GERMAN-FRENCH WAR. 



151 





tho samo day two squadrons of Pnu- 

 iii-iiirs stormed tho village of Vonoq, 

 i" Vouziers, and made many prisoners. 



is known in consequence of sever 

 I'oimoissanoesthat MacMahon had concentrated 



on Beaumont and LaChfeno, and accord- 

 ingly a simultaneous attack was ordered to bo 



on August 30th, by portions of tho Third 

 ami Fourth Armies. Tho battle began at noon 

 ainl lasted until night. Tho right of tho 

 1'ivMoh, which, after being driven from tho vil- 

 lage of Ocb.es, had occupied a very strong 

 |M)Mtion on the heights near tho village of 

 Stonne, was forced to retreat when the Fourth 

 German Corps occupied Beaumont. Tho First 

 Corps of tho Bavarians drove the French 

 northward toward Raucourt, and tho Saxons 

 inflicted heavy losses upon thorn while a re- 

 treat across the Mouse was effected to Mouzon. 

 More than 7,000 prisoners, 20 cannon, and 11 

 mitrailleuses, were the trophies of the day of 

 Beaumont. On tho part of the French tho 

 corps of Failly was almost the only portion of 

 the army which was actually engaged, but tho 

 whole army of MacMahon was delayed in its 

 march, so as to facilitate tho success of the 

 German plan. On August 31st tho German 

 armies continued to advance, and again had 

 several encounters at Remilly, Bazeilles, and 

 Carignan, which were, however, less bloody 

 than those of the preceding day. The army 

 of the Saxon Crown Prince pushed forward 

 beyond Oarignan and Mouzon. From the west 

 information was received that the army of the 

 Crown Prince of Prussia had nearly completed 

 tho turning of the enemy's position. A divi- 

 sion of Bavarians in the centre had orders to 

 harass the enemy as much as possible, in order 

 to lead him to believe that he had to face a 

 whole army, and thus detain him. The French 

 were chiefly concentrated near Bazcilles and 

 Douzy. The latter place was captured, as was 

 also the railroad bridge across the Mouse near 

 Bazeilles. 



In the evening of July 31st the iron circle 

 around the army of MacMahon was nearly 

 completed. It was at first intended to leave 

 to the Fourth Army, after its forced marches 

 and many encounters on August 30th and 81st, 

 one day of rest, and to defer the decisive at- 

 tack on Sedan to September 2d ; but, at an 

 interview held between the King and tho 

 crown prince, Moltke, and Blumenthal, on the 

 evening of August 81st, it was deemed pref- 

 erable not to wait, but to proceed with the 

 assault early on the morning of September 1st ; 

 and the Crown Prince of Saxony was accord- 

 to ingly ordered at one o'clock in the night 

 open fire at five o'clock. The plan of bat- 

 tle was as follows: The Twefth Corps (Sax- 

 ons), and, more to the right, the Guard, were to 

 advance upon Moncelle and Givonne; the 

 Fourth Corps partly to remain in reserve, and 

 partly to support the attack of tho Bavarian 

 Corps upon Bazeilles. Tho latter were to 

 cross tho Mouse at Rerailly and tako Bazeillos ; 

 VOL. x. 23 A 



tho Second Bavarian Corps was to advance 

 against Wadclincourt and Frenois, tho Elev- 

 enth against St. Menges; the Fifth Corps was 

 to Rapport the movement, and the WQrtemberg 

 Division to remain near Donchery for the 



frotection of the rood leading to M6zicrcs. 

 ho centre of the French position was in the 

 fortress of Sedan; its flank extended from 

 Givonne along tho Ardennes, which are sit- 

 uated in the rear of Sedan, to the road of 

 Mezieres. Tho crown prince, who had left his 

 night-quarters in tho village of Chemery at 

 4 o'clock in the morning, was to view the bat- 

 tle from a hill near Donchery ; the King from 

 a height south of Frenois. Tho battle was be- 

 gun by the First Bavarian Corps under Gen- 

 eral von der Tann, to whoso discretion it had 

 been left to attack Bazeilles even during the 

 night, and to arrest the enemy as much as pos- 

 sible until the arrival of tho other corps. At 

 four o'clock in the morning the vanguard of the 

 First Corps advanced to storm Bazeilles. For 

 six hours, the French, vigorously supported 

 by tho entire population, disputed the posses- 

 sion of this place with groat obstinacy, bat 

 about ten o'clock they abandoned it. Soon 

 after, a division of the Fourth Corps, which 

 arrived for the support of the Bavarians, 

 advanced beyond Bazeilles to the village of 

 Bnlan, in and around which the battle raged 

 until after four o'clock. It was taken by the 

 Germans, partly retaken by the French, bnt 

 finally, when fresh troops arrived, permanent- 

 ly occupied by the Germans, who drove tho 

 enemy back into the fortress of Sedan. As 

 the people of Bazeilles continued to fire from 

 their houses upon the German troops, even 

 after the place had been occupied* and as they 

 were charged with inhuman cruelties against 

 the German wounded left in their houses, the 

 enraged Bavarians burned down ne'arly tho 

 whole village. On the right flank of tho 

 Bavarians, the Saxons of the Twelfth Corps 

 advanced at seven o'clock in the morning from 

 Douzy, which had been, occupied on August 

 81st, to tho village of La Moncelle, posted their 

 artillery on tho height west of tho village, and 

 took from the Zouaves three mitrailleuses. -In 

 the afternoon one division of the corps under 

 the command of Prince George of Saxony, ad- 

 vancing to the right, stormed the heights to 

 tho west of Daigny, and took about 2,000 pris- 

 oners. On this part of the battle-field fightin.tr 

 ceased about four o'clock p. M. ; when tho 

 Saxons held tho heights of Moncello and Dai- 

 gny. Still more to the right, the corps of the 

 Guard marched upon Givonne, a place situated 

 north of Daigny. After the enemy's vanguard 

 between Givonne and Villers-Ternay had been 

 driven back, and the artillery of tho corps 

 been mounted on the heights east of Givonne, 

 the vanguard, about half-past nine o'clock in 

 the morning, took Givonne and captured a 

 battery with seven pieces and throe mitrail- 

 leuses. One division turned toward Daigny, 

 penetrated, in the midst of a violent infantry 



