History of the Life of Gustavus Adolphus II., the Hero-General of the ReformationMonroe, Harriet Earhart
History
History of the Life of Gustavus Adolphus II., the Hero-General of the Reformation
Monroe, Harriet Earhart
Gustav II Adolf, King of Sweden, 1594-1632
Fifteen hundred men to help the man who was imperiling his life, his
army, his country, to save Saxony! But before the elector had sent that
letter, before the fifteen hundred men had left the Saxon camp, the
fatal battle had been fought at Lutzen, and the sun had seen the noblest
life of that century go out on the field of battle.
On the evening after the council the king heard that Pappenheim had been
sent away; this seems to have decided him. He said: "I believe, indeed,
that God has delivered the enemy into my hand," and, suddenly breaking
camp at Naumburg, he hastened to meet Wallenstein, whose army was
weakened by the loss of Pappenheim. For Gustavus to wait for the Saxons
would also be waiting for the return of Pappenheim.
The spies soon told Wallenstein that the king's army was on the move,
and Wallenstein wrote a frantic letter to Pappenheim. He said: "The
enemy is advancing. Sir, let everything else be, and hurry with all your
forces and artillery back to me. You must be here by to-morrow
morning—he is already over the pass." This letter, all stained with
blood, is yet to be seen at the museum in Vienna. Pappenheim carried it
into the battle in which he lost his life.
Lutzen is located on a plain over which ran great ditches or canals
(which could be waded) for irrigating purposes. Gustavus came up to the
enemy on the evening of November 5th, too late, on account of the rugged
ground, to make the attack. Most writers affirm that could the battle
have taken place on the 5th, before the return of Pappenheim, Gustavus
would, no doubt, have secured a great victory. It was late that night
before Wallenstein could bring his regiments together. They fell into
line of battle just as they came in.
Gustavus had eighteen thousand men, Wallenstein twenty-five thousand,
and was momentarily expecting Pappenheim with troops variously estimated
at from eight to ten thousand men. The king, with Bernard and
Knipenhausen, slept from time to time through the night in the king's
day coach. The two armies, that bitter cold night, faced each other,
lying down to sleep in the order they had marched, with their arms and
equipment within easy reach.
Then the fateful morning of November 6th arrived. It proved to be foggy
and very dark. The king sent for his chaplain and they spent an hour in
prayer. Divine services were held, as usual, in camp. The whole army,
each in his own language, sang Luther's battle hymn, "Ein feste Burg ist
unser Gott," "A mighty fortress is our God." The words in the second
stanza, "'Tis Jesus Christ," which are the words answering the question,
"Askest thou His name?" were usually accompanied with a salute of
artillery, that was omitted on this occasion. Then the king himself
sang:
"Fear not, O little flock, the foe,
Who madly seek your overthrow,
Dread not his rage and power," etc.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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