ABSTRACT
Lucerne's surrender still left five Sonderbund cantons in the field, with Lucerne as the next target in Guillaume Henri Dufour's grand strategy. He decided that he would use no fewer than five of his six divisions against Lucerne. Although no shots had been fired so far, it was apparent that the division had been under enemy observation from the high ground across Lucerne's border almost as soon as it had begun its march. Gisikon, some nine miles west of Lucerne, did possess some tactical importance because it was that a major bridge crossed the river Reuss. But heroic or not—and the men at Gisikon and Meierskappel surely had fought as bravely as any—Dufour's forces had arrived before Lucerne precisely as scheduled, surrounding the city with a vastly superior force and hoping that their mere presence would persuade Lucerne to surrender the way Fribourg had.
