Chapter 251 Actions of All Parties
Time flies and it is almost August. Napoleon's original plan to mobilize 400,000 French troops to fight Prussia completely failed due to insufficient pre-war preparations and logistical factors.
But from the moment the decision to declare war was made, there was no turning back. If Napoleon III had known that the government departments were so unreliable, he would never have declared war so hastily a month ago.
Currently, France has deployed 230,000 troops in Alsace and Lorraine. At the same time, the number of German coalition forces on the other side of the river has reached 420,000. Because some troops were drawn from the Prussian-Austrian border, the number is more than 40,000 more than in history.
The French army was organized into two offensive corps and one reserve corps. One offensive corps was deployed near Metz in Lorraine, with a total strength of 128,000 troops, led by Emperor Napoleon III and Marshal Bazaine. It was the main force of the French army and was called the Rhine Corps. The other was deployed on the right side of the Vosges Mountains, near Strasbourg in Alsace, commanded by General McMahon, with less than 40,000 troops. In addition, a part of the reserve troops was left in Chalons west of Metz in Lorraine.
"This is the Vosges Mountains. The Rhine Corps is near Metz on the north side of the mountains, and General McMahon's Chalons Corps is near Strasbourg on the south side. The Rhine Corps is the main force and I will command it personally. Our target is here - Frankfurt. By capturing Frankfurt, we can separate the North German Confederation from South Germany, and the task of the Chalons Corps is to support the actions of the main force. Only by suppressing the southern German countries first can we focus on Prussia." Napoleon, dressed in military uniform, described his battle plan to the generals of the French Rhine Corps in the headquarters.
Frankfurt is more than 200 kilometers northeast of Metz and Saarbrücken. If it is conquered, Baden and Württemberg in the south will be surrounded by the French army. At the same time, going north from Frankfurt can threaten the western Prussian mainland, and going southeast can threaten Nuremberg in Bavaria. This was originally a preemptive offensive deployment, planning to concentrate troops to quickly cross the border and advance to Frankfurt, cut off the connection between North and South Germany, force the southern German states to remain neutral, and defeat Prussia with all their strength.
"Your Majesty, the battle plan is feasible. According to Prussia's mobilization capabilities in the last Austro-Prussian War, Prussia and the German coalition should be able to deploy at least 300,000 troops on the east bank of the Rhine. Fortunately, Austria is holding Prussia back, otherwise Prussia's eastern front troops would also be mobilized and our situation would be even more dire. Although the imperial soldiers are more experienced and more powerful than Prussians, we still have to be careful when facing an enemy that is nearly twice our number." Marshal Bazaine said.
François Achille Bazaine (February 13, 1811 - September 23, 1888) was a mercenary who became a French marshal in 1864. He was famous in France for his incredible bravery during his 40-year military career.
François Achille Bazin was born in Versailles, the son of a mathematician and bridge engineer, whose father, invited by Tsar Alexander I, built several bridges in St. Petersburg. He failed to pass the entrance examination to the Polytechnic School due to lack of financial support from his family, and entered service in the 37th Infantry Regiment in March 1831. At that time, Louis Philippe, who was still equal, had just become king. In January 1832, he entered the Foreign Legion as a mercenary and was awarded the rank of second lieutenant in 1833. In the First Carlist War that broke out in 1833, he completed a military mission to Spain, was wounded in the right leg in the battle, and was awarded a medal for bravery. He served again in Algeria in 1835 and was promoted to captain in 1837. Later, he served in the Intelligence Department, confronted the Algerian national hero Abd el-Kader in the Sahara Desert, pursued him relentlessly, forced him to retreat into Morocco, and was wounded in the wrist again in 1845. After Abdul Kadir was captured in 1847, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel, became colonel in 1850, and married his first wife, Maria Juana of La Soledad, in Versailles in June 1852. In addition, he participated in the Crimean War, the Franco-Sardinian War against Austria, and the French intervention in Mexico. He can be said to be an old acquaintance of Maximilian I.
No one refuted what Bazin said. Looking back at the wars he participated in, they were all typical battles of the few against the many, especially Mexico, which was a battle fought on someone else's territory, and Mexico was far away from the French mainland.
As a general, Bazaine's command ability was not outstanding. His only advantage was that he was brave enough. He always led the troops in battle and was often injured. He was a recognized warrior in France.
The French "warriors" have said that French soldiers are brave, so what else is there to say? They just have to suppress the Prussian army and fight one against two.
"We have no way out. Our opponents this time are not the European countries from the era of my uncle Napoleon the Great, but the German region that was once under his feet. Even the Austrians are not involved, so our chances of winning are great. Let Prussia and Germany experience the terror of France again. Long live France!" Napoleon III encouraged.
…
"If I'm right, France's goal is to cut off our connection with southern Germany, and the most likely way to achieve this goal is to occupy the Frankfurt area. So Napoleon III must take the initiative to achieve this goal. Therefore, our people on the west coast should always pay attention to the movements of the French. The front-line troops should avoid direct battle with the oncoming French army and evacuate to a favorable position to consume the morale of the French army."
While Napoleon III was discussing the offensive plan with his staff and generals, Moltke was also analyzing the French movements and solutions with the Prussian generals.
…
The war between Prussia and France was about to break out, while the war in East Africa had been going on for more than ten days. For East Africa, this conquest war was a very unfriendly experience. Due to logistical reasons, the march speed was seriously slowed down. In the second conquest war, with Mbeya as a base, the logistics could barely keep up.
This time, the newly occupied Zambia region in East Africa has not been developed, and the food output is basically negligible, so military rations and supplies need to be sent from the rear through the poor transportation in the Zambia region to the front line.
Although the progress is slow, it is stable and we can advance 10 to 20 kilometers every day.
…
Rome.
"Have the French withdrawn?" asked the Austro-Hungarian envoy in Rome.
"Yes, today the last batch of French troops evacuated from Fiumicino. Originally, there were not many French troops stationed in Rome, only more than 3,000 people. Now the French military camp is completely empty."
"Very good, I will go to see the Pope right away and persuade him to sign an agreement with us Austria. This time we must teach Italy a lesson no matter what."
"Do we need to notify General Karl and ask him to cooperate with the operation?"
"No, now is not the time for our army to show up. Otherwise, what if we scare the Italian government and make them afraid to act? Go back and tell General Karl to stay hidden. We will wait for Italy to take action against the Papal States and then strike them by surprise."
The envoy went on to say, "I will go to Rome first and convince the Pope to accept Austria's protection, and then announce this news. The Italian government will be anxious, and they will definitely strengthen their forces in Venice to guard against our interference, and send troops directly to Rome to settle everything. But they will never imagine that we have a surprise force in Rome. As long as the Empire gets an excuse for war, it will be natural to send troops to Italy. At that time, Italy will be the invader, and we will be the guardians of order who maintain peace."
(End of this chapter)
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