tervals. Without these walls is a ditch.
REICH EXBACII. 191
u!k1 then a rampart of earthy nearly entire,
with the remains of an exterior ditch. The
general form of the whole appears nearly
circular. Towards Schweidenitz^ the spires
of \vliich arc visible from Reichenbachj
tlie country is open and level, or diversi-
fied ordv by gentle elevations ; but to the
south-west is a rapid descent, terminating
in a broad and flat valley, which separates
the lioifjht and plains of lleiclienbach from
the first mountain range of this part of Ger-
man\'. The view of this chain which we
behold at once, from the base to tlie summit,
and clothed in manv nai'ts with forests, is
liighh/ interesting. At the bottom of the
descent, r.nd about three or four hundred
vards from Reiehenbach is the village of
KriQ-^dorF. mino;led with trees, and havino'
a small stream of water running through it.
Here were the English head-quarters. The
residence of the Emperor was in a large
building at Peterswalda^. a village across the
tiat vall?y. and near the foot of the moun-
ig'l NIxMPTSCH,
tains. The old church of Reichenbach some-
what resembles that of Luckau^ in it? ex-
terior form ; but the two others are of more
modern architecture, especially tliat near the
gate towards Schweidenitz. In the interior
of these cliurcljes, and in tlie town itself, I
saw notiiing' v.orthy of remark. On Sunday,
Cathohc service was performed at the cathe-
dral, and i witnessed with pleasure the de-
votion dis])laved by a number of Prussian
soldiers, who were assembled on the occa-
sion.
The (kiy after mv disappointment, an En-
glish gentleman bound homevwirds was in-
trodueed to me, and we n;_reed to travel to-
gfiiier, at least, as far as Bc-rinu The en-
suing (KiV was spi'iit ill ]jroearn;g our pass-
])ort-, and in \i-i;ing l-'ctei'swalda. On the
5th wl August, we b.-ft UfiLhcnbach, about
four o\'!.;i:k Hi t]!'.^ nucri:!oon. "W e ti'a^'elled
ior ahout r.-.a u:\U-s cncr .. continuallv un-
ev^ii couuti'V to Nnnj)t-ei), uhicli I !-a\y
.cut llcl.nu-^. and under
now w \i[\ vci's' (in
THE TWO MONARCHS MEET, IQ^
very difForent circumstances than when I
passed through it on my way to Silherberg.
The princi])al street was now hned with
Russian guards, and the number of inhabi-
tants collected and looking out of the win-
dows announced something extraordinary.
We soon learnt that the Emperor Alexander
was in the town, and the King of Prussia
expected to arrive every moment. We had
not accordingly waited above ten minutes
when his carriage drove up. The Emperor
was in waiting to receive him, and we saw
the two Monarchs embrace. The tall thin
figure of the King of Prussia, and his mili-
tary air, contrast with the mild countenance
and plump person of the Emperor, upon
whose head the hair begins already to be
thinly scattered. Pleased with having been
such near witnesses of this interview, we
continued our journey about half-past six in
a small waggon, which gave us hardly room
to stretch out our limbs. The road as before
was over a continued succession of hill and
o
1 94 STREIILEN,
dale, until from the last heights we saw the
plains of Breslaii, and the fertile country wa-
tered hy the Oder, spread out beneath us
like the sea. Here I turned and took a last
view of the fortress of Silberbcrg, still visi-
ble behind us on the summitof the mountains.
As it became dark, we noticed before us a co-
lumn of flame and smoke, and soon passed
through a village on fire, where the inhabi-
tants, being wholly unprovided with cngincs_,
stood lof^king on in silent despair, or vainly
endeavoured to stop the progress of the flames,
by throwing on a few buckets of water
drawn from the connnon pond. About ten
wc reached Strehlen, a considerable town,
where General Blueher had now his head-
quarters, and in consequence wc with some
difliculty jM'ocured lodgings for the niglit.
The moon shone with great clearness, and
wc flattered ourselves with the hopes of hav-
ing flue wc^uher to pursue our journey ; but
the morning dawned with heavy rain, which
had scarcely ceased at eight o'clock^ when
OHLAU, 2 05
we took our departure. We proceeded about
fifteen miles over an open and uninterestin<j
country to Ohlau^ a poor town situated on
a river of the same name, near its junction
with the Oder, and seemingly decayed from
its former splendour. Here the church tower
had still that approach to the eastern forms,
which I had first noticed at Calau, and
which is evidently not of Gothic origin.
About eleven o'clock, from a gallery high
up on the tower, a boy came forth with
a trumpet and blew towards the different
quarters, a custom of which the idea has
perhaps been taken from the Turks, who
thus cry aloud the hours of prayer. At
twelve we set off, and soon crossed the Oder
on a temporary bridge of boats, the former
one liaving been mostly destroyed by the
French in their retreat from Russia. We
were obliged to make this detour, and cross to
the right bank of the Oder, on account of the
positions of the different armies, and all ac-
cess to Breslau being prohibited. From
o 1
J 96 OELS.
Olilau the road was bad for the greater part
of the way, through woods and marshes, a
distanee of eighteen miles to Oels, a neat
little town ornamented with trees. On our
road, we saw at no great distance to the left
the spires of Breslau. The whole of this
day the eommon dialect of the peasants was
Sclavonic. Every where they were mowing
and carting-in the harvest. The scythe with
a cradle was universally used, nor did I,
during my whole route, observe a single
sickle employed in Germany. About six
o'clock we left Oels, and after some time
ascended rising grounds, whence we had
partial views over the low country. About
nine we saw beneath us the lights of Trcb-
nitz, although that town also stands upon a
height. We entered^ passing by a large
convent, and ascended the principal street
by the light of the moon. Most of the
houses were adorned in front with wooden
piazzas, thus distinguishing Trebnitz from
all the other tov.ns through which wc pas£>
5
TRACHENBERG. 197
ed. Here wc slept, and were presented for
supper with an omelet in the Spanish fa-
shion, and soup made of beer, a common dish
in Germany, to which, however, I had yet
some difficulty in accustoming myself. We
set off in the morning' when day had scarcely
yet dawned, and having passed two divisions
of Russian artillery posted near the town,
descended into the plains. Continued and
heavv showers prevented all extensive views
of the country, which, however, appeared,
every where flat and uninteresting. A ride
of eiirhteen miles brought us to Trachen-
berg, a poor place, offering nothing what-
ever to induce us to prolong our sta}' beyond
the time necessary for ]3rocuring horses.
Tlie rain continued the greater ])art of the
way to Herrcnstadt, a tolerably neat but
small town, where we arrived at nine, after
passing through the skirts of a fine wood.
From this we set off in about an hour, tra-
vellino; over a diversified country for ton
miles to Gulirau, a small and tolerably neat
198 GUHLAU.
town^ the old church of which bears some
resemblance in its architecture to that of
Luckau, the windows being long, narrow,
and contiguous, and divided externally by
butts esses. Here our passports were strictly
examined by a young Russian commandant,
ihe only officer whom we had met with
that seem^'d at all disposed to displav, per-
il aps rather too ostentatiously, his '' little
brief authority." We ^^ere suffered how-
ever to set off before one, and having tra-
velled about seventeen miles over a pleasant
countrv reached Guhlau, a miserable scat-
Icrcd village, with a poor church. On the
left we had a fine view of Glogau, close on
ihe Oder, and now occupied b\' a French
garri-on. The road liad been mostlv through
dee}) saiuls, and the rain occasionally ver\-
heavv, against which the open waggons of
iho ^.â– r)ui!try afford no protection. The tra-
veilcr unprovided with a carriage (;f his own
rnu-;t trust entirelv to his cloak for sheltci
fi'.'Ui tile \\etj and my .S})anish jibud WO'^
KONTOP. 1 QQ
Well tried in these heavy shower?^ which
seemed to rival these which fall in moun-
tainous countries.
We left Guhlau before six, and were up-
wards of five hours in travelling about se-
venteen miles, over roads of sand and wa-
ter, and through forests, to Kontop, a small
place, which I learnt General Stewart had
quitted only an hour before, on his way to
head-quarters. Here in a large kitchen
which \vas already pretty well occupied^
we slept upon some straw, and Vvcre obliged
for want of horses to delay our departure
till seven the next morning. Our road was
at first over sands, but we gradually reached
small elevations, which, however^ afforded
views of no great interest.
Having' passed the Oberj a small stream
which falls into the Oder^ we reached Zul-
hchau, a neat and seemingly iiourishin*,':
town, containing seven or eight thi»usand
inhabitants. The great square w^as full of
•^'3fi'!;nge, among winch we noticed many
200 ZULLICHAU.
cases of Hussar saddles and equipments
from England^ as we saw by the marks.
Whilst we stopped, a choir of boys collected
before our door, and forming a circle with a
director in the middle, armed with a roll
of paper, they sung several beautiful German
airs in parts. These choirs are regular es-
tablishments in many parts of Germany,
particularly in Berlin. The boys are fre-
quently taken from those who are in the col-
leges, and are well instructed in music at the
expense of the individuals who delight inform-
ing these kind of musical societies. On par-
ticular days they assemble and sing before
the doors of their benefactors ; and the pub-
lic and the passing stranger have the benefit
of these institutions.
We left Zullicljau before two o'clock, and
pursued our journey for ten or twelve iniles,
chiefly through sands and pine wood^., fo a
miserable hamlet wliere we changed horses.
iSoon after quitting this we cleared the woods,
and found ourselves near the Oder, which
CROSSEN. 201
here rolled along a broad and rapid stream,
deeply coloured by the late rains. We then
gradually ascended, and continued along the
ridge for some time, when we made a steep
descent to the left, and crossed the Oder by
a wooden bridge, not yet completed, to
Crossen, on the left bank. The former
bridge had been destroyed by the French.
Crossen itself isaconsiderabletovvn, appearing
the largest except Breslau which I had seen
since quitting Berlin. Every thing here,
even more than at ZuUichau, bore the ap-
pearance of thriving and activity, and as if
modern improvements had been grafted on a
town of venerable antiquity. The frequent re-
currence of bushes suspended before the doors
was a sign of rcli'^f to the thirsty traveller;
and the barbers' poles, with bunches of shav-
ings at the end of them, denoted a practical
pun, equally applicable in the German and
English languages. For my companion the
hotel of the City of London, a new and ex-
tensive establishment, formed an object of ir-
^O"! ZIEBINGEN.
resistible attraction^ and we partook there
of our favourite refreshment of coffee in its
usual perfection. After some delay, having
again procured horses we re-cros?cd the
Oder, and remounted the steep ascent on the
other side. The baidvs of the river opposite
Crossen arc hiiih, anrl v.cll covered with
trees and hushes, which extend down to
the water's edge, and give to the view a ricli
appearance. Our I'oad was row over high
grounds, from \vhicli ^vc had extensive
pro-pects of the wooded countrv, contained
between tlic line on which ^^e were travel-
ling from Ci-os^en V) Fraiiklbrt, and the
curve formed hy the Oder l)ctween these t^^•o
cities. Darkness o\'crtook us before wc
rcaciu'd Zif'hn^^'cn, a distance of sixteen oi
seventeen niile^, and v. licj'c Vvcdid not ar'
rive ui'td nndii !_'it.
In pas'^ing a wood wc heard tlie cries and
ti!c .-liaMenues of sciitii!'/!>, w hich showed that
wr: wei\^ e; "::••); :i:' ibe cordon ^uiiiicd here b'V
i]w Fru.vlai. v;v,,.,.. :>v,: y.,! the French
ZIEBINGEN. 203
were at no great distance. In fact,, their ad-
vanced posts were only a few miles off, close
on the other side of the Oder. Ziebingen.
is a poor and scattered village^ yet furnish-
ingj we were informed^ two hundred men to
tlie Landwehr. Here we were obliged to
wait more than two hours for hoi-ses, and,
not being able to obtain beds, were fain
to content ourselves with a litile straw^ on
vvliieh we slept in our open waggon. Day
broke soon after our departure, and \vc gra-
dually approaciied tlie Oder, in the bed of
which were scattered small islands or banks
of gravel. As the morning advar.ced we
beheld Frankfort bv.'fore u^, close upon the
Oder, aiid with signs of cultivation all around.
It Itas but few church towers^ and therefore
makes an ap})earance railicr less sinking
than we are led to expect in a ciLy ^i such
considerable celebrity. Here, a^ at (Jrossen,
the bridge had h'^cn burnt by the Frencli,
as was attested bv S'^me of the black and
hali-charred reaiains. vvhicli rOiC above the
204 FRANKFORT.
stream. A new bridge, however, was al-
ready construsted on the ruins of the old,
and we passed over sounding beams of oak.
At six in the morning all was yet quiet in
Frankfort, and the servants of the inns had
scarcely begun to move ; but in an hour all
was readv for our de])arture, and having
breakfasted we again set out. At the out-
skirts of the town were some slig-ht works
recently constructed for defence ; but no-
thing that a])peared capable of stopping for
an hour a powerful army. We travelled
for more than twenty miles over an excel-
lent road, but through an o])en and unin-
teresting country, to Munchenberg, a town
evidently in decay. Empty streets, rows of
lioi;-es deserted, the church tower cracked
half-way down, the windows broken, and the
chureh it>eiriilled with hav, all indicated
that whatever glory Munchenberg had once
]iossessed was now nearly passed away.
Wv quitted tliis melancholv place as soon as
pob.::ble, travelling as before on an excellent
VOGELSDORF. 203
road, through a bare country, for about eigh-
teen miles to Vogelsdorf. Before reaching
this village we pass a fine lake of three or
four miles in extent, over one end of which
the causeway seems to have been carried.
Some boors were conducting in great tri-
umph four French hussars, whom they had
taken ])risoners the preceding day, in a vil-
lage not far from Frankfort. They had
passed the line of neutrality fixed by the ar-
mistice, and had come into the village with
the intention of plundering ; but the inha-
bitants armed with pikes soon assembled, and
secured them after a sliort resistance. They
were all 3'oung men, and being gaily dressed
formed a contrast not a little striking with
the rough and ragged peasants who were
conducting them.
From Vojielsdorf to Berlin is a distance of
about fourteen miles, along an excellent road,
for the most part bordered on each side with
rows of trees. As the latter part is per-
fectly straight, we beliold at the end of a
206 BERLIN
long avenue a church spire, 'dnd by degrees
some oftliL' first buildings of the metropolis.
This approach is justly reckoned one of the
most beautiful round Berlin ; but the Frank-
fort gate, which terminates it, by no means
corresponds with its magnificence. Here our
baggage was slightly searched, and I soon
found myself once more in my old quarters.
2o;
CHAP. IX.
BerVin. — General Moreau. — SpanJau.-—
Potsdam, — Sans-Souci. — Bcrnadotte. —
Route to StralsiDid.
J. HREE or four days' farther residence \\\
Berlin served only to strengthen the impres-
sions which I had at first received of the ele-
gance of this city. The civility of Sir Ro-
hert Wilson, whom I had seen at Reichen-
bach, had furnished me with a letter to
General L'Estock, the niiiitary governor
of Eerlin, and I was willing to avail my-
self of this means, foj procuring an in-
troduction to tlic inner court of the Arsenal,
the description of wliich had so much ex-
cited my curiosity. His perpetual occupa-
tions however did not permit of my intrud-
ing so far, and I was obliged to rest con-
tented with what I had heard and read of
n
20S GENERAL MOREAU.
it. By way of consolation, I had an oppor-
tunity of seeing General Moreau, wlio, on
tiie morning of the 11th, I learnt was
about to quit Berlin, where he had arrived
the preceding evening. I repaired to the
Russian hotel, where a crowd, not however
very numerous, was already assembled.
After waiting upwards of an hour 1 saw
him descend the stairs, and enter the open
landau which was in readiness for him^
where he sat for some little time close to me.
In the first carriage were some of the great
â– jmilitary officers of Berlin, richly dressed,
who liad cotnc to pay him honour. He
alone of all tlie party was plainly clothed,
and in his whole appearance had very much
the air of an English farmer. His coun-
tenancc, rather swarthy, had in it nothing-
striking, and he kept his eyes a little
downcast, so that it was difficult to catch
their expression. In departing he took off
his hat to the surrounding multitude, and
displayed a broad forehead; over which were
CHARLOTTEXBERG. 20(J
drawn a few thinly scattered hairs. I was
struck with this spectacle, which showed me,
mider such singular circumstances, one of
the great men of the revolution already
marked by the hand of time ; and I should
have been still more deeply affected, could I
have foreseen that lie was so nearly approach-
itjg; the termination of Ids earthly career.
On the afternoon of the same day I visited
â–ºSpandau, distant from Berlin about tea
miles to the north-west, and the occupation
of which by the French had long kept the
inhabitants in check.
We ])asse(l through Charlottcnberg, a neat
little to\vn in the sandy plains, tive miles
from BciTin, surrounded and mixed with
trees. It is the favourite residence of the
King of Prussia^ and greatly resorted to by
parties •f pleasure from the metropolis. Im-
mediately after passing it we ascend some
low heights, wliieli serve, however, to give
a t(»lerablv extensive vlev/ over the iiat
country neir Berlin. As we approach Span-
P
'â– 2]0 I-RISSIAN- ARTILI.ERV-M.4N.
dau, we arc sliown the spots occupied by
the Ix'siciiiMg batteries, and near one of
them, a little to t]:ie ri^ht of the road, the
era.vc of the ^^^;'!i^>:ian ariillerv-n^.an, wlio,
th.'V i^\■"'c. - '• o. i.:-,butcd materiallv to the
^M-eiinv .x''..:i:-:i:o:'; of the uUice. As he set
J.
tiv'" lo hi-: hiOi'i::!'. 'â– : lerc! p;oesf' said he,
â– 'â– i'.v {\\c ]:'y.\i\c:-:\,.?::^\{/..i,c^' Fortiiiie fli-
rour; .1 h.i;i, â– Ui-l :r: a tuw seconds a tre-
'M:-; c
C',-;-i
1,,-.
1 , 1
jn. which laid one half of
". a;;.iounced tliat the siiell
i,i v.:.cnid. Ahvadv he \\-as
: ;. . . !;:or<hna;">- inan \jv his
â– /::;..(.;: u'.',-> \i cic Icjrini cl oi
!C,-' ^ \> h.'n, m an e\ d hou; .
â– ..:i! to show his de>.terii:v'
,:;. ..'.iuie \\:d\ past si;i'cess>
n. :aul he, '• ior ihc other
: :•:;.. yccK- liad he sp-.h.^n,
:[' V :.tered the endjrai-ure^
, iiv. ;. He wa- h-n-icd bv
1 t]:(' -pot \\h^-:'c he f.']l ;
ti-v^v-jlk" OI; i;.i* banks of Ih
e Sprc
«fA^;DAU. 'Ill
\\\\], no dovilt^ long; be shown ihc artilleiy-
nuiii's grave.
'Spaiuuiu i- jutuatcd at tiio jirnctiou of the
Spree a:ul tl;c Ilavcl, two streams^ which
iiave here alx^iit tlu; "width and auDcarancc of
JL 1
the Lea near London, Searcely had we
rror^-c d the wooden bridge^ which opened in
the muhlle ior the passage of large barges,
.unl uniered t'le town, ^^ luoi we saw on every
side a strikiug ])ioture of the evJL of war.
"Whole streets in ruins, hoii'^es half fallen,
unr<;oied, or cracked troni. top to bottom ;
and hea]is of brick and stone mixed with
half-biii'ned ];eams, sliowcd ns rather the
ruins of Spandan than Spandaii itselh The
onaiiel is in the t'onn (;\ u. square, \s"i*A\ ih:n'
ba-M;;M<, sui!-(.nn.:e{' by a bi'oad ditch, the
whole built v,\\]\ !;ri; L, and about fortv teet
high. Tile iiu'c (f one of t!:e bastions had
i>een lhr(,>wn d<jwn be the expIosKjn of th>'
nsa'Uizuie, and a niiUiuer oi workmen \^^ere
no\\ ie!;;!\' eoijUoW'd ni rv'pairu'if it. A
hard diiue: T',- a juniv/n to be 'bus i-bhi^e-;] 'â– â–
'l\l POTSDAM.
attack and destroy its own lov.iis and ftjr-
trc«;«cs.
Ilavino; now seen the ruins of a town bc«
slegod, we devoted another day to visit the
favourite residence of the oreat Frederick,
for which purpose \rc set off early in the
morning for Potsdam, a distance of about
eip[htecn miles. The counirv on both sides
IS in general poor and sandy, but the road
is excellent tl:e whole way, and bordered
\\\i\\ Doulars, many of wliich have attained
a bulk and height which I had never before
seen in that species of tree. Before entering
Potsdam we cross, on a wooden bridge, a
luke formed bv tlie Havel, on vdiich the
to\\\\ stands, 'ilie waters bemg low', the
banks of this h.ke sent Ibrth an o-fensive
Mnell, and whicli cannot but be unwholsome
[â– jy tiie neighbouring inhabiiants. Potsdam
ii-eii'; ;'J. though not large, is or;e of tl;e hand-
-,;n].Tt touns in Pn^sia, being buili accf rd-
iiig lo a regidar jjlan fm-nislKnl, or approved
â– f . bv Frederick hii,:ielf. A canal I'rom tin:
rOTSDAM. 213
Havel, the sides of which are faced with
stone, flows til rough the main street, and is
crossed by seven or eight bridges of stone.
From tlic want of current, however, the
water has a green and str.gnant appearance,
and makes a greater ornament in description
than in rea]itv\ The streets arc wide and
regular, and the houses lofty, and built so
as to resemble stone. No fault can be found
with the exterior of the city, yet there is an
air of dulncss pervading the wliolc, w^hich
is poorly compensated by handsome build-
ings. Potsdam, like many other artificial
establishments, seems to languish since the
death of its great embellisher. It was al-
ready k!i&wn as a cit}' under the Sela-
vonic name of Potzdupinii, eight liimdred
years ago, and migh.t have slowly partaken
of the general improvement of Europe.
But the partiality of Frederick suddenly
pushed it beyond the natural bounds as-
signed b\- its commerce and resources. He
invited tamilies to come and settle there..
SA.SS SULCI.
who had no other motives to induce them
but hi:-^ invitation : and gave avvay houses
wiilioiu binig able to give any pernianenl
and tiseh'.l einyio\"Lne;:t to thu-^e who v>ere to
inhabit thcan Ilenec. Pct-dani i<, upon the
v.'iiole, a colleetiou of line houses and jjoor
citizen^^ and exiiibits scareel\- any appear-
ance of cheerfuh'ief-s or acti\it\-, iVu'haus
no men liave been more gen-ei'aliy imsucc-s-
ful, or un?kiUVd in their p];inSj than the
wonld-ijc founders of great cities. Except
Alexan.der the (ireatj and V\ ilham Pemi. how
je\". have UT- chn-aide memorials of the just-
ness oi' th-'n- de-i^;os.
Ti;c en>i:on> of I'oisdam are haiid.on;!',
there being genei'aiiV avenues ot liv\'' 1 1'ees
ieadn^:^ t" the -a", s i^'ihe town. Wv ]);> - ed
ui 'U., one •■' loe.e lAcnues lorui'd h\' oah
anvl e!:n t"re- , a^^d rcaolied tlie palaoe of
^^,,i,;, S 'OOi. ti:' !". vc unte re-idoneo <.j" Fre-
de;io!^ the S^:c':\,(\. \i is a huilchng â– f fait
n s"' -''e st<r\ io,,!;. ornam^n!^ il v\\ one :-;do
\\ iiu'ii"e>; ^i'- '-ii ^be oi'ie^' o^
a iianus'^ji:'.
SANS SOUCI.
2 1 5
colonnade of ei(;lity-cight column?^ forming
a scnii-circic. Irjfore cntcnnii; it we were
shown the tom'o-stoncs of ci'.'von of the
iMonarch's ia\'onrite tlo<:;>, wuh t;;c:ir nanie:^
cn2;ravccl ui)on thcin, but no nirrher mcnio-
rial of tlicir vii'tUL'S. It v.;)i;'d, p(;'h,^;)s, be
uilhcult to anal\'r^e the ini]^"<::^^'oii â– inade by
tho^e fi;rave-SLone=, \\h'(';i iiid.';_-u Will de-
pend ^n-eaily u])on the prev'io:;., f.paiions or
prejudice- oi liic ind:v:(h;id. o"ine wil)
beh>'h[ hi tiioni a jLi-c, thouiji iniu-^iuil tri-
l)ute to tlie nieinor\ of an anunal a; ways
fiiilidhl to the lunnan race, whi]::t others
'^vih atti'ibute ihem to the welhknown scnti-
meat of ihe aionareh. that man hi!n^e]f is
to be cja-^sed only with '-'the biutes that
From th.e l)urial };]ace of the doo-s, we
pa-s to what was once tf.e habitation of tb.eir