Chapter 281: War of Attrition

Eckhard gazed upon the remains of the battlefield; corpses littered the valley, belonging to both sides of the conflict in the thousands. Hussites and Catholics alike lie dead for the sake of their religious convictions. The battle was bloody and brutal, yet in the end, the Hussites had won.

During this last year of conflict, the violence that had occurred in Bohemia was on a scale truly fitting of a religious civil war. Eckhard as the chief military advisor tasked with providing support to the Hussites, had witnessed the cruelty of man at its full scale, and for what? Minor religious differences? The sheer level of savagery committed by both sides of the conflict was enough for a man to question his faith.

Did God genuinely desire such death and destruction in his name? Probably not, but if the idea of such actions reviled him, why did he permit it? These were thoughts going through the field marshal's head as he stood by his lonesome, observing the despair that resulted from the chaotic battle. Eckhard sighed heavily as he voiced his innermost thoughts on the issue.

"I have seen enough of death and destruction in my lifetime..."

Despite saying this, the veteran Field Marshal would continue his duties serving as Berengar's lead General, for war was an inevitable result of man's actions. It was also the only thing the man was any good at. 

After praying for the souls of the fallen, Eckhard returned to the other officers of the Grand Army of Austria who had accompanied him during the Hussite campaign. Berengar's strategy had been to stall the conflict for as long as possible and dragged as many Catholics to their deaths to delay the upcoming crusade against the Berengar Heresy.

Eckhard did not disappoint on this matter; he advised the Hussites to slow down their forces and consolidate their gains over the past year. As such, the Hussites had less land than they could have seized. However, these lands were well fortified and defended. 

Several months ago, the pope declared a Crusade against the Hussites because they were becoming increasingly close to overall victory. As such, the Crusading Orders of the world had gathered what few men they could spare to put down the Hussite Heresy before they could cause any further damage. 

Among these Catholic military orders was the Bohemian Order of the Dragon, which had made a name for itself for the sheer acts of brutality they engaged in against the Hussites, and especially the people who supported them.

At the moment, the banner of the Order lay tattered and broken alongside the thousands of corpses of their fallen soldiers. The Hussite force had thoroughly crushed the latter under the guidance of Eckhard and his military advisors. 

Eckhard gazed upon the once proud banner of the Chivalric Order who had lost their lives in battle, particularly that of the Grand Master whose lifeless eyes gazed towards the heavens as blood dripped from his mouth onto his beard.

In this single battle, the main force of the Order of the Dragon was crushed, snuffed out before they could make a name for themselves like the outstanding orders established centuries ago. Despite this, Eckhard knew this would not be the end of Bohemian Knights.

The Order of the Dragon was not to be confused with the Welsh Order of the Red Dragon, which the Vatican recently established to counteract the Berengar Heresy. This was a much older Chivalric Order found in Bohemia, Hungary, and Wallachia. 

They would return in time with more significant numbers to attack the Hussites; Eckhard was sure of this. After taking one last glance at the blood and bile that filled the field, Eckhard shifted his attention to his officers nearby before speaking to them with a voice filled with determination.

"This is just one of many battles that await us; this war will not end any time soon. Steel yourselves, for we have much work to do."

After saying that, Eckhard approached the command tent where Alexej and the other Hussite leaders were gathered. Having stepped inside the dwelling, the Hussite leaders glanced over at Eckhard. They held much respect for the Austrian Field Marshal; after all, if not for him and his officers, they could have suffered substantially more casualties throughout this war. 

The leaders of the Hussites who were standing in the tent were encircled around a table filled with a map of Bohemia and the forces that represented both sides. Under Eckhard's guidance, the Hussites had taken a firm defensive stance, and as such, mainly was engaging in battles within their provinces. 

At the moment, the Hussites held four out of seven provinces of the Kingdom of Bohemia. Through their best efforts and the advice of Eckhard, the Hussites had gained significant ground. This battle that had just occurred was fought in the fields of Plzeň, where the Hussites had defeated an army of Catholic soldiers.

Plzeň was a region owned by one of the Hussite factions, and the Kasparians had responded to their aid after a Catholic army was spotted in their lands. Through much hardship, a victory was achieved defending the ground, but it came at high costs. 

Ultimately, the Kasparian armies arrived and drove their enemies out, slaughtering all who dared to attack the peasants of Plzeň and their farms. Alexej, who had personally led his forces into the fray, was currently displaying the latest report from his scouts about the enemy's movements. 

"The main force of the Order of the Dragon has been defeated; they will probably crawl back to Hungary to lick their wounds until they can fight once more. However, news from the other side of the world is troublesome. The Hospitallers have cut off support from the Byzantine armies in Egypt and Libya.

They have withdrawn from their Crusade in North Africa and pledged support to the Catholics in Bohemia. As such, tens of thousands of crusaders now march towards our lands. The army is meant for a single purpose, to destroy our movement and massacre every man, woman, and child they deem to be a heretic!"

Eckhard observed the map closely, with the Hospitaller Knights entering the fray; this meant things would become difficult. They were a large and prestigious order and were also battle-hardened from the decades of warfare in North Africa. He would have to readjust his strategy if such a quantity of Crusaders were to pour into the war. 

The veteran field Marshal approached the map and began to shift the pieces around without permission from the others. He moved several wooden pieces that represented Hussite troops into positions near the borders and the various fortifications that guarded them. After doing so, he spoke with determination and authority.

"The Hospitallers have entered Bohemia, which means we will be fighting thousands if not tens of thousands of more men. To put it simply, gaining any further ground is unlikely; what we need to do is defend our borders to the best of our ability and wear down the Catholic's numbers through attrition.

As of now, we are fighting a defensive war! Our best course of action is to maintain the ground we have gained while sending operatives into the enemy territory to sabotage their fields and food stockpiles. It may take months or even years, but sooner or later, the enemy will break their backs against our defenses and starve into submission!"

There was not a single voice of disagreement at the conference. The Hussite commanders were all well aware that the arrival of the hospitallers represented a shift in the balance of power, and as such, fighting on these terms was their best solution. 

The war in Bohemia began to take a turn for the worse; the Hussites decided to engage in a series of protracted sieges while meeting the enemy in the fields of their territory to protect their citizens. The Catholics, overzealous and eager for vengeance, would slowly use their newfound strength to push into Hussite lands.

When this war of attrition waged, the Hussites would further import weapons, munitions, and food from Austria, racking up an enormous debt. The larger the debt, the more land Berengar would demand as a form of repayment. 

The silver mines of Bohemia were a valuable resource, and as Berengar's economy grew, it also began to stagnate due to a lack of currency. Thus, he needed the mines in Bohemia to stimulate his Nation's growth until he could start his colonization of the new world and Africa. 

Unknowingly the Hussites had begun to trap themselves in debt to Austria, in doing so sealing their fates. Berengar had not only sent his advisors to aid the Hussites but to ensure that the Hussites incurred more significant debt, One that could only be repaid with valuable land.

If the Hussites refused to surrender Bohemia to Austria after the war, Berengar would use the debt as a valid casus belli to take what he wanted. To him, the war in Bohemia was of great importance to funding his future campaigns to unify the German people. 

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