This posting is part of the series based on the book, A Soldier of the King, by John Slider. It may be purchased by going to the link in the left column.
Chapter Thirteen: Torgau - The Third Battle
1760
Richard was enjoying his new rank and reputation within the regiment. The old veterans had begun to take him under their supervision. These were not bad men, but they were rough and hard and Richard began to adopt some of their less-than-gentle habits while on the march. Henri prayed for him.
“Quit worrying about me,” Richard said to Henri. “I’ll be fine.”
Richard was quite pleased with himself. He had surrendered his musket for the regimental colors. Though promoted to Gefreiter he was serving as the regiment’s acting Freikorporal, a rank which was normally filled by a young nobleman who was waiting on a commission. The Freikorporals usually were allowed to associate with the officers, though they served in the ranks with the soldiers. A Freikorporal was chosen to carry the colors for the regiment.
Since Richard was only an acting Freikorporal he could not associate with the officers, but his new duty allowed him some freedom of movement and excused him from many duties performed by the other soldiers. Baron von Steuben, now a major, at Richard’s request saw to it that Henri was appointed to the small group of soldiers which escorted the colors in battle, allowing the two friends to stay together. Henri appreciated the lighter duties and could devote more time to his drawings and correspondence with Johann and Hilda, and of course Maria.
Hilda wrote often for Johann and herself. They were deeply involved with the children of Herrnhut. Johann was wonderful with them, and as he grew in faith Johann was asked to take on some leadership responsibilities in the community. He was even studying to be a lay preacher.
Their baby, Richard Henri, was healthy and happy. Both Hilda and Johann were devoted to the youngster and looked forward to the time when the baby’s “big brothers,” as she called Richard and Henri, could come and see the new addition to the family.
Johann of course was proud of Richard’s success in the army, but through Hilda’s writings and his own he tried to warn Richard of the temptations and dangers of army life. “Learn from my mistakes, not your own,” he would write Richard.
Maria would write often, and her frequent and long letters were a great comfort to Henri. She would talk about Herrnhut and her faith. She would remind Henri that she loved him and that she prayer for him.
One day a letter from Maria arrived.
Dear Henri,
I am writing you today with a sad heart. My letter will be short because of my sadness.
My grandfather, Bishop von Zinsendorf, died last night. He was a great man, loved by our people and his granddaughter. I shall miss him.
His absence now makes me long even more for you to be here with me. I know you would help lift my heart and remind me of God’s love for us, as Grandfather would.
He is in heaven now with his Lord Jesus Christ whom he loves. I pray for us, Henri, that we may love Christ as he did, and one day the two of us may join Grandfather in heaven.
With all my love,
Maria
Henri had little time to mourn the loss of the great man for soon the regiment was on the march again, this time toward Torgau.
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Prussian soldiers in the army of Old Fritz were never aware of the greater strategic significance of their marches. All they knew was that they were to walk wherever they were ordered for however long they were ordered. Sometimes the army would move one direction and then reverse itself as the King sought out the enemy and the most advantageous position for battle. Often times soldiers did not know specifically where they were.
As the army wound its way westward from Liegnitz, Richard and Henri began to recognize familiar territory. Soon they realized that they were near Herrnhut.
Richard saw the longing in his friend’s face as they passed so near to that little village where Maria, Johann, Hilda, and the baby were. Richard himself thought it would be nice to pay a short visit, but they could not. They had to march.
Richard knew that if Henri ever got back to Herrnhut he would never leave. Henri debated with himself whether or not he should simply sneak out of camp one night and return the Herrnhut, but he concluded sadly that he would stay with Richard and the army. He had no love for the army, but he had a sense of duty and a fear of being hunted as a deserter. When he went back to Maria and Herrnhut he wanted to go without any hindrances. So, he stayed.
Eventually the Old Fritz turned his army northwest. The soldiers began to sense that the enemy was near, in the increased activity and haste of the cavalry and in the stern countenances of the officers.
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The city of Torgau in Saxony is located on the western side of the Elbe River. The area formed a triangle of roads.
The Prussian Army approached Torgau from the southwest, encamping several miles south of Mockrehna. The peace of the encampment would be a sharp contrast to the upcoming struggle. Both armies tried to sleep that evening, both knowing what was to come.
Richard had a dream that night. It came soon after he had drifted off to sleep. It did not begin as a dream, but simply as a remembering of the time when he nearly drowned and his father rescued him.
Richard was a small boy in a boat on the sea with his father. A storm came upon them suddenly and Richard was tossed from the boat. He could feel himself sinking under the water. The waves were choppy and the sea was cold. He could see his father reaching for him.
And then his father would disappear. No one was there to save him. He drifted farther from the now empty boat calling, “Father, Father, where are you? Help me!” He struggled to stay afloat, but could not see which direction was the shore. Soon he became too weak to care. He gave into the sea and slowly began to sink below the waves. As he went under, the waves gently rocked him. He felt no discomfort, only a numb blackness. There was a sense of relief coming over him.
Suddenly a hand crashed through the surface of the water. The hand firmly grasped Richard and pulled him from the choppy sea.
Richard fought against the power of its grasp. It was not his father’s hand. He could sense it pulling him through the storm toward the shore. Richard tried to shake loose and return to the water.
He opened his mouth to cry out, “Let me go! I want to go back!” He was awake.
“Richard,” whispered Henri. “Richard, you are dreaming. Are you all right?”
“What? Oh yes, Henri I’m fine. Go back to sleep.” Richard began to put on his uniform. “I’m getting up now. You get some more rest.”
“Very well, Richard. Do you need anything? Do you want to talk?”
“No. I’ll be fine. Go back to sleep.”
“Richard,” said Henri, “Maybe God is trying to speak to you. Maybe we should talk about your dream.”
“If it is God, I don’t want him to speak with me,” Richard snapped. “Now be quiet and go back to sleep.”
Richard, now in his uniform, left the tent and walked to the edge of the encampment. He walked past the glowing campfires and the snoring soldiers. He stopped at the edge of the camp and watched the predawn glow of the sun on the sky.
So God is trying to speak to me. Well, leave me alone, God. You’ve taken everything from me. I hate you, God. Leave me alone!
As the sun began to rise in the east, Richard turned his back and walked into camp. The army would be stirring soon, preparing for the battle. Richard’s eyes glowed with determination. He walked back to his tent with resolve. God, either you leave me alone, or I will go where you cannot find me. Either way, I will be free of you.
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The sunrise on Monday morning, November 3, 1760, was glorious. Henri was now awake, reading his Bible, saying his prayers, and thanking God for a beautiful morning. “Richard, look at what God has made! What a beautiful sight. Nothing man can make can compare!” marveled Henri.
Richard grumbled in response, “It will be a glorious battle.”
Soon the Prussian Army was formed for its march northward. Regiment No. 5 would lead the column at the beginning. Richard proudly carried the colors at the head of the column. Henri and the other escorts marched around him.
Marshall Leopold von Daun, their old Austrian nemesis, had arrayed the greater portion of his army in a line running northwest from Suptitz and east of Grosswig. His center covered the hill above Suptitz, his left was anchored on Zinna, and his right was anchored on some small ponds above Grosswig.
Though they possessed good ground, the Austrian lines were thin. “Old Fritz” determined that an attack in the center from both the rear and the front of the Austrian position would split the entire line and cause the enemy to collapse.
To execute this “pincer” movement, Frederick divided his army into two corps. The plan was for one corps to march eastward toward Torgau and then turn and attack the Austrian’s from the front at Suptitz. They were to be supported by massed artillery firing from a hill near Grosswig.
The other corps would march north, skirting the Austrian line, reach the Elbe River, turn and plunge into the enemy’s rear. The King took personal command of this wing of his army.
At dawn the King led 21,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry on its sweep to the Elbe. The troops crossed the forest of Torgau in three columns - infantry in the center and on the right, cavalry on the left. Regiment No. 5 led the right column closest to the enemy. Count Hans Ernst Karl von Ziethen commanded the other corps of 18,000 infantry, 7,000 cavalry, 48 heavy guns, and other artillery.
The left and center columns of the King’s corps quickly encountered a small Austrian small force of hussars and dragoons accompanied by three battalions of pandours. This small unit did little to halt the progress of the Prussians. Frederick ordered a few cannon fired at this small unit, and they quickly retreated to the Austrian main body.
Similarly, Frederick found opposition from ten Austrian grenadier battalions in a clearing at Weidenhain. Old Fritz deployed Regiment Number 5 to attack, and the enemy quickly retreated.
Farther on, the two Prussian infantry columns under the King, discovered that a regiment of dismounted Austrian cavalry was between them. Frederick immediately attacked.
Regiment Number 5 was the first into battle since they were in the lead of a column. Richard marched at the center of the regiment as it advanced on the enemy. Occasionally they halted to fire on the Austrians. Finally, they closed with the enemy. A hard, hand-to-hand conflict followed. Richard charged into the midst of the Austrians, shouting to his fellow soldiers to follow him forward. In a matter of minutes the entire Austrian cavalry regiment was destroyed. The Prussians resumed their march.
King Frederick’s corps, with Regiment Number 5 in the lead of the right column, emerged from the forest onto the small plain of Neiden in the rear of Daun’s Austrians at about 1:00pm. Frederick’s center column of infantry remained in the center, swinging wider, as did the cavalry, which had been on the extreme left. The corps, therefore, approached the Austrians from the rear in echelon with the right column in the lead. Richard purposefully marched forward with the colors. Henri dutifully stayed by his side. The regiment, already reorganized for battle, deployed its two battalions. Richard was front and center of the first battalion. Immediately around him were the color escorts. Two divisions of two platoons each were to his left, and two were to his right. Musicians were stationed behind the colors. Drummers were placed behind each flank. The second battalion was arrayed similarly, except for the colors, behind the first. In the midst of the massed regiment, between the two battalions, rode the Colonel-in-Chief, Ferdinand, Duke von Braunschweig, who was commanding the regiment in this engagement. Baron von Steuben, now a major, commanded the first battalion and marched beside the colors.
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The pace of the march increased. Regiment Number 5, since it was the lead column in the echelon, would engage the enemy first. Richard and Henri were in the front rank. Richard’s heart began to beat harder and harder with excitement. Henri prayed.
Some Austrian artillery fired ineffectively at the regiment and then made a quick retreat toward the main body at Zinna. Suddenly the King himself rode in front of the regiment into the small wood before them to reconnoiter the enemy positions. Richard was in awe and inspired by the bravery of his King. As Old Fritz returned to the lines, Richard joined in a lusty cheer for his monarch.
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The Austrian commander, Marshal Daun, at first could not believe that King Frederick was approaching from behind him. After many reports confirming the Prussian presence in his rear, Daun turned all four hundred pieces of artillery to bear on Frederick’s corps.
No matter how brilliant or brave Old Fritz was, he could not prevent the carnage that would occur. Daun’s massed artillery opened fire spraying the approaching Prussians with deadly accuracy.
As he marched forward Richard could see and feel the Austrian cannon finding their range. Explosions roared and shook the earth. Hot canon balls passed close giving a deep hum and sucking in the air behind them. Murderous fire swept through the lines of the first battalion of Regiment Number 5. Soldiers he had seen only a few hours before lay dead or dying. Still the regiment marched forward. Over eight hundred infantry were killed in this initial barrage.
The King’s corps, coming from the north of the Austrian positions, paused quickly to deploy into attacking formation with only his already depleted infantry. The infantry formed into three lines. The King did not wait for the other corps, commanded by Zeithen, to attack simultaneously from the south.
Old Fritz sent in the first line with Regiment Number 5. Again the Austrian artillery dealt death to the Prussians. The line advanced on the run, yet always in disciplined formation. The air was filled with smoke and screams. Richard heard nothing but the constant pounding of the canon to his front. Men were dying all around him. The colors he carried were being ripped by bullets and shrapnel.
A bright flash erupted barely twenty meters in front of him. Something tugged at his left leg. At the same instant Henri shouted his name, “Richard!” He turned to see his friend collapse to the ground. Richard reached for Henri, but could not move. He turned to call for help, but could see no one standing from the regiment.
Where are they? Am I alone? He turned again to face the enemy. His duty was to advance, but his left leg would not move. He looked down and saw that the left side of his uniform trousers had turned crimson. He began to feel dizzy. He looked at the ground down at his feet. Suddenly the ground rushed up to his face. He could smell the thick green grass.
Everything was quiet now. He could not move, but his face was turned toward Henri. Henri looked back at him. “Richard. Help me,” Henri gasped weakly.
Richard tried to move, but he could not. “Richard, help me.”
Richard could hear and see everything, but he could not move. He saw the green grass and the blue sky with white clouds. He heard flies buzzing, men moaning, horses whining, and the cheers of the Austrians. He could also hear the second line of Prussian infantry marching forward. I’ve got to warn them. Go back! Stay away! He tried to speak, but could not.
“Richard, help me, help .... me ....”
Richard’s world began to circle and soon there was darkness.
Hussars and dragoons are heavy and light cavalry. Pandours are Hungarian irregular light infantry dressed in Turkish-style uniforms and known for their marksmanship.
