Chapter 803: The Situation Along the Rhine
When the Crown Prince arrived, the officers immediately stopped their discussion and rose to salute.
"Your Highness, you're here."
"Your Highness."
Joseph stepped to the table, smiled, and gestured for everyone to sit. "Let's begin the meeting."
As usual, a staff officer stood before the map to brief the senior commanders on the latest battlefield developments.
Captain Ferris used a thin wooden pointer to indicate the area north of Luxembourg. "Currently, the Prussian Ferdinand Corps, totaling 86,000 men, is concentrated east of Marnach, preparing to launch an attack on the city of Luxembourg.
"Lieutenant Colonel Masséna has completed all combat preparations along the Wiltz–Grevenmacher line. At the same time, our diversionary buildup at Verdun will continue to expand.
"As soon as Ferdinand begins his advance toward Luxembourg City, the Masséna Corps will, as planned, intercept them near Diekirch, launching a counterattack along a thirty-kilometer front."
Joseph nodded slightly.
He had personally participated in drafting this battle plan.
Though Masséna's corps had only 65,000 troops, in combat strength it was no weaker than Ferdinand's—namely, the Duke of Brunswick's—80,000-plus men.
Masséna commanded nothing less than the Royal 1st Infantry Division, the Royal Longsword Grenadier Battalion, and the Royal 1st Horse Artillery Battalion—truly France's elite forces.
Arguably, the finest in all of Europe.
Earlier, Masséna had waged several feigned skirmishes with the Duke of Brunswick's army, steadily "retreating" all the way from the Luxembourg border to the city itself.
Meanwhile, the French lines at Verdun bustled with activity. Massive convoys came and went; thousands of troops seemed to move in daily, presenting the image of an impregnable defensive effort.
In truth, fewer than three thousand local garrison soldiers manned Verdun. The so-called flood of "supplies" consisted merely of thirty-odd wagons carrying random goods during the day, then leaving by night via the Meuse River, only to repeat the routine day after day.
Verdun, perched on the only high ground on France's eastern frontier, was fortified with a chain of strongholds—Paris's gateway defense.
By preparing to defend Verdun, France seemed to signal it was abandoning the now "untenable" Luxembourg.
The Duke of Brunswick, likely informed by his spies, was eager to seize the seemingly easy prize of Luxembourg before marching straight into France.
At this stage, nearly all his forces had crossed into Luxembourg's territory.
Originally, Masséna had been preparing to face 110,000 enemy troops, but over half a month earlier, Emperor Francis II had ordered 30,000 men from the Kalkreuth and Kleffart Corps redeployed to reinforce Brussels.
That contingent had been Brunswick's reserve army.
This reduction dramatically eased Masséna's pressure. Under these circumstances, if Brunswick still blundered into Masséna's ambush and Masséna failed to win, he might as well resign and go home.
And this time, since Brunswick had mobilized his entire force, a defeat would leave the coalition with no available troops anywhere in the Rhineland.
The Rhineland referred to the lands along the west bank of the Rhine River, from Aachen down to the Palatinate.
West of it lay the Southern Netherlands and Holland, south connected to France, and to the east the heartland of Germany. It was the strategic buffer zone between France and the German states. Whenever war erupted in Europe, it was the inevitable battlefield.
At present, the region belonged to Prussian and Bavarian influence, as well as the Duchy of Trier.
Captain Ferris then pointed his stick toward Freiburg, on the eastern side of the map. "In the southern Rhine sector, Austria's 90,000-strong Wirmser Corps is preparing to march south toward Basel.
"According to analysis by the General Staff, they likely intend to cross the river at the 'Knee of the Rhine,' bypassing the Strasbourg fortress from the south via Alsace, and then advance toward Lorraine. [Note 1]
"The Moreau Corps has completed its combat deployment according to the existing plan."
The Moreau Corps had only 45,000 soldiers. Though these were elite formations of the new army, their numbers still paled against the 90,000 Austrians. Their mission was one of strategic defense.
Basel, a small Swiss border city, held key geographical importance as a major crossing near the "Knee of the Rhine."
However, Switzerland's weakness made Basel practically an open thoroughfare—Austrians, French, Bavarians alike came and went at will.
Thus, France could not depend on Switzerland to resist invasion.
Moreau would move to intercept the Austrians while they attempted to cross near Basel.
When Captain Ferris finished, Lefebvre stood. "According to Lieutenant Colonel Masséna's estimates, the general offensive will begin in about five days. At that time, the Moreau Corps will also launch a raid against the Austrian pontoon bridge east of Basel."
He turned to Joseph and bowed slightly. "Your Highness, we briefly discussed earlier that our forces could fall back to defend Brussels. Doing so would free several thousand troops, who could then move from Liège to Luxembourg and support the Masséna Corps."
This was not arrogance.
Though the Anglo-Prussian-Austrian coalition had around 50,000 troops in the region compared to France's mere 25,000, the Walloon Defense Army had proven highly capable. That alone added another 12,000 reliable men.
Moreover, if they used Brussels as a fortified defense line, even the 4,000-strong Flemish defector troops could contribute—under artillery cover from the walls, hiding behind battlements and firing muskets, they could still be useful.
Hence, it was entirely feasible to send 5,000 to 6,000 of the French main force to Luxembourg.
Even in the worst case—if the coalition suddenly found miraculous success—the French could retreat gradually, stalling for time.
The Brussels region was vast and rich in supplies. The Dutch, whose morale had been at rock bottom, had nevertheless held it for nearly six weeks.
As long as the French avoided a decisive defeat, they could pin down the Duke of York for two to three months without issue.
By then, Masséna would have already crushed the coalition in the Rhineland and could send reinforcements to Brussels.
Davout, Maison, and the other officers all nodded in agreement—this was indeed the consensus they had reached moments earlier.
But Joseph smiled and shook his head as he took a report from the table. "I believe Masséna has enough troops already.
"We must not think only of defending Brussels."
The officers looked up in surprise. With their limited forces, could he really be suggesting an offensive?
Joseph slid the report to the center of the table. "This just arrived—we have secured control of Leuven."
[Note 1] The "Knee of the Rhine" refers to the sharp 90-degree bend between the upper and middle stretches of the Rhine River.
At this point, the river changes from east–west to north–south flow, and the current slows dramatically. Since 1790, several bridges have been built across this stretch, making it an ideal crossing point.
(END CHAPTER)
Thank you for the support, friends. If you want to read more chapters in advance, go to my Patreon.
Read 40 Chapters In Advance: patreon.com/Johanssen10