La Croix Margueritte et tombe de Camille Varaigne
The succession of three commanders-in-chief in three hours and the orders of the wise General Ducrot followed by the counter-orders of General de Wimpffen, unaware of the situation, deeply disorganized the French army.
With the German vice closed and the French artillery annihilated, the German infantry began to climb the slopes of Le Terme around 2 o'clock in the afternoon. To stop the enemy advance, the French cavalry division of General Margueritte is thrown into the furnace. Three times, General Margueritte will himself recognize the enemy positions which are 400 meters away and it is when the charge is about to start that he is mortally wounded, near the Auberge du Terme. General de Gallifet succeeded him immediately, everyone wanted to avenge their leader, in particular the 1st Regiment of Chasseurs d'Afrique which he had commanded. The German skirmishers are jostled, but the charge is broken, the melee becomes general. Men and horses fell covered in mud and blood, Lieutenant-Colonel de Liniers, who was second in command of the 3rd African Chasseurs Regiment, was killed along with two of his officers, Commander de Varaignes, and Captain Albaret of the 1st Hussars. and many others. The rallying of the survivors of the Division is made on the starting positions from which, heroically, they set off again to the charge, but the waves of German infantry do not cease to break.
Ducrot, speaking one last time to General Margueritte's successor, said to him: "Come on, my little Gallifet, one more little effort" and the latter replied "as long as there is one left..." These fierce battles lasted almost two hours to end around a quarter past 4, except for Commander d'Alincourt and the sixty of his cuirassiers who launched themselves, sabers drawn, into a final suicidal charge, from Gaulier to Saint Albert, a charge of glory and despair.
With the German vice closed and the French artillery annihilated, the German infantry began to climb the slopes of Le Terme around 2 o'clock in the afternoon. To stop the enemy advance, the French cavalry division of General Margueritte is thrown into the furnace. Three times, General Margueritte will himself recognize the enemy positions which are 400 meters away and it is when the charge is about to start that he is mortally wounded, near the Auberge du Terme. General de Gallifet succeeded him immediately, everyone wanted to avenge their leader, in particular the 1st Regiment of Chasseurs d'Afrique which he had commanded. The German skirmishers are jostled, but the charge is broken, the melee becomes general. Men and horses fell covered in mud and blood, Lieutenant-Colonel de Liniers, who was second in command of the 3rd African Chasseurs Regiment, was killed along with two of his officers, Commander de Varaignes, and Captain Albaret of the 1st Hussars. and many others. The rallying of the survivors of the Division is made on the starting positions from which, heroically, they set off again to the charge, but the waves of German infantry do not cease to break.
Ducrot, speaking one last time to General Margueritte's successor, said to him: "Come on, my little Gallifet, one more little effort" and the latter replied "as long as there is one left..." These fierce battles lasted almost two hours to end around a quarter past 4, except for Commander d'Alincourt and the sixty of his cuirassiers who launched themselves, sabers drawn, into a final suicidal charge, from Gaulier to Saint Albert, a charge of glory and despair.
