Chapter 254 Parting on bad terms

According to Frederick's deployment, Kirchbach's Fifth Army and the Hechingen Brigade were mainly to prevent the French Rhine Army from moving south to support the Chalon Army.

At present, Napoleon III himself began to shrink his troops. In order to prevent Prussia from cutting off McMahon's connection with the Rhine Army under his command, causing him to be flanked by both sides, he ordered the French Fifth Army to immediately go south to support Marshal McMahon's command.

…

"Your Highness Leopold, how about you deploy in Valdovisan, while the Fifth Army and I will hold on to Saverna!"

Although the Hechingen Brigade was nominally at the same level as the Prussian Army, Kirchbach did not see it that way. The two were two levels apart. Although Leopold had a distinguished status and was a member of the Hohenzollern family, The battlefield is not a stage, you can come wherever you want, so the main force naturally has to be the large Fifth Army. In fact, although the Fifth Army is a regular Prussian army, the vast majority of its soldiers actually come from all states in the North German Federation except Prussia. country.

Leopold ignored Kirchbach and turned to look for Valdovesan's location on the map.

After a long time, I finally found the so-called Valdovisan in the corner of the map, an inconspicuous small village located in the southeast corner of Saverna.

"Not here!" Leopold retorted.

"Although the Hechingen Brigade is a temporary force formed by students and has never been on the battlefield, its military quality is not weak and it does not need your protection. The small place of Valdovisan is too close to the rear. Even if you don't trust it, We shouldn’t place the Hechingen Brigade in a small village that is difficult to find on the map!”

"Your Highness Leopold, it's not that I don't trust you. I still know your abilities. But as you said, the Hechingen Brigade has never been on the battlefield. Putting these student soldiers on the front line is not a problem." I'm not at ease if it sounds nice, and I've seen your troops, and 50% of them are not German or even European. The combat effectiveness of such troops may be useful in overseas colonies, but this is Europe." Kirsch Bach said arrogantly.

"Kirchbach! Put away your arrogance. In fact, the Hechingen Brigade belongs to the national army. I only obey the orders of Crown Prince William and the General Staff. You still have no control over me. As for this How is the combat effectiveness of this unit? I know better than you. I also participated in the Second Schleswig War and the Austro-Prussian War, so there is no need for you to judge my men!"

"That's a pity. In that case, Your Highness Leopold! Where do you want to deploy the army?" Kirchbach asked.

In his opinion, the so-called Hechingen Brigade was not capable of taking on big responsibilities, but as Leopold said, he really had nothing to do with him.

"Here, David Wright." Leopold pointed to the small town directly east of Saverna. A road connected David Wright with Saverna. This area belongs to the flank of Saverna, and its strategic position is second only to that of Saverna. Stamburg, northeast of Saverna.

"If you are determined to do this, then go for it! But I have to say it in advance. When we fight against the French army, we may not be able to take care of this area."

"Humph, you don't need to take care of it. In fact, you will be lucky if you can guard Saverna! As far as I know, the Fifth Army is just a temporary force formed by Prussia. Many of the soldiers are from Hamburg. The farmers in Saxony and other places who have just put down their hoes and been called up temporarily are facing France. Although their troops are small in number, they are all professional soldiers who have been on the battlefield." Although Leopold was angry, he still reminded him.

"Hahaha, I admit that the combat effectiveness of the Fifth Army may not be as good as that of the French, but we have enough numbers and are conveniently located. There are also many Prussian veterans in the army. Under the leadership of Prussia, recruits from other countries will also He grew up quickly in the flames of war." Kirschbach laughed.

"It's best this way!" Leopold said these words and left without looking back.

After Leopold left, Kirchbach immediately changed his face. He said seriously to his subordinates: "You are really ignorant, Robert!"

"Here, Commander!"

"The Hechingen Brigade has no combat effectiveness at all, but we have to consider the safety of His Highness Leopold. You lead the third brigade and deploy it in Wilvisand on the right side of the Hechingen Brigade. Once they get into trouble, you Just step up for me and don't let any flaws appear in the defense, do you hear me?"

"Yes, Commander!"

…

Leopold returned to the station of the Hechingen Brigade with a gloomy look. This Kirchbach was too arrogant. In fact, judging from the past records of the two, Kirchbach's command level can only be said to be average, and He is only half qualified and has the ability to organize an army to fight, but he is far from being a famous general.

Originally, he would not participate in the Franco-Prussian War. After all, as one of the protagonists in the Spanish throne incident, his energy before the war was all about fighting for the Spanish throne.

After France took action and the Spanish government backed down, he had no time to rejoin the Prussian army. If not for Ernst's request, he would still be staying in Sigmaringen!

"Your Highness Leopold, who made you angry?" Heinrich said when he saw Leopold in a bad mood.

"Do I look bad?"

"Yes...a little bit."

Leopold rubbed his face with his hands to relax his muscles, and said: "It's not a big deal. I just felt a little unhappy with Kirchbach. This Kirchbach is a bit arrogant, but I I didn’t spoil him either.”

"Yes, Commander Kirchbach?"

"Uh, why did he offend you!"

"Haha, he's just a pig-headed man who got up by relying on the changes in the kingdom. He's older and less capable, but he still looks down on the Heixinggen Brigade. I've led the troops in the Heixinggen Brigade. The best performing unit."

"Your Highness, there is no need to be angry. The Hechingen Brigade does not have a record of success, so it is naturally unconvincing. Although the name of the Hechingen Military Academy sounds very impressive, it is not well-known. Most of the students in my class are crash courses. Born in Africa, he has gone to Africa. After two and a half years of training at the Hechingen Military Academy, this batch is much better than the one I was in. Perhaps in terms of individual training and professional knowledge, the military academy cadets who have undergone long-term training are better than the ones in the military academy. Many Prussian veterans are strong, but on the battlefield, people don’t know their origins. People will only remember the victors. No matter whether they are slandered or insulted, only a victory will tell whether they are the real ones."

"Haha, you don't need to comfort me. In fact, I was not much better than Kirchbach at the beginning. When Ernst handed over the army to me, my views were actually similar to Kirchbach's. But when I really led this After getting along with a team for a while, I changed my mind. Except that this team has never been on the battlefield, it is not inferior to the elite troops of the kingdom in any other aspect. It is not that I have never led new recruits. In my opinion, The Hechingen Brigade is more than a notch better than those temporary conscripts under Kirchbach.”

"So, Your Highness, we should do our best to prove that the Hechingen Brigade is not just a fancy thing, but a modern and powerful light infantry army."