Chapter 782 Looking at Lombardy
Napoleon looked at the white top of the mountain in the distance, without hesitation he tucked his horse under his belly and walked towards the hillside. He turned his head to the quartermaster and said:
"Don't worry about supplies, did you forget that there is the monastery of St. Bernard of Mercy on the mountain?"
He was talking about a monastery built halfway up the Alps by the monk Saint Bernard de Meun [Note 1] in the 11th century. In the following hundreds of years, after many expansions, it was now large enough to provide supplies for thousands of soldiers.
The munitions staff officer was stunned for a moment, then hurriedly caught up and said:
"Sir Commander, um, I must remind you that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince strictly prohibits us from 'privately collecting supplies' in Italian towns."
The so-called "collection of supplies" is actually a civilized way of saying military robbery.
Napoleon showed a sly smile:
"Yes, we will not collect supplies from Italy, but His Highness did not say that we would not be allowed to accept gifts from the monastery.
"Besides, Major Odolik is not here either. We can be more flexible on some things, right?"
Odolik was the military supervisor sent by Joseph to be responsible for logistics dispatch. At this time, he was following Dimobin to fight in the Diego area.
The military quartermaster is still trying to dissuade: "You see, even if we can get help from the priests, there will still be a shortage of supplies. The supplies in the monastery are enough for the army to consume for a week at most, and after we arrive at Bad Fortress, it may take a long time. It’s a tough battle, so we still wait for Brace’s supplies to arrive...”
"You don't have to worry about the fortress." Napoleon seemed confident, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has already 'solved' this for me.
"If we leave two days earlier, we will gain more strategic initiative."
Historically, the French army failed to make any progress after crossing the Great Saint Bernard Pass and storming Bad Fortress for half a month. Finally, some soldiers heard from nearby herdsmen that there was a path on the side of the fortress, and they were able to sneak over under the cover of night.
However, because of the previous battle to attack the fortress, the defenders were always on high alert. Therefore, only the infantry of the French army successfully passed through the path. The defenders discovered the cannon while transporting it.
The Austrian defenders began to block the path with artillery fire. The French army finally had to abandon the artillery behind them, and only 6 guns were able to enter the Italian area.
But this time, Joseph told Napoleon in advance that there was a path near Bad Fortress. The French army can pass quietly without alerting the defenders from the beginning, and then there is a high probability that the artillery can be transported through the fortress.
As for the specific location of the trail, Nahuang would naturally find the locals and ask.
Two days later.
French artillerymen, accompanied by the sound of military drums and shouting neat slogans, drove donkeys and mules to drag huge tree trunks halfway up the mountain.
This was the idea that came to the mind of the artillery battalion commander Marmont.
Hollow out the trunk, stuff the barrel inside, and tie it up so it can be dragged across the snow.
Without his invention, all the 12-pounder guns would have been left at the foot of the mountain - it was simply impossible to drive these nearly two-ton gun carriages up the steep hillside on the snow.
Towards dusk, the cavalry battalion of the Moulins Army took the lead in arriving at the Abbey of St. Bernard.
The monks did not need to be reminded and hurriedly took out food and wine from the cellar to "welcome the King."
The abbot of the monastery also personally sent a "big red envelope" of 200,000 francs to Napoleon, which can be said to have fully fulfilled the friendship of the landlord.
The next day, Napoleon bid farewell to the abbot, and with great hospitality, he asked the soldiers to take eight carts of grain and dried meat from the monastery and continue their journey. Amidst the enthusiastic barking of dozens of St. Bernard dogs behind him, Napoleon said to Marmont:
"You see, if Mr. Hannibal had served God back then, his soldiers might not have had to cross the Alps to starve. Oh, there were even extra allowances available." [Note 2]
The latter wondered: "You mean... allowance?"
"That's right, soldiers receive 10 francs each, and officers receive it according to their rank." Napoleon nodded.
He took out 150,000 francs from the dean's red envelope and gave it to the soldiers as allowances. After entering Italy, they became a lonely army and were in a dangerous situation, so it was necessary to properly boost morale.
A week later, Napoleon looked back at the Bad Fortress behind him and showed a proud smile.
He took a deep breath and said to himself:
"Praise to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince! You gave me the battlefield of Guangrao, and I will repay you with a glorious victory."
Just last night, he ordered his soldiers to spread hay mixed with dung on the path on the west side of the fortress to eliminate the sound of footsteps. After more than three hours, all soldiers, artillery and vehicles of the entire army successfully bypassed this strong fortress.
At this time, what appeared in front of Napoleon was the endless Lombardy Plain.
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【Northern Italy Map】
……
Just as Napoleon was preparing to step into the Great St. Bernard Pass, outside the town of Diego on the west side of Genoa, Roberto Vanoni looked back at the French army winding to the end of the field of vision, nervously squeezing his horse He took the reins and whispered to Demobin beside him: "Dear General, um, I don't mean to offend, I just want to confirm again. After arriving in Voltri, you will sign an agreement with our country."
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He was the emissary sent by Michelangelo Abbiaso, governor of Genoa.
Two days ago, an Austrian army brutally invaded Genoa and took control of the local administration and all defenses.
Abbiaso failed to negotiate with his commander, General Argentau, so at the suggestion of several congressmen, he sent envoys to contact the French army that entered the Italian peninsula.
What he didn't expect was that the French agreed without hesitation to help Genoa drive away the Austrians, and repeatedly reiterated that they would withdraw from Genoa immediately after the battle.
Demobin smiled and nodded: "When the Governor sends someone to authorize you, we can sign the agreement immediately.
"In fact, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has reiterated many times that Genoa's neutral port status must be respected. France will never intend to undermine this situation."
The Genoese envoy was overjoyed, with a respectful and flattering smile on his face, and said: "Praise be to the merciful and great Crown Prince. He is truly the spokesperson of God's order in the world, and he has brought fairness and justice to Italy! I swear that every citizen of Genoa will Your Highness’s selfless help will always be remembered!”
[Note 1] Saint Bernard de Meun: Bishop of Aosta and administrator of the Alps. To facilitate the rescue of travelers, he established a monastery and hospice high on an Alpine pass. His monks, with the help of trained search and rescue dogs, rescued many people trapped in the mountains due to bad weather and provided food and clothing.
(Saint Bernard Search and Rescue Dog)
[Note 2] Hannibal Barca: An ancient Carthaginian military strategist who led an army across the Alps to attack the Roman Republic in 218 BC. Because of the backward logistics and transportation capabilities at the time, tens of thousands of soldiers froze to death and starved to death in the process, but he finally reached Italy with difficulty and gave the Roman army an unexpected blow.
(End of chapter)