I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 362 Ransom 80

Joseph and Berthier looked at each other again.

Although neither of them understood what was going on, they spoke almost at the same time, "Your Highness, I suggest launching an attack immediately!"

"I think we should cooperate with Major Lacoste to launch a strong attack."

Berthier then bowed slightly: "Yes, Your Highness!"

Soon, the skirmishers of the Guards Corps began to surround the village of Ogchener, and at the same time the cannons roared, tearing apart the thin infantry lines of the Hanoverian defenders with shells.

Berthier looked at Joseph with some worry and whispered, "Your Highness, could it be that the cavalry artillery didn't have time to infiltrate, and the enemy's reinforcements have already joined the rear troops?"

He frowned again: "Or, they were defeated by the enemy's reinforcements?"

Joseph thought and shook his head: "At least it's not the latter, otherwise it would be difficult for them to launch such a fierce bombardment. You just said that there are dozens of cannons firing at the enemy."

Berthier heaved a sigh of relief and said, "You're right, at least they didn't suffer very heavy losses.

"Even if they don't have time to stop the Hanoverian reinforcements, they are now in a good situation as they are able to attack Ogchenner Village from both sides."

Just as they were talking worriedly, a guard came over with a burly soldier covered in black smoke.

Berthier recognized the man immediately: "Are you Matthew, the messenger of the Cavalry Artillery Battalion?"

"Yes, General. Matthew Dibble." The messenger raised his hat and saluted. "The battalion commander heard the sound of artillery firing from your side and asked me to come and report to you. The cavalry artillery battalion and the dragoons cooperated to defeat the Hanoverian reinforcements that came to support the rear team. Then the battalion commander learned from the prisoners that the enemy had set up defenses in the village of Ogchenner, so he decided to rush here to attack the enemy."

Berthier was stunned for a second before he smiled happily: "Major Lacoste is really...ah, so brave! He has made an outstanding contribution to the victory of the legion."

He looked at Joseph again and whispered, "He used to be a very steady officer."

Joseph immediately thought of a certain artillery company commander, curled his lips, and said, "Perhaps it was an adventurous subordinate who gave him the idea."

The Hanoverian army in the village of Ogchener obviously did not expect to be attacked from behind and soon fell into chaos.

Commander Lieutenant Colonel Schmidt shouted desperately, mobilizing soldiers to go to the north to stop the enemy, but he had deployed people on the roofs before. It took half an hour to pass the order and organize the troops, and less than three companies reached the north of the village.

As a result of his actions, the Hanoverian soldiers in the village were somewhat confused. They all came down from the rooftops, but when they heard louder noises coming from the south, they hurried back to the rooftops...

The cavalry artillery on the north side rushed into the village first with almost no obstruction.

Battalion Commander Lacoste had the cannons dragged to within a hundred steps of several farmhouses where enemy soldiers were hiding, and blew down the houses.

The Hanoverian soldiers who saw this scene were so frightened that they left the farmhouse in a hurry, fearing that they would be buried in the ruins like their compatriots.

On the south side of the village, Davout pointed to the burning farmhouse ahead and shouted to the herald: "The fire there has destroyed the enemy's defense line. Let everyone rush over with me!"

The drummer and the flag bearer carried out the captain's order without hesitation. Under the rapid drumbeats, hundreds of soldiers of the Guards Corps quickly passed through the burning farmhouse on both sides. Although the flames licked off all their eyebrows and beards, and even some people's clothes were set on fire, there were indeed no Hanoverian soldiers nearby.

Davout ordered the soldiers to put out the fire on each other's bodies, and then they simply formed a team and immediately fired a volley at the enemy infantry line on their side. Then, the gap became larger and larger, and more soldiers of the Guards Corps shouted and poured into the village from there.

Less than an hour later, the soldiers of the Guards Corps, who launched simultaneous attacks from the north and south sides, met in the village.

Afterwards, Lieutenant Colonel Schmidt, whose hair was burnt and whose uniform was torn in a large piece, was brought to Joseph by a company commander and his men.

After learning of Joseph's identity, the Hanoverian officer politely saluted him with his hand on his chest and said: "I didn't expect that the commander of this large army would be the young French Crown Prince. Your art of command has left me with an unforgettable impression."

Joseph nodded to him and said, "Then please tell me, how long will it take for His Excellency Karl II to complete the defense line?"

"I am sorry, Your Highness. Out of loyalty to His Majesty, I cannot say a word to you."

Joseph waved his hand, looked at Berthier, and asked in a low voice: "What is this person's family background?"

The latter thought for a moment, then asked the staff officer beside him, and then replied: "Your Highness, Viscount Schmidt is from a large family in Verden. His grandfather was a lieutenant general of Hanover during the time of George II."

Joseph nodded and smiled. It seemed that his family must be quite wealthy.

So he signaled to the guards beside him: "Please change Viscount Schmidt into some neat clothes first, and then invite him to my tent for a cup of tea. Even if he is an enemy, we should give him the respect he deserves."

Lieutenant Colonel Schmidt was about to express his gratitude, but he heard the French Crown Prince continue: "Let's set the ransom at 80 livres. This should reflect your noble status."

Schmidt almost vomited blood. It was the first time he heard of a prisoner being "priced" on the spot.

80 livres, that's more than 30 florins!
He couldn't come up with so much money even if he sold all his property!
"Your Highness, you can't..."

He was about to "bargain" when he heard the French prince whisper to the general beside him: "Ah? A lot? No, no, I heard that it is easy for senior officers to get loans from British banks."

All his words were stuck in his throat until a French officer asked him to move to the military tent...

……

Karl II would ask his staff almost every half hour, "How long will it take for the army to assemble?"

This time, the staff officer did not report the positions of the troops as before, but said in a low voice with a dark face: "Marshal, I just received news that the village of Ogchenna has been breached..."

Karl II felt dizzy. It had only been less than 4 hours, and Schmidt, who was very good at defensive warfare, was defeated?!
In other words, there was less than three miles of clear road left between the French army and themselves.

He looked at the map beside him. At this time, the farthest infantry regiment on his side was still 1.5 miles away. By the time the French launched the attack, they might not be able to complete the assembly.

The most terrible thing was that there was no news from the artillery of the rear team.

If there were no cannons, even if they fought the French army head-on, they would only be beaten badly in the end.

He hesitated for a long time, called an officer not far away, and said loudly: "Sir Dill, you are now in full command of the army."

(End of this chapter)