I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1291 The Raid
"As for New Orleans," Napoleon continued, "Wayne will not be able to mount an effective attack for at least a month after this crushing defeat."

"Before that, Lieutenant Blackfeather will launch raids in the Ohio region. The Shawnee will cooperate with him."

Blackfeather is the son of the chieftain of the Charagosa tribe. Their tribe originally lived in northern Ohio and was very familiar with the terrain there.

"But he is probably no match for the Lexington militia."

Napoleon smiled and said, "He brought more than 700 soldiers, plus Shawnee warriors, which is enough to deal with the local Americans."

There are fewer than 1 Americans in Lexington, and with many militiamen recruited by Wayne, there are at most two or three hundred soldiers there right now.

Brasser's eyes widened: "How can he have so many soldiers?"

Napoleon gestured for his attendant to open the door to the wounded soldiers' tent, then turned to Brasser and asked, "Where do you think all the indigenous soldiers who 'ran away' during our retreat went?"

Initially, a small number of Native American soldiers did desert—not to mention in North America, even in European armies, the desertion rate is hard to be lower than 3%—but Napoleon thought of taking advantage of this, intentionally letting some elite Native American soldiers leave the ranks and then rush to a predetermined location to regroup.

Even half of the little turtle's ambush force was assembled in this way.

In Wayne's view, it was only natural for the Native Americans to desert the army, and he had no doubt about it at all.

Meanwhile, the shrinking size of Napoleon's army made him increasingly complacent.

Brasser finally said nothing more, his eyes filled with admiration as he watched Major Bonaparte's retreating figure.

Ohio was the main supply line for the Wayne Army—the American settlements in the Mississippi River Basin were simply unable to provide the logistical support needed for thousands of American troops, especially ammunition, which had to be transported from Maryland in the east to the west.

If Blackfeather can cut off Ohio's logistical supply lines, Wayne will be forced to retreat.

However, he still felt that the plan to penetrate deep into the American heartland was too risky, after all, their army, even including the Native American soldiers, numbered only a little over 5...

Three days later, Napoleon led his main force on the march to Huntsville, leaving only 300 soldiers to defend New Orleans.

Meanwhile, in Hawkingville, west of Lexington, hundreds of American townspeople were kneeling "devoutly" before a long-flame priest dressed as a Catholic priest.

"Holy Father, forgive the sins of these lambs, who have rebelled against the Holy See and gone astray since..."

As the long flame was being chanted, a deacon was rebaptizing these Protestants.

When he approached someone, that person would recite "in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit," appearing very obedient and cooperative.

Yes, because behind Changyan stood Heiyu and more than 300 soldiers armed with flintlock muskets.

After completing the "recruitment ceremony" for these heretics, Kuroba ordered his men to take away most of the town's food, leaving only enough for the townspeople to eat for three weeks.

He then destroyed two defensive towers outside the town and immediately headed to the next town.

Changyan, on horseback, made the sign of the cross with satisfaction, praising Heiyu's devotion to the Lord and his contributions to the Church.

Yes, according to Kuroba, the intention was to kill all the adult men in the town. However, Longflame gave the townspeople a chance: if they swore to accept the Holy Prophecy, consistently attended Mass every week, and followed the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, they could be "saved." The people of Hawkingville only breathed a sigh of relief after the figures of these preaching Native Americans had completely disappeared from their sight, but a sense of unreality still lingered in their hearts.

The mayor immediately wrote to the city of Lexington and the Kentucky State Legislature to report what had happened that day and to request assistance.

A week later, the Kentucky legislature had received more than a dozen letters requesting assistance, but Kentucky was just a new state that had been established for only a little over a decade and simply could not provide so much material aid.

There was no militia left, and the governor wrote to General Wayne for help—the state militia had been taken away by the latter.

A few days later, a supply convoy providing provisions for the Wayne Legion passed through Kentucky. Before Blackfeather could even make a move, three groups of food-starved Americans attacked the convoy.

By the time Kuroba pinpointed the convoy's location, he discovered that only shells and gunpowder remained to be seized.

……

Chattanooga, in the south-central United States.

This location is situated between the Cumberland Mountains and the Great Smoky Mountains, on the west side of the famous "Cumberland Gap".

The Cumberland Gap was a vital passage between the southeastern and southwestern United States, known as the "Gateway to History" during the westward expansion. Countless pioneers and explorers set off from the eastern coast, passing through here on their way to the Bluegrasslands in the west.

At this time, Napoleon led his army eastward, retracing the footsteps of the pioneers.

The area around the Cumberland Gap was quite desolate, with very few towns along the way, so he encountered almost no obstacles and arrived at Tutlo in just half a month.

During this time, Harjo, as promised, brought them supplies with a large number of people from the Creek tribe.

Brasser watched the winding procession move forward, spurred his horse to Napoleon's side, and whispered, "Commander, are we really going to continue eastward?"

The latter nodded firmly: "What are you worried about? Once we pass the south side of Mount Allegheny, we'll be able to get supplies everywhere."

He waved his hand vigorously: "In another 20 days, the Americans will be surprised to find that French troops have reappeared in Virginia!"

Brasser almost blurted out, "Are you crazy?", but then he remembered that this Major Bonaparte had led his troops on a forced march of hundreds of kilometers, crossed the Alps, and defeated the powerful Austrian army, so he quickly suppressed his doubts.

More than two weeks later, when the residents of Charlottesville on the James River were awakened by the deafening sound of cannons, they thought it was another riot by the black slaves.

The Charlottesville militia never expected to fight a regular army of several thousand men. They had barely managed to rally together when they were ambushed by French cavalry.

Several twelve-pound cannonballs then tore through the makeshift fence outside the city, and Little Turtle led over a thousand Indian soldiers into the city.

When the news reached Philadelphia, John Adams confirmed with the messenger three times before finally believing that Charlottesville had indeed been occupied by the French.

Virginia is the second richest state in the United States after Delaware. If it were to be damaged, it would be like a knife to the nation's financial lifeline.

The federal legislature acted with remarkable efficiency, issuing a mobilization order by noon the following day, summoning 1 militiamen from Maryland, Delaware, New York, Cornestoga, and other places to rush to Virginia as reinforcements.

(End of this chapter)