Historic Tales: The Romance of Reality. Vol. 08 (of 15), RussianMorris, Charles
History
Historic Tales: The Romance of Reality. Vol. 08 (of 15), Russian
Morris, Charles
Russia -- History
In two days the Russian army had reached the Austrian camp, which the
enemy was just about to attack. The Turks had neglected to fortify their
camp before offering battle. Of this oversight the keen-eyed Russian
took instant advantage, attacked them in their unfinished trenches, and,
as before, took their camp by storm,--though after a more stubborn
defence than in the previous instance. The Turkish army was again
dispersed, immense booty was taken, and Suwarrow received for his valor
the title of a count of the Austrian empire, while the empress Catharine
gave him in reward the honorable surname of Rimniksky, from the name of
the river on which the battle had been fought.
The next great exploit of Suwarrow was performed at Ismail, a Turkish
town which Potemkin had been besieging for seven months. The prime
minister at length grew impatient at the delay, and determined on more
effective measures. Living in a luxury in his camp that contrasted
strangely with the sparse conditions of Suwarrow, Potemkin was
surrounded by courtiers and ladies, who made strenuous efforts to
furnish the great man with amusement. One of the ladies, handling a pack
of cards, from which she laughingly pretended to be able to read the
secrets of destiny, proclaimed that he would be in possession of the
town at the end of three weeks.
"You are not bad at prediction," said Potemkin, with a smile, "but I
have a method of divination far more infallible. My prediction is that I
will have the town in three days."
He at once sent orders to Suwarrow, who was at Galatz, to come and take
the town.
The obedient warrior, who seemed to be always at somebody's beck and
call, quickly appeared and surveyed the situation. His first steps
seemed to indicate that he proposed to continue the siege, the troops
being formed into a besieging army of about forty thousand men, while
the Russian fleet was ordered up to the town. But the deliberation of a
siege never accorded with Suwarrow's ardent humor. His real purpose was
to take the place by storm. He had taken Otchakof in this way the
previous year with heavy loss, and with the slaughter of twenty thousand
Turks. He now, on the 21st of September, twice summoned the city to
surrender, threatening the people with the fate of Otchakof. They
refused to yield, and the assault began at four o'clock of the following
morning.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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