139 THE SEVEN YEARS WAR, 1756-63only to abandon it by the next day upon the news of Moritz's
approach. The Austrian raiding force was identified as a small one
(3,400 troops under Lieutenant-General Haddik), and by the 20th it
was evident that the enemy had slipped away, which rendered it
pointless for Frederick to continue his march into Silesia to cut off the
path of retreat.
On 24 October Frederick was back at Torgau, and he received the
immensely heartening news that the enemy in the west had crossed
the Saale and were likely to present him with the opportunity for the
battle he so much desired. Frederick called his outlying detachments
to rally to him at Leipzig, and by the 28th he achieved a concentra-
tion of thirty-one battalions and forty-five squadrons. The corps of
Moritz had come from Berlin in five and a half days, and that of
Ferdinand from Magdeburg in three, 'but what is the most surprising
and pleasing at the same time is the spirit the soldiers showed on this
occasion; they had marched upwards of twenty-five English miles a
day for three or five days successively, and at the moment they
arrived they desired to be led again against the enemy' (Mitchell, 27
October, PRO SP 90/70).
Lacking support from Soubise, the Reichsarmee fell back across
the Saale again on 30 October. However, the allies lingered irresolute-
ly on the western side, which suited Frederick's purpose well enough,
and he made up his mind to cross the river and attack them.
Frederick decided to make the passage of the Saale at two points -
upstream with the main army at Weissenfels, and downstream with
Keith's detachment at Merseburg (see Map 14, p. 359). True to his
brisk style in this campaign, Frederick arrived outside Weissenfels
with his advance guard at daybreak on 31 October, and at once sent
the grenadiers and the Mayr free battalion ahead to burst in the gates.
Three hundred German troops were cut off and captured in the town,
and when his main army came up Frederick rushed the heavy guns to
the bluff beside the massive ducal palace and cannonaded the French
grenadiers re-crossing the river.
Frederick in person was at the river bank, watching with some
frustration as the French burned the covered wooden bridge behind
them. The vines and poplars of this beautiful stretch of riverside were
bare, but the willows and aspen still retained a full autumn foliage,
and two enemy officers were watching the royal party from a con-
cealed position on an island which lay within close musket shot. One
of the Frenchman hastened back to the Due de Crillon to report that it
would be possible for a marksman to shoot down a Prussian senior
officer, and that this dignitary was probably the king, from the
respect that was being shown to him. 'Crillon handed his loyal Brunet
a glass of wine, and sent him back to his post, remarking that he and