Annals of a Fortress Part 22

Colonel Dubois had not men enough to act efficiently at a distance; he did his utmost to economise his strength, and contented himself with impeding the works at the commencement with his artillery. This consisted, as we have seen, of--

Guns of various calibre 20 Twenty-four pounders 6 Howitzers 2 Mortars 4 Field-pieces 4 -- Total of ordnance 36 ==

A dozen stone mortars and rampart rifles formed the rest of the artillery. The a.r.s.enal contained also a certain supply of hand-grenades and fireworks.

At length, on the 20th of February, the batteries of the first parallel, to the number of ten, opened their fire. Each of them was armed with three guns; the first on the right (of the besieger), a ricochet, raked the covered way in front of the right face of the left bastion (of the besieged). The second swept the right face of the left demi-lune; the third, the left face of the middle demi-lune; the fourth, a ricochet, raked the covered way in front of the left face of the left bastion; the fifth swept the salient of the demi-lune; the sixth swept the right face of that demi-lune; the seventh, a ricochet, raked the covered way in front of the left face of the right bastion; the eighth, a ricochet, raked the left face of the demi-lune in the centre; the ninth swept the left face of the right demi-lune; and the tenth, a ricochet, raked the covered way before the left face of the right bastion. Four mortars were mounted between the batteries 4 and 5, 6 and 7. Captain Allaud did not doubt that the princ.i.p.al attack would be directed to the left bastion; he had the gorge of this bastion therefore retrenched during the night.

The six twenty-four pounders were placed in battery on the cavaliers of the bastions of the main defence, and well sheltered by traverses and blindages. These six pieces concentrated their fire on the fourth and fifth batteries of the besieger, and succeeded in silencing their fire about noon. Then they fired on battery No. 3, and before night silenced its three guns also. The guns in battery on the cavaliers of the bastions of the work were sufficiently well sheltered not to be in danger from the enemy's projectiles, to which they responded only feebly. But on the night of the 20th February the plans of the besieger had to be modified. At midnight the colonel ordered five hundred men to arm, put horses to his four field-pieces, whose wheels had been covered with rags and wool, and going out by the left demi-lune, he had two pieces placed on the right and two on the left of the road, two hundred yards in front of the glacis, and, on the road itself, the two howitzers, a hundred yards behind. Then he advanced resolutely towards the communicating boyau, between the third and fourth of the enemy's batteries, whose fire had been silenced. The posts offered but a slight resistance; the sappers fled, abandoning the trench, and were pursued to the batteries at the point of the bayonet.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 70.

THE THEORETICAL ATTACK ON VAUBAN'S WORK.]

The reinforcements then arrived, and the colonel drew back his men quietly, by echelons, to the guns. These then opened a simultaneous fire on the enemy with grape; and the five hundred men advanced once more, and brought back some prisoners, but seeing themselves again attacked by a superior force, fell back. This time the Germans did not go beyond their trenches, but contented themselves with a few volleys of grape at random. This skirmish did not last more than half an hour. At one o'clock A.M. Captain Allaud placed two hundred workmen at a distance of two hundred and fifty yards in front of the face of the left demi-lune No. 1, crossed by the road, to commence a trench at this point (Fig.

72). These workmen were protected by a post of one hundred men, and the two howitzers left on the road. This work consisted of two redans, with ma.s.sive traverse-shelters (see A). It was sufficiently advanced at daybreak to be able to shelter the workmen. When the enemy, who had begun his work again at the trench boyaux, B and C, in order to commence the second parallel, perceived at early dawn the new work executed by the besieged, he hastened to bring the fire of battery No. 1 upon it, for batteries 2, 3, and 4 had not yet been remounted. But from the cavaliers of the bastions No. I. and V., six guns in two hours silenced this battery, No. 1, in spite of the besieger's batteries, 5 and 6. The day thus pa.s.sed in cannonading, and the Germans could not continue their boyau of communication, B, which was raked by one of the howitzers which the besieged had placed behind the great traverse of the salient of the redan on the left. They had to modify the direction of the trench, and follow the dotted line, _a b_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 71.

THE THIRD PARALLEL AND CROWNING OF THE COVERED-WAY.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 72.]

During the night of the 21st of February, Captain Allaud completed his redans, enlarged the traverses, and set up blindages for seven guns; and in the morning the work presented on the inner side the appearance (Fig. 73). The gun on the left, A, directed its fire on battery No. 1; the two guns on the left return, B C, on battery No. 4; the pieces D E, of the right return, on battery No. 1; and the two pieces F G, of the right face, on battery No. 6.[61] But this did not hinder the bastions V., VI., I., II., and III. from firing on these batteries.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 73.]

That same night, however, the besieger had been able to start his second parallel; but he was evidently embarra.s.sed on his right, and was modifying his plan on this side. He seemed to be giving up an attempt on the place by the salient of bastion No. 2, and was working actively on his left.

During the 22nd of February, the besiegers could not restore battery No.

1, because the besieged kept up a constant discharge on this point. They succeeded only at nightfall in remounting their guns in batteries 2 and 3; and having determined the range before night, discharged the b.a.l.l.s of two guns on the salients of the redans. About midnight Colonel Dubois sent out five hundred men, who, traversing the western ridge of the plateau, attacked battery No. 1. A few moments afterwards, a second troop of four hundred men attacked the two batteries, 2 and 3; and the besieger having been dislodged from battery No. 1, the first troop of the besieged came and formed in line of musketry between battery No. 2 and the salient of the redan on the right; while fusiliers posted at the trench, A,[62] and one of the howitzers, swept the ground as far as battery No. 1, in order to hinder the enemy from taking the sortie in the rear.

This operation was completely successful; not only were the works of battery No. 1 damaged, and the three guns with which it was armed (the carriages belonging to these guns, as stated above, were already broken), but around batteries 2 and 3 there was a very sharp struggle which resulted in the Germans being repulsed, the guns rendered useless, the munitions scattered, and the gabions and earth-bags thrown down. A body of a hundred men had also been posted by the colonel on the slopes of the plateau to hinder the enemy from making his way along that escarpment to attack the work A.

Under favour of this sortie, two hundred workmen had been placed by Captain Allaud along the western ridge of the plateau, to raise a new work, B C D (Fig. 74), which consisted of three new redans presenting three batteries each for two guns, traced _en cremaillere_, and separated by strong traverses. By the morning of the 23rd of February the first battery, B, was sufficiently strong to resist projectiles.

Moreover, this battery could not be immediately attacked by battery No.

1, which was abandoned, and whose guns were useless. Forty-eight hours at least were required to enable the besieger to restore batteries 2 and 3. Batteries 4 and 5 must change their embrasures to direct their fire on this battery B, and only batteries 6 and 7 could sweep the redans A and B. Now these batteries, 6 and 7, received the fire of the two guns of the right face of the right-hand redan, of the two guns of the right face of the bastion II., of the two guns of the left face of the bastion III., and of a gun of the right face of the demi-lune 2. Every moment it was necessary to repair the gabionades, and replace the earth-bags; and since the beginning of the day the enemy had had ten artillerymen killed, and as many more wounded, in these two batteries.

The German engineer, who had so methodically traced the successive operations of the siege, was evidently embarra.s.sed by the strategy of the besieged. It was in his opinion barbarous, absolutely contrary to rules, and showed an ignorance of, and contempt for the art of fortification, which must end in disaster.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 74.]

During the night of the 23rd of February the Germans were finis.h.i.+ng their second parallel, except in the north-west side. They gave the eastern branch of this parallel an inclination towards the south,[63]

and commenced the batteries 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15. Battery 13, of two guns, was to rake the work A.

But that same night Captain Allaud terminated the second battery, C, started the third, D, had an intrenchment made on the ridge of the plateau, and raised an epaulement, E, to sweep the slopes, with a good parados.

If the besieged succeeded in finis.h.i.+ng and arming these works, the batteries 11 and 12 of the besieger would be taken obliquely, the boyaux of communication would be for the most part raked, and the siege would have to be recommenced. The German general was in a very bad humour, and blamed the commander of the engineers, who, with his plan on the table, endeavoured to show that his siege had been duly arranged, according to all the rules of the art; that the ignorant temerity of these Frenchmen could not be foreseen, and that if the Germans acted with vigour, they would be made bitterly to repent of thus advancing wedge-like on the flank of the attack; that such a thing had never been seen, and that if they concentrated three batteries on this salient in the air, they would soon crush it.

On the morning of the 24th of February two twenty-four pounders, placed in battery on the left face of bastion VIII., opened fire on batteries 13, 14, and 15 of the besieger, which they raked, and damaged greatly before they were completely finished. This time the German general proceeded from ill-humour to pa.s.sion and even menaces; so that the unfortunate officer of the engineers, repairing to these batteries after a violent scene to raise traverses and rectify the line, which he a.s.serted had not been executed conformably to his instructions, had his head broken by a splinter from a gun-carriage.

The direction of the engineering was then given to a young officer, who, after a conference with General Werther, modified the plan of the attack. During the 24th of the month there was scarcely any firing on either side, the besieger firing only at long intervals. The French garrison, which was anxious to economise its munitions, scarcely replied, but worked with ardour at perfecting its advanced works on the west.

A sortie effected during the night of the 24th, to ascertain whether the enemy was re-taking possession of batteries 1, 2, and 3, only encountered advanced posts, which retired after a feeble resistance.

These three batteries were in the condition to which they had been reduced by the preceding sortie.

Captain Allaud employed the whole of the night in strengthening the batteries B, C, D. They were armed with six guns, which on the morning of the 25th swept the boyaux of communication and a whole branch of the second parallel.

The Germans scarcely replied, and seemed to be abandoning their works.

They were probably going to try another attack. The colonel was somewhat disquieted at Captain Allaud's novel strategy, which, in face of a bold a.s.sailant, presented grave perils. The calmness of the enemy made him fear some unexpected design; perhaps a strenuous attack on that salient which, if it were taken, would furnish the besiegers with an excellent position for rapidly establis.h.i.+ng breach batteries against demi-lune No.

I, and bastion II. This salient therefore must be defended at any cost, since they had been led to establish it in order to disconcert the systematic attack of the Germans. Moreover, if they lost it, they would probably lose at the same time most of the guns that armed it; and the defence had only a restricted number.

Thirteen guns armed the advanced work. The two howitzers were placed in battery, one at the extremity of the salient D, pointed at battery No.

1, the other in the right re-entering _place d'armes_ of the demi-lune No. 1. Two guns were also placed on the right face of the demi-lune; two guns on the front, between the bastions I. and II., and two guns on the right and left faces of this bastion, to sweep the advanced works if they were taken. In all, nineteen guns and two howitzers. Besides, the ridge of the plateau was well defended by a good trench-shelter with traverses, that the work might not be able to be taken by a.s.sault in rear by the escarpment. One of the twenty-four pounders was placed in battery in the bastion V. of the main work, in the direction of its capital, to sweep this slope.

On the 25th of February only a few cannon-shots were exchanged. The mortar batteries of the besieger concentrated their fire on the western redan, without doing much damage; but during the night of the 25th the fire of the bombs was so incessant that it became difficult to labour at these works. It continued during the 26th, but the besieged dismounted three of these mortars with the guns left on the bastions II. and III.

The besieged on his side placed the two mortars in battery on the front between these two bastions, and sent projectiles into the batteries 11 and 12.

During the 26th of the month (the weather being clear) the enemy was seen to be erecting three batteries on the north-west, evidently directed against the batteries A, B, C, D, to crush them. They could not reply to their fire; the colonel therefore decided that they should bring back into the town temporarily the six guns of the batteries B, C, D. The bombs continued to fall into the works during the whole night of the 26th; and on the morning of the 27th the fire of the three batteries of the enemy, erected six hundred and fifty yards behind the abandoned battery No. 1, was opened against the redans B, C, D; it lasted the whole night of the 27th, damaged the blindages very severely, and threw down the traverses. On the morning of the 28th the _cremaillere_ ceased to be tenable, but the work A had not been seriously injured. The howitzer placed at D had been brought back behind the great traverse F surmounted with a banquette.

About nine o'clock the enemy resumed possession of the battery No. 1, installed four field-pieces there in spite of the fire of the bastions I. and II., and threw an a.s.saulting column against the damaged works D, C, B. This was what the colonel antic.i.p.ated. The column encountered the fire of the three guns left in the redans A, the howitzer, and a front of fusiliers posted on the great traverse F. Bending to the right and defiling below the crest of the plateau, this column was able to seize the work B, C, D, without excessive loss; and, sheltered behind the ruins of the earthworks, it was able to keep its ground there while the field-pieces of the battery No. 1 cleared off the defenders of the great traverse F. The colonel, however, had brought in again the guns left in work A, and gave orders to his men to fall back. But at this juncture, from the demi-lune No. 1, the bastions I. and II. and the curtain between these bastions, twenty-two guns and some stone mortars poured a tremendously heavy fire into the abandoned work, inflicting very serious loss on the besieger, who was endeavouring to hold his ground there.

This cannonade lasted till noon. The colonel, supposing the enemy to be giving way, sallied forth at the head of eight hundred men and fell on the posts which the Germans had begun to fortify. He had his attack sustained by the two howitzers. The work was retaken, but not without the loss of about a hundred men. The great point was to keep it. About two o'clock two field-pieces conveyed behind the ruined epaulements of batteries 2 and 3, and the four of battery No. 1, once more overwhelmed the salient with small bombs, b.a.l.l.s, and grape. The bastions I., II., and III. replied immediately, and dismounted some of the enemy's pieces, which were ill-protected by the battered-down epaulements. The colonel made his men lie down behind the traverses C, B, F, and awaited a second a.s.sault; which was in fact attempted about four o'clock, as the enemy believed the outwork was once more abandoned. The a.s.saulting columns pa.s.sed the first epaulement; but as soon as they found themselves in the last redan, D, they were received by a discharge of muskets almost at arm's length, from behind the traverse C (Fig. 75), followed by a bayonet charge; this time two hundred Germans remained on the field, and the remains of the a.s.saulting column fell back in disorder to the batteries, which recommenced firing and went on till nightfall.

The besieged remained masters of the place, but under the converging fire of the enemy they could not maintain this wedge-shaped and badly flanked position. There was no advantage in keeping it, sufficient to compensate for the loss they would suffer in resisting fresh attacks.

However, the colonel was unwilling to abandon the redans without cost to the enemy. The evening was employed in charging three powder-mines under the salients A and B, and raising earthworks to protect themselves as well as they could. All this night of the 28th of February the bombs fell thick on the outwork: the men were still tolerably protected on the _debris_ of the blindages. On the morning of the 1st of March the German artillery recommenced firing on the redans more briskly than the day before, from the three batteries behind and from battery No. 6.

The colonel withdrew his men into the town, and left only one platoon, well sheltered, with orders to fire the mines only when the enemy thought himself covered by the epaulement of the redan A, and was endeavouring to take up his position there.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 75.--ATTACK ON THE WORKS OF COUNTER-APPROACH.]

The 1st of March pa.s.sed by without a new a.s.sault being attempted by the besiegers. "They will try it to-night," thought Colonel Dubois. He went back about seven o'clock in the evening into the salient, to make certain that the train was well laid; and to encourage his men, he reinforced them with twenty fusiliers, enjoining upon them, when they saw their enemy, to make such a pretence of defending themselves as should be sufficient to draw him on; but to fall back promptly after setting fire to the train.

The bombardment was recommenced about eight o'clock, but at ten ceased for a time; and the colonel, who had ascended the cavalier of bastion II., thought the enemy was about to make a fresh attempt. In fact, notwithstanding the darkness of the night, he saw black ma.s.ses spreading successively through the works D, C, and B[64]. On arriving at the traverse F, they were received by a volley of musketry, to which they responded by a well-sustained fire. A ma.s.s of the enemy might be seen moving along the traverse F, and halting outside the redans A. At this moment three successive explosions were heard which made the ground tremble, succeeded by loud cries. The order was given: from the demi-lune No. 1. and bastions I. and II., all the pieces fired together on the outwork for half an hour; after which two hundred men of the garrison sallied forth and rushed on the enemy. The outwork contained only dead and wounded. Captain Allaud then went out in his turn with two hundred volunteer workmen, to fill up the trenches and destroy obstacles as far as possible. About midnight the bombs fell once more on the corner of the defence, and orders were given to retire within the fortress, so as to avoid unnecessary loss.

The siege had lasted twelve days, and the second parallel, which ought to have been terminated on the sixth day, was not finished. The garrison reckoned about a hundred and fifty men killed and wounded; but they had inflicted more serious losses on the besiegers.

General Werther found the affair a very tedious one, and was much annoyed. Some royalists, who had mansions in the faubourg on the other side of the river Abonne, were on very friendly terms with the troops of the coalition, and manifested their impatience and anger against "this handful of _brigands_" who were holding the upper town and prolonging a useless struggle. The German general was very anxious to come to terms with the garrison: four hundred of his men were already _hors de combat_, and he thought this a great expenditure in taking this "nest,"

which was supposed to be without a garrison or munitions. The news he had lately received from the north was more encouraging, but he was urged to finish the business.

One of the most zealous of the royalists, who were constantly in the German camp, proposed therefore to pay a visit to the governor, to inform him that Napoleon's armies were retreating at every point, that the capture of Paris was imminent, that the Bourbons would soon return amid the acclamations of the whole of France, and to urge the uselessness of a longer defence.

General Werther readily acceded to the proposal, and on the 2nd of March, Baron de X*** presented himself at the outpost with a German envoy. The colonel received the German officer and the baron in a room in one of the ruined barracks. The German envoy first asked for an exchange of prisoners. This was readily granted by the colonel. Then the Baron de X*** began in his turn to explain the object of his visit.

Scarcely had he begun when the colonel stopped him: "I do not know, and do not desire to know, sir, whether you come here to speak for yourself alone or as the representative of a certain number of your countrymen; but I will answer you briefly and clearly. I am here on the authority of superior orders to defend the place against the enemies of the country.

The political inducements which you urge have not the slightest weight with me. I utterly ignore them. I shall not surrender the place unless compelled by force or ordered to do so by the Emperor's Government.

Permit me to add, sir, that the part you are performing to-day is not an honourable one. What do you think of it, _Monsieur le capitaine_?" added he, turning to the German officer. The latter merely bowed slightly.

"The prisoners shall be exchanged this very day, if you desire it, man for man," said the colonel, rising. "As to you, sir, if you had not come here protected by a flag of truce, I should have you tried, and probably shot before the garrison, ere sunset." And dismissing his two visitors, the governor enjoined on the officer commissioned to accompany them back to the outposts not to allow them to have any communication with anyone.