Narrative of the Most Remarkable Events Which Occurred in and near Leipzig Immediately Before, During, and Subsequent to, the Sanguinary Series of Engagements Between the Allied Armies of the French, from the 14th to the 19th October, 1813 — John Shaqi
Narrative of the Most Remarkable Events Which Occurred in and near Leipzig Immediately Before, During, and Subsequent to, the Sanguinary Series of Engagements Between the Allied Armies of the French, from the 14th to the 19th October, 1813Shoberl, Frederic
History
Narrative of the Most Remarkable Events Which Occurred in and near Leipzig Immediately Before, During, and Subsequent to, the Sanguinary Series of Engagements Between the Allied Armies of the French, from the 14th to the 19th October, 1813
He alighted, and a kind salutation
ensued between him and his august ally. The king soon afterwards mounted
a horse, and thus proceeded into the city. Napoleon meanwhile remained
where he was. He sometimes rose from his seat, went up to the
watch-fire, held his hands over it, rubbed them, and then placed them
behind him, whilst with his foot he pushed the wood, consisting of dry
boards and rafters from the nearest houses, into the flame, to make it
burn more fiercely. At the same time he very frequently took snuff, of
which he seemed to have but a small quantity left in his gold box. At
last he scraped together what was left with his finger, and poured it
out upon his hand. When all was gone, he opened the box several times
and smelt to it, without applying to any of the marshals and generals
around him to relieve his want. As the discharges of artillery towards
Probstheide grew more and more general and alarming, and the wounded
kept returning in continually increasing numbers, I was rather surprised
that the commander should, on this occasion, contrary to his usual
custom, quietly remain so far from the field of battle, which was near
ten miles distant, apparently without giving himself the least concern
about the event.
It was about four in the afternoon when one of his aid-de-camps came at
full speed from the city, and made a report. The drums instantly beat to
arms, and the divisions of the guards broke up. The emperor immediately
mounted his horse, and followed them. He directed his course towards the
Kohlgärten[3], leaving the field of battle on the right. I soon
perceived the cause of this movement: the message informed him of the
arrival of the whole of his guards, for whom he had been waiting. They
came from Düben, entering by the Halle gate, and now made a countermarch
upon Dresden. When I beheld their endless files and cannon without
number pouring out of the city, I certainly gave up the allies for lost.
I was thoroughly convinced that Napoleon had no other plan than to
strike off to the right behind the Kohlgärten, with his new army, and,
proceeding from Stötteritz, to turn his enemies on the right flank, and,
as he had often done before, to attack and annihilate them. I was
however egregiously mistaken. The emperor went with his retinue scarcely
a thousand paces, to the first houses of the Kohlgärten, where he took
up his quarters, and quietly passed the night. The guards and the whole
train likewise stopped in that neighbourhood, and there bivouacked. It
grew dark. The palisades at the gate had left but a narrow passage,
through which troops and artillery kept pouring without intermission.
People on horseback and on foot, who wanted to return into the city, had
been already detained for several successive hours; the crowd every
moment increased, and with it the danger. To seek another entrance was
impracticable, as a person would run the risk of being detained by the
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