Whichever way Pappenheim turned he
found a firm front, bristling with guns, opposing him. Seven times
he threw himself upon the living wall; each time his horsemen were
flung back, their lines thinned and broken. The field was strewn
with their dead. Tilly, anxiously watching, threw up his hands in
despair. "This man will lose me honor and fame, and the Emperor his
lands," he cried. The charge ended in wild flight, and Tilly saw
that he must himself attack, to turn the tide.
On the double-quick his columns of spearmen charged down the
heights, swept the Saxons from the field, and fell upon the Swedish
left. The shock was tremendous. General Gustav Horn gave back to let
his second line come up, and held the ground stubbornly against
fearful odds. Word was brought the King of his danger. With the
right wing that had crushed Pappenheim he hurried to the rescue. In
the heat of the fight the armies had changed position, and the
Swedes found themselves climbing the hill upon which Tilly's
artillery was posted. Seeing this, the King made one of the rapid
movements that more than once won him the day. Raising the cry,
"Remember Magdeburg!" he carried the position with his Finns by a
sudden overwhelming assault, and turned the guns upon the dense
masses of the enemy fighting below.
Pages:
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183