Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 8.djvu/280

 248 THE EMPEROR'S PLAN. Chap, backs of his soldiers, hut also (in the way pointed . — out) bringing up more supplies from the west. Computing the garrison of Sebastopol at 35,000, and the Russian troops gathered on the north of Eupatoria at 15,000, he attributed to the enemy's field army between Simferopol, the Belbek, and the Tchernaya a strength of 70,000 ; but disclosed what was evidently his ruling idea — an idea that the conquest thus planned for his ' army of Diver- ' sion ' would or might take effect by surprise^ 2 ) In this later development of the imperial plan, the task assigned to Lord Eaglan was declared (at the outset) to be still, as before, that of seiz- ing the Mackenzie Heights ;* but upon going into fuller details the Emperor forgot or ignored the earlier part of his exposition, and proposed that Lord Raglan should go on conducting a series of only preparatory operations until after the anti- cipated capture of Simferopol by the French, when — by virtue of processes more easy to dram- atists than to generals engaged in 'flank marches' under the eyes of a powerful enemy — he was to either advance in pursuit of the Russian field army then already compelled to fall back by the advance of the French in its rear, and to seize the ' Old City Heights,' or else find himself brought into contact with the ' army of Diversion ' victo- riously advancing to meet him from the town newly seized. Then of course was to follow a triumphant co-operation of the two forces thus joining hands, and the whole of the enemy's field
 * ' S'emparer des hauteurs de Mackenzie.'