Lieutenant Colonel Lord Saltoun immediately led on the light troops of Maitland's Brigade, stormed, and carried the outwork, with but little loss; on observing which, Wellington, being satisfied the place would prove an easy capture, returned to Vermand.

[10] Some pieces of Dutch artillery were now brought into the hornwork, and a cannonade was opened upon the town; but the fire kept up on both sides was trifling, and of short duration: for Byng having sent forward his Acting Assistant Quartermaster General, Lieutenant-Colonel James Stanhope, with a white flag, the civil authorities interfered, and urged the garrison to capitulate; whereupon the maiden fortress of Péronne surrendered on the condition that its defenders, some 1,500 National Guard,[11] should lay down their arms, and be allowed to repair to their homes.

[16] As it was not intended, however, to attempt any more serious attack: the brigade, after leaving the Fusilier Battalion of the 12th Regiment and a squadron of the Brandenburg Uhlans to watch the fortress, followed the corps, which had marched to Noyon; but it did not even reach Chauny, scarcely 11 kilometres (7 mi) from La Fère.

[17] A detachment of the reserve cavalry of this corps was sent to Chauny, from which it pushed forward a small party along the road towards Soissons, which the latter pursued until on arriving at about 4.8 kilometres (3 mi) beyond Coucy, it came upon French outpost, consisting of a regiment of dragoons and a battalion of infantry.

[18] The IV Corps was also required to make a forced march on the 26 June — namely, from Essigny-le-Grand as far as Lassigny, and its vanguard was to reach Gournay-sur-Aronde, and thence push forward detachments to Clermont, Creil, and Pont-Sainte-Maxence, for the purpose of securing and examining the bridges across the river Oise, and of preparing all that was requisite for effecting a passage for the troops.

[19] Whilst the Prussians were, on 26 June, hastening towards Compiègne; the French General, Count d'Erlon, was, also marching upon that point from Soissons, with the remains of his Corps — about 4,000 men — having succeeded, through his urgent representations of the expediency of such a movement, in obtaining Grouchy's assent to its execution.

A half battery of Prussian horse artillery, which had been posted on the Soissons road, in front of the gate on that side of the town, having allowed the column to approach within a suitable range, directed a fire upon it with such vigour and precision, that in a few moments more the mass rushed for shelter into the wood.

[24] By the result of this action, which lasted an hour and a half but was limited to a cannonade and mutual tiraillade, the French were foiled in their attempt to cover their retreat by securing Compiègne, and checking the advance of the Prussians along the river Oise.

[26] The Prussian reserve cavalry, in front of the column of the main body, reached Gilocourt just as the French (under Count d'Erlon) had crossed the defile formed by a tributary stream of the Oise in which that place is situated.

[29] Sydow, aware of the importance of attaining the object in view, proceeded himself, at the head of a squadron of the 8th Hussars, and of one hundred infantry, the latter being transported in carts, and reached Creil with his small detachment just as the French were on the point of entering the place.

They had but just reached this town, and had begun to bivouac on the great market place; when, towards 21:00, Kellermann, with the 1st Cuirassier Brigade (Blanchard's) of French cavalry, approached on the opposite side, and made a dash at the very spot occupied by the Prussians.

Hence arose the engagements at Compiègne, Crépy-en-Valois, and Senlis; but such was the feebleness of the French resistance, and so frequent were the desertions of the soldiers, who threw away their arms, and fled to their homes, that it was evident the reorganisation of the army, and the reanimation of its former spirit, were far from having been thoroughly effected.

[40] In the meantime, Marshal Grouchy had collected about 9,000 Frenchmen on the Windmill Heights, near the road to Nanteuil; one third of whom had already constituted the rearguard, and the remainder was composed of troops that had halted during the night in the vicinity, as at Vauciennes, Coyolles, and Pisseleux.

But while despatching the order to Pirch II to move to Crépy-en-Valois; he received a report from this General, that he had fallen upon the French troops retreating through Villers-Cotterêts, and was upon the point of being driven back by superior numbers.

[45] The French Imperial Guards (Drouot's) and the VI Corps (Mouton's), which were under the more immediate orders of Grouchy, and had formed the column that retired through Villers-Cotterêts in the morning, reached Lévignen after Zieten had passed through it in pursuit of Reille's troops to Nanteuil; and becoming acquainted with the danger of their proceeding further on that road, they turned off to their left, to make their retreat through Acy-en-Multien,[q] Meaux, Claye, and Vincennes.

[46] General Vandamme, who, with the French III and IV corps was most in the rear, and had withdrawn from the high road at Villers-Cotterêts on perceiving the Prussian brigade in possession of that place, took the direction of La Ferté-Milon, Meaux, crossing the Marne at Lagny-sur-Marne,[r] to Paris.

[46] Bülow, who had been directed to move the IV Corps from Pont-Sainte-Maxence to Marly-la-Ville, on 28 June, deemed it advisable to augment his vanguard; and therefore added to it the 14th Brigade and the reserve cavalry, and placed the whole under the command of Prince William of Prussia.

[48] Blücher deemed it advisable to send, on this day, a strong detachment of cavalry, consisting of the Queen's Dragoons, under Lieutenant Colonel Kamecke, beyond the left of the Prussian I Corps, towards the Marne, for the purpose of gaining intelligence of French movements in that direction.

Blücher, hearing that he was living there in retirement, despatched Major Colomb, on 28 June, with the 8th Hussars [de] and two battalions of infantry to secure the bridge at Chatou, lower down the Seine, leading directly to the house.

[51][t] The following were the positions of the respective armies on the evening of 28 June: Prussians:[54] Anglo-Allies:[54] The remains of the French I and II corps after forming a junction at Gonesse (where the high roads from Nanteuil and Senlis unite), reached the suburbs of Paris.

The Imperial Guard and the VI Corps, as also the reinforcements that had arrived from the interior, were, during the late morning of the 29 June, on the high road by Claie and Pantin, under the command of Grouchy; and were directed to occupy several defensive points on that side.

[66] Blücher now wished to ascertain whether the disposition and spirit of the French troops were at all commensurate with the extent of the works which he saw before him: and, with this view, he directed Bülow to make an attack, during the evening of 29 June, with part of his Corps upon the village of Aubervilliers.

[68] Greneral Sydow, accompanied by Major Lützow of the Prussian staff, immediately made a reconnaissance of the Saint-Denis Canal; and soon discovered that its opposite bank was lined with infantry in great force, and that the different points of passage were defended by batteries.

[70] Although this movement would have the effect of dividing the Coalition armies, and consequently of augmenting the chances of success on the part of the French: should the latter possess the disposition and the means, not only of acting determinedly on the defensive, but also of assuming the offensive.

[72] Lieutenant Colonel Eston von Sohr received an order to move his cavalry brigade (the Brandenburg and Pomeranian Hussars), from the vicinity of Louvres, and to regulate his march so that he might cross the Seine at Saint-Germain-en-Laye on the following morning.

[74] The III Corps was directed to resume, at 05:00 on 30 June, its march upon Gonesse; and thence to proceed to Saint-Jennain: but in such a manner as to conceal its movements by means of the valley of Montmorency, and not to reach the more open ground about Argenteuil until darkness should have completely set in.

During the movement, however; the French, as if at length aware, or desirous of ascertaining the nature, of Blücher's operation, attacked the village of Aubervilliers in front, from the Saint-Denis Canal, and penetrated as far as the church situated in the centre of the place.

[82] The British Light Companies, mentioned as having been thrown into Aubervilliers, were under no restraint of this kind; and Lieutenant Colonel Sir Neil Campbell, who commanded them, determined to push forward, and possess himself, if possible, of the entire village.

Having first gained two or three of the highest houses, he broke from the top of these into some that were lower ; and thence forcing his way through the partition walls of others, without much firing, since the French did not appear disposed to make an obstinate resistance (being by that time probably aware of the Prussian movement to the right, and of the arrival of the Anglo-allied army), he succeeded in obtaining possession of one side of a whole street, and of the greater portion of the village.

[85] The vanguard of Thielmann's Prussian III Corps, consisting of the 9th Infantry Brigade, under General Borcke, was on the march from Saint-Germain-en-Laye (which it had left about 19:00) to take post at Marly; when it received intelligence of the two cavalry regiments, under Lieutenant Colonel Sohr, had been completely defeated at the Battle of Rocquencourt.