Chapter 935

"Marshal, when will you hand over the retreating soldiers to us?"

The slow German Confederation still realized the problem of command. General Adrian, who was not in charge of communication, hurried over.

Duke Albrecht shook his head and pretended to be surprised. "Hand over what? Do I, as the Allied Command, not have the authority to command these troops? "

The power of the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Command was another unsolved mystery.

Bede and Germany were forced to join the anti-French alliance. They did not have the confidence to compete with Austria for dominance. Even the authority of the Allied Command had not been clearly agreed upon.

In theory, authority without a specific agreement could be magnified infinitely. For example, Duke Albrecht had reorganized the retreating soldiers in the name of the Allied Command.

General Adrian tried his best to explain. "But Marshal …"

Without waiting for him to finish, Duke Albrecht interrupted, "There are no buts, my Admiral.

I'm sure you're well aware of how dangerous the situation on the battlefield is. If we don't have a unified command now, do you think we can hold the Rhine River defense line?

We don't have enough troops at the front line. I have already reorganized the retreating soldiers. They are now in the battle and cannot be mobilized in a short period of time.

If we want to hand over the command of these troops, we will have to wait until the war is over. You can rest assured that I won't hold on to them forever! "

Rest assured? How could he rest assured?

It was because he was worried that General Adrian came to visit. In fact, the defeat at the front line was also an opportunity for the central government of the German Confederation.

If they seized the opportunity and took over the command of the armies of the various states, this loose alliance would not be far from being unified.

The German generals at the front line could not be blamed for their slow reaction. Unlike the Allied Command, the authority of the German front line command had long been fixed.

Each state had their own independent command, and the German Command was made up of representatives sent by each state. The commander-in-chief appointed by the central government was actually just a coordinator.

The internal relations of the command had not been straightened out, so it was only natural that they were slow to react.

By the time George I decided to seize the opportunity to seize power, Duke Albrecht had already used the name of the Allied Forces Command to incorporate most of the German troops that had withdrawn from the frontlines.

Due to the inconvenience of communication, many troops at the front line lost contact with the German Command after the defeat at the front line.

The officers and soldiers below did not know about the disputes between the upper echelons. Anyway, the existence of the Allied Forces Command was known to everyone, and the grass-roots soldiers were used to obeying the orders of their superiors.

In the panic, they received orders from the Allied Command, including many Hanoverian troops.

Not only were the stragglers and stragglers recruited, but the German troops who had retreated from the frontlines were also conscripted by Duke Albrecht in the name of the Allied Forces Command. This included many Hanoverian troops.

By this time, Duke Albrecht had control of most of the German troops at the front line.

If it wasn't for the fact that they still needed the cooperation of the German Confederation in the following battles, Duke Albrecht would have gone even further. For example, forcefully taking over the command of all German troops at the frontline.

General Adrian braced himself and said, "Marshal, if the Allied Command Center wants a unified command, it can be achieved through the alliance of the three countries. There's no need to directly command the frontline troops."

It wasn't that General Adrian wasn't eloquent, but the relationship between Germany and Austria was too complicated. Now that the German Federation had to rely on Austria to protect itself, there were many things that he couldn't say.

Other international alliances could also use cultural differences and language barriers as an excuse to ask for independent command.

The Anti-French Alliance could not. Linguists might not be able to understand the difference between German and Austrian. Anyway, all three languages could be used, and there were no barriers to communication.

Since he couldn't use any excuses and couldn't say anything that would hurt his feelings, Admiral Adrian was naturally upset.

Duke Albrecht waved his hand and softened his tone. "Alright, General. You and I are both soldiers. It is enough to consider the problem from a military point of view. Let the government communicate with the political problem!

The most important thing now is to win this war. The most important task now is to hold the Rhine River defense line. Otherwise, the hinterland of the German Region will become a battlefield.

You should understand what this means. The ambition of the French is endless. At this time, no one can stay out of it. "

This was both a warning and a persuasion. Once the French army broke through the Rhine River defense line, Austria would be fine, but the German Confederation would become a second Belgium. Even the northern states would not be able to avoid it.

At this point, Austria would not let go of the command of the army, and General Adrian could do nothing about it.

He could not incite the soldiers to mutiny, could he? If there was a commotion at the front line and the French seized the opportunity to break through the Rhine River defense line, then it would be like shooting oneself in the foot.

With the example of the collapse of the Luxembourg defense line, General Adrian had to learn a lesson. The Frankberg Federation could no longer afford to lose.

…

The small episode that happened in the command did not affect the progress of the war against France.

After occupying the Luxembourg region, the French army did not stop and continued to advance towards the German Region. They were not far from the Rhine River defense line.

Frankly speaking, defending the west bank of the Rhine River was not the best military choice. It was far better to retreat to the east bank and rely on the Rhine River to build a defense line.

However, the military had to serve politics. Retracting the defense line to the east bank meant that the Anti-French Alliance admitted their military failure and gave up on Belgium and the Rhineland.

It was impossible to admit defeat. The war against France was not only to defeat the French, but also to claim the hegemony of Europe.

Austria needed to show their might on the battlefield, and not let people think that they won because of a fluke.

Without a natural barrier to rely on, the Allied Forces still had trenches. This tactic was carried forward during the Prussian War and was now widely accepted by the European world.

Duke Albrecht did not dare to underestimate the French army. He dug trenches one after another, making it clear that he wanted to use positional warfare to deplete the French army's strength.

In order to win this war, the Government of France also went all out. Napoleon Iv did not hesitate to invite the veteran Marshal Patrice McMahon.

Patrice McMahon and Grand Duke Albrecht belonged to the same generation, and they were both veteran generals who had been famous for a long time. This war against France was also the pinnacle of the confrontation between the two European generals.

…

In the French command center, Marshal Patrice McMahon stared at the map for a long time and said slowly:

"Albrecht is famous for being good at attacking. I didn't expect him to play turtle tactics. It seems that the previous battle had a great impact on him.

Austria has placed its strategic focus on Africa. Now that the Suez Canal is blocked and the British are taking advantage of the situation, the domestic supply has begun to be tight.

Our next enemy is not only the Anti-French Alliance, but also time. If we can't tear open the enemy's Rhine River defense line as soon as possible, then … "

Everyone's expression froze, and their triumphant expression no longer existed. They were all smart people and knew that the old marshal was warning them.

Although the shortage of supplies was a problem, this problem was more reflected in the financial situation. Although the impact of this war on the European continent was great, it did not affect the world.

Without the Suez Canal, they could still use the Cape of Good Hope. Moreover, the American sea route was still open, and Austria could only intercept part of the sea.

Even if it was dangerous for France's merchant ships to go out to sea, there were ships from other neutral countries that could be used. It was just that the cost was higher.

The shortage of supplies was only temporary, and the market would adjust itself. In this day and age, as long as there was money, there was no need to worry about not being able to buy supplies.

Before the financial collapse of France, there was no need to worry about starving.

"Marshal, the Government of Austria chose the wrong person this time. Albrecht is best at attacking, and it can be seen that even the defense is preparing for the attack.

But now, the Anti-French Alliance is at a disadvantage, and the west bank of the Rhine River is undefended. It is a joke to think that they can stop us with just a few trenches.

If the enemy retreats their troops to the east bank and relies on the Rhine River to defend, we really can't do anything to them in a short period of time. "

Patrice McMahon frowned, "Udino, you still haven't changed your bad habit of being arrogant.

Albrecht is good at attacking, but that is because he is famous for it. That doesn't mean that he can't fight a defensive battle.

Looking at the enemy's deployment of troops, this is a turtle shell. Although this turtle has been injured in the previous battle, its defense is still not to be underestimated.

But you are right about one thing, the morale of the troops of Bede and Germany is completely gone, and Albrecht does not have enough troops. Defending the west bank of the Rhine River is a failure.

Now we need to seize time. As long as we tear the Rhine River defense line before the Austrian reinforcements arrive, the dominance of the war will be in our hands. "

That's right, Udino was the guy who led the expeditionary force to attack Mexico in the original timeline.

However, he was much luckier than in history. Something happened midway and he was injured, so he was transferred back to the country to recuperate. The next person took responsibility for the war's failure.

Udino was not angry at being reprimanded, and said without a change in expression, "Marshal, the troops are ready for battle and can attack at any time.

The morale of the soldiers is high, and everyone is waiting to break through Vienna and capture Franz! "

In fact, the initial battle plan of the French army was only to seize the territory west of the Rhine River. Once the Rhine River defense line was broken, the first phase of the French army's mission would be completed.

As for breaking through Vienna and capturing Franz, that was just a slogan.

The European countries were not fools, and they would not watch as France fought all the way to Vienna. The British would probably cut off the French army's supplies while they were still on the way to Vienna.

Unlike Austria, who was not afraid of a blockade, France could not do without the support of external supplies, even if they had North Africa.