The stage has been set; the nation's nobility and foreign envoys are all seated, and in the distance lies the castle of Sedan!
The French Army, numbering 120,000 troops, faces the Prussian Army, with 250,000 troops, as MacMahon once again finds himself outnumbered, this time more despairingly so.
MacMahon stationed his three armies in a triangular formation: the Seventh Army between Fluwan and Yili, the First Army at Rivonne, and the Twelfth Army at Bazeye, each fending off the Prussians from a different direction.
Wenpufen, having rushed from Paris, took over as the commander of the Fifth Army, positioning his forces as a reserve behind the Seventh and First Armies.
The Krupp Cannons were fully operational, poised to demolish the positions and castle in front of Sedan, shattering the French soldiers' fighting spirit.
At 4 a.m., the Bavarian First Army of the Prussian Third Corps opened fire, targeting Bazeye Village to the southeast of Sedan.
