who served in the auxiliary army, had, however, no opportunity of diftinguishing himself, for the peace that foon after enfued prevented it from performing any exploits worthy of being recorded.

The Turks, taking advantage of the absence of so large a body of troops, are fuppofed to have incited the Tartars of the Crimea to make incurtions into the neighbouring provinces. On this the empress declared war against the Grand Signior, recalled her forces, now no longer neceffary to her allies, and prepared to achieve great enterprifes. The Marthal de Munich inftantly took the field, and, during three brilliant campaigns, among other exploits, carried the lines of Perckop by afftult; feized on Oczakow; gained the battle of Stavectfchane; forced Choczim to furrender; occupied Moldavia; and punished the inhabitants of the Crimea in the ufual manner, by pillaging, ravaging, burning, and deftroying their country.

M. De Loudon, who, after paffing, through the intermediate ranks, had become a first lieutenant, was prefent at all the celebrat ed actions performed in the couffe of this war; it is to be feared, that he also participated in fome of thofe fcenes which add new and unneceffary horrors to the unavoidable diforders incident to a ftate of hostility.

Thinking, however, that his advancement did not keep pace with his merit (for he had now ferved eight years without obtaining a company), the lieutenant quitted the army, immediately after the peace of 1739, and repaired to Petersburgh; but finding that his memorials were not attended to, he applied to his countryman, the count De Lowenwalde, then marfhal of the court, and favourite of the empress Anne. A fingle word from this Livonian would have procured for him the trifling preferment he was so ambitious of obtaining, but he refused to grant his patronage. At his house, however, Loudon became acquainted with Hochstetten, an Alfacian by birth, who acted as his fecretary. That gentleman represented, that Maria-Therefa being attacked on all fides, on the death of the emperor Charles VI. it would be most advisable for him to offer his fervices to the houfe of Auftria. This propofition was inftantly acceded to, and

the

the secretary, who had conceived an attachment to the young adventurer, not only gave him letters to fome of his own friends, but obtained an introduction for him to the count De Lowenwalde, Aulic counsellor of war, and general of cavalry.

Happening to pass through Berlin, in his route to Vienna, he accidentally met with several of his brother officers there, who had ferved along with him in the Ruffian army. They immediately advised him to accept of a commiffion from the king of Pruffia; offering, at the fame time, to present their old acquaintance to his majefty, of whom they would alfo folicit a company. M. De Loudon at length confented, and of courfe expected a polite reception at least; but Frederick II. after confidering his perfon attentively, turned his back, and faid to the officers who attended him*, "The face of this man does not fuit me!" It was thus, that by affecting a skill in phyfiognomy, this prince not only loft an admirable officer, but made an implacable enemy; and, what is not a little remarkable, while Nicolai describes Loudon's countenance as remarkably open, Pezzl, his biographer, actually seems to justify the king's judgment, by allowing it to have been cold and referved, and far from conveying a prognoftication of great talents.

M. De Loudon, fhocked at the ungenerous reception he had thus fo unexpectedly met with, determined to fet out instantly for Vienna; and, very luckily for him, he found means to be introduced to the count De Rofenberg, then ambassador from Auftria to Berlin, who gave him letters to his court, at which he arrived in 1742.

The many refpectable recommendations with which this

young

The following is the account, as given in the text of Baron de Beck: “ Le jour de l'audience arriva, et M. De Loudon fut présenté au roi. Mais Frederic I1. après l'avoir confidéré très attentivement, lui tourna le dos, et dit aux officiers de fa fuite: "La phyfiognomie de cet homme ne me revient pas."

«Alors s'éloigna des etats de ce prince, un homme qui á n'en juger que par les apparences, étoit peu important, mais qui, dans la fuite, devint le plus redoubtable adverfaire de ce puiffant monarque."

It is not a little remarkable, that Louis XIV. conceiving a similar disgust to prince Eugene of Saxony, who was originally an abbé, first refufed him a prebend, and then a company of dragoons; on which he repaired to Vienna, and at length made the court of France repent of its conduct towards him at the battle of Hotftedt.

warrior

warrior happened to be furnished, created a defire in MariaTheresa to fee and converfe with him. While he was waiting in an ante-chamber to be prefented to her imperial majesty, a ftranger approached, and asked who he was, and what he wanted? On answering these questions, he was told, with a benignant fmile, that his wishes fhould be gratified; the gentleman who had accofted him then retired into the emprefs's closet. In a few minutes afterwards, M. De Loudon being admitted, was greatly aftonished to find that this was no less a person than the confort of Maria-Therefa. It may be readily fuppofed that, after being announced by fuch a protector, he was moft graciously received.

It was precifely at this period that Francis Trenck, coufin to the famous baron Trenck, was levying what on the continent has been usually called a free corps, but which, in plain English, might with more propriety have been called a corps of free-booters. This adventurer, had known Loudon in Ruffia, and was very defirous that he fhould ferve under him as a captain of Pandours. The other accordingly complied, and entering Bavaria with these marauders, was present at many of the cruel fcenes which were either ordered or connived at by his colonel, fuch as the pillaging of towns, villages, caftles, &c. &c. It was proved afterwards, to the honour of the captain, that he took no part in thefe exceffes.

All Bavaria being now over-run by the Auftrians, the French troops were repulfed to the frontiers of their own country, and forced to repafs the Rhine in 1743. The Auftrian army followed close at their heels, and Loudon marched at the head of his company, along with Trenck's corps, which formed the advanced guard. During the night of June 30, 1744, prince Charles of Lorraine alfo croffed the Rhine, four leagues from Phillipfbourg, with the main body, and entered the enemy's territories. Trenck's Pandours, as ufual, led the way, and our warrior actually embarked in the first boat.

Having foon after this taken poft with an advanced guard at Alface-Zebern, they were furprised during the night by a body of Frenchmen, and on this occafion Loudon received the only wound he ever experienced during the whole courfe of his life.

The

The ball entered a little above the right breaft, and paffing obJiquely, came out by the fide of the thoulder blade. The moft unlucky circumstance attending the event was this, that it car Tied away one of the buttons of his Hungarian cloak, or dolman, which was left in his body. The captain being taken prifoner, was carried to a neighbouring village, and entrusted to the care of a furgeon. His recovery was flow, and the pain he endured exceedingly acute; the extraneous body, fo unfortunately introduced, was however at length extracted, and a fuppuration inftantly took place.

A few days after, the main body of the Auftrian army once more advanced, and the Pandours, who, according to custom, led the way, spread terror and affright around them. The cruelty

and rapine committed by this horde, that had been got together in Sclavonia, induced the French pofts inftantly to retire; and their flight was on this occafion fo precipitate, that they left, their wounded prifoners behind them. The peafant at whose houfe Loudon happened to lodge, was induced to depofit his money with his gueft, who placed it behind his pillow, and was foon after recognised by his corps; after reftoring the property of his hoft, he rejoined the army, and was followed thither by the French furgeon, who never relinquished his attendance until his patient was entirely recovered. Loudon afterwards met with him by accident in Saxony, during the feven years war, at which time he was furgeon-major of the French army, and they were both extremely happy to renew their acquaintance.

Public affairs now took a new and unexpected turn, for the king of Pruffia, affrighted at the fuccefs of the Auftrian army in Alface, concluded a fecret treaty with France, and Charles VII. and his allies; he then entered Bohemia in the fummer of 1744, under the specious pretence of restoring liberty, to Gerinany, to the emperor his dignity, and to Europe peace. On this the Auftrians fuddenly recroffed the Rhine, entered Bohemia, and obliged the army of the house of Brandenburgh to evacuate that .kingdom.

In the mean time Trenck's Pandours, had been converted into a regular Hungarian regiment, and under its standard Loudon fought at the battles of Strigau and Soor. After the latter of

thefe

these actions, in confequence of fome difputes with his colonel, he left the corps, and repaired to Vienna, where he determined to live in a calm and tranquil manner until fortune should prove more kind.

In 1748, Maria-Therefa having concluded a peace with all her enemies, Trenck's regiment was difmiffed, as well as other bodies of light troops, on which the colonel-proprietor alfo returned to the capital. Soon after this he was accufed of having committed an infinite number of cruel and unjust actions, both in the enemy's dominions and in those of the house of Auftria; of having violated the military and civil laws; and even of having proved unfaithful to his fovereign. A duel was on the eve of taking place between captaih De Loudon and his old commander, when the latter was arrested and tried on account of the pillage committed by him in Bavaria. On this occafion he endeavoured to throw the blame of many of his proceedings on Loudon, but, fortunately for the latter, he had preserved the orders *, in confequence of which he had acted, and thus exculpated himself; while his old commander, on the other hand, was broke and condemned to be imprifoned for life.

In the mean time, having nothing more than his half-pay to fupport him, he lived in great obfcurity, and there are some of the inhabitants of Vienna ftill alive who remember to have seen him repairing daily to a little eating-houfe in the ftreet called Alfter, where he made his frugal repaft in a manner fuitable to his flender fortune.

He was at length inclined to offer his fervices to fome other potentate, when his friends luckily procured for him a majority in a regiment of Croats, then stationed on the frontiers, whither foon after he repaired t. Happening about this time to be quartered at Pæfing in Hungary, he there faw and married the daughter of a Croatian officer.

At this period of his life the major feems to have been fenfible

They happened to be written with a pencil.

This corps was called the regiment of Liccaner.

Mademoiselle Claire de Hagen. By this lady he had a daughter, born at Vienna during the first campaign of the feven years war, who died young. This was his only child.

of