MILITARY BALLOONING DURING THIS CENTURY.
After the Peace of Amiens was concluded in March 1802, military aëronauts were less heard of, while professional and scientific air explorers came more prominently into notice.
In 1812, the Russians constructed a huge balloon at Moscow, which was to hover over the French army and rain forth shells and explosives, but their expectations rose higher than their balloons, which refused to move off the ground.
The French soldiers found this in the Castle of Voronzoff bearing many thousand pounds of gunpowder, which were to have been launched upon them.
General Count Philip de Segur says:—“This prodigious balloon was constructed by command of Alexander, not far from Moscow, under the direction of a German artificer.”
In 1815 a balloon reconnaissance was made at Antwerp, and in 1826 the subject was again mooted by the French, and a balloon was sent to Algiers, but it was never disembarked.
The Russians are said to have tried experiments at Sebastopol in 1854.
The French again used balloons in the Italian campaign of 1859; they employed the civilian aëronaut Godard, and a useful ascent was made the day before Solferino in a fire balloon.
When the Civil War in America broke out several balloons were used in the operations. On October 4th, 1861, an aëronaut named La Montaine ascended from McClellan’s camp on the Potomac; he was enabled to make observation of their position and movements, and afterwards returned to his own lines and communicated results which were declared to be of the utmost importance.
Later on the Federals instituted a regular balloon corps, of which Colonel Beaumont, R.E., wrote an interesting account in the Royal Engineer Papers. The balloons were of two sizes, one of 13,000 cubic feet capacity, the other double that size, but the large size was found most suitable, a fact which our military balloonists should not overlook in their desire to possess very light and small balloons for easy transport.
The American balloons were made of the best silk, the upper part being composed of three or four thicknesses; this was capable of retaining sufficient gas for an ascent a fortnight after inflation, a statement which can more readily be credited than the French accounts about preserving it for three months.
Hydrogen was used for inflation, and generated in the old-fashioned way with scrap iron and sulphuric acid.
In this chapter of facts and dates I have drawn freely on the exhaustive work called “Astra Castra,” by Lieutenant Hatton Turnor, formerly of the 60th Rifles; also from the indefatigable gleanings and able lecture by Lieutenant Baden-Powell of the Scots Guards.
De Fonvielle’s “Adventures in the Air” have furnished valuable information and incidents worth mentioning; Lieutenant Baden-Powell has so cleverly compressed his matter that for the sake of brevity I am induced at times to quote literally.
Two of the American balloons and two generators were taken each on a four horsed waggon, with one two horsed acid cart.
Earthworks could be distinguished at a distance of five miles, while the piquets and supports of the enemy were distinctly seen. A telegraphic wire was sometimes attached to the balloon, so that the aëronaut could at once communicate with the general, or even, as was done one time, to the Government at Washington. Some photographs were also taken of the enemy’s position.
The aëronaut and the general each had maps similarly divided into small squares, which were numbered, whereby the communications were simplified.
The “Times” correspondent said of the battle of Chickahominy: “During the whole of the engagement, Professor Lowe’s balloon hovered over the Federal lines at an altitude of 2,000 feet, and maintained successful telegraphic communication with General McClellan’s head-quarters.”
In an attack on Mississippi Island, No. 10, Engineer Aëronaut Allan, ascended and directed the artillery fire, communicating the effect of each shot.
In July 1862, the first military balloon experiments in England took place at Aldershot, and, as I had the honour of accomplishing them, I will leave Lieut. Baden-Powell to allude to the events in his own words.
“The aëronaut, Mr. Coxwell, was employed to bring one of his balloons which was filled at the gas-works, and made several captive ascents, the highest being 2,200 feet. Colonel Beaumont said that no large movement of troops could take place within a radius of ten miles without being seen. Later on, more experiments were made, a one-inch rope being used as cable.
“When the war between France and Germany broke out, Mr. Coxwell went to manage some war balloons for the Germans. He formed two companies (two officers and forty-two men) at Cologne, and his assistant went on to Strasbourg, but that town capitulated before much service was rendered.”
During the siege of Paris, balloons, it will be remembered, were made use of in a more regular and extensive manner, and with most important results.
At first, two old balloons were anchored at Montmartre and Montsouris, as observatories, to watch the Prussians. They apparently accomplished but little, although one or two new ideas were introduced. The messages from the balloons were put in a little box which was attached to the cable by a ring, so that the observations were delivered straight to those who held the rope.
Every twenty-four hours, six ascents were made, four by day, and two by night, the latter to observe the camp fires, etc., and it was proposed to use a search electric light.
When the Parisians found themselves cut off from all communication with the outer world, balloons were naturally suggested as a means of escape.
Several experienced aëronauts were in Paris as well as a few balloons.
The first aëronaut, Duruof, left in a leaky machine, which owing to its imperfect condition, was sent up like a projectile, as we are informed by De Fonvielle. It described a parabola like that of a bombshell, and by sacrificing seven hundredweight of ballast, the descent took place nineteen miles from the Place St. Pierre, in the department of Eure, not far from the Prussians, but still beyond their range.
The “Ville de Florence” took, by way of trial, the first pigeons intended for return with despatches. Paris learned, with as much satisfaction as if it had been a victory, the return of the first aërial messenger.
Louis Godard had two small balloons, neither sufficient for the purpose of escape, but he fixed one below the other, and made a very successful voyage in the “Etats-Unis.”
The last ready made balloon was the “Céleste,” which was the first to take post cards.
The Government then ordered a number of new balloons to be at once constructed, they were turned out at the chief railway stations, which for the time being were no longer used as such.
The balloons were made of strong cambric, oiled, and of about 70,000 cubic feet capacity; they were filled with coal gas, and could carry a load of 2,000 pounds, including 600 pounds of ballast and 1,000 pounds of despatches.
The first of these bore Gambetta, he was accompanied by his intimate friend, M. Spuller. The political results of this voyage are well known.
One balloon travelled to Norway. Many were fired at, but few injured. Three balloons fell into the hands of the enemy near Paris, and two in Germany. Two were lost at sea, each manned by a sailor.
The average distance travelled, was about 180 miles, and the speed varied from seven to fifty miles an hour, and in one instance, eighty miles.
During four months, sixty-six balloons left Paris, of which fifty-four were specially made by the administration of posts and telegraphs.
One hundred-and-sixty persons were carried over the Prussian lines.
Nine tons of despatches, or 3,000,000 letters were successfully conveyed to their destinations. 360 pigeons were taken up, of which, however, only fifty-seven returned to Paris, these conveyed, as Lieut. Baden-Powell reminds us, 100,000 messages.
Wilfrid de Fonvielle gives us a vivid and thrilling account of how he left Paris in a balloon.
The members of the scientific commission, he informs us, conceived the idea of sending off balloons by night. He took his departure on the 20th of November; he was apprehensive, owing to the weather, of some crushing catastrophe.
“The ‘Egalité’ began to show its graceful form and bright colours. The sun was shining on the golden sphere, which the wind was gracefully oscillating. I was looking on the clouds, which had a direction inclining somewhere towards Prussian soil, when I heard people shouting.
“A large hole had been made by the copper end of the pipe in the graceful fabric. It was too late to think of mending it, and of ascending afterwards before sunset.”
On the following morning the weather was horrid. After many delays, owing to this cause, De Fonvielle and his companions started. They saw desolated fields, disappearing one after another. He recognized different parts where he had wandered during so many happy years. Twice the Seine was crossed, that noble Seine! where German horses will never drink! and he could see distinctly where his old balloon had been taken by German hands.
He was looking at that spot when the first shot was heard, but the balloon was more than 5,000 feet high. In less than two hours they reached Louvain.
A few days after this successful journey, another nocturnal balloon went up on a moonless night. A brave sailor, named Prince, was the sole occupant of the car.
Next day, at dawn, some fishermen on the north coast of Scotland, saw a globe disappear towards the west and sink in the ocean. A poor mother and two sisters bewailed the loss of the unfortunate waif.
In June 1871, the English Government appointed a committee, consisting of Colonel Beaumont, R.E., Lieut. Grover, R.E., and Sir F. Abel, to enquire into the use of balloons for warfare, and as Lieut. Baden-Powell, in his lecture at the Royal United Service Institution, went into the dates and progress made in military ballooning, I shall regard him as a reliable authority in these matters.
In April 1879, the English Government instituted an official balloon committee, consisting of Colonel Noble, R.E., Sir F. Abel, and Captain Lee, R.E., with whom was associated Captain Elsdale, R.E., and Captain Templer, of the Middlesex Militia, the last mentioned having had considerable experience in ballooning.
Experiments were conducted at Woolwich, and four balloons were made by the Royal Engineers of specially woven fine calico, varnished.
A portable furnace and boiler for the manufacture of hydrogen gas was devised similar in principle to the one used by the French in 1793, but the apparatus did not prove satisfactory.
And who could expect that a mere imitation after the lapse of eighty-six years, would do much good or credit to the British army. Had a competent man been appointed consulting aëronaut, he would have pointed out that the use of bricks, tiles, and red hot turnings, was resorted to in France as a necessity when sulphur and sulphuric acid were scarce, but as none of the above named officers had ever ascended with me, or had my instructions, I could only note, with regret, what appeared to be a useless expenditure of money and time, and as to proper and suitable material. I had in my store rooms at Seaford, Sussex, a large quantity of stout, pure silk, made expressly for balloons, and could have turned out for Government, a typical war balloon, which would have been creditable to our country, and been in every way preferable to calico.
A few days after the first experiment, an unforeseen adventure happened as one of the war balloons was being towed, attached to a cart.
The cable snapped and the balloon disappeared in the clouds!
In October, one of the balloons was tried free at a review on Woolwich Common, but the wind was unfavourable.
The next year, the “Crusader” figured at the Brighton volunteer review, successfully.
In September 1880, a whole company of Engineers (the 24th) went for instruction in ballooning to Aldershot, and many experiments were made.
English military ballooning, as I have pointed out received a sudden check when the “Saladin” was lost in the year 1881.
If we turn to the French, we read quite a different story. They established, in 1872, another aëronautical school. An annual grant of £10,000 was made, since then, the establishment has increased.
Their balloons are spherical, ten metres in diameter, made of the best silk, and covered with a varnish which renders them so gas-tight, that they can remain inflated for a month. So they assert.
Twenty out of forty balloons had already been made.
For captive ascents a kite screen is used. I suggested something of this kind twenty-six years since, but I have now a more simple and safer plan, with others for signalling etc., should they ever be enquired after or wanted.