The Invasion of France in 1814

Name: The Invasion of France in 1814
Author: Erckmann-Chatrian

Jean-Claude Hullin, an old soldier turned shoemaker in the Vosges village of Charmes, lives with his adopted daughter Louise, a gypsy foundling betrothed to Gaspard Lefevre, son of the farm-mistress Catherine Lefevre. In December 1813 the mad vagrant Yegof — self-styled "King of Australasia and Polynesia," a red-headed figure crowned with tin and attended by a raven — appears repeatedly, demanding Louise in marriage and prophesying doom for Hullin's "race" through visions of an ancient massacre at the Blutfeld, where his ancestors the "red men" once exterminated the fair-haired Triboques. Unsettled by Yegof's ravings, Catherine sends Hullin to Phalsbourg for news; he finds the fortress arming against invasion and the roads choked with wounded from Leipzig and Hanau, and learns from a sergeant of the 6th Light Infantry that Gaspard is alive. Convinced war is coming, Hullin and Catherine organize the mountain's defense. Hullin buys powder and lead from the smuggler Marc Dives, who hides his stores in a cave behind the Falkenstein reached by a perilous ledge. Hullin then tours the villages rallying wood-cutters and hunters — Materne of Hengst and his sons Kasper and Frantz, Labarbe of Dagsburg, Jerome of St. Quirin, the sawyer Piorette — while the anabaptist farmer Christ-Nickel refuses on religious grounds. Gaspard briefly returns home on a day's leave before rejoining his retreating regiment, an emotional parting for Louise and Catherine. The mountaineers assemble at the Valtin sawmills and elect Hullin their chief; he organizes bands to hold the defiles of the Zorn, Sarre, and Blanru, with Dives supplying ammunition from the Falkenstein and Doctor Lorquin serving as surgeon. Meanwhile the shepherd Robin witnesses Yegof, in the Blutfeld gorge, communing eerily with five wolves he addresses by name as old comrades from the ancient battle. As the allied invasion advances, old Materne and his sons reconnoiter toward Grandfontaine, encounter both a proclamation urging peasants to remain passive and later a Cossack patrol, one of whom Kasper shoots dead. Hullin fortifies a position on the Donon; Yegof reappears at the camp, renews his marriage demand a third time, and departs cursing Hullin. The Germans then attack in force: a first infantry assault on the breastworks is repulsed with heavy losses, but Marc Dives's delay in guarding the Minieres ravine nearly allows the enemy to outflank the position with artillery. Dives's mounted smugglers charge and capture the guns, turning them on the attackers and routing them decisively, though the mountaineers suffer casualties including the mortally wounded Rochart. That night, amid grim scenes of amputation in the farm's improvised hospital, the exhausted victors regroup, while Yegof vanishes from the battlefield toward the cave-dwelling hermit sisters Kateline and Berbel on the Bocksberg — where the text breaks off.

By Erckmann-Chatrian · First published 1814 · Genre: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adventure · 26 chapters · 79,750 words

First lines

If you would wish to know the history of the great invasion of 1814, such as it was related to me by the old hunter Frantz du Hengst, you must transport yourself to the village of Charmes, in the Vosges. About thirty small houses, covered with shingles and dark-green houseleeks, stand in rows along the banks of the Sarre: you can see the gables carpeted with ivy and withered honeysuckles, for winter is approaching; the beehives closed with corks of straw, the small gardens, the palings, the hedges which separate them one from the other.

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The Invasion of France in 1814 is listed on Textopian as a historical account by Erckmann-Chatrian, dated 1814 CE.

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Work type: Historical account
Author: Erckmann-Chatrian
Date: 1814 CE
Language: English
Genres: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
Length: 79,750 words
Structure: 26 chapters, 1,619 paragraphs
Reading fit: Easy (6th Grade)

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Genres

Historical Fiction — The book is set during the historical event of the invasion of France in 1814, incorporating real historical figures and events.
Literary Fiction — The narrative style is rich in description and character development, focusing on the emotional and psychological aspects of the characters.
Adventure — The story involves themes of adventure and exploration, particularly through the character of Jean-Claude Hullin and his reflections on past campaigns.
Drama — The interpersonal relationships and conflicts, particularly surrounding love and duty, create a dramatic tension throughout the narrative.