Wild North America 1846

Chapter 545 Dangerous Game

The news of the heavy siege of General Douai's headquarters reached the French staff headquarters at the front. Emperor Napoleon III and Marshal Lebouv, the French chief of staff, were all shocked. They underestimated the Prussian army.

The plan did foresee a partial counterattack by the Prussian army, but it never expected that the 10,000+ army with the Prussian Third Army as the main force would make a full-scale assault. In the face of absolute numbers and firepower, no experience in the French army's line infantry tactics It's empty talk.

Then they realized that General Douai's vanguard was in great danger.

Napoleon III deployed the French army in three lines:
The first line is the main force of the Rhine Army, with three armies under its jurisdiction. It is deployed between Thonville and Biche on the French-German border, and is personally commanded by the French Emperor Napoleon III.

The Seventh Army commanded by General Felix Douai, one of the three main forces of the Rhine Army, is now being besieged by more than 10 times the Prussian army and is in danger.

If the Seventh Army is completely annihilated, the first line of the Rhine Legion will be cut off. The loss is not small, and it may have a major impact on the follow-up war.

The French army deployed two corps on the second line, located in Strasbourg and Metz, under the command of Marshal McMahon, which is the closest field mobile force to the Seventh Army.

The third line consists of two reserve armies, deployed in Nancy and Chalons, almost 3 kilometers away from the front line of the border between Prussia and France, and it may not be possible to plug the loopholes for a while.

In the deployment of the French emperor Napoleon III with great talents;

The French army was originally a pre-emptive offensive deployment. It planned to concentrate its forces to quickly cross the border and rush to Frankfurt, cut off the connection between North and South Germany, force the states of South Germany to remain neutral, and then defeat Prussia with all their strength.

The plan was good, but the execution was completely out of shape.

The combat deployment of hundreds of thousands of troops is a huge project involving various aspects. It is far from being as simple as sitting in the Elysee Palace and drinking afternoon tea. A French emperor who came to power by playing tricks and family background has never commanded 100 people to fight in most of his life.

Napoleon III was so excited that he acted as the commander-in-chief of the French army to fight in person. It really sounds very inspirational and exciting, and it greatly boosted the morale of the French army, but it was really far from the big picture.

The French army did not do a good job in the first step. The plan concentrated its forces to quickly cross the border and rush towards Frankfurt...

According to the current procrastinated mobilization and deployment situation, it will not be completed in two months, so how can we talk about preemptive strikes?
France is far inferior to neighboring Prussia in terms of infrastructure construction. More than 10 provinces in the northeast and southeast have only two railways leading to the French-Prussian border. need.

Many of the mobilized troops could only march in on foot. The logistical supplies of the villages and towns along the way could not keep up. The organization was extremely chaotic, and everything was terrible.

Some French mobilized troops had to stop to help the villages and towns along the way to harvest mature wheat, so that they could have enough food to fill their stomachs and bring a little to the front line.

In these French villages and towns, there is no surplus food for the hastily mobilized French troops. The situation of all kinds of gatherings simply makes the French high command overwhelmed, let alone take the initiative to launch a battle.

Now, the main force of the Prussian Third Army is aggressively counterattacking, and the strategic intention to burn the flames of war to France is clearly revealed.

"Damn Prussians, how dare they be so arrogant?" Napoleon III realized the major mistakes and omissions in the military deployment, his face became distorted due to humiliation, and he waved his hands and shouted loudly.

The courtiers of the French court who are good at flattering and flattering looked at each other in blank dismay, and no one could take over this stubble.

Who knew those German savages who lived in the Black Forest would be so reckless?

After the shock, Marshal Lobouv, chief of staff, quickly calmed down. Looking at the expressions of panic on the eyes of the usually eloquent courtiers, he knew that these people were completely unreliable.

Then he took a step forward and said with an elegant salute;
"Your Majesty;

I think now is not the best time to discuss why the Prussians are so mad. The Seventh Army commanded by General Felix Douai is fighting tenaciously, blocking the Prussian army 10 times its size with fearless courage and sacrifice. Offensive, urgently needed reinforcements.

Imperative

It was the Xialong Corps led by Duke Patrice McMahon, who should be on the second line, urgently marched eastward to the front line of reinforcements, and must block the main force of the Prussian army on the front line of Walter, so as to give our army time to dispatch troops.

The military situation is extremely urgent. Your Majesty, please order the McMahon Corps to rush to the rescue immediately, and must arrive in the Walter area within 24 hours, which is not far from Wissembourg. "

"Okay... I'll give the order now." Napoleon III grabbed a life-saving straw in his panic, and nodded in response.But he immediately realized something, turned his head to look at the Chief of Staff Marshal Lebouv and asked; "My Lord Chief of Staff, the Seventh Army led by Douai is fighting the enemy in Wissembourg, why don't our reinforcements directly Rush to Wissembourg, but stay at Walter, more than 40 kilometers away?"

Facing this military idiot, the chief of staff, Marshal Lebuff, groaned inwardly, but with a humble smile on his face, Wen Yan explained;
"General Douai is an experienced general, and he knows that only the Duke McMahon, who is in the second line, can provide reinforcements, but it will take at least 48 hours.

With the weak strength of the Seventh Army, it is impossible to persist for such a long time anyway.

So he planned to resist desperately for 12 hours, then take advantage of the night to escape from the enemy's heavy siege, retreat to favorable terrain and continue to block, preserve the vitality of the Seventh Army, and buy time for the reinforcements.

The most likely one is on the front line of Walter, where the geographical conditions of the rivers and rivers make it difficult for the large corps of the Prussian army to fully deploy.

As long as the second-line reinforcements are assembled, the remnants of the Seventh Army and the more than 4 members of the First Army that Marshal McMahon arrived at Xingye should be able to stabilize the rout and prevent complete corruption.

The subsequent arrival of the Fifth Army and the Second Division of the French Cuirassiers ensured that we could withstand the onslaught of the main force of the Third Corps of the Prussian Army and stabilize the front line. "

"My God, what are you waiting for? Order Marshal McMahon to urgently reinforce the front line." Napoleon III immediately issued an order.

When the two armies of France and Prussia came into contact at first contact, they were divided.

The so-called; one general is incompetent, and the three armies are exhausted is not a lie.

The French army has accumulated rich combat experience in the colonial wars of conquering the world, and has a large number of high-quality professional soldiers. As long as the strategic deployment is properly applied, it is no problem to resist the ferocious attacks of the Prussian army.

Unfortunately, they encountered a mediocre commander.

Even if you think about it with your toes, you will know how dangerous it is for an emperor who is very successful and has no military knowledge to command hundreds of thousands of troops?

(End of this chapter)