Chapter 665

After the Battle of Venice, Marshal Radski did not stop. He only let the troops rest for two days before marching to Lombardy.

The Sardinian government had overestimated their position in the hearts of the local people. After experiencing the deception, the people of Lombardy hated the Sardinian government.

At this time, Marshal Badrio's reputation as a famous general was shattered. The Battle of Venice broke the backbone of the Sardinian army. After losing their faith, the destructive power of the defeated army was terrifying.

Everywhere they went, they would bring disaster to another place. Before the government could mobilize the masses, they had already pulled the hatred to the maximum.

There was no harm without comparison. The ordinary people suddenly realized that their days under the rule of the Kingdom of Sardinia were worse than when they were under the rule of the Government of Austria.

At the very least, the decadent Government of Austria had established social order. Although they were oppressed by the government, the nobles, and the capitalists, the social order was generally stable, and everyone could still make do with their lives.

However, after the Kingdom of Sardinia came, there were continuous wars. The high war taxes were even more ruthless than the Government of Austria. The nobles and capitalists were still oppressed, and they were also harassed by the rebels.

On the 1st of June, the Bread Massacre broke out in Milan. In order to survive, the workers of Milan besieged the bakery, which led to the bloody suppression of the Sardinian army. Hundreds of people were killed on the spot.

On the 3rd of June, a peasant uprising broke out in Pavia. The rebel army grew to more than 3,000 people, and they even openly raised the flag to welcome the Austrian army.

…

The people's war that the Sardinian government had expected did not hit Austria, and they fell into the sea of people's war first.

It was too easy to get the Lombardy region. Apart from a group of republicans being purged, the Sardinian government did not make a big move. Now, the aftereffects broke out.

Austria had ruled there for so many years, how could there be no supporters?

If the Kingdom of Sardinia continued to be strong, the loyalty of these people would probably be greatly reduced. But now that Austria clearly had the advantage, they naturally could not help it.

Coupled with a large group of speculators who wanted to jump ship, the workers and peasants' revolutionary movement in Lombardy spread like fire. Marshal Badrio could only fight with the Austrians while sending people to extinguish the fire.

Before the reinforcements from the Kingdom of Sardinia arrived, the Austrian army arrived at the city of Milan.

In just a few days, Marshal Badrio seemed to have aged 20 years. At this time, he was only left with regret.

If he had known it would come to this, he would not have coveted the credit. By now, he could tell that Marshal Radski's decision to give up on Lombardi was to lure the enemy deeper in.

It was a pity that they had been deceived by political propaganda. They believed that the Austrian Empire had decayed and that their army was weak.

"Marshal, the enemy has reached Milan. Give the order to retreat!" Lieutenant General Messi said anxiously.

"Retreat? Whither can we retreat? "said Bartolio, with a cold smile.

Looking at the general who said, Marshal, Badrio of the Sardinian of people, he Army, Milan.

However, this was just his previous thought. Now, his heart was dead. As the supreme commander of this military operation, he had to take responsibility for the failure of this war.

Badolio couldn't bear the pain of losing his reputation. He would rather die on the battlefield than go back and be tried in a military court.

"Of course we're going back. We can't protect Milan, and we probably can't protect Lombardy either. The Austrians won't give up. We still have to defend our homeland.

At this time, we have to preserve our strength. Otherwise, who will protect the Kingdom of Sardinia? "Lieutenant General Messi said matter-of-factly.

Badrio shook his head and said, "Because we have to preserve our strength, we can't retreat. If we don't restrain the main force of the Austrian army, will the other troops be able to retreat?

We are running in front, and the enemy is chasing us. How many soldiers do you think we will have left if we run back to the Kingdom of Sardinia?

Moreover, the homeland also needs time to prepare for the battle. We must restrain the enemy in Milan and buy time for the homeland! "

At this time, he had already disregarded his own life and death. Out of the responsibility of a soldier, he was ready to fight for a chance of survival for the Kingdom of Sardinia.

If the battle in Venice was a head-on battle, then the battle in Lombardy was lost too quickly. The Austrian army was like the autumn wind sweeping away the fallen leaves.

Badrio thought that with the 100,000 soldiers in his hands and the fortifications, they could at least delay for two to three months.

With such a long time, the Kingdom of Sardinia completed another national mobilization. Fighting on their own territory, with the support of the people, they might have a fighting chance.

Unfortunately, the soul of the Sardinian army had been destroyed. It was useless no matter how many troops there were. Badrio had to pin his hopes on the battle to defend Milan.

After all, the Republic of Hungary relied on Budapest to resist the Austrian army for more than a month. It didn't make sense that they couldn't do it.

Badrio wanted to defend Milan, but King Charles Albert didn't agree. The army of the Kingdom of Sardinia was involved in this war. If they were all wiped out, the Kingdom of Sardinia would be finished.

In the end, Badrio made the decision to leave 10,000 troops to defend Milan to buy time for the army to retreat.

…

On the 10th of June, the Sardinian army, which had fought hard for two days and nights, finally failed to stop the Austrian army. With the cooperation of the people in the city, Milan returned to the hands of Austria again.

At the same time that Milan fell, Marshal Badrio committed suicide in the governor's palace, preserving his last dignity as a soldier.

On the 12th of June, the Austrian army recovered the Lombardy area and headed straight for the Kingdom of Sardinia. The Austrian war entered a new stage.

Turin

The rapid failure of the battle to defend Lombardy stunned the Sardinian government. They really didn't expect to be defeated so quickly.

After all, back then, Marshal Radquis had used less than 100,000 troops to block the attack of 200,000 Sardinian troops by relying on a defensive position.

In their opinion, there were still 120,000 troops in the Lombardy area of Sardinia, which was almost the same as the troops that Austria had sent to attack. Even if their combat power was a little weaker, as the defensive side, they could make up for it with their geographical advantage.

Charles Albert asked anxiously, "Li Qi, how many troops have we withdrawn from the front line? Can we stop the enemy's attack?"

Minister of War Li Qi replied with a bitter smile, "Your Majesty, a total of 70,000 troops have been withdrawn. We have mobilized another 150,000 troops in the country, but these people have not undergone formal training. I'm afraid their combat power …"