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Chapter 1463 Surprise Attack on London City

The city of Nottingham was in chaos, and the banners of the king's army were varied. The nobles and militia recruited from various counties were planning to make a strategic transfer to the southwest, where the royal power was stronger.

"The Earl of Essex, the commander-in-chief of the parliamentary army, led the army to march northward from the city of London. Now the parliamentary army has arrived in Northampton, which is only about 50 miles away from us. According to the information obtained by our spies, their number has increased from 10000. There are nearly 20000 people..." Astley, the head of the Royal Guards, gestured on a parchment map where the parliamentary army was located and where the king's army was located.

Because the area of ​​Britain is not large, both sides were accumulating strength before, so the war was long overdue. When the military operations actually started, the military operations of both sides were very fast. It only took a few days for 2 parliamentary troops to arrive. Northampton marched in a row, demanding that the king "change his mind" and accept the treaty of Parliament.

"Why are so many people willing to support Pym, Hampton and the others... They suddenly have 20000 people, while we only have 6000 people?" Charles I did the calculation verbally, and felt that something was wrong.

The speed of mobilization of the parliamentary army for war is too fast!
The royalist nobles and officers couldn't help thinking in their hearts, isn't it because the king beat a good hand of cards that the parliamentary army swelled so quickly?
"If we march to Shrewsbury in the west and recruit soldiers locally and in Wales, our number of soldiers may be similar to that of the parliamentary army, and we will have a chance of winning. The people in the western counties support your rule, the king." Aspen Terry pointed to the western region and said.

"Temporarily retreat to the west." Charles I was also afraid of being defeated by the parliamentary army and captured by the parliament.

Although the combat effectiveness of the Royal Guards was stronger than that of the militia of the parliamentary army, Charles I was really uncertain about using the 6000-strong king's army to deal with the 20000-strong parliamentary army.

The next day, knowing that he was weak, Charles I led his soldiers to leave Nottingham, and arrived in Shrewsbury 7 days later to set up camp.

The Earl of Essex, the commander-in-chief of the parliamentary army, left Northampton after hearing the news, and also led his army westward. He followed Charles I's actions, but he was unwilling to break out a decisive battle. He wanted to make Charles I take the initiative to seek peace through deterrence. .

That is to say, the parliamentary army led by the Earl of Essex always kept a certain distance from Charles I, and constantly sent envoys to ask the king to accept the "Great Protest" from the parliament.

Sun Chuanting followed King Charles to Shrewsbury, where the king continued to recruit soldiers in some Midwestern counties and Wales.Half a month after Charles I arrived in Shrewsbury, the situation began to change.

King Charles and his ministers were not wrong in their judgment. The king was supported by many counties in the Midwest. With the support of the king, feudal landlords, Catholic nobles and their entourage cavalry came to seek refuge.The number of kings quickly climbed from 6000 to 15000, and the number is still rising.

After these people arrived, they were compiled into the king's division, according to the status of the nobility and the appointed position of King Charles.

"The commander-in-chief of the parliamentary army was indecisive and delayed the best time to fight. If they chose an elite force to pursue us when we retreated from Nottingham, our army would have no chance to grow." Sun Chuanting inspected the king's When he was in the army, he told Astley, the head of the Royal Guards.

Astley is also the king's chief military officer and the teacher of Prince Rupert.

"Mr. Sun, do you know what our Master Wang's greatest strength is?" Astley said.

Sun Chuanting frowned, what is the biggest advantage of the king's army?
"Could it be the identity of the king?"

"That's right, a king is still a king even if he has failed a hundred times. Britain cannot live without a king. Even if the king is defeated, as long as he raises his arms and shouts, there will be batch after batch of nobles and knights supporting him, and he can continue to declare that the other party is a rebel. , calling on the kings everywhere again and again. That is to say, the king can fail countless times, but the parliament can only fail once. The Earl of Essex who is stationed not far away must understand this truth. So even if he has the advantage in strength, But he can’t beat the king badly, otherwise he won’t be able to escape after the king settles the score. The only solution is to force the king to recognize the "Great Protest" in person, so as to consolidate their victory in terms of the spirit of the contract." Asi Turley explained.

Sun Chuanting did not expect that the British people were so entangled in the existence of the king. If it were placed in the Central Plains, once war was declared against the emperor, it would be life and death. How could it be possible to defeat the emperor and let him be the emperor for generations?
The parliament's entanglement with the king is simply giving Charles I a chance to turn the tables. The parliamentary army is completely tied up. They can defeat the king, but they cannot completely defeat the king.

This is no longer a military matter, but determined by ideology and traditional culture.

"I just look at this war from the perspective of a marching formation...Since the parliamentary army is tied up and the king's troops are increasing, can we organize the main force to leave Shrewsbury in secret and return to London?" Launch a raid with the city as the target, and capture the parliament in one fell swoop?" Sun Chuanting proposed a bold idea.

"I have the same idea as you. Our military strength has exceeded 15000. Excluding the old, weak, sick and disabled, we can organize 11000 infantry and nearly 3000 cavalry, a total of 14000 people, to quickly march towards the city of London. If from Starting from here, together with the siege of the city and the settlement of the pursuers along the way, it only takes one month to conquer the city of London." Astley said.

"Heroes see the same thing, so let's go to visit the king." Sun Chuanting also wanted Charles I to win the war as soon as possible and restore order.

Sun Chuanting and Astley formulated a one-month plan to put down the rebellion.The content of the plan is very simple. The main force secretly leaves Shrewsbury and stays behind thousands of old, weak, sick and disabled to deceive the parliamentary army.When the parliamentary army reacted and chased them, they were already approaching the city of London, putting tremendous pressure on the parliamentary army, and then defeated the parliamentary army that had rushed back to help in the field battle, and then calmly encircled the city of London, threatening the parliament to surrender.

After hearing the suggestions of the two, Charles I's eyes lit up, and he made a decisive decision to carry out the plan to surprise the city of London!

While Essex, the commander-in-chief of the parliamentary army, was waiting passively, the main force of the already-strengthened king's army secretly left Shrewsbury, and quickly headed to the city under the leadership of King Charles, Prince Rupert, Astley, and Sun Chuanting City of London marches.

(End of this chapter)