Chapter 377 Napoleon Is Alive

January 4, 1843

No. 10 Downing Street, London, England

The news that the French army had sent troops to besiege Namur reached England, and Prime Minister Viscount Melbourne breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank God, those damn French guys almost scared my heart out. Thank God, the fighting power of the German Confederation Army is still as low as ever.

Even if they have been planning for this day for decades, they still failed miserably in the end. I really want to observe closely whether the faces of the German kings and archdukes are swollen, but what we should do now is to urge the procrastinating Russians to join the war as soon as possible."

The other cabinet members nodded in agreement, but unfortunately the British commissioner who was rushing to St. Petersburg to deliver the letter was still on the way.

Although the Netherlands had joined the German Confederation at this time, the French army was advancing too fast; if they directly captured Namur and then Liege, it would not only mean the liberation of Belgium, but also cut off the communication channels between the Netherlands and the German region.

This made the Anglo-Saxons, who were proficient in the way of balance, have to worry about the German Confederation. After all, if the latter was defeated too quickly, it would directly affect their strategic ambitions and money-making plans.

Outside Brussels, Belgium

Although Leopold I had not yet signed his name on the armistice agreement, Albrecht still received the king with the highest standard of etiquette. The other party was indeed a tough guy as rumored. Although he was captured, he was still full of confidence in the war situation.

"Archduke Albrecht, I admit that the speed of your army's march far exceeded my expectations. But have you ever thought that if the French army sent troops to cut off your retreat at this time, would you end up like me in the near future?"

"Your Majesty, you worry too much. Even if there are hundreds of thousands of pigs guarding the Wallonia region, 20,000 French troops cannot catch them all in three days."

Albrecht was confident about this, because France could only deploy one army of troops in the area within a week.

According to the intelligence currently available, the Prussian army alone has two armies in this area. If one army is added by the country and other states in the near future, the total number of troops will soar to about 150,000.

In addition, since the French have occupied most of the strategic locations in Wallonia, it is extremely difficult for the French to cut off the retreat of the German Confederation Army.

Moreover, his nephew has repeatedly assured him that as long as the plan to attack Belgium goes smoothly, France will not dare to launch an attack.

Leopold I was a little surprised by the other party's views on the current situation.

"Are you kidding me? How could there be hundreds of thousands of troops? Can all your soldiers fly?"

Albrecht just smiled and replied.

"It's more interesting to solve the mystery yourself." But before he finished speaking, a messenger hurried over.

Because he was walking too fast and didn't pay attention to his feet, he accidentally tripped over the threshold of the camp and fell down. His face was stained with blood from the wound, and he looked embarrassed. The soldier, with terrified eyes, looked at the King of Belgium in front of him in doubt.

"I'll step aside. You guys talk." Leopold I stood up with a smile. He knew what the scene just happened meant. The enemy's disadvantages are definitely good news for himself and the kingdom.

Albrecht glanced at the messenger with great displeasure. He knew that the military information his men were going to announce might be unfavorable to his side, but he didn't want to encourage others, so he said to the adjutant indifferently.

"You just read it here, don't be shy about His Majesty the King."

"Yes, Your Excellency the Archduke!" The adjutant took the document and was at a loss after just two glances. He saw fine beads of sweat oozing out of his head, pulled his collar, and then leaned over and whispered to his boss.

"Archduke, I'm afraid that reading the text on this report may be undignified."

At the critical moment, Albrecht didn't have the energy to beat around the bush with his subordinates. He was impatient and angrily threw the coffee cup on the table.

"Why say so much? Just read it out loud!"

"Yes! The Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Armies of the German Confederation Volunteer Army were all defeated in yesterday's battle. His Excellency Prince William Friedrich Ludwig, the deputy commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, was trapped in Namur and urgently needed rescue. Report completed!"

After listening to it, Albrecht's eyes went dark and he almost fainted. The development of the situation was really beyond his expectations.

This has to start from two days ago. The French army was singing and fighting all the way, which made William Friedrich Ludwig embarrassed, so he decided to gather a large army to encircle and suppress it.

At this time, his chief of staff Moltke was keenly aware that the opponent's troops were in full swing. If the Prussian army took the lead, it would be impossible to resist it.

More importantly, the Austrians, who had been in the limelight since the beginning of the war, had basically suffered no losses. If there was any major mistake on their side, it would be difficult to explain to Berlin.

Therefore, Moltke had a sudden idea to let the Saxons act as human shields, and then the Prussian army, which had been checking for leaks, would go up to harvest the wheat. Moreover, the morale of the Saxon Third Army was already high at this time, especially after the Austrian army had made great progress, and they also wanted to compete with it.

Unfortunately, ideals are full and reality is skinny. Old Moltke's conspiracy was easily noticed by General Flaten of Bavaria, and he explained to his colleagues that this move was the Prussian's attempt to use the hands of the French to weaken these Germans. The power of the country.

After learning the truth, the morale of the Saxon army dropped to freezing point in an instant. They did not want to be cannon fodder for the Prussians, so they used the excuse that the soldiers were acclimatized and could not go to war.

Subsequently, the Prussian envoy was ordered to rush to the Bavarian Army's camp. General Fullerton of the opposing Fourth Army was a veteran, and of course he knew the intention of the visitor. However, he was cunning and did not refuse directly. Instead, he cried out and asked for more money, food and supplies. equipment.

Although the Prussian side felt a bit at a loss, it was still more cost-effective than serving as cannon fodder.

So Old Moltke formulated a jealous and dangerous encirclement and suppression plan. He planned to use the Bavarian Fourth Army to withstand the French attack in the front, and then let Hanover's Fifth Army lead a miscellaneous army to outflank the Saxon Army from the right. The three armies led a motley army to outflank the left wing.

In the end, the Prussian Second Army completed the final blow against the French army, using the strong strength of six corps to encircle the lone French corps.

This kind of tactical gamble involves a lot of components, but once executed successfully, the benefits are also huge.

In history, Moltke often formulated this kind of military adventure strategy, but if you analyze it afterwards, you can see how dangerous and full of loopholes his tactics were.

His tactics often require strong execution, but who would have thought that after the encirclement and suppression of the Bavarian army began, they would just stand still and let the French break through their own defenses.

The French army, which drove straight in, caught the Prussian army by surprise. The Hanoverian Fifth Army, which then came to the rescue, was scattered by the latter's rout.

Immediately afterwards, a great rout occurred, and the rest of the motley army of the German Confederacy was also involved in this rout. Faced with a devastating defeat, the Bavarian and Saxon armies naturally did not want to repeat the same mistakes.

As a result, the French army of less than 20,000 people gained a lot. They not only defeated the encirclement and suppression army of the German Confederacy, but also successfully surrounded the main forces of the two Prussian armies in the city of Namur.

Like a chain reaction after triggering a domino, even the Austrian officers and soldiers responsible for garrisoning the Liege Fortress were affected and had to send people to Vienna overnight for help.

(Liège Fortress east of Namur, which is the rear fortress of the German Confederation)

Wallonia, outside Namur

To be honest, Jean Durde was relatively cautious at first, but after the consecutive victories in the past few days, he became a little arrogant. He felt that he could compare with the soul of France like Napoleon, and maybe he would go one step further to become the Caesar who unified Europe. .

However, although the German Confederate army was vulnerable, the proud general encountered a new problem, which was logistical supply difficulties.

However, in his eyes, this was not a big problem at all, because Emperor Napoleon had already set an example with practical actions - defeating the enemy with food.

After thinking about it, Jean Dourde immediately ordered the soldiers to plunder the place. You must know that many soldiers at that time went to war not to get military pay, but to rob.

After all, the income obtained through the latter channel is far from comparable to the pitiful military salary, not to mention the opportunity to do some things that you usually dare not do.

The result was an outpouring of mourning throughout Wallonia. The soldiers of the German Confederate Volunteer Army who had passed through before regarded them as Luxembourgers or Austrian Netherlands.

In addition, Archduke Albrecht took the lead in using money to purchase supplies, so the military generals of other countries were embarrassed to speak out publicly and maintained relative restraint.

However, the arrogant French generals who had just won the victory did the opposite, without any restraint or scruples. They ravaged the area as victors and laid the groundwork for future defeat.

Of course, until this time, Jean Durde did not know how many people there were in the German Confederate Volunteer Army.