Part II: Our father is dead, but we must avenge him…
Marshal Francois de Canrobert
In the aftermath of the Marshal Bazaine's death, General Jarras rode through Metz to the headquarters of Marshal Francois de Canrobert, commander of the VI Corps, on the western outskirts of the town. Jarras informed Canrobert of the situation and asked him to assume command of the army. The Marshal was uneasy to accept such a responsibility deeming it above his capacity. He instead recommended Jarras send word to Marshal Edmond Leboeuf and offer the command to him. As the former Minister of Defense and Jarras’ predecessor as Chief of Staff, Leboeuf was the most senior officer present. Leboeuf had accompanied the Army of the Rhine but at the moment held no official position. However, as Jarras reminded the Marshal, Leboeuf had been recently discredited by the defeats at the frontier and could not assume the position. With this Canrobert bowed to fate and accepted the command. Word of the change was sent to the Emperor who promptly approved of the move.
Canrobert would spend much of August 15th, reorganizing of the army which had now swelled to over one hundred and fifty thousand men. The III Corps, having been brutalized the day before, was withdrawn from the front line and deployed in reserve to the northwest of Metz. The IV Corps of General Ladmirault moved to take its place deploying in Metz and securing the eastern suburbs of the city. To the west of Metz, Canrobert assembled the bulk of his army and his best units. These forces included the VI Corps, the II Corps and the Elite Imperial Guard under General Bourbaki.
These men would have the important task of guarding the western and northwestern routes out of the city. The Army of the Rhine was still under orders from the Emperor to withdraw from Metz via Verdun to Chalons and then to link up with the newly formed Army of Chalons under Marshal MacMahon. Canrobert would need a few more days with which to concentrate his army and resupply before any departure could be conducted. The Prussians were well aware of this and would soon attempt to outflank the city hoping to trap the army within.
In addition to his deployments, Canrobert looked to the moral of the army. The death of Marshal Bazaine was met with a mix of intense grief and anger. Many lamented of how he was a modern-day Marshal Turenne who had fallen before his time. In his orders for the day, Canrobert ended with the message “Our father is dead, but we must avenge him.”
EDIT: Change of Leboeuf to Canrobert.