Chapter 108: Francois Eastern Expedition (5)
And then, ten days later, as per the plan, General Patton and other units started a rapid march to plunder the eastern territories of the Francois Republic, possibly reaching as close as the capital.
The 12th Brigade under my command, after moving with the main force and arriving at Hattin, separated and began fortifying the area as much as possible.
We set up numerous palisades at the front, where the enemy was likely to attack, and built wagon fortresses in the shallow areas of the river at the rear.
For the Francois Republic forces, who loved knightly charges as much as our commander, we even dug traps in several places.
“With these preparations, we should be able to win easily when they attack.”
Even though our forces were only about 40% of the enemy’s, I, Peter Yaeger, who arrived at Hattin first, thoroughly calculated all possible scenarios and finished setting up traps.
So, even though we appeared to be in a dangerous situation due to numerical inferiority, in reality, we were fighting in an optimal environment where victory was inevitable.
As I was about to go on a reconnaissance mission with a few of my subordinates to familiarize myself with the local geography, a soldier approached and reported loudly.
“Reporting! 10,000 troops from the Francois Republic are approaching Hattin from Chavennes! They are about a day’s march away from our location!”
Following the custom where generals give money to messengers or scouts who bring good news, I handed a silver coin, enough for a serf family to live on for a month, to the soldier who kneeled and bowed before me and said,
“Summon all commanders and officers. We’re going to have a strategy meeting.”
When we entered the strategy meeting, the atmosphere among our officers wasn’t very good.
Apart from officers like Laura, who had followed me for a long time, there was noticeable tension due to the fact that we were facing an enemy 2.5 times our number.
Interestingly, among them, Lieutenant Anya looked at me with eyes full of anticipation for the strategy I would present.
“Now, I’ve explained this several times already, but let me explain one last time about our troop deployment and future operations before we face the enemy.”
After saying that, I signaled Charlotte to bring a map showing the terrain of Hattin, the possible routes of enemy approach, and our troop deployment.
“Firstly, the Francois Republic will likely lead their esteemed knights in a frontal charge, trying to crush our infantry.”
This was because their strategy, which effectively operated knights more than any other nation on this continent, was their winning tactic.
It was the most effective tactic they could use to win in this terrain.
“On the other hand, as shown on this map, we will position two infantry battalions, one crossbow battalion, and one mage battalion each at the center, left, and right wings and wait for the enemy.”
Because currently, I couldn’t predict which of our units the enemy would target.
In such cases, it was more effective to distribute our forces evenly and have adjacent units support where the attack was concentrated.
When I didn’t mention the knights, Colonel Werner asked in a concerned tone,
“What role will our knights play then? And where will Colonel Kerzhit’s archer cavalry be positioned?”
“Good question, Colonel Werner. The 200 knights under your command, as the senior battalion commander, will initially wait in the rear of the central force I lead, and the archer cavalry will immediately locate the direction of the knight’s charge and shoot arrows from both flanks and the rear to weaken their momentum.”
This way, the Francois knights, unaccustomed to archer cavalry, would be confused, losing their charge momentum or becoming significantly weakened.
In that state, they couldn’t significantly harm our infantry, protected by palisades and spear formations.
If they excitedly chase the archer cavalry, exposing their flanks in front of our infantry, our crossbowmen, and mages could pour tremendous firepower on them.
However, Francois, experts in handling knights, wouldn’t be blinded by the archer cavalry to the point of ignoring the charge and pursuing them.
They were called the strongest at handling knights on this continent, so they would know that heavy cavalry could never catch light cavalry.
“Whether it’s the left, center, or right, when the Francois knights charge in, I’ll give a signal. At that moment, Colonel Werner, you’ll lead the knights to strike them from the side as they lose momentum. Moreover, mages and crossbowmen will attack the knights from the opposite direction of your attack.”
The biggest weakness of knights was being attacked on the flanks when they lost momentum.
In such a situation, if our knights were charged from the left or right, they’d simply be overwhelmed.
In addition, being hit by crossbows and magic would be disastrous for them.
“After a successful charge, don’t linger. Return to the camp, regather your lances, and wait at the center for new orders, ready for a decisive blow. The archer cavalry should circle around where the enemy infantry is, shooting arrows while the enemy knights are disoriented. Charging into the infantry is prohibited.”
“Since Francois’s infantry has never faced archer cavalry, they will be helplessly and one-sidedly decimated.”
“When they start to regroup and counter with ranged weapons, Colonel Anya and the archer cavalry will already be far away.”
“How dirty and underhanded, yet such an effective combat method when used by our side.”
“After we inflict damage with only our archer cavalry and knights, the enemy will surely think this can’t go on. Then, they will lead all their forces to face us head-on.”
“At this point, the enemy can no longer rely on their knights to break our defense, so they will resort to pure infantry combat.”
“The infantry on the left, right, and center will hold the enemy back with spears from behind the palisades, with crossbowmen and mages providing cover from behind. When the battle becomes chaotic, split the knight and archer cavalry units in half.”
Having said that, I tapped the map with my baton and continued,
“Then, the archer cavalry will disrupt the enemy’s left and right flanks, occupied by crossbowmen and mages, with arrow fire. Following that, the knights will follow up and deal with the enemy capable of ranged attacks. Afterward, the two units will cooperate and strike the enemy infantry from behind.”
This way, the enemy infantry would be forced to fight my infantry from the front.
“From behind, the archer cavalry will shoot arrows and flee, while the enemy will be crushed under the half-ton weight of our armored units, destroying everything in their path.”
In simple terms, they would be sandwiched.
“As the enemy infantry gradually reduces, we’ll tighten the encirclement, trapping the Francois infantry completely.”
At this point in the battle, we would have secured a complete victory.
The subsequent battle would be nothing more than a massacre to kill more enemy soldiers, but there’s a reason for this.
Firstly, to reduce the number of enemy forces that could face us in the upcoming battle at Crecy Plains.
And then to completely demolish the enemy’s morale in the forthcoming large-scale war.
Imagine, if the rumor spread that 10,000 Francois soldiers were nearly massacred without a chance to fight back against our 4,000-strong brigade…
To the Francois, our Reich Imperial Army would seem as terrifying as the Grim Reaper himself.
“Though we are outnumbered, every situation is greatly in our favor. So, soldiers, do not fear or hesitate. Fight as commanded. As always, I will bring you the greatest victory.”
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