The National Register. — London, England, 1808-08-21 00:00:00

4 M Writ V 530 4 11. R 2 pr- THE NA' T. 1.-V. • "1. -p 411 MI • AUGUST pNAt REGIST' tea , . t'iveir s.vnatiou now — b r— etaine deplorable. The main ! arisl was sepaisied from its reserve at Halle. The ad- ,1 saute tit uernad..tle as far as Gera cut off every communi- Cation with ressony and no resource remained but to fight under disadvantages were defeat was ruin or to effect a preciptiate and disorderly retreat over Muhlhausen into .Hanover and to the Elbe. F.ach plan was equally des perate. Had the Piussian army, after the loss sustained on tie Seal, retreatel towards Halle, destroyed their maga‘ sines at Naumnurg, effected a junction with the Prince of Wurtensberg, and taken a strong volition behind the Llbe, and, in case of imperious necessity, retired as far as Frauntort un the Osier, they would have been able to await these the Human unties which were hastening to their acs stance, and probably sued the monarchy. 'I hest considerations have induced us to cbuse for our slisquisitson, a subject which it is the highest interest o. this country and of Lurope to ascertain. The late events in t. , pain, aid Use suspicious inactivity of Bobaparte, whilst Austria 14 making a vast augmentation to her war estab lishmeoi, give a presumptive right to reject established opinion ou this hen!. We always entertained strong doubts " relative to the generally-received amount of the French alley ; whilst the French themselves, and the nations they eubducd, accused to vie with each other in exaggerating its slumber. But before we enter on our subject, we will • take a review of the other armies of the Continent, and after Navin„contrasted their real strength with the efficist ac counts published at Berlin, Vienna, and Petershurgh, our Neuters will be better prepared for following us in the subject of our inquiry. It had been for many years a prevailing opinion on the Contieent that the Prussian army amounted to 260,000 men. However, we find in an Etat, published by the Court of Heflin in January, 1806, that it consisted of no snore than .39,661, viz. 3114 guards, 1/6,30t infantry, .440 artillery, asd 14/0 men which are denominated. About the time that this were issued for raising /0,000 mill states. This great augmentation of nil shewed the dangers of the munar of a war with France, received the applause from every patriotic indivi- Whilst the independence of the North this 'rigorous and enlightened roes _ as the surest check to universal personal friendship existing between the Emperor Alexander furzified this intimate alliance of two power regarded by the most timid as a silt& th e i r res pective possessions. If. we 34,000 Sautes, and 16,000 Hessians, we government was generally thought disposal, exclusive of the Hosnians, more brave and disciplined as ass; in the immense tinny existed only in ima impotence or the government, the :ants, or, more probse(ys /he state of the finance., which were nut adequate to se ti eitraordi awry exertions. frustrated the expectations o 1 the Conti pent, and prevented the execution of this grand project of sationat defence. Let Us now compate with the foregoing itttestent, d sh/4 mode, the number employed against the French in 1806. Tills disasters sustained by the other suites of the Continent, and the reputation of the enemy, it may he presumed, engaged the Prussian government to bring its the approach it from . at that and had the len- Yintaisce circum unfortu- conshited of 96,000 men, besides 18,000 `axon auxiliaries. The re serve at Halle, commanded by Prince Eugene of Wurtern. berg, amounted to 4b,000 rum; and the cprps iu West. phalia, under the orders of Lesrocq, ass about 14,000; making in all about 135,000. On adding a few battalions left at Berlin, Potsdam, Custrin, Breslau, illagdeblirp., Nienburg, &c. which Isere computed at 1 ..000, we will find that the Prussian military force, indeed o f 239,667 regulars. end 10,000 militia, did not amount, at I the highest calculation, to 150,000. It will be Latinalls asked how this monstrous exaggeration could ha.estaktit dance, and have been so long beliestd ? It will be best resolved by another question : How have ewer) 'deception exaggeratibn fbund their way into society t because there were a number of persons, from vanity, weakness, and rapacity. interested in keeping up the delusion. It i s probable, Rod we have strong reason to bi neve it, Clat the King himself was as unacquainted with the real state of his army, as the roost ignorant and the most otscure of his subjects: But there was a confederacy of traitors in the army and ministry, who found their account in the .deception ; and made no scruple of sacrificing the ;Email - - city and army to their infamous avarice. The confede racy comprised almost ell the officers of the artnyo from the generals down to the very captains; and this was the rea son why a company in the Prussian sers ice was worth 3000 dollars a-year, whilst the lieutenant had only 250; but the latter had a prospect of participating some day in the infammis pro6ta. This excessive disproportion proceeded (rain the incompleteness of the company as to numbers; and as the colonel, the lieutenant-colonel, and the majors ' had their respective companies; thd abuse magn.tied in proportion as it remained unpunished, and the Monarch and the State were equally defrauded by a few traitors; and, as may he expected, the country was subjugated by the enemy an a campaign of six weeks. Let us uuw take the official etat of the Austrian arms - , as published in the beginning pf 1805. It amounted to :150,945 men. Infantry, 271,871 ; Cavalry, 60,800 ; Ar , finery, 15,994 ; and 12,280 Garrison Troops, Let us cum , pare with this etat the armies cmplo)ed against the French in the Campaign of the same year. Mack had under his command at Ulm, 70,000 men ; the Archduke Charles on the Etseh, end John in Tyrol, had about 80,000, making altogether no more than 140,000 men. As Russian armies were likewise hastening to their assistance, we may con. dude that their whole force, with the exception of a fcw battalions on the Turkish frontiers, was collected at lint, Verona, and in Tyrol. So that, ihstend of 85n,945 mein shall find their army consistedof little more than 150,00 o: The same contradiction, inaccuracy. and disproportion, are visible in the Russian accounts, published in leo3. Ac cording to these their army consisted of 832,870, 1 :'1.-- 13,103 Guards, 53,034 Cavalry, 226,121 Infantry, 12,15 0 Garrison Troops, 44;052 Artillery, 13,920 and 100,954 Irregulars ; and three jeers after this statement, the army was represented as fir more nutherous. if vie will give ourselves the trouble to contrast with this pomp ous enumeration; the force which this power opposed last campaign to the French, when it bad time enough, after the first adcounts were received of the arrival of the enemy IIA the Banks of the Vistula, to collect its scatte red force rom the very exttemities of the empire. if we do it, and can rely on the declarations of Lord Hutchinson, which there is every reason to believe were true, the Russian army in Poland sever did amount to 100,000 men. We feel, on this occasions a strung inclination to indulge in the mingled sensations of laughter, contempt, arid indignation, at the folly ; rodomantade, credulity and hectoring vanity of the European C . slinets. It would appear they had entere . into a taciVagreement to give full credit to tfieir reciprocal falsehoods. We know no other plausible way of ac counting for their vanity and extravagance. We have entered into this detail relative to Austria, and Anglia, in order to prepare oar Reader 1, some observations on the French m ilitary systru3, which 1 more t 113.11 71411,6111. vi 40,478 cavalry, 13,240 1 not particularly deuomi Etat appeared, orders w tie nails Premium State Mary strength, whilst it thy *al the prospect of aseripitst tribute of ape duel in Germany, U'in . inea to be • secured by t e sum et wu considered 4iespotem. The pers Frederick William and these expectations, and iful monarchs WM regar . I ,**wit guarantee rif the I add in army of 34,000 1i - shall fu I the Prusian_g 0 to have at its disposal, than 330,000 men, as t 1 world. but, alas ! this enema. Either the ii 1 i treachery of its servant 1 r -------. ---0 --. whole force into the field ; in paitirwPar i at the appr of the Ruiviiins allowed it to withdraw every regiment Poland end Silesia. The writer happened to tratel at time through Westphalia, Hanover, and Sax >fly, and an oppottuoity, from an intimate knoirlei-e of the gunge-, a bog aniaaraf; . ..:4, person*, negnain with several P ~....",- ; 4 4. - , „..:,,..4i .......:.. •, ,moretthhaetr uhf stances, of a •", oake . . i11.,/ 4 , i t 1 4.--,. CI LI j . ' ' ' of ' ; ~. e,,,. .. ...•:.i! i 7 ... .: . 'ea& consitil - , • , , ...el f g - . . ; r- 7holit. - / . -' y., <-..---- • air 'rigor _..........m.- 1 i im .... 10'^ •