The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-09-13
FRANCE IN 1914.
How the AInes Entered Paris.

strength to considerable extent, his down
fall and the capture of Paris are more directly
traceable to the disastrous campaign in Rus
sia. OF an army of more than half q million
of men, not one tenth part surviving the hor-
rors Of the retreat from Moscow, retreated
through Prussian territory, pursued by the
victorious Russians, in the spring of 1913.
This had the ultimate effect of emancipating
Prussia from the control of France. Since
the battle of Jena Prussia had suffered every
indignity at the hands of her conqueror. Her
territory had been divided. The first reaui-
sition of money imposed upon her after her
great defeat, amounting to $130, 900, 600, had
been vigorously and mercilessly enforced.
The vast armies of Napoleon had been quar-
tered upon and marched across her fertile
valleys and had devoured and destroyed the
accumulations and means of subsistence of
large sections of the country, utterly i'm
poverishing the unfortunate inhabitants.
The people had begun to doubt the wisdom
of their king in submitting to despotism
which already inflicted greater exactions upon
its forced allies than injuries upon its open
foes. Upon the expectation that q rebellion
against the alliance and yoke of France would
be attempted, the people of Prussia hailed
the occupation of Berlin by the Russians,
regarding the latter as deliverers from
French oppression and throughout
Prussia, with an outburst of patriotic ardor,
the people flew to arms. A coldness was
manifested by Napoleon toward the King of
Prussia because of this attitude of the sub
jects of the latter; Napoleon did not believe
in the expressions of good faith on the part
of King William, and alienated the Kings
friendship by the expression of his suspi-
cions. The King took offense at last, aud
thus was precipitated treaty between Prus-
sia and Russia that formed the nucleus of
that Great Alliance which, when ultimately
cemented by defeats as we'll as victories,
clustering the armies of all Europe upon
French soil, broke the power of France and
destroyed the empire of Napoleon.
The battle of Leipsic, itself a victory con-
sequent upon the growth of the alliance, may
be regarded in some respects as the first step
of the advance of the allies upon Paris. The
battle of Hanau, which followed few days
after that of Leipsic, was the last battle fought
by Napoleon beyond the Rhine. The cam
paign which thereafter ensued in the early
months of 1914 when the armies on either
side of the Rhine had enjoyed short rest and
recuperation in winter quarters, has many
features in common with the present war, as
well in the locality of the operations as in
the probable ultimate results. To trace
in detail the various steps by which
principally during the year 1913 the Great
Alliance was formed, would require the narra-
ton of the entire history of Europe during
one of her most eventful years. Suffice it
that the gravitating force which attracted the
nations to the alliance grew with its accre-
tions, and to Prussia and Russia there were
eventually added Sweden and Austria Ba-
varia and the other German States, even
Saxony, being forcedin; Naples and Denmark
yielded to a species of necessity, while its
numbers were swelled by the Spanish, Por-
tuguese, Dutch and English, the last bring
inc in addition tO punhers tha sssipau,c of
war;"
The plan of that campaign, like that of the
present year, consisted IN the advance of
three armies upon France. The 'grand
army under Prince Schwartzenberg, $50, 600
strong, advanced through Switzerland with
the permission of that State) by the passes of
the Jura Mountains into France. Blucher's
"Army of Silesia, " 40, 600 strong, moved pv
way of Mayence, merely blockading that
town, into the Champagne country" Berna-
dotte had the Army of the North, 175, 600
strong, and passing through Flanders, was to
besiege Antwerp, reduce the Low Countries
or secure their alliance, and enter France
from the extreme north. The grand army
and Bluchers army of Silesia crossed the
Rhine in December, 1913. The principal
portion of the grand army swept with wide
front through Lorraine, its extreme right
wing in its movement touching or tapping
the southern edge of the path which in the
present war has been selected by the army of
the Crown Prince after the defeat of Mac
Mahon at Woerth, and thus passed into the
plains of Burgundy, sendangering the city of
Lyons. Bluchers army left large detach-
ments to mask or reduce Metz, Saar Louis,
Thionville, and Luxembourg, and pushed his
advanced forces to Vitry and st. Dizier.
Napoleon was prompt in providing to meet
the impending dangers. He left an Empress
Re0apf and a. infant in poric
forward on the 25th of January to the head
quarters of his army at Chalons. The next
day he advanced to Vitry, and on the follow
ing morning, resuming his march, he met and
defeated portion of Bluchers forces at ST.
ID zier, cutting in two Blucher's army whose
headquarters had at the time advanced beyond.
about 28 miles southwest, to Brienne. The
next day Blucher narrowly escaped being
crushed by the sudden onset of the forces
which Napoleon hurried to Brienne. BY the
1st of February Schwartzenberg and Blucher
had joined their forces. In the battles of
Brienne and La Rothiere, Napoleon was for
the first time defeated on the soil of France.
and retreated to Troyes.
! Instead of promptly pursuing Napoleon,
the allies, who were embarrassed about the
subsistence of such large forces, divided their
armies again. Prince Schwartzenbere in a
leisurely way-for it was winter, and the
roads were in frightful condition-started
for Troyes. Blucher directed his forces to-
ward point about half way on the road from
Chalons to Paris. Napoleon left sm Ill force
as feint of defense at Troyes to serve as a
scare-crow to Schwartzenberg, and, by
forced march over a rugged district, struck
Blucher's forces on their road to the river
Marne, defeating them in detail at Cham.
paubert, Mentmirail, and Vauchamps in a
locality from thirty to thirty-three miles west
n