Make France Great Again

The Austrian Empire soldiers present understood the meaning of Felix Schwarzenberg, and they hurriedly requested to fight from Felix Schwarzenberg.

Compared to the eager-to-fight generals, Grand Duke Albert, as the commander of the troops, appeared particularly calm, still pondering at this moment.

Felix Schwarzenberg also noticed Albert's actions. After gesturing for the eager generals to quiet down, he gently inquired of Grand Duke Albert, "Albert, you are the commander of the troops! Don't you have anything you'd like to say?"

Felix Schwarzenberg's voice reached Albert's ears, pulling Albert's thoughts back to reality. Albert looked at Felix Schwarzenberg and said, "Prime Minister, I am considering the deployment of our forces and those of the Prussian army!"

"Hmm?" Felix Schwarzenberg asked with interest, "Are the troops stationed in the Austrian Empire not comparable in number to those of Prussia?"

As the conflict escalated, Austria and Prussia both increased their troop deployments in the Fulda Region to varying degrees after October.

Currently, the Kingdom of Prussia has about 40,000 troops in the Hesse-Kassel Duchy, while the Austrian Empire has 50,000 troops.

"From the current troops, we are indeed somewhat stronger than Prussia! But if the Kingdom of Prussia chooses to increase their troops, I'm afraid our current strength will be stretched!" Albert responded to Felix Schwarzenberg, "The Kingdom of Prussia can mobilize about 172,000 regular troops and 246,000 secondary and tertiary reserves, meaning they have nearly 500,000 troops! I once heard my father praise Prussia's military system, saying that the Kingdom of Prussia's system will allow them to have more troops to complete their plans!"

Grand Duke Albert's praise for the Kingdom of Prussia made the present Austrian Empire generals feel somewhat embarrassed, as Albert's words were undoubtedly a blow to their morale during this time of eager requests to fight.

However, no one dared deny the words of Grand Duke Albert's father, Grand Duke Karl, who was arguably Austria's most successful general in recent years.

Some present were once soldiers under Grand Duke Karl.

Albert continued to guide from a purely military perspective: "Excluding some troops that cannot be mobilized, Prussia has about 200,000 to 230,000 mobile troops at their disposal! If comprehensive war breaks out, it means the Austrian Empire must have an equivalent scale of troops! Prime Minister, may I boldly inquire if the Austrian Empire has any extra troops."

[According to Engels in "The War of the Holy Alliance Against France in 1852", Prussia can mobilize about 250,000 troops. In reality, the troops Prussia could mobilize were even less than he thought.]

The 200,000 to 230,000 troops Albert mentioned entirely belong to the field army.

After pondering for a moment, Felix Schwarzenberg shook his head and said, "I've read the Ministry of the Army's report before, the Austrian forces are currently about 470,000, with troops stationed in the Italian Region, Hungarian Region, and Galicia Region to maintain order, and new reserves are being trained, so we can mobilize about 150,000 troops."

Felix Schwarzenberg's words undoubtedly poured a bucket of cold water on the generals requesting to fight, causing many to calmly assess the gap between themselves and the Kingdom of Prussia.

"However, we have already gained the support of Bavaria and Wurttemberg!" Felix Schwarzenberg continued, injecting those present with confidence, "Before I came to the camp, I had a meeting with Baron Carl Ludwig von Depford, a noble I met. Baron Depford told me that the Bavarian army will dispatch troops when war begins between Prussia and Austria."

Baron Carl Ludwig von Depford, as Bavaria's Minister of Foreign Affairs, his stance undoubtedly represents the Kingdom of Bavaria's attitude.

The generals requesting to fight sobered from their disheartenment and also looked towards Albert.

"If Bavaria is willing to send troops, then our forces will surpass Prussia!" Albert said to Felix Schwarzenberg.

"Prince Paskievich also promised us he will hold back some of the Prussian army in Poland!" Felix Schwarzenberg continued to reveal.

At this, Albert decisively abandoned his previous conservative approach to war in favor of a relatively risky offensive tactic.

Prince Albert could never forget what his father once told him: War is about concentrating superior forces to launch an offensive in a relatively weak direction, and the attack must be carried out without giving the enemy a chance to catch their breath.

"Prime Minister, since the Empire has chosen to go to war with the Kingdom of Prussia, please allow me to explain the deployment to the generals present." Albert requested to Felix Schwarzenberg.

"Of course!" As Prime Minister, Felix Schwarzenberg responded with a smile to Albert. In military matters, Felix Schwarzenberg did not wish to overly interfere with the judgments of front-line commanders.

Albert and the Austrian generals made corresponding deployments.

On the night of November 6, under the cover of artillery fire, the Austrian Empire troops began to move.

Since the Kingdom of Prussia's headquarters was in Kassel, and there was only one road from Kassel to Fulda, as long as this road was contained, Albert was confident of a successful encirclement.

[About 10,000 troops are stationed in the Fulda Region]

Over 3,000 infantrymen, grouped into units of 600 men (a battalion formation), cautiously bypassed the Fulda Region in batches, striving to cut off the Prussian Kingdom's retreat route without being detected.

If it were a rigid German general, Albert's action could indeed be called a surprise attack.

However, Albert was unaware that the (temporary) commanders of the 10,000 Prussian soldiers facing him were none other than Ron and Prince William.

Around 1 a.m. on November 7, Prince William was forcibly awakened from his sleep.

When Prince William opened his eyes, standing before him was none other than his adjutant, Ron.

"What's the matter, Ron?" Prince William looked at Ron with suspicion and asked, "Is there more intelligence from Berlin?"

Ron shook his head, his expression solemn as he reported to Prince William, "Report to the Prince: our reconnaissance cavalry discovered unusual movements in the western forests of the Fulda Region. Moreover, the Austrian army's artillery firing today is far less intense than before!"

"What!" Prince William's face changed instantly, and he quickly got up and went with Ron to the command center.

By this time, the command center was already crowded, with the regimental commanders, led by the division commander, all looking towards Prince William.

Without hesitation, Prince William quickly inquired, "What is the situation now?"

The division commander hastily explained to Ron and Prince William that small units of reconnaissance cavalry had discovered Austrian infantry in the Brownshill Forest, west of the Fulda Region.

After a brief skirmish, the Prussian reconnaissance cavalry suffered dozens of casualties.

"What is the size of these small units?" Prince William asked seriously.

"Around 400-500 men," the division commander replied immediately, adding, "Because of the forest, the number may be even more."

Prince William, head bowed, looked at the map in front of him. After understanding the location of the small units, he used a pencil to draw an 'X' on the map.

Then, forcefully placing a military drawing pen on the table, he pointed to the other end of Brownshill Forest and said, "The Austrian Empire intends to block our retreat!"

"I'm afraid they aren't just relying on one group! To encircle us, they would need at least 2,000 men!" Ron also calmly analyzed.

"Your Highness, should we..." the division commander suggested to Prince William and Ron that they pack up and leave early.

Prince William glanced at Ron, hoping that Ron could offer a solution.

After all, it was Ron who had initially requested the deployment of reconnaissance cavalry; without them, they might have been sitting ducks.

After a moment's thought, Ron quickly came to a decision and said, "Your Highness, we have to leave! Otherwise, if they complete their encirclement, we won't be able to escape!"

Ron then added, "However, we can't just flee hastily, or else the Austrian troops will definitely pursue us relentlessly."

"What do you mean?" Prince William asked Ron.

"Your Highness, I suggest we have the 1st and 2nd Regiments of the 3rd Division launch an attack on Austria, then retreat slowly," Ron proposed a solution.

"Our cannons...!" The division commander suddenly remembered his more than twenty cannons and supplies.

"Fire all the cannons towards the Austrian camp, as many rounds as possible, and then retreat immediately after two rounds!" Ron ordered the division commander.

The division commander seemed somewhat reluctant, but Prince William immediately affirmed Ron's order was his own.

"Yes!" The division commander, under the harsh military discipline of Prussia, could only obey.

"Your Highness, you leave with the 3rd and 4th Regiments!" Ron instructed Prince William.

"And you?" Prince William asked.

"I will stay here!" Ron said firmly.

After finishing the strategic deployment, the Prussian troops acted swiftly, with the 1st and 2nd Regiments assembling rapidly.

Just as Ron was about to order the soldiers to attack in the direction of Austria, artillery shells from the Austrian Empire fell prematurely into the Prussian camp.

In a mere instant, the entire Prussian camp turned into a sea of fire.