  be  left,  in  the 
event  of  their  surrender,  but  a  mere  handful  of  troops  to  defend 
France  against  the  invader.  It  seems  never  to  have  occurred  to 
these  leaders  that  150,000,  or  200,000  men  at  the  utmost,  could 
defend  Paris  better  than  twice  that  number,  and  that,  with  fewer 
mouths  to  feed,  they  could  protract  the  siege  proportionally 
longer  ;  while  their  armies  in  the  field  might  inflict  such  damage 
upon  the  enemy  as  to  compel  him  to  raise  the  siege  of  the  capi- 
tal. But  the  greatest  misfortune  which  afflicted  France  during 
the  whole  of  this  war  was  the  want  of  honest,  capable,  and 
efficient  leaders.  The  people  were  brave  and  patriotic,  though, 
except  the  regular  army,  they  were  unskilled  in  the  use  of  arms  ; 
but  their  leaders,  when  not  traitors — as  some  of  them  undoubt- 
edly were — ^lacked  knowledge  of  military  affairs,  and  capacity 
for  the  important  and  responsible  positions  in  which  they  were 
placed.  The  siege  of  Paris  illustrated  this  most  painfully. 
With  two  millions  of  people  shut  up  in  that  great  city,  the  accu- 
mulated supplies  dealt  out  by  weight  and  measure,  and  their 
enemy  carefully  guarding  every  avenue  by  which  further  sup- 
plies could  reach  them,  the  great  mass  of  the  population  seem  to 
have  been  turbulent  and  troublesome,  improvident,  and  insensi- 
ble to  the  dangers  which  threatened  them.  Crime  was  rampant, 
riots  frequent,  and  the  sorties  to  drive  back  the  foe  and  raise  the 
siege  infrequent  and  ineffective.  At  the  same  time,  their  ten- 
dency to  boasting  and  exaggeration  seemed  constantly  to  in- 
crease. Every  little  sortie,  however  badly  conducted  or  speedily 
repulsed,  was  magnified  into  a  wonderful  victory.  They  had 
slain  15,000,  20,000,  or  S0,000  Prussians,  with  a  loss  of  only  a 
hundred  or  two  themselves  ; — the  Prussians  had  become  disgust- 
ed, and  were  about  to  abandon  the  siege ;  indeed,  they  had 
already  abandoned  it,  and  the  way  was  now  open  to  all  parts  of 
France ; — the  German  leaders  were  wounded  or  killed  in  these 
sanguinary  battles,  or  had   died  of  typhoid  fever,  or  become 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND   GERMANY.  243 

maniacs  from  remorse  ; — von  Moltke,  Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  the 
Crown-Prince  of  Prussia,  the  Crown-Prince  of  Saxony,  the 
Duke  of  Mecklenburg-Schwerin,  and  General  Manteuffel,  were 
all  reported  as  dead,  and  the  King  of  Prussia  had  gone  back  to 
Berlin  in  a  straight-jacket,  under  the  care  of  Count  von  Bis- 
marck. If  it  had  been  only  idle,  sensational  papers  which  had 
propagated  these  silly  stories  it  would  have  been  bad  enough, 
for  the  immense  crop  of  falsehoods  would  have  indicated  that 
the  people  were  ready  to  be  deceived  ;  but  it  was  their  leaders — 
such  men  as  Gambetta,  Cremieux,  Glais-Bizoin,  and  Favre — 
who  reiterated  these  falsehoods,  and,  in  default  of  any  founda- 
tion upon  which  to  base  them,  fabricated,  in  their  proclamations, 
the  details  of  conflicts  and  victories  which  were  entirely  ficti- 
tious. 

The  sympathy  of  the  friends  of  free  and  liberal  government 
were  at  first  heartily  with  the  newly-proclaimed  French  Repub- 
lic ;  they  hoped  to  see  a  sound  Government  of  the  people,  for 
the  people,  spring  from  the  corruption,  rottenness,  and  decay  of 
the  Empire ;  but  a  Government  founded  upon  falsehood,  and 
maintaining  its  hold  upon  the  people  solely  by  the  grossest  mis- 
representations, whatever  may  be  the  motive  of  those  falsehoods, 
soon  loses  its  hold  on  the  confidence  or  sympathy  of  right-think- 
ing men  of  all  nations.  For  the  people  they  may  feel  the  ten- 
derest  concern ;  for  their  leaders,  their  only  emotion  can  be  that 
of  disgust. 

"When  the  German  armies  were  about  closing  around  the 
doomed  city,  a  part  of  the  Provisional  Government  removed  to 
Tours,  and  there  exercised  their  functions.  At  first  it  was  only 
Cremieux,  Glais-Bizoin,  and  Fourichon  v/ho  thus  attempted  to 
govern  from  Tours.  Favre  subsequently  joined  them,  and  Gam- 
betta, after  remaining  awhile  in  Paris,  finally  escaped  from  that 
city  in  a  balloon.  Trochu,  Ferry,  Arago,  Rochefort,  and  one 
or  two  more  less  prominent,  remained  in  Paris.     The  Tours  sec- 


244:  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  IS^O 

tion  postponed  the  election  of  a  Constituent  Assembly  indefi- 
nitely, and,  while  makiDg  the  most  frantic  appeals  to  the  Em'O- 
pean  powers  to  intervene  and  secure  peace,  constantly  proclaimed 
that  they  would  not  give  up  one  foot  of  territory  or  one  stone  of 
a  fortress. 

Great  efforts  were  made  to  raise  an  army  in  the  south  of 
France,  to  be  called  the  Army  of  the  Loire.  Only  undisciplined 
and  raw  recruits  were  available,  with  few  exceptions,  for  this 
army,  but  it  was  expected  to  do  great  things.  General  Bour- 
baki,  who,  by  an  adroit  manoeuvre,  had  succeeded  in  getting  out 
of  Metz  before  its  surrender,  was  to  have  command  of  it,  and  its 
numbers  were  variously  stated  at  from  100,000  to  150,000  men. 
At  length,  in  the  last  days  of  October,  General  Bourbaki  assumed 
command  ;  but,  finding  that  it  had  at  no  time  mustered  over 
60,000  men,  and  that  these  were  the  rawest  of  recruits  and  con- 
stantly deserting,  he  threw  up  the  command  in  disgust.  Gari- 
baldi, the  Italian  hero,  was  called  to  command  one  of  the  armies 
of  the  Republic,  and,  though  crippled  and  suffering  from  the  still 
unhealed  wounds  of  Mentana,  he  came,  only  to  find  that  all  his 
efforts  would  be  neutralized  by  the  jealousies  of  Gambetta  and 
his  associates,  and  that  not  more  than  5,000  men — not  a  quarter 
of  them  well  equipped — could  be  allowed  to  gather  around  his 
standard.  The  Franc-tireurs,  a  class  of  guerillas  or  brigands, 
formed  themselves  into  bands  of  considerable  numbers,  and  occa- 
sionally raided  on  the  German  lines  ;  but  finding  that,  under  the 
wbolesom'e  though  rigid  regulations  of  King  Wilhelm,  they  were 
liable  to  be  marched  immediately  to  execution  when  caught,  they 
very  generally  preferred  the  safer  if  less  honorable  plan  of  plun- 
dering their  own  countrymen. 

There  were,  indeed,  occasional  sorties  of  some  magnitude  both 
from  Paris  and  Metz;  but  these  seldom  rose  to  the  dignity  of 
battles,  and  were  invariably  unsuccessful,  though  one  or  two  of 
them  inflicted  considerable  loss  upon  the  Germans,  but  a  much 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  245 

greater  one  on  themselves.  The  most  noteworthy  of  these  at 
Paris  was  one  of  the  19th  of  September,  and  another  early  in 
October.  IJTeither  seem  to  have  been  in  any  respect  a  success 
for  the  French,  though  both  were  vaunted  as  such.  The  affair 
of  the  19th  of  September  originated  in  an  attack  made  by  Gen- 
eral Ducrot,  who,  in  violation  of  his  parole  of  honor  given  at 
Gravelotte,  had  taken  a  command  again  in  the  French  army, 
upon  the  Germans  who  were  occupying  the  woods  of  Meudon, 
Clamart,  Chatenay,  Fontenai,  and  Choisy,  a  line  of  six  miles  on 
the  south  of  Paris.  Ducrot  had  about  40,000  men,  and  occupied 
a  strong  position  at  Yillejuif,  and  the  heights  of  Chatillon  and 
Clamart ;  but,  attacking  rashly,  and  without  knowiug  what  force 
was  in  his  front,  he  threw  himself  against  the  corps  of  Yogel  de 
Falkenstein,  over  100,000  strong ;  and  though  a  part  of  his 
troops  fought  well,  others  were  panic-stricken,  and,  in  the  end, 
he  was  soundly  whipped,  and  lost  his  fortified  position — a  serious 
disaster  to  the  French  cause.  Subsequent  to  this,  there  were 
three  or  four  successive  sorties  made  in  the  same  direction  by  the 
French,  but  their  only  result  was  that,  after  considerable  severe 
fighting  and  heavy  losses,  the  Germans  each  time  gained  some 
ground  they  had  not  previously  held. 

The  Germans  were  meanwhile  overrunning  and  capturing 
other  cities  of  France.  Epinal,  Etampes,  Angerville,  Orleans,  a 
large  and  important  city  on  the  Loire,  the  granary  of  France, 
Gien,  and  later  Dijon,  were  taken  and  held  by  their  troops,  and 
Tours,  Lyons,  and  Marseilles  threatened. 

The  new  troops  raised  outside  of  Paris  after  its  isolation  were 
raw  recruits,  a  small  proportion  (the  Gardes  Mobiles)  capable, 
with  sufficient  training  and  good  officers,  of  making  very  superior 
troops,  but,  under  the  circumstances,  entirely  unable  to  cope  with 
the  thoroughly-trained  German  soldiers,  commanded  as  they 
were  by  the  best  military  talent  of  the  century.  The  greater 
part  of  the  French  levy,  whether  known  as  National  Guards, 


246  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF  18'70 

Partisans,  Franc-tireurs,  or  by  other  titles,  were  utterly  incapa- 
ble, and  either  ran  or  surrendered  after  the  first  fire.  Knowing 
nothing  of  the  use  of  fire-arms  (since  ISTapoleon  III  had  pro- 
hibited their  use,  except  in  the  regular  army),  they  had  no  confi- 
dence in  themselv^es,  and  could  not  be  made  to  fight,  except 
where  the  objects  of  theu'  assault  were  unarmed. 

The  contempt  naturally  felt  by  the  German  soldiers  for  such 
foes  is  well  illustrated  by  an  oflBcial  report  of  a  commission  sent 
by  the  King  of  Prussia  to  ascertain  the  exact  state  of  afiairs  in 
the  eastern  and  central  provinces  of  Prance,  made  at  Yersailles, 
October  10th,  18T0 : 

"  Peeent  events  throw  light  upon  the  forces  at  the  disposal  of 
the  French  Government  over  and  above  those  enclosed  in  Paris, 
Metz,  and  some  other  fortresses.  Several  marches  southwest  of 
Strasbourg  the  corjps  d''armee,  under  the  command  of  General 
von  Werder,  fell  in  with  a  body  of  troops  whose  composition 
proved  that  the  production  of  fresh  regular  forces  need  be  no 
longer  feared  in  Prance.  It  had  been  organized  some  weeks 
since  at  Langres,  and  belonged  to  the  Southern  Army.  The  re- 
cruits had  come  from  the  Haute-Marne,  Saone,  and  Yonne,  Cote 
d'Or,  and  the  country  near  Dijon.  If  at  all  capable  of  playing 
a  part  in  the  war,  it  ought  to  have  marched  north,  and  endeav- 
ored to  relieve  Strasbourg  while  there  was  time  ;  but  consisting 
chiefly  of  Mobiles,  it  could  not  venture  on  so  independent  a  step, 
and  contented  itself  with  troubling  our  southern  communications 
between  Alsace  and  Paris.  Its  greatest  exploit  was  an  attempt 
•to  surprise  JSTancy,  which,  however,  was  so  easily  foiled  by  one 
Landwehr  battalion  that  we  could  not  even  boast  of  having  had 
an  engagement.  Such  were  the  troops  General  von  Werder 
(with  General  von  Dagenfeld  under  him  as  chief  of  the  Baden 
Division)  attacked  near  Epinal.  He  put  2,000  hors  de  conibat, 
ourselves  losing;  less  than  one  eis-hth  of  this  number.     This  has 


BETWEEN  FKANCE  AND  GERMANY.  2^7. 

probably  disjoosed  of  tlie  Southern  branch,  of  the  French  army  for 
a  little  while. 

"  Further  west  the  Bavarian  First  Corps,  recnforced  by  one 
Prussian  division  of  infantry  and  two  Prussian  cavalry  divisions, 
under  the  command  of  General  von  der  Tann,  assumed  an  ener- 
getic offensive  against  the  hosts  congregating  on  the  Loire. 
Some  time  ago,  when  we  had  completed  the  investment  of  Paris, 
two  Prussian  cavalry  divisions,  among  them  Prince  Albrecht's, 
had  been  despatched  to  patrol  the  country  south  of  the  capital, 
in  the  direction  of  Etampes,  Pithiviers,  and  Orleans.  They  had 
had  many  skirmishes  with  Francs-Tireurs,  who  abounded  in  that 
neighborhood,  and  though  unable  to  resist  our  attack  in  any  one 
single  instance,  yet  clung  to  their  hiding-places  in  the  woods,  and 
were  apparently  intent  upon  organizing  a  guerilla  war.  These 
Francs-Tireurs  came  from  the  Seine  and  the  Southern  Depart- 
ments. 

"  When  our  cavalry  had  penetrated  as  far  as  the  forest  of 
Orleans,  the  Crown-Prince  ordered  General  von  der  Tann,  who 
had  his  headquarters  at  Longjumeau,  to  proceed  in  the  direction 
of  that  city,  and  further  on  to  Tours,  the  seat  of  the  Provisional 
Government.  With  General  von  der  Tann's  Corps  marched  the 
Twenty-second  Division  of  the  Eleventh  Prussian  Corps,  as  also 
our  two  cavalry  divisions.  This  force  arrived  on  the  Tth  at  Ar- 
pajoD,  and  on  the  8th  reached  Etampes,  by  Etrechy.  At  Etam- 
pes the  van  were  engaged  by  the  enemy,  who,  seemingly  show- 
ing fight,  caused  our  troops  to  prepare  for  battle.  Our  infantry 
marched  through  a  ravine  in  the  direction  of  Angerville,  with 
cavalry  on  both  sides.  Had  the  enemy  remained  in  their  former 
position  we  should  have  outflanked  and  might  have  seriously  in- 
jured them  by  this  movement ;  but  on  getting  near  Angerville, 
where  the  defile  widens  into  a  vast  plateau,  we  found  the  French 
had  retreated  on  learning  the  approach  of  a  considerable  force. 
Only  the  village  of  Monnerville,  south  of  Etampes  and  Anger- 


248  THE  GREAT  WAR   OF  1870 

ville,  was  still  occupied  by  a  small  rear-guard.  On  this  occasion 
•we  became  acquainted  with  a  new  description  of  troops  called 
Partisans,  forming  a  sort  of  body-guard  to  the  Government  at 
Tours.  In  the  account-books  they  had  with  them  their  pay  and 
other  emoluments  from  the  Hepublican  authorities  were  accu- 
rately stated.  They  were  mostly  men  above  40,  or  youngsters 
between  16  and  18,  those  between  these  two  extremes  having 
been  previously  drafted  into  the  Mobiles.  Directly  we  got  to 
Etampes  and  Angerville  the  Partisans  remaining  in  those  towns 
were  either. taken  prisoners  or  ran  away.  They  were,  indeed, 
unable  to  defend  themselves,  being  totally  ignorant  of  every 
thing  military,  and,  moreover,  armed  with  Minie  rifles,  which 
cannot  compete  with  modern  weapons.  In  reply  to  our  ques- 
tions, they  said  they  knew  nothing  of  the  service,  and  altogether 
represented  their  situation  as  pitiable.  The  peasants  would  not 
give  them  any  thing  to  eat,  nor  even  direct  them  how  to  find 
their  way  across  the  country.  The  fear  of  the  Germans  was  so 
universal  in  those  parts  that  every  body  shunned  intercourse  with 
the  indigenous  troops.  The  costume  of  the  Partisans  consists  in 
a  short  black  coat,  black  trowsers,  gaiters,  and  a  red  sash  round 
the  waist.  They  wear  hats  with  broad  brims,  those  of  the  cap- 
tains being  about  four  times  as  large  as  those  worn  by  the  pri- 
v^ates.  The  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  body  taken  prisoners  at 
Angerville  was  a  private  gentleman  from.  Kantes.  Most  of  them 
had  the  words  Partisans  de  Gers  on  their  hats.  The  Depart- 
ment de  Gers  being  400  miles  south  of  Paris,  and  only  150  miles 
north  of  the  Pyrenees,  their  presence  in  the  Orleannois  would 
seem  to  prove  that  the  central  Departments  are  already  drained 
of  most  of  the  people  that  can  be  induced  to  join. 

"  Since  then  Orleans  has  been  taken  by  General  von  der 
Tann.  It  is  one  of  the  wealthiest  cities  in  France.  The  region 
florth  of  it,  the  so-called  Beauce,  is  certainly  the  most  fertile  dis- 
trict we  have  as  yet  entered.     It  provides  Paris  with  enormous 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  249 

quantities  of  excellent  wheat,  ground  by  the  steam  and  water 
mills  in  the  province.  It  also  abounds  in  oats  (which  will  be  a 
great  acquisition  for  our  cavalry),  and  produces  grapes  and  every 
variety  of  fruit  in  such  plenty  that,  in  addition  to  supplying 
Paris,  its  choice  articles  are  exported  to  foreign  countries.  The 
possession  of  the  Beauce  will  sensibly  diminish  the  number  of 
our  provision  trains  from  Germany. 

"  The  occupation  of  Orleans  is  also  important  from  a  strategi- 
cal point  of  view.  Situate  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Loire,  and 
being  the  point  of  junction  for  the  Central  Eailway  aud  the 
lines  from  Nantes,  Bordeaux,  and  Toulouse,  it  protects  our  army 
from  attack  from  the  south,  and  all  but  prevents  our  enemies  in 
the  l^orth  holding  communications  with  the  South.  By  blowing 
up  a  single  arch  of  the  two  magnificent  bridges  over  the  Lone, 
each  of  which  has  cost  2,000,000f.,  we  render  it  difficult  for  a 
Southern  enemy  to  penetrate  North,  the  next  two  bridges  at  Jar- 
geau  and  Beaugency  not  being  strong  enough  for  artillery  to  pass 
over.  Gien,  higher  up  the  river,  is  already  ours,  and  the  Sologne, 
which  is  the  name  of  the  country  lower  down,  beyond  Blois,  is 
so  barren  and  destitute  of  roads  that  it  serves  as  a  natural  safe- 
guard from  that  side.  Orleans  is  known  for  the  pacific  disposi- 
tion of  its  inhabitants,  and  has  large  barracks  and  other  buildings 
which  will  be  useful  should  the  campaign  be  prolonged." 

An  added  difficulty  which  the  French  Provisional  Govern- 
ment had  to  encounter,  was  found  in  the  diversity  of  opinion 
among  the  people,  and  the  want  of  cordiality  which  existed  tow- 
ard them  in  many  parts  of  France.  In  Marseilles  and  Lyons, 
the  Red  Pepublicans  were  largely  in  the  majority,  and  organized 
a  provisional  government  of  their  own,  whose  object  was  to  pro- 
claim the  doctrines  of  the  Revolution  of  1791.  "  Down  with  the 
aristocrats  !  "  was  their  cry ;  and  these  ruffians  were  disposed  to 
seize  the  reins  of  government,  and  rule  rSvolutionnairement.     A 


^5Q  THE  GREAT  WAE  OF  1870 

fear  of  the  German  troojps,  and  a  disposition  to  conciliate  them 
by  good  treatment  and  readj  surrender,  prevailed  very  widely 
amonp-  the  smaller  towns  and  villages  of  France,  and  it  was  not 
easy  to  raise  volunteers  for  the  army  in  any  section  to  which  they 
had  penetrated. 

The  tract,  sixty  or  seventy  miles  in  width,  and  extending 
from  the  Eliine  to  Paris,  over  which  the  conquering  armies  had 
passed,  was  thoroughly  stripped  of  food  for  man  and  beast,  and 
the  horrors  of  famine  were  felt  throughout  the  whole  district 
early  in  October. 

On  the  29th  of  October  Metz  was  surrendered  by  Marshal 
Bazaine,  although  it  was  said  there  was  provision  sufficient  for 
the  army  for  four  months  longer.  Yet,  as  a  capitulation  must 
come  sooner  or  later,  and  there  was  no  hope  of  the  raising  of  the 
siege,  it  was  perhaps  humane  and  wise  to  give  up  before  starva- 
tion came.  By  this  capitulation  an  army  and  garrison  of 
173,000  soldiers,  and  over  20,000  sick  and  wounded,  were  sur- 
rendered, the  details  being  as  follows  : 

"  67  infantry  regiments ;  13  battalions  of  Foot  Chasseurs ; 
18  fort  and  depot  battalions ;  36  cavalry  regiments,  namely  : 
10  of  Cuirassiers,  1  of  Guides,  11  of  Dragoons,  2  of  Lancers, 
3  of  Hussars,  6  of  Chasseurs,  and  3  of  Chasseurs  d'Afrique ; 
also,  6  depot  squadrons ;  115  field  batteries ;  17  batteries  of 
mitrailleuses ;  69  eagles  belonging  to  infantry,  2  of  which  were 
captured  at  Mars-la-Tour,  and  36  eagles  belonging  to  cavalry. 

"  Including  the  garrison  surrendered,  the  army  originally 
comprised  221  battalions  of  infantry  and  162  squadrons  of  horse. 
The  original  numerical  strength  was  210,000  infantry,  21,450 
cavalry,  690  guns,  and  102  mitrailleuses. 

"  Besides  the  foregoing,  there  were  three  marshals — Bazaine, 
Canrobert,  and  Leboeuf ;  three  corps  commanders — Frossard,  De 
Caen,  and  I'Admirault ;   40  division  generals ;   100  brigadier- 


■M  -'- 


BETWEEN  FEANCE  AND  GERMANY.  251 

generals ;  of  sound  prisoners,  90,000  sent  to  ]!:Tortli  Germany, 
and  60,000  sent  Soutli ;  the  sick  and  wounded  being  distributed 
in  the  same  proportion." 

Thirty-five  thousand  had  perished  in  the  siege  and  the  sorties 
made  by  the  besieged,  not  including  those  who  were  slain  in  the 
three  battles  of  August  14th,  16th,  and  18th. 

Tlie  intelligence  of  this  surrender  was  received  at  Tours  by 
the  Provisional  Government  with  great  rage  and  indignation. 
Marshal  Bazaine  was  denounced  as  a  traitor,  and  the  resolve  toi 
continue  the  resistance  unflinchingly  was  duly  promulgated  in 
the  following  proclamation : 

"  FiJENCH   EePUELIC. 

"  Liberty — Equality — Feateenity. 
"  Pkoclamatiok  to  the  Feench  People. 

"  Frenchmen  :  Raise  your  spirits  and  resolution  to  the  fear- 
ful height  of  the  perils  which  have  broken  upon  the  country. 
It  still  depends  on  us  to  mount  above  misfortune,  and  show  the 
world  how  great  a  people  may  be  who  are  resolved  not  to  perish, 
and  whose  courage  increases  in  the  midst  of  calamity. 

"  Metz  has  capitulated.  A  GeneP'al,  upon  whom  France 
counted,  even  after  Mexico,  has  just  taken  away  {vient  cV en- 
lever)  from  the  country,  in  its  danger,  more  than  a  hundred 
thousand  of  its  defenders.  Marshal  Bazaine  has  betrayed  us. 
He  has  made  himself  the  agent  of  the  Man  of  Sedan  and  the 
accomplice  of  the  invader ;  and,  regardless  of  the  honor  of  the 
army  of  which  he  had  charge,  he  has  surrendered,  without  even 
making  a  last  eifort,  a  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  fighting 
men,  twenty  thousand  wounded,  guns,  cannon,  colors,  and  the 
strongest  citadel  of  France — Metz-Yirgen ;  but  for  him,  to  the 
contamination  of  the  foreigner,  such  a  crime  is  above  even  the 
punishments  of  Justice ! 


252  THIi  GREAT  WAR  OF  1870 

"  Meanwhile,  Frenchmen,  measure  the  depths  of  the  abyss 
into  which  the  Empire  has  precipitated  you.  For  twenty  years 
France  submitted  to  this  corrupting  power,  which  extinguished 
in  her  the  springs  of  greatness  and  of  life.  The  army  of  France, 
stripped  of  its  national  character,  became,  without  knowing  it, 
an  instrument  of  tyranny  and  of  servitude,  and  is  swallowed  up, 
in  spite  of  the  heroism  of  the  soldiers,  by  the  treason  of  their 
chiefs. 

"  In  the  disasters  of  the  country  in  less  than  five  months, 
250,000  men  have  been  delivered  over  to  the  enemy — a  sinister 
sequel  to  the  military  coup  de  main  of  December. 

"  It  is  time  for  us  to  reassert  ourselves,  citizens  ;  and,  under 
the  aegis  of  the  Republic  which  we  have  determined  not  to  allow 
to  capitulate,  within  or  without,  to  seek,  in  the  extremity  even 
of  our  misfortune,  the  renovation  of  our  political  and  social 
morality  and  manhood. 

"  However  tried  by  disaster,  let  us  be  found  neither  panic- 
stricken  nor  hesitating.  Let  it  be  seen  that  we  are  ready  for  the 
last  sacrifices ;  and,  in  the  face  of  enemies  whom  every  thing 
favors,  let  us  swear  never  to  give  up  so  long  as  there  remains  an 
inch  of  sacred  soil  under  the  soles  of  our  feet.  Let  us  hold 
firmly  the  glorious  banner  of  the  French  Kevolution.  Our 
cause  is  that  of  Justice  and  of  Kight.  Europe  sees  it ;  Europe 
feels  it.  In  the  presence  of  so  many  unmerited  misfortunes, 
Europe,  of  her  own  accord,  receiving  from  us  neither  invitation 
nor  encouragement,  is  moved,  and  begins  to  act.  N^o  illusion  is 
now  left.  Let  us  no  longer  languish  or  grow  weak,  and  let  us 
prove  by  om'  acts  that  we  can  ourselves  maintain  honor,  inde- 
pendence, integrity — all  that  makes  a  country  proud  and  free. 

"  Long  live  the  Eepublic,  one  and  indivisible  ! 

"  Ckemieux, 
Glais-Bizoin, 
Gambetta." 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  253 

This  proclamation  has  the  merit  of  being  more  truthful  than 
most  of  its  predecessors ;  for,  although  it  does  not  come  up  to 
the  full  measure  of  the  misfortunes  of  France,  it  approaches 
more  nearly  to  it  than  any  previous  one.  At  thi^  very  time, 
330,000  French  soldiers,  wounded  and  unwounded,  were  prison- 
ers to  Germany.  Yery  nearly  150,000  more  had  perished  by 
sickness  or  death  on  the  battle-field ;  430,000  more  were  hope- 
lessly shut  up  in  Paris  ;  no  great  army  could  be  raised  to  attack 
the  YOOjOOO  or  800,000  German  soldiers  on  the  soil  of  France,  or 
raise  the  siege  of  the  capital ;  that  capital  as  yet  stood  out,  and 
its  bombardment  had  not  commenced,  but  there  were  already 
reports  of  tierce  discontent  and  of  food-riots  among  its  two  mil- 
lion people.  Within  four  or  five  weeks,  at  the  farthest,  grim 
famine  would  prove  more  eflectual  than  all  the  siege-trains  of 
the  German  armies  in  compelling  its  surrender ;  and  then — 
what  ?  "We  see  no  indications,  in  these  flaming  proclamations 
and  harangues,  that  these  orators  of  the  Eevolution  had  any 
feasible  plan  to  propose  for  remedying  these  terrible  disasters — 
no  way  of  escape  from  the  doom  that  impended,  except  that  of 
shutting  their  eyes  to  the  facts,  and  shouting,  "  Long  live  the 
Republic,  one  and  indivisible  !  " 

Here,  then,  for  the  present,  we  take  our  leave  of  France. 
It  needs  no  prophet's  eye  to  see,  no  Delphian  oracle  to  predict, 
the  fearful  suffering  with  which,  in  the  coming  months,  that  fair 
land  is  to  be  visited.  Her  great  cities  surrendered,  her  fields 
desolated,  her  beautiful  homes  laid  waste,  her  sons  and  daughters 
the  prey  of  those  twin  destroyers,  famine  and  fever ;  a  debt 
accumulating  against  her  which  must  cripple  her  energies  for 
centuries ;  without  leaders,  without  order,  without  law.  What 
a  fearful  penalty  is  the  nation  called  to  pay  for  its  tolerance,  for 
these  twenty  years  past,  of  the  selfish  and  unprincipled  usurper 
who  has  wasted  her  substance,  dwarfed  her  intellectual  progress, 
and  corrupted  her  morals  ! 


254;  THE  GEEAT  WAR  OF   18'70 

But  the  subject  is  too  painful  for  our  contemplation.  Let 
us  drop  the  veil  of  kindly  charity  alike  over  her  sins  and  sor- 
rows, giving  our  tears  and  sympathy  the  while  to  the  great, 
brave,  and  gallant  nation  which,  in  so  short  a  period,  has  fallen 
so  low. 

Note. — In  the  two  weeks  which  followed  this  proclamation  from  Tours,  the  situa- 
tion was  not  matei'ially  changed.  An  attempt  to  procure  an  armistice  of  twenty-five 
days  failed,  because  the  Eepublican  leaders  made  the  revictualling  of  Paris  a  sine  qud 
non,  to  which  Bismarck  would  not  consent.  Orleans  was  recaptured  by  the  French 
Army  of  the  Loire,  General  Yon  der  Tann's  force  being  less  than  half  theirs,  and  the 
losses  just  about  equal ;  but,  as  it  possessed  very  little  strategic  importance  for  the 
Germans,  and  was  sure  to  be  captured  again  by  them  when  von  der  Tann  was  re- 
enforced,  the  only  importance  attaching  to  the  recapture  was  its  inspiriting  influence 
upon  the  French.  The  Army  of  the  Loire  in  its  best  estate,  even  with  the  aid  of 
Trochu's  promised  sortie,  was  utterly  insufficient  to  raise  the  siege  of  Paris,  or  even  to 
break  permanently  the  German  lines. 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  255 


CHAPTEE  XI. 

WITH  a  brief  review  of  the  leading  incidents  of  this  great 
war,  we  take  our  leave  of  our  readers. 

When,  on  the  15th  of  July,  18Y0,  Louis  ISTapoleon  Bonaparte 
declared  war  with  Prussia,  the  numerous  vicissitudes  of  his 
eventful  life  may  have  suggested  to  him  the  possibility  that  the 
war,  if  long  protracted,  might  prove  unfavorable  to  his  hopes ; 
but  no  seer  could  have  predicted  to  him  that,  in  seven  weeks 
from  that  day,  he  would  be  defeated,  dethroned,  and  a  prisoner 
to  the  one  man  among  all  the  crowned  heads  of  Europe  whom 
he  most  hated  ;  and  that  all  the  hopes  and  dreams  in  which  he 
had  indulged  of  the  perpetuation  of  a  Bonaparte  dynasty  in 
France  would  be  utterly  dissipated. 

And  yet,  as  we  look  upon  the  matter  now,  it  seems  the  most 
natural  thing  in  the  world  that  just  this  thing  should  have  hap- 
pened. He  knew  that  he  was  unprepared  for  the  war  he  had 
most  wantonly  provoked  ;  but  he  did  not  know  that  the  frauds 
and  moral  corruption  of  which  he  had  been  guilty  had  perme- 
ated the  entire  body  politic ;  that  all  his  subordinates,  finding 
their  chief  defrauding  the  nation,  had  undertaken  the  same 
game  for  themselves. 

He  knew  that  Prussia  was  strong  in  her  armies,  her  finances, 
her  resources  ;  but  he  did  not  know  her  condition  of  preparation 
for  war,  her  complete  military  organization,  the  genius  of  her 
great  strategist,  nor  the  enthusiasm  which  would  be  awakened 
throughout  Germany  by  her  going  to  war  in  a  just  cause. 


256  THE  GREAT  WAR  OF   1870 

And,  after  tlie  declaration  of  war,  in  the  three  weeks  which 
followed  before  a  blow  was  struck,  amid  all  his  boastings  and 
declarations  of  the  necessity  by  which  he  was  driven  unwillingly 
into  war,  was  there  no  fear  of  a  retribution  for  his  numerous 
crimes  against  the  nation,  and  against  the  God  who  rules  over 
the  nations  ;  no  misgiving  that  the  time  was  approaching  when 
his  conduct  as  a  ruler  should  be  judged  impartially  by  the 
nations  whom  he  had  attempted  to  dupe  ?  Whether  this  was 
so  or  not,  there  was  a  marked  and  manifest  diJfference  between 
his  manner  and  proclamations  and  those  of  the  Prussian  King. 
The  one  was  boastful,  defiant,  and  appealed  to  the  passion  of 
his  nation  for  glory;  the  other,  quiet,  and  confident  of  the 
justice  of  his  cause,  looked  to  Heaven  for  aid  and  success. 

The  slight  afiair  at  Saarbruck  on  the  4th  of  August  possessed 
no  significance  or  importance  in  itself,  but  was  made  the  occa- 
sion of  a  vainglorious  despatch  by  the  Emperor,  and  the  an- 
nouncement of  the  weeping  of  his  veterans  over  the  tranquillity 
of  his  wonderful  boy.  The  more  serious  battles  of  Forbach  and 
Spicheren  Heights,  and  of  Weissenburg  on  the  6th  of  August, 
shov/ed  the  boastful  Emperor  that  victory  would  not  always 
perch  upon  his  banners ;  and  when  this  was  followed,  on  the  8th, 
by  the  decisive  battle  of  Woerth  and  the  precipitate  retreat  of 
MacMahon,  it  was  almost  pitiable  to  see  how  quickly  his  tone 
was  changed  from  vaunting  to  terror.  "  Frossard  has  lost  a 
battle,"  he  telegraphs.  "  MacMahon  has  been  defeated,  with 
lieavy  loss,  at  Woerth.  All  can  yet  be  reestablished."  Bad 
news  followed  fast  and  faster.  Strasbourg,  Pfalzburg,  and  Toul 
were  besieged.  MacMahon,  while  doing  his  best  to  collect 
reenforcements,  was  pursued  pitilessly  and  relentlessly  by  the 
Crown-Prince.  Bazaine's  army,  with  which  his  headquarters 
were,  and  which  had  thrown  out  its  advance  toward  Saarbruck 
and  Forbach,  was  compelled  to  fall  back  in  hot  haste  to  its  forti- 
fications at  Metz,  and,  pressed  by  the  greatly  superior  force  of 


BETWEEN  FRANCE   AND  GERMANY.  257 

the  German  King  and  his  trusty  Lieutenants  Yon  Steinmetz  and 
Prince  Friedrich  Karl,  found  itself  compelled  to  attempt  to  gain 
the  open  country  and  the  highways  leading  from  Metz  to  Paris, 
to  avoid  being  shut  up  in  the  fortifications  of  Metz. 

The  attempt  was  made  too  late.  The  battle  of  Com'celles, 
fought  on  Sunday,  August  14th,  detained  Bazaine  in  Metz  to 
save  the  city,  which  was  threatened  with  instant  capture  if  he 
left  it.  The  delay  of  the  15th  to  bury  the  dead  gave  time  to 
the  army  of  Prince  Friedrich  Karl  to  cross  the  Moselle  and  plant 
themselves  strongly  across  tlie  lower  road  to  Yerdun  and  Paris, 
at  Mars-la-Tour,  while  a  sufficient  number  of  Steiumetz's  vete- 
rans threatened  the  upper  or  Conflans  road,  to  make  a  passage 
by  that  difficult,  if  not  impossible. 

Bazaine  had  waited  too  long ;  but,  convinced  more  fully 
than  before  of  the  absolute  necessity  of  his  controlling  one  or 
both  these  roads,  he  made,  on  the  18th,  his  final  effort  to  obtain 
possession  of  the  lower,  and,  failing  in  that,  of  the  upj)er  road. 
But  he  had  by  this  time  more  than  260,000  troops  opposed  to 
him ;  and,  though  the  fighting  on  the  French  side  was  more 
gallant,  earnest,  and  obstinate  than  in  any  other  battle  of  the 
war,  and  they  returned  to  the  charge  again  and  again  with  an 
energy  and  resolution  worthy  a  better  cause,  yet,  at  9  p.  m.,  they 
were  thoroughly  beaten,  and  driven  into  the  fortifications  of  Metz, 
from  which'  most  of  them  only  emerged  as  prisoners. 

Thus  far  the  Germans  had  been  uniformly  successful,  rather 
from  their  ability  to  endure  "  hard  pounding,"  their  persistence 
and  determination,  than  from  any  remarkable  displays  of  skill 
031  the  part  of  their  leaders.  Their  losses  had  been  heavy — 
heavier,  somewhat,  probably,  than  those  of  the  French ;  but 
their  superior  size,  weight,  endurance,  and  intelligence  had  given 
them  the  advantage  even  over  the  vaunted  and  really  deadly 
mitrailleuse. 

From  this  time  forward  the  victories  of  the  Prussians  were 
17 


258  THE   GREAT   WAR  OF   18'70 

as  much  tlie  result  of  strategic  skill  as  of  hard  fighting.  Ba- 
zaine  being  shut  up,  or,  to  use  an  expressive  phrase  of  General 
Grant's,  "  bottled  up  "  in  Metz,  a  large  army  of  observation  was 
required  to  hold  him  in  check ;  for  this  purpose  the  Landwehr, 
or  reserves,  were  ordered  up,  and,  meanwhile,  the  greater  part 
of  the  First  Army  (Steinmetz)  was  put  in  marching  order  for 
Paris.  At  Chalons  it  formed  a  junction  with  the  Third  Army 
(that  of  the  Crown-Prince),  and  a  Fourth  Army,  made  up  from 
the  Saxon  troops,  the  Poyal  Guard,  and  a  corps  from  Prince 
Friedrich  Karl's  army,  joined  the  two. 

MacMahon,  who  had  been  marching  swiftly  on  Paris,  had,  on 
reaching  Chalons,  been  ordered  by  the  Emperor,  now  at  Pheims, 
to  turn  northward  and  make  a  detour  by  Pheims,  Pethel,  Sedan, 
and  Montmedy,  in  the  hope  of  relieving  Bazaine  and  raising  the 
siege  of  Metz. 

The  movement  was  a  stupendous  blunder,  and  the  great 
strategist  von  Moltke  saw  it,  and  at  once  improved  his  oppor- 
tuuitv.  ISTo  sooner  had  MacMahon  fairly  turned  northward, 
than  von  Moltke  commenced  pushing  his  troops  toward  the 
north  between  the  Aisne  and  the  Mouse,  through  a  difficult  coun- 
try, the  forest  of  Argonnes  and  the  Ardennes  mountains,  and, 
in  spite  of  the  difficulties  of  the  route,  was  soon  on  the  flank  of 
MacMahon's  advance-guard.  True  to  his  strategical  principles, 
he  struck  a  heavy  blow  just  as  they  were  attempting  to  cross  a 
river— the  Mouse ;  and,  meanwhile,  he  was  sending  over  the 
Fourth  Army,  under  the  Crown-Prince  of  Saxony,  at  a  higher 
point,  while  he  obstructed  the  passage  of  the  French.  The  next 
day,  the  eventful  1st  of  September,  the  battle  began  early. 
Pressed  in  rear  and  on  either  flank,  the  French  army  could  only 
(all  back  upon  the  fortified  town  of  Sedan.  MacMahon  was 
dangerously  wounded  early  in  the  day,  and  the  command  de- 
volved upon  General  de  Wimpfi'en,  though  ISTapoleon  III  was 
present  and  directed  in  part.     It  was  about  3  p.  m.  when  the 


BETWEEN  FRANCE  AND  GERMANY.  259 

jaded  and  beaten  French  corps  attempted  to  enter  Sedan.  All 
order  was  lost ;  it  was  more  a  mob  than  an  armj,  and  part  of 
the  town  was  already  in  possession  of  the  Germans,  who  had 
entered  with  the  French.  There  was  no  alternative  bnt  surren- 
der. German  troops  occupied  every  height,  and  were  in  such 
position  that,  while  they  could  soon  make  the  town  untenable, 
there  was  no  way  of  escape.  Under  these  circumstances,  the 
Emperor,  General  de  Wimpffen,  and  tlie  entire  army,  127,000 
strong,  includiug  sick  and  wounded,  were  surrendered.  This 
event  precipitated  the  revolution  already  imminent  in  Paris. 
The  overthrow  of  the  JN'apoleonic  dynasty  was  demanded  by  the 
people  and  accorded  by  the  authorities ;  the  Corps  Legislaiif 
perished  with  it ;  the  Empress  took  her  flight  to  England ;  the 
Tuileries  Vfas  taken  possession  of  by  the  people,  and  a  self- 
elected  Provisional  Government,  professedly  in  the  interests  of 
the  Pepublic,  but  composed  of  men  of  all  shades  of  opinion, 
took  control  of  the  national  affairs. 

The  newly-constituted  authorities  lacked  wisdom,  and,  in  the 
face  of  the  speedy  investment  and  siege  of  Paris,  toward  which 
the  German  armies  were  rapidly  marching,  they  uttered  procla- 
mations of  defiance  and  violent  reproach  toward  Prussia,  while 
making  the  most  frantic  efforts  to  induce  other  nations  to  inter- 
vene for  peace. 

Meanwhile,  Paris  was  invested ;  its  railroads  severed ;  its 
supplies  cut  off;  the  Government  removed  to  Tours  ;  Pfalzburg, 
Toul,  Strasbourg,  Orleans,  Epinal,  Gien,  and  Dijon  surrendered  ; 
and,  finally,  Metz  capitulated ;  the  efforts  to  form  new  armies  of 
any  considerable  efficiency  proved  abortive,  and  with  each  succes- 
sive surrender,  and  the  certainty  that  Paris  itself,  with  its 
innnense  garrison,  must  fall  in  a  few  weeks,  the  Provisional 
Government  howled  forth  its  impotent  rage  at  those  who  had 
yielded  to  overpowering  force,  and  reiterated  its  cries  of  "  Ko 
surrender  !     No  surrender  !     We  will  not  relinq^uish  one  foot  of 


2^0  THE   GREAT  WAR  OF   1870. 

soil,  or  one  stone  of  a  fortress."     "  "Whom  tlie  gods  would  de- 
stroy they  first  make  mad." 

And  tliiis  we  leave  tlie  great  tragedy  unfinished,  lamenting 
the  ruin  of  a  great  nation,  lamenting  that,  in  the  latter  half  of 
the  nineteenth  centur}^,  the  nations  should  make  war  on  each 
other  for  no  sufficient  cause,  hut  recognizing  in  these  events  the 
righteous  judgment  of  that  God  who  rules  over  nations,  and. 
punishes  oppressors  and  usurpers. 


PHILANTHROPY    OF   THE   WAR. 

IT  is  not  so  widely  known  as  ib  should  Le,  that,  at  the  close  of  our 
war,  and  before  the  short  war  of  1866  between  Prussia  and  Aus- 
tria, an  International  Sanitary  Commission  was  organized  in  Central 
Europe,  mainly  through  the  efforts  of  Rev.  Dr.  Bellows  and  some 
other  members  of  the  United  States  Sanitary  Commission,  M.  Aug. 
Laugel,  of  Paris,  and  some  prominent  and  philanthropic  citizens  of 
Switzerland  and  Prussia. 

This  organization  bore  good  fruit  in  the  v,^ar  of  1866,  and  secured 
from  France,  Prussia,  Austria,  Switzerland,  and  Italy,  a  pledge  that  the 
badge  and  flag  of  its  members — a  red  cross  on  a  white  ground — should 
be  protected  at  all  times  on  the  field. 

No  sooner  was  war  declared,  in  the  summer  of  1870,  than  the  Com- 
mission organized  its  branches  and  Ambulance  Corps  in  both  countries, 
and  made  large  preparation  for  the  fierce  battles  which  were  soon  to 
come.  In  France,  the  Empress  patronized  and  aided  the  Commission 
in  their  work  ;  but  the  most  efficient  assistance  they  received  was  from 
American  and  British  citizens,  who  organized  Ambulance  Corps,  and 
contributed  largely  to  the  fund  for  supplies.  Dr.  Evans,  who  had  ren- 
dered good  service  to  our  Sanitary  Commission  during  our  war,  was  at 
the  head  of  the  American  movement.  In  Germany,  the  Queen  and 
Princesses  were  all  active  in  the  promotion  of  this  good  work,  and  the 
King  and  Ci*own-Prince  aided  it  by  their  influence  and  authority. 
Queen  Augusta  took  charge  of  the  hosj)itals  at  Berlin  ;  the  Crown- 


262  APPENDIX. 

Princess  Victoria  of  those  at  Frankfort ;  Princess  Alice  of  Hesse  of 
those  at  Darmstadt ;  the  Grand  Duchess  Louise  of  Baden  of  those  at 
Carlsruhe ;  and  the  Crown-Princess  Caroline  of  Saxony  of  those  at 
Ilomburg, 

There  was  need  of  their  best  efforts  ;  for  within  three  months  there 
were,  of  the  soldiers  of  the  two  armies,  over  250,000  sick  and  wound- 
ed. The  Amhulance  Corps  brought  off  the  wounded  from  the  battle- 
fields and  attended  them  in  the  field-hospitals,  and  many  British  and 
American  ladies,  as  well  as  French  and  Germans,  assisted  in  these 
Avorks  of  charity ;  but  they  were  all  overworked.  In  the  vicinity  of 
Paris  many  persons  of  high  rank  and  great  wealth  gave  up  their  cha- 
teaus  and  castles  for  hospitals.  Notable  among  these  was  the  Count 
Henri  de  Chambord,  the  representative  of  the  elder  Bourbon  line,  and 
claimant  to  the  French  throne.  His  extensive  chateau,  amply  fur- 
nished, and  with  several  hundred  beds,  was  placed  at  the  service  of  the 
Government  for  the  French  soldiers. 

Large  contributions  were  made  to  the  sanitary  funds  of  both  coun- 
tries by  citizens  of  the  United  States.  It  was  estimated  that  nearly 
$1,500,000  vras  sent  from  this  country  to  Germany  for  the  care  of  the 
wounded,  and  about  $600,000  to  France.  In  consequence  of  the  sur- 
renders at  Sedan,  Strasbourg,  and  Metz,  large  numbers  of  the  sick  and 
wounded  French  fell  into  German  hands  •,  and  it  is  just  to  9aj,  that, 
with  possibly  a  very  few  individual  exceptions,  they  Avere  treated  with 
the  utmost  tenderness  and  care.  Very  few  of  the  German  wounded  fell 
into  French  hands,  and,  of  those  few,  some  complained  of  harsh  treat- 
ment and  cruelty  ;  but  it  is  fair  to  presume  that  this,  when  it  did  occur, 
was  generally  the  result  of  ignorance  or  penury  rather  than  of  malice 
or  a  cruel  disposition.  The  record  of  the  sanitary  labors  of  the  Inter- 
national Commission  and  its  branches,  in  1870,  is  a  glorious  one. 


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