Traces of the Swiss

On the shores of Lake Constance, within the city of Bregenz, the forward base of the Austrian eastern front, Laszlo finally awaited the arrival of an Austro-Hungarian Army corps that had force-marched from Müstair Valley.

This corps had originally been stationed near Müstair Valley, preparing to seize the valley by force if negotiations failed, thereby opening a passage between Tyrol and Milan.

However, Laszlo's combination of threats and inducements successfully swayed the Three Leagues to his side.

The war with the Three Leagues was thus avoided, and the Rhine River valley, Switzerland's eastern gateway, opened its doors to Laszlo.

Now, Laszlo could choose to depart from Bregenz, cross the upper Rhine River mouth, and advance along the shores of Lake Constance towards Thurgau, and after recapturing Thurgau, turn towards Zurich.

He also had another route, which was to directly enter the Swiss heartland from the Rhine River valley mouth controlled by the Ten Jurisdictions League. The first route was undoubtedly more secure, as the terrain along the lake was relatively flat, and most of the lakeside areas were ancestral lands of the Habsburg Family.

During his days stationed in Bregenz, Laszlo received many representatives from towns and villages in the Thurgau region.

Many hoped to return to the rule of the Habsburg Family.

Regardless of their sincerity, Laszlo was confident he could push along Lake Constance all the way.

Advancing along the lake shore, the boats Laszlo temporarily requisitioned in Bregenz and other Tyrolean cities in the Rhine River valley could also greatly alleviate logistical pressure.

Although the second route could directly threaten the Swiss heartland, it meant Laszlo would have to lead his large army deep into complex mountainous terrain.

Having already been tormented by the mountains of Transylvania, Laszlo almost without hesitation chose the first route.

Fortunately, the Hussite War Wagon could still be utilized in the upcoming terrain.

A small interlude occurred before the army set off westward.

When a scout detachment from the Independent Army was reconnoitering near the Rhine River mouth, they discovered a Swiss detachment also on a reconnaissance mission near Fussach village on the opposite bank.

Due to many soldiers in the Independent Army originating from the Swabia region, their discrimination and prejudice against the Swiss were always profound.

This was not only due to the Swiss's continuous expansion, but more importantly, the good reputation of Swiss mercenaries made it difficult for these Swabian mercenaries to find well-paying work.

As the saying goes, cutting off someone's financial path is like killing their parents, so almost all Swabian mercenaries were skilled at quickly enraging the Swiss.

The veterans in this reconnaissance team were no exception.

Across the Rhine River, they successfully provoked the Swiss on the other side into losing their composure with highly targeted and insulting words.

The Swiss then crossed the bridge over the river, and both sides engaged in an enthusiastic exchange of martial arts.

The numerically inferior Swiss retreated in disarray after leaving behind a few bodies, but the Independent Army's reconnaissance team did not gain much advantage either.

This news was quickly reported to Laszlo, surprising him slightly.

The villages of Hard and Fussach, west of Bregenz, were still under Austrian rule, part of Tyrol.

The fact that a Swiss reconnaissance unit would cross Fussach village and appear at the Rhine River mouth was worth scrutinizing.

"Could it be that these Swiss intend to keep the enemy out of the mountains?" Laszlo said, staring at the map with some doubt.

"Ah, Your Majesty, those Swiss rabble have always been quite confident in their field battles, especially when they face..."

Gunter's words abruptly stopped, as the following content involved family shame, which he was unwilling to mention before the Emperor.

"Even with that much confidence, it wouldn't be to this extent, would it?" Laszlo suddenly felt a little unsure himself. Have the Swiss always been this brave?

Recalling the wars that had occurred over the past few centuries, it seemed to be true.

"Alright, I now suspect the Swiss might launch a surprise attack when we least expect it, or set up an ambush along our marching route.

For subsequent military operations, reconnaissance work must be guaranteed.

Gunter, as the vanguard, your Independent Army must diligently complete terrain and enemy reconnaissance."

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, I know how to deal with these mountain rats," Gunter promised, patting his chest.

The Emperor had already found some merchants familiar with the terrain and roads of St. Gallen, Thurgau, and Zurich to act as guides.

Their backgrounds were clean and trustworthy, and in the upcoming march, the guides would direct the Imperial Army.

"Karl, your Austro-Hungarian Army will still serve as the rearguard, responsible for protecting the artillery and heavy loads."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Considering that Karl's Austro-Hungarian Army had the highest proportion of cavalry among all Austrian armies, Laszlo decided to keep Karl in charge of rearguard duties.

Cavalry would likely have little effect in battles against the Swiss.

The Swiss's discipline was astonishing, and their phalanx's turning speed was enough to deter any cavalry.

The best use for cavalry was to encircle and harass the flanks of the phalanx when the vanguard was fighting the Swiss.

This timing needed to be precisely managed; Laszlo would not choose to charge the Swiss phalanx with cavalry unless it was a critical moment.

With the two main armies, one in front and one behind, Laszlo himself, leading the Imperial Guard, the Croatian Auxiliary Army, and some noble levies who voluntarily joined the Emperor from Tyrol and Swabia, steadily took the center.

This total of nearly twenty thousand troops, mighty and vast, crossed the Rhine River mouth and advanced into the sphere of influence of the Swiss Confederation.

According to normal thinking, St. Gallen should have been the first objective on the army's path.

Appenzell, which bordered Tyrol, had not yet joined the Swiss Confederation, and before the Emperor's arrival, its inhabitants had sent representatives to express their loyalty to the Emperor.

After passing Appenzell, the army would reach St. Gallen.

This city was built around St. Gallen Abbey, and its name came from the abbey's founder, the Irish missionary Gallus.

St. Gallen was once an important center of the Toggenburg county, and to the southwest of St. Gallen, across a few small mountains, one could reach Toggenburg.

After the Swiss Confederation swallowed the Toggenburg family's territory, a large area of land, including St. Gallen, plus the recently occupied Thurgau, were designated as federal condominiums.

The city itself was also situated in a narrow valley, serving as a pass.

Around St. Gallen, almost a third of the land was covered by forests, with the remaining part being hilly grasslands.

Undoubtedly, taking this route would lead the army into extremely complex mountainous terrain. Therefore, Laszlo did not expend energy and time besieging St. Gallen, but instead continued to march west along the shores of Lake Constance with his army.

In any case, Laszlo did not want to suffer any hardship, nor did he want his soldiers to suffer, so he led them to gallop along the flat lakeside lowlands.

On this relatively flat land, the speed of cavalry and war wagons was even faster than when marching through the Tyrolean valleys.

Wherever the army went, the populace welcomed them wholeheartedly; those who did not were razed to the ground by the vanguard Independent Army.

Large numbers of boats transported military supplies back and forth between Bregenz and the army's location, allowing Laszlo to restrain his soldiers, minimizing their plundering of villages and towns.

The Thurgau region they were currently in had been territory of the Habsburg Family just a few years prior, and after this war, it would undoubtedly return to the Habsburg Family.

Laszlo did not want to personally create a scorched earth and then spend a great deal of effort on reconstruction, as that would undoubtedly cause him to lose popular support.

The ambush he had worried about from the Swiss also did not occur; the army advanced rapidly, taking only about a week to rush from Bregenz all the way to Constance.

In the city of Constance, the Emperor received a warm welcome. The anxious citizens secretly rejoiced at the Emperor's arrival.

Inside the Constance City Hall, the Bishop of Constance, the city magistrate, and the commander of the Constance garrison were currently reporting the latest intelligence to the Emperor.

"I see many bodies piled outside the city, and women and priests are still collecting them. Can someone tell me what happened?" Laszlo's expression was somewhat grim; he had many questions now.

As soon as he entered the city, he noticed that the Constance garrison seemed to consist entirely of remnants of a defeated army, and their scale was small, only a few hundred men.

They were like startled birds, even being greatly alarmed by the Imperial Army's arrival.

These dispirited individuals were clearly unable to defend Constance's southern district.

The mountains of bodies piled outside Constance's South Gate, emitting a nauseating stench in the summer heat, were impossible for anyone to ignore.

Moreover, the enthusiasm of Constance's citizens upon seeing him, or rather, upon seeing his double-headed eagle banner, was clearly genuine, far exceeding any welcome he had received before.

"Your Majesty, we encountered the main force of the Swiss in Schwaderloh village south of the city.

In that bloody battle, we lost over a thousand brave men; less than a third of the army survived and now serve as the Constance garrison," the garrison commander, a Swabian noble, explained, bracing himself.

"I heard that you destroyed several villages in Thurgau within five days and were ambushed by the Swiss while plundering Schwaderloh," Laszlo said, his eyes coldly fixed on the garrison commander.

Even he was reluctant to allow his army to wantonly plunder Thurgau, yet this fellow had led his army to wantonly destroy villages and massacre civilians.

Without thinking, this was another unlucky individual who tried his luck. He and several other minor nobles along Lake Constance had conscripted an army of over a thousand men and assembled them in Constance.

While waiting for the Imperial Army to arrive, they used the excuse of investigating enemy intelligence to wreak havoc on all the villages south of Constance.

Plundering wealth was probably the fundamental reason they supported the Emperor and participated in this war.

However, their luck was very bad.

Both Laszlo and these opportunistic Swabian nobles believed the Swiss would intercept the Imperial Army near the Rhine River valley in the east, never expecting the Swiss army to be stationed near Zurich.

When the Swiss learned that the Swabian army was extensively plundering Thurgau, the Thurgau-St. Gallen corps quickly rushed over and crashed into the rampaging Swabian army in Schwaderloh.

After a battle that could be described as a massacre, the Swabians no longer dared to step out of Constance, only able to obediently await the arrival of the main Imperial force.

Looking at the actions of these Swabians, and then considering the more than ten thousand strong Swabian army from Outer Austria led by the Margrave of Baden and the Count of Württemberg, Laszlo was already prepared to receive Aargau, which would likely be reduced to a scorched earth.

"Your Majesty, those villages were loyal to the Swiss, gathering places for rebels against you; we had no choice but to destroy these traitorous strongholds for you.

Moreover, we left Constance at great risk, actually to help you ascertain the Swiss's whereabouts."

There was some truth to this; the Swabians, with over a thousand lives, confirmed for Laszlo that the Swiss were definitely waiting for him somewhere along the Constance-Zurich line. Laszlo was still somewhat displeased and intended to mock this self-acting fellow.

"I'll tentatively believe your words, but how is it that I heard your army immediately routed as soon as they encountered the Swiss in Schwaderloh?"

In reality, the Swiss forces deployed might have been even smaller than the Swabian ones, but a public flight and a shameful defeat led to tragedy. The Swiss army pursued the Swabians all the way to the gates of Constance.

They maintained their consistent policy of leaving no survivors, effectively cutting down more than half of the Swabian army.

These "considerate" Swiss later gathered all the bodies scattered along the road from Schwaderloh to Constance and brought them to the gates of Constance.

This act directly caused widespread panic in Constance; citizens prayed to God in Constance's churches all day, hoping for the Emperor's army to arrive soon.

As a hub caught between the Swabian League and the Swiss Confederation, Constance's days were destined to be difficult.

Fortunately, the Emperor's army finally arrived, and during this period, the Swiss also did not attack the anxious Constance.

"Your Majesty... those despicable Swiss are very fond of launching surprise attacks in the evening.

My troops were setting up camp when they suddenly burst out of the dark and terrifying forest; we had no chance to organize a defense and could only fight and retreat.

Those fierce Swiss pursued relentlessly, wanting to wipe us out entirely. Fortunately, by God's grace, I and these warriors under my command barely escaped with our lives."

Hearing the commander's sophistry, Laszlo found it amusing.

They perhaps shouldn't thank God, but rather their parents for giving them a pair of legs that could run faster than their comrades'.

"You and your subordinates have made enough sacrifices for the Empire. You will now continue to bear the task of guarding Constance; I will defeat those Swiss."

"Your Majesty, we are all eager to personally seek revenge!" Another one trying to ride the coattails of the situation, Laszlo shook his head, a mocking smile on his lips.

"Then how about letting your men serve as the vanguard for me?"

"Uh, Your Majesty, actually, protecting Constance is also an important mission; I am willing to undertake this arduous task."

After dismissing this bully who preyed on the weak and lacked any sense of honor, Laszlo then appeased the uneasy emotions of the Bishop of Constance and the city magistrate.

He hoped to use Constance as the forward base for the upcoming attack on Zurich.

All supplies stored in Bregenz would be transported here by lake, directly eliminating concerns about the Imperial Army's stretched supply lines.

The Bishop and the city magistrate immediately agreed to the Emperor's request; they also promised to raise more provisions and military supplies for the Imperial Army.

Laszlo always adhered to a steady, step-by-step tactical and strategic approach, and this time was no exception.

After resting and resupplying in Constance, the army immediately set off south, marching towards Zurich, the ultimate goal of this war.