THE FRENCH ABANDON HANOVER.

The two grand divisions of the French army, quartered at Zell and Hanover, retired in good order to Hamelen, where they collected all their troops, except those that were left in Hoya, and about four thousand men placed in garrison at Minden, to retard the operations of the combined army. Towards the latter end of February, prince Ferdinand of Brunswick, having received intelligence that the count de Chabot was posted with a considerable body of troops at Hoya, upon the Weser, detached the hereditary prince of Brunswick, with four battalions, and some light troops and dragoons, to dislodge them from that neighbourhood. This enterprise was executed with the utmost intrepidity. The hereditary prince passed the Weser at Bremen with part of his detachment, while the rest advanced on this side of the river: and the enemy, being attacked in front and rear, were in a little time forced, and thrown into confusion. The bridge being abandoned, and near seven hundred men taken prisoners, the count de Chabot threw himself, with two battalions, into the castle, where he resolved to support himself, in hope of being relieved. The regiment of Bretagne, and some detachments of dragoons, were actually on the march to his assistance. The hereditary prince being made acquainted with this circumstance, being also destitute of heavy artillery to besiege the place in form, and taking it for granted he should not be able to maintain the post after it might be taken, he listened to the terms of capitulation proposed by the French general, whose garrison was suffered to march out with the honours of war; but their cannon, stores, and ammunition were surrendered to the victor. This was the first exploit of the hereditary prince, whose valour and activity on many subsequent occasions shone with distinguished lustre. He had no sooner reduced Hoya, than he marched to the attack of Minden, which he invested on the fifth day of March, and on the fourteenth the garrison surrendered at discretion. After the reduction of this city, the combined army advanced towards Hamelen, where the French general had established his head-quarters; but he abandoned them at the approach of the allies, and leaving behind all his sick and wounded, with part of his magazines, retired without halting to Paderborn, and from thence to the Rhine, recalling in his march the troops that were in Embden, Cassel, and the land-graviate of Hesse, all which places were now evacuated. They were terribly harassed in their retreat by the Prussian hussars, and a body of light horse, distinguished by the name of Hanoverian hunters, who took a great number of prisoners, together with many baggage-waggons, and some artillery. Such was the precipitation of the enemy’s retreat, that they could not find time to destroy all their magazines of provision and forage; and even forgot to call in the garrison of Vecht, a small fortress in the neighbourhood of Diepholt, who were made prisoners of war, and here was found a complete train of battering cannon and mortars. The count de Clermont, having reached the banks of the Rhine, distributed his forces into quarters of cantonment in Wesel and the adjoining country, while prince Ferdinand cantoned the allied army in the bishopric of Munster; here, however, he did not long remain inactive. In the latter end of May he ordered a detachment to pass the Rhine at Duysbourg, under the command of colonel Scheither, who executed his order without loss, defeated three battalions of the enemy, and took five pieces of cannon. In the beginning of June the whole army passed the Rhine on a bridge constructed for the occasion, defeated a body of French cavalry, and obtained divers other advantages in their march towards Wesel. Keiserwaert was surprised, the greater part of the garrison either killed or taken; and prince Ferdinand began to make preparations for the siege of Dusseldorp. In the meantime, the count de Clermont, being unable to stop the rapidity of his progress, was obliged to secure his troops with strong intrenchments, until he should be properly reinforced.