Novel Full Chapter 1324: 1229: The Swiss Gambit
Chapter 1324: Chapter 1229: The Swiss Gambit
Northeast Switzerland.
Glarus.
Blucher cursed under his breath for nearly half an hour, finally seeming to tire himself out as he grabbed the wine bottle on the wooden table and took a big swig of wine.
It was bland, almost tasteless.
He glared at the attendant beside him, ready to start scolding again, but suddenly slumped back into his seat: “Is there no wine left? How much food do we have remaining?”
The corps staff quickly replied, “At two-thirds supply, there’s enough for 4 days, General.”
Blucher waved his hand: “Distribute it to the soldiers at normal rations, please. Send someone to contact Massena, we might consider surre…”
He was halfway through the sentence when two Hussar officers rode in swiftly, excitedly shouting, “General, we discovered a Swiss convoy, estimated to be transporting at least twenty thousand bushels of wheat, currently on the north side of the Mouten River Valley.”
Blucher shot to his feet: “How many troops are guarding it?”
“There are only a little over a thousand soldiers around it, General.”
“So few?” Blucher frowned, “It should be a trap by the French.”
He had set up layer upon layer of defense around the mountainous areas of Glarus, and the French Army hadn’t dared to launch a strong attack all this time. Now, they might just be trying to lure him out.
The Cavalry Captain commented, “General, the location is a quarter-mile from the enemy’s defense line; we believe it might be because the enemy is transporting too slowly and they don’t want the Swiss to enter the camp.”
Blucher hesitated for only a few seconds, then turned and waved to the courier, “Have Major Kleist intercept the convoy, the Taunqian Corps will provide cover.”
“Yes, General!”
Between the Mouten River Valley and Glarus is a small slope; suddenly rushing down from there, there might be a chance to seize part of the transport vehicles before the French Army reacts.
Anyway, if this drags on, surrender would be inevitable, so they might as well gamble on a trial.
What Blucher didn’t expect was that after Klast made a dash, the French Army mistakenly thought their main force was breaking out, so they all held the line and didn’t move.
His Hussars seized back most of the wheat, only over a hundred people were killed by the French artillery.
This food was enough for his army to hold out for another half month!
That afternoon, Blucher uncharacteristically offered a sincere prayer.
Meanwhile, in the French Camp, Massena listened to the staff officer’s report, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
The artillery earlier managed to hit eight or nine times consecutively, almost scaring the Prussian Cavalry away.
At the map on the side, Sailu Li’er, Dawu, and others were still discussing the subsequent operations, “I think we should leave Zurich to the enemy, which would make them think we don’t have more troops to spare.”
“That’s too obvious; it will alert the Allies instead.”
“No, you have to understand, they are all arrogant folks…”
Massena walked over, interjecting, “The Allies must also be eyeing Zurich. And Alo as well.”
To increase the “bait,” over eight thousand men of Gorchakov’s Corps were still besieged in Alo.
Massena looked at the map, “From where will the enemy’s army enter Switzerland?”
Dawu immediately replied, “The main army can only march through Basel and St. Gallen, General.”
Massena nodded, “The enemy surely believes the battlefield will be near Zurich and Alo, but we will attack as soon as they enter Switzerland.”
“General, but this means guarding two places, and we don’t have that many troops.”
Massena smiled, “But we have a much faster marching speed than the enemy.
“The additional troops that the General Staff will send us at the end of this month will give us an extra fifteen thousand men.
“We’ll leave twenty thousand soldiers in Glarus to keep an eye on Blucher. Then deploy thirty thousand in Basel, twenty thousand in St. Gallen.
“No matter which side the Allies enter Switzerland from, they will face our surprise attack. Meanwhile, the corps on the other side will immediately rush to support.
“From Basel to St. Gallen, a forced march takes just over three days. By that time, the Allies will surely not have recovered from the chaos of the assault.”
After defeating Suvorov’s Corps last time, Massena discovered that by fixing the Sharp Signal Car to the mountaintop, rapid communications across the battlefield could be achieved.
And Switzerland is full of mountains.
From Basel to the St. Gallen Pass is just over 110 kilometers, setting up over twenty signal cars along the way completes the information relay.
Dawu hesitated a little, “General, isn’t that too risky?”
Massena nodded, “Indeed, very risky, but it could also be the most effective strike against the enemy. Moreover, even if the plan fails, we can withdraw the troops back near Alo and reorganize the defensive line.”
…
Verona.
A black carriage drove towards the command center of the Allied Italian Front Army, where a team of soldiers signaled for it to slow down.
Inside the carriage, the Marquess of Wellesley rifled through the thick stack of battle reports before him, his brows furrowed so tightly they could pinch a fly.
He had to admit, the Allied Forces’ initial strategy was excellent, but they were progressively dragged into a passive position by the French through various bizarre tactics.
The carriage came to a stop, and he stepped off with those reports in hand, quickly walking into the estate where the command center was located.
An Austrian Officer led him to the eastern war room, just as raised voices of disagreement were coming from inside, “Relying on the Picton Corps alone is not enough to break through the French line, the Kosakov Corps is a must!”
“The Russians have already refused to march into Switzerland, any troop increase can only come from Italy…”
“Then postpone the full offensive on Mantua! I even think we should redeploy eighty thousand troops from Verona to ensure victory…”
Wellesley shook his head, striding through the door pushed open by the attendant.
Sitting across from him, Archduke Karl was the first to see him, rising to nod in greeting, “We have been waiting for you, My Lord Marquis.”
The British man bowed in return, “I only managed to leave Porto last month, Your Highness.”
He reached his seat, glanced at the sand table on the conference desk, and immediately dove into the heart of the topic: “I seemed to have overheard you talking about reinforcing Switzerland?”
“Indeed.” Archduke Karl nodded, “Do you have any suggestions?”
Wellesley sighed, “This is exactly what the French want us to do.”
“…”
Wellesley pointed to the spot marked Switzerland on the sand table, “The plains here are narrow, surrounded by mountains and rivers, making them unsuitable for large armies to maneuver. Instead, it’s very suitable for ambushes.
“Even if we deploy troops several times the size of the French Army to help General Blucher successfully break out, the losses we would sustain will be very grave.”
The British Commander, the Duke of York, looked at him and asked, “Then, what do you think we should do?”
Wellesley waved the battle reports in his hand, counter-questioning instead of answering directly, “Do you all remember our initial operational goal?”