Chapter 147: Liberation of Italy (2)

Chapter 147: Liberation of Italy (2)

Speaking of it, the Kingdom of Sardinia was also a member of the anti-French coalition. However, once the war began, they hadn't really engaged with the French army seriously. For the most part, their responsibilities included a bit of naval blockade alongside the British and Spanish, but their main activities were talking big and minding their own business. When their navy discovered they couldn't handle the lightning-fast French ships, they discreetly joined the lucrative business of smuggling goods to France.

Because they had never truly clashed with the French on the battlefield, the Sardinian Kingdom's military had little insight into how strong or weak they really were. They weren't completely ignorant of the significant changes in warfare tactics these days. They were equipped with the new "musket," understanding the benefits it brought in terms of "skirmisher advantage." They even validated these advantages in their own military exercises. However, these things hadn't been tested in real combat.

The Sardinian Kingdom's skirmishers performed reasonably well during these exercises. While they did exhibit some sluggishness and laziness, it wasn't significantly worse than regular infantry. In fact, they were on par with Austrian skirmishers.

Generally, the Austrians, out of jealousy, liked to baselessly belittle the Sardinian Kingdom's army. Nevertheless, they would say, "Sardinian skirmishers seem decent."

The Sardinian generals, however, filtered out the "seem decent" part and were quite satisfied with their mastery of the new tactics. They modestly made the judgment, "Our skirmishers might have a slight gap compared to the acknowledged best, the French skirmishers, but they should still be top-notch in Europe."

The Sardinian Kingdom's 50,000-strong army gradually assembled, with General Colli as its commander. Colli believed they should wait for the Austrian allies to arrive before launching a full assault on the French, but the Austrians were taking their time. (Field Marshal Beaulieu believed the entire Italian army was not elite enough Austria's elite forces were in Belgium and Poland, and as for the Sardinian Kingdom's army, Beaulieu thought they were less elite than Austria's non-elite forces. So, for now, it was best to take a defensive stance and wait for reinforcements.) Plus, the pressure from the king and nobility was too great, so General Colli decided to initiate a small skirmish to buy some time.

So, he dispatched a cavalry unit to attack a French garrison in Count Coney's estate. The cavalry safely returned to the camp and reported that they had retaken the territory, killing five or six Frenchmen and several Italian turncoats who had joined the French. To prove they weren't lying, they brought back the heads of these Italian traitors.

General Colli had some doubts about this victory's significance, but at this point, he needed a victory to ease the pressure. However, the victory seemed too small, as it only resulted in the deaths of five or six Frenchmen.

Colli summoned the cavalry unit's captain and inquired about the battle's details. After their conversation, the entire situation became clearer.

The cavalry unit, numbering less than a hundred, encountered over a thousand French troops and more than two thousand Italian rebels who had shamelessly joined the French near Count Coney's estate. The Sardinian cavalry immediately unsheathed their sabers, shouting "For God and the King," and fearlessly launched a brave charge against these invaders and traitors.

The French instantly fell into chaos, fleeing in all directions, while the Sardinian cavalry pursued and killed countless invaders and traitors. This victory was as glorious as the Battle of Montgisard, where King Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, known as the "Leper King," had triumphed with only a few hundred horsemen against Saladin's army of twenty thousand.

General Colli reported this news to the king and informed the nobles who had been forced to abandon their estates and take refuge in the city. The entire city of Turin erupted in celebration.

Almost simultaneously, Napoleon received a similar report:

"Our troops encountered a group of about a hundred Sardinian cavalry near the Count Coney's estate and opened fire upon them. When our troops fired, those cavalry quickly retreated."This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com

This report piqued Napoleon's interest because it marked their first encounter with a fully organized Sardinian cavalry.

"It seems the Sardinians are getting impatient, don't you think?" Napoleon thought. He decided it was time to shrink his forces in preparation for a possible major battle.

The next day, however, Napoleon received another report from that very location, along with several Italians.

Count Coney, upon learning that his estate had been retaken, was anxious to assess the extent of his losses. He sent his nephew and a group of servants to return to the estate overnight for inspection. Sadly, they all became prisoners of the French, including his nephew, Viscount Toldo.

Napoleon handed the viscount over to the Revolutionary Tribunal but released his entourage.

General Colli had to defend himself. He claimed that his cavalry had indeed achieved victory and retaken the estate, but once his cavalry returned, the French returned as well. So, he couldn't be blamed for it; it was just that the count was too impatient.

While General Colli could force such an explanation, it left him with no room for further delay.

At the same time, General Colli believed that his side had the upper hand and could fight. The enemy had no more than thirty to forty thousand troops, while he had a full fifty thousand. Furthermore, thanks to the Alps' barrier, the French lacked significant artillery, but his side had over a hundred cannons. The enemy was also lacking in cavalry, while his side's cavalry outnumbered theirs by several times. In this light, the advantages seemed significant, enough to warrant a battle.

On January 14, 1796, the main forces of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Napoleon's Fifth Army Corps took up their positions in Cuneo, preparing for a decisive battle.

General Colli knew that their greatest advantage was artillery, and he intended to use it to the fullest. Therefore, the Sardinian army lined up more than a hundred cannons in a single row in front of their position. Then, General Colli sent out his skirmishers.

"The French seem to have noticed our setup," General Colli explained to Count Corni, who was watching the battle alongside him. "They know that advancing will expose them to our artillery fire. However, if they keep advancing, I believe the brave French soldiers can endure the bombardment. Our infantry is stopping them, preventing them from closing in, and allowing our artillery to eliminate them."

Corni had come to push Colli's forces to rescue his nephew, the legitimate heir to his brother's legacy. He frowned as he observed the halted French infantry and asked, "What if they stay put and don't advance?"

"Simple. If the mountain won't come to Mahomet, Mahomet must go to the mountain. We can move some of the artillery forward like this..."

As General Colli explained, he noticed that the French infantry had started generating puffs of blue smoke at their positions.

"How can they open fire at such a range? What are they hoping to achieve?" Colli exclaimed, surprised.

Even more surprising was the result: with the French infantry's first volleys, a considerable number of Sardinian soldiers fell.

"General, what's happening?" Count Corni asked, stunned. He also realized that, at this distance, achieving such accuracy was impossible.

"Maybe... perhaps they're using rifled guns," General Colli suggested.

In that era, only rifled guns could engage targets at such long distances. However, rifled guns were challenging to load, taking four to five minutes for each shot. If the entire French infantry was armed with these weapons, it meant they'd be defenseless for a significant period. Colli believed that as long as the Sardinian infantry quickly advanced, they could engage the enemy at closer ranges and gain the upper hand.

Thinking along those lines, General Colli issued the order for his infantry to advance. However, before his orders could be carried out, the messenger hadn't even reached his horse yet when the French infantry fired another volley. This time, even more Sardinian soldiers fell.

"How is this possible?" General Colli was shocked and then turned angry. Evidently, the French couldn't be firing rifled guns at such rapid rates. The only explanation was that these cowardly men were playing dead to escape the battle.

The following volley from the French infantry further confirmed these suspicions, and General Colli watched with a growing mix of astonishment and anger. One of the French soldiers had stood motionless, gazing around, while the Sardinian soldiers fell around him. After several seconds, he dramatically dropped his rifle, clutched his chest, and slowly crouched before lying on the ground.

"These damn cowards! After this battle, I swear I'll hang them from the gallows to dry!" General Colli had erupted in anger, feeling the bitterness and darkness of the world around him.

What followed was not only infuriating but heartbreaking. After the French infantry's continued firing, more Sardinian soldiers fell one after another. In an instant, over one thousand carefully trained Sardinian infantrymen disappeared from the battlefield.

This change left General Colli shocked and disheartened. Meanwhile, Napoleon watched with a sly smile. He was aware that his infantry had indeed struck their targets, but they couldn't possibly have killed that many Sardinian infantrymen. It was clear that the Sardinian soldiers were feigning death and fleeing the battle.

With their infantry routed, the French infantry advanced swiftly.

"Don't be afraid. This is just a minor technical setback; don't be afraid," General Colli consoled himself, "at least we have the advantage of artillery. If they dare come any closer, we'll blast them to smithereens!"

The French infantry continued to move forward, drawing near to the Sardinian artillery positions.

"Don't be afraid, just don't be afraid," he reassured himself, as the enemy infantry approached the range of their cannons.

However, as the French infantry halted, they raised their rifles...

"This... how is this possible? How can they have such range and firing speed?" General Colli was dumbfounded, now that the enemy was well within their effective range.

In the first volley from the French infantry, the Sardinian artillery was utterly silenced. The Sardinian gunners, who had survived the first volleys, had lost the courage to stand their ground and fled. Some even dropped to the ground, pretending to be dead.

"Cavalry! Charge and drive the enemy infantry back!" General Colli shouted.

Sardinia had a significant cavalry advantage, and during the Austrians' accounts of their battles against the French, they had stressed the importance of employing light cavalry to counter the French infantrymen. Light cavalry was relatively inexpensive and could move quickly. After all, no armor could withstand musket bullets.

Sardinian cavalry, the last hope, was now called into action.