Cautious
Daun has ordered him in, -- and not for
"Lacy's sake, as appears, but for his own: 'Hitherward, you
"alert Lacy; to cover my right flank here, my Hill of Reichen-
* Tempelhof, iv.
"Lacy's sake, as appears, but for his own: 'Hitherward, you
"alert Lacy; to cover my right flank here, my Hill of Reichen-
* Tempelhof, iv.
Thomas Carlyle
handle.
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? 4 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25ih April -- 15th June 1760.
once terrible Affair, through Campaigns Sixth and
Seventh, is like a race between spent horses, little to
be said of it in comparison. Campaign 1760 is the
last of any outward eminence or greatness of event.
Let us diligently follow that, and be compendious with
the remainder.
Friedrich was always famed for his Marches; but,
this Year, they exceeded all calculation and example;
and are still the admiration of military men. Can
there by no method be some distant notion afforded of
them to the general reader? They were the one re-
source Friedrich had left, against such overwhelming
superiority in numbers; and they came out like sur-
prises in a theatre, -- unpleasantly surprising to Daun.
Done with such dexterity, rapidity, and inexhaustible
contrivance and ingenuity, as overset the schemes of
his enemies again and again, and made his one army
equivalent in effect to their three.
Evening of April 25th, Friedrich rose from his
Freyberg cantonments; moved back, that is, north-
ward, a good march; then encamped himself between
Elbe and the Hill-Country; with freer prospect and
more elbow-room for work coming. His left is on
Meissen and the Elbe; his right, at a Village called
the Katzenhauser, an uncommonly strong camp, of
which one often hears afterwards; his centre camp is
at Schlettau, which also is strong, though not to such
a degree. This line extends from Meissen southward
about 10 miles, commanding the Reich-ward Passes of
the Metal Mountains, and is defensive of Leipzig,
Torgau and the Towns thereabouts. * Katzenhauser is
* Tempelhof, iv. 16 et seq.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 5
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
but a mile or two from Krogis -- that unfortunate
Village where Finck got his Maxen Order: ilEr weiss,
"-- You know I can't stand having difficulties raised;
"manage to do it! "
Friedrich's task, this Year, is to defend Saxony;
Prince Henri having undertaken the Russians, --
Prince Henri and Fouquet, the Russians and Silesia.
Clearly on very uphill terms, both of them: so that
Friedrich finds he will have a great many things to
assist in, besides defending Saxony. He lies here ex-
pectant till the middle of June, above seven weeks;
Daun also, for the last two weeks, having taken the
field in a sort. In a sort; but comes no nearer; merely
posting himself astride of the Elbe, half in Dresden,
half on the opposite or northern bank of the River,
with Lacy thrown out ahead in good force on that
vacant side; and so waiting the course of other people's
enterprises.
Well to eastward and rearward of Daun, where we
have seen Loudon about to be very busy, Prince Henri
and Fouquet have spun themselves out into a long
chain of posts, in length 300 miles or more, "from
"Landshut, along the Bober, along the Queiss and
"Oder, through the Neumark, abutting on Stettin and
"Colberg, to the Baltic Sea. "* On that side, in aid of
Loudon or otherwise, Daun can attempt nothing; still
less on the Katzenhauser-Schlettau side can he dream
of an attempt: only towards Brandenburg and Berlin,
-- the Country on that side, 50 or 60 miles of it, to
eastward of Meissen, being vacant of troops, -- is
Daun's road open, were he enterprising, as Friedrich
* Tempelhof, iv. 21-24.
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? 6 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
hopes he is not. For some two weeks, Friedrich, --
not ready otherwise, it being difficult to cross the
River, if Lacy with his 30,000 should think of inter-
ference, -- had to leave the cunctatory Feldmarschall
this chance or unlikely possibility. At the end of the
second week ("June 14th," as we shall mark by and
by), the chance was withdrawn.
Daun and his Lacy are but one, and that by no
means the most harassing, of the many cares and
anxieties which Friedrich has upon him in those Seven
Weeks, while waiting at Schlettau, reading the omens.
Never hitherto was the augury of any Campaign more
indecipherable to him, or so continually fluctuating with
wild hopes, which proved visionary, and with huge
practical fears, of what he knew to be the real likeli-
hood. "Peace coming? " It is strange how long
Friedrich clings to that fond hope: "My Edelsheim is
in the Bastille, or packed home in disgrace: but will
not the English and Choiseul make Peace? It is
Choiseul's one rational course; bankrupt as he is, and
reduced to spoons and kettles. In which case, what a
beautiful effect might Duke Ferdinand produce, if he
marched to Eger, say to Eger, with his 50,000 Ger-
mans (Britannic Majesty and Pitt so gracious), and
twitched Daun by the skirt, whirling Daun home to
Bohemia in a hurry! " Then the Turks; the Danes,
-- "Might not the Danes send us a trifle of Fleet to
Colberg (since the English never will), and keep our
Russians at bay? " -- "At lowest these hopes are
consolatory," says he once, suspecting them all (as, no
doubt, he often enough does), "and give us courage to
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? CHAP. 1. 1 FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 7
25th April -- 15th Juno 1760.
look calmly for the opening of this Campaign, the very
idea of which has made me shudder! "*
Meanwhile, hy the end of May, the Russians are
come across the Weichsel again, lie in four camps on
the hither side; start about June 1st; -- Henri waiting
for them, in Sagan Country his headquarter; and on
both hands of that, Fouquet and he spread out, since
the middle of May, in their long thin Chain of Posts,
from Landshut to Colberg again, like a thin wall of
300 miles. To Friedrich the Russian movements are,
and have been, full of enigma: "Going upon Colberg?
Going upon Glogau; upon Breslau? " That is a heavy-
footed certainty, audibly tramping forward on us, amid
these fond visions of the air! Certain too, and visible
to a duller eye than Friedrich's; Loudon in Silesia is
meditating mischief. "The inevitable Russians, the in-
evitable Loudon; and nothing but Fouquet and Henri
on guard there, with their long thin chain of posts, in-
finitely too thin to do any execution! " thinks the King.
To whom their modes of operating are but little satis-
factory, as seen at Schlettau from the distance. "Con-
dense yourself," urges he always on Henri; "go for-
ward on the Russians; attack sharply this Corps, that
Corps, while they are still separate and on march! "
Henri did condense himself, "took post between Sagan
and Sprottau; post at Frankfurt," -- poor Frankfurt, is
it to have a Kunersdorf or Zorndorf every year, then?
No; the cautious Henri never could see his way into
these adventures; and did not attack any Corps of the
Russians. Took post at Landsberg ultimately, -- the
Russians, as usual, having Posen as place-of-arms, --
* "To Prince Henri:" in Schommj, n. 246 (3d April 1760); ib. 263 (of
the Danish outlook); &c. &c.
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? 8 FRJEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
and vigilantly watched the Russians, without coming
to strokes at all. A spectacle growing gradually in-
tolerable to the King, though he tries to veil his
feelings.
Neither was Fouquet's plan of procedure well seen
by Friedrich in the distance. Ever since that of Re-
giment Manteuffel, which was a bit of disappointment,
Loudon has been quietly industrious on a bigger scale.
Privately he cherishes the hope, being a swift vehement
enterprising kind of man, to oust Fouquet; and per-
haps to have Glatz Fortress taken, before his Russians
come! In the very end of May, Loudon, privately
aiming for Glatz, breaks in upon Silesia again, -- a
long way to eastward of Fouquet, and as if regardless
of Glatz. Upon which, Fouquet, in dread for Schweid-
nitz and perhaps Breslau itself, hastened down into
the Plain Country, to manoeuvre upon Loudon; but
found no Loudon moving that way; and, in a day or
two, learned that Landshut, so weakly guarded, had
been picked up by a big corps of Austrians; and in
another day or two, that Loudon (June 7th) had blocked
Glatz, -- Loudon's real intention now clear to Fouquet.
As it was to Friedrich from the first; whose anger and
astonishment at this loss of Landshut were great, when
he heard of it in his Camp of Schlettau. "Back to
Landshut," orders he (11th June, three days before
leaving Schlettau); "neither Schweidnitz nor Breslau
are in danger: it is Glatz the Austrians mean" (as
Fouquet and all the world now see they do! ); "watch
Glatz; retake me Landshut instantly! "
The tone of Friedrich, which is usually all friend-
liness to Fouquet, had on this occasion something in it
which offended the punctual, and rather peremptory
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 9
15th-18th Juno 17C0.
Spartan mind. Fouquet would not have neglected
Glatz; pity he had not been left to his own methods
with Landshut and it. Deeply hurt, he read this
Order (16th June); and vowing to obey it, and no-
thing but it, used these words, which were remembered
afterwards, to his assembled Generals: "Meine Ilerren,
"it appears, then, we must take Landshut again. Lou-
"don, as the next thing, will come on us then with his
"mass of force; and we must then, like Prussians, hold
"out as long as possible, think of no surrender on
"open field, but if even beaten, defend ourselves to
"the last man. In case of a retreat, I will be one of
"the last that leaves the field: and should I have the
"misfortune to survive such a day, I give you my
"word of honour never to draw a Prussian sword
"more. "* This speech of Fouquet's (June 16th) was
two days after Friedrich got on march from Schlettau.
June 17th, Fouquet got to Landshut; drove out the
Austrians more easily than he had calculated, and set
diligently, next day, to repair his works, writing to
Friedrich: "Your Majesty's Order shall be executed
here, while a man of us lives. " Fouquet, in the old
Crown-Prince time, used to be called Bayard by his
Royal friend. His Royal friend, now darker of face
and scathed by much ill-weather, has just quitted
Schlettau, three days before this recovery of Landshut;
and will not have gone far till he again hear news of
Fouquet.
Night of June 14th-15th, Friedrich, "between
Zehren and Zabel," several miles down stream, -- his
bridges now all ready, out of Lacy's cognisance, --
* Stenzel, v. 239.
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? 10 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
15lh-18th June 1760.
has suddenly crossed Elbe; and next afternoon pitches
camp at Broschwitz, which is straight towards Lacy
again. To Lacy's astonishment; who is posted at Mo-
ritzburg, with headquarter in that beautiful Country-
seat of Polish Majesty, -- only 10 miles to eastward,
should Friedrich take that road. Broschwitz is short
way north of Meissen, and lies on the road either to
Grossenhayn or to Radeburg (Radeburg only four
miles northward of Lacy), as Friedrich shall see fit, on
the morrow. For the Meissen north road forks off
there, in those two directions: straight northward is for
Grossenhayn, right hand is for Radeburg. Most in-
teresting to Lacy, which of these forks, what is quite
optional, Friedrich will take! Lacy is an alert man;
looks well to himself; warns Daun; and will not be
caught if he can help it. Daun himself is encamped
at Reichenberg, within two miles of him, inexpugnably
entrenched as usual; and the danger surely is not
great: nevertheless both these Generals, wise by ex-
perience, keep their eyes open.
The First great Feat of Marching now follows, on
Friedrich's part; with little or no result to Friedrich;
but worth remembering, so strenuous, so fruitless was
it, -- so barred by ill-news from without! Both this
and the Second stand recorded for us, in brief intelli
gent terms by Mitchell, who was present in both; and
who is perfectly exact on every point, and intelligible
throughout, -- if you will read him with a Map; and
divine for yourself what the real names are, out of the
inhuman blotchings made of them, not by Mitchell's
blame at all. *
Tuesday, June 17th, second day of Friedrich's stay
* Mitchell, Memoirs and Papers, n. ICO et seq.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 11
15th-18th June 1760.
at Broschwitz, Mitchell, in a very confidential Dialogue
they had together, learned from him, under seal of
secrecy, That it was his purpose to march for Radeburg
tomorrow morning, and attack Lacy and his 30,000,
who lie encamped at Moritzburg out yonder; for which
step his Majesty was pleased further to show Mitchell
a little, what the various inducements were: "One
"Russian Corps is aiming as if for Berlin; theAustrians
"are about besieging Glatz, -- pressing need that
"Fouquet were reinforced in his Silesian post of dif-
"ficulty. Then here are the Reichs-people close by;
"can be in Dresden three days hence, joined to Daun:
"80,000 odd there will then be of Enemies in this
"part: I must beat Lacy, if possible, while time still
"is! " -- and ended by saying: "Succeed here, and
"all may yet be saved; be beaten here, I know the
"consequences: but what can I do? The risk must
"be run; and it is now smaller than it will ever again
be. "
Mitchell, whose account is a fortnight later than
the Dialogue itself, does confess, "My Lord, these
"reasons, though unhappily the thing seems to have
"failed, 'appear to me to be solid and unanswerable. '" Much more do they to Tempelhof, who sees deeper
into the bottom of them than Mitchell did; and finds
that the failure is only superficial. * The real success,
thinks Tempelhof, would be, Could the King manoeuvre
himself into Silesia, and entice a cunctatory Daun
away with him thither. A cunctatory Daun to preside
over matters there, in his superstitiously cautious way;
leaving Saxony free to the Reichsfolk, -- whom a
Hiilsen, left with his small remnant in Schlettau, might
* Mitchell, II. 160 (Despatch, "June 30th, 1760"); Tempelhof, iv. 44.
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? 12 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
lSth-lUth June 1760.
easily take charge of, till Silesia were settled? "The
"plan was bold, was new, and completely worthy of
"Friedrich," votes Tempelhof; "and it required the
"most consummate delicacy of execution. To lure
"Daun on, always with the prospect opened to him of
"knocking you on the head, and always by your ra-
"pidity and ingenuity to take care that he never got
"it done. " This is Tempelhof's notion: and this, sure
enough, was actually Friedrich's mode of management
in the weeks following; though whether already alto-
gether planned in his head, or only gradually planning
itself, as is more likely, nobody can say. We will
look a very little into the execution, concerning which
there is no dubiety:
Wednesday, 18th June, "Friedrich," as predicted to
Mitchell, the night before, "did start punctually, in three
"columns, at 3A. m. " (Sun just rising); "and, after a hot march,
"got encamped on the southward side ofRadeburg: ready to
"cross the Rodern Stream there, tomorrow, as if intending
"for the Lausitz" (should that prove needful for alluring
Lacy), -- "and in the mean while, very inquisitive where
"Lacy might be. One of Lacy's outposts, those Saxon light
"horse, was fallen in with; was chased home, and Lacy's
"camp discovered, that night. At Bernsdorf, not three
"miles to southward or right of us; Daun only another three
"to south of him. Let us attack Lacy tomorrow morning;
"wind round to get between Daun and him,* -- with fit ar-
"rangements; rapid as light! In the King's Tent, accordingly,
"his Generals are assembled to take their Orders; brief,
"distinct, and to be done with brevity. And all are on the
"move for Bernsdorf at 4 next morning; when, behold,--
Thursday 19th, "At Bernsdorf, there is no Lacy to be
"found.
Cautious Daun has ordered him in, -- and not for
"Lacy's sake, as appears, but for his own: 'Hitherward, you
"alert Lacy; to cover my right flank here, my Hill of Reichen-
* Tempelhof, iv. 17-19.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 13
25 th June 1760.
"berg, -- lest it be not impregnable enough against that
"feline enemy! ' And there they have taken post, say 60,000
"against 30,000; and are palisading to a quite extraordinary
"degree. No fight possible with Lacy or Daun. "
This is what Mitchell counts the failure of Friedrich's
enterprise: and certainly it grieved Friedrich a good deal.
Who, on riding out to reconnoitre Reichenberg (Quintus
lcilius and Battalion Quintus part of his escort, ifthatbean
interesting circumstance), finds Reichenberg a plainly un-
attackable post; finds, by Daun's rate of palisading, that
there will be no attack from Daun either. No attack from
Daun; -- and, therefore, that Hiilsen's people may be sent
home to Schlettau again; and that he, Friedrich, will take
post close by, and wearisomely be content to wait for some
new opportunity.
Which he does for a week to come; Daun sitting impreg-
nable, entrenched and palisaded to the teeth, -- rather wishing
to be attacked, you would say; or hopeful sometimes of doing
something of the Hochkirch sort again (for the country is
woody, and the enemy audacious); -- at all events, very clear
not to attack. A man erring, sometimes to a notable degree,
by overcaution. "Could hardly have failed to overwhelm
"Friedrich's small force, had he at once, on Friedrich's
'' crossing the Elbe, joined Lacy, and gone out against him,"
thinks Tempelhof, pointing out the form of operation too. *
Caution is excellent; but not quite by itself. Would caution
alone do it, an Army all of Druidic whinstones, or innocent
clay-sacks, incapable of taking hurt, would be the proper
one! -- Daun stood there; Friedrich looking daily into him,
-- visibly in ill-humour, says Mitchell; and no wonder; floomy and surly words coming out of him, to the distress of
is Generals: "which I took the liberty of hinting, one even-
ing, to his Majesty;" hint graciously received, and of effect
perceptible, at least to my imagining.
Wednesday, June 25th, After nearly a week of this, there
rose, towards sunset, all over the Reichenberg, and far and
wide, an exuberant joy-firing: "For what in the world? "
thinks Friedrich. Alas, your Majesty, -- since your own
messenger has not arrived, nor indeed ever will, being picked
up by Pandours, -- here, gathered from the Austrian out-
* Tempelhof, iv. 42, 48.
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? 14 FEIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
posts or deserters, are news for you, fatal enough! Landshut
is done; Fouquet and his valiant 13,000 are trodden out there.
Indignant Fouquet has obeyed you, not wisely but too well.
He has kept Landshut six nights and five days. On the morn-
ing of the 6th day, here is what befel:
"Landshut, Monday 23d June, About a quarter to 2 in the
"morning, Loudon, who had gathered 31,000horse and foot
"for the Dusiness, and taken his measures, fired aloft, by
"way of signal, four howitzers into the gray of the summer
"morning; and burst loose upon Fouquet, in various columns,
"on his southward front, on both flanks, ultimately in his
"rear too: columns all in the height of fighting humour, con-
"fident as three to one, -- and having brandy in them, it is
"likewise said. Fouquet and his people stood to arms, in the
"temper Fouquet had vowed they would: defended their
"Hills with an energy, with a steady skill, which Loudon
"himself admired; but their Hillworks would have needed
"thrice the number; -- Fouquet, by detaching and otherwise,
"has in arms only 10,680 men. Toughly as they strove, after
"partial successes, they began to lose one Hill, and then an-
"other; and in the course of hours, nearly all their Hills.
"Landshut Town Loudon had taken from them, Landshut
"and its roads: in the end, the Prussian position is becoming
"permeable, plainly untenable; -- Austrian force is moving
"to their rearward to block the retreat.
"Seeing which latter fact, Fouquet throws out all his Ca-
"valry, a poor 1,500, to secure the Passes of the Bober; him-
"self forms square with the wrecks of his Infantry; and, at a
"steady step, cuts way for himself with bayonet and bullet.
"With singular success for some time, in spite of the odds.
"And is clear across the Bober; when lo, among the knolls
"ahead, masses of Austrian Cavalry are seen waiting him,
"besetting every passage! Even these do not break him; but
"these, with infantry and cannon coming up to help them, do.
"Here,for some time, was the fiercest tug of all,--till a bullet
"having killed Fouquet's horse, and carried the General
"himself to the ground, the spasm ended. The Lichnowski
"Dragoons, a famed Austrian regiment, who had charged and
"again charged with nothing but repulse on repulse, now
"broke in, all in a foam of rage; cut furiously upon Fouquet
"himself; wounded Fouquet thrice; would have killed him,
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 15
25th June -- 2dJuly 1760.
"had it not been for the heroism of poor Trautschke, his
"Groom" (let us name the gallant fellow, even if un-
pronounceable), "who flung himself on the body of his Master,
"and took the bloody strokes instead of him; shrieking his
"loudest, 'Will you murder the Commanding General, then! '
"Which brought up the Colonel of Lichnowski; a Gentleman
"and Ritter, abhorrent of such practices. To him Fouquet
"gave his sword; -- kept his vow never to draw it again.
"The wrecks of Fouquet's Infantry were, many of them,
"massacred, no quarter given; such the unchivalrous fury
"that had risen. His Cavalry, with the loss of about 500, cut
"their way through. They and some stragglers of Foot, in
"whole about 1,500 of both kinds, were what remained of
"those 10,680 after this bloody morning's work. There had
"been about six hours of it; 'all over by 8 o'clock. ' "*
Fouquet has obeyed to the letter: "Did not my King
wrong me? " Fouquet may say to himself. Truly, Hen-
General, your King's Order was a little unwise; as you (who
were on the ground, and your King not) knew it to be. An
unwise Order -- perhaps not inexcusable in the sudden cir-
cumstances. And perhaps a still more perfect Bayard would
have preferred obeying such a King in spirit, rather than in
letter, and thereby doing him vital service against his tem-
porary will? It is not doubted but Fouquet, left to himself
and his 13,000, with the Fortresses and Garrisons about him,
would have maintained himself in Silesia till help came. The
issue is,--Fouquet has probably lost this fineKing hisSilesia,
for the time being; and beyond any question, has lost him
10,000 Prussian-Spartan fighters, and a fine General whom he
could ill spare! In a word, the Gate of Silesia is burst
open; and Loudon has every prospect of taking Glatz, which
will keep it so.
What a thunderbolt for Friedrich! One of the last
pillars struck away from his tottering affairs. "In-
* Hofbericht ron der am 23 Junius 1760 bey Landshuth vorgefullencn
Action (in Seyfarth, Beylagen, n. 669-671); llelden-Geschichte, vi. 258-284;
Tempelhof, iv. 26-41; Stenzel, v. 241 (who, by oversight, -- this Volume
being posthumous to poor Stenzel, -- protracts the action to "half-past 7
in the evening").
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? 16 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
evitable, then? We are over with it, then? " One
may fancy Friedrich's reflexions. But he showed
nothing of them to anybody; in a few hours, and his
mind composed, and new plans on the anvil. On the
morrow of that Austrian Joy-Firing, -- morrow, or
some day close on it (ought to have been dated, but is
not), -- there went from him, to Magdeburg, the Order;
"Have me such and such quantities of Siege-Artillery
in a state of readiness. "* Already meaning, it is
thought, or contemplating as possible a certain Siege,
which surprised everybody before long! A most in-
ventive, enterprising being; no end to his contrivances
and unexpected outbreaks; especially when you have
him jammed into a corner, and fancy it is all over with
him!
"To no other General," says Tempelhof, "would
"such a notion of besieging Dresden have occurred; or
"if it had suggested itself, the hideous difficulties would
"at once have banished it again; or left it only as a
"pious wish. But it is strokes of this kind that charac
"terise the great man. Often enough they have suc-
ceeded, been decisive of great campaigns and wars,
"and become splendid in the eyes of all mankind; some-
"times, as in this case, they have only deserved to
"succeed, and to be splendid in the eyes of judges.
"How get these masses of enemies lured away, so that
"you could try such a thing? There lay the difficulty;
"insuperable altogether, except by the most fine and
"appropriate treatment. Of a truth, it required a con-
nected series of the wisest measures, and most secret
"artifices of war; -- and, withal, that you should throw
"over them such a veil as would lead your enemy to
* Tempelhof, iv. 51.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OrENS. 17
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
"see in them precisely the reverse of what they meant.
"How all this was to be set in action, and how the
"Enemy's own plans, intentions, and moods of mind
"were to be used as raw material for attainment of
"your object, -- studious readers will best see in the
"manoeuvres of the King in his now more than critical
"condition; which do certainly exhibit the completest
"masterpiece in the Art of leading Armies that Europe
"has ever seen. "
Tempelhof is well enough aware, as readers should
continue to be, that, primarily, and onward for three
weeks more, not Dresden, but the getting to Silesia
on good terms, is Friedrich's main enterprise: Dresden
only a supplement or substitute, a second string to his
bow, till the first fail. But, in effect, the two enter-
prises or strings coincide, or are one, till the first of
them fail; and Tempelhof s eulogy will apply to either.
The initiatory step to either is a Second Feat of March-
ing; -- still notabler than the former, which has had
this poor issue. Soldiers of the studious or scientific
sort, if there are yet any such among us, will naturally
go to Tempelhof, and fearlessly encounter, the rug-
gedest Documents and Books, if Tempelhof leave them
dubious on any point (which he hardly will): to in-
genuous readers of other sorts, who will take a little
pains for understanding the thing, perhaps the following
intermittent far-off glimpses may suffice*
On ascertaining the Landshut disaster, Friedrich falls
back a little; northward to Gross-Dobritz: "Possibly Daun
will think us cowed by what has happened; and may try
* Mitchell, n. 162 et seq. ; and Tempelhof (iv. 50-53 et seq. ), as a scien
tific check on Mitchell, or unconscious fellow-witness with him, -- agree-
ing beautifully almost always.
Carlyle, Frederick the Great. XII. 2
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? 18 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX. /
2d July 1760.
something on us? " Daun is by no means sure of this cowed
phenomenon, or of the retreat it has made; and tries nothing
on it; only rides up daily to it, to ascertain that it is there;
and diligently sends out parties to watch the North-eastward
parts, where run the Silesian Roads. After about a week of
this, and some disappointments, Friedrich decides to march
in earnest. There had, one day, come report of Lacy's being
detached, Lacy with a strong Division, to block the Silesian
roads; but that, on trial, proved to be false. "Pshaw,
nothing for us but to go ourselves! " concludes Friedrich, --
and, July 1st, sends off his Bakery and Heavy Baggage: in-
dicating to Mitchell, "Tomorrow morning at 3! " -- Here is
Mitchell's own account; accurate in every particular, as we
find:*
Wednesday, July 2d. "From Gross-Dobritz to Quosdorf"
-- (to Quosdorf, a poor Hamlet there, not QuoZsdorf, as many
write, which is a Town far enough from there) -- "the Army
"marched, accordingly. In two columns; baggage, bakery
"and artillery in a third; through a Country extremely
"covered with wood. Were attacked by some Uhlans and
"Hussars; whom a few cannon-shot sent to the road again.
"March lasted from 3 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon;"
twelve long hours. "Went north-eastward a space of 20miles,
"leaving Radeburg, much more leavingReichenberg, Moritz-
"burg and the Daun quarters well to the right, and at last
"quite to rearward; crossed the Roder, crossed the Pulsnitz,"
small tributaries or sub-tributaries of the Elbe in those parts;
"crossed the latter (which divides Meissen from the Lausitz)
"partly by the Bridge of Krakau, first Village in the Lausitz.
"Headquarter was the poor Hamlet of Quosdorf, a mile
"farther on. 'This march had been carefully kept secret,'
"says Mitchell; "and it was the opinion of the most ex-
"'perienced Officers, that, had the Enemy discovered the
"'King of Prussia's design, they might, by placing their light
"'troops in the roads with proper supports, have rendered it
"' extremely difficult, if not impracticable. '"
Daun very early got to know of Friedrich's departure, and
whitherward; which was extremely interesting to Daun:
"Aims to be in Silesia before me; will cut out Loudon from
his fine prospects on Grlatz? " -- and had instantly reinforced,
* Mitchell, n. 164; TempelhofLiv. 54.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 19
2cl-8th July 1760.
perhaps to 20,000 Lacy's Division; and ordered Lacy, who is
the nearest to Friedrich's March, to start instantly on the
skirts of said March, and endeavour diligently to trample on
the same. For the purpose of harassing said March, Lacy
is to do whatever he with safety can (which we see is not
much: "afew Uhlans and Hussars"); at lowest, is to keep it
constantly in sight; and always encamp as near it as he
dare;* -- Daun himself girding up his loins; and preparing,
by a short cut, to get ahead of it in a day or two. Lacy was
alert enough, but could not do much with safety: a few
Uhlans and Hussars, that was all; and he is now encamped
somewhere to rearward, as near as he dare.
Thursday, 3d July. "A rest-day; Army resting about
"Krakau, after such a spell through the woody moors. The
"King, with small escort, rides out reconnoitering, hither,
"thither, on the southern side or Lacy quarter: to the top of
"the Keulenberg (Bludgeon Hill), at last, -- which is ten or a
"dozen miles from Krakau and Quosdorf, but commands an
"extensive view. Towns, village-belfries, courses of streams;
"a country of mossy woods and wild agricultures, of bogs, of
"shaggy moor. Southward 10 miles is Radeberg" (not Rade- burg, observe); "yonder is the town of Pulsnitz on our stream
"of Pulsnitz; to south-east, and twice as far, is Bischofs-
"werda, chasmy Stolpen (too well known to us before this):
"behind us, Konigsbriick, Kamenz and the road from
"Grrossenhayn to Bautzen: these and many other places
"memorable to this King are discoverable from Bludgeon
"Hill. But the discovery of discoveries to him isLacy's Camp,
"-- not very far off, about a mile behind Pulsnitz; clearly
"visible, atLichtenberg yonder. Which we at once determine
"to attack; which, and the roads to which, are the one object
"of interest just now, -- nothing else visible, as it were, on the
"top of the Keulenberg here, or as we ride homeward, medi-
cating it with a practical view. 'March at midnight,' that
"is the practical result arrived at, on reaching home. '
Friday, July 4th. "Since the stroke of midnight we are all
"on march again; nothing but the baggages and bakeries
"left" (withQuintus to watch them, which I see is his common
function in these marches); "King himself in the Vanguard,
"-- who hopes to give Lacy a salutation. ** 'The march was
* Tempelhof, iv. 54. ** lb. rr. 56.
2*
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? 4 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25ih April -- 15th June 1760.
once terrible Affair, through Campaigns Sixth and
Seventh, is like a race between spent horses, little to
be said of it in comparison. Campaign 1760 is the
last of any outward eminence or greatness of event.
Let us diligently follow that, and be compendious with
the remainder.
Friedrich was always famed for his Marches; but,
this Year, they exceeded all calculation and example;
and are still the admiration of military men. Can
there by no method be some distant notion afforded of
them to the general reader? They were the one re-
source Friedrich had left, against such overwhelming
superiority in numbers; and they came out like sur-
prises in a theatre, -- unpleasantly surprising to Daun.
Done with such dexterity, rapidity, and inexhaustible
contrivance and ingenuity, as overset the schemes of
his enemies again and again, and made his one army
equivalent in effect to their three.
Evening of April 25th, Friedrich rose from his
Freyberg cantonments; moved back, that is, north-
ward, a good march; then encamped himself between
Elbe and the Hill-Country; with freer prospect and
more elbow-room for work coming. His left is on
Meissen and the Elbe; his right, at a Village called
the Katzenhauser, an uncommonly strong camp, of
which one often hears afterwards; his centre camp is
at Schlettau, which also is strong, though not to such
a degree. This line extends from Meissen southward
about 10 miles, commanding the Reich-ward Passes of
the Metal Mountains, and is defensive of Leipzig,
Torgau and the Towns thereabouts. * Katzenhauser is
* Tempelhof, iv. 16 et seq.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 5
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
but a mile or two from Krogis -- that unfortunate
Village where Finck got his Maxen Order: ilEr weiss,
"-- You know I can't stand having difficulties raised;
"manage to do it! "
Friedrich's task, this Year, is to defend Saxony;
Prince Henri having undertaken the Russians, --
Prince Henri and Fouquet, the Russians and Silesia.
Clearly on very uphill terms, both of them: so that
Friedrich finds he will have a great many things to
assist in, besides defending Saxony. He lies here ex-
pectant till the middle of June, above seven weeks;
Daun also, for the last two weeks, having taken the
field in a sort. In a sort; but comes no nearer; merely
posting himself astride of the Elbe, half in Dresden,
half on the opposite or northern bank of the River,
with Lacy thrown out ahead in good force on that
vacant side; and so waiting the course of other people's
enterprises.
Well to eastward and rearward of Daun, where we
have seen Loudon about to be very busy, Prince Henri
and Fouquet have spun themselves out into a long
chain of posts, in length 300 miles or more, "from
"Landshut, along the Bober, along the Queiss and
"Oder, through the Neumark, abutting on Stettin and
"Colberg, to the Baltic Sea. "* On that side, in aid of
Loudon or otherwise, Daun can attempt nothing; still
less on the Katzenhauser-Schlettau side can he dream
of an attempt: only towards Brandenburg and Berlin,
-- the Country on that side, 50 or 60 miles of it, to
eastward of Meissen, being vacant of troops, -- is
Daun's road open, were he enterprising, as Friedrich
* Tempelhof, iv. 21-24.
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? 6 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
hopes he is not. For some two weeks, Friedrich, --
not ready otherwise, it being difficult to cross the
River, if Lacy with his 30,000 should think of inter-
ference, -- had to leave the cunctatory Feldmarschall
this chance or unlikely possibility. At the end of the
second week ("June 14th," as we shall mark by and
by), the chance was withdrawn.
Daun and his Lacy are but one, and that by no
means the most harassing, of the many cares and
anxieties which Friedrich has upon him in those Seven
Weeks, while waiting at Schlettau, reading the omens.
Never hitherto was the augury of any Campaign more
indecipherable to him, or so continually fluctuating with
wild hopes, which proved visionary, and with huge
practical fears, of what he knew to be the real likeli-
hood. "Peace coming? " It is strange how long
Friedrich clings to that fond hope: "My Edelsheim is
in the Bastille, or packed home in disgrace: but will
not the English and Choiseul make Peace? It is
Choiseul's one rational course; bankrupt as he is, and
reduced to spoons and kettles. In which case, what a
beautiful effect might Duke Ferdinand produce, if he
marched to Eger, say to Eger, with his 50,000 Ger-
mans (Britannic Majesty and Pitt so gracious), and
twitched Daun by the skirt, whirling Daun home to
Bohemia in a hurry! " Then the Turks; the Danes,
-- "Might not the Danes send us a trifle of Fleet to
Colberg (since the English never will), and keep our
Russians at bay? " -- "At lowest these hopes are
consolatory," says he once, suspecting them all (as, no
doubt, he often enough does), "and give us courage to
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? CHAP. 1. 1 FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 7
25th April -- 15th Juno 1760.
look calmly for the opening of this Campaign, the very
idea of which has made me shudder! "*
Meanwhile, hy the end of May, the Russians are
come across the Weichsel again, lie in four camps on
the hither side; start about June 1st; -- Henri waiting
for them, in Sagan Country his headquarter; and on
both hands of that, Fouquet and he spread out, since
the middle of May, in their long thin Chain of Posts,
from Landshut to Colberg again, like a thin wall of
300 miles. To Friedrich the Russian movements are,
and have been, full of enigma: "Going upon Colberg?
Going upon Glogau; upon Breslau? " That is a heavy-
footed certainty, audibly tramping forward on us, amid
these fond visions of the air! Certain too, and visible
to a duller eye than Friedrich's; Loudon in Silesia is
meditating mischief. "The inevitable Russians, the in-
evitable Loudon; and nothing but Fouquet and Henri
on guard there, with their long thin chain of posts, in-
finitely too thin to do any execution! " thinks the King.
To whom their modes of operating are but little satis-
factory, as seen at Schlettau from the distance. "Con-
dense yourself," urges he always on Henri; "go for-
ward on the Russians; attack sharply this Corps, that
Corps, while they are still separate and on march! "
Henri did condense himself, "took post between Sagan
and Sprottau; post at Frankfurt," -- poor Frankfurt, is
it to have a Kunersdorf or Zorndorf every year, then?
No; the cautious Henri never could see his way into
these adventures; and did not attack any Corps of the
Russians. Took post at Landsberg ultimately, -- the
Russians, as usual, having Posen as place-of-arms, --
* "To Prince Henri:" in Schommj, n. 246 (3d April 1760); ib. 263 (of
the Danish outlook); &c. &c.
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? 8 FRJEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th April -- 15th June 1760.
and vigilantly watched the Russians, without coming
to strokes at all. A spectacle growing gradually in-
tolerable to the King, though he tries to veil his
feelings.
Neither was Fouquet's plan of procedure well seen
by Friedrich in the distance. Ever since that of Re-
giment Manteuffel, which was a bit of disappointment,
Loudon has been quietly industrious on a bigger scale.
Privately he cherishes the hope, being a swift vehement
enterprising kind of man, to oust Fouquet; and per-
haps to have Glatz Fortress taken, before his Russians
come! In the very end of May, Loudon, privately
aiming for Glatz, breaks in upon Silesia again, -- a
long way to eastward of Fouquet, and as if regardless
of Glatz. Upon which, Fouquet, in dread for Schweid-
nitz and perhaps Breslau itself, hastened down into
the Plain Country, to manoeuvre upon Loudon; but
found no Loudon moving that way; and, in a day or
two, learned that Landshut, so weakly guarded, had
been picked up by a big corps of Austrians; and in
another day or two, that Loudon (June 7th) had blocked
Glatz, -- Loudon's real intention now clear to Fouquet.
As it was to Friedrich from the first; whose anger and
astonishment at this loss of Landshut were great, when
he heard of it in his Camp of Schlettau. "Back to
Landshut," orders he (11th June, three days before
leaving Schlettau); "neither Schweidnitz nor Breslau
are in danger: it is Glatz the Austrians mean" (as
Fouquet and all the world now see they do! ); "watch
Glatz; retake me Landshut instantly! "
The tone of Friedrich, which is usually all friend-
liness to Fouquet, had on this occasion something in it
which offended the punctual, and rather peremptory
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 9
15th-18th Juno 17C0.
Spartan mind. Fouquet would not have neglected
Glatz; pity he had not been left to his own methods
with Landshut and it. Deeply hurt, he read this
Order (16th June); and vowing to obey it, and no-
thing but it, used these words, which were remembered
afterwards, to his assembled Generals: "Meine Ilerren,
"it appears, then, we must take Landshut again. Lou-
"don, as the next thing, will come on us then with his
"mass of force; and we must then, like Prussians, hold
"out as long as possible, think of no surrender on
"open field, but if even beaten, defend ourselves to
"the last man. In case of a retreat, I will be one of
"the last that leaves the field: and should I have the
"misfortune to survive such a day, I give you my
"word of honour never to draw a Prussian sword
"more. "* This speech of Fouquet's (June 16th) was
two days after Friedrich got on march from Schlettau.
June 17th, Fouquet got to Landshut; drove out the
Austrians more easily than he had calculated, and set
diligently, next day, to repair his works, writing to
Friedrich: "Your Majesty's Order shall be executed
here, while a man of us lives. " Fouquet, in the old
Crown-Prince time, used to be called Bayard by his
Royal friend. His Royal friend, now darker of face
and scathed by much ill-weather, has just quitted
Schlettau, three days before this recovery of Landshut;
and will not have gone far till he again hear news of
Fouquet.
Night of June 14th-15th, Friedrich, "between
Zehren and Zabel," several miles down stream, -- his
bridges now all ready, out of Lacy's cognisance, --
* Stenzel, v. 239.
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? 10 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
15lh-18th June 1760.
has suddenly crossed Elbe; and next afternoon pitches
camp at Broschwitz, which is straight towards Lacy
again. To Lacy's astonishment; who is posted at Mo-
ritzburg, with headquarter in that beautiful Country-
seat of Polish Majesty, -- only 10 miles to eastward,
should Friedrich take that road. Broschwitz is short
way north of Meissen, and lies on the road either to
Grossenhayn or to Radeburg (Radeburg only four
miles northward of Lacy), as Friedrich shall see fit, on
the morrow. For the Meissen north road forks off
there, in those two directions: straight northward is for
Grossenhayn, right hand is for Radeburg. Most in-
teresting to Lacy, which of these forks, what is quite
optional, Friedrich will take! Lacy is an alert man;
looks well to himself; warns Daun; and will not be
caught if he can help it. Daun himself is encamped
at Reichenberg, within two miles of him, inexpugnably
entrenched as usual; and the danger surely is not
great: nevertheless both these Generals, wise by ex-
perience, keep their eyes open.
The First great Feat of Marching now follows, on
Friedrich's part; with little or no result to Friedrich;
but worth remembering, so strenuous, so fruitless was
it, -- so barred by ill-news from without! Both this
and the Second stand recorded for us, in brief intelli
gent terms by Mitchell, who was present in both; and
who is perfectly exact on every point, and intelligible
throughout, -- if you will read him with a Map; and
divine for yourself what the real names are, out of the
inhuman blotchings made of them, not by Mitchell's
blame at all. *
Tuesday, June 17th, second day of Friedrich's stay
* Mitchell, Memoirs and Papers, n. ICO et seq.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 11
15th-18th June 1760.
at Broschwitz, Mitchell, in a very confidential Dialogue
they had together, learned from him, under seal of
secrecy, That it was his purpose to march for Radeburg
tomorrow morning, and attack Lacy and his 30,000,
who lie encamped at Moritzburg out yonder; for which
step his Majesty was pleased further to show Mitchell
a little, what the various inducements were: "One
"Russian Corps is aiming as if for Berlin; theAustrians
"are about besieging Glatz, -- pressing need that
"Fouquet were reinforced in his Silesian post of dif-
"ficulty. Then here are the Reichs-people close by;
"can be in Dresden three days hence, joined to Daun:
"80,000 odd there will then be of Enemies in this
"part: I must beat Lacy, if possible, while time still
"is! " -- and ended by saying: "Succeed here, and
"all may yet be saved; be beaten here, I know the
"consequences: but what can I do? The risk must
"be run; and it is now smaller than it will ever again
be. "
Mitchell, whose account is a fortnight later than
the Dialogue itself, does confess, "My Lord, these
"reasons, though unhappily the thing seems to have
"failed, 'appear to me to be solid and unanswerable. '" Much more do they to Tempelhof, who sees deeper
into the bottom of them than Mitchell did; and finds
that the failure is only superficial. * The real success,
thinks Tempelhof, would be, Could the King manoeuvre
himself into Silesia, and entice a cunctatory Daun
away with him thither. A cunctatory Daun to preside
over matters there, in his superstitiously cautious way;
leaving Saxony free to the Reichsfolk, -- whom a
Hiilsen, left with his small remnant in Schlettau, might
* Mitchell, II. 160 (Despatch, "June 30th, 1760"); Tempelhof, iv. 44.
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? 12 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
lSth-lUth June 1760.
easily take charge of, till Silesia were settled? "The
"plan was bold, was new, and completely worthy of
"Friedrich," votes Tempelhof; "and it required the
"most consummate delicacy of execution. To lure
"Daun on, always with the prospect opened to him of
"knocking you on the head, and always by your ra-
"pidity and ingenuity to take care that he never got
"it done. " This is Tempelhof's notion: and this, sure
enough, was actually Friedrich's mode of management
in the weeks following; though whether already alto-
gether planned in his head, or only gradually planning
itself, as is more likely, nobody can say. We will
look a very little into the execution, concerning which
there is no dubiety:
Wednesday, 18th June, "Friedrich," as predicted to
Mitchell, the night before, "did start punctually, in three
"columns, at 3A. m. " (Sun just rising); "and, after a hot march,
"got encamped on the southward side ofRadeburg: ready to
"cross the Rodern Stream there, tomorrow, as if intending
"for the Lausitz" (should that prove needful for alluring
Lacy), -- "and in the mean while, very inquisitive where
"Lacy might be. One of Lacy's outposts, those Saxon light
"horse, was fallen in with; was chased home, and Lacy's
"camp discovered, that night. At Bernsdorf, not three
"miles to southward or right of us; Daun only another three
"to south of him. Let us attack Lacy tomorrow morning;
"wind round to get between Daun and him,* -- with fit ar-
"rangements; rapid as light! In the King's Tent, accordingly,
"his Generals are assembled to take their Orders; brief,
"distinct, and to be done with brevity. And all are on the
"move for Bernsdorf at 4 next morning; when, behold,--
Thursday 19th, "At Bernsdorf, there is no Lacy to be
"found.
Cautious Daun has ordered him in, -- and not for
"Lacy's sake, as appears, but for his own: 'Hitherward, you
"alert Lacy; to cover my right flank here, my Hill of Reichen-
* Tempelhof, iv. 17-19.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 13
25 th June 1760.
"berg, -- lest it be not impregnable enough against that
"feline enemy! ' And there they have taken post, say 60,000
"against 30,000; and are palisading to a quite extraordinary
"degree. No fight possible with Lacy or Daun. "
This is what Mitchell counts the failure of Friedrich's
enterprise: and certainly it grieved Friedrich a good deal.
Who, on riding out to reconnoitre Reichenberg (Quintus
lcilius and Battalion Quintus part of his escort, ifthatbean
interesting circumstance), finds Reichenberg a plainly un-
attackable post; finds, by Daun's rate of palisading, that
there will be no attack from Daun either. No attack from
Daun; -- and, therefore, that Hiilsen's people may be sent
home to Schlettau again; and that he, Friedrich, will take
post close by, and wearisomely be content to wait for some
new opportunity.
Which he does for a week to come; Daun sitting impreg-
nable, entrenched and palisaded to the teeth, -- rather wishing
to be attacked, you would say; or hopeful sometimes of doing
something of the Hochkirch sort again (for the country is
woody, and the enemy audacious); -- at all events, very clear
not to attack. A man erring, sometimes to a notable degree,
by overcaution. "Could hardly have failed to overwhelm
"Friedrich's small force, had he at once, on Friedrich's
'' crossing the Elbe, joined Lacy, and gone out against him,"
thinks Tempelhof, pointing out the form of operation too. *
Caution is excellent; but not quite by itself. Would caution
alone do it, an Army all of Druidic whinstones, or innocent
clay-sacks, incapable of taking hurt, would be the proper
one! -- Daun stood there; Friedrich looking daily into him,
-- visibly in ill-humour, says Mitchell; and no wonder; floomy and surly words coming out of him, to the distress of
is Generals: "which I took the liberty of hinting, one even-
ing, to his Majesty;" hint graciously received, and of effect
perceptible, at least to my imagining.
Wednesday, June 25th, After nearly a week of this, there
rose, towards sunset, all over the Reichenberg, and far and
wide, an exuberant joy-firing: "For what in the world? "
thinks Friedrich. Alas, your Majesty, -- since your own
messenger has not arrived, nor indeed ever will, being picked
up by Pandours, -- here, gathered from the Austrian out-
* Tempelhof, iv. 42, 48.
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? 14 FEIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
posts or deserters, are news for you, fatal enough! Landshut
is done; Fouquet and his valiant 13,000 are trodden out there.
Indignant Fouquet has obeyed you, not wisely but too well.
He has kept Landshut six nights and five days. On the morn-
ing of the 6th day, here is what befel:
"Landshut, Monday 23d June, About a quarter to 2 in the
"morning, Loudon, who had gathered 31,000horse and foot
"for the Dusiness, and taken his measures, fired aloft, by
"way of signal, four howitzers into the gray of the summer
"morning; and burst loose upon Fouquet, in various columns,
"on his southward front, on both flanks, ultimately in his
"rear too: columns all in the height of fighting humour, con-
"fident as three to one, -- and having brandy in them, it is
"likewise said. Fouquet and his people stood to arms, in the
"temper Fouquet had vowed they would: defended their
"Hills with an energy, with a steady skill, which Loudon
"himself admired; but their Hillworks would have needed
"thrice the number; -- Fouquet, by detaching and otherwise,
"has in arms only 10,680 men. Toughly as they strove, after
"partial successes, they began to lose one Hill, and then an-
"other; and in the course of hours, nearly all their Hills.
"Landshut Town Loudon had taken from them, Landshut
"and its roads: in the end, the Prussian position is becoming
"permeable, plainly untenable; -- Austrian force is moving
"to their rearward to block the retreat.
"Seeing which latter fact, Fouquet throws out all his Ca-
"valry, a poor 1,500, to secure the Passes of the Bober; him-
"self forms square with the wrecks of his Infantry; and, at a
"steady step, cuts way for himself with bayonet and bullet.
"With singular success for some time, in spite of the odds.
"And is clear across the Bober; when lo, among the knolls
"ahead, masses of Austrian Cavalry are seen waiting him,
"besetting every passage! Even these do not break him; but
"these, with infantry and cannon coming up to help them, do.
"Here,for some time, was the fiercest tug of all,--till a bullet
"having killed Fouquet's horse, and carried the General
"himself to the ground, the spasm ended. The Lichnowski
"Dragoons, a famed Austrian regiment, who had charged and
"again charged with nothing but repulse on repulse, now
"broke in, all in a foam of rage; cut furiously upon Fouquet
"himself; wounded Fouquet thrice; would have killed him,
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 15
25th June -- 2dJuly 1760.
"had it not been for the heroism of poor Trautschke, his
"Groom" (let us name the gallant fellow, even if un-
pronounceable), "who flung himself on the body of his Master,
"and took the bloody strokes instead of him; shrieking his
"loudest, 'Will you murder the Commanding General, then! '
"Which brought up the Colonel of Lichnowski; a Gentleman
"and Ritter, abhorrent of such practices. To him Fouquet
"gave his sword; -- kept his vow never to draw it again.
"The wrecks of Fouquet's Infantry were, many of them,
"massacred, no quarter given; such the unchivalrous fury
"that had risen. His Cavalry, with the loss of about 500, cut
"their way through. They and some stragglers of Foot, in
"whole about 1,500 of both kinds, were what remained of
"those 10,680 after this bloody morning's work. There had
"been about six hours of it; 'all over by 8 o'clock. ' "*
Fouquet has obeyed to the letter: "Did not my King
wrong me? " Fouquet may say to himself. Truly, Hen-
General, your King's Order was a little unwise; as you (who
were on the ground, and your King not) knew it to be. An
unwise Order -- perhaps not inexcusable in the sudden cir-
cumstances. And perhaps a still more perfect Bayard would
have preferred obeying such a King in spirit, rather than in
letter, and thereby doing him vital service against his tem-
porary will? It is not doubted but Fouquet, left to himself
and his 13,000, with the Fortresses and Garrisons about him,
would have maintained himself in Silesia till help came. The
issue is,--Fouquet has probably lost this fineKing hisSilesia,
for the time being; and beyond any question, has lost him
10,000 Prussian-Spartan fighters, and a fine General whom he
could ill spare! In a word, the Gate of Silesia is burst
open; and Loudon has every prospect of taking Glatz, which
will keep it so.
What a thunderbolt for Friedrich! One of the last
pillars struck away from his tottering affairs. "In-
* Hofbericht ron der am 23 Junius 1760 bey Landshuth vorgefullencn
Action (in Seyfarth, Beylagen, n. 669-671); llelden-Geschichte, vi. 258-284;
Tempelhof, iv. 26-41; Stenzel, v. 241 (who, by oversight, -- this Volume
being posthumous to poor Stenzel, -- protracts the action to "half-past 7
in the evening").
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? 16 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX.
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
evitable, then? We are over with it, then? " One
may fancy Friedrich's reflexions. But he showed
nothing of them to anybody; in a few hours, and his
mind composed, and new plans on the anvil. On the
morrow of that Austrian Joy-Firing, -- morrow, or
some day close on it (ought to have been dated, but is
not), -- there went from him, to Magdeburg, the Order;
"Have me such and such quantities of Siege-Artillery
in a state of readiness. "* Already meaning, it is
thought, or contemplating as possible a certain Siege,
which surprised everybody before long! A most in-
ventive, enterprising being; no end to his contrivances
and unexpected outbreaks; especially when you have
him jammed into a corner, and fancy it is all over with
him!
"To no other General," says Tempelhof, "would
"such a notion of besieging Dresden have occurred; or
"if it had suggested itself, the hideous difficulties would
"at once have banished it again; or left it only as a
"pious wish. But it is strokes of this kind that charac
"terise the great man. Often enough they have suc-
ceeded, been decisive of great campaigns and wars,
"and become splendid in the eyes of all mankind; some-
"times, as in this case, they have only deserved to
"succeed, and to be splendid in the eyes of judges.
"How get these masses of enemies lured away, so that
"you could try such a thing? There lay the difficulty;
"insuperable altogether, except by the most fine and
"appropriate treatment. Of a truth, it required a con-
nected series of the wisest measures, and most secret
"artifices of war; -- and, withal, that you should throw
"over them such a veil as would lead your enemy to
* Tempelhof, iv. 51.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OrENS. 17
25th June -- 2d July 1760.
"see in them precisely the reverse of what they meant.
"How all this was to be set in action, and how the
"Enemy's own plans, intentions, and moods of mind
"were to be used as raw material for attainment of
"your object, -- studious readers will best see in the
"manoeuvres of the King in his now more than critical
"condition; which do certainly exhibit the completest
"masterpiece in the Art of leading Armies that Europe
"has ever seen. "
Tempelhof is well enough aware, as readers should
continue to be, that, primarily, and onward for three
weeks more, not Dresden, but the getting to Silesia
on good terms, is Friedrich's main enterprise: Dresden
only a supplement or substitute, a second string to his
bow, till the first fail. But, in effect, the two enter-
prises or strings coincide, or are one, till the first of
them fail; and Tempelhof s eulogy will apply to either.
The initiatory step to either is a Second Feat of March-
ing; -- still notabler than the former, which has had
this poor issue. Soldiers of the studious or scientific
sort, if there are yet any such among us, will naturally
go to Tempelhof, and fearlessly encounter, the rug-
gedest Documents and Books, if Tempelhof leave them
dubious on any point (which he hardly will): to in-
genuous readers of other sorts, who will take a little
pains for understanding the thing, perhaps the following
intermittent far-off glimpses may suffice*
On ascertaining the Landshut disaster, Friedrich falls
back a little; northward to Gross-Dobritz: "Possibly Daun
will think us cowed by what has happened; and may try
* Mitchell, n. 162 et seq. ; and Tempelhof (iv. 50-53 et seq. ), as a scien
tific check on Mitchell, or unconscious fellow-witness with him, -- agree-
ing beautifully almost always.
Carlyle, Frederick the Great. XII. 2
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? 18 FRIEDRICH NOT TO BE OVERWHELMED. [book XX. /
2d July 1760.
something on us? " Daun is by no means sure of this cowed
phenomenon, or of the retreat it has made; and tries nothing
on it; only rides up daily to it, to ascertain that it is there;
and diligently sends out parties to watch the North-eastward
parts, where run the Silesian Roads. After about a week of
this, and some disappointments, Friedrich decides to march
in earnest. There had, one day, come report of Lacy's being
detached, Lacy with a strong Division, to block the Silesian
roads; but that, on trial, proved to be false. "Pshaw,
nothing for us but to go ourselves! " concludes Friedrich, --
and, July 1st, sends off his Bakery and Heavy Baggage: in-
dicating to Mitchell, "Tomorrow morning at 3! " -- Here is
Mitchell's own account; accurate in every particular, as we
find:*
Wednesday, July 2d. "From Gross-Dobritz to Quosdorf"
-- (to Quosdorf, a poor Hamlet there, not QuoZsdorf, as many
write, which is a Town far enough from there) -- "the Army
"marched, accordingly. In two columns; baggage, bakery
"and artillery in a third; through a Country extremely
"covered with wood. Were attacked by some Uhlans and
"Hussars; whom a few cannon-shot sent to the road again.
"March lasted from 3 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon;"
twelve long hours. "Went north-eastward a space of 20miles,
"leaving Radeburg, much more leavingReichenberg, Moritz-
"burg and the Daun quarters well to the right, and at last
"quite to rearward; crossed the Roder, crossed the Pulsnitz,"
small tributaries or sub-tributaries of the Elbe in those parts;
"crossed the latter (which divides Meissen from the Lausitz)
"partly by the Bridge of Krakau, first Village in the Lausitz.
"Headquarter was the poor Hamlet of Quosdorf, a mile
"farther on. 'This march had been carefully kept secret,'
"says Mitchell; "and it was the opinion of the most ex-
"'perienced Officers, that, had the Enemy discovered the
"'King of Prussia's design, they might, by placing their light
"'troops in the roads with proper supports, have rendered it
"' extremely difficult, if not impracticable. '"
Daun very early got to know of Friedrich's departure, and
whitherward; which was extremely interesting to Daun:
"Aims to be in Silesia before me; will cut out Loudon from
his fine prospects on Grlatz? " -- and had instantly reinforced,
* Mitchell, n. 164; TempelhofLiv. 54.
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? CHAP. I. ] FIFTH CAMPAIGN OPENS. 19
2cl-8th July 1760.
perhaps to 20,000 Lacy's Division; and ordered Lacy, who is
the nearest to Friedrich's March, to start instantly on the
skirts of said March, and endeavour diligently to trample on
the same. For the purpose of harassing said March, Lacy
is to do whatever he with safety can (which we see is not
much: "afew Uhlans and Hussars"); at lowest, is to keep it
constantly in sight; and always encamp as near it as he
dare;* -- Daun himself girding up his loins; and preparing,
by a short cut, to get ahead of it in a day or two. Lacy was
alert enough, but could not do much with safety: a few
Uhlans and Hussars, that was all; and he is now encamped
somewhere to rearward, as near as he dare.
Thursday, 3d July. "A rest-day; Army resting about
"Krakau, after such a spell through the woody moors. The
"King, with small escort, rides out reconnoitering, hither,
"thither, on the southern side or Lacy quarter: to the top of
"the Keulenberg (Bludgeon Hill), at last, -- which is ten or a
"dozen miles from Krakau and Quosdorf, but commands an
"extensive view. Towns, village-belfries, courses of streams;
"a country of mossy woods and wild agricultures, of bogs, of
"shaggy moor. Southward 10 miles is Radeberg" (not Rade- burg, observe); "yonder is the town of Pulsnitz on our stream
"of Pulsnitz; to south-east, and twice as far, is Bischofs-
"werda, chasmy Stolpen (too well known to us before this):
"behind us, Konigsbriick, Kamenz and the road from
"Grrossenhayn to Bautzen: these and many other places
"memorable to this King are discoverable from Bludgeon
"Hill. But the discovery of discoveries to him isLacy's Camp,
"-- not very far off, about a mile behind Pulsnitz; clearly
"visible, atLichtenberg yonder. Which we at once determine
"to attack; which, and the roads to which, are the one object
"of interest just now, -- nothing else visible, as it were, on the
"top of the Keulenberg here, or as we ride homeward, medi-
cating it with a practical view. 'March at midnight,' that
"is the practical result arrived at, on reaching home. '
Friday, July 4th. "Since the stroke of midnight we are all
"on march again; nothing but the baggages and bakeries
"left" (withQuintus to watch them, which I see is his common
function in these marches); "King himself in the Vanguard,
"-- who hopes to give Lacy a salutation. ** 'The march was
* Tempelhof, iv. 54. ** lb. rr. 56.
2*
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