The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1866-07-25
Peace or War i'm Europe.

I e"co UT ar I'm Europe.
Should Prussia, flushed with the
splendid results of a brief campaign
which has wreathed anew the laurels
OF the great Frederic and of Blucher
about her commanders and her
armies, now accept the peace which
Austria proffers to her by the hand of
Napoleon III, the war of 1865 NAV
be- known in history as the ssseyen
days war" The 'Seven Years War;
made Frederic II immortal. The
first Napoleon gave the name of the
'seven weeks war" to the campaign
OF 1914 in France. The ssseven DAYS
war began with the first collision
between the armies of Prussia and
Austria, in Bohemia, on the 26th of
June, and ended, if ended it now
shall prove to be, with the over
whelming victory of the Prussians at
Soadowa, on the Sd of July, 1865.
The suddenness and completeness of
this victory has taken all Europe by
surprise, and tho accounts of it which
reached us on Sunday, by the Nova
Scotian, are confused and bewiltered
by the emotion which the simple It'd
lngs had awakened both i'll England
and in France
Before We proceed to speculate on
the probable issues of this great mill
tary event. and of the diplomatic ac
ton by which it was immediately fol-
lowed, let us endeavor to educe from
the kilograms which have reached us
some clear idea of the scene of the
decisive conflict, and of its Immediate
military effects. The storming of
Gltschin by the Prussians, which al
lowed Prince Frederic Charles, at the
head OF the Army of the Elbe, and
the Crown Prince, at the head of the
Army of Silesia, to unite their forces
IN the heart Of Northwestern Bohc-
mia, threatened the left wing and
centre of the Austrian army in Bohe-
mia with annihilation, and compelled
Marshal Benedck, abandoning all
other objects, to withdraw his whole
strength and attempt reconcentra-
ton of his army behind the river
Elbc, and under cover of the for
tresses OF Josephstadt and konics-
graft, on the Eastern bank of that
river. Leaving Prague and all North
western Bohemia to their fate. the
Austrians accordingly seem to have
pushed in haste from Gitschin East
Wardty and enthusiastically towards
the river. The Prussians pressed
hard, however, on their retreatino
enemy; and after reaching the small
town of Horzitz, which lies about
fifteen miles to the East of Gitschin.
the army of Bencdek, striking thence
Southwardly for the Elbe, was over
taken by the united Prussian armies,
accompanied now by King William
il person, at the village of Sadowa,
which is situated upon the slope of a
scml-clrcular range of hills on the
mann road between Horzitz and Ko-
nigsgratz, being distant from the
former place about five miles, and
from the latter between seven and
eight miles. Here, in one Of those
easily dcfcnsihlc positions ia which
Bohemia abounds, and with which
tie Austrian commanders must be
presumed to be familiar, Marshal
Henedek made a final stand for
Kaiser and Fathcrlan3. konips
graft, for which he was aiminr
though rs = regular fortress no longer
formidable against the artillery of
Cur times, is considered by military
men to be the finest dcfensiblc posi-
tion which exists on the circuitous
course of the Elbe, from its sources
III the Ricscn~gebirge the mountain
frontier between Silcsia and Bohc
mia to its junction with the Iser ut
Irandclso and with the crushing
Moldlu at Mclnik. But Konics-
cratz the army of Marshal Beucdek
was not destined intact to reach. II
WAS ;essalled at Sadowa by the Prus
SANS, with the organized impetuositv
winch has marked AL their OPP ~ations
III this brief but extraordin..l. cam
palgn; and after furious :.uu san
gunary battle. lasting through the
long summers day, was utterly de-
fcatcl. with Il loss, as the tclc@rams
report to us, so tremendous AZ pyac
tlr;iliy to diSorSaniZe and paralvZe it,
either tor offensive or defensive pur
poses. Field Marshall Lieutenant Won
Gtb!cnz, who bat the other lav COM
manded the Austrian force in the
c9~cIo}~"ui"9n of Austria and Prussia
over the Duclics conquered from
Denmark, was sent to the Prussian
camp on the next day with PROPOSE
tlonS for an armisticc: and the court
of Vienna, on the same day, invoked
the Intervention of the Emperor of
tlc French to secure peace, Offering