Ilse heard the shout and kicked her horse into action, it was not that good a mount, but it was certainly better than it appeared and with luck she could reach the hills before that cavalry could catch her.
After hearing Twyth’s shout the lieutenant responded “After her! Sergeant take six men and swing north and cut off her escape that way”
At first Ilse thought she had a chance of escape, she discarded all the unnecessary bags but she spotted some of the cavalry moving round to her left and cutting off her route to the hills. Worst still was that one of the pursuing party was overhauling her at a fast pace.
Ilse reached into her last bag and pulled out a long barrelled pistol, checked it was still primed then cocked it. Judging the distance carefully, she pulled up her horse, then resting the pistol barrel on her other arm she aimed and fired. Without waiting to see the effect she spurred her horse back into action.
Twyth was shocked; the woman had calmly stopped, and then shot the Lieutenant, who as the best mounted had been rapidly catching up with her. However they were now getting really close and she probably only had one pistol.
Sunday, 28 February 2010
Saturday, 27 February 2010
Reconnaissance
“Right Twyth, I need you to check on the situation. The cavalry claim that they are unable to breach the enemy screens along the Donnep hills except in overwhelming strength. I want you to go out with the next patrol and assess the truth of this, ideally I’d like a view on what lies beyond the hills before I finalise my plans” stated General Bercollin plainly.
“Yes Sir, I’ll accompany the next patrol”
“Oh, and be careful”
The next day Twyth rode out with a patrol from the 12ieme Chasseurs a Cheval led by a Lieutenant with a Sergeant and sixteen men. They then headed towards a point on the hills. As they cleared the lower slopes a shot rang out and the trooper next to Twyth slumped in his seat badly wounded.
“Dammed rifles, fall back” called out the Lieutenant. As they did so another round whistled dangerously close to Twyth. The Lieutenant shouted “I told you that you were too obvious a target in your white uniform.”
Once they were out of range Twyth approached the Lieutenant. “Can I suggest we try a location less covered by woods or copses, where riflemen can hide, how about over there?” pointing further to the east than where they had tried.
The lieutenant agreed and the patrol withdrew heading back to the French lines ready to circle back to the hills again.
They passed a farmers wife on an old nag loaded with bags heading outwards when Twyth’s memory suddenly recalled a face and he shouted “Capture that woman”
“Yes Sir, I’ll accompany the next patrol”
“Oh, and be careful”
The next day Twyth rode out with a patrol from the 12ieme Chasseurs a Cheval led by a Lieutenant with a Sergeant and sixteen men. They then headed towards a point on the hills. As they cleared the lower slopes a shot rang out and the trooper next to Twyth slumped in his seat badly wounded.
“Dammed rifles, fall back” called out the Lieutenant. As they did so another round whistled dangerously close to Twyth. The Lieutenant shouted “I told you that you were too obvious a target in your white uniform.”
Once they were out of range Twyth approached the Lieutenant. “Can I suggest we try a location less covered by woods or copses, where riflemen can hide, how about over there?” pointing further to the east than where they had tried.
The lieutenant agreed and the patrol withdrew heading back to the French lines ready to circle back to the hills again.
They passed a farmers wife on an old nag loaded with bags heading outwards when Twyth’s memory suddenly recalled a face and he shouted “Capture that woman”
Friday, 26 February 2010
Eavesdropping (2)
General Bercollin continued “Now my plan. We will first take the city of Welle on the south of the Pidnem hills, this then allows us the prospect of striking at either the capital Pappenheim or their rich second city Sonnenbad. By this means they will have to split their forces to cover both possibilities”
“However if we were to strike direct at Pappenheim they would be able to concentrate everything against us in the Stonew – Pappenheim gap.”
“I think we should strike directly at Sonnenbad, it will send a message to the Aristos of Europe that they should not threaten the Revolution” interjected Laine. “It’s a nest of vipers”
“Yes Representative, but if Pappenheim falls, Sonnenbad falls as well and the capture of Pappenheim will enable us to establish a strong base on the east of the Rhine and reopen communications with Paris.”
“Why can’t we maintain communications from here?”
“Representative, if I leave forces here they will either be too weak to defend the town against the Kaiserlijks or they will be a significant proportion of our strength and therefore risk failing to take our objective.”
“Now I hope we will be ready in three days time. The advance will be led by the cavalry and light infantry at first light. I expect to be in Welle by the evening of the next day at the latest”
“Colonel Anjou, you will lead the advance guard, you will be backed up by Colonel Claret if necessary”
“Colonel Claret, your men will occupy Bruckewasser until the route is clear and then rejoin the army.”
“Colonel Letort, I want most of your light cavalry to support Colonel Anjou, but with sufficient patrols sent out to provide flank security. Your heavy cavalry can be disposed as you wish to support the advance”
“Colonel Dwizok, your men will guard the baggage train, please don’t consider this an insult as I believe you men are more trustworthy than most. Also since wagons are very limited I want you to ensure that nothing unnecessary is carried. Nothing but ammunition, food and engineer equipment!”
“General, I assume there is a wagon set aside for my equipment?” asked Laine.
“Yes Representative, I’m sure we will find some way to fit it in”
“However if we were to strike direct at Pappenheim they would be able to concentrate everything against us in the Stonew – Pappenheim gap.”
“I think we should strike directly at Sonnenbad, it will send a message to the Aristos of Europe that they should not threaten the Revolution” interjected Laine. “It’s a nest of vipers”
“Yes Representative, but if Pappenheim falls, Sonnenbad falls as well and the capture of Pappenheim will enable us to establish a strong base on the east of the Rhine and reopen communications with Paris.”
“Why can’t we maintain communications from here?”
“Representative, if I leave forces here they will either be too weak to defend the town against the Kaiserlijks or they will be a significant proportion of our strength and therefore risk failing to take our objective.”
“Now I hope we will be ready in three days time. The advance will be led by the cavalry and light infantry at first light. I expect to be in Welle by the evening of the next day at the latest”
“Colonel Anjou, you will lead the advance guard, you will be backed up by Colonel Claret if necessary”
“Colonel Claret, your men will occupy Bruckewasser until the route is clear and then rejoin the army.”
“Colonel Letort, I want most of your light cavalry to support Colonel Anjou, but with sufficient patrols sent out to provide flank security. Your heavy cavalry can be disposed as you wish to support the advance”
“Colonel Dwizok, your men will guard the baggage train, please don’t consider this an insult as I believe you men are more trustworthy than most. Also since wagons are very limited I want you to ensure that nothing unnecessary is carried. Nothing but ammunition, food and engineer equipment!”
“General, I assume there is a wagon set aside for my equipment?” asked Laine.
“Yes Representative, I’m sure we will find some way to fit it in”
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Eavesdropping (1)
Having been advised by Franz that the French were having a conference in the town hall Ilse accompanied him to the hall and entered through the servant’s entrance. Franz led her up the back stairs and after checking no one was watching they entered a broom cupboard. At the back Franz flicked a lever which opened a door to a small chamber. Turning to Ilse he said “From here you can hear everything that is said in the council chamber, but be careful the wall is very thin and you could be heard if you are not careful.” With that warning he left Ilse to eavesdrop on the French commanders.
Gradually the French Senior officers arrived, and finally the Representative en Mission Laine.
“Ah Representative, I see you have arrived with a large item from Paris” stated the General.
“Yes a motivational aid, I had hoped we could use it on the local nobility, but they have all fled, such a shame. Now what are your plans General?"
”Right. Citizens, we have achieved the first crossing of the Rhine, however unless other armies succeed we will be trapped and destroyed by the Imperial forces. To avoid this fate and assist the other armies we must manoeuvre and distract the Kaiserlijks from their role of covering the river. Now if we consider the map we can see the main Imperial Army is to the south which makes any move in that direction unwise so we cannot conquer the rest of Pommaine as easy as it has been so far.”
“Now to the east is the Landgravate of Ishirwelt, this is tempting but if we head that way we will be unable to support other operations and risk being cut off entirely”
“So north is the real prize, the Frundsberg Frei Stadt, with wealthy cities, and if we understand correctly it has committed most of its forces to the Imperial cause elsewhere. Yes Colonel Dwizok?”
“These are the same Frundsbergers who fought so well when we crossed at Stonew”
“Good point Colonel, they will fight hard, but there are limited numbers of them and in our attack at Stonew we allowed them to concentrate against our inadequate numbers who could cross at one time”
Gradually the French Senior officers arrived, and finally the Representative en Mission Laine.
“Ah Representative, I see you have arrived with a large item from Paris” stated the General.
“Yes a motivational aid, I had hoped we could use it on the local nobility, but they have all fled, such a shame. Now what are your plans General?"
”Right. Citizens, we have achieved the first crossing of the Rhine, however unless other armies succeed we will be trapped and destroyed by the Imperial forces. To avoid this fate and assist the other armies we must manoeuvre and distract the Kaiserlijks from their role of covering the river. Now if we consider the map we can see the main Imperial Army is to the south which makes any move in that direction unwise so we cannot conquer the rest of Pommaine as easy as it has been so far.”
“Now to the east is the Landgravate of Ishirwelt, this is tempting but if we head that way we will be unable to support other operations and risk being cut off entirely”
“So north is the real prize, the Frundsberg Frei Stadt, with wealthy cities, and if we understand correctly it has committed most of its forces to the Imperial cause elsewhere. Yes Colonel Dwizok?”
“These are the same Frundsbergers who fought so well when we crossed at Stonew”
“Good point Colonel, they will fight hard, but there are limited numbers of them and in our attack at Stonew we allowed them to concentrate against our inadequate numbers who could cross at one time”
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
Sent to the front
Friedrich was not surprised when after a week of training dispatches arrived ordering his unit to Welle to be deployed on the southern border with Pommaine. The real surprise was that he would be under the command of Colonel Von Barner. The mobilisation plans were rapidly put into operation and by the next morning the squadron was ready to march.
It seemed that most of the nobility of Sonnenbad had decided to avoid taking the waters that morning and instead turned out to give them a good send off. Various young ladies rushed forward to make last remarks to assorted volunteers. Seeing that the baggage was assembled Friedrich turned to Mariusz Kulenovich his trumpeter and ordered him to sound the advance. The squadron then progressed in good order out of Sonnenbad across the river and up the long hill leading on the beginning of the road to Welle.
Maruisz beamed, probably remembering the yesterday’s incident where a merchant Herr Gelden had demanded payment of his outstanding debts. Friedrich had been called to deal with the problem and luckily took one of the sergeants with him. The merchant poured out his complaints and the extent of the debt and insisted on immediate repayment or that Mariusz was sent to debtors’ prison. The Sergeant had coughed politely and asked “Can I explain the legal position to the gentleman sir?”
“Please go ahead Sergeant”
“Well, the Gentleman, might not be aware, but sub-section 13b of the 1757 debtors code clearly states that as an alternative the offender can opt for military service in lieu of debtors prison. The offender has to continue in service until either the debt is paid in full or death. In the case of the latter, any death moneys will be paid to the debtor, rather than the family. “Isn’t that correct, sir.”
“Well remembered Sergeant” said Friedrich making a mental note to thank the Sergeant Rhetz as soon as possible “Now Herr Gelden, as the offender in question has signed up I will ensure that he fulfils his obligations under the code. Is there anything else?”
“The merchant stood opened mouthed for a moment and then retorted “Just make sure he pays his debts” and then left.
It seemed that most of the nobility of Sonnenbad had decided to avoid taking the waters that morning and instead turned out to give them a good send off. Various young ladies rushed forward to make last remarks to assorted volunteers. Seeing that the baggage was assembled Friedrich turned to Mariusz Kulenovich his trumpeter and ordered him to sound the advance. The squadron then progressed in good order out of Sonnenbad across the river and up the long hill leading on the beginning of the road to Welle.
Maruisz beamed, probably remembering the yesterday’s incident where a merchant Herr Gelden had demanded payment of his outstanding debts. Friedrich had been called to deal with the problem and luckily took one of the sergeants with him. The merchant poured out his complaints and the extent of the debt and insisted on immediate repayment or that Mariusz was sent to debtors’ prison. The Sergeant had coughed politely and asked “Can I explain the legal position to the gentleman sir?”
“Please go ahead Sergeant”
“Well, the Gentleman, might not be aware, but sub-section 13b of the 1757 debtors code clearly states that as an alternative the offender can opt for military service in lieu of debtors prison. The offender has to continue in service until either the debt is paid in full or death. In the case of the latter, any death moneys will be paid to the debtor, rather than the family. “Isn’t that correct, sir.”
“Well remembered Sergeant” said Friedrich making a mental note to thank the Sergeant Rhetz as soon as possible “Now Herr Gelden, as the offender in question has signed up I will ensure that he fulfils his obligations under the code. Is there anything else?”
“The merchant stood opened mouthed for a moment and then retorted “Just make sure he pays his debts” and then left.
Tuesday, 23 February 2010
Intelligence gathering
Early the next morning the barges started arriving in Bruckewasser bringing over the rest of the French army. Franz had posted some of his agents to watch progress and keep tally of the size of the French force being assembled.
General Bercollin arrived on their second trip along with some light cavalry and was met by Twyth. “Colonel Jolais has taken over the town hall as our Headquarters and the town seems quiet and resigned to their fate”
“Good, it’s going to take at least three full days to get the army across and I’m sure this will provoke the Kaiserlijks into action. Once the cavalry is assembled I want patrols out in the surrounding countryside”
Twyth led the General to the town hall; it was an imposing building overlooking the main square and well suited to its function. Guards saluted as they entered and climbed the stairs to the council chamber.
“Ah Beau, congratulations on your success, have you got a firm grip on the town?”
Colonel Jolais looked up from a table covered in paper “Yes General, I estimate we can squeeze this place for at least eight days rations and perhaps the equivalent of 20,000 Assignats. More should be forthcoming from the surrounding areas.”
“Excellent, but I don’t intend to stay that long, we need to start baking biscuit for supplies on the march”
“That is one problem, most of the wagons, carriages and horses have all left. It seems the nobility were ready to leave at a moments notice!” “But General, won’t you enjoy some of the fruits of our victory.” The Colonel moved to the door and shouted “Fetch a couple of bottle of your finest wine at once.
Almost immediately a servant appeared with a couple of bottles of Pommaine’s finer vintages and glasses. The servant opened the bottles and poured three generous glasses. “Thank you Franz, that will be all for now”
“Yes sir”
General Bercollin arrived on their second trip along with some light cavalry and was met by Twyth. “Colonel Jolais has taken over the town hall as our Headquarters and the town seems quiet and resigned to their fate”
“Good, it’s going to take at least three full days to get the army across and I’m sure this will provoke the Kaiserlijks into action. Once the cavalry is assembled I want patrols out in the surrounding countryside”
Twyth led the General to the town hall; it was an imposing building overlooking the main square and well suited to its function. Guards saluted as they entered and climbed the stairs to the council chamber.
“Ah Beau, congratulations on your success, have you got a firm grip on the town?”
Colonel Jolais looked up from a table covered in paper “Yes General, I estimate we can squeeze this place for at least eight days rations and perhaps the equivalent of 20,000 Assignats. More should be forthcoming from the surrounding areas.”
“Excellent, but I don’t intend to stay that long, we need to start baking biscuit for supplies on the march”
“That is one problem, most of the wagons, carriages and horses have all left. It seems the nobility were ready to leave at a moments notice!” “But General, won’t you enjoy some of the fruits of our victory.” The Colonel moved to the door and shouted “Fetch a couple of bottle of your finest wine at once.
Almost immediately a servant appeared with a couple of bottles of Pommaine’s finer vintages and glasses. The servant opened the bottles and poured three generous glasses. “Thank you Franz, that will be all for now”
“Yes sir”
Monday, 22 February 2010
The capture of Bruckewasser (2)
Ilse had made contact with their local agents in Bruckewasser and now she and Hans sat in the back of a bar where they could see out over the main square. They observed the panic caused by the French landing and the flight of most of the nobility from the town once news of the defeat arrived. More disappointing was the local militia who began to vanish whenever they had chance leaving the defences to a couple of companies of garrison infantry plus a few gunners. Of course the biggest loss had been Colonel Faffen who possibly might have held the defences together.
Ideally Ilse would have liked to have seen the bridge across the Farrett to the northern quarter destroyed but there had been no attempt by the Pommaine forces to prepare for the eventuality of French attack.
Hearing a change in the noise level they looked out again on the square and saw the local troops slowly mustering there rather than being on the walls and realised the worse, the town had capitulated. Then to the beat of drums the French marched into the square and their forces gradually surrounded the soldiers in the centre of the square.
The remaining Pommaine commander, a Captain Ockup, surrendered and his troops were marched off to be imprisoned. Realising what would happen next, Ilse and Hans left the bar by a back exit and travelled to a safe house organised by their main agent Franz Ferdinand.
In fact the French were well disciplined, but their commander demanded that sufficient food and drink be brought to the main square for his troops. This was only the start of the requisitions.
Ideally Ilse would have liked to have seen the bridge across the Farrett to the northern quarter destroyed but there had been no attempt by the Pommaine forces to prepare for the eventuality of French attack.
Hearing a change in the noise level they looked out again on the square and saw the local troops slowly mustering there rather than being on the walls and realised the worse, the town had capitulated. Then to the beat of drums the French marched into the square and their forces gradually surrounded the soldiers in the centre of the square.
The remaining Pommaine commander, a Captain Ockup, surrendered and his troops were marched off to be imprisoned. Realising what would happen next, Ilse and Hans left the bar by a back exit and travelled to a safe house organised by their main agent Franz Ferdinand.
In fact the French were well disciplined, but their commander demanded that sufficient food and drink be brought to the main square for his troops. This was only the start of the requisitions.
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