Expulsion of the French from Frankfurt by Prussian and Hessian troops, December 2, 1792. In the process, 1,158 Frenchmen were taken prisoner, including 68 officers and 190 wounded.
Frankfurt did not deserve what Custine did to it, but now the King of Prussia, Brunswick, and the Hessians advance.
To rescue you, the Allerheiligen Gate is already being shelled.
Look how the Cavalry rushes here, so indefatigably!
See how the Frenchman runs,
and hides inside barrels out of fear,
Throws his weapons away,
and lies stretched out wounded and dead,
How cannons and provisions are taken away from them,
General and officers come to surrender themselves.
How the insignia are stripped off, which are called "National".
The trumpeter sounds the summons.
Prussian and Hessian fire bang after bang.
How the artisan apprentices rush to open the gate, and at the commander's station...
Secure the two artillery pieces firmly, so that neither is lost.
But how the Frenchman rages, shelling the city from the rampart,
Ruining houses and monasteries—blessed is the people that enjoys peace!
Publisher:
[J.M. Will] (Augsburg)
Publication date:
1792
A historical battle print (estampe) depicting the expulsion of French Revolutionary forces from Frankfurt am Main by Prussian and Hessian troops on December 2, 1792, during the early phase of the War of the First Coalition. The scene illustrates the Allied recapture of the city following its brief occupation by French forces under General Adam Philippe de Custine during the Revolutionary campaigns along the Rhine.
The composition shows French troops in retreat through the streets of Frankfurt while Prussian and Hessian units advance to secure the city. The engraving emphasizes military order and discipline among the advancing Allied forces, contrasted with the disorder of the withdrawing French columns. Urban architecture frames the action, reinforcing the strategic and symbolic importance of Frankfurt as a key Rhine crossing and political center.
Published in Augsburg by the workshop of J. M. Will, this print reflects contemporary German visual propaganda and documentary-style military illustration during the Revolutionary Wars. It serves both as a commemorative image of the 1792 campaign and as a visual record of one of the early confrontations between Revolutionary France and the First Coalition.
