Chapter 759: Fighting Side by Side with the Crown Prince (double period, please vote for me)
According to Joseph's original plan, Lefebvre was to lead his army in a decisive battle with the main force of the Prince of Coburg south of the town of Uccle.
He, Lefebvre and others all believed that the Austrian army should be unprepared, but the minimum marching regulations and peripheral warnings could still be achieved.
Who knew that the Prince of Coburg believed that he had a huge military advantage and didn't care about these things at all.
The result was that Lefebvre was like attacking a group of people on an outing, and was defeated at an extremely fast speed.
Joseph put the teacup he had just received on the table and asked the officer who came to report the situation: "Where is General Lefebvre now?"
"The general should have arrived near the town of Mafuni by now, Your Highness."
Joseph stood up and waved to Kesode: "Let's go to Mafuni Town immediately."
The latter was suddenly startled and stopped him: "Your Highness, it will get dark soon, so let's go tomorrow..."
Joseph pushed his hand away and motioned to Eman to get his coat: "My dear Mr. Guard Captain, this is a military mission. Please summon the guards as soon as possible and set off."
The reason why he took the risk and stayed in Wavre was to boost the morale of the soldiers.
You know, Wavre is only 9 kilometers away from the place where Lefebvre defeated the Prince of Coburg, and it is completely within the scope of the front line.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is not afraid of danger and goes to the front line with everyone. How can the soldiers not be morale high and full of fighting spirit?
If Francis II could also come to the Southern Netherlands to supervise the battle, even if the Austrian army could not defeat the French army, they would definitely have to grit their teeth and persist in front of His Majesty the Emperor for ten days and a half, instead of being defeated in one afternoon.
Joseph has already taken the risks he should take, and now he wants to maximize the effect.
7pm.
Southwest of the town of Mafone.
In the temporary camp of the French army led by Lefebvre, the soldiers had finished their dinner and were arranging their blankets by moonlight, preparing to rest.
At this moment, a short trumpet sounded in the camp, and then the company commanders of each company received the order and began to excitedly urge everyone to light torches.
After more than ten minutes, the entire camp was lit up.
The wounded soldiers were the first to see the crown prince's ceremonial flag. The wounded stood up excitedly and looked behind the flag.
The straight white cavalry officer uniform and the handsome and young face are none other than His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!
"Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
A soldier with an injured arm stood at attention excitedly, puffed out his chest and shouted.
Immediately the entire camp was filled with excited and proud shouts, "Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"
"It's so late, and His Highness still comes to see us."
“It’s really the Crown Prince who is here!”
"In the name of the Crown Prince!"
They had indeed heard that the Crown Prince was commanding the rear army in Wavre, but now they saw His Highness coming to visit them, and they were extremely moved.
It turns out that His Highness has been fighting alongside him.
I was not injured in vain, no, these scars are a supreme honor!
Joseph quickly motioned for everyone to lie back on the stretcher, and then stretched out his hand to the soldier closest to him. The soldier didn't quite understand, and while he was stunned, he found that the crown prince took his hand and shook it hard.
He felt the warmth from his palms, and his nose suddenly felt sore: "Your Highness..."
"France thanks you for your bravery and dedication!" Joseph shook his hand again and said in a soft tone, "I hope you can recover as soon as possible."
"Yes, Your Highness!" The wounded man stood upright and was too excited to speak. "I, you..."
Joseph nodded, patted his arm to show that he understood what he meant, and helped him sit back on the stretcher.
Then he went to the next wounded man and shook his hand vigorously.
In this era when nobles and commoners were clearly distinguished, ordinary soldiers had never even heard of such a thing, let alone experience. After the crown prince shook hands with them, they simply felt that the wounds were not as painful as before.
After shaking hands with all the wounded one by one, Joseph gave a brief speech, then went to the next camp and began to express condolences to the soldiers of the infantry regiment.
Soon, the whole camp became excited, and the soldiers shouted "Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince" loudly, it was like a festival...
It was not until late at night that Joseph let tens of thousands of soldiers see his figure, and then returned tiredly to the officer's tent in Lefebvre.
Check out the 16-9 book bar and see the correct version!
Lefebvre also seemed very excited, and asked the attendant to bring wine to the Crown Prince - this is military supplies, every soldier has it, tea is a luxury item in the army - then he stood at attention and said: "Your Highness, although the soldiers We are already very tired, but I think the morale of the Radesky Corps should be even lower. If we launch an attack tomorrow, we can quickly capture the town of Mafuni."
He had just seen the posture of the soldiers howling for battle. Their morale was so high that it didn't look like they were marching continuously and fighting for most of the battle.
Not to mention tomorrow, even if they were to attack the town of Mafuni now, they would probably be able to defeat it immediately.
Joseph looked at the map and waved his hand: "These 6,000 people from Radeski can be eliminated at any time, but now it is better to keep them."
Lefebvre immediately understood: "You mean, Josias might send someone to rescue him, and we can ambush the reinforcements?"
"That's right." Joseph nodded, "Actually, what I'm most worried about is that he will run back to Brussels."
Lefebvre was startled: "Your Highness, it doesn't seem to have any impact if he goes back..."
Joseph looked at him with a smile and said: "It will affect our capture of Brussels."
Lefebvre felt a little dizzy. He originally thought that defeating the Prince of Coburg's troops and ensuring the security of the Walloon District would be the best situation. Unexpectedly, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had set his sights on the Flemish District.
Most of Brussels belongs to the Flemish region, with only the southern part falling within the Walloon region.
Lefebvre said with some hesitation: "Your Highness, the Southern Netherlands Front is mainly responsible for strategic defense. Is it appropriate to initiate such a large-scale offensive..."
Joseph smiled and said: "If the enemy is unable to attack, then our defensive goal will definitely be foolproof."
The attack on Brussels was indeed not in his original plan, but this time he unexpectedly quickly defeated the main force of the Prince of Coburg. Now a rare opportunity has appeared in the Southern Netherlands. This gave him new ideas.
There were no longer any Austrian troops in Brussels, only Vidovich's 25,000 Dutch regiment. Oh, there may not be so many now, after all they were routed once this afternoon by 4 cavalry companies.
Joseph knew very well the combat effectiveness of the Dutch army, which was definitely at the bottom of the European continent.
In other words, Brussels’ defense is unprecedentedly weak at this time.
When the old armies such as the Artois Army and the Reiter Army arrive at Wavre, he will have 23,000 soldiers in his hands, and it is very possible to capture Brussels!
(End of chapter)