(Chapter 1 arrives, there will be chapter 1 later)
"Marshal Hillier, our troops are ready, when can we launch an attack?" The man who spoke was a very tall general with a rough beard all over his face.
"General Ernest, don't worry, I guarantee that it won't be long before the Italians will taste our fierce attack." Hillier replied. Due to the tight war on the Eastern Front, he deliberately moved his headquarters to Ljubljana. Ernest is the commander of the 2nd Army in the reinforcements sent by Austria this time. The 1st Army and the 1st Army have always been the most elite army in Austria, and Ernest is the favorite general of Duke Charles. , so even though Ernest was only an army general, Hillier was still polite to him.
"Okay then, Marshal. The Second Army is listening to your orders." Ernest gave Hillier a military salute, and then quickly left Hillier's headquarters.
The arrival of reinforcements from the two domestic legions has increased Hillier's confidence a lot, especially the arrival of the 2nd Army, which has added a lot of confidence to Hillier.
On June 28, Hillier's counterattack began. As an elite 2nd Army, it will launch an attack on the Italian 1st Army to contain this relatively powerful force. The 8th Army and the 10th Army, as reinforcements, aimed at Murat's Neapolitan Army. As for the reason, needless to say, everyone knows that to eat persimmons, you have to pick the soft ones. Unfortunately, compared with the Italian 1st Army, Murat's Naples 1st Army is soft persimmons.
"Your Excellency, the enemy's attack is too fierce, and the troops in front are almost unable to withstand it." General Elite, the deputy head of the Italian 1st Army, hurriedly reported to Eugene. On the morning of the 28th, about 20,000 Austrian troops launched a fierce attack on the first line of defense of the Italian Army. Under the bombardment of more than 200 artillery pieces of the Austrian army, the first line of defense garrisoned by about 10,000 Italian troops was in jeopardy.
"Order the 2nd Division to fill in, and block the Austrian army's attack no matter what." Eugene ordered with a cold face. "Also, send someone to keep an eye on Murat, and report to me immediately if he retreats without authorization." Eugene had to guard against this, because Murat had already had several previous convictions for running away. If he retreated without authorization, That would expose Eugene's right flank to the blows of the Austrian army, and the 1st Italian Army would likely be encircled.
Hearing the constant explosions outside, Ou Ren was also very nervous, and at the same time was thinking about confrontation. Judging from the current situation, it is impossible to unite Naples to fight Austria. Italy and Naples are not Austria's opponents. The only way is to ask Paris for help. But Ou Ren also knew what it meant to do so. He was very unwilling to give up his foundation just like this, but if he didn't do this, Italy would also be annexed by others. After a long time, Eugene still made up his mind. If he really couldn't resist the Austrian attack, then he had no choice but to ask Paris for help.
"Your Majesty, the Austrian army is attacking very fiercely, and our army is almost unable to withstand it." Toms hurried in and reported to Murat.
"It's so fast. It's only been a few hours since the Austrian army attacked. Could it be that my army is made of tofu?" Murat said angrily.
"No, Your Majesty, the combat effectiveness of our army is nothing to say, but the enemy is better than the number of people. The Austrian army participating in the attack has at least two legions, and the troops in front are almost unable to withstand it. Think of a way." Huh?" Thomas asked eagerly.
"Damn, two legions, what can I do." Murat was a little frustrated.
Thomas turned his eyes and said to Murat: "Your Majesty, why don't we retreat to Naples. The underground of Naples is narrow. Maybe we can block the Austrian attack with our favorable terrain."
Murat cheered up. He was indeed a little moved by Thomas's suggestion, but at the same time he hesitated: "If we retreat, what will Eugene do?"
"Oh! Your Majesty! We are all in danger now, how can we have the energy to manage Governor Eugene?" Thomas was very anxious. "Make a decision quickly, Your Majesty, otherwise we will not be able to leave if the Austrians come."
"Okay then! Immediately order the troops to retreat to the south." Murat followed Thomas's suggestion, and finally gave the order to retreat, leaving Eugene completely aside.
Murat's retreat eventually turned into a rout. Tens of thousands of troops fled southward for hundreds of kilometers under the fierce pursuit of the Austrian army. In the end, only more than 10,000 people returned to Naples, and the others were either wiped out or killed. Became a prisoner, or got separated from the main force in the process of fleeing.
"Your Excellency, as you expected, Murat retreated south with his army. Now the Austrian 8th Army is attacking us from the south, what should we do?" Eliot reported to Eugene.
"What else can we do? Let's retreat too, otherwise we will be surrounded by the Austrian army." Ou Ren said helplessly.
Under Eugene's order, the Italian 1st Army also quickly abandoned its position, broke away from the contact of the Austrian army, and quickly retreated to the west. However, when they retreated, there were only nearly 30,000 people left in the entire army. In less than a day, they lost tens of thousands of people.
On July 1, Eugene retreated to Meslet, but the Austrian 2nd Army and 8th Army immediately launched an attack on Meslet. The two sides fought hard for 3 days, but Eugene still paid a huge price. This important city in northeastern Italy was held. Perhaps encouraged by the victory on the Eastern Front, the Austrian 7th Army finally broke through the defense of the Italian 2nd Army at the Pleken Pass, advancing all the way south, threatening Meslet from the north. Although most of the troops of the Second Army were supplemented, Eugene still had no chance of winning in the face of the attack of the three Austrian armies.
The war revolved around Meslet, and more than 100,000 Austrian troops launched a fierce attack on Meslet. In the case of a long-term attack, Hillier even concentrated hundreds of cannons to attack the city wall of Meslet. A fierce shelling was carried out, and the city wall was smashed down. As soon as the city wall collapsed, the Austrian army rushed into the city of Meslet. Cruel street fighting ensued, but Eugene's army was unable to stop the Austrian attack. On July 11, Eugene led 20,000 remnants to withdraw from Meslet, and Meslet fell. After the capture of Meslet, the Austrian army launched a crazy burning, killing and looting there. Although Hillier did not instigate this, he did not stop it either. Perhaps he also thought that after so many days of high-intensity combat, the soldiers should be allowed to relax. As a result, Meslet became a **** on earth. Groups of Austrian soldiers wandered around. They rudely entered shops or ordinary people's homes and robbed all valuable things. If they encountered beautiful women, of course they would not will let it go.
For a week, Hillier indulged his soldiers for a whole week, and did not leave Meslet until July 18. When the Austrian army left, there were only 20,000 to 30,000 people left in Meslet, which had more than 100,000 people. All the others were killed, and their blood turned the Adil River red.
After learning of the atrocities committed by the Austrian army in Meslet, Eugene strongly condemned it and was determined to fight Austria to the end. In order to fulfill his promise, he took the initiative to order the Italian 3rd Army, which blocked the Austrian army at the Brennerello Pass, to return to Milan, determined to launch the final decisive battle with the Austrian army in Milan. And sent someone to Paris for help, saying that if the French Empire could send troops to defeat the Austrian army, he would be willing to submit to the French Empire.
"What do you all think? Should we agree to Ou Ren's request?" In the meeting room of the Tuileries Palace, Xiao Jie called a meeting with the cabinet and military personnel after receiving the news of the request for help from Ou Ren. discuss.
"Your Majesty, I think we should send troops into Italy. Is this a good opportunity for us to capture Italy?" Davout spoke first. These days, he has been presiding over the recruiting and training of recruits, but he is overwhelmed.
Xiao Jie nodded, he was also very moved by Ou Ren's request.
"Your Majesty, the country is currently undergoing economic recovery and construction, and we simply don't have any extra financial resources to support this war. So I don't think we should be involved in the war now." Combaceres also expressed the government's intentions View.
"If we mobilize an army to participate in the war~www.mtlnovel.com~, how much is the estimated military expenditure?" Xiao Jie asked.
"If we can end the war within two months, we will spend about 100 million francs." The Imperial Finance Minister, Xiao Jie's father-in-law Marquis Ottof replied.
"How much can the treasury pay at most?" Xiao Jie asked.
"The treasury, apart from other budgets, is out of francs," replied Ottove.
"Ah? How could this be?" Xiao Jie was extremely depressed, never expecting that the national treasury would be so poor.
"Invading Austria is not only an opportunity to expand the empire's power, but also an opportunity to weaken our enemy's strength. I believe everyone understands it very well. Therefore, this time we must send troops to Italy. As for the issue of military expenses, I will find a way by myself Yes." Xiao Jie finally said.
It was time to fight, and those in the military cheered. The people in the cabinet are also full of smiles. Anyway, they don't need the government to pay for the war. Of course they are happy. (To be continued, if you want to know the future, please log in to .QDAN., more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)