Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

Immediately, a Prussian officer chimed in, “Then we can rely on our superior forces to decisively defeat the Austrians!”

This time, Prince Hornlow made ample preparations, deploying a significant amount of defensive forces along the Legnica to Breslau line, just waiting for Archduke Karl to fall into the trap.

However, for more than ten days, aside from several thousand Austrian troops wandering near Legnica, the anticipated siege never appeared.

As October arrived, just when Prince Hornlow thought the Austrians had given up and was preparing to report the victory to Potsdam, new information finally arrived.

After reading the report from the Breslau direction, Prince Hornlow’s face turned so gloomy it seemed ready to drip water.

Last weekend, the Austrians occupied Erls Town east of the Breslau Fortress, using it as a base to launch fierce attacks towards the important middle-town Glogau on the Oder River.

Glogau is a crucial passageway from Breslau to Prussia; if it were captured by the Austrian army, the entire Silesian Prussian Army would lose logistical supplies.

And at this time, Glogau had fewer than six thousand troops for defense.

Prince Hornlow angrily kicked over a chair beside him.

He had wasted nearly half a month at Legnica; if he had used this time to lead his troops across the Sudeten Mountains, he might have been near Prague by now.

That Ludwig, like a gambler, completely ignored Legnica and instead redirected the main forces to attack Glogau!

He took a few deep breaths to stabilize his emotions before looking at the map.

He now has two choices.

First, abandon Gnitz, cross the Sudeten Mountains, and risk a fierce attack on the Austrian hinterland. It becomes a matter of whether Ludwig breaks through Potsdam first or he captures Vienna first.

Second, return to aid Glogau and seek a decisive battle with the Austrians there. This approach is undoubtedly more prudent.

After much hesitation and repeated discussions with the officers, he decided to choose the second option.

Austria is much larger than Prussia, with a stronger capacity to withstand losses. If they exchange capitals, Prussia faces the risk of destruction, whereas Austria might retreat to Hungary and achieve ultimate victory.

Two days later, the main Prussian forces left the City of Liegnitz, hurriedly returning to Glogau.

Near the town of Schwednitz in the south-central part of Legnica.

Archduke Karl listened to the Hussars’ report, his face finally showing a hint of relaxation.

The Prussians indeed returned to Glogau.

Actually, he was also worried that Prince Hornlow would go all out and fiercely attack Prague; in that case, he would have to quickly defend by organizing resistance in Hirschberg and withdrawing the troops back to Glogau.

But now, the main Prussian forces are stepping right into his ambush position.

Yes, he sent 30,000 new recruits to attack Glogau, while all the veterans were entirely kept in central Legnica.

He aims to use 40,000 troops to defeat 70,000 Prussian soldiers!

Two days later, when Prince Hornlow was moving between Legnica and Breslau, the Austrians suddenly appeared.

The Prussian Army immediately contracted their formation for defense, but hastily, the front two corps were split by the Austrians and subsequently suffered a fierce assault by the Austrian cavalry.

Prince Hornlow hurriedly dispatched troops for reinforcements, while his main forces prepared with rigor for the decisive battle.

However, Archduke Karl fought very cleverly, disengaging from the battlefield immediately after eliminating several thousand Prussian soldiers, heading straight towards Legnica.

Upon receiving the news, Prince Hornlow was shocked. Legnica had only a minimal defense force remaining; if the Austrians recapture it, his expedition would yield no military results, and the Taunqian Corps would be wasted.

He weighed the situation and dispatched Mollen and Scharnhorst, among others, to lead 20,000 troops back to Glogau, while he led the main forces against the Austrian army raiding Legnica.

On the other side, Archduke Karl quickly assessed after hearing the report from the Hussars, “With Friedrich’s personality, he will likely prioritize stabilizing Legnica, so the number of enemy troops heading east should be relatively small.”

Indeed, he only knew the enemy was divided into two routes but couldn’t quickly scout the specifics of each troop in a short time.

He turned his horse’s reins, signaling the Order Officer, “Let’s head to the west bank of the Oder River to intercept them.”

…

When Prince Hornlow returned swiftly to Legnica, he found no sign of the Austrian army.

The next day, cavalry came to report that Mollen’s corps had been defeated by the Austrian main forces.

Prince Hornlow sat paralyzed in his chair.

After entering Legnica, he just ran back and forth several times, inexplicably losing half of his forces.

Now the initiative of the battlefield has entirely fallen into enemy hands—Karl Ludwig can now reclaim his troops in Glogau and face him with superior forces for a decisive battle, or he can press all forces north of Silesia, directly threatening Berlin.

He was dazed for a long time, silently came to the desk and began writing a letter.

October 22, 1794.

Sanssouci Palace received Prince Hornlow’s letter recommending a ceasefire.

Astonished, Wilhelmina could only bring back Prince Henry to take charge of the situation.

After returning to Sanssouci Palace, the latter immediately dispatched the former Prime Minister, Baron Friedrich, to London to seek British support. He then issued emergency mobilization orders and recalled Blucher, instructing him to assemble troops and head to Glogau for defense.

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Jean-Baptiste Vaquette de Griboval became an officer in a mining company in 1752. A few years later, he was sent on a military mission to Prussia. In 1757, during the outbreak of the Seven Years’ War, then-Lieutenant Colonel Griboval was seconded to the Austrian Army as an artillery general. Empress Maria Theresa awarded him the rank of Vice Admiral and the Maria Theresa Medal for his work.

After returning to France, he was appointed a commander, became an Artillery Inspector General in 1764, and a Vice Admiral in 1765.

The great artillery reformer Griboval prepared standardized equipment, which greatly aided the French during the Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. In the years following 1765, he thoroughly redesigned ammunition, gun barrels, artillery carriages, ammunition boxes, pontoons, and all other necessary vehicles and reserves. Despite considerable opposition at court, he pushed on with his reforms, aiming to bestow the two most important qualities: standardization and mobility.” (Griffiths – “French Artillery,” page 7)

Griboval also reduced the previously lavish ornamentation on gun barrels. The new artillery equipment looked simpler, with a more military appearance rather than artistic. In 1792, the first artillery service regulations were introduced.

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