History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 19Carlyle, Thomas
History
History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 19
Carlyle, Thomas
Frederick II, King of Prussia, 1712-1786; Prussia (Germany) -- History -- Frederick II, 1740-1786; Social problems
On the Saxon side, too, affairs are in such a course that the King
can be patient at Glogau till he get well. Everything is prosperous
in Saxony since that March on Hoyerswerda; Henri, with his Fincks and
Wunsches, beautifully posted in the Meissen-Torgau region; no dislodging
of him, let Daun, with his big mass of forces, try as he may. Daun,
through the month of October, is in various Camps, in Schilda last of
all: Henri successively in two; in Strehla for some ten days; then in
Torgau for about three weeks, carefully intrenched, [Tempelhof. iii.
276, 281, 284 (Henri in Strehla, October 4th-17th; thence to Torgau: 22d
October, Daun "quits his Camp of Belgern" for that of Schilda, which was
his last in those parts).]--where traces of him will turn up (not too
opportunely) next year. Daun, from whatever Camp, goes laboring on this
side and on that; on every side the deft Henri is as sharp as needles;
nothing to be made of him by the cunning movements and contrivances of
Daun. Very fine manoeuvring it was, especially on Henri's part; a charm
to the soldier mind;--given minutely in Tempelhof, and capable of
being followed (if you have Maps and Patience) into the last details.
Instructive really to the soldier;--but must be, almost all, omitted
here. One beautiful slap to Duke d'Ahremberg (a poor old friend of
Daun's and ours) we will remember: "Action of Pretsch" they call
it; defeat, almost capture of poor D'Ahremberg; who had been sent to
dislodge the Prince, by threatening his supplies, and had wheeled,
accordingly, eastward, wide away; but, to his astonishment, found, after
a march or two, Three select Prussian Corps emerging on him, by front,
by rear, by flank, with Horse-artillery (quasi-miraculous) bursting out
on hill-tops, too,--and, in short, nothing for it but to retreat,
or indeed to run, in a considerably ruinous style: poor D'Ahremberg!
[Seyfarth (_Beylagen,_ ii. 634-637), "HOFBERICHT VON DER AM 29 OCTOBER,
1759, BEY MEURO [chiefly BEY PRETSCH] VORGEFALLENEN ACTION;" ib. ii. 543
n.] On the whole, Daun is reduced to a panting condition; and knows not
what to do. His plans were intrinsically bad, says Tempelhof; without
beating Henri in battle, which he cannot bring himself to attempt,
he, in all probability, will, were it only for difficulties of the
commissariat kind, have to fall back Dresden-ward, and altogether take
himself away. [Tempelhof, iii. 287-289.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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