18th century total war

Chapter 272 Don't Give The Enemy Time To Prepare
In mid-1798, the Tuileries Palace in Paris, the capital of the French Empire.

"Your Majesty, the new Sardinian Legion and the Italian Legion have all been assembled.

According to the original plan, a total of 2 people were reorganized in the Sardinian Army and 3 in the Italian Army.

In addition, we have also integrated 5000 sharpshooters and 5000 guard cavalry to supplement the consumption of the armies in the last war. "

Li Wei nodded slightly as he listened to the Minister of War's report.

This is the 60 army he trained after spending the last [-] points of glory on the account of the total war system.

As for the Sardinian Legion and the Italian Legion in the French Foreign Legion, like the French Defense Force, the main body is the infantry guards, with only a small number of sharpshooters and guard cavalry. The only difference from the French National Defense Force is that the officers and soldiers in the Foreign Legion are all from Italy. Prisoners of war during the expedition.

During the expedition to the Italian Peninsula, although the armies of various Italian states did not have much confrontation with Livy's French Defense Forces, when the French Defense Forces swept across the Italian Peninsula, a large number of Italian armies who surrendered without a fight became the French Defense Forces. prisoners of war.

These prisoners of war were carefully selected, and the young and strong ones were brought back to the French mainland. This is the source of soldiers for the Italian Army.

Among them were a large number of captured officers of all levels.

These Italian prisoners of war also praised the food in the prisoner-of-war camp of the French Defense Forces. The cost of food and clothing is almost the same as that of the French Defense Forces!
You must know that although the officers and soldiers of the French Defense Forces are only paid on paper to fool people, their basic necessities of life rank first among European powers.

This is to ensure that the French Wehrmacht can maintain peak physical fitness at all times.

The Li Wei government can spend a lot of money in this regard.

Of course, the fact that the French National Defense Forces rank among the top European armies in terms of food, clothing, housing and transportation has a lot to do with the fact that European countries generally do not pay attention to the lives of soldiers in this era...

The armies of powerful European countries in this era generally have a tradition that the lives of officers and soldiers are separated.

The officers spend their days drinking and drinking, even during the war, there are special orderlies who are responsible for their own basic necessities.

It fully demonstrates the dignity of a nobleman.

On the other hand, the living conditions of the soldiers are better than those of the ancient eastern countries...

This does not include Tsarist Russia in Eastern Europe and the gray cattle of Tsarist Russia. That’s just saving money!
Many officers in Tsarist Russia dared to default on the soldiers' salaries during the war!
That is to say, the gray cattle in Tsarist Russia are all serfs, and their living needs are very low. As long as they have enough to eat and a warm military uniform, they are willing to join the army and fight. It doesn’t matter what the salary is. Many Tsarist soldiers have worked for the Tsar for 20 years. I haven't seen a single soldier's salary!
Of course, this did not prevent the soldiers of Tsarist Russia from yearning for war.

It is precisely because they have no income in peacetime that they yearn for war.

Only when there is a war, the army of Tsarist Russia will have the opportunity to rob and supplement their families!
Why is the army of Tsarist Russia truly the worst in terms of military discipline in this era?

It is because the soldiers of the Tsarist Russian army were treated poorly, and their only source of extra money was through war robbery!

Therefore, wherever the Tsarist Russian army passed, it could be said that locusts passed through the border, and the women could not close their legs...

It is not difficult to understand that European countries all call Tsarist Russia a country of barbarians.

This has little to do with the geographical location of Tsarist Russia. Sweden is also in Eastern Europe. Why haven't many countries said that they are barbaric countries?
To put it bluntly, Tsarist Russia's bad reputation was created by their army.

Of course, Tsarist Russia just didn't care.

Unlike the prisoners of war in the Kingdom of Sardinia who were forcibly escorted to Paris, the Italian prisoners of war were basically fooled by the treatment in the prisoner-of-war camp.

After the Italian prisoners of war entered the barracks for training, it was too late...

By the time the training is over, no matter whether it is a Sardinian or an Italian, they have been brainwashed to become a real soldier who is not afraid of death.

The Li Wei government formed the French Foreign Legion separately. The main purpose was to solve the problem of unfamiliar language and culture between the occupying army and the local people when they controlled different countries and regions in the future.

Even if nationalism has not exploded in this era, regional xenophobic sentiments are common, especially in areas with different languages ​​and cultures. If they are forcibly occupied, they only need simple agitation and funding from enemy forces, and guerrillas will emerge in endlessly.

Even if the combat effectiveness is not as good as in the era when nationalism was flourishing, it is still enough to cause headaches for the occupying forces.

Li Wei looked at the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Director of Military Intelligence, and asked: "How is the war between the Kingdom of Portugal and the Kingdom of Spain going?"

The foreign minister took the lead and said: "Reporting to Your Majesty, King Carlos IV of the Kingdom of Spain is organizing celebrations in Madrid, and the Spanish Army has successfully occupied Lisbon, the capital of the Kingdom of Portugal.

Since the London government has never sent troops to land in the Kingdom of Portugal, all large and medium-sized cities in the Kingdom of Portugal have fallen into the hands of the Spanish army, and only some remote towns are still resisting.

However, with the support of the London government, the colonial government of the Kingdom of Portugal in South America announced that it had separated from the Kingdom of Portugal controlled by the Kingdom of Spain, unwilling to accept the jurisdiction of the colonial government of the Kingdom of Spain, and announced the establishment of the Kingdom of Brazil.

The governor of the Kingdom of Portugal in South American colonies, supported by the British as the king of Brazil.

Moreover, the Kingdom of Brazil is actively preparing for war, intending to invade the South American colonies of the Kingdom of Spain, which have been exhausted by nationalist rebels from all over the country.

The London government intends to use its naval superiority to train its own thugs in South America to disintegrate the Spanish colonial system in the Americas.

At the same time, the London government was discussing with the Washington government the plan to seize the Philippines, and the London government encouraged the Washington government to send troops to seize the Philippine colony of the Kingdom of Spain.

It's just that the Washington government's main energy is in the westward expansion movement, so it has never agreed with the London government's plan.

The Americans are wary of the British, and the negotiations between the two sides are not happy..."

After the Foreign Secretary finished the official news, Manid, the director of the General Directorate of Military Intelligence, stood up and began to tell the intelligence that the General Directorate of Military Intelligence's spies had obtained on the Iliban Peninsula (the peninsula where the Kingdom of Spain and the Kingdom of Portugal are located).

"Your Majesty, although Carlos IV of the Kingdom of Spain has won the Kingdom of Portugal, the domestic situation is not good.

For this war, Carlos IV raised taxes four times in total, and a large number of Spanish aristocrats and bureaucrats took the opportunity to enrich themselves. Many Spanish people were consumed and oppressed by this war and lost everything.

In addition, the Kingdom of Portugal just lost its capital. The Portuguese royal family has arrived in the British Isles under the protection of the British fleet and established a government in exile. With the help of the British, they remotely commanded the guerrillas in Portugal to resist the Spanish occupation forces. .

These Portuguese guerrillas were supplemented by supplies from the British. In addition, the Spanish army burned, killed and looted in Portugal, which made the Portuguese guerrillas fight very fiercely.

So far, the Spanish army can only hide in various major cities and transportation hubs, and the vast rural areas have all fallen into the hands of the Portuguese guerrillas.

It is precisely because of the harassment of these Portuguese guerrillas that the Spanish occupying forces have been bleeding. The war seems to be over on the surface, but the Madrid government’s military expenditures are not short of a penny, and the war tax on the Spanish people shows no signs of easing.

The Kingdom of Spain was already full of public dissatisfaction at this time, and the national finance was even more exorbitant in foreign debts. If the Spanish royal family had not obtained high-interest loans from a group of Jewish financiers from nowhere, the national finances would have completely collapsed now.

The Spanish army occupying the Kingdom of Portugal could not get full military pay at all, so the soldiers of the Spanish army could only go out to rob on their own initiative to supplement their own consumption, which further strengthened the strength of the Portuguese guerrillas, resulting in the increasing cost of occupying the Kingdom of Portugal .

Thus, a vicious cycle is formed.

This time, Carlos IV of the Kingdom of Spain held celebrations in Madrid, in fact, to appease the hearts of the people, and wanted to use this false victory to appease the resentment of the people.

It's a pity that Carlos IV and his cabinet government are thinking too simple. Many people in Spain have starved to death. No matter how 'great' the victory is, if they can't fill their stomachs, the Madrid government is in jeopardy.

The celebration of Carlos IV made the Spanish hungry people in many areas believe that Madrid has enough food, and groups of refugees are moving towards Madrid from all directions!
I beg Your Majesty to be prepared to intervene in the internal affairs of the Kingdom of Spain, otherwise the Kingdom of Spain, an ally, will not be able to last long...

It was precisely because the London government saw this that they did not rush to send troops to land on the Iberian Peninsula. The London government was planning to kill the Kingdom of Spain alive! "

Manid also served as Foreign Minister for a period of time. He sat in the position of Director of Military Intelligence and was exposed to a lot of external intelligence. Therefore, Manid's understanding of the international situation is no less than that of the current Foreign Minister.

Even because he sees and hears more than the foreign secretary, so the opinions are more practical.

"The Kingdom of Spain's Invincible Fleet is still very useful. I really can't watch Carlos IV fall, otherwise it will be difficult to find such an idiot ally if the king or even the Spanish government changes."

Li Wei responded with deep satisfaction.

"Your Majesty, shall we change the original battle plan?"

The Minister of War on the other side asked cautiously.

“Why change?

Including the French Foreign Legion, we now have nearly 30 active-duty troops, which can fully withstand two-front operations.

What's more, as long as we defeat the Holy Roman Empire, the strongest opponent on European land, there is nothing to be afraid of even if a revolution breaks out in the Kingdom of Spain and a republic is established. "

Li Wei said confidently.

"Your Majesty, although our army can undertake the heavy responsibility of fighting on two fronts, our logistics cannot afford to fight on two fronts for a long time.

Unless this two-front battle does not need to hit the French mainland. "

The logistics minister jumped out at this time and reminded.

"Isn't the huge amount of wealth gained from the last expedition to Italy enough to support a long-term war?"

"Your Majesty, the cost of fighting on two fronts is not just one plus one, and much of the wealth plundered last time was used to restore the domestic economy and meet the basic survival needs of the majority of the people. The plan only undertakes the attack on the Holy Roman Empire, so it can naturally persist for a year or even more than two years.

But if we fight on two fronts, I am afraid that we can only bear it for half a year at most. After half a year, we will have to increase the war tax again. At that time, the economic and agricultural production rhythm of the French Empire, which is recovering, will definitely be broken. "

Li Wei knew that his financial abilities could not compete with these professional ministers. After hearing the other party's suggestions, he had to give up his plan to occupy Central Europe for a long time.

I still have to eat one bite at a time...

"At most half a year is definitely not enough for us to occupy Central Europe, and it is even more impossible for us to maintain war relations with many states of the Holy Roman Empire for a long time.

And judging from the results of the first London conference, once we do it, Tsarist Russia will definitely join in, and Tsarist Russia will not allow a behemoth to appear to the west of him. Our expansion has already aroused the vigilance of the Tsar.

Therefore, it is impossible to defeat the Holy Roman Empire in a short time.

That being the case, the original battle plan was changed from long-term occupation to supporting vassal states.

Follow the model of the Kingdom of Belgium.

We don't need to provoke the traditional nobles and royal families in Europe. At that time, I will let the executors of the Lindenwan plan cooperate with us. "

"Your Majesty is wise!"

The three ministers in charge of finance, the Chief Taxation Officer, the Minister of Industry and Commerce, and the Minister of Logistics, suddenly shouted in unison.

If the French Empire really goes to war for a long time, these three departments will be the most uncomfortable.

The Commissioner of Taxation and the Minister of Industry and Commerce need to continuously supply blood to the war machine of the French Empire, while the Minister of Logistics will be overwhelmed by the massive consumption of war materials...

After all, money cannot be turned into war materials out of thin air. The conversion process is the work of the logistics department. Under the circumstances of being blocked by the British Royal Navy at this time, it is not a big deal to buy a large amount of war materials at a not too high price. Easy things.

In many cases, supplies were even forcibly requisitioned from the civilian population of the French Empire!

"Okay, the French Empire will never wait until the enemy is ready before taking action. It can be foreseen that the second anti-French alliance will definitely appear when we take action.

The strategic goal this time is to establish a solid strategic barrier on the eastern border of the empire while defeating the anti-French alliance! "

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(End of this chapter)