Napoleon in 1812

Chapter 128

Although he showed off infinitely in front of his marshals, the success or failure of this fight would ultimately be determined by an extremely simple question: which army would come first to Leipzig?

'In the end, the first true battlefield of the Great War will be here in Saxony.'

Napoleon, at the head of the Allies, had long grasped the route of this war. Napoleon's allies were by no means incompetent, so they must understand the importance of this battlefield surrounding Saxony's control.

Thus, all European troops were running toward this battlefield. The stakes in Saxony would grow over time.

In other words, even if Napoleon's corps and Bliicher's corps engaged in a fierce battle, the reinforcements sent from both sides could reach with high probability during the battle. So the important points were who engaged first and with how many troops.

If Alexander I was the first to arrive with the Russian elite corps, Napoleon would begin to lose his hair again.

"This is a map of the topography, features, and surrounding cities around Leipzig. With the permission of the King of Saxony, we were able to bring the documents used in their internal affairs."

Napoleon's corps departed from Erfurt and prepared to encamp in the city of Apolda, between Erfurt and Leipzig.

While soldiers built a camp and dug waterways and trenches, the marshals and staff officers gathered at Napoleon's barracks to plot operations to attack Leipzig. At the center of the table, a map representing the region centered on Leipzig was placed.

"Leipzig, where the White Elster, PleiBe and Parthe rivers intersect, basically forms a basin with a low ground. In order to enter the city from the west, it is inevitable to cross the river. The width of the bridge is narrow and the current is fast, so access is easily controlled from a defensive position. Forests and mountains are spread out north and south of the rivers, so they are not suitable paths for a large army to move."

There were a total of four ways to go to Leipzig. First, advancing directly from the village of Lindenau on the bridge over the White Elster River. Second, using a side road going through the forest area west of the PleiBe River. Third, taking a large detour to the northern part of the Parthe River and then going south.

Finally, passing through the village of Wachau, and going up north along the main road.

The third method inevitably had to pass through the territory of Prussia, so the risk of being noticed by enemies was very high.

They had no choice but to use the other paths to confront the enemies stationed in Leipzig. Since the armies on both sides were so large, they had to prepare for both battles and countermeasures in a wide battlefield.

"According to intelligence, about 30,000 Swedish troops are currently in the village of Lindenau. And... some spies reported that they saw the flag of the king of Sweden."

"Bernadotte, the traitor of the Empire, and his remnants are blocking us."

The French officers burst into laughter at Napoleon's words. To be honest, it was almost thanks to Nabot's support that Bernadotte was able to become the Crown Prince of Sweden.

It was not sure why Nabot had sent Bernadotte, who was usually at odds with him, to be the adopted son of the King of Sweden, but Bernadotte ended up betraying his old country and hit Nabot in the back of his head as he joined Russia's side.

Anyway, thanks to this patriotic act, Bernadotte had become a laughing stock among French people.

"The battlefield has been divided into several places, but looking at the enemies' formation, their purpose seems to be 'delay' and not 'counterattack'. Except for one place."

"That's right. They, too, seem to think of the main battlefield as the plains south of Leipzig, including the village of Wachau."

Various military models were placed on the scaled 1/10,000 map representing Leipzig and its surroundings.

Blue soldiers, yellow soldiers, green soldiers, and ultramarine blue soldiers represented the French, Swedish, Russian, and Prussian troops, respectively.

The number of blue soldiers was 10, which meant 100,000, the number of troops in Napoleon's corps. The chief of staff Berthier moved the blue soldier models into the southern plains of Leipzig.

"On the march route that passes through the village of Wachau, the trenches, temporary bastions, and batteries are already thoroughly installed by the enemy. The allied armies of Russia and Prussia are supporting each other and protecting the place. It will take a considerable sacrifice to break through their defenses."

The faces of the marshals and officers showed signs of embarrassment. They did not know when they were bravely marching to Leipzig, but looking at the formation and readiness of the enemy corps on the map, they realized that it would never be an easy battlefield.

Napoleon's corps was based on the Imperial Guard and was France's elite corps, with the best officers and soldiers added to it. However, dealing with an enemy that was already completely prepared was a very heavy burden. In this case, a strategy was needed to overcome it.

"Gentlemen, we need to change our thinking."

Napoleon picked up models of French soldiers standing in the village of Wachau. And he pushed them in front of the Swedish soldiers on the side of Lindenau village.

"Effective strategies and operations eventually catch the enemy off guard by creating variables. Does the main battlefield seem difficult to break through? Then let's change the battlefield."

While trying to move the main forces toward the village of Lindenau, Napoleon thought the enemies would also respond. Bliicher, Bernadotte, and Bagration. All of them were enemies who knew the pulse of this war.

'So we must bury them in this battlefield.'

A blue glow shone in Napoleon's eyes for a very short time and then disappeared.

Coincidentally, at such a time, a military meeting was in full swing in Leipzig, where the commanders of the three kingdoms were gathered. Upon hearing the news that Napoleon was directly leading his corps to get here, Bliicher ordered the available troops of his country to gather in Leipzig.

In addition, the Prussians urgently asked their allies Russia and Sweden for assistance, and their troops spreading across northeastern Europe were arriving here in Leipzig one after another. That was how the multinational army of more than 200,000 soldiers was constituted.

"Before the meeting, I'd like to share some good news with you. On May 2, 1818... so, four days ago, an army led by our Imperial Commander-in-Chief (Levin von Bennigsen) defeated the Polish-French troops' attack in Bytdw. With this battle, the free city of Danzig fell into our hands, giving us full access to the Baltic sea routes."

The victory report delivered by Bagration was enough to inspire his allies ahead of the battle against Napoleon.

The fact that the road to the sea was opened meant that Russia and Sweden, which had difficulties supplying and supporting because they were so far from the battlefield, could dispatch troops and transport war supplies more easily.

In particular, Sweden was guaranteed disembarking safety in northern Germany by being able to beat Denmark, which acted as the owner of the Baltic Sea, by land and sea. Indeed, the Swedish officers' expressions were the brightest.

"The place where large-scale battles can be held is also presumed to be the village of Wachau. We have secured our defense against this, and there is no way Napoleon is unaware of this."

It was not for no reason that the Coalition's commanders focused their defense facilities and corps on the southern plains. They, too, knew that the plains of Wachau were a good battlefield for large armies to rotate.

The officers were discussing tactics, positions, and the deployment of subordinate corps in anticipation of a big battle there.

However, Bliicher, who had to express his opinion most vigorously while leading the military meeting, remained silent throughout their discussion. Clausewitz, his chief of staff, asked him.

"Don't you like the contents of the meeting, Commander?"

Bliicher, who was quietly petting his beard, opened his mouth.

"...No. I've been thinking about it. As to how Napoleon would try to deal with us at this moment."

Bliicher had been thoroughly analyzing from the bottom of his mind for a long time how to catch Napoleon. He looked at the map and pondered over and over again. The moment when everyone's attention was focused on him, an inspiration flashed through his head like lightning. Bliicher's mouth opened.

"Napoleon will not come to Wachau. Gentlemen, we need to revise our strategy so far."

"Commander? But the only area where 100,000 troops can significantly advance is the road through the village of Wachau."

"Hmm... I'm sure everyone thinks so. But we realized too late that our opponent is Napoleon."

Bliicher displayed animal sense on the battlefield. This driving force behind his rise to this position, this sense, had now been activated again.

When the officers were confused by the sudden change of the Commander's position, there was someone who agreed with it. It was Bernadotte, Karl XIV Johan, who slammed the table with his fist.

"The people who are geniuses constantly want to prove that they are different from others. In particular, Napoleon is very arrogant, has a strong pride, and always desires to praise himself. I promise you that I, who have been with him for a long time, know well that he will not act in standard ways again this time."

"Hehehe! As expected, Your Majesty is well aware of the personality flaws of the Corsican peasant."

The genius of war, who had always defeated numerous enemies with unexpected strategies, deceit, and maneuver operations, did not do it unless it was a battle in which the commander's abilities had to be extremely outstanding.

Since he thought that he was fundamentally different from others, his desire to constantly show something outstanding had engulfed his rationality as a commander.

"Let's change our strategy. The village of Lindenau! Here, our allies will surely stop Napoleon's ambitions."

Whether it was coincidence or fate, the commanders of both sides were looking at the same place.

The battle between the Allies and the Coalition over Leipzig began at dawn on May 19, 1818, exactly 100 days after the Great War broke out.

The quiet Saxony village was shaken by gunfire and shells flying through the forest's mist, and by the sounds of trumpets commanding the infantry to advance.

Poooooooo-

As they stepped into the cold muddy field, the two armies gradually approached Wachau. They identified the opponents they would kill. Despite the loud artillery fire, the French and Russian infantry regiments narrowed the distance without break.

"After walking fifty more steps, the soldiers in the front will load their muskets."

Andrei Gorchakov , the commander of the 2nd Corps of the Russian Army, gave his orders while staring coldly at the approaching French army. A hundred years had already passed since tactics and fighting methods were developed for the infantry on the front line.

Numerous military experts who had appeared in the meantime had improved them. However, as the soldiers were shot one by one on the front lines, the cruel law that fell on the battlefield did not change much.

"Twenty steps!"

The two armies had reached a distance 20 steps outside the musket's range. The remaining time until the terrible consumption match was narrowing. It was before Gorchakov gave the order to stop the march and prepare to fire.

"Huh?"

"Wait, what?"

"What are they doing?"

At one point, the French stopped marching. They were still a little outside the effective range of ordinary muskets. Not knowing what the French were doing, the Russian military officers murmured and Gorchakov frowned. It was then.

"Aim!"

Clack! Clack! Clack! Clack! Clack!

The Russian officers who knew French raised their heads at that word. Even if they did not know French, they could not help but be bewildered by their sudden movement and change of formation.

The musketeers in the French front line dispersed in unison and fell into the back lines. Behind them, soldiers with different guns lined up in the front with their guns pointed straight ahead.

The embarrassment and fear created by this scene were quickly conveyed to the Russian soldiers. The line was broken in an instant.

"Fire!"

Holding a telescope, Gorchakov could only identify their weapons just before they started shooting.

"They don't have muskets but rifles! Oh my god, damn it!!"

Tatatatata!!

His roar was buried in the gunfire that tore the air. The unexpected rifle shot penetrated the Russian army from a long distance.

Currently, the distance between the French and Russian forces was too much to use muskets, but the range was sufficient for rifles. The rifle fire gave a huge shock to the Russian infantry that was in a defenseless state.

The battle line that was shot collapsed, and the soldiers fell into great confusion. But what awaited them was another disaster.

Boom! Bang! Booom! Boom!!

French cannons fired on the shaking troops without fail. The artillery attack, which had been concentrated in the rear so far, swept the collapsing Russian army. The surprise rifle shooting and the subsequent shelling had a splendid synchronization, and the French had most likely been aiming for this moment.

And this swept the Russians with destructive power. Gorchakov bit his lips until he bled. He had no choice but to call for retreat with an upset heart.

"Great! It's very successful again this time!"

Marshal Nicolas Oudinot , who was overseeing the battle near the village of Wachau, heard the news of victory from various places and was delighted.

This was not the main battlefield and he was on his own, but nevertheless it was his duty to hold as many enemies as possible and for as long as possible.

'As expected, His Majesty's strategies and operations know no failure! He is such an amazing person. How can he think like this?'

After the war on the Iberian Peninsula, a period of rest came to the Empire. However, Napoleon did not waste this break on the military side.

Just as more powerful ships and the new Paixhans cannons and explosives were given to the Navy, the Army was also reformed from the inside, establishing new classes that had been disbanded and remanufacturing weapons that had been abandoned.

The best example among these changes was the re-establishment and organization of the Chasseur Regiment using new rifles. Now France, like other countries, had a regiment of light infantry with rifles.

Napoleon did not stop here. He quickly created new tactics for the existing battlefield infantry, cavalry, and artillery to act in harmony with the Chasseurs, and numerous strategic policies to maximize the effects.

Although Napoleon disregarded this by calling it 'residual work', Oudinot and the other marshals had never seen such high-quality detailed operations and tactics.

And its value was proved on this battlefield. Thanks to Napoleon's 'residual work', Oudinot's troops neatly defeated the Russian army without taking any damage. They ran away as if chased by ghosts.

'The Imperial Army has become so strong. And the reason is the presence of His Majesty the Emperor.'

The battlefield was still overwhelmingly dominated by the Coalition in terms of number of troops, and they had the strategic advantage of having prepared while waiting for the French to approach.

It would be normal for an ordinary commander to give up the fight and step down in this situation. Nevertheless, Oudinot felt a sense of stability that he was not going to lose. Napoleon's transcendental influence covered the battlefield around Leipzig.

TL notes

A painting of by Isidore Pils: