I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 998: Follow Napoleon's path and leave Napoleon with nowhere to go

Berthier knew very well how amazing Bonaparte's military talent was. Seeing him speak so seriously, he hurriedly picked up the papers and read them carefully.

The title is "On the Use of Skirmishers in a New Battlefield Environment."

The Chief of Staff glanced at Napoleon in surprise and continued to read:

[After many battles in the Southern Netherlands and Italian battlefields, we will now discuss the use of skirmishers based on actual combat experience.

The old linear stalemate is no longer suitable. The flexibility of scattered soldiers is the key to taking the initiative on the battlefield in the future...

1. Overview of the advantages of skirmishers: Compared with clumsy horizontal formations, skirmishers can rely on gullies, jungles, and buildings to move around like ghosts...

2. On the tactics of attrition…

3. Training, Equipment and Use of New Skirmishers

4. Organization of Skirmishers

5. Battle experience and coping mode for scattered soldiers...】

Napoleon couldn't help but frown slightly when he saw Berthier reading very quickly - it was impossible to truly understand such complex and detailed content by reading ten lines at a glance.

He was about to open his mouth to remind him, but he saw the Chief of General Staff close the report he had not yet finished reading, raised his head, and said calmly:

"It seems that you have heard about the second military reform?"

Napoleon nodded hopefully. "Yes. That's why I prepared this report."

Berthier exhaled: "Obviously you didn't really understand His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's theory of 'skirmisher clusters'. Perhaps the person who conveyed it to you didn't explain it clearly enough."

"Wait!" Napoleon looked at him in surprise. "You mean, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince also proposed the same skirmisher theory as I reported..."

"Same as you?" Berthier looked a little strange, and patted the report on the table. "Of course not, you only wrote a small part of your highness's theory."

"How...how is this possible?" Napoleon grabbed Berthier and shouted, "Please tell me in detail your Highness's theory."

Berthier and Lieutenant Colonel Galdet looked at each other, and when the latter nodded, he turned to Napoleon and said, "Okay, then I'll give you a brief introduction."

He spread out the report on the wooden table: "First of all, regarding the organization of the skirmishers, 20% is obviously too small and is not enough to serve as the main force of the battle..."

Napoleon's eyes widened immediately, "Skirmishers as the main force?!"

"That's right." Berthier nodded, "Your Highness believes that the infantry line is too bloated and slow. With good training, skirmishers can definitely fight a decisive battle with the enemy's infantry line.

“Especially after being equipped with rifled guns, skirmishers no longer need to rely on volley fire to improve their hit rate, or use small-scale volley fire instead of battalion-level volley fire.

"If the number of skirmishers reaches one-third of the total force, their firepower will be enough to defeat the enemy's infantry line."

Napoleon was stunned when he heard this, but after careful thought, he found that the combat method proposed by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was completely valid.

The firepower density and hit rate of skirmishers using rifled muskets are no less than those of traditional infantry lines.

At the same time, skirmishers can hide behind cover such as trees and rocks to avoid being hit by the enemy.

The dense infantry lines on the opposite side were "large fixed targets". The core factors that limited skirmishers as a decisive battle force in the past were that they did not have dense formations and were easy to get separated when fighting in a large army. Second, in the absence of officers' orders to fire in volleys, soldiers were prone to firing indiscriminately.

But these are not problems at all for the French direct legions.

He had personally witnessed the training level of the Royal 3rd Infantry Division. Whether it was maintaining a skirmish formation or firing independently, they could master it within a month of practice at most.

Napoleon nodded with a bitter face: "I must admit that your Highness's idea is far better than mine."

This is inevitable because the "skirmisher cluster" theory proposed by Joseph was also proposed by Emperor Napoleon in history.

However, it was not until more than ten years later, after Napoleon had experienced hundreds of battles of varying sizes and continuously improved his theory of skirmishers, that it was finally formed.

And now he has only just come up with some inspiration for the reform of the scattered soldiers. How can he compare with himself after "great success"?
Berthier did not stop, and turned to the page of "skirmisher organization" in Napoleon's report: "Your organization of the legion also seems too crude.

“Although you used skirmishers as a complete combat force, you ignored the issue of matching them with other arms.

"Your Highness has mixed skirmishers, columns, and infantry lines.

"Basically, the skirmishers are in the front row, followed by the columns, and at the end is a thin line of infantry.

“During battle, skirmishers rely on their flexible mobility to pull the enemy’s formation and consume the enemy’s strength.

“Once there is a gap in the enemy’s formation, the column will immediately rush towards the enemy through the gaps between the scattered soldiers and deliver the final blow with a volley.

"The rear infantry line is used to provide support and prevent the scattered soldiers from becoming chaotic when the battlefield situation becomes too complicated."

Napoleon nodded sincerely. This kind of organization was much more flexible and efficient than simple infantry lines. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was truly a rare military genius in the world. This combat mode was simply perfect!
Yes, in history, after the birth of Napoleon's "skirmisher group", it immediately became the military theory standard for the whole of Europe. It was used until the emergence of breech-loading rifles, that is, nearly a century later, when it gradually withdrew from the stage of history.

Napoleon suddenly thought of something and raised his hand and said, "Wait! This method of fighting is indeed very efficient when attacking, but if we encounter a counterattack by the enemy's superior forces, especially a cavalry raid, we will be easily defeated."

Berthier smiled and said, "You are right to have such concerns. That is why His Highness also proposed the 'arms switching' tactic.

"In future legions, skirmishers and line infantry will use the same weapons and receive the same training.

"When encountering a strong enemy attack, the scattered soldiers can gather into infantry lines at any time to defend. Or several regiments can form a hollow square to resist the cavalry charge.

"And if the enemy's defense is tight, the infantry columns will be converted into skirmishers to intensify harassment of the enemy."

Napoleon's eyes widened even more - in this case, the "skirmisher group" would indeed be perfect!
Berthier seemed to be in high spirits and continued:

"In fact, His Highness also proposed the concept of 'jumping soldiers' to enhance the flexibility of skirmishers."

"Leapers?"

"Yes. Select some short soldiers from the scattered soldiers and give them horses. In battle, two of them ride on one horse and make short-distance maneuvers, so as to quickly appear in the enemy's most vulnerable area."

Napoleon said: "This... is a bit like dragoons."

"It's very similar, but the cost of the vault troopers is much lower - because they don't need to be equipped with very good horses, and they only need to be able to maneuver three or four kilometers.

"Moreover, the leaping soldiers can be organized together with the skirmishers, making combat deployment more convenient and flexible."

(End of this chapter)