Chapter 219 The Crown Prince's First Battle

Chapter 220 The Crown Prince’s First Battle

Nafzai Mountains.

Seimezi said to the herald on the side: "General Kehel asked us to send double the number of scouts. Clear out all the Tunisian untouchables nearby."

"Yes, Commander!"

As soon as the herald left, a messenger galloped along the endless queue of Albanian mercenaries and handed a piece of information to Seimezi's attendant.

The latter opened it and read it again, then bowed to Seimezi and signaled: "Commander, the Tunisian Bey issued a statement a few days ago, objecting to our interference in Tunisian affairs, and is very angry about our counter-insurgency operations. In addition, He also mentioned that he asked French brothers to help stop our army. "

"Ignore it." Semiez smiled disdainfully, "Tunisian untouchables actually became brothers with Europeans? They are simply a shame to the Islamic world!"

The attendant put away the information: "Pasha, Tunisians do business with Europeans all year round, and there are a large number of French people in the territory. It is not surprising that they will be affected by them.

"By the way, I heard that those Tunisian untouchables started calling themselves 'descendants of Rome'. It's really ridiculous."

"That's good, I will be even more excited when I kill them." Seimezi waved his riding crop forward, "Send the order and speed up the march. I will make those untouchables regret their rebellion!"

…

"Look! That's His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

Someone in the queue of police cadets, who were wearing white military uniforms, black tricorn hats and carrying the latest model August-style flash cap guns, pointed not far away and shouted.

Suddenly, there was chaos in the neat marching team. The soldiers looked up and shouted excitedly: "It's really His Highness! He is here to fight with us!"

"I saw it too! Long live His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

"Long live the principal!"

"Your Highness will lead us to victory!"

"Look, His Highness is walking just like us!"

It wasn't until the officers ran back and forth to give orders that the team finally realigned itself and began to move forward.

Joseph heard the sound and waved to the soldiers, which immediately caused a huge cheer.

He looked back at the team that stretched halfway up the hillside, feeling filled with pride. This is his Guards Corps, and he will fight with them on the battlefield for the first time.

Perhaps, in the future, I will take them throughout Europe and leave a glorious chapter in history.

"Your Highness, you really don't have to fight with the army." Berthier glanced at the excited soldiers and whispered to Joseph, "The number of enemies this time is three times ours. It is really too dangerous. .

"You see, your presence has greatly boosted morale. Even if you stay in a safe place now, the soldiers will still feel that you are with them."

He looked to the north and said carefully: "Actually, if you agree, we can turn to the coast now, and it will only take less than three days to board the navy's warship."

"Huh? Battleship?" Joseph was a little surprised. "Shouldn't the nearest battleship be in the Port of Bizerte? Why is it here?"

Berthier lowered his head and said: "Both Lieutenant Colonel Andre and I believe that you should not risk participating in the battle, so we had people contact the United Fleet, and they sent a ship to follow..."

Joseph smiled bitterly and shook his head: "I know you have good intentions, Lieutenant Colonel Berthier, but this is really unnecessary."

He motioned to the advancing white queue: "This is my legion. I will often lead them in battles in the future. This is just the beginning."

Joseph knew very well that in this era where war was used to determine the right to survive, he had to be able to fight - only a king who knew how to use troops could bring prosperity and strength to his country.

At the moment, although he can't command the battle yet, he still wants to be with the army and let the soldiers know that their crown prince does not just sit in the Palace of Versailles and enjoy it, but lives with them through life and death. Only such an army can become one's own army and one's support.

In addition, although I can't fight yet, I have a large number of later generations' concepts and military cases that I can refer to, thereby making useful suggestions for combat deployment.

For example, this preemptive attack tactic can greatly reduce the losses of troops and win the strategic initiative. You can designate the general direction yourself, and leave the specific operations to military geniuses like Berthier and others. You can also learn to fight by following them.

Berthier tried to persuade him for a while, but when he saw that the crown prince remained unmoved, he had no choice but to give up.

He made a last effort: "Your Highness, at least get back to the carriage."

Joseph raised his eyes and looked at the special terrain of the Atlas Mountains - low mountains, full of light yellow hard soil, almost no plants higher than 20 centimeters, and only a few weeds, sparsely dotted here. on the ground. It seemed extremely empty and desolate.

There are no "jewel" carriages equipped with high-end shock absorbers in the army. Riding a carriage on this kind of road is almost like being punished.

He had also tried riding a horse before, but due to the lack of training, he had large blisters on his inner thighs in just one day, so he had to walk forward.

But I didn't expect that such a great boost to morale would be a mistake.

As the sky grew darker, the sound of the military drums in the ranks of the Guards began to change its tune, and finally stopped along with the sound of the trumpets.

The officers of each company began to direct the soldiers to the preset resting place - the scouts had already explored the situation ahead on horseback and marked the area suitable for overnight stay.

The soldiers had a simple dinner, sang and drank to relax for half an hour - wine was a necessary military supply, and everyone's quota would not make you drunk - then they spread the blankets on the ground and slept in the open air.

The distance between each person was about half a meter, like neat little squares, covering the Atlas Mountains with a unique "carpet".

In the officer's tent, Joseph drank vegetable beef soup and watched Berthier and others discuss combat deployment around the map.

"Since the day before yesterday, we have encountered more and more Algiers scouts. It seems that they should not be far from here." The commander of the cavalry battalion said.

Berthier pointed to the west of Nafzai: "We will be here tomorrow. Be prepared for encounters at any time."

A major next to him laughed and said: "The Algiers must have thought we were still in Tunisia. Who knew we had already rushed to their noses."

Berthier smiled and nodded: "Your Highness's tactics will definitely catch the enemy off guard. I am so looking forward to seeing their shocked expressions when they meet our army."

Yes, Joseph's plan is to attack as defense. Using the high-speed marching ability of the Guards Corps, it took three and a half days to march 110 kilometers from Tunisia City to the border between Algiers and Tunisia.

Then, on the battlefield of his choice, he caught the marching Algiers army off guard.

The Algiers army, which set out a week earlier than the Guards Corps, has just arrived east of Annaba, which means it has walked more than 170 kilometers.

Berthier suddenly remembered something and turned to ask the staff officer beside him: "Where is the Moulin Corps?"

"Here." The staff officer pointed to the west of Bizerte on the map, "It's still a day's journey away from us."

Berthier frowned and looked at Joseph again: "The Algiers Army is very close to us and may discover us at any time. Perhaps Lieutenant Colonel Andre's infantry will not have time to participate in the first battle."

The Moulin Corps is considered to be quite outstanding among the old French army, but in terms of marching speed, there is still a big gap with the Guards Corps. So they only have more than 400 cavalry to catch up with the Guards Corps, and the infantry is far behind.

Joseph did not express much, after all, if a real fight came, he, an officer who had just entered the ranks, would have no say.

"This is your authority, respected commander."

Although Berthier's command level is not as good as Lannes, Soult, Massena and other "super first-class players", he can at least rank in the middle of the marshal pool of Emperor Napoleon, and it should not be difficult to deal with the Algiers Guards.

"Thank you for your trust, Your Highness."

Berthier bowed to Joseph and then looked at the map: "From Nafzai to the northwest, the terrain is uphill all the way. I think it is most advantageous to have a decisive battle near here."

Joseph looked at the contour lines on the map-the Tunisian Mountains are on the south side of Annaba, so the route from Algiers to Tunisia is mostly high and overlooking. Only the short section from Nafzai to Bizerte encounters some intermittent hills, which makes the terrain slightly lower.

Le Drian, a police academy officer on the side, also nodded in agreement: "The terrain here is indeed good. It's just that our scouts haven't found the main force of the Algiers yet..."

As he was talking, he heard the sound of hurried horse hooves, and then a scout cavalry quickly entered the tent and said loudly: "Your Highness, Lieutenant Colonel, we have found a large group of enemy troops, the number should be more than 10,000. Judging from their clothes and weapons, they seem to be Albanian mercenaries."

"Why are there only more than 10,000 people?" Berthier asked in confusion.

"It's not clear, Lieutenant Colonel. But it won't be too different."

How could he know that the Albanian mercenaries relied on their slightly faster marching speed to leave the Algiers Guards behind by more than ten kilometers in order to enter Tunisia first to plunder.

Considering that the troops were still in Algiers, Semiz let him go.

Berthier asked the scouts about the specific location of the enemy, quickly measured it on the map, and turned to several senior officers in the tent and said: "It is only more than 20 kilometers away from us. It seems that we will encounter it as early as tomorrow noon.

"If the enemy is out of touch, it will be a rare opportunity for us!"

...

In the desert of the Atlas Mountains, five cavalrymen wearing Ottoman-style light yellow robes, loose breeches on their legs, and pointed boots on their feet were galloping westward along the slope of the hill on the north side.

Suddenly, the cavalryman in the front raised his hand and gestured, whispering in French: "There are enemies! "

The other four immediately looked up and saw three or four Algiers scouts.

The other side obviously saw them, and with disdain for the Tunisian pariahs, they howled, drew their scimitars and rushed over in a horizontal line.

The "Tunisian pariahs" reacted very quickly, turning to the right front and taking out their short-barreled lances from the saddle.

The distance between the two sides quickly closed, and the "Tunisian pariahs" chose the moment when they were closest to aim at the opposite side and fired a volley.

An Algiers cavalryman immediately flew out sideways, but his foot tripped on the stirrup and was dragged hundreds of meters by the warhorse.

The "Tunisian pariahs" skillfully put away their guns and drew their sabers. Under the leadership of the commander, they made an arc and turned their horses' heads to run behind the Algiers.

The latter was startled and hurriedly pulled the reins to the left, trying to catch up with the enemy.

At this moment, the "Tunisian pariah" suddenly turned sharply and galloped to the right, so that the two sides became an "eight"-shaped confrontation.

The Algiers were obviously a little flustered. At the moment when the horses of both sides were side by side, two of them were chopped down by the "Tunisian pariah". The remaining one was terrified and ran away.

The cavalry battle was a test of courage. Whoever ran away first would basically become a fish on the chopping board - it was easy for others to swing their knives forward, but it was almost impossible to twist their waists and chop behind them.

The "Tunisian pariah" chased him closely, ran four or five hundred meters, and chopped him off his horse with a knife.

The five victorious cavalrymen were full of excitement on their faces, and they turned back to clean up the battlefield: "They actually rushed over, thank them so much!"

"Sergeant Aubin, are these four guys enough for us to be promoted to the next level?"

"Well, Blanche just killed two, and he will definitely be promoted to sergeant. As for you, it seems that you didn't get any, so don't even think about it."

"Damn it! Let's keep moving forward, we should still encounter enemy scouts."

Five Tunisian-dressed Guards cavalrymen quickly mounted their horses and continued to clear the enemy's scout cavalry along the edge of the designated battlefield.

The same situation appeared everywhere nearby. Berthier sent half of the cavalry to clear the enemy's scouts in Tunisian costumes. He still had 400 Mulan cavalry in his hands, so he didn't worry about the cavalry's physical strength.

In this way, although the Albanian mercenaries noticed something wrong, they always thought that it was just the Tunisian tribal forces harassing them.

It was not until they were less than 5 kilometers away from the Guards that Semiz realized that there was an army of thousands of people on the other side - in the unobstructed Atlas Mountains, the army on the other side could be seen directly with a telescope at this distance.

The Albanian mercenaries were still on the march before, and Semiz hurriedly ordered to change the battle formation. As the officers passed the order down, the Albanians suddenly became a mess with shouts and neighs.

Completely different from the war scenes in movies and TV dramas, the real battle was never that the officers gave an order and the soldiers immediately lined up like machines, took out their weapons fiercely and started fighting.

With the communication capabilities of the 18th century, it took more than 20 minutes for the 13,000 mercenaries to convey the order of "changing the battle formation" to every soldier.

When they lined up, it was even more chaotic. You blocked my way, I took his place, and some soldiers couldn't even find their officers.

The Guards had already made preparations. When the infantry approached about 2 kilometers from the enemy, the front team stopped and the rear team kept the column to the sides.

After only ten minutes, a formation of more than 30 rows in front and nearly 100 columns in each row was formed.

Then the drums sounded, and dozens of drummers took the lead in marching forward, and the infantry battalion quickly followed.

More than ten minutes later, the long marching line of Albanian mercenaries had just barely gathered together, and the Guards Corps had already approached them 500 meters away.

On the hillside behind, Berthier put down the telescope and signaled to the messenger: "Order, the infantry will deploy into battle formation. The artillery will start firing."