Chapter 324: The Resilience of the Southern Netherlands Rebels

Chapter 324: The Resilience of the Southern Netherlands Rebels

At 10:30 a.m., Blücher, the Prussian commander in the Southern Netherlands, received a report from his vanguard. They had regrouped with Altmann's forces and spotted the Austrian defensive line.

Blücher was delighted. As long as Reál's Austrian forces hadn't escaped, the battle for Luxembourg was nearly won. He was about to order a full assault on the Austrians when a group of hussars came galloping toward him, shouting from a distance, "Report! General, a large enemy force has appeared half a mile to the south, with at least 7,000 to 8,000 troops!"

Blücher frowned. Where had these enemies come from? He had scouts spread out two miles wide, almost reaching Diekirch, and had received no reports of other troops. Even the Austrian defenders in Diekirch couldn't have advanced so far in half a day to suddenly appear right in front of him!

Two miles (about 15 kilometers) was a broad scouting range, and Blücher had been sufficiently cautious. But he hadn't anticipated facing the freakishly fast-moving French Imperial Guard.

Another hussar added, "General, judging by their uniforms, they appear to be French."

Blücher was stunned. French? How was that possible? Just days earlier, his intelligence reports indicated that the French forces gathering in Verdun were headed to Silesia. How could they have suddenly diverted to Luxembourg without warning?

He clenched his riding crop tightly, cursing to himself: "Those fools in the intelligence department—I'll make sure to report this to the king in Potsdam!" But the immediate concern was the French, who were already very close. He had to act quickly.

After marking the French positions on the map, Blücher's face darkened. In his haste to prevent Reál's escape, he had ordered his troops to move quickly, forming a long, narrow line stretching east to west. And now, the French had appeared right in the middle of this line!

If he continued his assault on the Austrians, the French would inevitably strike his center, potentially cutting his army in two. Despite his numerical advantage, such a maneuver could lead to his forces being isolated and defeated in detail.

A nearby staff officer whispered, "General, perhaps we should focus on the French for now…"

Blücher glared at him, snarling, "We can't let Reál get away!"

Austria had been entrenched in Luxembourg for decades, wielding significant influence. If Reál started playing cat-and-mouse with him across Luxembourg and Liège, it would delay Blücher's arrival in Silesia indefinitely.

Surveying the map, Blücher's eyes suddenly brightened. "Thank God! The Netherlands troops are right in front of the French." He turned to his staff officer. "They're a tough nut to crack! Order the Barkhausen regiment to join Altmann in attacking the Austrians. I want this battle over by 2 p.m.!"

"Yes, General!" The aide quickly noted down the orders.

Blücher then pointed to a mountain pass on the map. "Have the Netherlands troops hold this pass at all costs. They only need to hold out until 3 p.m., by which time Dietrich's regiment will strike the French left flank from the west."

The Southern Netherlands rebels had shown incredible resilience in previous battles against both his forces and the Austrian Wurmser. These fervent freedom fighters were especially tenacious, with their clerics continuing to fight even after losing an arm, holding the line for an extra ten minutes!

In a previous encounter, nearly 10,000 Netherlands troops had held out against the Austrian main force for almost five hours. It wasn't until Duke Brunswick completed a flanking maneuver and encircled the Austrians that the rebels finally faltered.

Now, despite having only 5,000 men, the Netherlands troops could probably hold off the 7,000 to 8,000 French troops for four hours, especially if they had the advantage of narrow terrain. Moreover, Blücher planned to leave some cavalry and artillery to support them, making the task easier than last time.

This was the most conservative estimate. If Altmann quickly defeated the Austrians, he could then encircle the French from the east.

A staff officer suggested, "General, should we send cavalry to harass the French and slow them down?"

Blücher nodded. "Send Hild with six cavalry squadrons to raid them."

While the overall quality of the Prussian army had declined since the days of Frederick the Great, the cavalry, almost entirely composed of Junker nobles, still had considerable fighting strength and often influenced the outcome of battles.

Blücher then deployed his artillery and main dragoon forces, and the orders were swiftly relayed to each unit.

The long, stretched-out Prussian column quickly responded. The 5,000 Netherlands rebels formed a defensive line in the mountain pass, blocking the French. The forward Barkhausen regiment continued its advance, aiming to destroy the Austrian forces as quickly as possible. Hild's regiment, initially at the rear, pivoted south to strike the French left flank.

Blücher positioned all his artillery on the hills flanking the Netherlands troops, ready to prevent the French from breaking through. He also held back ten dragoon squadrons—about 1,500 men—ready to swing around the French right flank when the time was right.

It was a nearly textbook-perfect deployment, maximizing his numerical superiority.

But in Prussian military textbooks, there was no mention of an enemy like the French Imperial Guard.

What Blücher thought was sound strategy might turn out to be a deadly trap.

…

Around noon, the main force of the French Imperial Guard arrived within two kilometers of the mountain pass where Blücher had set up his defense.

Though called a mountain pass, the area was relatively broad, with a three-kilometer-wide plain between the low hills on either side. Controlling the middle of this pass would prevent enemy movement, allowing them to easily cut off any advancing troops with a slanted formation, while cavalry would mop up the isolated units.

Through his telescope, Berthier spotted the enemy infantry lines at the pass and turned to Joseph. "Your Highness, it seems the Prussians are confident. They're preparing for a decisive battle while simultaneously attacking Major Lefebvre."

The two infantry lines ahead, which an experienced commander could estimate held no more than 6,000 men, clearly weren't Blücher's main force. This meant that the Prussians had split their troops.

Joseph smiled and nodded. "It seems their scouts haven't accurately gauged our numbers."

(End of Chapter)

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