Hardships of Advanced Post Service, Hungarian Civil War, 1848-49
Hardships of advanced post service—The Writer's picture of himself—Frequent actions with the Magyars—Sharp combat at Gyöngiös—Excellence of the Hungarian cavalry—Quality of the Austrian army—Cruel necessity having to fight against former…
From: 1848 C.E. To: 1849 C.E.
Note: This article has been excerpted from a larger work in the public domain and shared here due to its historical value. It may contain outdated ideas and language that do not reflect TOTA’s opinions and beliefs.
From Scenes of the civil war in Hungary, in 1848 and 1849 by an Anonymous Austrian Officer, 1850.
It frequently appears incomprehensible to me that I am yet alive, and have not even one crippled limb about my body. What hardships I have encountered during the last weeks, what dangers I have escaped, are not to be described.
As I am still employed with the advanced troops, which of late have unfortunately become too often the rear-guard of our corps, and as I am in general roving about with my little troop, difficulties and dangers fall in double measure to our lot. I had long forgotten what a bed, what a chair was like; and I never had my clothes off, ever since our departure from Pesth till the day before yesterday; when, on account of the excessive fatigue of our horses—for of course no regard was paid to us men—it was found absolutely necessary to grant them a few days' rest.
But how do I look myself?—frightful, hideous. I could not forbear laughing, when I first saw my figure again in the glass. A long beard covered chin, cheeks, and lips, forming not the most graceful curls, the hair of the head wretchedly cut by an hussar; the forehead bound with a black handkerchief, on account of a slight cut which I had received from an Hungarian hussar, a few days before; my white cloak covered with spots, gray, black, brown, and yellow, marbled with streaks of blood, in holes from sword-cuts, balls, and firebrands of the bivouac; the tschako cut through and bent; instead of the neat tschismen, clumsy fisherman's boots, over the trousers, having a broad border of leather; and the black and yellow sash, stripped of all its fringe.
My sword, from the many strokes that it has dealt and parried, is full of notches and covered with rusty blood-stains; my excellent Ali, my noble charger, is dry as a cat, and deprived of one ear; but, at the same time, like his master—God be praised!—fresh and hearty, and always ready for new conflicts. My soldiers, too, bear up stoutly, but look still more like a band of robbers than I do like a captain of banditti.
More than half of those whom I had at first along with me have, it is true, fallen or are severely wounded, and my little corps has repeatedly required completing. Well; this great empire has still abundance of men; even though all who are here should perish, the Emperor will always obtain more soldiers. Human life sinks prodigiously in value, when one has, like us, lived for a year in continual war.
As we are always in the immediate neighbourhood of the enemy, and our vedettes are frequently placed not above a mile from his advanced posts, we have had to sustain innumerable fights, particularly of late. Scarcely a day passes, on which we have not been engaged, on a greater or a smaller scale, with the enemy's hussars; and we often enjoyed this treat in the morning for breakfast, and again in the evening—nay, some days were wholly passed in incessant skirmishing.
Frequently it was only a few sword-cuts that individual horsemen exchanged with one another, or the advanced posts sent for variety's sake a few carbine balls to and fro; or the point was to execute or to repel some cunningly devised attack. But sometimes the matter was more serious; real battles were fought, and the cannon roared lustily the while. Many a rider had to exchange his seat in the saddle for ever, for a bed in the cold ground.
The more important actions were some of them very sanguinary; for both parties fought with the greatest courage and inexpressible animosity. Thus, at Gyöngiös, I saw two squadrons of Kossuth's hussars charge three times, in order to break into a square of our infantry: twice were they repulsed by the calm, steady fire of our men; horses and riders had fallen in files; when they made a third charge, amidst loud shouts of "Huzzah! eljen, eljen, Kossuth" dashed at full speed, utterly regardless of our fire, broke the square, and plied their sharp swords with destructive fury. Unfortunately, being ourselves at the moment engaged with a superior body of the enemy's cavalry, we could not go to the assistance of our gallant comrades. Though, after a hot contest, we retained the field of battle, our loss was not inconsiderable.
It is not to be denied that the greater part of the insurgents, and their cavalry in particular, fight valiantly, and display a courage and an address which are the prominent characteristics of the good soldier. What are those prating, boasting, cowardly Italians to these bold Magyars and death-defying Poles! With the exception of part of the Sardinian army, especially the Piedmontese regiments, all these so-called soldiers of the so-called republics are not worth so much as four regiments of Hungarian hussars.
But it is a question whether, in spite of the gallant and clever defence of the enemy, we might not have been more successful, if matters had been managed differently in the highest quarter. The spirit of our soldiers, with very few exceptions, continues to be the best; and, in the firm endurance of the endless hardships which this campaign brought with it, they have performed things almost incredible. Yes, our army is brave and faithful; the good old spirit still lives in it; and under judicious guidance and direction, very much may still be accomplished with it.
Should it be decreed in the book of Fate that the power of Austria shall be dissolved; that this once so proud empire shall be overturned, our army must first be destroyed—annihilated. So long as this subsists, so long as it adheres firmly together, so long will Austria stand unshaken. She must support herself upon her bayonets: these have not yet begun to waver—all other props are rotten, and of little value.
But to return to the details of my life, since my last letter.—It would be too tedious to describe all the petty actions in which I have since been engaged. We frequently drove back the Magyars, and were sometimes repulsed by them when the fortune of war so willed it. Doleful scenes there were in abundance—rarely cheering ones.
The buoyant joyousness with which we entered into the war is much damped, and has given place to a manly sobriety. Jovial war and drinking-songs are now heard but seldom, and on particular occasions, in our bivouacs. They proceed in general from individuals only; the majority are too fatigued or out of humour. Almost every day are coming accounts that this or the other friend or gallant comrade has met with death from the enemy's balls or swords, or that he is lying severely wounded. The incessant recurrence of such tidings must in the end depress the spirits.
Of late, too, it is not forward that we have loved; but a great way backward that we have had to go; and that is a galling word the ear of the brave soldier, which is apt to rob him of all disposition to cheerfulness. Now, it is to be hoped that we shall move forward, steadily forward, and make amends for previous omissions.
But it is impossible to foresee when this unhappy war is to end. The Hungarians will keep it up to the last extremity; it will yet cost one cannot tell how much blood, till Austria can consider all Hungary and Transylvania as completely conquered provinces. And whenever this takes place, an army of fifty thousand men must be left in the country, to extinguish any flame that may burst forth from the fire, which will long, very long, smoulder under the ashes.
But what is this to us inferior officers! If any faults have been committed, it is not by us, neither have we to answer for them: our duty is only to fight for the honour of the Austrian colours, and that we will faithfully, till our latest breath.
What has of late frequently rendered fighting extremely unpleasant to me has been, that I so often found myself opposed to hussars of the regiment to which I formerly belonged, and that I have been repeatedly obliged to battle with them in good earnest. Thus, I was once early a day skirmishing with a troop of cavalry, chiefly composed of hussars of the squadron to which for years I had formerly belonged.
A corporal of my company, whom I had myself clothed and trained, now commanded as officer; and it cannot be denied that he did his business cleverly. I myself shot through the head, with my pistol, an old hussar, who had known me when still a cadet, and from whom I gained much practical knowledge, he dropped from his horse immediately. He had fired at me twice, and his balls had passed through my cloak and through the flourishing tail of my horse.
With another hussar, who had long been my private servant, I was engaged in a longer single combat with the sword. Both cut away stoutly, but at last separated without either having done the other much harm.
Comrades of other days, with whom I had emptied so many a bottle, with whom I had played or chatted so many an hour, with whom I had had so many a wild nocturnal ride, when returning from the convivial halls of Gallician mansions to our distant villages—these were now arrayed as bitter enemies against me.
One of their hussars, with whom I had formerly been well acquainted, once called out to me in Hungarian, in the midst of an action: "Formerly you were my brave officer, and I was attached to you; now you are the enemy of my country, and I'll shoot you." At the same moment he fired his pistol at me, and galloped off; the ball whizzing past my head.
A few days afterwards I again met with hussars of my former regiment in a singular manner. The petty advanced post fights and skirmishes had been so incessant and so harassing, particularly for the horses, that both parties necessarily required some rest; and so a kind of truce ensued between the corps opposed to each other. Our vedettes were posted about two thousand paces distant from each other, both parties equally unconcerned about an attack, at least about any secret surprise; for to all a day's rest was far more agreeable than fighting.
We were upon short commons, as we had long been: our supplies were very scanty, for there was not much to be picked up in the extensive plains where we then were; as the Magyars had carried off all the provisions they could, or concealed, or even destroyed them.
I looked, therefore, rather disconsolate, when I saw my men cooking the everlasting mamaliga (Indian meal porridge) at the watch-fire. This is of itself rather insipid food; but when you are confined to it for weeks together, with scarcely any variation, it becomes absolutely disgusting; and I shall think of this mamaliga as long as I live. Neither was there much sklikowitz in our tschuttoras; and so we sat in no very good humour around our slender watch-fire, swallowing our meal porridge, and washing it down with bad water.
Our adversaries must have been, as they generally were, better supplied with provisions of all kinds. The sounds of their laughter and singing rang in our ears like derision. I saw two hussars waving a white cloth, as a signal for us to come to them.
Curious to learn what they meant, I approached, and recognised in them two soldiers of my old squadron. On my coming up to them, they saluted me respectfully; said they had excellent provisions, a cask of wine, and a fat hog; and, as they knew that we had not much that was good, they came to ask me to accept part of their store. As I perceived that I had before us genuine Magyars, who, when not excited, always act honourably, I thankfully accepted their offer, and sent a couple of hussars over to them.
The hussars soon returned, laden with about forty quarts of good Hungarian wine and a quarter of a pig; and it was not long before my soldiers were feasting in high glee, quite forgetting that they had received this treat from an enemy, with whom, in a few hours, they might be fighting for life and death.
One civility is worthy of another; so, when our meal was over, I took a large bladder of fine Turkish tobacco, of which I still possessed a tolerable stock, and which I knew from experience the Hungarian hussars to be very fond of, and went towards the enemy's bivouac fire. An hussar came forward, to serve me as a guide.
As soon as I approached the fire, the whole of the men on guard, about fifty hussars of my former regiment, rose respectfully saluted me in the same manner as if I was still their officer; and were delighted when I acquainted them with the object of my visit, and delivered the tobacco to the grey-bearded veteran who acted as commander.
I conversed for a few moments with the hussars, most of whom I personally knew, and asked them why they had left their colours to fight against their king. "That we do not," replied they very seriously; "Ferdinand is still our king, and we would have him remain so; but the country must not be divided among Croatians and Germans, such as the Ban Jellachich and Windischgratz choose to give it to." I laughed, and assured them that nobody had ever thought of such a thing: but they declared that Kossuth had said so; that what he said was true; that they would do every thing that he commanded; and that their captain and colonel also had enjoined them to do all that Kossuth directed.
I asked them whether I had not formerly treated them as kindly as the captain, who had dispensed so many floggings. "Better, much better," they exclaimed!" You are an excellent man, but you are a German, and the captain is an Hungarian, and so we had rather do what he orders."
One of them said: "You have been a good officer, and, when we take you prisoner, we will use you well." I laughed, and replied, "You may be sure that I shall not let you take me prisoner, but be cut in pieces first." The old soldier acting as commandant of the watch patted me familiarly on the shoulder, and said gravely: " You are right; whoever has had the honour to command us formerly as officer, must now not let us catch him."
On departing, many of them extended their hands to me, and they shouted a thundering Eljen! eljen! as I withdrew. In a few hours, a detachment of the Polish legion relieved the Hungarians, and attacked us the same evening with such fury, that we could scarcely keep our ground.
Such suspensions of arms at the advanced posts were not practicable, unless with what had formerly been regular troops, or well disciplined honvöd battalions or squadrons,
There were divisions in the Magyar army which it would have been very dangerous to trust, even for a moment. If an advanced post division on either side wished for a few hours' truce, it caused the signal for foddering to sound. If this was answered from the opposite side, the truce was concluded; if not, it was rejected. If hostilities were to recommence, the signal for saddling was blown; and in a few minutes the attack began, or at least might be begun.
Notwithstanding this mutual, amicable agreement, both parties fought with extreme animosity, and giving or accepting quarter was very rarely thought of. The Magyars scarcely ever accept quarter: many of them have been taught to believe that Windischgratz has both thumbs of all prisoners chopped off, to render them unfit for military service; and our soldiers, who well knew how many unfortunate prisoners had been inhumanly slaughtered by individual battalions of savage honvöds, preferred fighting to the last gasp to surrendering their swords.
How often have I seen, on our side as well as on that of the Magyars, a horseman completely covered with blood, defending himself with desperation against great odds, and suffering himself to be cut down from his horse before he would accept quarter! I have myself once had to sustain the attack of three mounted honvöds for half an hour; and saved myself at last only by my Ali, who lost an ear in the fray, making a prodigious leap over a ditch, across which my antagonists could not follow me. From this affair, I brought away only a slight wound in the forehead. It would have been much deeper, had not a silk handkerchief which I had in my tschako broken the chief force of the stroke.
It was a fine sight, such a combat of horse soldiers, man against man, in which strength, courage, and dexterity display themselves. In this Hungarian campaign, in which the cavalry was in general of such prominent importance, this treat was profusely afforded to us partisan corps and advanced post troops.
In other situations, these fights are becoming less frequent: all firearms are now so improved, that the cavalry is thrown more and more into the background. This relic of chivalry is wholly disappearing. If I had sons who were determined to be soldiers, I would put them into the artillery or the engineers; on these the issue of battles will more and more depend.
This, indeed, is not the country for them. The roads are so bottomless that the artillery is either not to be moved forward at all, or not without the greatest exertions. Sixteen or eighteen horses are often harnessed to a single piece, and then it can scarcely be dragged from the spot. The wretched and often impassable roads are, upon the whole, of great advantage to the Magyars. With their small, light, active hussar horses they can get on every where incomparably better than our cuirassiers, on their heavy, unwieldy beasts. The poor cuirassier horses often appear to suffer sadly. Nevertheless, precisely the cuirassier regiments, especially the regiments of Hardeg, Auersperg, Wallmoden, and Prince of Prussia, have done a great deal in this campaign, and gained themselves high reputation.
We hussars are upon a par with the enemy in respect to getting forward; and, as there is a considerable want of light cavalry, our services have been in great request, so that we have often been obliged to remain in the saddle night and day.
But how cheerfully I should bear it all, did not this accursed war bring with it scenes that have harrowed my soul! Yes! in these last weeks I have had to endure profound sorrows.
I will tell you more about this in my next.
Anonymous Austrian Officer. Scenes of the civil war in Hungary, in 1848 and 1849; with the personal adventures of an Austrian officer in the army of the Ban of Croatia. William Shorberl, Publisher, 1850.
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