Chapter 959: Archduke Charles's Raid
Mustafa reflected, 'The Topiris New Army's training is indeed far superior to the "Left-Handed" Army, and the Janissary Corps can't even compare.'
As an Agha of the Janissaries, a high-ranking officer, he was highly wary of the Topiris – their growth would inevitably diminish the Janissaries' standing – but these new troops were undeniably effective in battle.
He couldn't help but turn south, regretting not having paid out of his own pocket to keep Captain Raymond and his men a few days earlier – the fifth and sixth battalions of the new army hadn't completed their training, and their combat effectiveness was clearly far lower.
Raymond and his colleagues were instructors sent by the Tunisian Royal Army Officer Academy to train the Topiris New Army for Salem III. They used the two-plus months of marching to intensively train two battalions of soldiers.
Of course, in such a short time, one couldn't expect the training to be highly effective.
According to the General Staff Headquarters' orders, Raymond and his group returned to Tunisia after the Ottoman forces entered Tarnovo.
Indeed, Joseph's established strategy was not to intervene in the war between the Ottomans and Austria.
So, even if Mustafa offered countless gold coins, it would be impossible to retain the French instructors.
Just as Mustafa and several of his Çorbas—or corps commanders—were discussing where to engage the Austrian army in a decisive battle after reaching Bucharest, several Sekban Cavalry riders, led by an attendant, rushed in and saluted him, declaring, "Pasha, the Bulgarian legion has spotted enemy forces appearing on the western flank."
"Yes, esteemed Pasha!"
However, scarcely twenty minutes after that cavalryman departed, two more Bulgarian officers galloped up.
Mustafa frowned, about to say, 'Don't keep reporting such minor matters,' when he heard the newcomers shout in a panic, "Pasha, we've been attacked!"
Mustafa was startled and quickly inquired, learning that five to six thousand Austrian troops had attacked the outer Bulgarian legion, routing over ten thousand Bulgarians in less than half an hour.
Though shocked as to why the Austrians had suddenly appeared in Tarnovo, he quickly regained his composure. After all, these Bulgarians were stationed on the periphery precisely to serve as a 'warning flock.'
It was just that their rout had been a bit too swift...
Mustafa immediately ordered the entire army to halt its advance, moved fifteen thousand Janissary Corps troops to reinforce the left flank, and simultaneously dispatched a large number of Sekban Cavalry for reconnaissance.
Around two in the afternoon, the Janissary Çorbas on the western flank sent word that they had repelled the Austrians.
Mustafa was overjoyed, immediately dispatching the sixth battalion of the Topiris New Army to pursue the enemy.
To prevent chaos in their formation, he also ordered the central army to shift westward simultaneously.
Just as his main central force had advanced less than five kilometers, a dense roar of cannon fire suddenly erupted from the north.
The cannon fire was exceptionally accurate; after three or four volleys, hundreds of Ottoman soldiers were torn apart by the shells.
Clearly, the cannons had been positioned in advance, their trajectories meticulously calculated.
The two Janissary legions closest to the cannons were still in marching formation; caught off guard by the sudden attack, they instantly scattered and surged towards Mustafa.
Mustafa unhesitatingly ordered his men to open fire on the routing soldiers, but directly behind these Ottoman troops, two Austrian infantry lines followed closely.
The routing soldiers in front blocked most of the gunfire, while the Ottoman cannons, slow to redeploy, were still one kilometer to the east.
Mustafa watched helplessly as the Austrians rapidly closed in on his main forces, then fired a volley, the Janissary army collapsed, the Austrian army pressed forward, and the Ottoman army continued to disintegrate...
These Austrian soldiers, who Napoleon had previously routed like sheep, now, facing the Ottoman army, seemed to rediscover their wolfish nature, relentlessly reaping Ottoman lives with their flintlock muskets.
Mustafa regretted bitterly that if he hadn't dispatched the Topiris New Army earlier, they might have been able to hold off the Austrian offensive, buying him time to organize defenses.
He grit his teeth and snapped at an officer beside him, "Order Khalil to attack the enemy's left flank. Tell him to hold the enemy, even if it costs him his life!"
Khalil commanded the "Left-Handed" Army, a force of 1,300 men, all directly transferred from Topkapi Palace to Wallachia.
These soldiers all had connections within the court; Mustafa would have been extremely reluctant to deploy them unless absolutely necessary.
Twenty minutes later, a group of tall Ottoman soldiers, clad in blue robes and wearing golden conical hats, charged towards the Austrian left flank with a roar.
It was the Sultan's "Left-Handed" personal guard.
The soldiers in the first rank held oval shields and scimitars, while the two ranks behind them wielded flintlock muskets. Under their officers' command, they would halt every ten paces to fire a volley before advancing again.
However, those shields served merely as psychological comfort; within seventy paces, a flintlock musket could easily pierce them.
From the rear of the Austrian army, Archduke Charles observed the "pointed-hat" Ottoman troops, charging like a suicide squad through his telescope, and couldn't help but sneer and shake his head.
He couldn't be bothered to instruct his officers on how to deal with such a medieval-style charge.
He checked his pocket watch, then turned to his aide. "Müller, tell Colonel Hahnmaier to launch the attack.
"Oh, the Ödenburg Grenadier Battalion can be withdrawn to support the cavalry. The enemy's frontal defenses are too weak; they won't be needed there at all."
"Yes, Marshal!"
Immediately, fifteen Austrian Hussar squadrons, who had been waiting behind the western hills, filed out and cut into the Ottoman army's weakest point on its western flank—the troops here had previously been redeployed by Mustafa to reinforce the routed Bulgarians.
Yes, the attack from the west was merely a feint by Karl Ludwig to draw the enemy's attention. His cavalry had already arrived here yesterday afternoon, just waiting for this very moment.
Two of the four legions on the left flank of the Ottoman central army were still using bows and arrows—had Joseph not provided them with twenty-five thousand flintlock muskets, most would have been equipped with spears and bows.
Under the charge of the Austrian cavalry, a legion armed with bows and spears was the first to rout, creating a massive breach in the defensive line.
Hahnmaier commanded his cavalry to wheel around, reform their ranks, and was just about to charge into the breach when he suddenly saw his soldiers all looking behind them.
He frowned and turned, only to see a unit in white uniforms appearing on the nearby grassland, rapidly approaching him in a standard infantry line.
Comments