Merlin's division was involved in the fighting subsequent to the Battle of Gué-à-Tresmes. On 2 March 1814 Friedrich von Kleist sent out a reconnaissance force of three cavalry regiments, five infantry battalions and two horse artillery batteries. Merlin charged the Prussians but was pushed back on his infantry supports. The Prussians were stopped and retreated in the late afternoon. During the Battle of Laon on 9 March, the corps of Marshal Auguste de Marmont and Bordesoulle were routed by a 7:30 pm Prussian surprise attack. The French lost 3,500 men and 45 guns in the so-called "Hurrah of Athies". At the Battle of Reims on 13 March, Merlin's division advanced on the extreme right flank with the task of stopping the Prussians from falling back toward the bridge at Sillery. The cavalrymen overran a number of Prussian battalions, compelling the soldiers to surrender. On 14 March, Merlin's troopers were beaten in a skirmish with Friedrich von Katzeler's Prussian cavalry at Courcy, losing about 100 casualties. By 17 March, Merlin's division had shrunk to 1,150 sabers when it was assigned to Marmont's corps.