When his ammunition was gone--which occurred at the same time as
the ammunition at the main bridge was exhausted--this chasseur with the
others succeeded in effecting a retreat to a main body of cavalry. If he
still lives--this modern Horatius at the bridge--he remains an unnamed
hero in the ranks of the French Army, unhonored except in the hearts of
those few of his countrymen who know.
During the late hours of the afternoon aeroplanes flew over the
chasseurs' position, thus discovering to the Germans how really weak
were the defenses of the town, how few its defenders. Besides, the
ammunition was gone. But for eight hours--from 8 in the morning until 4
in the afternoon--the seventy-five had held the 12,000. General Joffre
has said in one of his reports that the defense of the bridge at
Gerbeviller had an important bearing on the battle of the Marne, which
was just beginning, for it gave Castelnau's Army of the East time to dig
its trenches a few miles back of Gerbeviller before the Germans got
through.
Had that body of 12,000 succeeded earlier the 150,000 Germans that
advanced the next day might have been able to fall on the French right
flank during the most critical and decisive battle of the war.
Pages:
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392
393
394
395
396