He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 242

(242) Napoleon Gains the Upper Hand in Caldiero

Caldiero is a small city on the road from Verona to Venice.

“It feels like we’ve only run about 10 kilometers, but we’re already in Caldiero,” Napoleon’s adjutant, Brigadier General Marmont, remarked with a whistle.

The French Revolutionary Army’s daily march distance averages around 25 kilometers. Moreover, they had been retreating at a forced march pace just before, making their arrival all the more surprising.

So, the journey took roughly 2 hours.

The Milan garrison commander, Sérurier, surveyed the area and nodded.

“This is the entrance to the terrain formed by the Adige River and the Val-d’Illasi mountains. It’s a perfect location to establish a defensive line.”

“When did you become such an expert on this terrain, General Sérurier?”

“I spent three years in Milan. Wouldn’t it be stranger if I *didn’t* know?” Sérurier replied casually before turning to Napoleon. “What are your orders, Commander-in-Chief? Will we cross the Adige River to the south?”

Despite the appearance of a retreat, the French army had arrived first, gaining at least 2 hours of advantage.

It was crucial to capitalize on this situation quickly.

Sérurier suggested crossing the river to prevent the enemy from crossing easily.

However, Napoleon shook his head as he rode along the southern riverbank. “No, we’ll establish our formation here with the Adige River to our left. And Val-d’Illasi? We’ll use those mountains on our right to deter the enemy from crossing!”

“The enemy has a *Grenzer* unit [light infantry troops often used for skirmishing and scouting], irregular infantry. They might cross the mountains more easily than we think.”

“Incorrect! This will be a short battle.”

Napoleon immediately summoned the idle Marmont. “Marmont! You’re free since there are no cannons to manage, right? Go as a messenger. And make haste!”

Marmont, surprised, approached with eager eyes. Being sent as a messenger in this situation could only mean one thing: an army was rushing to reinforce Napoleon from the south.

General Augereau was gathering all available troops from the Tuscany and Naples garrisons and advancing. The problem was that Augereau hadn’t been informed of Napoleon’s current predicament.

“I’ll do my best to find them!” Marmont declared, immediately rushing towards the bridge over the Adige River with 50 soldiers.

-Doo doo doo!

Napoleon smiled as he watched the messengers depart.

Only one of them needed to find Augereau’s division.

However, Berthier frowned, seemingly anxious despite the dispatch of 50 men. “Could they miss each other? Shouldn’t we cross the river and buy them some time?”

“It doesn’t matter if they miss each other. The most direct route to approach Verona from Mantua is through Caldiero. And Augereau is a man who values direct approaches.”

“Indeed, it wouldn’t be Augereau if he suddenly took a separate route for a surprise attack,” Berthier conceded.

At that moment, Masséna stepped forward and smiled. “Then, Commander-in-Chief, it seems I’m the only one suited to act as the vanguard. I’ll be back.”

“Be careful of the shelling.”

“Of course.”

Even without explicit instructions, Masséna seemed to have perfectly understood his role.

Feeling a sense of perfect synchronization, Napoleon smiled with satisfaction.

He craved this feeling. The sense of reality he couldn’t experience when commanding grand strategies with documents in headquarters.

Giving orders, executing operations, and defeating the enemy.

And doing it with subordinates who understood him implicitly.

Masséna’s division advanced forward in a column formation.

-Step, step, step!

At that moment, smoke began to rise on the horizon along the Adige River.

Approximately 50,000 Austrian troops were approaching rapidly.

The adjutant, Brigadier General Serboni, rode his horse next to Masséna and inquired, “Division Commander, does our division really have to take the lead like this?”

“Oh, Serboni. I thought you were mute, you’ve been so quiet. What can we do? Ran already stole the role of the decoy unit.”

“This is a battle with expected shelling. It’s definitely not going to be easy.”

Masséna raised his hand to his forehead, pretending to scan the front, and replied, “It would be, if we’re very unlucky.”

“Excuse me? Luck, you say?”

“Look behind you. How many cavalrymen do you see? You can count, right?”

Serboni frowned at Masséna’s sarcasm and looked back.

Estimating the number of soldiers is a fundamental skill for any battlefield officer.

But Serboni’s eyes widened as he counted. “Huh?”

Masséna smirked and tapped the pistol on his waist. “Of course, if I’m unlucky, the cavalry will be late. But I’m a lucky man.”

The time had come for Archduke Charles and Masséna’s first battle in Caldiero to begin.

***

Originally, Caldiero was a place where Napoleon suffered a defeat in the original timeline.

“The French army is visible 1 kilometer ahead! The location is in front of Caldiero!”

Archduke Charles’s Italian army corps also halted.

A total of 50,000 troops.

Although the army corps moved by regiment because it hadn’t yet adopted the division system, generals were essentially grouping and commanding the regiments.

Charles had learned from fighting the French army that it was necessary to maneuver larger forces than regiments in tactical units.

He believed that this was one of the reasons for the French army’s strength.

The generals listening to the report from Deputy Chief of Staff Schmidt rushed to Charles.

“It seems the tables have turned this time. They appear to have set up a camp with the mountains as cover.”

“The enemy has abandoned all their tents, gunpowder, and cannons and fled. They’ll only have enough supplies for one fight.”

“How about setting up a camp here and taking our time?”

Charles shook his head as he listened to the proposals of Hiller, Bellegarde, and Rosenberg.

“No, we must strike now.”

It was the complete opposite of the previous pursuit battle.

His three generals had requested pursuit then, and Charles had hesitated before complying. However, now that they faced the enemy again, Charles ordered immediate engagement.

“The enemy is waiting for something.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“General Johann von Hiller, you’re not acting like the cautious general you usually are. Look closely, the enemy’s formation is a textbook defensive line. It’s the same as what we used to do.”

Charles turned to General Hiller and said, “There will definitely be a unit joining them here. Whether it’s from Milan, Naples, or Tuscany. If so, we must crush the enemy before that happens.”

Hiller, currently 45 years old, had been on the battlefield since the War of the Bavarian Succession.

He had defeated the Turks and successfully led the counter-revolutionary war under Charles.

However, Hiller’s weakness was that he was too cautious and avoided bold battles.

He also lacked Charles’s broad strategic vision.

Just as Hiller was beginning to understand, Charles asked Bellegarde, “Heinrich von Bellegarde, are the cavalry ready?”

“They are fewer in number compared to the enemy, but they are brave.”

“It’s a shame they’re not Hussars [light cavalry known for their flamboyant uniforms and aggressive tactics]. If the enemy cavalry rushes in, counterattack with Schwarzenberg. Windisch-Graetz should have about 20 to 30 shots left.”

Bellegarde, 43 years old, specialized in commanding dragoons [mounted infantry].

He mainly worked as a staff officer on the Rhine battlefield, but Bellegarde’s specialty was originally dragoon charges.

However, the number of cavalry in Charles’s army corps was currently limited, around 2,000.

Therefore, they were tasked with stopping the enemy cavalry along with the Windisch-Graetz light infantry.

Immediately after Bellegarde saluted and departed, a general shouted, “Your Highness, I also want to command the cavalry!”

Now 38 years old, 10 years older than the Archduke, but even more energetic, Charles laughed as he looked at General Rosenberg.

“Franz Seraph von Orsini-Rosenberg, my relative. Don’t be foolish. Now is the time to crush the enemy decisively, not to launch reckless cavalry attacks.”

The Marquis of Rosenberg, a prestigious Austrian nobleman, gritted his teeth.

However, Charles was right.

The enemy had retreated and fled but gained a geographical advantage.

It was definitely not the time to launch a cavalry charge.

Charles once again ordered the chief of staff. “Chief of Staff Leiberich, order Brigadier General Strauch to prepare for shelling!”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“We must strike before the enemy is even ready!”

At that time, Deputy Chief of Staff Schmidt reported, “Your Highness! The enemy is advancing!”

Charles widened his eyes and laughed.

This was the moment Charles had been waiting for.

The enemy was probably trying to prevent weaknesses in their defense by taking an active offensive, according to the military doctrine of the Revolutionary Army.

But wasn’t defense and counterattack the Austrian army’s specialty?

“Column march, huh. Immediately counter with shelling!”

“Yes!”

“Rosenberg! Spread out the line infantry formation. Let them know why horizontal firing became the standard, suppressing all variations!”

Rosenberg spurred his horse with great vigor and rushed out, ordering the regimental commanders.

“Understood, Your Highness. Austrian 22nd Regiment, Magyar 33rd Regiment, Rosenberg Regiment, forward! Go!”

Each regiment being organized separately was also one of the weaknesses of the Austrian army.

However, this problem was currently being mitigated by having major general-level generals command them.

It was also an issue that Charles resolved to fix once the war was over.

The line infantry regiments each formed their ranks and moved forward.

-Thud, thud, thud!

In the distance, troops were seen running in a column at a trot.

“Fire!”

First, the Liechtenstein cannons began shelling under Strauch’s command.

-Boom! Boom! Boom!

Charles frowned as he watched the 20 warmed-up cannons being fired.

Strangely, not a single shell was hitting.

It was shelling intended to break the enemy’s ranks, but the accuracy was terrible.

“Why is the accuracy so low?”

“Commander-in-Chief, look at the rear!”

“What’s going on, huh?”

Casually, Charles turned his head at the words of the deputy chief of staff and widened his eyes.

“Why on earth are the cavalry over there? Counterattack!”

In the distance, cavalry was rushing from the rear of Charles’s army corps, from the northern left flank.

-Heeheeheeing!

It was Murat’s cavalry.

***

Of course, unlike the spirited charge, Murat’s inner thoughts were far from comfortable.

“This, I’m charging, but I wonder if this isn’t madness!”

Beside Murat, Bessières, also a cavalry brigade commander, grumbled, “I also think it’s crazy, but isn’t the general running too fast more of a problem?”

“Bessières, you weren’t thinking of retreating after attacking the artillery, were you?”

“Weren’t I, then?”

Murat shouted while sprinting at full speed. “At that rate, everyone will be shot to death! We have to break through with the momentum of jumping into that Adige River! That’s the only way to survive. Hyah!”

1,000 cavalry, the unit that went to the Val-d’Illasi mountains north of Caldiero first.

Originally, this number of troops couldn’t make any significant dent in a large infantry army.

However, the Austrian army, which unconsciously assumed that the French army had retreated, was completely careless.

They didn’t even send scouts to confirm that the cavalry was scattered.

Murat and Bessières, who had been running at full speed, struck that gap.

Instantly, Murat’s adjutant, Colonel René Savary, shouted, “Enemy infantry is coming!”

While the artillerymen were surprised by the cavalry and fleeing, Radetzky’s unit, which was guarding the rear, rushed over.

-Bang! Bang! Bang!

20 shots of air rifle fire.

A significant number of cavalrymen were caught in the attack.

Murat shouted, whipping fiercely. “Damn it, is there time to spike the cannons [disable the cannons by driving a spike into the touchhole]? Savary?”

“No, of course not!”