LON 
Bad been greatly augmented. Of thofe who remained in 
his ranks a great proportion were enemies, more formi¬ 
dable from not having yet openly declared themfelves. 
All his oufpotts and fortified lines were gone; and no 
profpeft remained, but that the victorious encircling 
armies would (form him in this laft retreat, and all his 
troops be deftroyed or captured. He no longer therefore 
delayed retiring by the avenue which (till remained open. 
The evening had fcarcely clofed, when the whole army 
began to defile by the road leading to Weiflenfels. The 
paffage, narrowed as it was at prefent, was attended with 
much impediment. Five or fix rivers here running paral¬ 
lel and ciofe to one another, and requiring bridges over 
each, formed a long and narrow defile, through which an 
encumbered army could march only flowly and with dif¬ 
ficulty. Day broke, and only part of the troops was on 
the other fide. Bonaparte then caufed the magiftrates of 
Beipfic to fend a deputation, requefting that hoftilities 
might be fufpended for the purpofe of arranging a capitu¬ 
lation. The objeft of this demand was evident 5 he merely 
xvifhed to retreat unmolelted, and extricate his army from 
their prefent embarrafTment. It was determined that fuch 
a refpite fhould by no means be granted. The emperor 
Alexander received the meflenger in perfon; and, in pre¬ 
fence of the army, announced to him this refolution. 
The allied forces were then led on to the attack; after a 
fhort refiftance, the city was carried; and, about eleven 
o’clock, the emperor of Rutha, the king of Pruflia, and 
the crown-prince of Sweden, arriving from different quar¬ 
ters, met in the great fquare of Leipfic, amid the trium¬ 
phal acclamations of the army and people. Bonaparte 
had quitted the city about two hours before, leaving a 
large party of his army. To them the difafter was 
greatly increafed, when the confederate forces, on en¬ 
tering the city, were joined by all the remaining Saxon 
and other German troops. The French, now attacked 
and fired upon on every fide, no longer knew where to 
turn; the narrow bridge was foon choked by crowds of 
fugitives trampling upon each other. The paffage was 
flopped; prifoners were taken by thoufands; and of the 
few who endeavoured to fave themfelves by fwimming, 
moll periflied in the waters. The whole rear-guard of 
the French army, including fome of its moll diltinguifhed 
commanders, and 100 pieces of cannon, fell into the hands 
of the confederates. Among the prifoners were Regnier, 
Brune, Vallery, Bertrand, and Laurifton. Macdonald 
with difficulty gained by fwimming the oppolite bank ; 
but prince Poniatovvlky, in endeavouring to do the fame, 
funk, and was drowned. This unfortunate prince (Jo- 
feph Poniatowlky) was nephew to Staniflaus-Augultus, 
the laft king of Poland ; and no doubt had been cajoled 
into a fubfervience to the views of Bonaparte by the flat¬ 
tering profpect of the reltoration of his country to its 
former rank among the nations of Europe. The circum- 
llances attending his death, as related by his aid-de-camp, 
are as follow : When the French army began to retreat, 
the prince was charged by Napoleon with the defence of 
that part of the fuburbs of Leipfic which lies neared to 
the Borna-road : for this fervice he had only 2000 Poiifh 
infantry afllgned him. Perceiving the French columns on 
liis left flank, in full retreat, and the bridge completely 
choked up with their artillery and carriages, fo that there 
was no poflibility of getting over it, he drew his fabre, 
and, turning to the officers w ho were about him, “ Gen¬ 
tlemen,” laid he, “ it is better to fall with honour.” With 
thefe words he rulhed, at the head of a few PoliIh cuiraf- 
fiers and the officers furrounding him, upon the advanc¬ 
ing columns of the allies. He had been previouily wounded 
on the 14th and 16th; and on this occafion alfo received 
a mulket-ball in his left arm. He neverthelefs pufiled 
forward ; but found the fuburbs full of the allied troops, 
who haftened up to take him prifoner. He cut his way 
through them, received another wmund through his crofs, 
threw himfelf into the Pleiffe, and with the affiftance of 
ills officers reached the oppolite .bank in fafety, leaving 
Vol. XIII. No. 941. 
DON. 319 
his horfe behind in the river. Though much exhaufted, 
he mounted another, and proceeded to the Elder,, which 
was already lined by Saxon and Pruflian riflemen. Seeing 
them coming upon him on all tides, he plunged into the 
river, and inltantly funk, together .with his horfe. Seve¬ 
ral officers, who threw themfelves in after him, were like- 
wife drowned ; and others were taken on the bank or in 
the water. The body of the prince was found on the fifth 
day (OCt. 24), and taken out of the water by a fiffierman. 
He was dreffed in his gala uniform, the epaulets of which 
were ftudded with diamonds: his fingers were covered 
with rings fet with brilliants; and his pockets contained 
fnuff-boxes of great value, and other trinkets. Many of 
thofe articles were eagerly purchafed by thePolifii officers 
who were made prifoners, evidently for the purpofe of 
being tranfmitted to his family : fo that the whole pro¬ 
duced the filherman a very conliderable fum. 
Ill-fated Poniatowlki! through all his illuftrious courfe, 
ever molt unfortunate when his caufe was pureft ; happy 
only in clofir.g it when there was no alternative but dif- 
honour, and when life mult have been miferable alike in 
viftory or in defeat! Devoted from his earlieft years to 
his country ; feeking her enemies in every field ; aftonifh- 
ing the veteran companions of Pulawfki and Zaremba by 
his romantic valour; the delight of the young and the 
gay, whom he outffione in court and camp ; the likenefs 
of a king for dignity of prefence, of an ancient cavalier 
for his high-bred gallantry; zealous in friendlhip, to 
w hich he would facrifice all but honour and love ; an en- 
thufialt for liberty, but unmindful that there were other 
tyrants belide Frederic and Catharine—how melancholy 
to find him beguiled by the deceitful promifes of one who 
never fpoke of freedom but with the delign to enflave. 
What a leflbn to princes, when they view the very flower 
of their fubje£ls, the men beft fitted to adorn and fortify 
their thrones, driven into exile, and fubmitting to thole 
they fhould have fought againft, after proving, to the con- 
viflion of the coldeft heart, that wealth, honours, life it- 
felf, were indifferent to them without liberty ! Suffice it 
to fay, that he fell as he had lived, in the difplay of pro¬ 
digious courage, and overwhelmed with afiiiiffion. He 
was buried with the military honours due to his rank ; 
and a folemn dirge was performed for him, with a fplen- 
did ceremonial in the metropolitan church of Warfaw, 
though now occupied by the Ruffians. In fail the com¬ 
mon licenfe of abufe has been Ipared by all parties upon 
this occafion 5 and not a word has ever been whifpered by 
the allies againll this coadjutor of Bonaparte—a plain in¬ 
dication, that, confident as they W'ere, and well might be, 
in their caule againft France, they felt what a weak part 
it had towards Poland. 
The king of Saxony, with all his court, ranked among 
the prifoners. It was far too late now for this monarch 
to obtain any merit by joining the caufe of the allies; 
and as, contrary to his content and authority, the whole 
of his troops already ranged under their llandard, there 
was no fervice which he could render them. It was 
judged proper to inflict lome chaftifement for that injury 
which, on a former occafion, the common caufe had fuf- 
tained from him ;■—and he was fent, under a guard, to 
the caftle of Eyfenach. 
Such was the termination of this great and dreadful 
fucceffion of combats; to which the annals of Europe, 
enfanguined as they are, had never yet produced a pa¬ 
rallel. Never had the work of deftruttion proceeded 011 
fo vaft and terrible a fcale ; nor had any field been fo de¬ 
luged with the beft blood of her fons. Famine and pef- 
tilence, which follow in the train of war, were there, and 
did their part in the work of death. In viewing this 
dreadful fcene, the philanthropic mind could however con- 
fole itfelf by refleiling, that thus only could the injured 
caule of mankind be avenged ; and that, through this 
bloody portal, peace and freedom were to revifit the earth. 
This was indeed a fplendid and immortal triumph ; it was 
one, which, according to all human appearance, afforded 
4 - U the 
