Chapter 1282: Ordinary Military Intelligence
Archduke Charles was about to turn his horse back to headquarters when his eyes caught the grave expressions of the generals beside him. He stopped his movement, straightened his back, and declared, "This will be the Frenchmen's final offensive as well.
"When they find themselves helpless in the Ore Mountains, they will return to the negotiating table to sign. At that point, we might even secure better truce conditions."
...
Fifty kilometers west of Passau, in Felsberg Castle, lay the French army camp.
At this moment, King Karl Theodor of Bavaria had only one thought: his decision to ally with France was absolutely the best he had ever made in his life.
This French Crown Prince before him was the Sun King reborn. No, he had even surpassed that legendary French monarch!
Theodor had originally expected North Germany to descend into a period of chaos due to the war, and he had even prepared to adjust trade routes accordingly.
However, he never imagined that the French Crown Prince would swiftly restore order there with his superb diplomatic skills. Now, France had unequivocally replaced Prussia, becoming the most influential great power recognized by all the North German states.
And the most anti-French states before, Hesse-Kassel and Cologne, had now vanished into the dust of history...
The two bishoprics of Paderborn and Osnabrück refused to recognize the "rebels' government," declaring their secession from Cologne and merging into a new "Bishopric of Westphalia." The Roman Curia had not objected to this outcome.
In other words, Cologne, the second-largest state in North Germany by area, had been completely fragmented, and the House of Habsburg had lost control over it—
Count Lippe had handed Archbishop Maximilian over to the Cologne council, and his fate remained unknown.
Berthier's voice interrupted Theodor's thoughts. "Your Highness, Lieutenant Colonel Gazan sent word this morning that they occupied Freiburg yesterday. He and General Blücher are now heading towards Constance."
Joseph nodded, praising Gazan a few times, clearly not surprised.
The previous defense of Karlsruhe had been extremely difficult, and he had wondered where the Coalition Forces had found so many troops. It wasn't until last week that he finally received intelligence: Archduke Charles had deployed all the Freiburg garrison to attack Baden.
Thus, the empty Freiburg became an easy prize.
Moreover, after occupying this westernmost Austrian fortress, Austrian provinces north of the Alps, from Constance all the way to Innsbruck, had no natural defenses. With the nearly 30,000 Prussian troops under Gazan's command, they should be able to sweep through with ease.
By then, Austria would become a nation entirely east of the Alps, further losing its influence over the German states.
Thinking this, Joseph narrowed his eyes. 'If so, then once this war concludes, I can begin to restore a certain hollow empire to its proper form.'
As Berthier was speaking, a staff officer caught up from behind, handing him a document. "General, this just arrived from Strasbourg."
He opened it with a puzzled expression, glanced through it, and immediately handed it to Joseph. "My apologies, Your Highness, this is from Monsieur Trésaguet. I've told Farlot many times that non-military documents should be given to Count Eman..."
Joseph waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. The Ministry of Transport's affairs often have some connection to the General Staff Headquarters."
He unfolded the report and read it, then smiled. "You see, I was right. Monsieur Trésaguet reports that the railway bridge from Strasbourg to Kehl has officially begun construction. According to the design requirements, this bridge will be capable of supporting trains."
Kehl was a small town in western Baden, where an existing timber and stone bridge handled most of the transport between France and South Germany.
However, once the Strasbourg railway was completed, this bridge became a severe bottleneck. Mountains of supplies piled up on the west side of the bridge every day, even necessitating the use of numerous ferries to transfer goods to the east bank.
But once the world's first railway bridge appeared over the Rhine River, the connection between France and South Germany would become even tighter.
Indeed, after this war, Baden had directly experienced the incredible transport capacity of railways and decided to sign an agreement with the French Ministry of Transport. Both sides would jointly fund the construction of a railway from Kehl to Karlsruhe, and then on to Bad Wimpfen.
Once completed, this railway would be operated by the French Ministry of Transport for 12 years, with profits distributed according to investment shares.
This was also Joseph's pilot program in countries bordering France. If fundraising and operations proved successful, it could be extended across North Germany and Italy.
As long as France could secure operating rights for railways, it would gain economic and trade influence along those lines. The economic and political benefits for France would be immeasurable!
Wasn't this a thousand times better than sending troops to occupy territories, constantly battling local insurgents, and then having to shoulder huge military expenses?
Of course, given the current technological conditions, building a railway bridge was quite challenging. And due to the astonishing quantity of steel required, the construction cost was as high as 3.8 million francs.
After the Crown Prince put away the Ministry of Transport's report, Berthier continued his military briefing. "Your Highness, also received this morning, General Soult captured the Ore Mountains fortress two days ago. His corps is currently advancing towards Vienna as planned, accompanied by nearly 40,000 Polish troops."
He glanced at Theodor and Karl Eugen beside him, then added, "If nothing unexpected has occurred, they should have already occupied Prague by now."
According to previous intelligence, the Prague garrison numbered only three to four thousand men, completely incapable of withstanding an attack by over a hundred thousand French and Polish allied forces.
Theodor's eyes widened in astonishment.
'What did I just hear? The French army has invaded northern Austria!'
From Prague to Vienna was less than 250 kilometers. Although the "Moravian Corridor" could be used for defense along the way, Austria's main forces were currently in Passau, directly opposite him. There simply weren't enough defensive troops within the country.
'Could it be that this war is about to end?!'
His expression of shock deepened a few moments later, as he realized that the French Chief of Staff had only mentioned such a crucial event as the breach of the Ore Mountains after a whole slew of other reports.
It seemed this was merely ordinary military intelligence.
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