Chapter 777: The Easiest Battle
Beside the thickets, French soldiers leaned against their wagons, singing "Glory and Victory" accompanied by various portable instruments:
"...Loyalty unwavering, With victory, a tribute to His Majesty the King!
Through blood and fire, supreme glory we shall gain..."
Well, none of them were from the Royal Guard, but who didn't dream of joining the directly controlled legions? If they sang the Guards Corps' anthem a few more times, they'd start to feel like Guardsmen themselves.
Napoleon waved his hand, shooing away mosquitoes. Against the backdrop of the singing, he was writing a letter in elegant Roman script:
'My Dearest Desiree:
...Though I am about to face tens of thousands of Austrian bandits on the battlefield, at this moment, my heart holds only thoughts of you...
God is my witness, whether marching or holding war councils, your beautiful, jewel-like eyes and your gentle, radiant smile always appear in my mind...
My love for you is so deep and ardent; it is like a wild horse galloping, carrying my soul to your side...
Indeed, Emperor Napoleon, on his way to Toulon this time, had met his brother's fiancée's sister, Miss Desiree Eugenie.
The two had quickly fallen deeply in love.
Desiree's father was a wealthy merchant, and her family was well-off, able to provide considerable assistance to Napoleon's career.
However, historically, just as the two were beginning to discuss marriage, Emperor Napoleon met his fated entanglement—Josephine.
He then unhesitatingly cast aside Miss Desiree and embraced the noble widow.
In this relaxed atmosphere, the main force of the Italian Front waited beside the thickets for half a day. It wasn't until dawn the next day, when the rangers reported Dannenfeld's Austrian army appearing 9 kilometers to the south, that Napoleon's boredom finally ended.
Only the mosquitoes near Nice had enjoyed a festive night.
The Moulins Legion, an older unit that had undergone training at the Paris Police Academy and was among the first to fight alongside His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, had always taken the former Guards Corps as its model.
Their formations were significantly neater than other older armies, surpassing even the Corsican Legion personally trained by Napoleon. Moreover, they were the only older army equipped with Percussion Cap Muskets, giving them formidable combat power.
Just an hour later, they appeared on the north side of Dannenfeld's army after a forced march.
"Commander, the nearest enemy forces are 3 kilometers away. There are approximately 6,000 men, and there should be two to three more regiments further west."
Napoleon nodded at the ranger delivering the message, then recalled the nearby terrain. He had personally scouted the entire southeastern region of Toulon and drawn maps, making him intimately familiar with the area.
He quickly pointed southwest and instructed Marmont, "The hills 3 kilometers in that direction are the best firing position. You must immediately proceed there to set up an artillery battery. The 7th Battalion of the 2nd Corsican Infantry Regiment will provide your cover."
"Yes, Commander."
Napoleon then turned to Augereau. "You will command the 3rd Infantry Regiment and two cavalry companies. Avoid direct engagement with the enemy and quickly penetrate south to block any potential reinforcements arriving from Cagnes."
"Yes, Commander."
"Sérurier's army and La Harpe's army will be responsible for the frontal assault..."
"Captain Junot will lead the skirmisher battalion to attack the enemy's right flank. If the enemy shows any signs of retreating to Nice, you must hold them back for at least three hours..."
"Cavalry Companies 3, 4, and 6 will launch a surprise attack from the west once the enemy's formation wavers..."
"Menard's army will serve as the reserve..."
This was originally intended as a surprise attack, and Napoleon had orchestrated it with such meticulous precision that virtually any officer, simply by following the plan, could not lose.
Moreover, Joseph had assigned him historically distinguished talents.
For Dannenfeld, this was a nightmare.
By the time his cavalry spotted Sérurier's army approaching the Austrian forces, the two sides were already only 1.5 kilometers apart.
Dannenfeld was utterly bewildered. 'Where did these thousands of French soldiers come from?'
If he had known Napoleon thought he was moving too slowly and had even found time to write letters to his mother and girlfriend, he would likely have coughed up blood on the spot.
The Austrian army began to frantically organize their defenses but was quickly subjected to French artillery fire.
Marmont's artillery command skills were second only to Napoleon's in all of France. Four 12-Pounder Cannons and seven 6-Pounder Cannons unleashed extremely fierce firepower under his direction.
Furthermore, the artillery battery's position had been "certified" by Napoleon himself, covering over half of the Austrian left flank. The oblique angle of approach forced Austrian soldiers to constantly divert their attention to shells flying in from the left.
Before Sérurier even began his assault, Dannenfeld's defensive line was already being relentlessly pushed back by the bombardment.
'This battle is simply unwinnable.'
Immediately, over a dozen French infantry columns charged the Austrian army.
Over 4,000 soldiers rapidly deployed into a line formation facing the Austrian front. Immediately, flashes of fire erupted as the Percussion Cap Muskets began firing dense volleys.
Dannenfeld watched the rapidly collapsing battle, stomping his feet in frustration but utterly unable to respond effectively.
Soon after, French cavalry appeared on the Austrian left flank at a perfectly opportune moment...
Before noon, the battle was declared over.
Due to the French army's swift movements, Dannenfeld didn't even have time to retreat, and his main force of nearly 5,000 men was encircled.
Under the relentless torment of the cannons, Austrian soldiers began to kneel and surrender.
Even Dannenfeld himself was captured alive by French cavalry less than 3 kilometers after attempting to flee west.
Augereau had successfully found a gap between the Austrian center and left flank and penetrated to the enemy's south side. However, before he could complete his encirclement, his own cavalry stole his thunder, blocking the enemy's escape route to the south.
Augereau briefly analyzed the situation and decided to continue advancing southwest, hoping to find an opportunity near the town of Cagnes.
However, just as he reached a point 5 kilometers west of Nice, he encountered an Austrian force of over 3,000 men head-on.
Augereau spotted the Austrian flag through his Telescope and immediately identified it as the Provéra army from the Cagnes direction.
He hesitated, as he only had 1,800 soldiers, and it was an unexpected encounter. A single misstep could lead to his forces being overwhelmed.
But he quickly noticed that the Austrian formations were disordered, their flags askew, looking utterly disheveled.
Augereau immediately drew his saber, pointed towards the enemy, and declared loudly to his soldiers, "Victor's army is right behind the enemy! If we charge now, we can form a pincer attack!"
The French soldiers' morale instantly soared. They let out battle cries and charged forward with him.
In truth, Victor was still busy clearing out enemies around Cagnes and hadn't pursued them at all. But it didn't matter, because the Austrian army was almost instantly scattered by the fierce charge of Augereau's Corps.
Comments