X. 1792. right of the Austrian position, were carried by the impe- CHAP. tuous attack of the columns of the French left wing under Ferrand and Rosiere. Dumourier seized this moment to make his centre advance against the front of Jemappes. The column moved forward rapidly, and with little loss; but, on approaching the village, they were attacked in flank by some squadrons of horse, which pierced the mass, and drove back a portion of the French cavalry which supported it. The moment was in the highest degree critical; for at the same instant the leading battalions, checked by a tremendous fire of grape-shot, were beginning to waver at the foot of the redoubts. In this extremity, the heroism of a brave valet of Dumourier's, named Baptiste, who rallied the broken troops, arrested the victorious squadrons of the Austrians, while the intrepidity and conduct of a young general restored the front of the line. Quickly forming the broken regiments into one column, which he called the column of Jemappes, he placed himself at its head, and renewed the attack on the redoubts with so much vigour, that they were all carried, and the Austrians at length driven from their intrenchments in the centre of the field. This young officer was the Duc de Chartres, afterwards LOUIS PHILIPPE, King of the French. Such was the enthusiasm of the French in those early days of the Revolution, that the Duc de Chartres in this attack was attended by two young 1 Dum. iii. heroines, Théophile and Felicité Fernig, who combated 169, 173. in military dress at the head of the column. The former Toul. iii. 49. engaged in single combat, and made prisoner, an Austrian 1793, 62. colonel, whom she conducted, like Clorinda, in the "Jeru- 245. Lam. salem Delivered," disarmed to General Ferrand, who Gir. v. 226. commanded in that quarter of the field.1 1* Théophile and Felicité Fernig, who acquired great celebrity in the early annals of the Revolution, were the daughters of M. de Fernig, a retired officer in the village of Mortagne, on the extreme frontier of France, adjoining Flanders. Their father commanded the national guard of Mortagne; and his two daughters, unknown to their father, joined in its ranks, in the uniform of their brothers, who had departed for the army. Their secret was long kept; but at length it was discovered by M. Beurnonville, from their timidity in Ann. Reg. Th. iii. 241, Hist. des CHAP. X. 1792. 47. Victory of the French. While the battle was contested with so much obstinacy in the centre, Dumourier had equal cause for anxiety on the right. Beurnonville, though at first successful on that side, had paused when he beheld the confusion of the central division; and his movements vacillated between a desire to maintain the ground he had won, and anxiety to draw back his forces to support the column which seemed in such confusion in the plain. This hesitation was soon perceived by the enemy: the fire of the French artillery could hardly equal that of five redoubts which played upon their ranks; and a large body of Imperial cavalry was in front, ready to charge on the first appearance of disorder. Dumourier upon this hastened to the spot, rode along the front of two brigades of his old soldiers from the camp at Maulde, who rent the air with cries of Vive Dumourier! and succeeded in rallying the squadrons of horse, who were beginning to fall into confusion. The Imperial cavalry charged immediately after, but, being received by a volley within pistol-shot from the infantry, turned about in confusion; and the French dragoons being immediately detached in pursuit, the Austrians horse were irretrievably routed, and fled in confusion to Mons. Animated by this success, Dumourier made the victorious brigades chant the Marseillaise Hymn, and taking advantage of their enthusiasm, rushed forward at 1 Dum. iii. their head, and entered the redoubts by the gorge. Being Toul. iii. 49. still uneasy about the centre, however, he set off imme246. Ann. diately on gaining this success, at the head of six squadrons of cavalry, to reinforce the Duc de Chartres; but he had not proceeded above a few hundred paces when he met his aide-de-camp, the young Duc de Montpensier, with the 173, 175. Th. iii. 242, Reg. 1793, 62, 63. Hard. ii. 45, 47. receiving his public thanks for the gallantry they had displayed with their comrades in an action with the Austrians. They accompanied Dumourier on horseback during the battle of Jemappes, and had previously braved the terrors of the cannonade of Valmy. During the whole war in Flanders their bravery was conspicuous; and, what was perhaps still more remarkable, they preserved untouched, amidst the license and danger of a camp, their virgin honour and reputation. Their names were more than once mentioned with deserved honour in the Convention.-See LAMARTINE, Hist. des Girondins, v. 222, 224. CHAP. X. 1792. 48. Results of the battle. Tardy ad Dumourier. Flanders. joyful intelligence that the battle was there already won, and that the Austrians were retiring at all points to Mons. Such was the famous battle of Jemappes; the first pitched battle which had been gained by the Republican armies, and on that account both celebrated at the time, and important in its consequences, beyond the real merits vance of of the contest. The loss on both sides was nearly equal. Conquest of That of the Austrians amounted to five thousand men; they withdrew all their artillery, except fourteen pieces, and retired in good order to Mons. The French lost above six thousand men; but the consequences of the victory on the spirits and moral strength of the two parties were incalculable, and in fact led to the immediate conquest of the whole Netherlands. These great results, however, were rather owing to the terrors of the Imperialists, than to the vigorous measures of the French general. On the 7th he entered Mons, which opened its gates without resistance, and remained there in perfect inactivity for five days. Meanwhile the Austrian authorities took to flight in the rear, and abandoning Brussels, sought refuge in Ruremonde. The French, in the course of their advance, were every where received with enthu- Nov. 8, to siasm; Ath, Tournay, Neuport, Ostend, and Bruges, opened 12. their gates; and, after a slight skirmish with the reargnard, Brussels itself was occupied by their victorious troops. On the right, General Valence captured Charleroi, and Nov. 14. advanced to Namur; while on the left Labourdonnaye, 50, 52 after much hesitation, moved forward to Ghent and Ant- Jom. ii. 236, werp. Before the end of November the Imperialists re- Ann. Reg. tained nothing of their possessions in the Low Countries Th. iii. 246. but the citadels of the latter important city and Namur.1 Toul. iii. 239, 243. 1793, 63. Dumourier The magnitude of these successes excited the jealousy 49. of the Republican party at Paris. On the very day of Jealousy of the cannonade at Valmy, the Republic had been pro- at Paris. claimed, and royalty abolished over France. The rapid conquests of the triumphant general awakened the alarms of the Republican despots; another Cæsar, a second X. 1792. CHAP. Cromwell was denounced; Marat in his sanguinary journal, and Robespierre from the tribune, proclaimed him as threatening the liberty of the people. If the event in some degree justified their predictions, it must be conceded that they occasioned it, by showing him what fate he had to expect, if the chance of war, by exposing 53. Jom. ii. him to any considerable reverse, should place his head in their hands.1 1 Marat, Ami du Peuple, Nov. 4, and Dec. 16. Toul. iii. 52, 255. Th. iii. 263. 50. Scheldt. While these jealousies were forming at the seat of French ad- power, the career of conquest brought Dumourier to the vance to the Scheldt, where events productive of the most important Fall of Antwerp, consequences took place. The Executive Council, by a and opening decree on 16th November, commanded him to open that of that river. river to the Flemish vessels, in open defiance of the existing treaty with Holland-an event which could not fail to produce a rupture with the maritime powers. He, in consequence, directed a considerable body of forces to that quarter; and Labourdonnaye, after having made himself master of Malines, and a large depot of military stores which were placed in that city, advanced towards Antwerp. He was there superseded by Dumourier, in consequence of suspicions of his fidelity to the Republican government, and the command given to Miranda, an officer of zeal and talent, who afterwards became celebrated for his attempts to restore the independence of South America. On the 30th November, the citadel of that important city capitulated to the new commander, and the French became undisputed masters of the Scheldt. The Republican general lost no time in carrying into effect the favourite French project of opening that great artery of Flemish prosperity. He immediately wrote to Miranda,-" Lose not a moment in despatching a flat-bottomed boat down the Scheldt, to ascertain whether the navigation is really impeded, or if it is merely a report spread by the Dutch. Do every thing in your power to open the stream to commercial enterprise, that the Flemings, contrasting the generosity of the Republic with the avarice of the Austrian government, who sold the navigation of the Scheldt to the Dutch for 7,000,000 florins, may be induced to adopt the genuine principles of freedom.” Miranda lost no time in taking measures for carrying this design into execution; and in a few days the flotilla, moored at the mouth of the river, ascended to Antwerp amidst the acclamations of the inhabitants, who beheld in this auspicious event the dawn of a brighter era of commercial enterprise than had ever opened upon their city since the rise of the Dutch republic.1 Namur Dumourier Dec. 7. While the left wing of the army was prosecuting these 51. successes, the centre, under Dumourier himself, was also Liege and following the career of conquest. A strong rearguard of taken by the main body of the Austrians, posted near Roucoux, in person. was attacked on the 26th, and, after an obstinate engagement, the Imperialists retired, and the next morning Liege opened its gates to the victors. The revolutionary party immediately proceeded to measures of extreme violence in that city; a Jacobin club was formed, which speedily rivalled in energy and atrocity the parent institution in Paris; while the democratic party divided into opposite factions, on the formation of an independent republic, or a junction with France. Danton and Lacroix, the commissioners of the Convention, strongly supported the latter party, who speedily broke out into every species of violence. At the same time the right wing, under Valence, pressed the siege of the citadel of Namur. The Austrians, who had established themselves in the vicinity to annoy the Republicans, were first dislodged; and, the trenches being shortly after opened, the fort of Vilette, a strong work which impeded the operations of the besiegers, Dec. 2. was carried by assault on the 30th November. The Ann. Reg. citadel, in consequence, surrendered a few days after, and Th. iii. 266. the garrison, consisting of above two thousand men, were made prisoners of war.2 About the same time Miranda dispossessed the Imperialists from Ruremonde, and took VOL. II. 2 I 2 1793,66,67. Jom. ii. 249. Toul. iii. 252, 253. Dec. 6. |