Chapter 56
Defense master, offense genius 2
First, Napoleons troops set up a camp next to the Wellesley Corps, which was encamped on the Arlanzn River banks, close enough to feel uncomfortable. Then they ford a wide formation accurately matching the Wellesley Corps, then hid the deploynt of their battery with tents and barracks.
If you looked from the air, both sides would be symtrical with the Arlanzn River between them. Arthur Wellesley thought it was a high-level psychological battle led by Napoleon Bonaparte.
Whether you attack or not, I can handle it perfectly. But you wouldnt be able to do it, would you?
This was what Napoleon seed to be saying now.
Although his opponent was a war master, Arthur Wellesley was also an experienced commander not inferior to him. But even though he was not swayed by provocations, he could not help but recognize Napoleons plan and confidence. Despite his ascension to the throne, he was still a natural and talented warrior on the battlefield.
If we have a chance to shake the enemy camp, wed better use it.
A chief of staff from Portugal explained that the nearby terrain, with connected reed forests near the river, was suitable for guerrilla warfare. If there was an overwhelming advantage on the Allied side over the French, it was the presence of experienced troops familiar with guerrillas.
All 8,000 Spanish soldiers were from militias belonging to the Spanish Resistance, which had continuously harassed the rear of the French army through guerrillas. In short, they were specialized in guerrilla warfare. So Portuguese soldiers had also gained experience in guerrilla warfare while defending the lines of Torres Vedras.
The Portuguese officer even suggested separating them from the rest of the corps and forming a unit for guerrilla tactics. It was at the mont that most officers nodded and agreed with him.
Boom! Boom! Bang!!
The sound of artillery shells coming from afar distracted them. As the officers jumped up from their seats, ssengers entered the barracks with urgent expressions.
The French battery has launched an attack. No friendly damage has been revealed yet, but they are advancing their artillery little by little.
It was a typical type of local provocation.
We will also respond with artillery fire, but pay attention to the location of the main enemy unit. Call imdiately if you see any abnormal behavior.
However, they would do so while hiding the location of their main battery, as it was the core secret of military tactics. Arthur Wellesley ordered them to focus on understanding and monitoring the situation, rather than engaging the fight.
The French provocation did not end here.
This is a ssage from the Hamilton Regint! The enemies are attacking! They are at least of the size of a company unit! They are near Valentines supply center! Sporadic gunfights are continuing under Lieutenant Colonel Hamiltons command!
Check if they are enemy squads or scouts exploring nearby. Strengthen the defenses there and dispatch search teams to look for enemy subordinate units.
I report to the Commander! A rifleman from the Dettingen Regint found traces of enemy soldiers. They are thought to have crossed the Arlanzn River through the Miraflores monastery in the east.
Send a battalion of light cavalry. Focus on reconnaissance, but if the number of enemies is small, the commander may engage the fight at his discretion.
Arthur Wellesley ordered responses to the French provocations with a calm face. The staff officers who were listening to the news advised Wellesley.
Napoleon is now observing how our forces respond. He is probably trying to gather information to prepare for a major offensive.
Hmm
The Arlanzn River lies between the two armies. Its a small river, but its enough to cause damages to the attacking side. Sooner or later, they will realize that our troops have no intention of going first.
Officers claid that Napoleon was feeling nervous now, and that sending small units here and there was caused by his impatience. But Wellesleys thoughts were a little different. Of course, if the confrontation continued like this, it would be very difficult for France, but he did not think that a commander like Napoleon would be satisfied with this.
Subsequently, the search continued between the French and Allied forces. Currently, the camp of the coalition was lined up from side to side to cover the entire center of the Arlanzn River basin. The French were getting on the nerves of the Allies by sending separate troops at both ends. It was not easy to figure out whether it was a search to prepare for a main attack, or just a prank to force the coalition forces out of their camp.
Prepare to respond to a massive French attack. Order all regints to be on ergency standby and set up interceptor units.
Yes, Commander!
Wellesley looked forward with sharp eyes.
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Colonel Dettingen, who found traces of French troops south of the Arlanzn River, so near the Allied camp, inford the commander-in-chief. Arthur Wellesley sent a battalion of light cavalry to search for French troops hiding south of the Arlanzn River.
But their hiding skills were as good as rat cubs, and the cavalry could not find them.
Thats the reed forest here, Lieutenant Colonel Kemp. Do we have to go all the way in there?
The overgrown reed was 6 to 13 feet long (about 2 to 4 ters), and completely obscured the vision of the horse-riding cavalry. A reed forest was a natural enemy for the light cavalry, for whom having a clear view ahead was more important than for any other unit
Tsk, lets go back!
Lieutenant Colonel Kemp, the battalion commander of the light infantry, could not bear to search the reed forest, which was 2.9 square miles (7.5 kiloters square). As such, the light cavalry had to return empty-handed with the reed forest in front of them.
How long had it been?
The reeds where they left shook from side to side, and dozens of people appeared. They were French soldiers. The odd thing was that they were not wearing blue uniforms, the symbol of the French army. Their yellowish and light-colored uniforms were the sa color as the reed forest and blended completely with the background.
Im afraid theyre going to bring in additional reinforcents.
It was the words of a lieutenant.
But the man who appeared to be an officer shook his head.
Even if they co, they wont be able to search all of these vast reeds. And with this outfit, they wont notice us.
A special mission was given to those who were willing to risk their lives to cross the Arlanzn River and reach the reed forest. They were told that they would receive a generous reward and the vacation they wished for, after finishing it. That was why they volunteered for this job and took the risk.
Now, lets get to work.
It was another arrangent Napoleon had.
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Theyre all backing out. The enemy battery also stopped firing and disappeared.
It seed like they were going to launch a full-fledged attack over the river, but everything cald down again. Arthur Wellesley frowned, trying to read the thoughts of Napoleon Bonaparte, the enemy commander.
What kind of tactics or strategies was this?
No matter how different the actual battles were from textbooks, Napoleons corps tactics were truly inconceivable.
Reform the fighting units and the searching teams into battalions and return to the camp. And I think we need to change our deploynt a little bit.
Youre right. The purpose of their movents is still unclear. In addition, I recomnd increasing the number of night guards. We dont know what else theyre going to do afterwards.
Yes, good advice.
It was impossible to predict what move they would co up with, so it was inevitable to take general asures. The Allies decided to respond to the Frenchs anomalous operation in a standard manner. Arthur Wellesley and the other officers were quite confused, but did not discuss further.
After the eting, Major General Rowland Hill ca to Arthur Wellesley, who had been resting while reading a book. He got straight to the point.
The Emperor of France is a very bold, determined and cold-hearted man. The fact that his army moved in a forced march over a thousand miles doesnt impress him. He can launch a surprise attack at any ti. I think our troops should be thoroughly prepared for this.
Wellesley agreed with Major General Rowland Hills remarks. Napoleon had always won by outwitting his opponent. Having t him as an enemy, any preparation felt inadequate. There was a real problem achieving a perfect preparation.
Wellesley explained that to the Major General who looked just like him.
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At the sa ti, perhaps as a joke of fate, a similar story was coming and going in the barracks of the French command.
To be honest, we still dont know as much as Your Majesty thinks. The anxiety that cos from ignorance still lingers.
It was the words of Chief of Staff Louis-Alexandre Berthier.
He was the second-in-command of the corps after Napoleon and opposed the operation, prepared to fall out of Napoleons favor.
There is nothing wrong with the attack itself. However, if we were going to attack, I wonder if we had any reason to do such noisy searches and operations. Im worried that we might have made them raise their guard by provoking them.
Berthiers remarks made sense.
Nevertheless, Napoleon was calm.
There are two ways to prepare for a strike. First, sending squads to patrol the opponents camp to get information from them. Second, increasing the number of support units and guards to prepare for an attack so that they can respond quickly. Of course, it would be the best if we use both thods, but we have limited manpower. An army that keeps its tension tight at all tis gets tired quickly. So commanders have no choice but to make concessions.
No one knew how long the confrontation between the two armies would continue. Not even Napoleon himself or Arthur Wellesley knew. So it was dangerous to keep the soldiers on alert all the ti. Because soldiers were people made of flesh and blood, no matter how strong they were, they could not stay at 100% of their capabilities forever. This was why people alone could not establish a perfect surveillance system.
A commander as good as Arthur Wellesley could not ignore the concept of rapid control to maintain the soldiers constancy. Due to his defensive and orthodox tendencies and the unpredictable circumstances of the war, he would necessarily focus on it.
Considering their deploynt of troops, the terrain, the location of the bastions and watchtowers they have installed, and the location of officers with their assigned battalions, Arthur Wellesley is by no ans an adventurous commander. At least when dealing with .
From the beginning, Napoleon had climbed at the top of a tall watchtower and had analyzed the formation of the Allied forces.
He had sporadically sent separate units to various places to find out how the coalition forces responded, and through this, he traced back information and broke down their formation in detail. More important than the deploynt and structure of the troops, he wanted to obtain information on the responding ability and mobility of the units. This was the aim of each search operation.
In Napoleons head, a strategy to attack the coalition was already drawn and colored.
You dont have to worry about anything. Decisive thoughts and judgnts are burdenso. All you have to do is follow my orders. Isnt it simple?
Berthier only smiled awkwardly beside Napoleon, who was grinning.
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