Chapter 752: Miraculous Arrival
Count Saigul then gravely declared, "Austria shall bear full responsibility for any consequences arising in Wallonia."
Amidst a flurry of discussions among the Hessian nobles, Count Saigul concluded his speech, left Marburg, and hastened to Würzburg.
On the very day of his departure, newspapers in Upper Hesse widely published news reports titled "Vienna Tears Up Demilitarized Zone Agreement, Walloon Chamber of Commerce Requests French Intervention."
Before arriving in Upper Hesse, Count Saigul had traveled tirelessly, day and night, across most of the German states, delivering no fewer than 20 speeches, informing all nations that Austria had gratuitously provoked the war, and that France would resist to the very end.
The day after the French government publicly announced its acceptance of Wallonia's request and its intention to send troops to Wallonia, Austria officially declared war on France.
On the same day, Britain declared war on France, citing "France's malicious disruption of the sugar market."
Subsequently, Prussia, Hanover, the Netherlands, and other nations also openly declared war on France.
Among these, Prussia and the Netherlands had alliance treaties with Britain and were obligated to send troops to assist Britain.
Meanwhile, Thuringia, Lower Hesse, and Tuscany participated in the war against France at the insistence of Prussia and Austria.
France immediately retaliated by declaring war on all member states of the Anti-French Coalition.
The entirety of Europe was instantly engulfed in the flames of total war.
...
Wavre.
The sound of cannons from the north of the city had been incessant since dawn. Only three days had passed since the Walloon Chamber of Commerce requested French military intervention, but the Walloon Police force was clearly on the verge of collapse.
The north of the city was now entirely occupied by Austrians. The police, relying on the iron ore warehouses in the city center, were barely managing to resist.
In fact, if Count Radetzky hadn't been concerned about damaging Wavre's factories, which made him somewhat hesitant, he would likely have taken control of the entire city by now.
Walloon Chief of Police Gaillard listened to his subordinates report on the casualties, unable to help but frown deeply.
After three days of fighting, the police had suffered nearly 500 casualties. For a non-military organization, maintaining cohesion without collapsing under such a casualty rate was already exceedingly rare.
What was even more critical, this morning, a detachment of Austrian Hussars raided the police's artillery positions, destroying all their cannons.
Consequently, the Austrian artillery could now advance and fire with impunity, the police's defensive line was constantly retreating, and casualties had sharply increased.
Gaillard knew that the Walloon Police had reached their limit.
After a discussion with several high-ranking Police Bureau officials, he said to his deputy:
“Order everyone to abandon Wavre. The men from Fours Police Department will cover the retreat; everyone else is to immediately withdraw towards Namur.”
“Yes, sir!”
Gaillard then raised his head, gazing at the city he had fought for days to defend, sighed, and said:
“Hopefully, the French army can reach Namur in time.”
Around three in the afternoon, a large contingent of police officers withdrew from the southern side of Wavre, amidst the thunderous cannon fire behind them, retreating dejectedly towards Namur.
However, they had barely marched two kilometers when the faint sound of hooves drifted from ahead.
The police, lacking combat experience and with their morale low at this moment, completely neglected reconnaissance.
It wasn't until Gaillard could see through his Telescope the banners of the Austrian Delna Cavalry Battalion appearing to the south that he realized they were being intercepted by the enemy.
A moment later, another Mounted Police officer galloped up to report that Austrian infantry had also been spotted on both the east and west flanks.
Since they had only just gone to reconnoiter, the enemy was now less than 600 meters away.
Gaillard's heart tightened. Just as he was about to order preparations for defense, he saw the utterly exhausted expressions on his men's faces.
He shook his head and said to his deputy, “That's enough. The lads have done their best.
“Hoist the white flag. They shouldn't have to suffer any more sacrifices...”
Just then, the previously orderly hoofbeats of the Austrian cavalry suddenly became disorganized, then gradually faded, as if something had caused them to halt.
Immediately, a Mounted Police officer galloped up and reported to Gaillard:
“Sir, the Austrian infantry on the west flank are gathering to the west.”
Gaillard was momentarily stunned. He was retreating south, yet the enemy infantry were moving west. 'Aren't they clearing the path for him?'
He quickly instructed the Mounted Police officer, “Continue reconnaissance, quickly! Go further and see what's happening.”
“Yes, sir!”
Before the reconnaissance officer returned, Gaillard heard the hoofbeats to the south reappear.
Standing on horseback, he looked through his Telescope and was astonished to find that those hundreds of Hussars had actually turned west.
'His path to Namur was completely clear!'
Although he didn't understand what had happened, this was undoubtedly a golden opportunity to escape the Austrian interception.
Just then, Gaillard suddenly felt that the distant hoofbeats were much louder than before.
'Had the Austrians sent reinforcements?'
As he was consumed by anxiety, the Mounted Police officer from earlier galloped back, whipping his horse, shouting loudly from afar:
“Frenchmen! It's French cavalry! They're attacking the Austrian army!”
Gaillard's eyes widened instantly.
'How could this be possible?!'
Even if the French army had been waiting at the Wallonia border beforehand and rushed immediately after receiving the Chamber of Commerce's request, it would still take at least a week to arrive.
Yet only three days had passed. 'Why were they here?'
'It must be a small number of cavalry sent to reinforce them.'
A wave of excitement surged through Gaillard. He quickly shouted to the police officers:
“Everyone, brace yourselves and coordinate with the French cavalry!”
Although his command skills were rather ordinary, he hadn't neglected his 'Command Studies' courses.
He knew very well that cavalry, without infantry support, could easily be routed by the enemy's combined infantry and cavalry tactics.
And at this moment, there were over ten thousand Austrian troops near Wavre, with a full complement of infantry, cavalry, and artillery. He and the French cavalry would have to provide mutual cover to retreat to a safe location.
However, before the police could even begin to move, faint gunshots and cries of agony drifted from the west.
Gaillard's face drained of color. 'Could the French cavalry have already been routed?'
He loudly urged the police to form ranks, but the next moment, he saw more than a dozen cavalrymen chaotically ride past from not far away, their direction seemingly towards Wavre city.
He quickly raised his Telescope and immediately saw that the cavalrymen were covered in blood, in an Extremely Wretched state, and their gray-green uniforms unmistakably belonged to Austrians!
Soon, the rhythmic beat of military drums echoed from the west, and more and more Austrian soldiers fled in disarray. Some even blindly stumbled into the police ranks and were immediately taken captive by the officers.
Another ten minutes passed before a dense mass of white uniforms appeared in Gaillard's field of vision.
On the banners of those infantrymen were depicted a golden fleur-de-lis and a dolphin.
'It was the French Royal Infantry!'
The French soldiers, arrayed in extremely long lines, swept through the area south of Wavre city. Gaillard estimated there were at least four to five thousand of them.
On both their flanks, large detachments of French cavalry, wearing bearskin caps, galloped past, sweeping forward and driving the nearby Austrian infantry lines before them.
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