Erfurt. A town of Prussian Saxony, on the river Gera; it was founded in 476. Erfurt was ceded to Prussia in 1802. It capitulated to Murat, when 14,000 troops surrendered, October 16, 1806. In this city Napoleon and Alexander met, and offered peace to England, September 27, 1808. The French retreated from Leipsic to Erfurt, October 18, 1813. This place was restored to Prussia by the Congress of Vienna.
Ericius. In Roman antiquity, a military engine, so named from its resemblance to a hedge-hog. It was a kind of chevaux-de-frise, placed as a defense at the gate of the camp.
Erie, Fort. A strong fortification in Upper Canada, on the northern shore of Lake Erie. Here the British were defeated by the Americans, August 15, 1814.
Erlau. A fortified town of Hungary, the old castle of which was frequently besieged during the Turkish wars, both by Moslem and Christian.
Eryx. A city and mountain in the west of Sicily, 6 miles from Drepana, and a short distance from the sea-shore. The possession of the town of Eryx was contested by the Syracusans and Carthaginians. A great battle was fought off the town between the fleets of the two nations, in which the Syracusans were victorious. The town subsequently changed hands more than once, but it seems to have owned the Carthaginian supremacy at the time of the expedition of Pyrrhus, 278 B.C. Though taken by that monarch, it once more fell into the hands of its original conquerors, who retained it till the close of the first Punic war.
Erzroom, Erzroum, or Erzrum. A fortified town of Armenia (Asiatic Turkey), on the river Kara-Soo, a branch of the Euphrates. Its position renders it an important military post. In 1210 it was taken by the Seljooks, who are said to have destroyed here 100 churches; taken by the Ottoman Turks in 1517. It was taken by the Russians in 1829, but was restored to Turkey in the following year.
Escadron (Fr.). Squadron. Froissart was the first French writer who made use of the word escadron to signify a troop of horse drawn out in order of battle. The term escadron is more ancient than the word battalion.
Escalade. From the Latin scala, a ladder. In siege operations, a mode of gaining admission within the enemy’s works. It consists in advancing over the glacis and the covert way, descending, if necessary, into the ditch by means of ladders, and ascending to the parapet of the curtain and bastions, and are either procured on the spot, or are sent out with the siege army. The leaders constitute a forlorn hope.
Escale (Fr.). A machine used to ply the petard.
Escape of Gas. See [Gas-check] and [Breech Mechanism].