The first encounter was near Nazareth, where Junot displayed the dash and resource which had brought him fame in Italy; but the decisive battle was fought in the Plain of Esdraelon, not far from the base of Mount Tabor.

There Kleber's division of 2,000 men was for some hours hard pressed by a motley array of horse and foot drawn from diverse parts of the Sultan's dominions.

The heroism of the burly Alsacian and the toughness of his men barely kept off the fierce rushes of the Moslem horse and foot.

At last Bonaparte's cannon were heard.

The chief, marching swiftly on with his troops drawn up in three squares, speedily brushed aside the enveloping clouds of orientals; finally, by well-combined efforts the French hurled back the enemy on passes, some of which had been seized by the commander's prescience.