Zieten, on arriving at Chauny at eight o'clock in the evening, with the remainder of his Corps—the Second and Fourth Brigades, the Reserve Artillery, and a Reserve Cavalry Brigade—considered his troops too much fatigued to fulfil Blücher's intentions that they should march as far as Noyon; and he therefore ordered them to bivouack at Chauny.
The Third Prussian Corps d'Armée marched from the vicinity of Homblières to that of Guiscard; partly by Jussy, and partly by St Quentin and Ham. It was only the Eleventh Brigade, with the greater portion of the Reserve Cavalry and Artillery, that took the latter road. These troops on reaching the fortified town of Ham, found it occupied by the Enemy; who seemed prepared to oppose their passing through the place. General Hobe, who commanded them, summoned the Commander of the Garrison to open the Gates and allow the troops to march through; and on perceiving that this summons was disobeyed, he tried the effect of a few cannon shot, which quickly procured a free passage for his force. No further notice was taken, and no further use was made, by the Prussians of this otherwise insignificant place.
A Detachment of the Reserve Cavalry of this Corps was sent to Chauny, from which it pushed forward a small party along the road towards Soissons, which the latter pursued until on arriving at about a league beyond Coucy, it came upon an Enemy's Outpost, consisting of a Regiment of Dragoons and a Battalion of Infantry.
The Fourth Corps d'Armée was also required to make a forced march on this day—namely, from Essigny le Grand as far as Lassigny, and its Advanced Guard was to reach Gournay, and thence push forward Detachments to Clermont, Creil, and Pont St Maxence, for the purpose of securing and examining the Bridges across the Oise, and of preparing all that was requisite for effecting a passage for the troops. Bülow, in his Brigade Orders, drew the attention of his troops to the necessity which had arisen for those forced marches on the part of the Prussian Army with a view to obtain a decisive result.
The Advanced Guard started at four o'clock in the morning from Jussy, and proceeded by Lassigny to Gournay, situated upon the road from Peronne to Pont St Maxence; but the Detachments which it sent thence towards Clermont, Creil, Pont St Maxence, and Verberie, did not reach those places until the following day. The Reserve Artillery of the Fourth Corps commenced its march at five o'clock in the morning, following the Advanced Guard, and reached Ressons late in the evening; where it bivouacked, as did also, subsequently, the main body of the Corps, after a march of about twenty five miles.
Whilst the Prussians were thus, on the 26th, hastening towards Compiegne; the French General, Count d'Erlon, was, on this very day, also marching upon that point from Soissons, with the remains of his Corps d'Armée—about four thousand men—having succeeded, through his urgent representations of the expediency of such a movement, in obtaining Grouchy's assent to its execution.
The troops of the Third and Fourth French Corps d'Armée moved this day from Rheims towards Soissons, a distance which they could not, however, accomplish in one day's march.
The positions of the respective Armies on the evening of the 26th were as follows:—