Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 20.djvu/721

* WOLFE. 613 WOLFF. bor(m{»Ii anil Prinoc IOuf,'ciii'. James at an early af;c cvinpcd ii stroiii; iiiclination for liis father's profession of arms. .After a brief jieriod of study at a school in Greenwieli. he ol)tained his father's consent to partici|)ation in the Carta- gena expedition of 1740, but was prevented by sickness from carrying out his intentions. The following year he received a second lieutenant's commission in his father's regiment. His services thereafter were brilliant, and his rise rapid. En- sign in 17-11, two years' service in Flanders and Germany, during which he was present at the bat- tle of Dettingcn (17 Hi), secured for him first an adjutancy, then a first lieutenancy, and finally, in 1744, a captaincy. He fought against the Young Pretender in 1745-40, sharing both in the defeat of Falkirk and in the victory at Culloden. Returning to I'^landers, he took a notable part in the battle of Laffcld, July 2. 1747. He Ijeeame major in 174fl and lieutenant-colonel in the fol- lowing year. In the mismanaged expedition against Eochefort in 17.57 Wolfe acted in the capacity of quartermaster-general of the force. The attention of Pitt was now first particularly drawn to him as an officer of liom, in any enter- prise intrusted to him, great things might be ex- pected. The high opinion thus formed of him was confirmed in the year following, when he ^^■as in- trusted with the command of a brigade in the expedition against Louisburg, under General Andierst. On June Sth he effected a landing at Freshwater Cove, in the face of a heavy fire from the enemy. The successful siege of Louisburg followed. Wolfe's skill, boldness, and activity were quite clearly understood, and he became popularly known as 'the hero of Louisburg.' Pitt was now organizing his grand scheme for the ex- pulsion of tile French from Canada, and the ex- pedition which had for its object the capture of Quebec, the enemy's capital, was confided to the care of Wolfe. On February 17, 175S1, Wolfe, ad- vanced to the rank of major-general, set sail from England, and on June 27th landed on the Isle of Orleans, some four miles below Quebec. His forces numbered about 9000 men. including six companies of New England troops, while the French strength comprised a garrison of 2000 men in Quebec and 14,000 men, of whom only a small part were regulars, at Beauport, below the town. From the Isle of Orleans and from Point Levi, on the right bank of the Saint Lawrence, which he occu))ied on June 30tli, 'olfe began the bombardment of Quebec, while part of his forces were sent across to the left bank of the river, where they faced the French across the small stream of the Montmorcnci. On July 31st Wolfe delivered a frontal attack on the French intrcnchments at Beauport, his grenadiers advancing to the as- sault in boats, while the forces on the left bank ■were ordered to cross the ilontmorenci and take the enemy in flank. The movement failed and the British were compelled to retire with the loss of 400 men. This setback, combined with his chronic ill health, brought discouragement to Wolfe; he determined to strike a decisive blow. It was then that Wolfe decided upon the des- perate exjiedient of crossing the river and scaling the heights above the to^vn. .t 2 o'clock on the morning of September 13th the landing of the British troops began at a point now known as Wolfe's Cove. The French sentinels were sur- prised, and before the day broke 4.')00 men with two guns had idimbed the steep heights and were drawn up on the Plains of Aliraham, aliout a mile from Quebec. About 10 ..M. llicy were attacked by Montcalm, wlio had at his disposal a force equal to the British, but of inferior training. The French lines were shattincd by the British fire and broke; Wolfe, as he led the charge, was struck thrice, the last time in the breast. He was compelled to lie down, and while the pursuit was still on he died. Consult: Wright. Life of Major-di'iiernl James Wolfe (London, 1804), the best biography; Bradley, Wolfe (London, 1)S!).5). in ••longlish .Men of .Vction Scries"; Alli- son, Memoir of UoZ/'ft London. ISOII). in "Twelve Englisli Soblicrs Series"; and Parknian, Mont- ciilin and W'olfr (Boston, 1892). WOLFENBUTTEL, vSl'fcn-bi.it'd. A town of the Duchy of P.runswick, Germany, on the Ober, 7 miles south of Brunswick (Jla]): Germany, I) 2). The famous seventeenth-century ducal library, with 300,000 volumes and 8000 manu- scripts, containing mementos of Luther and of Lessing, once its librarian, has been housed in a spacious buililing completed in 1888. An old cas- tle with a notable tower, a theatre, the house in which Lessing wrote Xathan der ICetsc, now a museum, a gjninasium, seminary,, and normal schools are the other prominent buildings and institutions. Iron and machine manufactures, copper-smelting, yarn-spinning, and preserving constitute the chief industries. Wolfenbiittel dates from 104G. Population, in IflOO. 17.873. WOLFENBUTTEL FRAGMENTS. See Eei.m.rus. WOLFF, volf, Albert (1814-92). A German sculptor, born at Neustrelitz, Mecklenburg. He studied under Ranch at Berlin, and his work rep- resents the tendencies of that school in an idealis- tic direction. His chief works include the figures on the upper terrace of Sans-souci : "Countess Raczynska as Hygeia," for a fountain in Poseij; "Minerva Inciting Combatant to a Xew Contest" (1853), on the Palace-bridge, Berlin: the reliefs on the' "Warriors' Monument" (1854) in the Invaliden-Park. il). ; the relief of "Return of the Troops in 1871" (1872), on the monument of victory, ib. ; the statue of "Peace" (1878) on the Belle-Alliance Platz, ib. ; "Fight with a Lion," on the stairway of the Xew Museum, ib.; a group of "Bacchus with Cupid and a Panther" (1884), in the National Galler_y. ib. : the bronze equestrian statue of Frederick William III. in the Lustgar- ten, ib. ; the colossal statue of Frederick William IV. in Kijnigsberg, and a number of allegorical statues decorating the university building in that city. WOLFF, or WOLF, Christi. (1679-1754). A German pliilosoplier. He was the succes- sor of Leibnitz in the series of Cartesian phi- losophers, and did much to complete and develop Leibnitz's system, whence his school is often called the Leibnitz-Wolffian school. He was born at Breslau. He studied at .Jena, and from 1703 to 1706 taught mathematics and philosophy at Leipzig. In 1707, on the recommendation of Leib- nitz, he became professor of mathematics and natural science in Halle, where he acquired great fame. In 1723 he was banished from Prussia by a Cabinet order, on the ground that his teachings