222 THE SEVEN YEARS WAR, 1756-63
southernmost sector (Works XVII-V) projected in a naturally vulner-
able salient, deriving little benefit from the enfilade fire of lateral
works. Frederick accordingly made the artificial defences of this area
the strongest of all. Beyond the camp proper he emplaced one free
battalion, three hundred detached infantry and ten pieces near the
top of Wickendorf village in an almost complete circuit of palisade
and breastwork (I), commanding an open field of fire over the ground
which descended to the willows of a branch of the Freyburger-Wasser,
just out of musket shot to the south. This garrison was expected to
identify and delay an initial attack.
Frederick expected a more serious resistance to be offered to the
rear of Wickendorf at Alt-Jaueraick, which had a fortified church-
yard mound. The village street, which was in a slight depression, was
swept from III at the upper end, and Lieutenant Tempelhoff (the
future historian) commanded five Brummer (heavy 12-pounders) in
IV immediately to the north-east.
Continuing our circuit to the east we discover that V contained
six howitzers, as well as six Brummer, and that it had the task of
setting fire to Alt-Jauernick and Bunzelwitz if these villages fell to the
enemy.
The Wiirben Hill (IX) formed the south-eastern extremity of the
camp, but it was by nature much stronger than the corresponding
southern salient. 'This hill is the highest in the whole position, and
very difficult to attack on account of the very broken terrain round-
about. It is also worth mentioning that the breastworks were very
skilfully designed to correspond with the slope of the hill' (Tielke,
1776-86, III, 93). Six new 12-pounder cannon were in position here,
though Frederick considered that there was no necessity to keep this
formidable post under a strong permanent guard.
The broad north-eastern side (X-XVII) had no marked geo-
graphical features, but its evenly spaced batteries offered a wide base
of fire, and the existence of the Striegauer-Wasser, two miles to the
north, deprived the enemy of any great depth for mounting an attack.
Frederick wrote that he had a masked battery (XIV?) ready to receive
the Austro-Russian forces of Brentano and Chernyshev if they sought
an entry by way of the little valley leading from Peterwitz, and a path
was cut through the woods to permit Lieutenant-General Platen to
intervene with the Prussian cavalry, most of which was massed
behind this sector.
A short but strong line, looking towards Tschechen, extended
across low, arid hills from XVIII to the corner bastion of XXIII, and
from there a long, straight and important front ran south-east to
XXVII, which completes the circuit. This last sector looked south-
west towards the main Russian army and the Austrian light corps of