I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 359: The Collapse of Karl II

"Please tell Mr. Onck that France still firmly supports the establishment of the Southern Netherlands." Joseph smiled and gestured to Viscount Flott, "Just as he thought, our army is indeed pursuing the Dutch army.

"Oh, and thank you for the oats and valuable information."

"It is my honor to serve you and your army." Viscount Flot said some flattering words with a red face, then bowed and left the military tent. He did not doubt why the French army came to Ghent to pursue the Dutch army.

Yes, he had just brought a dozen carts of oats, which were extremely precious war horse feed, as well as news that the Hanoverian army had turned south near Brussels.

As a Southern Netherlander who was born in Zwefgem, spoke French since childhood and longed for French life all his life, he had always hoped that Wallonia would be incorporated into France, so that he could become a genuine Frenchman.

So when he learned that the French army was nearby - his serfs told him when they wanted to repay his debts with French paper money - he immediately came to "support the army" in person, bringing oats and wine.

Of course, Joseph did not pay for such a rich man. I believe Viscount Flott is not short of 10,000 or 20,000 livres.

With this batch of oats, the Guards Corps can reduce the time for on-site supply and speed up the march.

In fact, since arriving in the southern Netherlands, similar "supplies from heaven" have been coming in an endless stream, and there is even so much wine that it cannot be carried.

After the Southern Netherlands nobles left, Berthier immediately looked at the Crown Prince and said, "Your Highness, if the information this gentleman brought is correct, then we have to hope that Major Masson will take action."

He went to the map on the table and pointed to the south of Brussels: "There are traces of enemy troops from the town of Giarly to the town of Waterloo, which means that their marching column is at least 6 kilometers long."

The corps staff officer at the side immediately replied: "This may be a good opportunity for us to launch an attack!"

Joseph also looked at the map, but he was a little hesitant. The Hussars had not yet sent back the specific situation of the enemy, and he was some distance away from the Hanoverian army. If he rushed to the decisive battle immediately, there would still be a lot of uncertainty.

He suddenly pointed at Antorf on the map and said with a smile, "Let's go back again!"

……

In the east of Brussels, Major Masson grabbed a hussar who came to report the enemy situation, his eyes flashing with excitement: "Are you sure? The Dutch are still near Waterloo?"

"Yes, Commander, I saw the Dutch cannons and a large number of tents with my own eyes."

The hussar next to him added: "We also heard from the shoemakers in the town that they were still doing business in the Dutch camp yesterday afternoon. At that time, the Hanoverian army had already set out south."

"Great!" Ma Song gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist. There was at least half a day's journey between the Dutch and Hanoverian armies. This was a good opportunity to implement the "interspersed" tactics mentioned by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.

He waved his hand to the herald and said, "Order the whole army to march immediately to Waterloo!"

"Yes, Commander!"

Half a day later.

General Bronckhorst glanced at the listless marching column beside him and shook his head helplessly. Anyone who made three trips back and forth in less than a week would be bored.

He was about to give a speech to boost morale when he saw several hussars galloping towards him in a panic. They shouted from a distance: "Report! General, the enemy is spotted in the northeast, less than 3 kilometers away!" Bronckhorst frowned. He knew that there was a group of French troops hanging around them, and Marshal Karl II had sent cavalry to drive them away. However, the French were always far away from them, and it seemed that they were only responsible for reconnaissance, so they didn't pay much attention.

He said to the Hussar, "Is it the same French group as before?"

"It seems to be them." The Hussar nodded and added hurriedly, "But there are more people this time, probably thousands of them."

Bronckhorst suddenly felt as if he had eaten a fly. He could not ignore the thousands of enemy troops, but his marching speed was already a bit slow. After this, he was afraid that he would fall further behind Karl II.

He ordered his staff officer in a bad mood: "The entire army should stop advancing and line up to meet the enemy in the open area south of the town!"

"Yes, General!"

The French army was much faster than Bronckhorst had expected. In less than an hour, the French skirmishers began to attack the Dutch baggage train.

He immediately mobilized the infantry lines to squeeze the French army's space to the west, but the latter had no intention of fighting. Taking advantage of the chaos, they launched a counterattack against the Dutch vanguard. After killing sixty or seventy people, they fled to the southwest without looking back.

At first, Bronckhorst was worried that the French had an ambush, so he waited for several hours in full alert before he finally confirmed that the enemy had really left.

In a rage, he sent his cavalry to pursue them, but they encountered the infantry lines that the French had already prepared and had to retreat hastily.

Bronckhorst then ordered his men to count the losses, and was slightly relieved to learn that the casualties were less than a hundred, plus some food and tents were lost.

He looked at his pocket watch. After all this trouble, it was almost 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

He looked at the soldiers who had been standing in line all day, and had to order the entire army to return to Waterloo to rest and continue to Liege at noon tomorrow.

On the other side, Charles II, who was marching at a rapid speed, heard that the Dutch army was ambushed by the French, and he immediately had a bad feeling in his heart - although Bronckhorst reported that there were only one thousand French troops, who knew if that was just the vanguard.

He discussed with his staff for a long time and finally made a cautious decision to send an infantry regiment and three squadrons of cavalry to Waterloo to meet the Dutch.

As long as his main force can join up with Blücher, the manpower will be more than enough, and sending less than two thousand people will have basically no impact.

Less than half a day after the reinforcements sent by Charles II left, the Southern Dutch people in Brussels brought "bad news" again - the French army suddenly changed direction and returned to Antolf.

For a moment, Charles II wanted to rush to Liege regardless of everything, first annihilate the Austrian army in Rennes, and then turn back with Blücher to deal with the damn French.

But he knew that the French did not care about the life or death of the Austrian army, but he had to care about the survival of the Southern Netherlands Parliament.

After cursing for more than ten minutes, he ordered the Hanoverian army to turn north again and rush back to Antolf.

Less than two days after his troops had set out, the infantry regiment that had been sent to support the Dutch sent back news that it had been ambushed by the French army on the way and had lost hundreds of men.

(End of this chapter)