FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102  
103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   >>   >|  
er, but died of that wound the same day as the king had his horse shot under him at the siege of that town. We made no question of passing the river here, having brought everything so forward, and with such extraordinary success; but we should have found it a very hot piece of work if Tilly had lived one day more, and, if I may give my opinion of it, having seen Tilly's battery and breastwork, in the face of which we must have passed the river, I must say that, whenever we had marched, if Tilly had fallen in with his horse and foot, placed in that trench, the whole army would have passed as much danger as in the face of a strong town in the storming a counterscarp. The king himself, when he saw with what judgment Tilly had prepared his works, and what danger he must have run, would often say that day's success was every way equal to the victory of Leipsic. Tilly being hurt and carried off, as if the soul of the army had been lost, they began to draw off. The Duke of Bavaria took horse and rid away as if he had fled out of battle for his life. The other generals, with a little more caution, as well as courage, drew off by degrees, sending their cannon and baggage away first, and leaving some to continue firing on the bank of the river, to conceal their retreat. The river preventing any intelligence, we knew nothing of the disaster befallen them; and the king, who looked for blows, having finished his bridge and ravelin, ordered to run a line with palisadoes to take in more ground on the bank of the river, to cover the first troops he should send over. This being finished the same night, the king sends over a party of his guards to relieve the men who were in the ravelin, and commanded 600 musketeers to man the new line out of the Scots brigade. Early in the morning a small party of Scots, commanded by one Captain Forbes, of my Lord Reay's regiment, were sent out to learn something of the enemy, the king observing they had not fired all night; and while this party were abroad, the army stood in battalia; and my old friend Sir John Hepburn, whom of all men the king most depended upon for any desperate service, was ordered to pass the bridge with his brigade, and to draw up without the line, with command to advance as he found the horse, who were to second him, come over. Sir John being passed without the trench, meets Captain Forbes with some prisoners, and the good news of the enemy's retreat. He sends him dir
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   78   79   80   81   82   83   84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102  
103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

passed

 

trench

 

danger

 
brigade
 

Forbes

 

Captain

 

finished

 
retreat
 

bridge

 

ravelin


commanded

 

ordered

 
success
 

advance

 

command

 
palisadoes
 

ground

 

troops

 

disaster

 

intelligence


befallen
 

service

 
looked
 

prisoners

 

guards

 

abroad

 

battalia

 

observing

 
regiment
 

morning


depended
 

desperate

 

relieve

 

Hepburn

 
friend
 

musketeers

 

Bavaria

 

opinion

 
battery
 

breastwork


strong

 

storming

 

marched

 

fallen

 
question
 

forward

 

extraordinary

 

passing

 
brought
 

counterscarp