In a few moments his decision was taken. Calling on the X. Corps, away to the south-westward, for support, he determined to screen his own weakness by a vigorous attack. By universal con sent this is approved as the boldest resolution arrived at by an independent commander throughout the war. His 5th infantry division had already encountered the advancing French as it came out of the defile leading from Gorze up to Rezonville. Now the 6th infantry division, at this moment between Puxieux and Tron ville, was ordered to wheel in to their right and attack. Under the onset of this division the French began to retire eastward. Bazaine had meanwhile arrived on the scene, and ordering forward fresh troops to relieve (not to reinforce) those already engaged, he rode forward to watch the operations—and narrowly escaped capture.
After an ill-advised French cavalry charge had been shattered by the Prussian infantry volleys, for about two hours there was a lull in the fighting, which the Prussians utilized on their right in bringing up reinforcements through the Bois des Ognons. On their left, however, no fresh troops were as yet available, and on being informed, about 2:30 P.M., that French cavalry seemed to be about to charge the exhausted 6th division, Alvensleben ordered Bredow's cavalry brigade to charge, and if necessary to sacrifice itself, to save the infantry. Bredow's command (six squadrons of the 16th Ulans and 7th Cuirassiers) moved off in line of squad ron columns and ascended the gentle incline which still hid them from their enemy. Arrived at the summit, Bredow sounded "line to the front" but the men, no longer to be restrained, dashed forward, before the line could be completed, almost due east against long lines of infantry and artillery which they now saw for the first time about 1,200 yards in front of them.
This distance was covered at the fullest extended speed of the horses, and reaching the infantry they swept over them "like hounds over a fence"—in the words of an eyewitness. So sudden had been their onset that very few were hit until the infantry had been passed; then the latter, recovering from the shock, turned and fired into the cavalry from behind, whilst a whole fresh division of French horsemen charged them in flank. After a desperate melee of some minutes, the survivors, breaking their way a second time through the French infantry, eventually reached the shelter of their own lines, having lost rather more than half their numbers, but having saved the situation momentarily.
Meanwhile, unknown to Alvensleben, a fresh storm was brew ing on his left, where Ladmirault's Corps had arrived from St. Privat—on his own initiative, not Bazaine's intention—and reached a position north of the Tronville copses whence his guns could fire into the left rear of the long line of Prussian guns on the heights above Vionville and Flavigny. Their fire threw the latter into serious confusion and he had decided to attack with his nearest division (de Cissey) in the direction of the steeple of Vionville, when the sudden apparition of a closed mass of Prus sian troops detaching itself from the low dust-cloud of a slow moving infantry column, and forming to the south of Mars-la Tour, arrested his attention. Unanimously he and his staff agreed that this fresh enemy could only be the advanced guard of a large Prussian force, and delay occurred while the situation was investi gated. Actually this body consisted only of the 38th brigade (Wedell), forming part of the X. Corps. In equal ignorance of the situation it moved diagonally across the front of Cissey's division, which, catching sight of them, opened a devastating fire upon their left flank, and then charged, rolling up their line. The st Guard Dragoons, however, rode down the pursuers and by their self-sacrifice relieved the remnants of the infantry.
This was the scene which for the moment held the attention of Prince Frederick Charles when at length he reached the battlefield from Pont-a-Mousson. All along the rest of the line the Prussians were still holding their own, and on the extreme right fresh troops from the IX. Corps were streaming up through the woods against the French left wing. But on the left there was every sign of in cipient disaster, and to avert this only the cavalry were at hand. Sending, therefore, hasty orders to the 5th and 6th cavalry divisions to concentrate to the west of Mars-la-Tour, the prince ordered them from there to sweep round on the right rear of the French army. The same idea had, however, occurred to Lad mirault, and he had called on the two nearest French cavalry divisions to put it into execution, and as the Prussians began to reach the plateau west of Mars-la-Tour and the Yron brook from the south, the French were deploying across it some two thousand yards to the north.