Online Encyclopedia

elbow bend of the Meuse whence the whole French army might have been hurled into the gap between the German III. and Meuse armies, had there been a Napoleon to conceive and to execute this See also:

plan. But MacMahon seems to have been too despondent to contemplate anything further than a battle for the See also:

HONOUR (Lat. honos or lwnor, honoris; in English the word was spelled with or without the u indifferently until the 17th century, but during the 18th century it became fashion-able to spell the word " honor "; Johnson's and Webster's Dictionaries stereoty

honour of the army, and though communications with Mezieres, where See also:

VINOY, JOSEPH (1803-1880)

Vinoy's corps (13th) was gathering, lay open throughout the day, he neither sent orders to it nor made any arrangements to meet the coming danger. The troops received See also:

food and See also:

AMMUNITION

ammunition, the disorders consequent on the successive days' fighting in See also:

RETREAT (O. Fr. retrete, mod. retraite, from Lat. retrahere, to draw back)

retreat were remedied, and the men themselves got what they needed most of all, an almost unbroken day's See also:

REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest. Locally their positions were strong, particularly to the east, where the stream flowing through the Fond du Givonne, though fordable, presented a serious obstacle to the See also:

TACTICAL

tactical handling of the German infantry.

But as a whole it was far too cramped for the See also:

numbers crowded into it; it could be completely overlooked from the heights of Frenois, where the See also:

king of See also:

Prussia's headquarters took their stand, and whence in the afternoon the German See also:

ARTILLERY (the O. Fr. artiller, to equip with engines of war, probably comes from Late Lat. articulum, dim. of ars, art, cf. " engine " from ingenium, or of artus, joint)

artillery firethem. During the See also:

NIGHT

night of the 31st of August the Bavarians threw a See also:

PONTOON (Fr. ponton, from Lat. pons, a bridge)

pontoon bridge across the Meuse below Remilly, and soon after daybreak, in a See also:

fog which lay thickly over the whole See also:

COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

country, they began their advance towards Bazeilles, held by Vassoigne's division of the 12th corps and fairly prepared for de- fence. The firing called all troops within reach of the See also:

sound to arms, and before 5 A.M. the Meuse Army was marching to the battle-See also:

field, the See also:

GUARDS, AND HOUSEHOLD TROOPS

Guards on the northern road via Villers-Arnay, the See also:

SAXONS

Saxons and IVth corps to the See also:

south along the river. Vassoigne's division contained a number of Marine battalions, and their stub-born resistance completely disconcerted the Bavarians. Deprived of all artillery co-operation owing to the fog, the latter spent themselves in fruitless and disconnected efforts in the gardens and streets of the village, and reinforcements were soon urgently needed. About 6 A.M. the fog lifted, and the German batteries at once took part in the struggle. One of the first shells wounded Marshal MacMahon. The next See also:

SENIOR, NASSAU WILLIAM (1790-1864)

senior officer, See also:

General Ducrot, at once assumed command (7 A.M.). But it happened that General See also:

WIMPFFEN, EMMANUEL FELIX DE (1811-1884)

Wimpffen, who had only joined the army from See also:

ALGIERS (Fr. Alger, Arab. Jezair, i.e. The Islands)

Algiers on the night of the 3oth, brought with him a See also:

SECRET (Lat. secretum, hidden, concealed)

secret See also:

COMMISSION (from Lat. commissio, committere)

commission to assume command in the event of the See also:

DEATH

death or dis- ablement of MacMahon. Of this See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power he did not at first avail himself, since he was a stranger both to the army and the country, whilst Ducrot possessed the confidence of the one and the knowledge of the other in the highest degree. But when about 9 A.M. he learnt that Ducrot proposed to move the whole army under See also:

COVER (from the Fr. convert, from couvrir, to cover, Lat. cooperire)

cover of rearguards to the west towards Mezieres, he produced his commission and countermanded the See also:

MOVEMENT

movement, being himself convinced that eastward towards See also:

BAZAINE, ACHILLE FRANCOIS (1811–1888)

Bazaine at See also:

METZ

Metz lay the road to salvation. Orders once issued on a battle-field are not easily recalled, and the result of this See also:

CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change of command was dire confusion.

The French troops northward of Bazeilles, along the Fond du Givonne, were already commencing their withdrawal, when the leading troops of the Saxon XII. corps began to arrive about Daigny, and being only opposed by a weak rearguard, easily carried the See also:

ridge south of the Givonne-Sedan road, thus threatening the retreat of Vassoigne's division in and about Bazeilles, which then See also:

fell into the hands of the Bavarians between 10 and 11 A.M. At the same moment the Guard corps had begun to See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form up between Daignv and Givonne, and there being no serious force of the enemy in front of them, the artillery was deploying along the western heights above the valley of Givonne, covered only by weak advanced guards of infantry, when suddenly a great See also:

COLUMN (Lat. columna)

column of French infantry, some 6000 strong, moving west in pursuance of Wimpffen's orders, came over the eastern border of the valley and charged down at full See also:

SPEED, JOHN (1552–1629)

speed towards the guns. Then followed one of the most dramatic See also:

SPECTACLES

spectacles of the entire war. The whole of the corps artillery of the Guard turned upon these devoted men, and tore the column in See also:

HALF

half, shrouding it in dense clouds of dust and See also:

SMOKE (from O. Eng. smeocan, to smoke, reek, cf. Dutch meek, Ger. Schmauch, probably allied to Gr. vol9caiv)

smoke from the bursting shells, above which could be seen the trunks and limbs of men flung upwards by their See also:

EXPLOSION

explosion. The head of the column, perhaps 2000 strong, nevertheless kept on its way, but under the combined See also:

FIRE (in O. Eng. f j'r; the word is common to West German languages, cf. Dutch vuur, Ger. Feuer; the pre-Teutonic form is seen in Sanskrit pu, pavaka, and Gr. irup; the ultimate origin is usually taken to be a root meaning to purify, cf. Lat. purus)

fire of the Guard See also:

RIFLE

rifle See also:

BATTALION

battalion and the flanking fire from other guns its impetus died out and its debris disappeared by degrees under convenient cover. The German Guards were now See also:

FREE

free to stretch out their right towards the Belgian frontier (where the scouts of the III. Army were already moving) and prepare with all deliberation for the attack on the Bois de la Garenne. The III. Army had moved off as See also:

early as 2.30 A.M., and by 4 A.M. was already See also:

CROSSING

crossing the Meuse at Donchery, aided by several pontoon and trestle See also:

bridges thrown over during the night. Their right was covered from sight by the peninsula formed by a bend of the river, and the See also:

march of the several columns was unopposed till, clearing its northern extremity, they began to deploy to their right between St Menges and Floing. Here they encountered French outposts, which fell back on their See also:

main position on the ridge, to the south of the Floing-Illy road. Against this position the German artillery now pressed forward, and seeing their exposed position, General Gallifet brought for-See also:

ward his See also:

BRIGADE (Fr. and Ger. brigade, Ital. brigata, Span. brigada; the English use of the word dates from the early 17th century)

brigade of Chasseurs d'Afrique and delivered a most dashing See also:

charge.

But being unsupported he was compelled to withdraw again behind the cover of the Cazal-Illy ridge. It was now about rx A.M., and, whether moved by the belated impulse of Ducrot's orders or attracted by the apparent weakness of the Prussians within sight, the French infantry now made a brilliant See also:

COUNTER

counter-attack out of their position in their usual manner. But German reinforcements coming suddenly into view, and their elan having spent itself, they fell back again, bolding only to Floing, whence it required nearly two See also:

HOURS, CANONICAL

hours more to expel them. About See also:

NOON

noon Wimpffen rode up to General Douay and asked him whether he could hold on to his position. The latter, possibly elated by the success of his See also:

RECENT

recent attack, replied in the affirmative, pointing out only the importance of maintaining the Calvaire d'Illy to the north. De Wimpffen promised him support from the 1st corps on the right See also:

REAR

rear, part of which, hidden in the Bois de la Garenne, had as yet been little engaged, and then rode south to Balan, where he found the 12th corps fighting desperately. He then sent back to Douay for reinforcements, and the latter despatched all he could spare. These, marching south, crossed the troops of the 1st corps sent to Douay's assistance. The Prussian shells were already crashing into the See also:

woods from all sides, and countless stragglers and riderless horses caused most serious delay. To gain See also:

time, See also:

MARGUERITTE, PAUL (186o— )

Margueritte's division was ordered to charge. Margueritte was killed as he rode forward to reconnoitre, and Gallifet took command. " For the next half-See also:

HOUR

hour," says the Prussian See also:

OFFICIAL (Late Lat. QJicialis, for class. Lat. apparitor, from officium, office, duty)

official See also:

account, " the See also:

SCENE (Fr. scene, Lat. scaena, Gr. oflvil, a tent or booth, a stage or scene)

scene defies description.

Gallifet and his squadrons covered themselves with See also:

GLORY (through the O. Fr. glorie, modern gloire, from Lat. gloria, cognate with Gr. KXebs, abets)

glory, but he had not 2000 sabres at his disposal. Under the See also:

storm of See also:

shell and over the broken ground manoeuvring was impossible. But a See also:

SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series of isolated charges were delivered with results which convinced well-nigh every survivor that the day of cavalry, in sufficient- numbers and properly handled on the battle-field, was by no means spent." About an hour after the cavalry charges, between 3 and 4 P.M., the Germans at length gathered See also:

WEIGHT

weight enough to See also:

ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt the See also:

ASSAULT (from Lat. ad, to or on, and saltare, to leap)

assault of the French main position, and moved by a See also:

COMMON

common See also:

INSTINCT

instinct, lines of men almost 2 M. in extent, pressed on, gaining cover from the See also:

CONVEX

convex slope of the See also:

hill, till at length they were able to storm the stubbornly-defended ridge. Meanwhile, Wimpffen had initiated afresh counter-stroke from the Fond du Givonne against Balan and Bazeilles. Carried out with magnificent courage, it swept the Bavarians out of both villages, and for a moment the road seemed open for See also:

ESCAPE (in mid. Eng. eschape or escape, from the O. Fr. eschapper, modern echapper, and escaper, low Lat. escapium, from ex, out of, and cappa, cape, cloak; cf. for the sense development the Gr. iichueoOat, literally to put off one's clothes, hence to sli

escape, but Wimpffen did not know that the IV. Prussian corps stood waiting behind the gap. See also:

RIDING

Riding back to the town to seek the See also:

EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor and implore him to place himself at the head of all available reinforcements, he saw a See also:

white See also:

FLAG (or " FLAGGE," a common Teutonic word in this sense, but apparently first recorded in English)

flag break out from the See also:

STEEPLE (akin to " steep")

steeple of the See also:

church See also:

TOWER (Lat. turris; Fr. tour, clocker; Ital. torre; Ger. Thurm)

tower, but almost instantaneously disappear. He did indeed reach the emperor, but, delayed by the appalling confusion, was too See also:

LATE

late. The flag had gone up again and he knew that further resistance was hopeless. The fighting did not cease at once. The troops he had directed to make the final effort, their eyes fixed on the enemy in front of them, never saw the flag; and until 6 P.M. a series of isolated attempts were made to break the iron circle with which the Germans had surrounded them. The emperor, who during the early hours of the day had fearlessly courted death, at length overcome by extreme See also:

PHYSICAL

physical See also:

pain and exhaustion, had ridden back to the town, and about 4 P.M., seeing no See also:

hope of success, had sent a parlementaire conveying his See also:

PERSONAL

personal surrender to the king of Prussia, at the same time ordering the white flag to be hoisted.

It was torn down by a See also:

COLONEL (derived either from Lat. column, Fr. colonne, column, or Lat. corona, a crown)

Colonel Fauve, but was hoisted again half an hour later, when Prussian troops from Cazal were almost at the western See also:

GATES, HORATIO (1728-1806)

gates of Sedan. It only remained for Wimpffen to make terms for the army, and after a See also:

long and gallant effort to avert the inevitable, he at length signed an unconditional surrender, with the See also:

SOLE (Solea)

sole alleviation (introduced as a See also:

TRIBUTE (Lat. tributurn, a stated payment, contribution)

tribute of respect for the gallantry shown by his men) that all See also:

OFFICERS

officers were to retain their swords. Thus passed into captivity 82,000 men, 558 guns and stores to an immense amount. The See also:

price to the victors for this result was in round numbers 9000. The French killed and wounded numbered about x7,000. It is indicative of the demoralization in the French army that this figure is r000 less than the cost of the victory to the Germans at See also:

Worth, although on that occasion the French troops actually engaged numbered one half those available at Sedan. The duration of the fighting was the same in both cases. (F. N. M.) SEDAN-See also:

CHAIR (in. Mid. Eng. chcere, through O. Fr. chaire or chaiere, from Lat. cathedra, later caledra, Gr. xaOi3pa, seat, cf. "cathedral"; the modern Fr. form chaise, a chair, has been adopted in English with a particular meaning as a form of carriage; chaire

CHAIR, a portable chair or covered vehicle, with See also:

side windows, and entrance through a hinged See also:

DOORWAY (corresponding to the Gr. Iran, Lat. porte)

doorway at the front, the roof also opening to allow the occupant to stand. It is carried on poles by two " chairmen." Alike in See also:

Paris and in See also:

LONDON

London the sedan-chair See also:

man was an institution-in the one Sedan-Chair (after See also:

HOGARTH, WILLIAM (1697–1764)

Hogarth). See also:

CITY (through Fr. cite, from Lat. civitas)

city he was usually an Auvergnat, in the other an Irishman.

The sedan-chair was a fashionable mode of transport in towns up to a century or so ago. It took its name from the town of Sedan, in France, where it was first used, and was introduced into See also:

England by See also:

Sir S. Duncombe in 1634. Although a typically 18th-century vehicle it was used in the 17th, and had been known. much earlier. Indeed, the See also:

ancient sedia gestaloria of the popes is really a rudimentary form of sedan-chair. These vehicles were often beautifully painted, even the greatest French pastoralists not disdaining to embellish their panels. It is still in use at the public See also:

BATHS

baths at Ischl, in See also:

Austria, and also in the city of See also:

Bath, England, as a mode of transit in connexion with the medical baths. The sedan-chair can be taken into the bedroom, and the invalid conveyed without exposure to the See also:

OUTER

outer See also:

air to and from the See also:

MINERAL

mineral-See also:

WATER

water bath. The poles are so arranged that the chair may be carried up and down stairs and still preserve its See also:

HORIZONTAL

horizontal position.

End of Article: SEDAN

Additional information and Comments

There are no comments yet for this article.

» Add information or comments to this article.

Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML.

Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.

Links to articles and home page are always encouraged.

[back]
SEDALIA

[next]
SEDBERGH