He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 124

(124) Lan Pierces Rivoli

In the late 18th century, the battlefields of Europe often felt like a chaotic game of tag.

“Who on earth is coming from that direction!” someone exclaimed.

Europe, for the most part, had very little ’empty space,’ so to speak. Armies moving around were generally noticed.

Thus, when an army moved, everyone could generally figure out the rough outline of their movements.

This was especially true in limited battlefields like Northern Italy.

However, forests, undeveloped lands, and sparsely populated areas still existed, offering some cover.

Of course, there were no radio detection tools in those days.

Humans had to run around on foot and horseback to scout the enemy’s position.

Therefore, once a battle began, both sides often operated with incomplete information.

That’s why reserves were dispatched in unexpected directions, hoping to catch the enemy off guard.

A place where no one expected the French army to come.

On the Rivoli plateau battlefield, that was the southeast, towards the Adige River.

Gerhard von Rosselmini responded to the adjutant, Provera’s exclamation.

“It’s the commander’s order, General Provera.”

“Even if our army became a defeated rabble because of Count d’Argenteau, isn’t this too much? Weren’t we originally assigned to defend Lombardy?”

“Jurisdiction is not the issue now,” Rosselmini retorted bluntly, as he directed soldiers to cross the shallows of the Adige River.

“The issue is restoring our honor. If General Alvinczy wins this battle, we can restore our honor as well.”

Originally, Rosselmini and Provera were generals who had fought against Napoleon from the very beginning.

They were survivors of the Battle of Montenotte, commanded by Count d’Argenteau.

However, Alvinczy didn’t particularly respect Rosselmini and Provera’s survival skills.

He only judged their combat command abilities and made deployments accordingly.

The east bank of the Adige River was an area that didn’t require special abilities; from Austria’s perspective, simply holding it would be a successful operation.

Provera gnashed his teeth at this, then clicked his tongue while looking at the river.

“Honor or whatever, it’s so peaceful here.”

The river flowed serenely.

-Gurgle, gurgle!

At that moment, Rosselmini shook his head with a blank expression.

“Don’t be too complacent. The battle has already begun.”

“I can’t see anything here?”

“You’ll hear it.”

No sooner had he spoken than the sound of cannon fire echoed faintly.

-Kwaaaang.

The sound reverberated from the west bank of the Adige River, beyond the Rivoli plateau.

Napoleon’s main force couldn’t have arrived already.

If so, the Austrian army must have started shelling as a preliminary check.

Provera quickly listened to the cannon fire and nodded.

“Listening to that sound, it seems like Brabeck or Laudon.”

“It must be Laudon. If it were Brabeck, he wouldn’t be fighting so far that we could hear it.”

“Who knows? The enemy tends to make reckless breakthroughs. Of course, they wouldn’t do that in this highland terrain they don’t know.”

Provera was about to grit his teeth, recalling Montenotte.

-Bang!

The moment he heard the gunshot, Rosselmini, who had been expressionless until then, rushed out.

“Form a square!”

He immediately ordered his entire regiment of about 10,000 men to form a square – a defensive formation where soldiers arrange themselves in a square to repel attacks from all sides.

“Most likely, it’s the enemy! Form a square! Do we have artillery?”

“We brought about 10 cannons!”

“Deploy them immediately! Where is the gunfire coming from! Rear? Front? Flank?”

The adjutant officer hurriedly ran to the rear and returned to report.

“East bank of the Adige River! It’s the rear of our army!”

In fact, the Austrian army thought Napoleon would approach from the south of Rivoli, because it was much more accessible than crossing the east side of the Adige River.

The east side of the Adige River was highlands, and the south was plains.

However, Napoleon chose a difficult high-speed march over an easy plain approach.

Provera gritted his teeth and shouted.

“Right, those guys were coming from the southeast to Lake Garda. We should have predicted they could come via the Adige River route! You blockhead Alvinczy!”

“This is not the time to say that, General Provera! Take charge of the artillery!”

“Will there be any objection? This is no time to be stingy with our hands!”

Fortunately, Rosselmini’s unit also had artillery, as they had brought a fully equipped force.

“Warm up the cannons! Prepare to fire at the enemy infantry! Huh?”

Provera stopped as he ran to the artillery unit deployed behind the infantry to give orders.

The officer who had been directing the artillery with Provera looked up and widened his eyes.

The artillery officer, Alois Gavasini, trembled and asked.

“General, what is that?”

“What?”

“It looks like a lot of dust is rising.”

General Provera, who wanted to believe he was mistaken, gritted his teeth and shouted.

“Cavalry? Where did they come from!”

A cavalry was descending from behind Rosselmini’s army on the Rivoli plateau.

***

At that moment, Napoleon’s main force was advancing in columns, divided into three directions.

“It’s a shame that Augereau entered the Rivoli plateau first,” Napoleon muttered, slightly disappointed.

Ahead of Napoleon, Massena was leading the vanguard.

Of course, there were also troops that had advanced to the Rivoli plateau one step ahead of Massena.

It was the route that Alvinczy had originally predicted, the southern detour of Rivoli.

It was the path taken by Augereau’s division.

Massena clicked his tongue as if he was disappointed.

On the other hand, Adjutant General Serboni calmly looked at Rosselmini’s unit in front and replied.

“Still, the Austrian army is meeting us in a situation they didn’t expect at all.”

“A square, tsk. They can’t properly utilize their forces like that. They should move in columns like us and run away if necessary.”

“It would be much better to provide covering fire.”

Massena shook his head leisurely.

“It’s impossible with muskets. Maybe it’s difficult even with Ferguson rifles [early breech-loading rifles]? When you shoot while lying down, it seems like smoke leaks out.”

One of the weaknesses of breech-loading rifles.

Muzzle-loading rifles, muskets, basically require you to stand or sit to reload.

As a result, it is almost impossible to take cover before reloading.

On the other hand, breech-loading rifles allow prone firing, but have the problem of gunpowder gas leaking from the loading port.

To solve this problem, the loading port of the breech-loading rifle needs to be made with precision machinery.

It’s a difficult task in France, where even steam engines are not readily available.

Even if he didn’t know that far, Massena knew how to use guns in actual combat.

Anyway, seeing the enemy forming a square, Massena came up with a simple solution: a bombardment.

“Okay, first send a messenger to Colonel Marmont. Ask for fire support.”

“I wonder if General Laharpe is getting over that mountain ridge well?”

“Who knows? I don’t think the commander is expecting much from that.”

Massena glanced at the southeast, the Monte Castello mountain range, and his eyes gleamed.

“Our breakthrough with firepower is the constant in this operation. Unless there are other variables.”

It was then.

-Bang! Bang! Bang!

Massena and Serboni were both taken aback by the gunshots that sounded quite close.

“Looks like there’s a variable?”

“Why are those Austrian guys suddenly shooting? Our army is going from the northeast.”

“Could it be that Laharpe has already crossed the southern side, the Monte Castello mountain range?”

At that moment, Massena, who had good eyes, widened his eyes.

“I don’t think so. The dust is rising, it looks like a cavalry? Where, with a telescope······.”

The moment he put the telescope to his eyes, Massena opened his mouth wide this time.

A cavalry was pouring down from behind Rosselmini’s unit, from the Rivoli plateau.

However, there should be no troops coming down from that side.

Because Eugene and Lan, who had already preempted the Rivoli plateau, would be confronting the enemy.

But it was definitely an allied cavalry.

-Ihihihing!

Massena threw down the telescope after confirming the commander at the head in the dust.

“Lan! Lan is coming! All troops, advance in columns! Go right in front and start a shooting battle! Lanfon!”

“Yes, Division Commander!”

“You run the fastest! Break the enemy’s square!”

Colonel Lanfon, the assault commander of Massena’s division, responded vigorously.

“I will gladly accept it! Death!”

The Lanfon regiment all raised their rifles and ran.

Of course, it’s not a bayonet charge.

It’s just trying to get within musket range.

But that alone is dangerous enough.

If the enemy regains their senses and counterattacks even a little, the side with fewer numbers will be annihilated under mutual fire.

Nevertheless, Massena ordered a charge within range.

Why?

Because at this moment, a cavalry appeared charging towards the infantry square.

Shouting a scream-like cheer, Massena got on his horse.

“Lan, that crazy bastard! My god, he’s maneuvering on a steep cliff! Very cool!”

Now it’s Massena’s division’s turn to support the charge.

***

Cavalry cannot defeat infantry.

In the age of gunpowder weapons, it is common sense in battle.

Nevertheless, at this moment, there was a cavalry regiment attempting a charge.

“Don’t spare the bullets! Our unit will pour out all its strength this time!”

The cavalry, originally belonging to the Pyrenees Army, 3,000 strong, were all running down the plateau.

The commander was Jean Lannes.

A man who had been operating cavalry in the Pyrenees Mountains, which average over 3,000 feet above sea level.

The Alps were nothing, and the Rivoli plateau was like child’s play to him.

But mobility is not the problem.

The problem is that the enemy has formed a square.

The infantry unit with a square boasts powerful firepower and defense.

Lannes solved this problem by deploying Ferguson rifle-armed riflemen in front of the unit.

-Clunk, kirik, bang! Clunk, kirik, bang!

It’s already a mountainous area where mobility is difficult.

Originally, such a mountain charge should be carried out by swordsmen with swords, not riflemen.

This is because there are many cases where you accidentally fall off your horse while shooting a gun on shaky ground.

Even if that’s not the case, the horse itself often breaks its legs due to a large impact.

Nevertheless, Lannes roared as he watched the riflemen cutting down the front line of the square.

“Good! That’s what riflemen are! This firepower is incomparable to hussars [light cavalry]!”

“General Lannes! At this rate, all our horses will die!”

“What about it! This is not the time to spare even words!”

Cavalrymen fell off their horses and collapsed everywhere while shooting.

However, now Lannes was shouting for a reckless charge like Murat [another daring French cavalry commander], and did not withdraw the order.

There is a very simple reason.

“If we win in this single battle anyway, we have to cross the Alps next. I can’t take them all with me then!”

If they lose, there is no next time.

If they win, the Alps invasion operation will unfold anyway.

Napoleon has never said anything like this.

However, Lannes, with his innate strategic intuition, had grasped the future situation.

On the other side, the Rosselmini unit, which had formed a square, was hurriedly firing muskets.

-Bang! Clunk, kirik, sseuk, bang!

However, they were even behind the cavalry in terms of firing speed.

“Why is there a difference in firing speed! Even though the opponent is cavalry!”

Rosselmini trembled and shouted.

In the past, three defeats pierced his head.

Argenteau, Beaulieu, Wurmser.

Rosselmini served them in turn, and they were all defeated commanders.

Will it be Alvinczy’s turn this time?

At that moment, Provera, who had gone to take charge of the artillery, returned and shouted.

“It won’t work! Let’s run away to the north first!”

“Have you forgotten? There are French troops entering our northern front! You can see them running over there!”

“Then, let’s go in another direction!”

Provera pointed in a completely different direction.

“Let’s go south. Towards Mantua!”

At that moment, Rosselmini widened his eyes and nodded.

“That’s a stroke of genius. All troops, to the south!”

There is the Mantua fortress there.

Moreover, the enemy is pushing in from the northwest and northeast.

The southern side is completely empty.

Rosselmini judged that it was better to save even a few and escape than to be annihilated, like he has been doing so far.

But this time, Rosselmini’s luck seemed to have run out.

The adjutant, Alois, who was about to break the square and run away, stopped and screamed.

“There, there are enemies!”

Monte Castello mountain range.

It was a direction that neither the Austrian nor the French army expected.

However, it is nothing to a man from the Alps.

The division led by Laharpe, who is from Switzerland, blocked Rosselmini’s 10,000 men.

In an instant, Lannes, who had come down from the hill, met Laharpe.

“General Laharpe! I didn’t know I would be so glad to see you!”

“General Lannes, have you come! How!”

“Brigadier General Eugene told me to go. The skirmish can be done with the horse grenadier brigade [mounted infantry]!”

At that time, Massena’s division also arrived.

“Yeah, long time no see! General Lannes!”

Massena, Laharpe, and Lannes completed the encirclement.

-Bang! Bang! Bang!

With this, Rosselmini’s army of 10,000 was completely annihilated.

However, amidst the shooting battle, another division began to move behind Massena.

It is the direct unit of Commander Napoleon.

“This is not the time to be intoxicated with victory!”

Instead of enjoying the victory unfolding in front, Napoleon issued a marching order.

“All troops, cross the Adige River. Into the Rivoli gorge, to defeat the enemy one by one!”

At the time when Alvinczy was using an encirclement strategy from the front, Napoleon began to defeat them one by one from the side.

-Bang!

With the sound of a gunshot that finally killed the survivor, Rosselmini.