Chapter 8

### The Empire's Bonaparte - Chapter 8 (8/200)

#### Chapter 8: Franco-Prussian War (4)

When the news of the Emperor's death arrived, the Prussian cabinet fell into a deathly silence.

"We must launch an offensive. There is no other way but to bring down Paris as quickly as possible and end the war."

Bismarck said with a weary voice.

"Fortunately, our losses are not significant. If we mobilize all our forces, we can break through Paris's defensive lines."

"Is it possible?"

"...... If it's not possible, it's all over."

***

Albert was an ordinary boy. Perhaps his only distinguishing feature was that he lived in Paris?

Just an ordinary boy with no remarkable traits.

He joined the National Guard after listening to the speech of the 16-year-old Crown Prince, who declared that he would defend Paris until the end. At that moment, Albert had a gut feeling.

If he fled this battlefield, he would never be able to hold his head high in France again. Even if no one said anything, he might have been so ashamed that he would have committed suicide.

The problem was that there were not enough infantry rifles in Paris's warehouses to distribute to all the National Guard members. Despite never having ridden a horse, Albert was strangely given a cavalry rifle.

Fortunately, it wasn't much different from what he had learned. The method of holding it was slightly different, but using it on the ground was no different from using an infantry rifle.

However, there were no drills or formations. After being taught how to shoot, it was just digging, digging, and more digging.

The officers cursed, saying that if anyone wanted to burst their guts from the impact of a shell before even seeing the Prussian army, they should dig faster. There was even an incident where the Crown Prince himself came out to dig with a pickaxe, but the horrified guards dragged him back to the palace.

In any case, before the Crown Prince was dragged away, he had done a few shovels. Given the amount of digging the soldiers had done, they couldn't complain.

After digging so hard, they had to sit inside the trenches.

How much time had passed? The sound of artillery began. A veteran grabbed Albert by the back of the neck and dragged him into the trench.

The Prussian army, which had the upper hand, or rather, was clearly the world's strongest at this time, started the artillery barrage. The obstacles and mines that the National Guard had worked hard to build were destroyed or exploded under the bombardment.

However, as was proven in the First World War decades later, this level of artillery fire could not kill soldiers in trenches unless a shell hit directly inside the trench.

-Boom! Boom! Boom!

The Prussian army, which seemed determined to sweep away the defensive lines with artillery alone, bombarded the entire defensive line and then advanced their troops.

"O noble Germany, loyal and sacred nation."

"Let the glory of honor shine anew from the east and west!"

"You stand firm like a mountain against the enemy's power and deceit, and your spirit flies like an eagle from its nest!"

"Endure! Endure! Raise the flag high! Show them! Show the enemy! That we are united in loyalty! That we are testing our old strength!"

"If the storm's roar rages against us, endure! Endure in the storm's roar!"

The Prussian army, marching with confidence and singing military songs, was met by the French army, which also began to sing.

"Rise, children of the fatherland! The day of glory has arrived!"

"Against us, the tyrant's bloodstained flag has risen!"

"Do you hear! The fierce cries of the soldiers on the fields! They have come to our doorstep to cut the throats of our sons and wives!"

"Take up arms, citizens! Form ranks! Advance! Advance! Soak our fields with the dirty blood of the enemy!"

That's right.

The bloodstained flags of the Prussian oppressors are approaching. They are really at our doorstep.

If we lose to them, what tragic fate awaits us? We, the citizens, have gathered to stand and fight to prevent that.

Albert, who sang with all his might, moved his body as soon as the artillery fire stopped and other soldiers moved to their firing positions.

The artillery fire sounded again. This time, it was from the rear.

The French army, hiding their positions, simultaneously bombarded the Prussian army with high-explosive shells and shotguns. The mitrailleuses, which were concentrated at the protruding points of the complex trench lines modeled after fortifications, spewed bullets like mad.

The Prussian vanguard, barely breaking through the hail of bullets, rushed into the front trench, where the trench troops, heavily armed with shotguns, armor, clubs, and pistols, gave them a warm welcome.

One soldier, discarding his bayonet, stabbed the first enemy soldier with a shovel and then immediately opened fire with a shotgun at the enemy soldiers who had jumped into the trench.

Bullets rained down from the second and third trenches. The enemies caught in the barbed wire were easy targets, and those who had stepped on mines and lost their mobility, as well as those whose bayonets had gotten stuck in hidden traps, were left to suffer and await death.

And above them, more shells rained down. From the French army.

The artillery had already set coordinates and aimed at the breakthrough points, ready to rain fire on them as soon as the order was given. They indiscriminately swept away both the few remaining French soldiers and the Prussian soldiers who had broken through.

The Prussian vanguard, unable to bear the losses, retreated, and the French army reclaimed the trench, now a pile of bodies.

"2nd Platoon! Move to the front trench! Move!"

Albert, who had fired a few shots but was frozen in place after seeing the artillery fire and the brutal close combat in the front trench, was shaken.

"You! Move!"

"Yes, yes?"

"I'm telling you for the last time, go forward!"

Terrified by the officer's growling, Albert hurriedly got up.

"Yes! Yes!"

***

Of course, Moltke, the Prussian Chief of Staff, was a qualified commander.

It didn't take him long to notice that the current battle and the French defensive tactics were different from what he had seen before.

"Every attackable point is covered by hidden mitrailleuses, and there are mines... What is this?"

Moltke, seeing the barbed wire for the first time, had a puzzled look on his face.

This was understandable. In this era, barbed wire was primarily used in agriculture.

Even if it had spread, it was mainly used by farmers to prevent livestock from escaping or as a cheap fence for security.

In the original history, it was first used in the military in 1895 by the Portuguese army for base defense, so it's no wonder.

Even in France, it had hardly spread, and the barbed wire used here was making its debut.

"Is it to stop cavalry?"

"It's highly likely. Small blades are attached in various places to increase casualties, and it's difficult to deploy cavalry because the barbed wire doesn't easily fly away even under artillery fire."

"So, are we supposed to just push in more infantry, huh?"

Moltke pointed in a direction.

"Send up balloons to confirm the protruding parts of the trenches and have the artillery concentrate on those corners. They'll be hiding there, whether it's direct-fire artillery or mitrailleuses."

"Sir? How can you confirm without checking?"

"I would do it."

"Understood!"

Moltke glared at the front line.

'The Crown Prince is in charge of the overall defense, right?'

Moltke muttered.

'He's only sixteen, but he seems to resemble his great-grandfather. Unlike his father.'

***

The multi-layered trench lines inflicted enormous casualties on the Prussian army and delayed them.

Despite this, the Prussian army discovered the weaknesses of the defensive line within a few days.

Old-fashioned cannons and volley guns are not easy to move, and the most efficient way to decimate advancing soldiers is to attack from the side.

Whether it's shotguns or mitrailleuses, they are not as effective as Maxim guns, so I recalled a battalion-level tactic I read in an old manual.

In a situation where a large number of troops are gathered, with weak firepower and outdated 75mm cannons as the main artillery, and no modern heavy artillery, this tactic could be effective.

Of course, there are many problems. The area we need to defend is vast, so we can't apply the same tactic directly. We also lack machine guns, and the mitrailleuses we have are far inferior to Gatling guns.

Ultimately, I fixed the howitzers in positions where they could provide the most artillery support and placed several direct-fire artillery and mitrailleuses loaded with shotguns at the protruding points of the defensive lines to force the approaching enemy to bleed as much as possible.

As a result, the defensive lines surrounding Paris were fortified with protruding points for firing, and the artillery was positioned right behind them.

The Prussian army, quickly learning this, concentrated their artillery fire on the protruding points that provided the main firepower. The goal was to destroy the artillery and ammunition to minimize casualties during the assault, and we responded by pushing as many reserves as possible into the areas under bombardment.

From that point on, our casualties began to increase rapidly.

Pushing and repelling, the intense battle reached a breaking point.

Unfortunately, the breaking point came on our side first, and the Prussian army broke through the outer defensive lines of Paris.

Unable to stop the collapse of the outer defensive lines, the French army retreated into the city, and the next phase was urban warfare.

At this moment, they were still fighting and dying.

The National Guard, poorly trained and lacking weapons, was set to be "consumed" efficiently by the elite Prussian army.

"Men of draft age attempting to leave Paris can be executed on the spot! Civilians can be evacuated, but soldiers must fight to the end. I will also meet my end here!"

"Deploy small units in all buildings, and engage the enemy at the closest possible range. Since their artillery is superior to ours, we must prevent them from using it effectively!"

If we can prevent them from using heavy artillery, we can hold our ground in infantry combat. We will increase their casualties and buy time.

While we gather more troops from the south, until Louis returns with reinforcements.

If the battle continues until then, we will encircle and annihilate the Prussian forces blinded by the attack on Paris. Even if they retreat, the Prussian army, having lost the initial momentum, will find it difficult to fight for long in the hostile environment of mainland France, and retreating to Alsace-Lorraine would be their best option.

If Paris falls before then, we will naturally lose. Conversely, if we can drive the Prussian army out on our own... I don't think it's possible, but if it happens, it would be the best outcome. We can counterattack with fresh, undamaged reserve forces.

However, what we can do now is...

'Hold on, hold on at all costs.'

To do that, I cannot escape. They are fighting because they trust me.

If I leave Paris, they will also collapse.