The Adventures of Roderick Random

Flight of the French Forces

The English severely maul the French forces, and after suffering heavy losses, the French turn and flee with such precipitation that hundreds perish in the river. The enemy shows remarkable generosity by not pursuing them, allowing an orderly retreat. The loss amounts to five thousand men, including many distinguished officers. King George II of Great Britain personally heads the Allies and halts the carnage. The French nevertheless claim victory, and soldiers exaggerate their exploits with Rhodomontades comparing themselves to lions, bears, and desperate stags.

Vanquishing the Old Gascon

The narrator magnifies English valour and describes French pusillanimity, provoking the old Gascon with irony about his speed in fleeing. The Gascon responds with threats and references to their previous encounter. The narrator answers with a kick that overturns him, and they duel. After receiving only a scratch, the narrator disarms his opponent and demands he beg for his life. The Gascon responds only with a grotesque expression that nearly makes the narrator laugh. To mortify his opponent’s vanity, the narrator thrusts the sword into something smoking on the ground and walks away calmly.

Winter Quarters at Rheims

The campaign ends with no further significant engagements. The English return to the Netherlands while part of the French army goes to Flanders, and the narrator’s regiment is ordered into winter quarters in Champagne, specifically Rheims.

The Distress of the Grenadier

The narrator joins the grenadier company and finds himself in extreme want. His pay of five sols a day barely provides subsistence, and hunger and hard duty reduce him to a meagre condition matching his fellow soldiers. His linen has deteriorated from three tolerable shirts to two pairs of sleeves and necks, the bodies having been converted into spatterdashes. He writes to his uncle in England without much hope, and consoles himself with his imagination’s flattering suggestions.