He Became Napoleon’S Genius Son [EN]: Chapter 256

(256) The Sharpshooter Arrives at Hohenlinden

From the start, Hohenlinden was not a favorable location for Austria.

“Mistaking this as a defensive battle on familiar territory was their mistake!” Eugene shouted as he rode across the muddy hills, causing Hippolyte to glance back.

“What do you mean, Commander?”

“It’s simple, Hippolyte. This place isn’t familiar to the Austrian army at all. It’s not even Austrian territory, and Karl has never fought here before!”

“But the Bavarian army must have fought here.”

Eugene twisted his lips.

“That’s the crux of the matter. Hohenlinden is a battlefield that the Bavarian army is also experiencing for the first time.”

In fact, even in the original history, the Austrian army doesn’t try to fight in Hohenlinden.

The one who forced the battlefield was Moreau.

Even now, Moreau is confidently advancing and launching a fierce attack.

On the other hand, the Austrian army is bewildered by the unfamiliar terrain, the unexpected timing, and the double-sided attack.

Strictly speaking, the Austrian army has the numerical advantage.

Moreover, the main forces of the French army, Napoleon, Massena, and Augereau’s divisions, have not even arrived yet.

What arrived here first was the vanguard.

Eugene’s Horse Grenadier Brigade and the Orient Division rushed ahead as the vanguard.

Of course, the unfamiliar terrain is the same for us, though.

Hippolyte almost fell off his horse and grumbled.

“But our field is also muddy! We can’t run fast!”

“I know. That’s why we’re only circling outside the shaded forest.”

“The road conditions outside aren’t that great either!”

At that moment, Junot, who had been out in front, returned and shouted.

“What’s the next strike after the grenades? Machine gun fire? Or a charge?”

However, Eugene waved his baton and pointed to the rear.

“Stop talking nonsense and instruct Lasalle. Tell him to return immediately.”

“What?”

“The enemy has real hussars [light cavalry], not fake ones. Hungarian ones. Now is the time to strike once and run.”

Suddenly, Eugene looked back and smiled.

“Because the real deal will be flying in soon.”

At that moment, south of Hohenlinden, columns of line infantry came running over the hills.

-Thud, thud, thud!

The general leading the way at a horse trot was none other than Desaix.

Eugene looked at Desaix and was filled with strange emotions.

The man who should have died at Marengo had come all the way here to Hohenlinden.

But the immortal glory that Desaix would have achieved was taken away by Eugene.

How would Desaix feel if he ever found out about this?

Desaix, unaware of the original history, asked Eugene with a very eager expression.

“Did we hit them hard?”

“Hard enough to disrupt their lines. Where are the cannons? It’s time.”

“The Russian ones don’t have as long a range as I thought. But, the signal flare will be launched soon.”

Eugene took out his gold pocket watch, checked the time, and tilted his head.

“Signal flare?”

At that moment, a cannonball flew through the air and struck in front of Eugene’s cavalry.

-Bang!

Even Eugene was surprised this time.

Of course, since the [Silver Letter] notification didn’t appear, it must have been a bombardment that was ‘judged’ not dangerous.

But to bombard the front lines when our own troops might charge at any moment is extremely reckless.

Desaix nodded with a nonchalant expression.

“That’s it.”

“No, what if we can’t get out of here?”

“Didn’t you set the operation on a time basis in advance? Commander of the Freischütz [light infantry], Your Excellency.”

Desaix pointed to Eugene’s pocket watch and wore a triumphant smile.

“This Großhader Forest will now become a sea of fire.”

Of course, it’s a figurative expression.

So-called [incendiary bombs] that will be created in the future original history do not yet exist in this era.

However, as cannons arrive one after another, the bombardment will intensify further.

In an era without communication devices.

Eugene planned the operation on a time basis for the first time.

Why?

Because this Hohenlinden is a limited, isolated space.

A place surrounded by forests, hills, and low valleys.

Therefore, variables are unlikely to occur like in Rivoli, and accurate operational maneuvers are possible if only the number of enemy troops is identified.

Especially if our side has completely overwhelming artillery firepower.

However, there is a trap here.

Slightly adjusting his military cap, Eugene shouted towards Lasalle, who had returned.

“We need to send a messenger to Moreau to tell him to get out. Lasalle, can you break through!”

At that moment, Lasalle laughed heartily and turned his horse around again.

“This isn’t a victory, but a messenger’s breakthrough. Well, 20 men are enough for this kind of thing. Let’s go! Joubert!”

“Hey, Brigadier General Lasalle! I need 200 men! I’m taking them, Commander!”

“Come on, hussars should show some spirit at times like this!”

Just as Lasalle and Joubert were bickering and leading the vanguard, Eugene turned his head.

“What time does the bombardment end?”

This time, Desaix took out his old pocket watch and smiled.

“In one hour. I will enter then.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than curved cannonballs flew through the air.

***

Of course, cannons in this era are not very accurate, and Russian unicorns [early howitzers] are even less so.

-Boom! Boom! Boom!

The total number is 100.

These are the cannons that Eugene acquired when he won the Battle of Adrianople.

The sight of cannons that had crossed the Alps firing all at once was spectacular.

Of course, the shells fired by those cannons did not arrive at the exact landing point, but the quantity was still overwhelming.

In late 18th-century battles, where it was common to mobilize dozens of cannons, 100 cannons were fired.

That alone was enough to make the Austrian army sick of it.

That’s certainly the case with Bavarian Archduke Maximilian.

“How can cannons fire one shot per minute!”

Just as Maximilian was screaming and running to avoid the cannonballs, Karl shouted.

“That’s not the real problem! Look ahead! Archduke!”

“I know, Your Highness! They’re explosive shells!”

“Look behind the falling cannonballs!”

Karl pointed to the south, beyond the trajectory of the cannonballs, and shouted.

“The enemy is pushing in now!”

Come to think of it, the cannon fire is stopping.

Normally, it’s time to take a breather, but without missing this gap, line infantry can be seen advancing in columns.

The problem is that Moreau’s army should be advancing from the west, not the south.

Maximilian may have little war experience, but he’s not a fool.

“They’re entering from both flanks. Good heavens!”

“Right now, our troops are scattered. That’s because Moreau has spread out and attacked. On the other hand, the enemy is concentrating and charging.”

“T, then isn’t that disadvantageous?”

Karl stared at Desaix’s division entering from the south and turned his horse.

“Nevertheless, we must fight and win. Bavarian Archduke, please block the southern flank attack.”

Archduke Maximilian didn’t hear properly at first.

His hearing was temporarily impaired by the explosion of the explosive shells.

But soon, he couldn’t help but realize what he meant.

That’s because Archduke Karl was running to the western front with his guards.

“Y, Your Highness! Wh, where are you going!”

“I have to catch Moreau!”

“B, but, th, the troops on the southern front, isn’t that Bonaparte?”

Karl nodded vigorously and sped away.

“That’s right! The opponent our troops are much less likely to beat. On the other hand, I can definitely catch Moreau! Let’s go, Bellegarde!”

The Archduke’s guards shouted in unison.

-Heil Österreich! [Hail Austria!]

Österreich is German for the Austrian Empire.

In Latin, this word is Austria.

Usually, it’s called Austria rather than Österreich, but now the guards are running to protect the empire.

That’s why they’re shouting the official name of the country as they run.

Conversely, the Archduke of Bavaria, who doesn’t care about Österreich, was dumbfounded and gaped.

“Wh, wh, what are we supposed to do if Austria leaves like this?”

“Your Highness, pull yourself together!”

“Y, yes. I have to pull myself together. Commander Bredow. What should we do now?”

Just as General Bredow was flustered, a man with one-eyed glasses spoke from the side.

“Become the anvil, Your Highness.”

The Archduke was surprised and turned his head, tilting his head.

“W, weren’t you General Weyrother?”

“I am Weyrother, an engineering staff officer of the Austrian Empire. Your Highness, the enemy is now using a hammer and anvil tactic.”

“R, really? Isn’t that a tactic used a long time ago?”

Austria’s foremost theorist, Weyrother, exclaimed with sparkling eyes.

“That’s right. It’s a tactic used by the ancient Greeks. Here, the anvil is Moreau, and the hammer is Bonaparte. But, Archduke Karl is trying to use it in reverse! As expected, he’s a great man!”

Of course, for a theorist, the sight of theory becoming reality would be amazing.

On the other hand, for the Archduke, who has to protect the country in reality, it’s just an absurd sound.

Archduke Maximilian Joseph, who had been holding his throbbing head for a moment, muttered.

“In the end, you’re telling us to die.”

“Shall we retreat, Your Highness?”

“No, there’s no choice!”

The Bavarian Archduke raised his baton and shouted.

“I won’t be a father who shames my children. I’ll fight to the end!”

However, Desaix’s division, armed with Boarneh-style breech-loading rifles, soon pushed in.

-Bang! Click, bang! Click, bang!

The Archduke, who had been shouting bravely, smacked his lips.

“Sh, shouldn’t we retreat?”

Of course, the 60,000 Bavarian troops were already scattered and clashing with Desaix’s division.

***

Originally, if the forces were equal, the side with the larger number would naturally win.

“Alright, second attack!”

But the Austro-Bavarian allied forces are trapped in a large army.

They had driven an army of over 120,000 into a narrow forest battlefield.

Originally, they were planning to wage a defensive battle here, but Moreau came much faster than expected.

Moreau had simply rushed in with the forced march of the French Revolutionary Army.

In addition, Napoleon’s corps had much stronger firepower than expected.

Ironically, most of them were items captured from the Russian army, which was Austria’s ally.

In the end, this confusion and concentrated bombardment made it difficult for both the Austrian and Bavarian armies to unite.

The sight of them being too busy dealing with Desaix’s blitzkrieg was visible even from afar.

Eugene also nodded as he watched Lasalle return.

But somehow, instead of the 200 men he had sent out at first, 2,000 men were returning.

A giant running next to Lasalle shouted.

“Italian Legion! We’ve come to help!”

“What, is that Moreau?”

“I am Colonel D’Hautpoul, sent by Commander Moreau!”

Eugene’s eyes widened.

Lasalle was whistling, pretending not to know.

He felt like he had tricked them into coming.

Recalling D’Hautpoul’s name, which he had seen in the original history records, Eugene smacked his lips.

“It’s great that you broke through all the way here. Colonel D’Hautpoul, wasn’t your goal Archduke Karl?”

“How did you know? Where is Archduke Karl?”

“I think you came to the wrong place.”

Clicking his tongue lightly, Eugene instructed the con man Lasalle.

“But I’ll let you earn some merit. Lasalle, it was good to bring the shock troop of the Rhine Corps. Lead the way with the spirit of the hussars!”

Lasalle chuckled and drew his saber.

“Follow me, Colonel. Hee-ho!”

“Hahaha! I will never fall behind!”

“Hey, you guys! This isn’t a horse race! It’s war! Don’t just swing your swords, pick up your rifles!”

It was the Bavarian army that was already engaged in combat with Desaix’s division.

Although it’s common sense that cavalry can’t pierce infantry, that’s only in normal battles.

The Bavarian infantry, who were suffering from troop dispersal, confusion, and a surprise attack, were unable to cope with the sudden rush of cavalry.

Junot, who was examining the situation through a telescope, shouted.

“They’ve broken through!”

In an instant, Eugene spurred his horse.

“Alright. Full speed charge! Everyone, equip Boarneh-Ferguson rifles!”

“Load!”

“Ready to fire!”

In a flash, Eugene’s Horse Grenadier Brigade detoured and surged forward.

Even in the small battlefield, where 60,000 Bavarian troops and 13,000 of Eugene’s Orient Corps were fighting, the hammer and anvil tactic was unfolding again.

To put it bluntly, Desaix’s blitzkrieg is the anvil, and Eugene, who is launching a surprise flanking attack, is the hammer.

Aiming his Boarneh-style rifle from horseback, Eugene shouted.

“Destroy the rear units in one fell swoop!”

The 3,000 cavalrymen fired in unison.

-Bang! Bang! Bang!

The strength of the Boarneh-Ferguson rifle is that it can be breech-loaded.

Although high-speed loading is difficult like later Dreyse guns, from the receiving end’s point of view, just loading and firing from horseback is shocking enough to be close to rapid fire.

Unlike the Austrian army, it was also a sight that the Bavarian army was seeing for the first time.

“Ugh!”

“Help me, how many guns do the French have?”

“Good heavens, they’ve broken through! Your Highness!”

Joubert, who was leading Eugene instead of Lasalle, roared.

“The enemy command is visible!”

Suddenly, a notification popped up for Eugene, who was closely following behind and reloading his gun.

[Bavarian Archduke, Maximilian Joseph.]

Eugene was surprised and raised the gun he was firing.

“Huh?”

The bullet grazed past the side of the ‘general’ standing in the Bavarian army command.

-Phew!

Eugene stopped his horse.

Amidst the still echoing noise of the battlefield, the one who appeared to be the enemy commander-in-chief looked at Eugene.

A white uniform full of ornate decorations.

Suddenly, the commander looked at Eugene, took a deep sigh, and said.

“I’ve heard of you. I heard that the commander of the army that returned from Constantinople is a boy. I think he was called Bonaparte’s adopted son.”

Eugene quietly looked at the commander and tilted his head.

“Are you Your Highness the Archduke?”

“I’m probably not the Archduke you’re looking for.”

“Maybe not. But consider yourself lucky that I, not Moreau, noticed you.”

Suddenly, Eugene smiled bitterly and said softly.

“Father-in-law.”

The Archduke, Maximilian Joseph, blinked and frowned.

However, Eugene quickly gestured to prevent Maximilian from doing anything foolish.

In an instant, the nimble Joubert jumped off his horse and, along with his cavalry, restrained Maximilian and the command staff.

Struggling while being held by Joubert, Maximilian roared.

“What? My daughter is only 11 years old! You shameless plunderer rebels! Just kill me instead!”

Of course, it’s a gross misunderstanding, but Eugene didn’t bother to correct it.