The New Hampshire Gazette Newspaper, September 29, 1758, Page 2

- ot 2:"-" ~ - D e A e From the London Gazette Extraordinary, Jzm 3c. Publifthed by Authority. WartesaLL, June 30. 1758. Relation of the bdttle.of Crevelt, gained by bis Britaunick Majefly's army, . commanded by Prince -Ferdinand of Brunfwick *, over the French army, commanded by the Prince de Clermont, on the 23d of fune, 1758 FI'ER his.Highnefs Prince Ferdinand, by the well judged motions he ordered the King's army to make on the 1zth of June, in turning the left wing of the French army towards the Convent of Campe, had obliged the Prince de Clermont to quit ‘his boafted camp of Rheinberg, and to retire towards Meurs in the night between the 1zth and 13th, his Highnefs thought proper to give a new pofition to our army,by occupying the heights, commonly called St. Anthony’s Mountains, having the town of Meurs in front, at two full leagues diftance from our camp, the right oppofite to the village of St. Tonnigfberg, in which 300 grenadiers were pofted as an advanced guard, with 12 pieces of heavy cannon, which were more than fufficient to cover the extremity of our wing againft any attack. This pofition was executed the 14th of June. On the 15th about § in the morn- ing, his Serene Highnefs was informed, that the enemy was advancing in four columns upon our right. His Highnefs immediately ordered three guns to be fired as a fignal : and the whole army was under arms, in order of battle, a quarter of an hour after. He went afterwards himfelf to reconnoitre, and faw diftinétly, that at about two leagues diftance from our right faank, a confiderable body was coming over the plain of Hulfte, and marching towards Crevelt. _Not knowing whether this body was followed by the whole army, or whether it was only a detach- ment of it, that was marching that way, his Serene Highnefs halted till towards the evening, when he received certain information, that the Frénch army, had marched towards Nuys, and that the Prince de Clermont had only detached this corps, under the command of Lieutenaat General Comte de St. Ger- main, in order to take poft at Crevelt. Upon this informaticn, his Highnefs fent his light troops and Hauffars to Kempen, and Wachtendoriclk, and ordered the army into their camp again. On the 16th he changed the pofition of the army, in confequence of the motions we had feen the eorps - of M. de St. Germain make ; he ordered the right to the village of Altenkirchen, and continued the left on the heights of St. Anthony. ; On the 17th his Highnefs went to reconnoitre, to- wards Kempen, the pofition of the enemy’s detach- ment at Crevelt ; but could not guefs at their reafon for fixing this detz#iment at fuch a diftance from their army. In order, to i: better informed of it, and to fee the countenance this corps would hold, he ordered the Prince of Holftein, with ten Prafhan {quadrons, the five fquadrons of huffars, and the 3 battalions of Sporcken guards, and Prince Charles, to march early in the morning of the 18th towards Kempen : He farther ordered General Wangeuheim to pafs the Rhine at Duifbourg with four battalions, viz. Schelter, Halberftadt, Buckebourg, and Hanau, and the four {quadrons, viz. of Bock’s dragoons, and the light troops of Luckner, and Scheiter, and to ad- vance that day towards Meurs. 0 General Sporcken, who, when we left Rheinber- gen, had been ordered to keep his po#t at Rheinber- gen, as long as the enemy fhould remain in camp at. Meurs, received likewife orders to join the army the next day with five bartalions and fix fquadrons ; and to leave only Major Generzl Hardenberg, with the 2 bartalions of Gothe and Stolzenberg, at Burick, and that of Diepenbroick at Orfoy. This being re- gulated his Highnefs communicated his defigns and orders to the Hereditary Prince of Brunfwick, relat- ing to an expedition he propofed, viz. That his Highnefs fhould march the next day, very early in the morning, with a confiderable corps, towardsKem* pen ;. whilit the Prince of Holftein thould advance with his corps towards Hulfte, whereby it would clearly appear, whether M. de St. Germain would retreat towards the army, or whether the army of Prince de Clermont would advance towards Crevelt, in order to encamp there. Agreeable to this plan, his Highnefs the Hereditary Prince of Brunfwick fet forward on the 1gth, from the camp, with the 12 * Tavo princes of Branlwitk having been mentioned in the late accounts from Germany, and in fome of them not properly diflinguilbed, it may mot be amifs to ob- Serwe, that prince Ferdinand, avho hus the chief com- mand of the allied troops, is brother to the reigning duke of Brunfavick Wolffembuttel, and a. general officer in-the king of Pruffia’s ferwice : The other, the bereditary prince (whofe name is alfo Ferdinand) is the Jfon of Charles the reigning duke, avbo marricd a fifier of bis prejens Prufian majefly, foliowing battalions, viz. Block, Sporcken, Harden- berg, Wangenheim, Poft, Dreves, ‘Bock, the two battalides of Brunfwick life guards, Heflian guards, the Heflian life guards regiment,and Prince Charles’s regiment,accompanied with 12 {quadrons of Elcflians, viz. four of the dragaon guards, two of the life regi- ment, two of Prince William’s, and two of Meltitz ; with three mortars,four piéces cf canson of 12 poun- ders, and four of 6 pounders. = He marched direllly towards Kempen, from Wwhence he could ‘perceive no alteration in the pofition of Count de St, Germain. By a fecret order the faid Prince was direlted, in cafe he perceived no change in the pefition of the ar- my and flying camp of the enemy, he fhould march the next day direitly towards Rurerhond, inf order to endeavour to pofiefs himfelf of the magazine, as well as of 6oo militia, who were in garrifon there. At fix o'clock in the morwing his SereneHighnefs Prince Ferdinand in perfen followed the Hereditary Prince to Kempen : He perccived fome movements in the flying camp, which were of a nature to induce him to believe, that M. de 5t. German defigned to march 2gainit the Prince of Holftein, who was encamped near Hullte. Soen afterhe was pofitively-informed, that the whole of the French army had quitted Nuys and were advanced on this fide Crevelt : on which having taken his meafares, and formed a plan as the cafe required, the expedition to Ruremond was then firft countermanded. . Major General Wangenheim was ordered to advance early the next day, with his corps towards Hulfte, and Lieutenant GeneralSporc- ken was directed to march after midnight, with the army, and to advance, likewile, to the plain between Hulfte and Kempen. . On the zoth of June all the troops, his Serene Highnefs could difpofe of, were, by this means, re- united'in this camp, the right of which extended to- wards Kempen, and the left towards Hulfte. The head quarters were fixed at Kempen ; and, in order to prevent any ufelels movements, his Highnefs or- dered the Quarter Malter General not to regard the rank of the different corps, nor the order of battle, but to place the regiments as a great part of them were a&tually pofted. Tn this manner the abovementioned 12 battalicns and 12 {quadrons under the command of the Heredi-’ tary Prince formed the right ; next to them the four battalions and four fquadrons under the commaond of General Wangenheim on their left ; and the whole army, which advanced under the command of Major Genesal Sporcken from the camp at Altenkirchen, formed the lef¢ wing, wisi¢h, together, made an army ‘of 35 battalions“and 8 fquadrons, including the fix fquadrons of huffars.” His Highnefs had expelted that Prince Clermont would advance that day to give him battle, but however no confiderable event hap- pened. On thézrfkt we obferved a great movement in the advancedgorps of Count St. Germain, and a- bout ten in the “morning, after decamping, we faw them filing off to their ieft, and marching towards Anrath, where they joined their grand Army. In mazking this motion, they -abandoned the town of Crevelt, which was on the front of their right wing: Our Chauffers poflefled them(elves of it diretly, and his Highnefs alfo went himf{elf there to reconnoitre the pofition of their camp, which was clearly difco- vered from the fteeple at Crevelt. He did not think fit eitherto keep the faid poft, or to make any change in the pofition of his army, # confequence of which he ordered the Chauflers and Huflars away from that place, and the enemy re poflefied themfelves of it an hour afterwards. On the 22d hisHighnels went again to reconnoitre the camp of the enemy, particularly on the fide of 8t. Anthony, onthe Heath which fed towards their left. Aund although he found many difliculties, prin-- cipally on account of the country’s being very woody, and having inclofures furrounded with large and deep ditches, he refolved to march the next day to the enemy, and to attack them in their camp.’ In confequence of this refolation, the ‘army was ordered to be under arms on the 23d of June at one in the morning, and not to change any thing in the camp, but to leave all their baggage in'it, and wait there for further orders. The general ofticers were aflembled in the centre of the army, where his Highne(s declared his inten- tions to them of going to attack tiie enemy, and that he had formed his plan for that purpofe. He affign- ed the command of the whole left wing, confifting of 18 battalions and z8 fquadrons, to Lieut. General Sporcken, having ordered the battalion of Zaftrow of the Wolfenbuttle troops into the town of Hulile, in order to cover our rear; and gave the com- mand of the right wing, compofed of 16 battalions and 14 fquadrons g the Hereditary Prince and Ma- jor General Wangenheime, which by the addition of the two regiments of Pruffian dragoons, Holftein and Finckenltein, five fquadrons each, made a corps of 24 {quadrons to be commanded by the Prince of Holftein, as the infantry was by the Hereditary Prince. As for the light troops, the three {quadrons of black huffars were given to General Sporcken ;- the two fquadrons of yellow huffars, to the Prince of Holftein, and the fquadron of Major Lucknen, avith Sheiter’s corps, were to obferve the flank of the Ene- my‘;righ{, being polted in a village called Papen- deick. : : This wa¢ the firft general difpofition #f the army. By the fecond, the Lieutenant Genefals, who commanded the two wings, were ordered to form three battalionsof grenadiers-out-oftheir.sregiments of infantry ; that is to fay, the Hereditary Prince two, and General Sporcken one ; the two fifft of 500 men each, under the command of the Lieat. Colonels Schulenburg, and Schack, ahd the other of 600 men, under Major de Cram. ; At four in the morning, the army beégan.to move; the right advanced’in two columns as far as $t. An- thony, and the left the fame diftance, on the plain leading to Crevelt, halfa league fhort of it, where they halted to receive frefh orders. His Highnefs Prince Ferdinand went up the fteeple of St. Anthony and {ent for the two Princes of Holftein and Brun- fwick. There they oblerved at leifure the pofition of the enemy’s camp, where all was very quiet. He alfo fent feveral perfons thither, who were acquainted with the country,to learn by them what routs we could advance towards the enemy, and being infor- med of many other points abfolutely neceflary to be known, his highnefs refolved to march to the right, and endeavour to come up with the enemy by the villages of Vorftand Anrath, on the flank of their left wing. y Bat, in order to raife doubts in the enemy, asto the fide on which the real and principal attack wounld be made, he gave orders to Lieutenant General Sporcken to fend Lientenant General Oberg with fix battalions of the fecond line, @iz. Oberg’s Dsuchle- ben’s, Killmenfegg’s, Scheel’s, Reden’s, and the Fu- fileer’s, with Hodenberg’s and Bremer’s regiments of horfe, and that of the body guards, towards St. Anthony, and to give them fix twelve pounders. Be- fides this, his highnefs gave him the foliowing orders, That when the a&ion fhould begin upon the enemy’s left M. de Sporcken, by the way of Crevelt, and M. d’Oberg, by St. Anthony, fhould do their utmoft to advance and penetrate into the enemy’s army 3 but however not to venture too far, unlefs they fhould be well affured, that our attack fhowld fuc- ceed to our withes, His Highnefs chiefly recom- mended it to them to make good ufe of their heavy artillery, in order to oblige the enemy to empioy their attention as much upon their right wing and center, as on their left, and to engage and divide their attention cqually, in three different plage-s which wduld prevent them frém fending . amy sein- forcement to the real attack, for fear of weakning themfelves in fome part or other, where we might make impreflion. Thefe ‘difpofitions being made, his Highnefs put himfelf at the head of the grenadiers of the right wing, at eight in the morning, taking the road that Jeads to the village of Vorft,” which we left on our right, tve advanced in two columns towards Anrath, where was a detachment of 400 of the enemy ; half: Horfe and half foot, who, after fome difcharges of mufketry, on each fide, fell backwards towards their camp, which was not above half a mile diftant from them, and there gave thealarm. His Highnefs then caufec the'troops to advance, and double their fpeed to get out of the defiles ; he ranged them in order of battle, in the plain, between the villages of Anrath and Willich, and march'd dire&ly towards the wood, which covered their left. It was at one o’clock at noon when the enemy be- gap to a&. The Duke ceufed his artillery forthwith to advance,which being greatly fuperior to that of the enemy, facilitated the means of cur infantry’s forming themfelves over againft the wood, and of our cavalry’s extending upon our right,towardsthe village of Willich, making a fhew as if they defigned to turn the Enemy’s left flank, to take them in the rear. After a ¢annonade as’ violent as was well fupported, his highnefs faw plainly, he muft come t3 the point of endeavouring to force the enemy out of the wood, by fmall arms ; wherefore the Hereditary Prince put himfelf at the head of the firft line, that is to fay, of two battalions of the grenadiers of Schilenberg and Schack, and of the regiments of Block, Sporcken, Hardedberg, Wangenheim, Poft and Dreves; and advanced with the whole front, dire&ly towards the wood. The fire then became there, extremely hot on each fide, and neither difcontinuer, or, in any degree, diminithed, for two hours and " an half, In the mean while all the other battalions énter’d like- wife the wood ; {o'that there were buleight fqua- drons, which formed a corps of referse, upon the plain, ready to” be employed, where tircumitances - fliould require. ; The other fixteen {quadtons, whi:h were upon - our right, never could [penetrate on the other fide of the wood, on account of two batteries” which the enemy had placed there, and which were fuftained by above 40 fquadrons. Infhort, aboutfive o’clock in the afternoon, the Hereditary Prinee, affifted by the Major Generals Kilmanfegge and-Wangenheim, / gave orders for an attack to be made by the grena:,