Diary of a Napoleonic Footsoldier (5 page)

After two weeks had passed, a few regiments remained before this fortress; and the others, in which I belonged, had to begin the siege at Glatz. When the blockade of this stronghold was begun, the Württemberg troops took up their camp in a rye field just blooming, and the straw was of the right length to serve for the barracks, which was a great advantage in camping.

When I arrived in this field, I hastened to look for my brother, who was in the Lilienberg Regiment. Here we met, embraced, and greeted one another, and joy filled our hearts. Then he took me to his barracks and gave me trousers, shirts, and several other pieces of clothing which I needed, since, as I have already said, I had lost almost everything at Colberg.

Then, when the stronghold of Glatz was surrounded by blockade, several surprise attacks were undertaken against us, which always ended, nevertheless, in a loss to the Prussians. After two weeks had passed, we undertook against the town and the fortress an attack which started from each camp at about one o’clock at night. Everyone had to be careful to prevent any noise from the rifles and cannon, and we moved in columns through the grain fields toward the outposts. The men were already wet through up to their necks from the dew on the grain. Then the outposts began to fire, the command to storm was given, and everyone had to go through a river, at times up to his arms in water. A breastwork facing us was mounted, and under a rain of large and small bullets the Prussians along with their women and children were stabbed and shot to death, and some were hurled alive, together with their horses and cannon, over the sides of the walls. Then the Lilienberg Regiment pressed upon the city gates, an attempt which, in spite of great losses, was of no avail, however. While the enemy had to defend themselves around and in the crowded part of the city, a terrible shelling of light and heavy artillery broke in upon us, and all of us had to abandon the positions we had taken. Large mines were exploded in the breastwork, and everywhere
there flew rockets, so-called pitch-rings, which could be put out only with small boxes as they fell on the ground.

So everyone returned to the camp in the “finest” disorder, and at daybreak everyone began looking up his friends. With fear-pressed heart I searched for my brother; and, as he was also looking for me, we found each other unharmed. Anyone who understands brotherly love can certainly imagine our joy at this moment.

When this attack was over, it was said that we would attack again the next night if the fortress did not surrender. This attack was not made, however, because of the announcement of peace. If anyone would or could be an onlooker at frightful explosions, he could get the finest view at a fortress attack, which is a more remarkable sight by far than a battle on a field. The bombs and grenades criss-crossing in the air in such great numbers, all floating like balls of fire in the air and exploding or bursting in the air or on the ground with a small cannon report, the slow ascent of each shell, the fast descent, often also a collision of them in the air—all this is a sight of moving beauty. It is different with the rockets which fly invisibly by with a small whisper. The grenades, however, and more so the bombs, behave like vultures in the air which race past the ear with storming wings.

We remained a few days longer in the camp, then came to a permanent camp in the region near Reichenbach, and were finally stationed every two weeks in another region. On St. Jacob’s Day all the Württembergers had to leave Silesia, go by way of Frankfort-on-the-Oder, and take up permanent camp in the Brandenburg district,
especially the region around Berlin near Stargard, Fürstenwalde, Beeskow, etc.

Here we stayed for eleven weeks among these poor peasants, who because of the infertility of the region had no provisions except potatoes, beans, and mutton. In speaking often of the good food which they had to give us, they hinted that they believed we must come from good country, since we, having the best of food, did not show any appreciation of it and because of our appetite had butchered all their sheep.

For one who wishes to discuss the poverty and its causes, my observations are set forth in the following manner: First, these people still owe their noblemen too much socage service in that the baron demands a quarter-share cottager’s hired hand or son to work for him four, five, or six days weekly without wages. Likewise he takes a daughter for six years without paying her wages just as the reigning prince takes the son for his army. A half- or full-share cottager has to serve more, in proportion to the size of his property; so there are still villages where a man with his wife and children must work from three to five days for the nobleman, the fourth, fifth, or only the sixth day remaining for him to work for himself. However, he gets as much land from the baron for himself as he wants, or is able to till.

Second, the soil is only light sand, so that when sown to seed the tilled patches must even be beaten with a lath and, to prevent the blowing away of sand and seed, must be pressed down firmly. Naturally, therefore, only oats, potatoes (“
Undeln
”), and rye, seldom any wheat, can be grown.

Third, there is a lack of culture, especially of physical training, of willingness to work, of understanding and religion. Seldom does anyone go to church, only old grandmothers and old men, so that often, as I saw myself, the preacher would read his Sunday sermon for eight or ten persons with a similar lack of ardor. I learned also from my landlord, who had a boy of eleven or twelve years of age, that this boy could not read or write and did not know religious teachings. A book lying there gave me occasion to find this out.

As I was reading, I happened to run across the Ten Commandents. I asked whether the Ten Commandments were taught to the children in the schools. The landlord said, “Yes, they are supposed to be taught, but my son does not know them yet, nor can he read or write. I must demand, however, that he still be taught it.” Since, therefore, these people are little educated even in their own religion, un-Christian and heretical books serve to make them hate other denominations, and such people are weak enough to believe fables of this kind. I became convinced of this as I read in such a book and afterward spoke of it to the landlord. Therefore I played the part of a grave-digger, bound a stone to this book, and sank it in the big lake.

After I had been in this village for three months, the entire corps journeyed home. The march went through Plauen, Nuremberg, Bayreuth, Ansbach, and Dinkelsbühl, into Ellwangen. The King awaited us and then reviewed us there on the Schlossfeld. It was extraordinarily cold on this day, although we did not consider this unusual, since we were already accustomed to cold. Before we
came to Ellwangen, my company passed the night in the little town of Weiltingen, which is “Old Württembergian.” There everyone was supposed to give shouts of joy at crossing the border, but this was followed by a good deal of swearing because of the bad quarters we were given there. This campaign was now ended, and my two sisters and friends visited us two brothers. The reunion was a joy which could not have been greater evidence of family love.

W
HILE I WAS WORKING in various ways at my trade after the Prussian campaign, the war with Austria broke out in 1809, and I was called into the garrison at Stuttgart. My regiment and several others were already on the march to Schorndorf, and the route was to lead through Bavaria. On the way, however, a courier overtook us, bringing the command to march back to Stuttgart again the next day, and then we struck a route toward Tyrol through the Adlerberg territory. We came then through Hechingen, through the Killerthal, Saulgau, Altshausen, and then the Monastery of Weingarten. There we were already meeting outposts of the enemy, but we still had good quarters and especially a lot of wine from the Lake [of Constance].

When the Tyrolean insurgents heard of a large army reenforced by the allied Baden and French forces, they retreated, and we moved forward on all sides. The army then went through Ravensburg and to Hofen on the Lake of Constance while the enemy moved with several skirmishes to Lindau and finally back into the mountains.

In Hofen the Lilienberg Regiment was also stationed, in which my brother served, and we met in his quarters. It is easy to imagine that we two brothers rejoiced
heartily at our reunion. The worry of one of us about the possible misfortune of the other was so much greater because we could seldom see and never protect each other.

After the aforesaid reunion I had to go through Buchhorn to Lindau. This latter city lies on an island in the lake, and a wooden bridge leads into it. The insurgents had to move out of this city for fear of being shut in. The first battalion of my regiment stayed ten weeks in this city, in which French horsemen were also stationed. During this time we had to make frequent attacks upon the enemy, among which the following were especially noteworthy.

As I stood at my outpost with the picket near the bleaching meadow facing Bregenz, the enemy moved in over the vineyards. The outposts had to move back to the picket. The picket fired, but the enemy approached. While each soldier fired wherever he could take a position, everyone stationed himself behind the bleaching house and took up the defense. To be able to aim better, I ran into a bleaching hut built of boards which lay well forward. A staircase went up from the outside, and I stationed myself on this, resting my rifle on the railing, where I could take aim at every man who approached. During the time while I was firing forty out of my sixty cartridges, the bullets kept raining down like hail upon my hut, and the enemy came too close upon me. Now I sprang down the steps and across the meadows back to the picket, which, however, was already retreating toward the city. Then I had to jump through gardens and hedges, and
the enemy came to the gate just a little later than I did. I almost choked, gasping for breath.

When all of us had retreated into the city, the enemy remained outside the city three days, firing continually. We, however, had erected a bridge-head (breastwork) of sandbags and a trench and defensive iron spikes. We fired through the loopholes and from the wall with cannon and small guns. During the heavy shelling I shot a man in front of a garden house as he came a little way forward toward the breastwork and aimed into the loophole; but, after I shot and he suddenly fell, several others wanted to carry off this dead man, as was often done; however, the more openly it was done, the more often other men were hit too. Finally we fired with cannon, throwing projectiles into the large and beautiful garden houses, setting them all in flames. On the third day the enemy could no longer hold out, because of the heavy artillery fire, and moved back into the mountains.

As soon as the road was cleared, the trees standing in the gardens were cut down by the thousands, along with the beautiful box hedges which stood there tall and beautiful like walls, and the rest of the buildings were completely torn down, so that they would not be a hindrance to the shelling any more. This inflicted a damage of one million florins on the city.

After a time we again undertook a general attack, for which the Lilienberg Regiment, Baden and French soldiers, and the sharpshooters joined us. The enemy was attacked in front of Lindau and was driven in retreat back into the mountains. Before the attack volunteers were
called upon to advance by skirmishes, and I went with them. The number was 160 men in all, and we were under the command of a lieutenant. Under the continual firing about fifty sharpshooters were cut off from us during the pursuit and led captive into the mountains. All of us volunteers pressed halfway up the mountain which was two hours distant from Lindau in order to recover the captives. When we saw that the columns advancing behind us were no longer following but were dividing in the middle and that our detachment had moved three quarters of an hour too far away, we heard the firing far to the left and far to the right as though it came from Kempten and, to the right, from Bregenz. This seemed to be a turning of our men into retreat, which assumption proved to be true. Now the lieutenant wanted to retreat with us, but we all complained at that and still wanted to bring back the captives from the mountains. The lieutenant would not give in, and we had to go back to a little village at the foot of the mountains. When we came into this village, we were fired upon from the houses and gardens and our army had already retreated halfway toward Lindau. Everyone then had to rely upon his legs; and, amid much firing, we had to run until we almost choked for want of air. We met the whole corps in an oak wood a half hour out of Lindau. Here we wanted to take a stand, but could not because of the danger of being surrounded by insurgents.

Now the detachment retreated slowly until near the city, and then took up again the position for firing. Here we held out for half an hour, everyone firing as much as he could. The cannon were hauled out, but the grapeshot
fire did not help either, since the enemy formed a half-moon line and only a few could be hit, for they lay down on the ground behind the hedges, trees, and hills, while every shot of theirs could hit our compressed column. Finally too many of our men fell, and the enemy drew near the city gate in order to cut everyone off; this hurried our retreat into the city.