The Sun.
London, England, 1860-09-11 00:00:00

141ILIT4RY POSITION OF THE KING
OF NAPLES.

(From Le Nord of Brussell.)
The news of the departure of the King of Naples
for Capua and Gaeta is now certain. This news
had been expected for some days. It still pro-
ducts, nevertheless, a considet able effect, for it had
been imagined that the King would make, under
the walls of his capital, with the troops that have
remain( d faithful to him, a last attempt at resist-
ance. It is at Gaeta, that is, in the strongest posi-
tion there is in the kingdom, regarded int a mili-
tary point of view, that he will await a return of
good fortune, or endeavour to provoke it. He with-
draws with a contingent of troops still respectable
enough, being 30,000 strong it is said, and which,
considering the excellence of the position, must be
taken into account.

In fact, if in a political point of view the aban-
donment of Naples is quite a revolution of itself, in
a military point of view it is an act of dexterity, or
at least of prudence. Naples is open, or rather it
opens itself spontaneously. Before even the King
left it, Francis had, we may say, ceased to reign
there. The movement of men's minds there, the
impulse that carries away the population and drives
it to throw itself into the arms of Garibaldi, might
cause a complete dissolution of the last nucleus of
strength at the young king's disposal. The city,
it is true, is entirely commanded by Fort St. Elmo,
a stronghold not easily to be taken, cut out of the
rock, and at some places standing on an elevation
of 80 feet. But to remain master of that point
would be to put himself under the necessity of a
painful and probably a fruitless operation, that of
bombarding the capital of the continental kingdom,
as he had the Sicilian capital—an inhuman proceed-
ing, and, therefore, most impolitic. The young king,
yielding to the advice of his most prudent friends,
has preferred retiring to Gaeta, where he will add.
to the advantage of a royal residence, and of a still
stronger military position, that of remaining master
of a part of his states and approaching nearer to
the only ally he has preserved—the Pope—whose
government has at its disposal 25,000 men, pretty
well organised, it is said, by General Lamoriciere.
Gaeta, a fortified town of 14,000 inhabitants, in-
cluding its three suburbs, is situated in the Terra di
Lavoro, of which the administrative capital is Ca-
serta, between Capua and Naples. It consists of
irregular works, rising in terraces one above the
other, on a rocky headland of the Mediterranean
coast. On the land side the narrow approach is
closed by strong batteries ; a fort commands the
harbour, and at the extremity of this point there is
the old tower called Rolando's. Gaeta was besieged.
in 1800 by the French, and in 1815 by the Aus-
trians. Very strong by nature, this position is ren-
dered yet stronger by the configuration of the sur-
rounding locality. For any one master of Gaeta, and
having a sufficient number of troops at his disposal,it
is easy to defend San Germano on the north east
and Capua on the south-east, and these three points
form a triangular district, in which the last efforts
of the Bourbon monarchy will probably be-concen-
trated.
San Germano and Capua are both situated aboat
ten leagues from Gaeta; San Germano, on the
Fiume-Rapido, is at the foot of Mount Cassino, the
summit of which is crowned by the ancient and
vast abbey of the same name. This position may
be used as a military retreat, and can be easily de-
fended. Capua, on the Volturno, possesses an
arsenal, a military hospital, and 8,000 inhabitants.
The Volturno is crossed there by means of a stone
bridge, and on the right bank of the river there is
a strong tete-de-pont. A strong casemate has been
constructed to the east of the town.
Capua lies, as is well known, half way between
Naples and Gaeta. It is from that point that the
King will reach his last asylum. Doubtless he
would leave behind him, at this intermediate
station, a sufficient number of troops to defend it,
if the war now being waged by him were a regular
war, but he is rather a spectator than an actor in
the scene. The situation is controlled by unex-
pected events, and if he merely intends waiting for
events he will perhaps do nothing more thanson-
centrate his forces on Gaeta. This we shall soon
learn by news from the Two Sicilies.