Brother Gregory: Digression

by John Hulme

  Chapter Ten

  Afterwards

  The battle of Austerlitz ended where it had begun; in a small triangle of land around Sokolnitz Castle, the village of Sokolnitz, the Chapel of St. Anthony and the village of Tellnitz.

  Badly mauled by Napoleon's cavalry charges, the Russian Imperial Guard retreated back to Austerlitz, while in the killing area around Tellnitz the main assault continued. Vandamme and St. Hillaire attacked south at about 1 o'clock in the afternoon after beating Kollowrat, Constantine, Miloradovish and Prschibitschewski on the Pratzen Plateau. After a rest, during which Napoleon halted all attacks until the situation on his left flank across the Olmutz Road cleared, Soult's forces joined those of Davout, and, in a horseshoe enveloping movement, slowly crushed the remaining Austrians and Russians trapped with their backs to the frozen ponds of Menitz and Satschen.

  During an incident that has gone down in history, these escaping remnants of Buxhowden's command attempted to escape by crossing the frozen ponds while Napoleon's artillery fired cannon balls to break up the ice and drown them in their thousands. Like a lot of Napoleonic propaganda this incident has become enshrined in history books by the simple process of retelling the tale often enough. However, contemporary records written just after the battle, when the ponds were dredged for valuable cannon, reported finding less that half a dozen bodies. But that has not stopped the story from becoming folklore.

  Snow, extreme cold, exhausted French soldiers who were in poor condition after their long march from France, and the arrival of darkness ended the battle just as effectively. Napoleon stayed at Posoritz that night, while the other two Emperors, Francis and Alexander fled towards Hungary. By the 4th of December Napoleon and his army were in pursuit and it didn't take long for negotiations to lead to an armistice, the conditions for which included an immediate return of Russian soldiers to Russia.

  As peace negotiations with all the allies, including England, Prussia and Sweden continued, Napoleon re-equipped and re-supplied his army, largely at the expense of his reluctant Austrian hosts. With lots of complaining, the Austrians finally accepted Napoleon's terms at the Treaty of Pressburg, paid a huge indemnity, ceded the Tyrol to Bavaria, and lost minor enclaves to, among others, the Kingdom of Italy.

  Napoleon left most of the Grande Armee in Germany, where it was meant to intimidate the Prussians, who, even more reluctantly than the Austrians, accepted Napoleon's terms in February 1806.

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  Maps

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  About the Author

  John Hulme is a retired Professor, now living and writing in Florida. He was educated in England - a long time ago - and arrived on the shores of New York carrying a single suitcase and lots of ideas. He has written several hardcover science books and was an early user of the fledgling internet as a teaching tool. Before retirement he wrote a set of fictional science stories about Gregor Mendel - the person who discovered genetics, which he has now converted into ebooks. Since retirement he has started on a long-cherished writing project of historical fiction - which you can now read for yourself.

  In the “Shaftsman” Series -

  The letters of a Roman Soldier written about the time of Julius Caesar.

  Iron Shaft: Primus - the first letter and introduction

  Iron Shaft: Secundus - how he joined the Tenth Legion, and got his nickname

  Iron Shaft: Tertius - how he helped the Druids, and saved Caesar

  Iron Shaft: Quaternus - poison, pearls, Druids and skulls

  Iron Shaft: Quintus - how Caesar got his ships

  Other works by John Hulme are:

  In the “Mendel” Series -

  A fictionalized account of the life and times of Gregor Mendel - the discoverer of genetics.

  Brother Gregory: Gene One - a famous lecture, birth of genetics, a failure

  Brother Gregory: Gene Two - visitors to the Monastery, Brother Timothy plots

  Brother Gregory: Gene Three - Mendel’s Sparrows

  Brother Gregory: Gene Four - the Saint, the Sinner and the Scientist

  Brother Gregory: Gene Five - and the bending of light

  Brother Gregory: Gene Seven - and the circles of carbon

  The Bones of Saint Hugh - how the bones of an English Saint arrive in Brno

  Short Stories -

  The Night After Christmas - which was inspired by a real incident

  As It Was Told - A short story collection

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