Sieges Which Have Made History.
A fortress is not always the best plarr in which to lind one's self. Usually it is supposed to be a safe plac.T of refuge, but it has often been the case thai those who have found themselves in such places have bad reason to wish themselves oa the other fide. The safety of a fortress cannot ba demonstrated except In actual warfare, and many k-rtrpats have failed. There is the example of Toulon wMch was supposed to be impregnable but which, when bombarded from the laud side, soon fell an easy victim to tic enemy.
Exactly the same fate befel Fort Sumpter, which was constructed to protect Charlcstown, but which waa easily captured in 1860 by the American Confederate forces. It is often the case that a fortress hampers an army, causing it to lack mobility owing to the necessity of looking after the fortress. The officer in command may have the most brilliant plans upset in this way, and innumerable schemes for punishing the enemy may be brought to nought from this necessity of looking alter the fortress. There is the historic example of Sedan, where Germany inflicted upon France the most crushing blow she ever experienced. Marshal Baxaine received a heavy defeat at the bands of th? Prussians and retreated into the fortress of Met*. This fortreas had never been taken, and bad the reputation of being about the most impregnable ever erected by man. It was this step which altered completely the fortunes of France. The French army under the command of Macttfahon and the Emperor were unable to take the proper steps necessary to attack the Germans on their most vulnerable point. Instead, the whole of their efforts were taken in endeavouring to relieve Bazaine. The instructions given to the army were that M«tai must be relieved at all costs. The army marching to relieve the fortress were overcome by the frightful defeat of Sedan. Here, tboee wtu» had escaped the carnage fled to the fortress of Sedan, where they trere c?.tight, like rats in a trap, and were compelled to surrender.
On the other baud there may be taken the example of Russia and Sebastopol. The fortress was built specially in view of the invasion by the French and British armies. It succeeded admirably, from the point of view of the Allies, as they were able to focus their attention upon it the Russians finding themselves trapped there. There is no doubt that if the Russians had bad no such fortress, and had retreated into the great wastes of the north, they would have bad a chance of annihilating the forces of the Allies. They would probably have compelled them to experience the frightful time which forced Napoleon of his retreat from Moscow.
There is still another Russian example in the case of Port Arthur. Throughout the whole of the campaign between Russia and Japan, Russia suffered on account of the fortffi®. The Japanese were able to fis-ht exactly as they wished, while Russia found herself bolted up in one nl the most extravagant fortresses nVf?r constructed.
Fn South Africa our experiences v. re much the same. The necessity f.o relieve Ladysmith and Mafeking >VI much to binder our troops from bringing the war to a satisfactory conclusion. Largely from sentimental reasons, it was necessary that every effort should be made to relieve these fortresses, instead of making every attempt to bring the war to a speedy conclusion.
In the case of great sieges of pities which practically constitute fortresses, the sufferings of the inhabitants* have been frightful. There is. for example, that of Paris, in which more than 40,000 people died, nittinly of starvation.
TT.fr most heroic defence was that of the Turks when besieged in Plevna f>y the Russians. The word was given out: "Not until the last grain of rye bits been eaten, and tbe last drop of muddy water drunk, will we fln.-sfty issue out and die fighting our wrtjr through the enemy's army." Th» fortress suffered enormous loss fr»m tbe Russian shells, but mainly frcra hunger. It was on the 10th of December, 1877, that the last grain of rye bad been eaten, and the last drop ol muddy water drunk, and tbe garrison, during tbe darkness of the nigbt endeavoured to carry out tbe rest of their self-inflicted programme. Wretched, skeleton-looking creatures, tbey charged tbe Russians with all the chorine tbey could muster, but they could do little, so weak were they. The remit was a loss of 100 guns ar.d 30.000 prisoners, of whom J2S were officers. The I Indian;* allowed the ofßeiyrs to return to their country, but took the trims. All that was seen of that 30.WM) prisoner.- ras an almost unending double line, wretchedly movirt? in the direction of Siberia ; prisonrrs wen? expensive to keep, and so the limtsinns were not s6rry when they saw the birds of prey and the nolvis become fatter each day. One of tbe most awful sieges was the Siege of Baragossa> Napoleon issued a note that Saragossa had fallen, but, as a matter of fact, tbe note was published before the real work had begun. Every dwelling was turned into a fortress, and in the market place the Spaniards erected arnttoww on which they bung every man who showed tbe slightest fear of ffipftinj tti.- Freorb fortes. WVimen n't*! ri- Htvn wrre kept in the filth ann£ darfcness of the r<*l!ars, and the death rati* msc to 500 »I
It waa impossible to bury the (bad. with the result that disease claimed a frightful toll, and the slightest wound would result in death. It was not until 30,000 had died that the besieged were too w?ik to fight further. There is the historic case of Khartum. Gordon was in Khartum from the lftth of February, 1884 until that fatal Sunday evening of the 25th of January 1888. H« bau Kept up the spirits of tke fighters by stating that the English troops were coming to their relief. Perhaps it waa on the Monday that the defenders were massacred, the total number slaughtered being 49.000 inhabitants and 50,00# soldiers.—"Weekly Telegraph."
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Bibliographic details
King Country Chronicle, Volume XII, Issue 1220, 5 June 1919, Page 2
Word Count
1,026Sieges Which Have Made History. King Country Chronicle, Volume XII, Issue 1220, 5 June 1919, Page 2
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