History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 20Carlyle, Thomas
History
History of Friedrich II of Prussia — Volume 20
Carlyle, Thomas
Frederick II, King of Prussia, 1712-1786; Prussia (Germany) -- History -- Frederick II, 1740-1786; Social problems
"This morning," same Saturday, 19th, "Daun is reported to have arrived;
vanguard of him said to be at Schonfeld, over in THIRSTY-SWEETHEART
Country yonder which Friedrich, going to reconnoitre, finds tragically
indisputable: 'There, for certain; only five miles from Holstein's post
at the WHITE HART, and no River between;--as the crow flies, hardly
five from our own Camp. Perhaps it will be some days yet before he do
anything?' So that Friedrich persists in his bombardment, only the more:
'By fire-torture, then! Let the bombarded Royalties assail Maguire, and
Maguire give in;--it is our one chance left; and succeed we will and
must!' Cruel, say you?--Ah, yes, cruel enough, not merciful at all. The
soul of Friedrich, I perceive, is not in a bright mood at this time, but
in a black and wrathful, worn almost desperate against the slings and
arrows of unjust Fate: 'Ahead, I say! If everybody will do miracles,
cannot we perhaps still manage it, in spite of Fate?'" Mitchell is very
sorry; but will forget and forgive those inexorable passages of war.
"I cannot think of the bombardment of Dresden without horror," says he;
"nor of many other things I have seen. Misfortunes naturally sour men's
temper [even royal men's]; and long continued, without interval, at
last extinguish humanity." "We are now in a most critical and dangerous
situation, which cannot long last: one lucky event, approaching to a
miracle, may still save all: but the extreme caution and circumspection
of Marshal Daun--!" [Mitchell, ii. 184, 185.]
If Daun could be swift, and end the miseries of Dresden, surely Dresden
would be much obliged to him. It was ten days yet, after that of the
Kreuz-Kirche, before Dresden quite got rid of its Siege: Daun never was
a sudden man. By a kind of accident, he got Holstein hustled across
the River that first night (July 19th),--not annihilated, as was very
feasible, but pushed home, out of his way. Whereby the North side of
Dresden is now open; and Daun has free communication with Maguire.
Maguire rose thereupon to a fine pitch of spirits; tried several things,
and wished Daun to try; but with next to no result. For two days after
Holstein's departure, Daun sat still, on his safe Northern shore;
stirring nothing but his own cunctations and investigations, leaving the
bombardment, or cannonade, to take its own course. One attempt he did
make in concert with Maguire (night of Monday 21st), and one attempt
only, of a serious nature; which, like the rest, was unsuccessful. And
would not be worth mentioning,--except for the poor Regiment BERNBURG'S
sake; Bernburg having got into strange case in consequence of it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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