1809 Zittau

A RARE FIGHT

Zittau, 1809

translated by Geert van Uythoven

A translation from German of a remarkable incident.

“When in the year 1809 the Duke of Brunswick-Oels had ordered a raid on Zittau, the volunteer Berner had the lead of the Advance Guard. Berner, a dedicated follower of the good cause, had taken part in the former insurrection in his fatherland Hessen. He was just able to save himself, and had eager taken this opportunity to distinguish himself.

After the troops had forced themselves a way into the city, he wend bravely forward with a few men. However, in his eagerness, he had moved so far forward that he had lost contact with these, running straight into the Saxon cavalry which had been send out to engage their enemy. Escaping was not possible anymore. He pressed himself against the houses, but despite the darkness of the night he was spotted by the leading cavalry detachment, This detachment turned around to face him, compelling the next detachments to do the same. From all sides the cuts came down on Berner, who tried to parry them by holding his musket on its belts across his head. At the same moment he had the sense to trust at the breasts of those horses coming to close to him. During all this he shove, with his back pressed against the houses, in the opposite way he came from to find a way out, as his retreat route was cut off.

Luckily, he managed to reach the last of the crowded cavalry, when he saw enemy infantry advancing along the road, which he could not evade. Determined not to surrender, he bravely retraced his tracks along the cavalry again, as he was convinced that the Brunswick troops by now would have advanced far enough to be able to extricate him. having covered possibly half of his way back, he noticed a horse lying on the road, probably killed by one of his trusts, and at the same instance a man on foot blocked his path, poking him with a probable unloaded carbine in his side. ‘Go out of my way!’, yelled Berner at him, exposed to a double amount of cuts because of the delay. When the man did not react he stroke him to the ground with the butt of his musket.

However, this effort forced him to lower his musket, resulting in several sword cuts which prevented him to raise his musket above his head any longer. But he did not let go of his weapon, put pulled it behind him at the belts, while he tried to protect his head with the other arm. In this way he managed to reach the other end of the crowded cavalry again, but would not have been able to escape when at that same instance the Brunswick infantry would not have arrived. These opened fire at the cavalry, which caused their horses to shy away, giving Berner the time to press himself among them and to reach his own troops. But not before having to endure their fire for a second time, without being wounded by it though.

Hardly having reached them he sank to the ground, seriously wounded by seventeen cuts received from the cavalry; three on his head, the remaining in his arms and hands. He recovered luckily from all these wounds, and because of his bravery he was promoted an officer by the Duke immediately after the fight.

Before having been fully recovered, Berner joined his corps again, present during the famous retreat. During the combat near Leipzig he came again in great danger to be cut down by enemy cavalry, of which he received several cuts which luckily were all flat; and indeed, during the combat of Halberstadt he was again severely wounded, this time to his foot-sole. More luckier, but just as honourable, the brave Berner fought in the Spanish campaign, and in 1819 he still served in the Brunswick army as a captain.”

Source: Militair-Wochenblatt, 4. Jahrgang (Berlin 1819), No. 163, p.1088.