THE ORDER OF THE DAY
However much we may desire not to lose ourselves in accounts of sieges
and battles, we must now follow Hoche and Pichegru in their triumphal
course. A chapter or two, however, will suffice to bring us to the time
when the enemy was driven beyond the frontiers of France--at least, as
far as Alsace and Lorraine are concerned. Moreover, as will be seen,
after the three battles of Dawendorff, Froeschwiller, and Woerth, the
enemy withdrew from France.
At four o'clock in the morning Stephan came to tell Pichegru that the
Prussians, amazed at the way they had been driven from Woerth, were
retreating across the Vosges in two columns, one going toward
Drakenbroenn, and the other toward Lembach.
Pichegru at once sent an aide-de-camp to inform Hoche that the town was
in his hands and that they would attack on the next day, or rather on
that very day at five in the morning. He intended to form his army into
three columns to attack in the front, and he directed Hoche to leave the
intrenchments, and, marching upon Groersdorff, to attack them on the
rear. The retreat of the Prussians rendered this manœuvre unnecessary.
Doumerc was awakened, and, springing upon his horse, he hastened to tell
Hoche to pursue the enemy, while Pichegru fell back upon Haguenau and
occupied the town.
But when Pichegru, at the head of his column, reached the heights of
Spachbach, he met a messenger whom the mayor of Haguenau had despatched,
who informed him that on learning of the triple victory he had just won,
and which completely shut off the town from any communication with the
armies of Hodge and Wurmser, the garrison of Haguenau had evacuated the
place during the night, had marched through the woods to Souffelnheim,
and had crossed the Rhine as far up as Fort Vauban. Pichegru detached a
thousand men under command of Liebler, and sent them to occupy Haguenau;
then, retracing his steps, he took the road through Woerth, passed on to
Pruschdorff, and slept that same night at Lobsam.
Stephan was directed to inform Hoche of this unexpected return, and to
ask him to join with Pichegru in making still greater efforts to
recapture the lines of Weissembourg.
The road reminded one of the invasions of the Huns, Vandals and
Burgundians, when huge concourses of men swept from land to land. The
Austrians, obliged to abandon the line of the Moder, fell back upon the
lines of Weissembourg, before the Lauter, where they intended to give
battle. They were under General Wurmser's command.
The Prussians, under command of Hodge, fell back upon Sauerbach. They
crossed the river at Lembach, and effected a junction with the Austrians
at Weissembourg.
But what seemed so strange in this retreat was that the army was
followed by a swarm of royalists, consisting of Alsatian nobles, who,
together with their families, accompanied the troops and shared their
flight. The roads were filled with carriages, horses and wagons, all in
confusion, through the midst of which the Republicans forced a passage,
seemingly unconscious that they were mingling with a hostile population,
which, when left behind, seemed to be following the very army from which
it was in reality fleeing.
The two French generals effected a junction at Roth, and as they met,
the soldiers shouted: "Long live the Republic!" The ranks opened, and
the two representatives, Saint-Just and Lebas, appeared. It had
occurred to them that, as the enemy might be in greater force at
Weissembourg, their presence would be encouraging to the soldiers.
Charles was the first to recognize the deputy from the Aisne, and cried:
"Ah! there is citizen Saint-Just!"
Pichegru leaned toward him and said laughingly, "Do not tell him about
the foraging-cap."
"Oh! indeed, no!" replied Charles, "ever since he told me that he had
had his best friend shot I have distrusted him."
"You are right to do so."
Saint-Just came up to Pichegru and congratulated him in a few brief and
trenchant words. Then, recognizing Charles, he said: "Ah! it seems that
between the toga and arms you have chosen arms. Don't let him get
killed, citizen Pichegru; he is a good boy, and bids fair to become a
good man, a rare thing in these days." Then taking Pichegru aside, he
said: "My police tell me--though I would not believe them--that you had
an interview with an emissary from the Prince de Condé. I don't believe
a word of it."
"It is true, nevertheless, citizen Saint-Just."
"What did he have to say?"
"He came to make me some treasonable propositions."
"What were they?"
"I do not know; my pipe had just gone out, so I lighted it again with
the Prince de Condé's letter without taking the trouble to read it."
"And you had the messenger shot?"
"Indeed I did not."
"Why not?"
"If he had been dead, how could he tell his prince what I had done with
his propositions?"
"Pichegru, you did not conceal some other motive beneath this clemency?"
"Yes, that of beating the enemy the next day at Froeschwiller; of taking
Woerth the day following, and of forcing the lines to-day."
"Then you and Hoche are ready to march upon the enemy?"
"We are always ready, citizen representative, particularly when we are
honored with your company."
"Then forward!" said Saint-Just; and he sent Lebas to direct Hoche to
attack on his side. The drums and trumpets, sounded all along the line,
and the army moved forward.
As chance would have it, that same day, the 22d of December, the
Prussians and the Austrians had resolved to resume the offensive, and
when the French army reached the top of a small eminence they found the
enemy drawn up in line of battle from Weissembourg to the Rhine.
The position was a good one for offence but not for defence, for in the
latter case the Lauter formed an abyss, and there was much danger of
their being driven into it. When Pichegru and Hoche marched against them
they found that the enemy was also on the march.
Supposing that the fiercest struggle would be in the centre, the
generals massed thirty-five thousand men there, while three divisions of
the Army of the Moselle threatened the right wing of the allies by the
passes of the Vosges, and two divisions, commanded by one of General
Broglie's aides-de-camp, advanced to the attack by way of Lauterbourg.
The young aide-de-camp, whose name was Antoine Desaix, was scarcely
twenty-seven years old.
Suddenly Saint-Just and Lebas, who were marching respectively in front
of the columns of Pichegru and Hoche, called out: "Halt!"
They were not more than a cannon-shot from the enemy, and it was evident
that the two armies would meet before another half hour.
"Citizen Pichegru," said Saint-Just, while Lebas said the same to Hoche,
"call all your officers to the front; I have a communication to make to
them before the battle begins."
Pichegru gave the necessary orders, which were repeated all along the
line by brigadier-generals, colonels, aides-de-camp, and captains.
The officers of every rank, even to the sub-lieutenants, gathered around
Saint-Just and Pichegru on the right, and Hoche and Lebas on the left.
This took up about ten minutes, during which the officers alone moved
while the soldiers stood quietly waiting.
The Prussians and Austrians advanced nearer, and the Republicans began
to hear their trumpets and drums beating and sounding the charge.
Saint-Just drew a printed sheet from his pocket; it was the "Moniteur."
"Citizens," he said in his harsh voice, which was so powerful that it
could be heard five hundred feet away, "before you attack I should like
to tell you a piece of good news."
"What is it? What is it?" cried all the officers together.
Just then one of the enemy's batteries opened fire, and its projectiles
found their victims in the French ranks. One of the officers had his
head carried off by a ball, and fell at Saint-Just's feet, who,
apparently oblivious of the fact, continued in the same tone: "The
English are driven from Toulon, the infamous city. The tri-color flag
floats over the ramparts. Here is the 'Moniteur,' which contains not
only the official announcement, but also the details which I would read
you if we were not under fire."
"Read them," said Pichegru.
"Read them, citizen representative of the people; read them!" cried all
the officers.
The soldiers, in whose ranks the volley had plowed several furrows,
looked impatiently at the group of officers. A second discharge was
heard, and a second hurricane of fire whistled past. Other furrows were
opened.
"Close the ranks," Pichegru cried to the soldiers.
"Close the ranks!" repeated the officers.
And the empty spaces disappeared.
In the middle of the circle a horse was lying dead beneath his rider.
The officer disengaged his feet from the stirrups and drew nearer to
Saint-Just in order to hear better.
Saint-Just read:
28th Frimaire of the Year II. of the Republic, one and indivisible;
eleven of the evening.
_Citizen Dugommier to the National Convention_:
CITIZEN REPRESENTATIVES--Toulon is ours: Yesterday we took Fort
Mulgrave and the Little Gibraltar.
This morning the English evacuated the forts and burned the French
fleet and the arsenal. The building where the masts were stored is
on fire; twenty-six warships are burned, eleven of which are ships
of the line, and six are frigates; fifteen are captured, and
thirty-eight saved.
At ten o'clock this evening Colonel Cervoni entered the town.
To-morrow I will write more fully. Long live the Republic!
"Long live the Republic!" cried the officers in turn.
"Long live the Republic!" repeated the centre and the right wing.
A third cannonade was heard and more than one shout of "Long live the
Republic!" was begun and never finished.
"Now," continued Saint-Just, "here is a letter from our colleague
Barras, who is charged with the punishment of Toulon; it is addressed to
the National Convention:
CITIZEN REPRESENTATIVES--The greater part of the infamous
inhabitants of Toulon have embarked on the ships of Hood and Sidney
Smith, and consequently national justice cannot be administered as
it ought to be. Fortunately they were unable to take their houses
with them; the city remains to disappear beneath the vengeance of
the Republic, like those accursed cities of antiquity, for which
the eye searches in vain. At first it was thought best to destroy
the city by blowing it up, but it would not do to risk firing the
powder-magazines and the arsenal. It has therefore been decided
that all the masons from the six neighboring departments shall be
summoned hither with their tools, for a general and prompt
demolition. With an army of twelve thousand masons the work will be
accomplished speedily, and Toulon should be levelled to the ground
within a fortnight.
To-morrow the shooting of the traitors will begin, and will be
continued until no more traitors remain to be shot.
We salute you fraternally. Long live the Republic.
The enemy still continued to advance; the rolling of drums, the blare of
the trumpets, and from time to time, when the wind was favorable, the
harmonious tones of music could be heard in the distance. But every
sound was soon lost in the roar of the cannon; a storm of shot, thick as
hail, fell upon the French ranks, the body of officers being especially
singled out. Pichegru rose in his stirrups, and noticing a slight
movement among the soldiers, shouted: "To your ranks!"
"To your ranks!" repeated the officers.
The lines reformed.
"Ground arms!" cried Pichegru.
Ten thousand muskets touched the earth at the same moment with admirable
precision.
"Now," continued Saint-Just, "here is a communication from the Minister
of War; it is addressed to me to be transmitted to Generals Pichegru and
Hoche:
CITIZEN REPRESENTATIVES--I have received this letter from citizen
Dutheuil, junior. "Toulon is in the hands of the Republic; the
cowardice and perfidy of its enemies is complete. The artillery has
served splendidly; we owe the victory to it alone. There is not a
soldier who has not been a hero; the officers set the men the
example. I cannot find words to praise Colonel Bonaparte
sufficiently. Great knowledge of military science, keen
intelligence, too great a tendency to expose himself--these form a
feeble summary of the rare virtues of this rare officer. It is for
you, minister, to retain him for the glory of the Republic."
I have appointed Colonel Bonaparte a brigadier-general, and beg
you to direct Generals Hoche and Pichegru to place his name upon
the order of the day of the Army of the Rhine. I will show the
like honor to the brave man whose name they send me, who shall
have been the first to cross the lines at Weissembourg.
"You hear, citizens," said Pichegru, "Colonel Bonaparte's name is on the
order of the day. Let each one return to his post and repeat this name
to the soldiers. Now that the English are beaten, down with the
Prussians and the Austrians! Forward! Long live the Republic!"
The name of Bonaparte, which had sprung so gloriously into prominence,
ran from rank to rank; an immense shout of "Long live the Republic!"
burst from forty thousand throats; the drums beat the charge, the
trumpets sounded, the bands played the "Marseillaise," and the whole
army, so long restrained, dashed upon the enemy.