Memoirs of a Cavalier
by
Daniel Defoe
Part 2 out of 6
talk with me.
When we were going to the king he inquired of me where I had been, and
what occasion brought me to the army. I told him the short history of
my travels, and that I came hither from Vienna on purpose to see the
King of Sweden and his army. He asked me if there was any service he
could do me, by which he meant, whether I desired an employment.
I pretended not to take him so, but told him the protection his
acquaintance would afford me was more than I could have asked, since I
might thereby have opportunity to satisfy my curiosity, which was the
chief end of my coming abroad. He perceiving by this that I had no
mind to be a soldier, told me very kindly I should command him in
anything; that his tent and equipage, horses and servants should
always have orders to be at my service; but that as a piece of
friendship, he would advise me to retire to some place distant from
the army, for that the army would march to-morrow, and the king was
resolved to fight General Tilly, and he would not have me hazard
myself; that if I thought fit to take his advice, he would have me
take that interval to see the court at Berlin, whither he would send
one of his servants to wait on me.
His discourse was too kind not to extort the tenderest acknowledgment
from me that I was capable of. I told him his care of me was so
obliging, that I knew not what return to make him, but if he pleased
to leave me to my choice I desired no greater favour than to trail a
pike under his command in the ensuing battle. "I can never answer it
to your father," says he, "to suffer you to expose yourself so far."
I told him my father would certainly acknowledge his friendship in the
proposal made me; but I believed he knew him better than to think he
would be well pleased with me if I should accept of it; that I was
sure my father would have rode post five hundred miles to have been
at such a battle under such a general, and it should never be told
him that his son had rode fifty miles to be out of it. He seemed to
be something concerned at the resolution I had taken, and replied very
quickly upon me, that he approved very well of my courage; "but," says
he, "no man gets any credit by running upon needless adventures, nor
loses any by shunning hazards which he has no order for. 'Tis enough,"
says he, "for a gentleman to behave well when he is commanded upon any
service; I have had fighting enough," says he, "upon these points
of honour, and I never got anything but reproof for it from the king
himself."
"Well, sir," said I, "however if a man expects to rise by his valour,
he must show it somewhere; and if I were to have any command in an
army, I would first try whether I could deserve it. I have never yet
seen any service, and must have my induction some time or other. I
shall never have a better schoolmaster than yourself, nor a better
school than such an army." "Well," says Sir John, "but you may have
the same school and the same teaching after this battle is over; for
I must tell you beforehand, this will be a bloody touch. Tilly has
a great army of old lads that are used to boxing, fellows with
iron faces, and 'tis a little too much to engage so hotly the first
entrance into the wars. You may see our discipline this winter, and
make your campaign with us next summer, when you need not fear but
we shall have fighting enough, and you will be better acquainted with
things. We do never put our common soldiers upon pitched battles the
first campaign, but place our new men in garrisons and try them in
parties first." "Sir," said I, with a little more freedom, "I believe
I shall not make a trade of the war, and therefore need not serve an
apprenticeship to it; 'tis a hard battle where none escapes. If I
come off, I hope I shall not disgrace you, and if not, 'twill be some
satisfaction to my father to hear his son died fighting under the
command of Sir John Hepburn, in the army of the King of Sweden, and I
desire no better epitaph upon my tomb."
"Well," says Sir John, and by this time we were just come to the
king's quarters, and the guards calling to us interrupted his reply;
so we went into the courtyard where the king was lodged, which was in
an indifferent house of one of the burghers of Dieben, and Sir John
stepping up, met the king coming down some steps into a large room
which looked over the town wall into a field where part of the
artillery was drawn up. Sir John Hepburn sent his man presently to me
to come up, which I did; and Sir John without any ceremony carries me
directly up to the king, who was leaning on his elbow in the window.
The king turning about, "This is the English gentleman," says Sir
John, "who I told your Majesty had been in the Imperial army." "How
then did he get hither," says the king, "without being taken by the
scouts?" At which question, Sir John saying nothing, "By a pass,
and please your Majesty, from the English ambassador's secretary at
Vienna," said I, making a profound reverence. "Have you then been at
Vienna?" says the king. "Yes, and please your Majesty," said I; upon
which the king, folding up a letter he had in his hand, seemed much
more earnest to talk about Vienna than about Tilly. "And, pray, what
news had you at Vienna?" "Nothing, sir," said I, "but daily accounts
one in the neck of another of their own misfortunes, and your
Majesty's conquests, which makes a very melancholy court there." "But,
pray," said the king, "what is the common opinion there about these
affairs?" "The common people are terrified to the last degree," said
I, "and when your Majesty took Frankfort-upon-Oder, if your army had
marched but twenty miles into Silesia, half the people would have run
out of Vienna, and I left them fortifying the city." "They need not,"
replied the king, smiling; "I have no design to trouble them, it is
the Protestant countries I must be for."
Upon this the Duke of Saxony entered the room, and finding the king
engaged, offered to retire; but the king, beckoning with his hand,
called to him in French; "Cousin," says the king, "this gentleman has
been travelling and comes from Vienna," and so made me repeat what
I had said before; at which the king went on with me, and Sir John
Hepburn informing his Majesty that I spoke High Dutch, he changed
his language, and asked me in Dutch where it was that I saw General
Tilly's army. I told his Majesty at the siege of Magdeburg. "At
Magdeburg!" said the king, shaking his head; "Tilly must answer to me
some day for that city, and if not to me, to a greater King than I.
Can you guess what army he had with him?" said the king. "He had two
armies with him," said I, "but one I suppose will do your Majesty
no harm." "Two armies!" said the king. "Yes, sir, he has one army
of about 26,000 men," said I, "and another of about 15,000 women and
their attendants," at which the king laughed heartily. "Ay, ay," says
the king, "those 15,000 do us as much harm as the 26,000, for they
eat up the country, and devour the poor Protestants more than the men.
Well," says the king, "do they talk of fighting us?" "They talk big
enough, sir," said I, "but your Majesty has not been so often fought
with as beaten in their discourse." "I know not for the men," says the
king, "but the old man is as likely to do it as talk of it, and I hope
to try them in a day or two."
The king inquired after that several matters of me about the Low
Countries, the Prince of Orange, and of the court and affairs in
England; and Sir John Hepburn informing his Majesty that I was the son
of an English gentleman of his acquaintance, the king had the goodness
to ask him what care he had taken of me against the day of battle.
Upon which Sir John repeated to him the discourse we had together by
the way; the king seeming particularly pleased with it, began to take
me to task himself. "You English gentlemen," says he, "are too
forward in the wars, which makes you leave them too soon again." "Your
Majesty," replied I, "makes war in so pleasant a manner as makes
all the world fond of fighting under your conduct." "Not so pleasant
neither," says the king, "here's a man can tell you that sometimes it
is not very pleasant." "I know not much of the warrior, sir," said
I, "nor of the world, but if always to conquer be the pleasure of the
war, your Majesty's soldiers have all that can be desired." "Well,"
says the king, "but however, considering all things, I think you would
do well to take the advice Sir John Hepburn has given you." "Your
Majesty may command me to anything, but where your Majesty and so many
gallant gentlemen hazard their lives, mine is not worth mentioning;
and I should not dare to tell my father at my return into England
that I was in your Majesty's army, and made so mean a figure that
your Majesty would not permit me to fight under that royal standard."
"Nay," replied the king, "I lay no commands upon you, but you are
young." "I can never die, sir," said I, "with more honour than in your
Majesty's service." I spake this with so much freedom, and his Majesty
was so pleased with it, that he asked me how I would choose to serve,
on horseback or on foot. I told his Majesty I should be glad to
receive any of his Majesty's commands, but if I had not that honour I
had purposed to trail a pike under Sir John Hepburn, who had done me
so much honour as to introduce me into his Majesty's presence. "Do so,
then," replied the king, and turning to Sir John Hepburn, said, "and
pray, do you take care of him." At which, overcome with the goodness
of his discourse, I could not answer a word, but made him a profound
reverence and retired.
The next day but one, being the 7th of September, before day the army
marched from Dieben to a large field about a mile from Leipsic, where
we found Tilly's army in full battalia in admirable order, which made
a show both glorious and terrible. Tilly, like a fair gamester, had
taken up but one side of the plain, and left the other free, and all
the avenues open for the king's army; nor did he stir to the charge
till the king's army was completely drawn up and advanced toward him.
He had in his army 44,000 old soldiers, every way answerable to what
I have said of them before; and I shall only add, a better army, I
believe, never was so soundly beaten.
The king was not much inferior in force, being joined with the Saxons,
who were reckoned 22,000 men, and who drew up on the left, making a
main battle and two wings, as the king did on the right.
The king placed himself at the right wing of his own horse, Gustavus
Horn had the main battle of the Swedes, the Duke of Saxony had the
main battle of his own troops, and General Arnheim the right wing of
his horse. The second line of the Swedes consisted of the two Scotch
brigades, and three Swedish, with the Finland horse in the wings.
In the beginning of the fight, Tilly's right wing charged with such
irresistible fury upon the left of the king's army where the Saxons
were posted, that nothing could withstand them. The Saxons fled amain,
and some of them carried the news over the country that all was lost,
and the king's army overthrown; and indeed it passed for an oversight
with some that the king did not place some of his old troops among the
Saxons, who were new-raised men. The Saxons lost here near 2000 men,
and hardly ever showed their faces again all the battle, except some
few of their horse.
I was posted with my comrade, the captain, at the head of three
Scottish regiments of foot, commanded by Sir John Hepburn, with
express directions from the colonel to keep by him. Our post was in
the second line, as a reserve to the King of Sweden's main battle,
and, which was strange, the main battle, which consisted of four great
brigades of foot, were never charged during the whole fight; and yet
we, who had the reserve, were obliged to endure the whole weight
of the Imperial army. The occasion was, the right wing of the
Imperialists having defeated the Saxons, and being eager in the chase,
Tilly, who was an old soldier, and ready to prevent all mistakes,
forbids any pursuit. "Let them go," says he, "but let us beat the
Swedes, or we do nothing." Upon this the victorious troops fell in
upon the flank of the king's army, which, the Saxons being fled, lay
open to them. Gustavus Horn commanded the left wing of the Swedes, and
having first defeated some regiments which charged him, falls in upon
the rear of the Imperial right wing, and separates them from the van,
who were advanced a great way forward in pursuit of the Saxons, and
having routed the said rear or reserve, falls on upon Tilly's main
battle, and defeated part of them; the other part was gone in chase of
the Saxons, and now also returned, fell in upon the rear of the left
wing of the Swedes, charging them in the flank, for they drew up upon
the very ground which the Saxons had quitted. This changed the whole
front, and made the Swedes face about to the left, and made a great
front on their flank to make this good. Our brigades, who were placed
as a reserve for the main battle, were, by special order from the
king, wheeled about to the left, and placed for the right of this new
front to charge the Imperialists; they were about 12,000 of their best
foot, besides horse, and flushed with the execution of the Saxons,
fell on like furies. The king by this time had almost defeated the
Imperialists' left wing; their horse, with more haste than good speed,
had charged faster than their foot could follow, and having broke into
the king's first line, he let them go, where, while the second line
bears the shock, and bravely resisted them, the king follows them on
the crupper with thirteen troops of horse, and some musketeers, by
which being hemmed in, they were all cut down in a moment as it were,
and the army never disordered with them. This fatal blow to the left
wing gave the king more leisure to defeat the foot which followed, and
to send some assistance to Gustavus Horn in his left wing, who had his
hands full with the main battle of the Imperialists.
But those troops who, as I said, had routed the Saxons, being called
off from the pursuit, had charged our flank, and were now grown very
strong, renewed the battle in a terrible manner. Here it was I saw our
men go to wreck. Colonel Hall, a brave soldier, commanded the rear of
the Swede's left wing; he fought like a lion, but was slain, and most
of his regiment cut off, though not unrevenged, for they entirely
ruined Furstenberg's regiment of foot. Colonel Cullembach, with his
regiment of horse, was extremely overlaid also, and the colonel and
many brave officers killed, and in short all that wing was shattered,
and in an ill condition.
In this juncture came the king, and having seen what havoc the enemy
made of Cullembach's troops, he comes riding along the front of our
three brigades, and himself led us on to the charge; the colonel of
his guards, the Baron Dyvel, was shot dead just as the king had given
him some orders. When the Scots advanced, seconded by some regiments
of horse which the king also sent to the charge, the bloodiest fight
began that ever men beheld, for the Scottish brigades, giving fire
three ranks at a time over one another's heads, poured in their shot
so thick, that the enemy were cut down like grass before a scythe;
and following into the thickest of their foot with the clubs of their
muskets made a most dreadful slaughter, and yet was there no flying.
Tilly's men might be killed and knocked down, but no man turned his
back, nor would give an inch of ground, but as they were wheeled, or
marched, or retreated by their officers.
There was a regiment of cuirassiers which stood whole to the last,
and fought like lions; they went ranging over the field when all
their army was broken, and nobody cared for charging them; they were
commanded by Baron Kronenburg, and at last went off from the battle
whole. These were armed in black armour from head to foot, and they
carried off their general. About six o'clock the field was cleared of
the enemy, except at one place on the king's side, where some of them
rallied, and though they knew all was lost would take no quarter, but
fought it out to the last man, being found dead the next day in rank
and file as they were drawn up.
I had the good fortune to receive no hurt in this battle, excepting
a small scratch on the side of my neck by the push of a pike; but my
friend received a very dangerous wound when the battle was as good as
over. He had engaged with a German colonel, whose name we could never
learn, and having killed his man, and pressed very close upon him,
so that he had shot his horse, the horse in the fall kept the colonel
down, lying on one of his legs; upon which he demanded quarter, which
Captain Fielding granting, helped him to quit his horse, and having
disarmed him, was bringing him into the line, when the regiment of
cuirassiers, which I mentioned, commanded by Baron Kronenburg, came
roving over the field, and with a flying charge saluted our front with
a salvo of carabine shot, which wounded us a great many men, and among
the rest the captain received a shot in his thigh, which laid him on
the ground, and being separated from the line, his prisoner got away
with them.
This was the first service I was in, and indeed I never saw any fight
since maintained with such gallantry, such desperate valour, together
with such dexterity of management, both sides being composed of
soldiers fully tried, bred to the wars, expert in everything, exact in
their order, and incapable of fear, which made the battle be much more
bloody than usual. Sir John Hepburn, at my request, took particular
care of my comrade, and sent his own surgeon to look after him;
and afterwards, when the city of Leipsic was retaken, provided him
lodgings there, and came very often to see him; and indeed I was in
great care for him too, the surgeons being very doubtful of him a
great while; for having lain in the field all night among the dead,
his wound, for want of dressing, and with the extremity of cold, was
in a very ill condition, and the pain of it had thrown him into a
fever. 'Twas quite dusk before the fight ended, especially where the
last rallied troops fought so long, and therefore we durst not break
our order to seek out our friends, so that 'twas near seven o'clock
the next morning before we found the captain, who, though very weak by
the loss of blood, had raised himself up, and placed his back against
the buttock of a dead horse. I was the first that knew him, and
running to him, embraced him with a great deal of joy; he was not able
to speak, but made signs to let me see he knew me, so we brought him
into the camp, and Sir John Hepburn, as I noted before, sent his own
surgeons to look after him.
The darkness of the night prevented any pursuit, and was the only
refuge the enemy had left: for had there been three hours more
daylight ten thousand more lives had been lost, for the Swedes (and
Saxons especially) enraged by the obstinacy of the enemy, were so
thoroughly heated that they would have given quarter but to few. The
retreat was not sounded till seven o'clock, when the king drew up the
whole army upon the field of battle, and gave strict command that none
should stir from their order; so the army lay under their arms all
night, which was another reason why the wounded soldiers suffered very
much by the cold; for the king, who had a bold enemy to deal with, was
not ignorant what a small body of desperate men rallied together might
have done in the darkness of the night, and therefore he lay in his
coach all night at the head of the line, though it froze very hard.
As soon as the day began to peep the trumpets sounded to horse, and
all the dragoons and light-horse in the army were commanded to the
pursuit. The cuirassiers and some commanded musketeers advanced some
miles, if need were, to make good their retreat, and all the foot
stood to their arms for a reverse; but in half-an-hour word was
brought to the king that the enemy were quite dispersed, upon which
detachments were made out of every regiment to search among the dead
for any of our friends that were wounded; and the king himself gave a
strict order, that if any were found wounded and alive among the enemy
none should kill them, but take care to bring them into the camp--a
piece of humanity which saved the lives of near a thousand of the
enemies.
This piece of service being over, the enemy's camp was seized upon,
and the soldiers were permitted to plunder it; all the cannon, arms,
and ammunition was secured for the king's use, the rest was given up
to the soldiers, who found so much plunder that they had no reason to
quarrel for shares.
For my share, I was so busy with my wounded captain that I got nothing
but a sword, which I found just by him when I first saw him; but my
man brought me a very good horse with a furniture on him, and one
pistol of extraordinary workmanship.
I bade him get upon his back and make the best of the day for himself,
which he did, and I saw him no more till three days after, when he
found me out at Leipsic, so richly dressed that I hardly knew him; and
after making his excuse for his long absence, gave me a very pleasant
account where he had been. He told me that, according to my order,
being mounted on the horse he had brought me, he first rid into the
field among the dead to get some clothes suitable to the equipage of
his horse, and having seized on a laced coat, a helmet, a sword, and
an extraordinary good cane, was resolved to see what was become of the
enemy; and following the track of the dragoons, which he could
easily do by the bodies on the road, he fell in with a small party
of twenty-five dragoons, under no command but a corporal, making to
a village where some of the enemies' horse had been quartered. The
dragoons, taking him for an officer by his horse, desired him to
command them, told him the enemy was very rich, and they doubted not
a good booty. He was a bold, brisk fellow, and told them, with all
his heart, but said he had but one pistol, the other being broken with
firing; so they lent him a pair of pistols, and a small piece they had
taken, and he led them on. There had been a regiment of horse and
some troops of Crabats in the village, but they were fled on the first
notice of the pursuit, excepting three troops, and these, on sight
of this small party, supposing them to be only the first of a greater
number, fled in the greatest confusion imaginable. They took the
village, and about fifty horses, with all the plunder of the enemy,
and with the heat of the service he had spoiled my horse, he said, for
which he had brought me two more; for he, passing for the commander of
the party, had all the advantage the custom of war gives an officer in
like cases.
I was very well pleased with the relation the fellow gave me, and,
laughing at him, "Well, captain," said I, "and what plunder have ye
got?" "Enough to make me a captain, sir," says he, "if you please, and
a troop ready raised too; for the party of dragoons are posted in the
village by my command, till they have farther orders." In short,
he pulled out sixty or seventy pieces of gold, five or six watches,
thirteen or fourteen rings, whereof two were diamond rings, one of
which was worth fifty dollars, silver as much as his pockets would
hold; besides that he had brought three horses, two of which were
laden with baggage, and a boor he had hired to stay with them at
Leipsic till he had found me out. "But I am afraid, captain," says I,
"you have plundered the village instead of plundering the enemy." "No
indeed, not we," says he, "but the Crabats had done it for us and we
light of them just as they were carrying it off." "Well," said I, "but
what will you do with your men, for when you come to give them orders
they will know you well enough?" "No, no," says he, "I took care of
that, for just now I gave a soldier five dollars to carry them news
that the army was marched to Merseburg, and that they should follow
thither to the regiment."
Having secured his money in my lodgings, he asked me if I pleased to
see his horses, and to have one for myself? I told him I would go and
see them in the afternoon; but the fellow being impatient goes and
fetches them. There were three horses, one whereof was a very good
one, and by the furniture was an officer's horse of the Crabats, and
that my man would have me accept, for the other he had spoiled, as
he said. I was but indifferently horsed before, so I accepted of the
horse, and went down with him to see the rest of his plunder there.
He had got three or four pair of pistols, two or three bundles of
officers' linen, and lace, a field-bed, and a tent, and several other
things of value; but at last, coming to a small fardel, "And this,"
says he, "I took whole from a Crabat running away with it under his
arm," so he brought it up into my chamber. He had not looked into it,
he said, but he understood 'twas some plunder the soldiers had made,
and finding it heavy took it by consent. We opened it and found it was
a bundle of some linen, thirteen or fourteen pieces of plate, and in a
small cup, three rings, a fine necklace of pearl and the value of 100
rix-dollars in money.
The fellow was amazed at his own good fortune, and hardly knew what
to do with himself; I bid him go take care of his other things, and
of his horses, and come again. So he went and discharged the boor that
waited and packed up all his plunder, and came up to me in his old
clothes again. "How now, captain," says I, "what, have you altered
your equipage already?" "I am no more ashamed, sir, of your livery,"
answered he, "than of your service, and nevertheless your servant for
what I have got by it." "Well," says I to him, "but what will you do
now with all your money?" "I wish my poor father had some of it," says
he, "and for the rest I got it for you, sir, and desire you would take
it." He spoke it with so much honesty and freedom that I could not
but take it very kindly; but, however, I told him I would not take a
farthing from him as his master, but I would have him play the good
husband with it, now he had such good fortune to get it. He told me
he would take my directions in everything. "Why, then," said I, "I'll
tell you what I would advise you to do, turn it all into ready money,
and convey it by return home into England, and follow yourself the
first opportunity, and with good management you may put yourself in a
good posture of living with it." The fellow, with a sort of dejection
in his looks, asked me if he had disobliged me in anything? "Why?"
says I. "That I was willing to turn him out of his service." "No,
George" (that was his name), says I, "but you may live on this money
without being a servant." "I'd throw it all into the Elbe," says he,
"over Torgau bridge, rather than leave your service; and besides,"
says he, "can't I save my money without going from you? I got it in
your service, and I'll never spend it out of your service, unless you
put me away. I hope my money won't make me the worse servant; if I
thought it would, I'd soon have little enough." "Nay, George," says
I, "I shall not oblige you to it, for I am not willing to lose you
neither: come, then," says I, "let us put it all together, and see
what it will come to." So he laid it all together on the table, and by
our computation he had gotten as much plunder as was worth about 1400
rix-dollars, besides three horses with their furniture, a tent, a bed,
and some wearing linen. Then he takes the necklace of pearl, a very
good watch, a diamond ring, and 100 pieces of gold, and lays them by
themselves, and having, according to our best calculation, valued the
things, he put up all the rest, and as I was going to ask him what
they were left out for, he takes them up in his hand, and coming round
the table, told me, that if I did not think him unworthy of my service
and favour, he begged I would give him leave to make that present to
me; that it was my first thought his going out, that he had got it
all in my service, and he should think I had no kindness for him if I
should refuse it.
I was resolved in my mind not to take it from him, and yet I could
find no means to resist his importunity. At last I told him, I would
accept of part of his present, and that I esteemed his respect in
that as much as the whole, and that I would not have him importune me
farther; so I took the ring and watch, with the horse and furniture as
before, and made him turn all the rest into money at Leipsic, and
not suffering him to wear his livery, made him put himself into a
tolerable equipage, and taking a young Leipsicer into my service, he
attended me as a gentleman from that time forward.
The king's army never entered Leipsic, but proceeded to Merseberg, and
from thence to Halle, and so marched on into Franconia, while the Duke
of Saxony employed his forces in recovering Leipsic and driving the
Imperialists out of his country. I continued at Leipsic twelve days,
being not willing to leave my comrade till he was recovered; but Sir
John Hepburn so often importuned me to come into the army, and sent
me word that the king had very often inquired for me, that at last I
consented to go without him; so having made our appointment where to
meet, and how to correspond by letters, I went to wait on Sir John
Hepburn, who then lay with the king's army at the city of Erfurt in
Saxony. As I was riding between Leipsic and Halle, I observed my
horse went very awkwardly and uneasy, and sweat very much, though the
weather was cold, and we had rid but very softly; I fancied therefore
that the saddle might hurt the horse, and calls my new captain up.
"George," says I, "I believe this saddle hurts the horse." So we
alighted, and looking under the saddle found the back of the horse
extremely galled; so I bid him take off the saddle, which he did, and
giving the horse to my young Leipsicer to lead, we sat down to see if
we could mend it, for there was no town near us. Says George, pointing
with his finger, "If you please to cut open the pannel there, I'll get
something to stuff into it which will bear it from the horse's back."
So while he looked for something to thrust in, I cut a hole in
the pannel of the saddle, and, following it with my finger, I felt
something hard, which seemed to move up and down. Again, as I thrust
it with my finger, "Here's something that should not be here," says I,
not yet imagining what afterwards fell out, and calling, "Run back,"
bade him put up his finger. "Whatever 'tis," says he, "'tis this hurts
the horse, for it bears just on his back when the saddle is set on."
So we strove to take hold on it, but could not reach it; at last we
took the upper part of the saddle quite from the pannel, and there
lay a small silk purse wrapped in a piece of leather, and full of gold
ducats. "Thou art born to be rich, George," says I to him, "here's
more money." We opened the purse and found in it four hundred and
thirty-eight small pieces of gold.
There I had a new skirmish with him whose the money should be. I
told him 'twas his, he told me no; I had accepted of the horse and
furniture, and all that was about him was mine, and solemnly vowed he
would not have a penny of it. I saw no remedy, but put up the money
for the present, mended our saddle, and went on. We lay that night at
Halle, and having had such a booty in the saddle, I made him search
the saddles of the other two horses, in one of which we found three
French crowns, but nothing in the other.
We arrived at Erfurt the 28th of September, but the army was removed,
and entered into Franconia, and at the siege of Koningshoven we came
up with them. The first thing I did was to pay my civilities to Sir
John Hepburn, who received me very kindly, but told me withal that
I had not done well to be so long from him, and the king had
particularly inquired for me, had commanded him to bring me to him at
my return. I told him the reason of my stay at Leipsic, and how I had
left that place and my comrade, before he was cured of his wounds, to
wait on him according to his letters. He told me the king had spoken
some things very obliging about me, and he believed would offer me
some command in the army, if I thought well to accept of it. I told
him I had promised my father not to take service in an army without
his leave, and yet if his Majesty should offer it, I neither knew
how to resist it, nor had I an inclination to anything more than the
service, and such a leader, though I had much rather have served as a
volunteer at my own charge (which, as he knew, was the custom of our
English gentlemen) than in any command. He replied, "Do as you think
fit; but some gentlemen would give 20,000 crowns to stand so fair for
advancement as you do."
The town of Koningshoven capitulated that day, and Sir John was
ordered to treat with the citizens, so I had no further discourse with
him then; and the town being taken, the army immediately advanced down
the river Maine, for the king had his eye upon Frankfort and Mentz,
two great cities, both which he soon became master of, chiefly by
the prodigious expedition of his march; for within a month after the
battle, he was in the lower parts of the empire, and had passed from
the Elbe to the Rhine, an incredible conquest, had taken all the
strong cities, the bishoprics of Bamberg, of Wurtzburg, and almost all
the circle of Franconia, with part of Schawberland--a conquest large
enough to be seven years a-making by the common course of arms.
Business going on thus, the king had not leisure to think of small
matters, and I being not thoroughly resolved in my mind, did not press
Sir John to introduce me. I had wrote to my father with an account
of my reception in the army, the civilities of Sir John Hepburn, the
particulars of the battle, and had indeed pressed him to give me
leave to serve the King of Sweden, to which particular I waited for
an answer, but the following occasion determined me before an answer
could possibly reach me.
The king was before the strong castle of Marienburg, which commands
the city of Wurtzburg. He had taken the city, but the garrison and
richer part of the burghers were retired into the castle, and trusting
to the strength of the place, which was thought impregnable, they bade
the Swedes do their worst; 'twas well provided with all things, and a
strong garrison in it, so that the army indeed expected 'twould be a
long piece of work. The castle stood on a high rock, and on the steep
of the rock was a bastion which defended the only passage up the hill
into the castle; the Scots were chose out to make this attack, and the
king was an eye-witness of their gallantry. In the action Sir John was
not commanded out, but Sir James Ramsey led them on; but I observed
that most of the Scotch officers in the other regiments prepared to
serve as volunteers for the honour of their countrymen, and Sir John
Hepburn led them on. I was resolved to see this piece of service,
and therefore joined myself to the volunteers. We were armed with
partisans, and each man two pistols at our belt. It was a piece of
service that seemed perfectly desperate, the advantage of the hill,
the precipice we were to mount, the height of the bastion, the
resolute courage and number of the garrison, who from a complete
covert made a terrible fire upon us, all joined to make the action
hopeless. But the fury of the Scots musketeers was not to be abated by
any difficulties; they mounted the hill, scaled the works like madmen,
running upon the enemies' pikes, and after two hours' desperate fight
in the midst of fire and smoke, took it by storm, and put all the
garrison to the sword. The volunteers did their part, and had their
share of the loss too, for thirteen or fourteen were killed out of
thirty-seven, besides the wounded, among whom I received a hurt more
troublesome than dangerous by a thrust of a halberd into my arm, which
proved a very painful wound, and I was a great while before it was
thoroughly recovered.
The king received us as we drew off at the foot of the hill, calling
the soldiers his brave Scots, and commending the officers by name.
The next morning the castle was also taken by storm, and the greatest
booty that ever was found in any one conquest in the whole war; the
soldiers got here so much money that they knew not what to do with it,
and the plunder they got here and at the battle of Leipsic made them
so unruly, that had not the king been the best master of discipline in
the world, they had never been kept in any reasonable bounds.
The king had taken notice of our small party of volunteers, and though
I thought he had not seen me, yet he sent the next morning for Sir
John Hepburn, and asked him if I were not come to the army? "Yes,"
says Sir John, "he has been here two or three days." And as he was
forming an excuse for not having brought me to wait on his Majesty,
says the king, interrupting him, "I wonder you would let him thrust
himself into a hot piece of service as storming the Port Graft.
Pray let him know I saw him, and have a very good account of his
behaviour." Sir John returned with this account to me, and pressed
me to pay my duty to his Majesty the next morning; and accordingly,
though I had but an ill night with the pain of my wound, I was with
him at the levee in the castle.
I cannot but give some short account of the glory of the morning; the
castle had been cleared of the dead bodies of the enemies, and what
was not pillaged by the soldiers was placed under a guard. There was
first a magazine of very good arms for about 18,000 or 20,000 foot,
and 4000 horse, a very good train of artillery of about eighteen
pieces of battery, thirty-two brass field-pieces, and four mortars.
The bishop's treasure, and other public monies not plundered by the
soldiers, was telling out by the officers, and amounted to 400,000
florins in money; and the burghers of the town in solemn procession,
bareheaded, brought the king three tons of gold as a composition to
exempt the city from plunder. Here was also a stable of gallant horses
which the king had the curiosity to go and see.
When the ceremony of the burghers was over, the king came down into
the castle court, walked on the parade (where the great train of
artillery was placed on their carriages) and round the walls, and gave
order for repairing the bastion that was stormed by the Scots; and
as at the entrance of the parade Sir John Hepburn and I made our
reverence to the king, "Ho, cavalier!" said the king to me, "I am glad
to see you," and so passed forward. I made my bow very low, but his
Majesty said no more at that time.
When the view was over the king went up into the lodgings, and Sir
John and I walked in an antechamber for about a quarter of an hour,
when one of the gentlemen of the bedchamber came out to Sir John, and
told him the king asked for him; he stayed but a little with the king,
and come out to me and told me the king had ordered him to bring me to
him.
His Majesty, with a countenance full of honour and goodness,
interrupted my compliment, and asked me how I did; at which answering
only with a bow, says the king, "I am sorry to see you are hurt; I
would have laid my commands on you not to have shown yourself in so
sharp a piece of service, if I had known you had been in the camp."
"Your Majesty does me too much honour," said I, "in your care of a
life that has yet done nothing to deserve your favour." His Majesty
was pleased to say something very kind to me relating to my behaviour
in the battle of Leipsic, which I have not vanity enough to write;
at the conclusion whereof, when I replied very humbly that I was not
sensible that any service I had done, or could do, could possibly
merit so much goodness, he told me he had ordered me a small testimony
of his esteem, and withal gave me his hand to kiss. I was now
conquered, and with a sort of surprise told his Majesty I found myself
so much engaged by his goodness, as well as my own inclination, that
if his Majesty would please to accept of my devoir, I was resolved to
serve in his army, or wherever he pleased to command me. "Serve
me," says the king, "why, so you do, but I must not have you be a
musketeer; a poor soldier at a dollar a week will do that." "Pray,
Sir John," says the king, "give him what commission he desires." "No
commission, sir," says I, "would please me better than leave to fight
near your Majesty's person, and to serve you at my own charge till I
am qualified by more experience to receive your commands." "Why, then,
it shall be so," said the king, "and I charge you, Hepburn," says he,
"when anything offers that is either fit for him, or he desires, that
you tell me of it;" and giving me his hand again to kiss, I withdrew.
I was followed before I had passed the castle gate by one of the
king's pages, who brought me a warrant, directed to Sir John Hepburn,
to go to the master of the horse for an immediate delivery of things
ordered by the king himself for my account, where being come, the
equerry produced me a very good coach with four horses, harness, and
equipage, and two very fine saddle-horses, out of the stable of the
bishop's horses afore-mentioned; with these there was a list for three
servants, and a warrant to the steward of the king's baggage to defray
me, my horses, and servants at the king's charge till farther order.
I was very much at a loss how to manage myself in this so strange
freedom of so great a prince, and consulting with Sir John Hepburn, I
was proposing to him whether it was not proper to go immediately back
to pay my duty to his Majesty, and acknowledge his bounty in the best
terms I could; but while we were resolving to do so, the guards stood
to their arms, and we saw the king go out at the gate in his coach
to pass into the city, so we were diverted from it for that time. I
acknowledge the bounty of the king was very surprising, but I must say
it was not so very strange to me when I afterwards saw the course of
his management. Bounty in him was his natural talent, but he never
distributed his favours but where he thought himself both loved and
faithfully served, and when he was so, even the single actions of
his private soldiers he would take particular notice of himself, and
publicly own, acknowledge, and reward them, of which I am obliged to
give some instances.
A private musketeer at the storming the castle of Wurtzburg, when
all the detachment was beaten off, stood in the face of the enemy and
fired his piece, and though he had a thousand shot made at him, stood
unconcerned, and charged his piece again, and let fly at the enemy,
continuing to do so three times, at the same time beckoning with his
hand to his fellows to come on again, which they did, animated by his
example, and carried the place for the king.
When the town was taken the king ordered the regiment to be drawn out,
and calling for that soldier, thanked him before them all for
taking the town for him, gave him a thousand dollars in money, and a
commission with his own hand for a foot company, or leave to go home,
which he would. The soldier took the commission on his knees, kissed
it, and put it into his bosom, and told the king, he would never leave
his service as long as he lived.
This bounty of the king's, timed and suited by his judgment, was
the reason that he was very well served, entirely beloved, and most
punctually obeyed by his soldiers, who were sure to be cherished and
encouraged if they did well, having the king generally an eye-witness
of their behaviour.
My indiscretion rather than valour had engaged me so far at the battle
of Leipsic, that being in the van of Sir John Hepburn's brigade,
almost three whole companies of us were separated from our line, and
surrounded by the enemies' pikes. I cannot but say also that we were
disengaged rather by a desperate charge Sir John made with the whole
regiment to fetch us off, than by our own valour, though we were not
wanting to ourselves neither, but this part of the action being talked
of very much to the advantage of the young English volunteer, and
possibly more than I deserved, was the occasion of all the distinction
the king used me with ever after.
I had by this time letters from my father, in which, though with some
reluctance, he left me at liberty to enter into arms if I thought fit,
always obliging me to be directed, and, as he said, commanded by
Sir John Hepburn. At the same time he wrote to Sir John Hepburn,
commending his son's fortunes, as he called it, to his care, which
letters Sir John showed the king unknown to me.
I took care always to acquaint my father of every circumstance, and
forgot not to mention his Majesty's extraordinary favour, which so
affected my father, that he obtained a very honourable mention of it
in a letter from King Charles to the King of Sweden, written by his
own hand.
I had waited on his Majesty, with Sir John Hepburn, to give him thanks
for his magnificent present, and was received with his usual goodness,
and after that I was every day among the gentlemen of his ordinary
attendance. And if his Majesty went out on a party, as he would
often do, or to view the country, I always attended him among the
volunteers, of whom a great many always followed him; and he would
often call me out, talk with me, send me upon messages to towns, to
princes, free cities, and the like, upon extraordinary occasions.
The first piece of service he put me upon had like to have embroiled
me with one of his favourite colonels. The king was marching through
the Bergstraet, a low country on the edge of the Rhine, and, as all
men thought, was going to besiege Heidelberg, but on a sudden orders
a party of his guards, with five companies of Scots, to be drawn out;
while they were drawing out this detachment the king calls me to him,
"Ho, cavalier," says he, that was his usual word, "you shall command
this party;" and thereupon gives me orders to march back all night,
and in the morning, by break of day, to take post under the walls of
the fort of Oppenheim, and immediately to entrench myself as well as I
could. Grave Neels, the colonel of his guards, thought himself injured
by this command, but the king took the matter upon himself, and Grave
Neels told me very familiarly afterwards, "We have such a master,"
says he, "that no man can be affronted by. I thought myself wronged,"
says he, "when you commanded my men over my head; and for my life,"
says he, "I knew not which way to be angry."
I executed my commission so punctually that by break of day I was set
down within musket-shot of the fort, under covert of a little mount,
on which stood a windmill, and had indifferently fortified myself, and
at the same time had posted some of my men on two other passes, but
at farther distance from the fort, so that the fort was effectually
blocked up on the land side. In the afternoon the enemy sallied on my
first entrenchment, but being covered from their cannon, and defended
by a ditch which I had drawn across the road, they were so well
received by my musketeers that they retired with the loss of six or
seven men.
The next day Sir John Hepburn was sent with two brigades of foot to
carry on the work, and so my commission ended. The king expressed
himself very well pleased with what I had done, and when he was so
was never sparing of telling of it, for he used to say that public
commendations were a great encouragement to valour.
While Sir John Hepburn lay before the fort and was preparing to storm
it, the king's design was to get over the Rhine, but the Spaniards
which were in Oppenheim had sunk all the boats they could find. At
last the king, being informed where some lay that were sunk, caused
them to be weighed with all the expedition possible, and in the night
of the 7th of December, in three boats, passed over his regiment of
guards, about three miles above the town, and, as the king thought,
secure from danger; but they were no sooner landed, and not drawn into
order, but they were charged by a body of Spanish horse, and had not
the darkness given them opportunity to draw up in the enclosures
in several little parties, they had been in great danger of being
disordered; but by this means they lined the hedges and lanes so with
musketeers, that the remainder had time to draw up in battalia, and
saluted the horse with their muskets, so that they drew farther off.
The king was very impatient, hearing his men engaged, having no boats
nor possible means to get over to help them. At last, about eleven
o'clock at night, the boats came back, and the king thrust another
regiment into them, and though his officers dissuaded him, would go
over himself with them on foot, and did so. This was three months that
very day when the battle of Leipsic was fought, and winter time too,
that the progress of his arms had spread from the Elbe, where it parts
Saxony and Brandenburg, to the Lower Palatine and the Rhine.
I went over in the boat with the king. I never saw him in so much
concern in my life, for he was in pain for his men; but before we got
on shore the Spaniards retired. However, the king landed, ordered his
men, and prepared to entrench, but he had not time, for by that time
the boats were put off again, the Spaniards, not knowing more troops
were landed, and being reinforced from Oppenheim, came on again, and
charged with great fury; but all things were now in order, and they
were readily received and beaten back again. They came on again the
third time, and with repeated charges attacked us; but at last
finding us too strong for them they gave it over. By this time another
regiment of foot was come over, and as soon as day appeared the king
with the three regiments marched to the town, which surrendered at the
first summons, and the next day the fort yielded to Sir John Hepburn.
The castle at Oppenheim held out still with a garrison of 800
Spaniards, and the king, leaving 200 Scots of Sir James Ramsey's men
in the town, drew out to attack the castle. Sir James Ramsey being
left wounded at Wurtzburg, the king gave me the command of those 200
men, which were a regiment, that is to say, all that were left of a
gallant regiment of 2000 Scots, which the king brought out of Sweden
with him, under that brave colonel. There was about thirty officers,
who, having no soldiers, were yet in pay, and served as reformadoes
with the regiment, and were over and above the 200 men.
The king designed to storm the castle on the lower side by the way
that leads to Mentz, and Sir John Hepburn landed from the other side
and marched up to storm on the Rhine port.
My reformado Scots, having observed that the town port of the castle
was not so well guarded as the rest, all the eyes of the garrison
being bent towards the king and Sir John Hepburn, came running to me,
and told me they believed they could enter the castle, sword in hand,
if I would give them leave. I told them I durst not give them orders,
my commission being only to keep and defend the town; but they being
very importunate, I told them they were volunteers, and might do what
they pleased, that I would lend them fifty men, and draw up the rest
to second them, or bring them off, as I saw occasion, so as I might
not hazard the town. This was as much as they desired; they sallied
immediately, and in a trice the volunteers scaled the port, cut in
pieces the guard, and burst open the gate, at which the fifty entered.
Finding the gate won, I advanced immediately with 100 musketeers more,
having locked up all the gates of the town but the castle port, and
leaving fifty still for a reserve just at that gate; the townsmen,
too, seeing the castle, as it were, taken, ran to arms, and followed
me with above 200 men. The Spaniards were knocked down by the Scots
before they knew what the matter was, and the king and Sir John
Hepburn, advancing to storm, were surprised when, instead of
resistance, they saw the Spaniards throwing themselves over the walls
to avoid the fury of the Scots. Few of the garrison got away, but were
either killed or taken, and having cleared the castle, I set open the
port on the king's side, and sent his Majesty word the castle was his
own. The king came on, and entered on foot. I received him at the head
of the Scots reformadoes; who all saluted him with their pikes. The
king gave them his hat, and turning about, "Brave Scots, brave Scots,"
says he smiling, "you were too quick for me;" then beckoning to me,
made me tell him how and in what manner we had managed the storm,
which he was exceeding well pleased with, but especially at the
caution I had used to bring them off if they had miscarried, and
secured the town.
From hence the army marched to Mentz, which in four days' time
capitulated, with the fort and citadel, and the city paid his Majesty
300,000 dollars to be exempted from the fury of the soldiers. Here the
king himself drew the plan of those invincible fortifications which to
this day makes it one of the strongest cities in Germany.
Friburg, Koningstien, Neustadt, Kaiserslautern, and almost all the
Lower Palatinate, surrendered at the very terror of the King of
Sweden's approach, and never suffered the danger of a siege.
The king held a most magnificent court at Mentz, attended by the
Landgrave of Hesse, with an incredible number of princes and lords
of the empire, with ambassadors and residents of foreign princes;
and here his Majesty stayed till March, when the queen, with a great
retinue of Swedish nobility, came from Erfurt to see him. The king,
attended by a gallant train of German nobility, went to Frankfort, and
from thence on to Hoest, to meet the queen, where her Majesty arrived
February 8.
During the king's stay in these parts, his armies were not idle, his
troops, on one side under the Rhinegrave, a brave and ever-fortunate
commander, and under the Landgrave of Hesse, on the other, ranged the
country from Lorraine to Luxemburg, and past the Moselle on the west,
and the Weser on the north. Nothing could stand before them: the
Spanish army which came to the relief of the Catholic Electors was
everywhere defeated and beaten quite out of the country, and the
Lorraine army quite ruined. 'Twas a most pleasant court sure as ever
was seen, where every day expresses arrived of armies defeated, towns
surrendered, contributions agreed upon, parties routed, prisoners
taken, and princes sending ambassadors to sue for truces and
neutralities, to make submissions and compositions, and to pay arrears
and contributions.
Here arrived, February 10, the King of Bohemia from England, and with
him my Lord Craven, with a body of Dutch horse, and a very fine train
of English volunteers, who immediately, without any stay, marched on
to Hoest to wait upon his Majesty of Sweden, who received him with a
great deal of civility, and was treated at a noble collation by the
king and queen at Frankfort. Never had the unfortunate king so fair a
prospect of being restored to his inheritance of the Palatinate as
at that time, and had King James, his father-in-law, had a soul
answerable to the occasion, it had been effected before, but it was a
strange thing to see him equipped from the English court with one lord
and about forty or fifty English gentlemen in his attendance, whereas
had the King of England now, as 'tis well known he might have done,
furnished him with 10,000 or 12,000 English foot, nothing could have
hindered him taking a full possession of his country; and yet even
without that help did the King of Sweden clear almost his whole
country of Imperialists, and after his death reinstal his son in the
Electorate; but no thanks to us.
The Lord Craven did me the honour to inquire for me by name, and his
Majesty of Sweden did me yet more by presenting me to the King of
Bohemia, and my Lord Craven gave me a letter from my father. And
speaking something of my father having served under the Prince of
Orange in the famous battle of Nieuport, the king, smiling, returned,
"And pray tell him from me his son has served as well in the warm
battle of Leipsic."
My father being very much pleased with the honour I had received from
so great a king, had ordered me to acquaint his Majesty that, if he
pleased to accept of their service, he would raise him a regiment of
English horse at his own charge to be under my command, and to be
sent over into Holland; and my Lord Craven had orders from the King of
England to signify his consent to the said levy. I acquainted my old
friend Sir John Hepburn with the contents of the letter in order to
have his advice, who being pleased with the proposal, would have me
go to the king immediately with the letter, but present service put it
off for some days.
The taking of Creutznach was the next service of any moment. The king
drew out in person to the siege of this town. The town soon came to
parley, but the castle seemed a work of difficulty, for its situation
was so strong and so surrounded with works behind and above one and
another, that most people thought the king would receive a check
from it; but it was not easy to resist the resolution of the King of
Sweden.
He never battered it but with two small pieces, but having viewed the
works himself, ordered a mine under the first ravelin, which being
sprung with success, he commands a storm. I think there was not
more commanded men than volunteers, both English, Scots, French, and
Germans. My old comrade was by this time recovered of his wound at
Leipsic, and made one. The first body of volunteers, of about forty,
were led on by my Lord Craven, and I led the second, among whom were
most of the reformado Scots officers who took the castle of Oppenheim.
The first party was not able to make anything of it; the garrison
fought with so much fury that many of the volunteer gentlemen being
wounded, and some killed, the rest were beaten off with loss. The king
was in some passion at his men, and rated them for running away, as he
called it, though they really retreated in good order, and commanded
the assault to be renewed. 'Twas our turn to fall on next. Our Scots
officers, not being used to be beaten, advanced immediately, and my
Lord Craven with his volunteers pierced in with us, fighting gallantly
in the breach with a pike in his hand; and, to give him the honour due
to his bravery, he was with the first on the top of the rampart, and
gave his hand to my comrade, and lifted him up after him. We helped
one another up, till at last almost all the volunteers had gained
the height of the ravelin, and maintained it with a great deal of
resolution, expecting when the commanded men had gained the same
height to advance upon the enemy; when one of the enemy's captains
called to my Lord Craven, and told him if they might have honourable
terms they would capitulate, which my lord telling him he would engage
for, the garrison fired no more, and the captain, leaping down from
the next rampart, came with my Lord Craven into the camp, where the
conditions were agreed on, and the castle surrendered.
After the taking of this town, the king, hearing of Tilly's approach,
and how he had beaten Gustavus Horn, the king's field-marshal, out of
Bamberg, began to draw his forces together, and leaving the care of
his conquests in these parts to his chancellor Oxenstiern, prepares to
advance towards Bavaria.
I had taken an opportunity to wait upon his Majesty with Sir John
Hepburn and being about to introduce the discourse of my father's
letter, the king told me he had received a compliment on my account
in a letter from King Charles. I told him his Majesty had by his
exceeding generosity bound me and all my friends to pay their
acknowledgments to him, and that I supposed my father had obtained
such a mention of it from the King of England, as gratitude moved him
to that his Majesty's favour had been shown in me to a family both
willing and ready to serve him, that I had received some commands from
my father, which, if his Majesty pleased to do me the honour to accept
of, might put me in a condition to acknowledge his Majesty's goodness
in a manner more proportioned to the sense I had of his favour; and
with that I produced my father's letter, and read that clause in it
which related to the regiment of horse, which was as follows:--
"I read with a great deal of satisfaction the account you give of the
great and extraordinary conquests of the King of Sweden, and with more
his Majesty's singular favour to you; I hope you will be careful to
value and deserve so much honour. I am glad you rather chose to serve
as a volunteer at your own charge, than to take any command, which,
for want of experience, you might misbehave in.
"I have obtained of the king that he will particularly thank his
Majesty of Sweden for the honour he has done you, and if his Majesty
gives you so much freedom, I could be glad you should in the humblest
manner thank his Majesty in the name of an old broken soldier.
"If you think yourself officer enough to command them, and his Majesty
pleased to accept them, I would have you offer to raise his Majesty
a regiment of horse, which, I think, I may near complete in our
neighbourhood with some of your old acquaintance, who are very willing
to see the world. If his Majesty gives you the word, they shall
receive his commands in the Maes, the king having promised me to give
them arms, and transport them for that service into Holland; and I
hope they may do his Majesty such service as may be for your honour
and the advantage of his Majesty's interest and glory."
"YOUR LOVING FATHER."
"'Tis an offer like a gentleman and like a soldier," says the king,"
and I'll accept of it on two conditions: first," says the king, "that
I will pay your father the advance money for the raising the regiment;
and next, that they shall be landed in the Weser or the Elbe; for
which, if the King of England will not, I will pay the passage; for
if they land in Holland, it may prove very difficult to get them to us
when the army shall be marched out of this part of the country."
I returned this answer to my father, and sent my man George into
England to order that regiment, and made him quartermaster. I sent
blank commissions for the officers, signed by the king, to be filled
up as my father should think fit; and when I had the king's order for
the commissions, the secretary told me I must go back to the king with
them. Accordingly I went back to the king, who, opening the packet,
laid all the commissions but one upon a table before him, and bade
me take them, and keeping that one still in his hand, "Now," says he,
"you are one of my soldiers," and therewith gave me his commission, as
colonel of horse in present pay. I took the commission kneeling,
and humbly thanked his Majesty. "But," says the king, "there is one
article-of-war I expect of you more than of others." "Your Majesty can
expect nothing of me which I shall not willingly comply with," said I,
"as soon as I have the honour to understand what it is." "Why, it is,"
says the king, "that you shall never fight but when you have orders,
for I shall not be willing to lose my colonel before I have the
regiment." "I shall be ready at all times, sir," returned I, "to obey
your Majesty's orders."
I sent my man express with the king's answer and the commission to my
father, who had the regiment completed in less than two months' time,
and six of the officers, with a list of the rest, came away to me,
whom I presented to his Majesty when he lay before Nuremberg, where
they kissed his hand.
One of the captains offered to bring the whole regiment travelling as
private men into the army in six weeks' time, and either to transport
their equipage, or buy it in Germany, but 'twas thought impracticable.
However, I had so many come in that manner that I had a complete troop
always about me, and obtained the king's order to muster them as a
troop.
On the 8th of March the king decamped, and, marching up the river
Maine, bent his course directly for Bavaria, taking several small
places by the way, and expecting to engage with Tilly, who he thought
would dispute his entrance into Bavaria, kept his army together; but
Tilly, finding himself too weak to encounter him, turned away, and
leaving Bavaria open to the king, marched into the Upper Palatinate.
The king finding the country clear of the Imperialists comes to
Nuremberg, made his entrance into that city the 21st of March, and
being nobly treated by the citizens, he continued his march into
Bavaria, and on the 26th sat down before Donauwerth. The town was
taken the next day by storm, so swift were the conquests of this
invincible captain. Sir John Hepburn, with the Scots and the English
volunteers at the head of them, entered the town first, and cut all
the garrison to pieces, except such as escaped over the bridge.
I had no share in the business of Donauwerth, being now among the
horse, but I was posted on the roads with five troops of horse, where
we picked up a great many stragglers of the garrison, whom we made
prisoners of war.
'Tis observable that this town of Donauwerth is a very strong place
and well fortified, and yet such expedition did the king make, and
such resolution did he use in his first attacks, that he carried the
town without putting himself to the trouble of formal approaches.
'Twas generally his way when he came before any town with a design to
besiege it; he never would encamp at a distance and begin his trenches
a great way off, but bring his men immediately within half musket-shot
of the place; there getting under the best cover he could, he would
immediately begin his batteries and trenches before their faces;
and if there was any place possibly to be attacked, he would fall to
storming immediately. By this resolute way of coming on he carried
many a town in the first heat of his men, which would have held out
many days against a more regular siege.
This march of the king broke all Tilly's measures, for now he was
obliged to face about, and leaving the Upper Palatinate, to come
to the assistance of the Duke of Bavaria; for the king being 20,000
strong, besides 10,000 foot and 4000 horse and dragoons which joined
him from the Duringer Wald, was resolved to ruin the duke, who lay
now open to him, and was the most powerful and inveterate enemy of the
Protestants in the empire.
Tilly was now joined with the Duke of Bavaria, and might together make
about 22,000 men, and in order to keep the Swedes out of the country
of Bavaria, had planted themselves along the banks of the river Lech,
which runs on the edge of the duke's territories; and having fortified
the other side of the river, and planted his cannon for several miles
at all the convenient places on the river, resolved to dispute the
king's passage.
I shall be the longer in relating this account of the Lech, being
esteemed in those days as great an action as any battle or siege of
that age, and particularly famous for the disaster of the gallant old
General Tilly; and for that I can be more particular in it than other
accounts, having been an eye-witness to every part of it.
The king being truly informed of the disposition of the Bavarian army,
was once of the mind to have left the banks of the Lech, have repassed
the Danube, and so setting down before Ingolstadt, the duke's capital
city, by the taking that strong town to have made his entrance into
Bavaria, and the conquest of such a fortress, one entire action;
but the strength of the place and the difficulty of maintaining his
leaguer in an enemy's country while Tilly was so strong in the field,
diverted him from that design; he therefore concluded that Tilly
was first to be beaten out of the country, and then the siege of
Ingolstadt would be the easier.
Whereupon the king resolved to go and view the situation of the enemy.
His Majesty went out the 2nd of April with a strong party of horse,
which I had the honour to command. We marched as near as we could
to the banks of the river, not to be too much exposed to the enemy's
cannon, and having gained a little height, where the whole course of
the river might be seen, the king halted, and commanded to draw up.
The king alighted, and calling me to him, examined every reach and
turning of the river by his glass, but finding the river run a long
and almost a straight course he could find no place which he liked;
but at last turning himself north, and looking down the stream, he
found the river, stretching a long reach, doubles short upon itself,
making a round and very narrow point. "There's a point will do our
business," says the king, "and if the ground be good I'll pass there,
let Tilly do his worst."
He immediately ordered a small party of horse to view the ground, and
to bring him word particularly how high the bank was on each side and
at the point. "And he shall have fifty dollars," says the king, "that
will bring me word how deep the water is." I asked his Majesty leave
to let me go, which he would by no means allow of; but as the party
was drawing out, a sergeant of dragoons told the king, if he pleased
to let him go disguised as a boor, he would bring him an account of
everything he desired. The king liked the notion well enough, and
the fellow being very well acquainted with the country, puts on a
ploughman's habit, and went away immediately with a long pole upon
his shoulder. The horse lay all this while in the woods, and the
king stood undiscerned by the enemy on the little hill aforesaid. The
dragoon with his long pole comes down boldly to the bank of the river,
and calling to the sentinels which Tilly had placed on the other
bank, talked with them, asked them if they could not help him over the
river, and pretended he wanted to come to them. At last being come to
the point where, as I said, the river makes a short turn, he stands
parleying with them a great while, and sometimes, pretending to wade
over, he puts his long pole into the water, then finding it pretty
shallow he pulls off his hose and goes in, still thrusting his pole in
before him, till being gotten up to his middle, he could reach beyond
him, where it was too deep, and so shaking his head, comes back again.
The soldiers on the other side, laughing at him, asked him if he could
swim? He said, "No," "Why, you fool you," says one of the sentinels,
"the channel of the river is twenty feet deep." "How do you know
that?" says the dragoon. "Why, our engineer," says he, "measured it
yesterday." This was what he wanted, but not yet fully satisfied,
"Ay, but," says he, "maybe it may not be very broad, and if one of you
would wade in to meet me till I could reach you with my pole, I'd give
him half a ducat to pull me over." The innocent way of his discourse
so deluded the soldiers, that one of them immediately strips and goes
in up to the shoulders, and our dragoon goes in on this side to meet
him; but the stream took t' other soldier away, and he being a good
swimmer, came swimming over to this side. The dragoon was then in a
great deal of pain for fear of being discovered, and was once going
to kill the fellow, and make off; but at last resolved to carry on the
humour, and having entertained the fellow with a tale of a tub, about
the Swedes stealing his oats, the fellow being a-cold wanted to be
gone, and he as willing to be rid of him, pretended to be very sorry
he could not get over the river, and so makes off.
By this, however, he learned both the depth and breadth of the
channel, the bottom and nature of both shores, and everything the king
wanted to know. We could see him from the hill by our glasses very
plain, and could see the soldier naked with him. Says the king, "He
will certainly be discovered and knocked on the head from the other
side: he is a fool," says the king, "he does not kill the fellow and
run off." But when the dragoon told his tale, the king was extremely
well satisfied with him, gave him a hundred dollars, and made him a
quartermaster to a troop of cuirassiers.
The king having farther examined the dragoon, he gave him a very
distinct account of the shore and the ground on this side, which he
found to be higher than the enemy's by ten or twelve foot, and a hard
gravel.
Hereupon the king resolves to pass there, and in order to it gives,
himself, particular directions for such a bridge as I believe never
army passed a river on before nor since.
His bridge was only loose planks laid upon large tressels in the same
homely manner as I have seen bricklayers raise a low scaffold to build
a brick wall; the tressels were made higher than one another to answer
to the river as it became deeper or shallower, and was all framed and
fitted before any appearance was made of attempting to pass.
When all was ready the king brings his army down to the bank of the
river, and plants his cannon as the enemy had done, some here and some
there, to amuse them.
At night, April 4th, the king commanded about 2000 men to march to
the point, and to throw up a trench on either side, and quite round
it with a battery of six pieces of cannon at each end, besides three
small mounts, one at the point and one of each side, which had each of
them two pieces upon them. This work was begun so briskly and so well
carried on, the king firing all the night from the other parts of
the river, that by daylight all the batteries at the new work were
mounted, the trench lined with 2000 musketeers, and all the utensils
of the bridge lay ready to be put together.
Now the Imperialists discovered the design, but it was too late
to hinder it; the musketeers in the great trench, and the five new
batteries, made such continual fire that the other bank, which, as
before, lay twelve feet below them, was too hot for the Imperialists;
whereupon Tilly, to be provided for the king at his coming over, falls
to work in a wood right against the point, and raises a great battery
for twenty pieces of cannon, with a breastwork or line, as near the
river as he could, to cover his men, thinking that when the king had
built his bridge he might easily beat it down with his cannon.
But the king had doubly prevented him, first by laying his bridge so
low that none of Tilly's shot could hurt it; for the bridge lay not
above half a foot above the water's edge, by which means the king, who
in that showed himself an excellent engineer, had secured it from
any batteries to be made within the land, and the angle of the bank
secured it from the remoter batteries on the other side, and the
continual fire of the cannon and small shot beat the Imperialists from
their station just against it, they having no works to cover them.
And in the second place, to secure his passage he sent over about
200 men, and after that 200 more, who had orders to cast up a large
ravelin on the other bank, just where he designed to land his bridge.
This was done with such expedition too, that it was finished before
night, and in condition to receive all the shot of Tilly's great
battery, and effectually covered his bridge. While this was doing the
king on his side lays over his bridge. Both sides wrought hard all
day and night, as if the spade, not the sword, had been to decide
the controversy, and that he had got the victory whose trenches and
batteries were first ready. In the meanwhile the cannon and musket
bullets flew like hail, and made the service so hot that both sides
had enough to do to make their men stand to their work. The king, in
the hottest of it, animated his men by his presence, and Tilly, to
give him his due, did the same; for the execution was so great, and
so many officers killed, General Altringer wounded, and two
sergeant-majors killed, that at last Tilly himself was obliged
to expose himself, and to come up to the very face of our line to
encourage his men, and give his necessary orders.
And here about one o'clock, much about the time that the king's
brigade and works were finished, and just as they said he had ordered
to fall on upon our ravelin with 3000 foot, was the brave old
Tilly slain with a musket ball in the thigh. He was carried off to
Ingolstadt, and lived some days after, but died of that wound the
same day as the king had his horse shot under him at the siege of that
town.
We made no question of passing the river here, having brought
everything so forward, and with such extraordinary success; but we
should have found it a very hot piece of work if Tilly had lived one
day more, and, if I may give my opinion of it, having seen Tilly's
battery and breastwork, in the face of which we must have passed the
river, I must say that, whenever we had marched, if Tilly had fallen
in with his horse and foot, placed in that trench, the whole army
would have passed as much danger as in the face of a strong town in
the storming a counterscarp. The king himself, when he saw with what
judgment Tilly had prepared his works, and what danger he must have
run, would often say that day's success was every way equal to the
victory of Leipsic.
Tilly being hurt and carried off, as if the soul of the army had been
lost, they began to draw off. The Duke of Bavaria took horse and rid
away as if he had fled out of battle for his life.
The other generals, with a little more caution, as well as courage,
drew off by degrees, sending their cannon and baggage away first, and
leaving some to continue firing on the bank of the river, to conceal
their retreat. The river preventing any intelligence, we knew nothing
of the disaster befallen them; and the king, who looked for blows,
having finished his bridge and ravelin, ordered to run a line with
palisadoes to take in more ground on the bank of the river, to cover
the first troops he should send over. This being finished the same
night, the king sends over a party of his guards to relieve the men
who were in the ravelin, and commanded 600 musketeers to man the new
line out of the Scots brigade.
Early in the morning a small party of Scots, commanded by one Captain
Forbes, of my Lord Reay's regiment, were sent out to learn something
of the enemy, the king observing they had not fired all night; and
while this party were abroad, the army stood in battalia; and my old
friend Sir John Hepburn, whom of all men the king most depended upon
for any desperate service, was ordered to pass the bridge with his
brigade, and to draw up without the line, with command to advance as
he found the horse, who were to second him, come over.
Sir John being passed without the trench, meets Captain Forbes with
some prisoners, and the good news of the enemy's retreat. He sends him
directly to the king, who was by this time at the head of his army,
in full battalia, ready to follow his vanguard, expecting a hot day's
work of it. Sir John sends messenger after messenger to the king,
entreating him to give him orders to advance; but the king would not
suffer him, for he was ever upon his guard, and would not venture a
surprise; so the army continued on this side the Lech all day and the
next night. In the morning the king sent for me, and ordered me to
draw out 300 horse, and a colonel with 600 horse, and a colonel with
800 dragoons, and ordered us to enter the wood by three ways, but
so as to be able to relieve one another; and then ordered Sir John
Hepburn with his brigade to advance to the edge of the wood to secure
our retreat, and at the same time commanded another brigade of foot to
pass the bridge, if need were, to second Sir John Hepburn, so warily
did this prudent general proceed.
We advanced with our horse into the Bavarian camp, which we found
forsaken. The plunder of it was inconsiderable, for the exceeding
caution the king had used gave them time to carry off all their
baggage. We followed them three or four miles, and returned to our
camp.
I confess I was most diverted that day with viewing the works which
Tilly had cast up, and must own again that had he not been taken off
we had met with as desperate a piece of work as ever was attempted.
The next day the rest of the cavalry came up to us, commanded by
Gustavus Horn, and the king and the whole army followed. We advanced
through the heart of Bavaria, took Rain at the first summons, and
several other small towns, and sat down before Augsburg.
Augsburg, though a Protestant city, had a Popish Bavarian garrison
in it of above 5000 men, commanded by a Fugger, a great family in
Bavaria. The governor had posted several little parties as out-scouts
at the distance of two miles and a half or three miles from the town.
The king, at his coming up to this town, sends me with my little troop
and three companies of dragoons to beat in these out-scouts. The first
party I lighted on was not above sixteen men, who had made a small
barricado across the road, and stood resolutely upon their guard. I
commanded the dragoons to alight and open the barricado, which, while
they resolutely performed, the sixteen men gave them two volleys of
their muskets, and through the enclosures made their retreat to a
turnpike about a quarter of a mile farther. We passed their first
traverse, and coming up to the turnpike, I found it defended by 200
musketeers. I prepared to attack them, sending word to the king how
strong the enemy was, and desired some foot to be sent me. My dragoons
fell on, and though the enemy made a very hot fire, had beat them from
this post before 200 foot, which the king had sent me, had come
up. Being joined with the foot, I followed the enemy, who retreated
fighting, till they came under the cannon of a strong redoubt, where
they drew up, and I could see another body of foot of about 300 join
them out of the works; upon which I halted, and considering I was in
view of the town, and a great way from the army, I faced about and
began to march off. As we marched I found the enemy followed, but
kept at a distance, as if they only designed to observe me. I had not
marched far, but I heard a volley of small shot, answered by two or
three more, which I presently apprehended to be at the turnpike,
where I had left a small guard of twenty-six men with a lieutenant.
Immediately I detached 100 dragoons to relieve my men and secure
my retreat, following myself as fast as the foot could march. The
lieutenant sent me back word the post was taken by the enemy, and my
men cut off. Upon this I doubled my pace, and when I came up I found
it as the lieutenant said; for the post was taken and manned with 300
musketeers and three troops of horse. By this time, also, I found the
party in my rear made up towards me, so that I was like to be charged
in a narrow place both in front and rear.
I saw there was no remedy but with all my force to fall upon that
party before me, and so to break through before those from the town
could come up with me; wherefore, commanding my dragoons to alight, I
ordered them to fall on upon the foot. Their horse were drawn up in
an enclosed field on one side of the road, a great ditch securing the
other side, so that they thought if I charged the foot in front they
would fall upon my flank, while those behind would charge my rear;
and, indeed, had the other come in time, they had cut me off. My
dragoons made three fair charges on their foot, but were received with
so much resolution and so brisk a fire, that they were beaten off, and
sixteen men killed. Seeing them so rudely handled, and the horse ready
to fall in, I relieved them with 100 musketeers, and they renewed
the attack; at the same time, with my troop of horse, flanked on both
wings with fifty musketeers, I faced their horse, but did not offer
to charge them. The case grew now desperate, and the enemy behind
were just at my heels with near 600 men. The captain who commanded the
musketeers who flanked my horse came up to me; says he, "If we do not
force this pass all will be lost; if you will draw out your troop and
twenty of my foot, and fall in, I'll engage to keep off the horse with
the rest." "With all my heart," says I.
Immediately I wheeled off my troop, and a small party of the
musketeers followed me, and fell in with the dragoons and foot, who,
seeing the danger too as well as I, fought like madmen. The foot at
the turnpike were not able to hinder our breaking through, so we
made our way out, killing about 150 of them, and put the rest into
confusion.
But now was I in as great a difficulty as before how to fetch off my
brave captain of foot, for they charged home upon him. He defended
himself with extraordinary gallantry, having the benefit of a piece of
a hedge to cover him, but he lost half his men, and was just upon
the point of being defeated when the king, informed by a soldier that
escaped from the turnpike, one of twenty-six, had sent a party of 600
dragoons to bring me off; these came upon the spur, and joined with
me just as I had broke through the turnpike. The enemy's foot rallied
behind their horse, and by this time their other party was come in;
but seeing our relief they drew off together.
I lost above 100 men in these skirmishes, and killed them about 180.
We secured the turnpike, and placed a company of foot there with 100
dragoons, and came back well beaten to the army. The king, to prevent
such uncertain skirmishes, advanced the next day in view of the town,
and, according to his custom, sits down with his whole army within
cannon-shot of their walls.
The King won this great city by force of words, for by two or three
messages and letters to and from the citizens, the town was gained,
the garrison not daring to defend them against their wills. His
Majesty made his public entrance into the city on the 14th of April,
and receiving the compliments of the citizens, advanced immediately to
Ingolstadt, which is accounted, and really is, the strongest town in
all these parts.
The town had a very strong garrison in it, and the Duke of Bavaria lay
entrenched with his army under the walls of it, on the other side of
the river. The king, who never loved long sieges, having viewed the
town, and brought his army within musket-shot of it, called a council
of war, where it was the king's opinion, in short, that the town would
lose him more than 'twas worth, and therefore he resolved to raise his
siege.
Here the king going to view the town had his horse shot with a
cannon-bullet from the works, which tumbled the king and his horse
over one another, that everybody thought he had been killed; but he
received no hurt at all. That very minute, as near as could be learnt,
General Tilly died in the town of the shot he received on the bank of
the Lech, as aforesaid.
I was not in the camp when the king was hurt, for the king had sent
almost all the horse and dragoons, under Gustavus Horn, to face the
Duke of Bavaria's camp, and after that to plunder the country; which
truly was a work the soldiers were very glad of, for it was very
seldom they had that liberty given them, and they made very good use
of it when it was, for the country of Bavaria was rich and plentiful,
having seen no enemy before during the whole war.
The army having left the siege of Ingolstadt, proceeds to take in the
rest of Bavaria. Sir John Hepburn, with three brigades of foot, and
Gustavus Horn, with 3000 horse and dragoons, went to the Landshut, and
took it the same day. The garrison was all horse, and gave us several
camisadoes at our approach, in one of which I lost two of my
troops, but when we had beat them into close quarters they presently
capitulated. The general got a great sum of money of the town, besides
a great many presents to the officers. And from thence the king
went on to Munich, the Duke of Bavaria's court. Some of the general
officers would fain have had the plundering of the duke's palace, but
the king was too generous. The city paid him 400,000 dollars; and the
duke's magazine was there seized, in which was 140 pieces of cannon,
and small arms for above 20,000 men. The great chamber of the duke's
rarities was preserved, by the king's special order, with a great deal
of care. I expected to have stayed here some time, and to have taken
a very exact account of this curious laboratory; but being commanded
away, I had no time, and the fate of the war never gave me opportunity
to see it again.
The Imperialists, under the command of Commissary Osta, had
besieged Biberach, an Imperial city not very well fortified; and the
inhabitants being under the Swedes' protection, defended themselves
as well as they could, but were in great danger, and sent several
expresses to the king for help.
The king immediately detaches a strong body of horse and foot to
relieve Biberach, and would be the commander himself. I marched among
the horse, but the Imperialists saved us the labour; for the news
of the king's coming frighted away Osta, that he left Biberach,
and hardly looked behind him till he got up to the Bodensee, on the
confines of Switzerland.
At our return from this expedition the king had the first news of
Wallenstein's approach, who, on the death of Count Tilly, being
declared generalissimo of the emperor's forces, had played the tyrant
in Bohemia, and was now advancing with 60,000 men, as they reported,
to relieve the Duke of Bavaria.
The king, therefore, in order to be in a posture to receive this great
general, resolves to quit Bavaria, and to expect him on the frontiers
of Franconia. And because he knew the Nurembergers for their kindness
to him would be the first sacrifice, he resolved to defend that city
against him whatever it cost.
Nevertheless he did not leave Bavaria without a defence; but, on the
one hand, he left Sir John Baner with 10,000 men about Augsburg, and
the Duke of Saxe-Weimar with another like army about Ulm and Meningen,
with orders so to direct their march as that they might join him upon
any occasion in a few days.
We encamped about Nuremberg the middle of June. The army, after so
many detachments, was not above 19,000 men. The Imperial army, joined
with the Bavarian, were not so numerous as was reported, but were
really 60,000 men. The king, not strong enough to fight, yet, as he
used to say, was strong enough not to be forced to fight, formed his
camp so under the cannon of Nuremberg that there was no besieging the
town but they must besiege him too; and he fortified his camp in so
formidable a manner that Wallenstein never durst attack him. On the
30th of June Wallenstein's troops appeared, and on the 5th of July
encamped close by the king, and posted themselves not on the Bavarian
side, but between the king and his own friends of Schwaben and
Frankenland, in order to intercept his provisions, and, as they
thought, to starve him out of his camp.
Here they lay to see, as it were, who could subsist longest. The king
was strong in horse, for we had full 8000 horse and dragoons in the
army, and this gave us great advantage in the several skirmishes we
had with the enemy. The enemy had possession of the whole country, and
had taken effectual care to furnish their army with provisions; they
placed their guards in such excellent order, to secure their convoys,
that their waggons went from stage to stage as quiet as in a time of
peace, and were relieved every five miles by parties constantly
posted on the road. And thus the Imperial general sat down by us, not
doubting but he should force the king either to fight his way through
on very disadvantageous terms, or to rise for want of provisions, and
leave the city of Nuremberg a prey to his army; for he had vowed the
destruction of the city, and to make it a second Magdeburg.
But the king, who was not to be easily deceived, had countermined all
Wallenstein's designs. He had passed his honour to the Nurembergers
that he would not leave them, and they had undertaken to victual his
army, and secure him from want, which they did so effectually, that
he had no occasion to expose his troops to any hazard or fatigues for
convoys or forage on any account whatever.
The city of Nuremberg is a very rich and populous city, and the king
being very sensible of their danger, had given his word for their
defence. And when they, being terrified at the threats of the
Imperialists, sent their deputies to beseech the king to take care of
them, he sent them word he would, and be besieged with them. They, on
the other hand, laid in such stores of all sorts of provision, both
for men and horse, that had Wallenstein lain before it six months
longer, there would have been no scarcity. Every private house was
a magazine, the camp was plentifully supplied with all manner of
provisions, and the market always full, and as cheap as in times of
peace. The magistrates were so careful, and preserved so excellent an
order in the disposal of all sorts of provision, that no engrossing of
corn could be practised, for the prices were every day directed at the
town-house; and if any man offered to demand more money for corn than
the stated price, he could not sell, because at the town store-house
you might buy cheaper. Here are two instances of good and bad conduct:
the city of Magdeburg had been entreated by the king to settle funds,
and raise money for their provision and security, and to have a
sufficient garrison to defend them, but they made difficulties, either
to raise men for themselves, or to admit the king's troops to assist
them, for fear of the charge of maintaining them; and this was the
cause of the city's ruin.
The city of Nuremberg opened their arms to receive the assistance
proffered by the Swedes, and their purses to defend their town
and common cause; and this was the saving them absolutely from
destruction. The rich burghers and magistrates kept open houses, where
the officers of the army were always welcome; and the council of the
city took such care of the poor that there was no complaining nor
disorders in the whole city. There is no doubt but it cost the city
a great deal of money; but I never saw a public charge borne with so
much cheerfulness, nor managed with so much prudence and conduct in my
life. The city fed above 50,000 mouths every day, including their own
poor, besides themselves; and yet when the king had lain thus three
months, and finding his armies longer in coming up than he expected,
asked the burgrave how their magazines held out, he answered, they
desired his Majesty not to hasten things for them, for they could
maintain themselves and him twelve months longer if there was
occasion. This plenty kept both the army and city in good health, as
well as in good heart; whereas nothing was to be had of us but blows,
for we fetched nothing from without our works, nor had no business
without the line but to interrupt the enemy.
The manner of the king's encampment deserves a particular chapter.
He was a complete surveyor and a master in fortification, not to be
outdone by anybody. He had posted his army in the suburbs of the town,
and drawn lines round the whole circumference, so that he begirt
the whole city with his army. His works were large, the ditch deep,
flanked with innumerable bastions, ravelins, horn-works, forts,
redoubts, batteries, and palisadoes, the incessant work of 8000 men
for about fourteen days; besides that, the king was adding something
or other to it every day, and the very posture of his camp was
enough to tell a bigger army than Wallenstein's that he was not to be
assaulted in his trenches.
The king's design appeared chiefly to be the preservation of the
city; but that was not all. He had three armies acting abroad in
three several places. Gustavus Horn was on the Moselle, the chancellor
Oxenstiern about Mentz, Cologne, and the Rhine, Duke William and
Duke Bernhard, together with General Baner, in Bavaria. And though he
designed they should all join him, and had wrote to them all to that
purpose, yet he did not hasten them, knowing that while he kept the
main army at bay about Nuremberg, they would, without opposition,
reduce those several countries they were acting in to his power. This
occasioned his lying longer in the camp at Nuremberg than he would
have done, and this occasioned his giving the Imperialists so many
alarms by his strong parties of horse, of which he was well provided,
that they might not be able to make any considerable detachments for
the relief of their friends. And here he showed his mastership in the
war, for by this means his conquests went on as effectually as if he
had been abroad himself.
In the meantime it was not to be expected two such armies should lie
long so near without some action. The Imperial army, being masters
of the field, laid the country for twenty miles round Nuremberg in a
manner desolate. What the inhabitants could carry away had been before
secured in such strong towns as had garrisons to protect them,
and what was left the hungry Crabats devoured or set on fire; but
sometimes they were met with by our men, who often paid them home for
it. There had passed several small rencounters between our parties
and theirs; and as it falls out in such cases, sometimes one side,
sometimes the other, got the better. But I have observed there never
was any party sent out by the king's special appointment but always
came home with victory.
The first considerable attempt, as I remember, was made on a convoy of
ammunition. The party sent out was commanded by a Saxon colonel, and
consisted of 1000 horse and 500 dragoons, who burnt above 600 waggons
loaded with ammunition and stores for the army, besides taking about
2000 muskets, which they brought back to the army.
The latter end of July the king received advice that the Imperialists
had formed a magazine for provision at a town called Freynstat, twenty
miles from Nuremberg. Hither all the booty and contributions raised in
the Upper Palatinate, and parts adjacent, was brought and laid up as
in a place of security, a garrison of 600 men being placed to defend
it; and when a quantity of provisions was got together, convoys were
appointed to fetch it off.
The king was resolved, if possible, to take or destroy this magazine;
and sending for Colonel Dubalt, a Swede, and a man of extraordinary
conduct, he tells him his design, and withal that he must be the man
to put it in execution, and ordered him to take what forces he thought
convenient. The colonel, who knew the town very well, and the country
about it, told his Majesty he would attempt it with all his heart; but
he was afraid 'twould require some foot to make the attack. "But we
can't stay for that," says the king; "you must then take some dragoons
with you;" and immediately the king called for me. I was just coming
up the stairs as the king's page was come out to inquire for me, so
I went immediately in to the king. "Here is a piece of hot work
for you," says the king, "Dubalt will tell it you; go together and
contrive it."
We immediately withdrew, and the colonel told me the design, and what
the king and he had discoursed; that, in his opinion, foot would be
wanted: but the king had declared there was no time for the foot to
march, and had proposed dragoons. I told him, I thought dragoons might
do as well; so we agreed to take 1600 horse and 400 dragoons. The
king, impatient in his design, came into the room to us to know what
we had resolved on, approved our measures, gave us orders immediately;
and, turning to me, "You shall command the dragoons," says the king,
"but Dubalt must be general in this case, for he knows the country."
"Your Majesty," said I, "shall be always served by me in any figure
you please." The king wished us good speed, and hurried us away the
same afternoon, in order to come to the place in time. We marched
slowly on because of the carriages we had with us, and came to
Freynstat about one o'clock in the night perfectly undiscovered. The
guards were so negligent, that we came to the very port before they
had notice of us, and a sergeant with twelve dragoons thrust in upon
the out-sentinels, and killed them without noise.
Immediately ladders were placed to the half-moon which defended
the gate, which the dragoons mounted and carried in a trice, about
twenty-eight men being cut in pieces within. As soon as the ravelin
was taken, they burst open the gate, at which I entered at the head of
200 dragoons, and seized the drawbridge. By this time the town was
in alarm, and the drums beat to arms, but it was too late, for by the
help of a petard we broke open the gate, and entered the town. The
garrison made an obstinate fight for about half-an-hour, but our
men being all in, and three troops of horse dismounted coming to our
assistance with their carabines, the town was entirely mastered by
three of the clock, and guards set to prevent anybody running to give
notice to the enemy. There were about 200 of the garrison killed, and
the rest taken prisoners. The town being thus secured, the gates were
opened, and Colonel Dubalt came in with the horse.
The guards being set, we entered the magazine, where we found an
incredible quantity of all sorts of provision. There was 150 tons of
bread, 8000 sacks of meal, 4000 sacks of oats, and of other provisions
in proportion. We caused as much of it as could be loaded to be
brought away in such waggons and carriages as we found, and set the
rest on fire, town and all. We stayed by it till we saw it past a
possibility of being saved, and then drew off with 800 waggons, which
we found in the place, most of which we loaded with bread, meal, and
oats. While we were doing this we sent a party of dragoons into the
fields, who met us again as we came out, with above 1000 head of black
cattle, besides sheep.
Our next care was to bring this booty home without meeting with the
enemy, to secure which, the colonel immediately despatched an
express to the king, to let him know of our success, and to desire a
detachment might be made to secure our retreat, being charged with so
much plunder.
And it was no more than need; for though we had used all the diligence
possible to prevent any notice, yet somebody, more forward than
ordinary, had escaped away, and carried news of it to the Imperial
army. The general, upon this bad news, detaches Major-General Sparr
with a body of 6000 men to cut off our retreat. The king, who had
notice of this detachment, marches out in person with 3000 men to wait
upon General Sparr. All this was the account of one day. The king met
General Sparr at the moment when his troops were divided, fell upon
them, routed one part of them, and the rest in a few hours after,
killed them 1000 men, and took the general prisoner.
In the interval of this action we came safe to the camp with our
booty, which was very considerable, and would have supplied our whole
army for a month. Thus we feasted at the enemy's cost, and beat them
into the bargain.
The king gave all the live cattle to the Nurembergers, who, though
they had really no want of provisions, yet fresh meat was not so
plentiful as such provisions which were stored up in vessels and laid
by.
After this skirmish we had the country more at command than before,
and daily fetched in fresh provisions and forage in the fields.
The two armies had now lain a long time in sight of one another,
and daily skirmishes had considerably weakened them; and the king,
beginning to be impatient, hastened the advancement of his friends
to join him, in which also they were not backward; but having
drawn together their forces from several parts, and all joined the
chancellor Oxenstiern, news came, the 15th of August, that they were
in full march to join us; and being come to a small town called Brock,
the king went out of the camp with about 1000 horse to view them. I
went along with the horse, and the 21st of August saw the review
of all the armies together, which were 30,000 men, in extraordinary
equipage, old soldiers, and commanded by officers of the greatest
conduct and experience in the world. There was the rich chancellor of
Sweden, who commanded as general; Gustavus Horn and John Baner, both
Swedes and old generals; Duke William and Duke Bernhard of Weimar; the
Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel, the Palatine of Birkenfelt, and abundance
of princes and lords of the empire.
The armies being joined, the king, who was now a match for
Wallenstein, quits his camp and draws up in battalia before the
Imperial trenches: but the scene was changed. Wallenstein was no more
able to fight now than the king was before; but, keeping within his
trenches, stood upon his guard. The king coming up close to his
works, plants batteries, and cannonaded him in his very camp. The
Imperialists, finding the king press upon them, retreat into a woody
country about three leagues, and, taking possession of an old ruined
castle, posted their army behind it.
This old castle they fortified, and placed a very strong guard there.
The king, having viewed the place, though it was a very strong post,
resolved to attack it with the whole right wing. The attack was made
with a great deal of order and resolution, the king leading the first
party on with sword in hand, and the fight was maintained on both
sides with the utmost gallantry and obstinacy all the day and the next
night too, for the cannon and musket never gave over till the morning;
but the Imperialists having the advantage of the hill, of their works
and batteries, and being continually relieved, and the Swedes naked,
without cannon or works, the post was maintained, and the king,
finding it would cost him too much blood, drew off in the morning.
This was the famous fight at Altemberg, where the Imperialists boasted
to have shown the world the King of Sweden was not invincible. They
call it the victory at Altemberg; 'tis true the king failed in his
attempt of carrying their works, but there was so little of a victory
in it, that the Imperial general thought fit not to venture a second
brush, but to draw off their army as soon as they could to a safer
quarter.
I had no share in this attack, very few of the horse being in the
action, but my comrade, who was always among the Scots volunteers, was
wounded and taken prisoner by the enemy. They used him very civilly,
and the king and Wallenstein straining courtesies with one another,
the king released Major-General Sparr without ransom, and the Imperial
general sent home Colonel Tortenson, a Swede, and sixteen volunteer
gentlemen, who were taken in the heat of the action, among whom my
captain was one.
The king lay fourteen days facing the Imperial army, and using all
the stratagems possible to bring them to a battle, but to no purpose,
during which time we had parties continually out, and very often
skirmishes with the enemy.
I had a command of one of these parties in an adventure, wherein I got
no booty, nor much honour. The King had received advice of a convoy
of provisions which was to come to the enemy's camp from the Upper
Palatinate, and having a great mind to surprise them, he commanded
us to waylay them with 1200 horse, and 800 dragoons. I had exact
directions given me of the way they were to come, and posting my horse
in a village a little out of the road, I lay with my dragoons in a
wood, by which they were to pass by break of day. The enemy appeared
with their convoy, and being very wary, their out-scouts discovered us
in the wood, and fired upon the sentinel I had posted in a tree at
the entrance of the wood. Finding myself discovered, I would have
retreated to the village where my horse were posted, but in a moment
the wood was skirted with the enemy's horse, and 1000 commanded
musketeers advanced to beat me out. In this pickle I sent away three
messengers one after another for the horse, who were within two miles
of me, to advance to my relief; but all my messengers fell into the
enemy's hands. Four hundred of my dragoons on foot, whom I had placed
at a little distance before me, stood to their work, and beat off two
charges of the enemy's foot with some loss on both sides. Meantime 200
of my men faced about, and rushing out of the wood, broke through
a party of the enemy's horse, who stood to watch our coming out. I
confess I was exceedingly surprised at it, thinking those fellows had
done it to make their escape, or else were gone over to the enemy; and
my men were so discouraged at it, that they began to look about
which way to run to save themselves, and were just upon the point of
disbanding to shift for themselves, when one of the captains called
to me aloud to beat a parley and treat. I made no answer, but, as if
I had not heard him, immediately gave the word for all the captains to
come together. The consultation was but short, for the musketeers were
advancing to a third charge, with numbers which we were not likely to
deal with. In short, we resolved to beat a parley, and demand quarter,
for that was all we could expect, when on a sudden the body of horse
I had posted in the village, being directed by the noise, had advanced
to relieve me, if they saw occasion, and had met the 200 dragoons,
who guided them directly to the spot where they had broke through, and
altogether fell upon the horse of the enemy, who were posted on that
side, and, mastering them before they could be relieved, cut them all
to pieces and brought me off. Under the shelter of this party, we made
good our retreat to the village, but we lost above 300 men, and were
glad to make off from the village too, for the enemy were very much
too strong for us.
Returning thence towards the camp, we fell foul with 200 Crabats, who
had been upon the plundering account. We made ourselves some amends
upon them for our former loss, for we showed them no mercy; but our
misfortunes were not ended, for we had but just despatched those
Crabats when we fell in with 3000 Imperial horse, who, on the
expectation of the aforesaid convoy, were sent out to secure them.
All I could do could not persuade my men to stand their ground against
this party; so that finding they would run away in confusion, I agreed
to make off, and facing to the right, we went over a large common
a full trot, till at last fear, which always increases in a flight,
brought us to a plain flight, the enemy at our heels. I must confess
I was never so mortified in my life; 'twas to no purpose to turn head,
no man would stand by us; we run for life, and a great many we left by
the way who were either wounded by the enemy's shot, or else could not
keep race with us.
At last, having got over the common, which was near two miles, we came
to a lane; one of our captains, a Saxon by country, and a gentleman of
a good fortune, alighted at the entrance of the lane, and with a bold
heart faced about, shot his own horse, and called his men to stand by
him and defend the lane. Some of his men halted, and we rallied about
600 men, which we posted as well as we could, to defend the pass;
but the enemy charged us with great fury. The Saxon gentleman, after
defending himself with exceeding gallantry, and refusing quarter, was
killed upon the spot. A German dragoon, as I thought him, gave me a
rude blow with the stock of his piece on the side of my head, and was
just going to repeat it, when one of my men shot him dead. I was so
stunned with the blow, that I knew nothing; but recovering, I found
myself in the hands of two of the enemy's officers, who offered me
quarter, which I accepted; and indeed, to give them their due, they
used me very civilly. Thus this whole party was defeated, and not
above 500 men got safe to the army; nor had half the number escaped,
had not the Saxon captain made so bold a stand at the head of the
lane.
Several other parties of the king's army revenged our quarrel, and
paid them home for it; but I had a particular loss in this defeat,
that I never saw the king after; for though his Majesty sent a trumpet
to reclaim us as prisoners the very next day, yet I was not delivered,
some scruple happening about exchanging, till after the battle of
Luetzen, where that gallant prince lost his life.
The Imperial army rose from their camp about eight or ten days after
the king had removed, and I was carried prisoner in the army till they
sat down to the siege of Coburg Castle, and then was left with other
prisoners of war, in the custody of Colonel Spezuter, in a small
castle near the camp called Neustadt. Here we continued indifferent
well treated, but could learn nothing of what action the armies were
upon, till the Duke of Friedland, having been beaten off from the
castle of Coburg, marched into Saxony, and the prisoners were sent for
into the camp, as was said, in order to be exchanged.
I came into the Imperial leaguer at the siege of Leipsic, and within
three days after my coming, the city was surrendered, and I got
liberty to lodge at my old quarters in the town upon my parole.
The King of Sweden was at the heels of the Imperialists, for finding
Wallenstein resolved to ruin the Elector of Saxony, the king had
re-collected as much of his divided army as he could, and came upon
him just as he was going to besiege Torgau.
As it is not my design to write a history of any more of these wars
than I was actually concerned in, so I shall only note that, upon
the king's approach, Wallenstein halted, and likewise called all his
troops together, for he apprehended the king would fall on him, and
we that were prisoners fancied the Imperial soldiers went unwillingly
out, for the very name of the King of Sweden was become terrible to
them. In short, they drew all the soldiers of the garrison they could
spare out of Leipsic; sent for Pappenheim again, who was gone but
three days before with 6000 men on a private expedition. On the 16th
of November, the armies met on the plains of Luetzen; a long and bloody
battle was fought, the Imperialists were entirely routed and beaten,
12,000 slain upon the spot, their cannon, baggage, and 2000 prisoners
taken, but the King of Sweden lost his life, being killed at the head
of his troops in the beginning of the fight.
It is impossible to describe the consternation the death of this
conquering king struck into all the princes of Germany; the grief
for him exceeded all manner of human sorrow. All people looked upon
themselves as ruined and swallowed up; the inhabitants of two-thirds
of all Germany put themselves into mourning for him; when the
ministers mentioned him in their sermons or prayers, whole
congregations would burst out into tears. The Elector of Saxony was
utterly inconsolable, and would for several days walk about his palace
like a distracted man, crying the saviour of Germany was lost, the
refuge of abused princes was gone, the soul of the war was dead; and
from that hour was so hopeless of out-living the war, that he sought
to make peace with the emperor.
Three days after this mournful victory, the Saxons recovered the town
of Leipsic by stratagem. The Duke of Saxony's forces lay at Torgau,
and perceiving the confusion the Imperialists were in at the news of
the overthrow of their army, they resolved to attempt the recovery of
the town. They sent about twenty scattering troopers, who, pretending
themselves to be Imperialists fled from the battle, were let in one by
one, and still as they came in, they stayed at the court of guard in
the port, entertaining the soldiers with discourse about the fight,
and how they escaped, and the like, till the whole number being got
in, at a watchword they fell on the guard, and cut them all in pieces;
and immediately opening the gate to three troops of Saxon horse, the
town was taken in a moment.
It was a welcome surprise to me, for I was at liberty of course; and
the war being now on another foot, as I thought, and the king dead, I
resolved to quit the service.
I had sent my man, as I have already noted, into England, in order to
bring over the troops my father had raised for the King of Sweden. He
executed his commission so well, that he landed with five troops at
Embden in very good condition; and orders were sent them by the king,
to join the Duke of Lunenberg's army, which they did at the siege of
Boxtude, in the Lower Saxony. Here by long and very sharp service
they were most of them cut off, and though they were several times
recruited, yet I understood there were not three full troops left.
The Duke of Saxe-Weimar, a gentleman of great courage, had the command
of the army after the king's death, and managed it with so much
prudence, that all things were in as much order as could be expected,
after so great a loss; for the Imperialists were everywhere beaten,
and Wallenstein never made any advantage of the king's death.
I waited on him at Heilbronn, whither he was gone to meet the great
chancellor of Sweden, where I paid him my respects, and desired he
would bestow the remainder of my regiment on my comrade the captain,
which he did with all the civility and readiness imaginable. So I took
my leave of him, and prepared to come for England.
I shall only note this, that at this Diet, the Protestant princes of
the empire renewed their league with one another, and with the crown
of Sweden, and came to several regulations and conclusions for the
carrying on the war, which they afterwards prosecuted, under the
direction of the said chancellor of Sweden. But it was not the work of
a small difficulty nor of a short time. And having been persuaded
to continue almost two years afterwards at Frankfort, Heilbronn, and
there-about, by the particular friendship of that noble wise man, and
extraordinary statesman, Axeli Oxenstiern, chancellor of Sweden, I had
opportunity to be concerned in, and present at, several treaties of
extraordinary consequence, sufficient for a history, if that were my
design.
Particularly I had the happiness to be present at, and have some
concern in, the treaty for the restoring the posterity of the truly
noble Palsgrave, King of Bohemia. King James of England had indeed too
much neglected the whole family; and I may say with authority enough,
from my own knowledge of affairs, had nothing been done for them but
what was from England, that family had remained desolate and forsaken
to this day.
But that glorious king, whom I can never mention without some remark
of his extraordinary merit, had left particular instructions with his
chancellor to rescue the Palatinate to its rightful lord, as a proof
of his design to restore the liberty of Germany, and reinstate the
oppressed princes who were subjected to the tyranny of the house of
Austria.
Pursuant to this resolution, the chancellor proceeded very much like
a man of honour; and though the King of Bohemia was dead a little
before, yet he carefully managed the treaty, answered the objections
of several princes, who, in the general ruin of the family, had
reaped private advantages, settled the capitulations for the quota of
contributions very much for their advantage, and fully reinstalled
the Prince Charles in the possession of all his dominions in the Lower
Palatinate, which afterwards was confirmed to him and his posterity by
the peace of Westphalia, where all these bloody wars were finished
in a peace, which has since been the foundation of the Protestants'
liberty, and the best security of the whole empire.
I spent two years rather in wandering up and down than travelling;
for though I had no mind to serve, yet I could not find in my heart to
leave Germany; and I had obtained some so very close intimacies with
the general officers that I was often in the army, and sometimes they
did me the honour to bring me into their councils of war.
Particularly, at that eminent council before the battle of Noerdlingen,
I was invited to the council of war, both by Duke Bernhard of Weimar
and by Gustavus Horn. They were generals of equal worth, and their
courage and experience had been so well, and so often tried, that more
than ordinary regard was always given to what they said. Duke Bernhard
was indeed the younger man, and Gustavus had served longer under our
great schoolmaster the king; but it was hard to judge which was the
better general, since both had experience enough, and shown undeniable
proofs both of their bravery and conduct.
I am obliged, in the course of my relation, so often to mention the
great respect I often received from these great men, that it makes me
sometimes jealous, lest the reader may think I affect it as a vanity.
The truth is, that I am ready to confess, the honours I received, upon
all occasions, from persons of such worth, and who had such an eminent
share in the greatest action of that age, very much pleased me, and
particularly, as they gave me occasions to see everything that was
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