I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 696 Bastion
Kovojitch looked at the other committee members, swallowed his saliva, and was still very hesitant:
"Mr. Schumann, even if the sailors and workers were willing to defend Gdansk, we don't have enough weapons."

Schumann smiled slightly: "Actually, you know, I also do some illegal business. Please don't report me.

"The 'Fat Phils' parked in the port is my ship, carrying weapons for sale to the Middle East. If necessary, you can let my Persian buyers wait a little longer."

Kovodejic's eyes widened. "What a coincidence! Ah, can you tell me how much 'cargo' is loaded on it?"

"3 flintlock rifles, and enough ammunition to last four months."

This was naturally not a merchant ship bound for Persia, but one that Joseph had prepared for Gdansk a long time ago and had been parked outside the port.

"God! Thank you for having mercy on Gdansk!" The fear on Kolodzejic's face finally disappeared.

As a Pole and an investor in the port, he certainly does not want it to fall into foreign hands.

Before, he was unable to resist and could only choose to surrender, but now, he saw hope.

Romilev also looked at Schumann with great surprise and excitement.

He had originally planned to protect the port with his 400 patrolmen at all costs, but he did not expect that the French would bring so many "surprises".

He remembered something else: "Mr. Schumann, we still need some cannons. If you have any..."

"I don't have a cannon."

Seeing the disappointment on everyone's faces, Schumann immediately added: "But have you forgotten? There are many armed merchant ships here. We can dismantle the cannons on the ships and use them."

Romilev frowned: "The ship owner probably won't be willing to lend it to us..."

Schumann looked at Kovodjeitch and said, "Please, in the name of the committee, forcibly requisition all merchant ships in the port."

"How is this okay?!"

"Tell them that any ship that contributes to the port defense can obtain tax exemption for one to three years. I believe they will be happy with it."

An hour later, patrols began to arrest Prussians in the city.

At the same time, a large number of pamphlets about how Prussia had betrayed its loyalty and colluded with Russia to stab Poland were circulated throughout Gdansk.

At the end of the pamphlet, the Gdansk Management Committee called on everyone to go to Warehouse No. 1 to sign up and jointly guard the port.

It was also promised that those who were disabled during the fighting would receive pensions according to the treatment of the Polish regular army.

The booklets were naturally printed in advance and piled up in the bottom hold of the "Fat Phils".

Almost instantly, the whole of Gdansk was engulfed in anger.

Both sailors and dock workers gathered in front of Warehouse No. 1, cursing loudly the Prussians' shameless behavior.

Many of them actually wanted to return to Warsaw to join the fight against Russia, but because Prussia blocked the roads to Marienburg and Tuchel on the pretext of something, they could only wait until the next time they went out to sea, land in Courland, and then go south to return home.

Now, they can fight for their motherland in Gdansk!
Four days later.

Horn led the Prussian army, exhausted by the continuous journey, to Gdansk.

The situation he expected, in which the Poles would panic and rush out to greet them, did not happen - even the Prussians in the port did not show up.

He knew that there were probably six or seven hundred Prussians working here or operating merchant ships. Soon, several cavalrymen returned to report that the city of Gdansk was almost empty and that most of the things in the buildings had been moved away.

Horn squeezed the whip in anger.

He had rushed over as fast as he could, but the cowardly Pole still slipped away!
He breathed a sigh of relief. Although he had lost the unexpected fortune, at least he had captured this important port. His Majesty the King would still give him commendations and rewards.

He turned to the officer beside him and said:

"Let the soldiers take control of the port. Be careful to search the warehouses. There may be things that have not been moved away in time."

In a luxurious villa, Horn was discussing the next combat deployment for the attack on Kuyavi with his officers, but suddenly he heard the rumbling sound of artillery coming from the northeast.

He frowned and walked to the window, and saw black smoke rising from the middle of the port. He immediately turned to the messenger and said:
"Send someone to see what happened?"

Before the latter left the temporary command post, a messenger rushed in, found Horn's attendant, and said breathlessly:
"Report! There is a bastion on the east side of the Strathplatt Peninsula. We were attacked by intensive Polish artillery fire there and lost more than 40 people!"

This was also because the Prussian army underestimated the Poles. They approached "Baron Lacoste's Estate" without any reconnaissance, and as a result, half of their company was taken away by artillery in an instant.

Well, the sailors on the "Fat Phils" were very good at operating cannons. After all, they had studied artillery for more than a year at the Paris Police Academy.

These more than one hundred skilled artillerymen have become the core combat force in the bastion.

Horn's face suddenly darkened - he had never received any information about the existence of a bastion in Gdansk before.

When he arrived at the Strathplatt Peninsula, he finally saw the beautifully built "manor" and the gun muzzles protruding from the inner wall through the telescope.

Schumann requisitioned more than 80 cannons from merchant ships docked in the port of Gdansk.

Although these guns are not easy to operate on land, they are great in number. If you aim at a small area in advance and fire a gun wherever the enemy appears, the efficiency is not low.

Horn immediately ordered two battalions of skirmishers to attack the elaborately decorated fortress.

According to intelligence, there were only 400 Polish patrolmen in the port.

The combat effectiveness of these guys, who are between the police and the army, is not very strong. Even with the support of bastions, it is difficult for them to withstand the attack of thousands of regular troops.

However, when the Prussian soldiers finally approached the bastion under artillery bombardment, they saw thousands of black gun barrels sticking out from the outer wall of the bastion.

Although there was almost no volley fire and even little aiming, the space in front of the bastion was very narrow, and the Lu people gathered there still suffered heavy casualties from the flying bullets.

Unlike field battles where infantry lines are required to increase firepower, there are no requirements for queues when defending a fortress.

As long as you can use a flintlock rifle, stand in a fixed position and fire the gun at will.

This is also the reason why Schumann dared to let the dock workers participate in the defense after simple training.

Horn watched his soldiers retreat and angrily asked his staff to dispatch artillery to bombard them. Then he remembered that the artillery battalion had been handed over to Hopner...

It was not until half a month later that a dozen cannons were transported to Gdansk.

At the same time, news of the Prussian invasion of western Poland and Gdańsk had reached Warsaw.

(End of this chapter)