INTERESTING HISTORICAL EVENTS.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 528, 21 December 1912, Page 2

INTERESTING HISTORICAL EVENTS.

JARTHUSIANS EXPELLED FROM LA GRAND CHARTREUSE.

Early on the morning of April 30, i.903, the last remaining members were expelled from La Grand Chartreuse by a military force by order Df the French Republic. La Grand Chartreuse was the chief of the monasteries of the Carthusian Order, and is situated among the rugged mountains,, near Grenoble, in France. Though soldiers were sent for the purpose, the six doors had to be" jroken open in succession to reach the monks, no attempt was made at resistance. The Carthusians, one of the Orders of the Roman Catholic Church, were founded in 1084, when 3t. Bruno, a native of Cologne, in Germany, retired to the neighbourhood of Chatrouse, a village of Dauphine, with six companions, and Diiilt there an oratory, or place of worship, with their cells, or huts, a short distance away. The Order was 3rst recognised by Pope Alexander HI. in 1176. Four years later some members of the community came to England, and a monastery was founded in London in 1371 by Sir William de Manny, one of Edward til's, knights. Henry VIII. dissolved and disendowed all the English monasteries because thej monks would aot assent to his separating from ais .wife. Catherine of Arragon, formerly the wife of his deceased elder brother, for which union he had obtained the Pope's permission. But in 1611, during the reign of James I. Thomas Sutton, a wealthy merchant purchased the site on which the Carthusian monastery stood, for £13,000, and a school, afterwards mown as the Charterhouse, was erected upon it. At the French Revolution of 1792 the monks were expelled from La Grand Chartreuse, md their valuable library was destroyed ; but they returned in 1815. In 1880 the majority of the monks declined to "seek authorisation"- to remain in their monasteries, so were expelled from all but La Grand Chartreuse, and sought refuge in England, Switzerland, Italy, and other countries. The Carthusians are most widely celebrated for a Liqueur they manufacture, the process of making which has always been kept a secret.

THE BLIND HERO OF MAGERSFONTEIN.

Pathetic indeed was an incident which marked the inspection of the 3-entlemen-at-Arms by the late King last year. A tall, well-built, handsome soldier was carefully piloted before his Majesty by a fellow-officer. It was Captain E. B. B. Towse, V.C. whose eyes were shattered while leading! a brilliant charge against the Boers during the South African War. The story of that charge will long live in the memories of the Gordon Highlanders, the regiment which has so many heroic deeds on its roll of aonour, and to which Captain Towse belonged. On April 30, 1900, Captain Towse, with twelve men, took ap a position on Mount Thaba. He was totally unsupported ; but it was not thought any of the enemy were near. Suddenly, however, a party of Boers, over a hundred strong, who bad also made for the position, appeared a hundred yards off. Seeing that they outnumbered the Highlanders, the Boers called upon Captain Towse to surrender. His prompt reply was to give a ringing command to his men to fire and then charge, the Boers being now about forty yards distant. The sudden onslaught jf these twelve intrepid Britishers, with their gallant leader, caused the Boers to waver and fall back, and thus the situation was saved. But the victory was dearly bought ; for the men, to their great grief, saw a bullet shatter the eyes of their captain, who has, consequently, never been able to look on the Cross oi Valour which was duly awarded him. This was not the only deed of gallantry performed by Captain Towse luring the Boer war. Five months previously, on '"Black- Monday'' (December 11, 1899), at the disastrous Battle of Magersfontein, when Lord Methuen fought 15,000 Boers with 11,000 men, with terrible loss, Captain Towse earned the title of the '''Hero of Magerslfontein." Concealed in their trenches, the Boers could not be driven out, and Lord Methuen was obliged to retire to the Modder River. A terrible fire from rifles and pom-poms at close range struck down one in five of the Highland!! Brigade under General Wauchopej who also fell, riddled with bullets. Colonel G. T. F. Downman, Captain Towse's commanding officer, was als'c struck down. But in spite of the hail of bullets Captain Towse hoisted the Colonel on his back and bore him away. It ; was a gallant deed, well in keeping with the glorious traditions of the famous Gordons.

BATTLE OP BOTHWELL BRIDGE. The defeat of Claverhouse by the Scottish Covenanters in 1679 excited alarm in London, and the Duke of Monmouth, the King's natural son, was sent down to assume command of the Army in Scotland, and restore order. At the head of a well-discip-lined army of ten thousand men, with a complete train of held artillery, and accompanied by Lords Livingstone, Claverhouse, and Dalzell, he marched in quest of the insurgents, and' on June 21 reached the village of Bothwell, on the hanks of the Clyde, opposite their encampment. Early on the morning of the 22nd a deputation of the insurgents waited on Monmouth, and stated their/. •■■■grisgances^,'-'.;rThe,-iClit3tie,\,retiu33di,

them half an hour to decide. The position which the Covenanters occupied was strong and well chosen. In front was a deep and rapid river, which at this spot was crossed by a high, steep, and narrow bridge, having, according to the old fashion, a gateway in the centre. The left bank on which the insurgeants were posted was lined with thickets of alder and hazel, and two or three houses, affording excellent cpver for the defenders. A strong party, under Hackston and Hall of Haughead, was posted at the bridge, while Balfour and Captain Nishet, with the\r foot and horse, defended the bank of the river. The assault was conducted by Lord Livingston at the head of the English foot-guards, who strove to force the gates of the bridge, which the Covenanters had barricaded with stones and logs of timber. Hackston maintained his post v.iih courage and constancy, and col'imu after column of the enemy va:> driven buck with great loss by th: well-sustained fire of the insurgey.nt::; while the troops under Barley jhi:.l Nisbit repulsed and threw into disorder a detachment of the Royal Army which attempted to ford the river above the fridge. The defence was obstinate ann protected, and seemed not unlikely to be in the end successful. But at this critical moment the ammunition of the defenders of the bridge began to fail. Message after message imploring supplies and reinforcements was despatched to the main body of the Covenanters. It is said that a solitary barrel at last arrived, which, on being opened was found to be filled with rasins instead of powder. The English guards at length made good their footing on the bridge, burst open the portal gate, and threw the beams and stones by which

it was barricaded into the river. Hackston and his resolute band oi followers, their ammunition completely expended, and every support denied them, were overpowered by numbers, • and compelled to abandor the important post which they hac so nobly defende-l. The way being thus cleared, the Koyal Army slowly and with their cannon in front, defiled along the narrow bridge, and formed in line of battle 0 n the southern bank. No attempt was made by the Covenanters to interrupt this slow, as well as dangerous, movement, and at the very first discharge of the duke's cannon their untrained horses wheeled and rode off, breaking and trampling down the ranks oi the infantry in their flight. Theii whole army was instantly put to the rout. Monmouth generously exerted himself to stop the effusion of blood; but Claverhouse, burning with revenge for his defeat at Drumclog. made great slaughter among the unresisting fugatives, about four hundred falling in the battle and thf pursuit.

ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT CARNOT.

On Monday June 25, 1894, M. Francois Sadi Carnot, President o' the French Republic, distinguished for his integrity and moderation, died from a wound inflicted by th: band of the assassin. On the Saturday previous,, though feeling far from well, the- President started out to visit the big Lyons Exhibition, which he was to declare open y two dayi later. The city* was gailj r decorated to receive the President, and the people were most enthusiastic in their welcome. M. Carnot attended a banquet at the Bourse on the Sunday afternoon, and' in the evening started for the gala performance at thf Lyons Theatre. When driving along he suggested that the cuirassier oficers, who were riding on either side of the carriage, enould fall back a little, as some of tho people wanted to shake hands with him. On their retiring, an Italian anarchist, named Cesaro Santo Hieronymo, sprang or to the carriage step, and, .whilst appearing to offer his hand to the President, stabbed him in the side. M. Carnot fell back, crying, "I arc wounded !" and immediately fainted away, while General Borino and th< Rlayor of Lyons, who were in the carriage with the President, criec" out to the officers to arrest the assassin. Meanwhile, Dr. Poncet and Dthers had come to M. Carnot's aid, and, seeing the blood flowing, drove 'him off at once to the Prefecture. His clothing was soaked with blood, and, on examination, the wound was found to_ have perforated the liver with fatal result. The unfortunate President suffered severely from the surgeon's probing, in the vain hope of stopping the internal haemorrhage but nothing could We don? *o relievi him. The Archbisnop of Lyons ad ninistered the last Sacraments, and at a quarter to one o'clock in the afternoon of June 25, M. Carnot had passed quietly away. Hieronymo, :he assassin, was brought up for trial on August 3, was condemned tc death, and paid the penalty of hi; rime thirteen days later.