de pont pour le débarquement. disembarkation. Il mit encore en usage un autre artifice: ayant remarqué que le vent an other artifice : having remarked that the wind another stratagem: having remarked that the wind use souffloit du nord, + blew blew où where il étoit, au he was, to-the from-the north, from the north, the quarter in which he was, towards the sud, où étoient campés les ennemis, il fit mettre south, where + were encamped the enemies, he made to-put south, where the enemy was encamped, he ordered a quan le feu à quantité de paille mouillée, dont la fumée the fire to quantity of straw wet, of-which the smoke tity of wet straw to be set on fire, the thick smoke épaisse se répandant sur la rivière, déroboit thick herself spreading upon the river, of which spreading over the surface of the river, † concealed concealed aux Saxons la vue de ses troupes et de ce qu'il to-the Saxons the sight of his troops and of that which he his and his designs from troops alloit faire. to-do. † went Saxons. À la faveur de ce nuage, il fit the At the favour of this cloud, he made avancer des barques remplies de cette même paille to-advance of-the barks boats, also filled filled with smoking straw, to fumante; de sorte que le nuage grossissant toujours, smoking; of sort that the cloud growing-big always, advance; SO that the cloud continually increasing, et chassé par le vent dans les yeux des ennemis, and chased by the wind into the eyes of-the enemies, and driven by the wind into the enemy's eyes, les mettoit dans l'impossibilité de savoir si them + put into the impossibility of to-know if the rendered it impossible for him to know whether the le Cependant il conduisoit seul Nevertheless he + conducted alone He was the sole conductor of the au milieu de la rivière : "Hé bien!" dit-il au at-the middle of the the middle of the river: river: "" Well!" "Well," said he to-the said he to Général Renschild, "la Duina ne sera pas plus "the Dwina not will-be * General Renschild, "the Dwina will not be more General Renschild, more méchante que la mer de Copenhague; croyez-moi, than the sea of Copenhagen; Copenhagen; wicked unkind to us than the sea of Général, nous les battrons." General, we them shall-beat." General, we shall beat them." believe me, believe me, Il arriva en un quart- d'heure à l'autre bord, et fut mortifié de ne sauter of hour at the other border, and was mortified of not to-jump in a quarter of an hour, and was mortified at being only à terre que le quatrième. Il fait aussitôt débarquer to earth than the fourth. He makes as-soon to-disembark the fourth to leap to land. He immediately ordered his can son canon his cannon et forme sa bataille, sans que and forms his battle, non to be disembarked, and formed his line, without that while les ennemis, offusqués de la fumée, puissent s'y the enemies, darkened of the smoke, might-be-able themselves there the enemy, blinded by the smoke, could make no opposer, que par quelques coups tirés au hazard. to-oppose, than by resistance, except by a few saw the King of Sweden marching already to them. saw the King of Sweden marching directly upon them. Le Maréchal Stenau ne perdit pas un moment : 3 aperçut-il 'les Suédois, qu'il fondit sur perceived he the Swedes, than he poured-down upon the instant he caught sight of the Swedes, he came down upon eux avec la meilleure partie de sa cavalerie. Le choc violent de cette troupe tombant sur les Suédois shock violent of this troop falling upon the Swedes violent shock of these troops falling upon the Swedes their battalions, them dans l'instant qu'ils formoient leurs bataillons, les in the instant that they + formed at the moment they were forming their battalions, threw Ils s'ouvrirent; ils furent rompus, They themselves opened; they were broken, They mit en désordre. put in disorder. them into disorder. gave way, et poursuivis jusque dans la rivière. and pursued until into the were broken, Le Roi de river. The King of The King of and pursued to the edge of the river. Suède les railla le moment d'après au milieu de Sweden them rallied the moment l'eau, aussi the water, as the water, aisément que s'il as if he might-have made a with as much ease as if he had been reviewing revue. Alors ses soldats, marchant plus serrés bis soldiers, marching more pressed-together soldiers then marching more compactly que ses troupes étoient étonnées; il les fit retirer that his troops that his troops en habile homme dans un lieu sec, flanqué d'un astonished; he them made to-retire alarmed; and, like a skilful in able man general, led them off to into a place dry, flanked of a a dry place, flanked by a marais et d'un bois où étoit son marsh and of a wood marsh and by a wood where † was his artillerie. artillery. his artillery was posted. L'avantage du terrain, et le temps qu'il avoit donné of-the ground, and the time which he had given he had given The advantage The advantage of the ground, and the time aux Saxons de revenir de leur première surprise, to-the Saxons of to-come-back from their the Saxons to recover from their leur rendit tout leur courage. to-them rendered all their courage. completely restored their courage. first surprise, first surprise, Charles ne balança Charles not balanced Charles did not hesi pas à les attaquer: il avoit avec lui quinze mille * to them to-attack: he tate to attack them: he † had with him fifteen thousand had fifteen thousand hommes; Stenau et le Duc de Courlande environ Stenau and the Duke of Courland Stenau and the Duke of men; men; all Courland about about douze mille, n'ayant pour toute artillerie qu'un twelve thousand, not having for artillery than a twelve thousand, and no other artillery than one canon de fer, sans affût. La bataille fut rude et cannon of iron, without gun-carriage. The battle was rough and iron gun without a carriage. The battle was severe and sanglante le Duc eut deux chevaux tués sous lui; bloody: the Duke had two horses bloody: the Duke had two horses il pénétra trois fois au milieu de la garde du Roi; he penetrated three times to-the middle of the he thrice penetrated into the midst of the mais enfin, ayant été renversé de son killed under him; killed under him; guard of-the King; King's guard; cheval d'un but at-last, having been overthrown from his horse but at length, having been knocked off his horse coup de crosse de mousquet, le désordre butt-end of musket, the disorder blow from the butt-end of a musket, stroke of into his of a by a se mit himself put his army fell dans son armée, qui ne disputa plus la victoire. army, which not disputed more the victory. into confusion, and relinquished the contest for victory. Ses cuirassiers le retirèrent avec peine, tout froissé His cuirassiers him drew-back with trouble, all bruised His cuirassiers with difficulty drew him back, bruised et demi-mort du milieu de la mêlée, et de and half dead from-the and half dead from the dessous les chevaux, under the horses, the midst of the horses, Le Roi de middle of the affray, and from the conflict, and from qui le fouloient aux pieds. which him + trampled to-the feet. which were trampling him under foot. Suède, après sa victoire, court à to The King of Sweden, after his victory, runs Immediately after his victory, the King of Sweden hastened to Mittau, capitale de la Courlande. Toutes les villes capital of the Courland. Mittau, Mittau, the capital of Courland. All the cities All the towns de ce duché se rendent à lui à discrétion : c'étoit un voyage plutôt qu'une conquête. Il than a than a conquest. it t was it was passa, He passed, conquest. He proceeded, sans s'arrêter, en Lithuanie, soumettant tout sur without himself to-stop, into Lithuania, submitting all *upon without stopping, into Lithuania, reducing to subjection the faction flatteuse, et il l'avoua lui-même, quand il faction flattering, and he it avowed he-samé, ing satisfaction, as he himself confessed, when he when he entra en vainqueur dans cette ville de Birzen, entered in où where entered as a conqueror that very town of Birzen, in which le Roi de Pologne et le Czar avoient the King of Poland and the Czar the King of Poland and the Czar ruine quelques mois auparavant. |