Chapter 300: Persistence and Defeat
Chapter 300: Persistence and Defeat
Over 10,000 Netherland rebels formed two long infantry lines on a gentle slope, with each line consisting of three tightly packed rows of soldiers. From a distance, they appeared to be well-organized.
However, their mismatched uniforms and the variety of flintlock muskets they carried clearly revealed that they were nothing more than a hastily assembled ragtag army.
In fact, it had taken them six hours to form these infantry lines this morning, and the few Dutch officers in charge were so exhausted that their legs were cramping.
When these ragtag soldiers saw the vast Austrian army beginning to move in the distance, with large numbers of skirmishers swarming towards them like ants, their hands started to tremble uncontrollably.
Behind them, over a thousand Prussian soldiers were shouting loudly: "Stay calm, don't do anything!"
The priests among the Netherland ranks whispered to the soldiers beside them, "Don't think about anything, just load as fast as you can. And listen carefully for the drumbeat."
When the fastest Austrian skirmishers appeared 80 paces in front of the Netherland lines, they began hiding behind tall grass or stones, firing at the Southern Netherlanders.
A few bullets whizzed through the air, striking the infantry lines. Some soldiers immediately screamed and fell to the ground, writhing in pain.
The Prussian soldiers behind them shouted, "Don't move! Get the dead out of the way! Keep the formation tight! Hurry!"
But the untrained Netherlanders seemed to barely hear them, either shouting in panic with the wounded or instinctively raising their guns to aim at the distant Austrians.
As the main Austrian force continued to advance, the skirmishers began to spread out to the sides, leaving the front of the battlefield open.
Estimating that the distance between the two infantry lines was now less than 100 paces, the Prussian officers ordered the Netherlanders to begin loading their weapons.
Messengers on horseback relayed the loading orders, while the drummers beat out a specific rhythm for loading—soldiers who followed this rhythm would achieve the highest loading efficiency.
The Austrians continued advancing, and when they were just 60 paces away, they still showed no sign of stopping or firing.
The Netherland lines finally cracked under the pressure—the sight of nearly 10,000 men bearing down on them filled the soldiers with sheer panic, and they could think of nothing but trying to drive these men away by any means.
Scattered gunfire broke out across the line. The Prussian officers, worried that this undisciplined force would waste all their ammunition, ordered the entire line to fire.
Amidst the chaos, the Netherlanders managed a half-minute-long "volley," but the result was underwhelming—the Austrians, still in tight formation, continued to advance.
When the two sides were just 50 paces apart, the Austrian army finally halted. Accompanied by a rapid drumbeat, the soldiers raised their flintlock muskets.
"Fire!"
At the command of the Austrian officers, a massive volley erupted from the endless infantry line, punching hundreds of small holes in the Netherland formation.
A Netherland priest screamed, "Don't be afraid! Reload! For your families, to drive out the Habsburg tyrants, hold your ground!"
Perhaps motivated by this rallying cry, the ragtag soldiers, despite trembling hands, managed to reload their weapons, gritting their teeth as they waited for the Prussian officers' next command.
On a distant hill, General Würmser frowned as he watched the battlefield through his telescope.
His fierce grenadiers had unleashed more than ten volleys at the Netherlanders, killing at least a thousand, but the enemy showed no signs of breaking.
And behind the Netherland infantry lines was another line of soldiers. Behind that, there were likely Prussians.
"Damn these rebels! Why are they still standing there?" he cursed under his breath, considering whether to deploy more skirmishers to attack the enemy's flanks, when he suddenly heard the urgent sound of hoofbeats approaching rapidly.
As he turned, the rider gasped, "G-General, the Prussians are flanking our right wing!"
Before Würmser could respond, his aide rushed up with a telescope, exclaiming, "General, there's unrest among the cavalry on the left wing. It could be enemy forces there!"
Würmser's face darkened immediately. It seemed the Prussians weren't behind the Netherland infantry lines. That scoundrel Brunswick had used his main force to sneak around and attack both flanks!
He angrily swung his cane and shouted at the messenger, "Order Schröder to break through the enemy's front line at all costs, and as quickly as possible! If we can crush their infantry line first, victory will be ours!"
In the large-scale battles of this era, the front line was like the abdomen of a person—once it was breached, the commander would be the first to be endangered. Due to poor communication, if the commander had to move quickly to escape an enemy attack, messengers would immediately lose track of him, causing the entire army to lose coordination.
Moreover, losing the frontline meant that the artillery and cavalry would no longer have a safe area to regroup, effectively rendering these units combat ineffective.
So as long as they won the frontal engagement, the losses on the flanks wouldn't matter.
The grenadiers on the right side of the Austrian line pushed forward even more aggressively, returning fire as they advanced under a hail of bullets from the Netherlanders.
Finally, after suffering heavy casualties, they managed to tear open a gap on the left side of the Netherland line.
The Austrian skirmishers, like sharks smelling blood, immediately swarmed through the gap, targeting officers and drummers to further disrupt the enemy.
General Würmser watched with excitement as the first Netherland infantry line began to collapse, clenching his fists. But then he anxiously turned towards the right, where the faint sound of Prussian cavalry hooves could already be heard.
Austrian cavalry were generally no match for the Prussians, and Würmser had already sent some of them to reinforce the left wing, so they wouldn't be able to hold off the Prussians for long.
He anxiously scanned the battlefield with his telescope, mentally urging Schröder to break through the Netherlanders' second line as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile, Duke Brunswick lowered his telescope and casually said to his messenger, "Tell the Netherlanders that if they hold on for just 15 more minutes, the Austrians will be driven from this land."
He could estimate the speed of his main force, which by now should have engaged the Austrian right wing.
Yes, his cavalry was just a diversion—he had committed all 14,000 of his main Prussian troops to outflank the Austrian right wing, his true ace!
Through his recent interactions with the Southern Netherlanders, he had gained a deep respect for their resilience.
Despite their low combat effectiveness and inability to form proper ranks, their morale was extraordinarily high—perhaps driven by their pursuit of so-called freedom, they were willing to die to drive out the Austrian Emperor. Especially the priests, who seemed fearless, as if ready to ascend to heaven, facing any enemy without hesitation.
So he judged that while the Netherlanders were incapable of defeating the Austrian army, they could certainly hold Würmser in place.
On the distant battlefield, the battered Netherland second line appeared to be on the verge of collapse, yet it held firm, refusing to break.
Despite the Prussian officers behind them being killed by stray bullets and the growing chaos, the Netherlanders stood their ground, awkwardly reloading their weapons with trembling hands and firing wildly at the Austrians, not moving a step until death claimed them...
Meanwhile, the Austrian right wing was being utterly crushed by the overwhelming Prussian forces.
(End of chapter)
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