Chapter Summaries

Bischoff’s Prussian regiment attacked the Austrians, but elite Austrian troops speaking French used rapid formations and Percussion Cap Guns to overwhelm the Prussian lines. The Prussians’ confidence crumbled as their firing speed and discipline failed to match the enemy’s.

• Bischoff ordered his reserve Infantry Line forward to crush the disordered Austrians before Lieutenant Colonel Altman could outflank them.
• Austrian Columns emerged from their chaotic ranks, quickly formed lines, and drove back the Prussian Skirmishers with accurate volleys.
• The Austrian forces advanced under French commands and inflicted heavy casualties on the Prussian Infantry Line with volleys from Percussion Cap Guns.
• The Prussians struggled to reload quickly enough, and repeated Austrian volleys shattered their confidence.

The Royal Guard Legion routed Bischoff’s Prussian infantry before withdrawing, while Joseph’s main force remained hidden from Blücher. Joseph planned to retake Luxembourg while allowing the Prussians to escape, and the Royal Guard Legion set out before dawn ahead of Blücher’s army.

• The Royal Guard Legion shattered Bischoff’s first Infantry Line, and Altman sent reserves forward as Lefebvre ordered his troops to withdraw rather than risk encirclement.
• Both armies withdrew to camp at dusk, and Blücher blamed Altman for the failed attack while resolving to resume the march at dawn.
• Joseph and Berthier discussed battle plans, and Joseph revealed that Henry Onck was meant to help the Prussians escape so they could serve as a pretext for entering the Southern Netherlands.
• Blücher’s Prussian Army began marching slowly after dawn, unaware that Joseph had already led the Royal Guard Legion out more than forty minutes earlier.

Blücher deployed his forces to attack Leo’s Austrians while using the Netherlands Army to hold off the French Royal Guard Legion. As the French reached the mountain pass, Joseph recognized that the Prussians had split their forces without knowing the French army’s true strength.

• Blücher learned that the French Army had appeared near the center of his extended column and feared it would cut his forces apart.
• Blücher ordered the Backhaus Regiment and Altman to finish off the Austrians, while the Netherlands Army defended the pass and the Dietlinde Legion moved toward the French flank.
• Blücher sent Hilde’s cavalry to harass the French and positioned artillery and dragoons to support his deployment.
• The Netherlands rebels formed a defensive line at the mountain pass as the Prussian units moved to their assigned positions.
• Berthier spotted the limited number of Prussian troops at the pass and told Joseph that Blücher had divided his forces.
• Joseph concluded that the Prussian scouts had failed to discover the French army’s true numbers.

The Royal Guard Legion advanced against the Netherlands National Guard while Joseph warned Berthier not to underestimate the rebels’ resolve. The French appeared to threaten the enemy’s exposed artillery, but their cavalry proved to be Horse Artillery, leaving General Witt baffled as it aimed at his infantry.

• Berthier learned that Blücher had only a little over five thousand troops nearby, and Joseph urged him to treat the Netherlands National Guard as a serious threat.
• Berthier deployed more than seven thousand Royal Guard Legion infantry opposite General Peter Rodriguez van Witt’s troops.
• General Witt rallied his soldiers to hold the French back so Blücher could defeat the Austrian Army and secure the republic’s founding.
• After spotting French cavalry, Witt sent the Southern Netherlands cavalry and Major Hilde’s six Prussian cavalry Squadrons to protect the artillery.
• The French riders bypassed the artillery positions and approached the Netherlands infantry; Witt’s staff officer identified them as Horse Artillery as their Cannons aimed at the line.

French horse artillery devastated the Netherlands infantry with close-range solid shot and grapeshot, prompting Major Hilde to lead his cavalry against the guns. As Hilde charged, the French gunners began hitching their cannons to horses, and he believed he had ample time to destroy them.

• The French horse artillery fired solid shot into the Netherlands infantry, tearing gaps through its lines and causing severe casualties.
• The French gunners switched to grapeshot, killing and wounding dozens of Netherlands soldiers in repeated blasts.
• Netherlands officers urged their troops to stay low and hold formation while they trusted their cavalry to deal with the guns.
• Major Hilde led more than eight hundred cavalrymen into an early trot toward the French horse artillery.
• The French artillerymen began hitching their cannons to horses, and Hilde expected to overrun them before they could retreat.

The Royal Guard Legion’s Horse Artillery outmaneuvered Hilde’s cavalry and helped break the Netherlands defensive line as Berthier launched an infantry assault. Blücher learned that Diekirch remained in French hands and that General Witt’s line had been defeated.

• Hilde chased the withdrawing French Horse Artillery, but its rapid escape left his exhausted cavalry vulnerable to the Royal Guard Legion’s cavalry, which defeated the rearguard and took prisoners.
• The French Horse Artillery returned to the Netherlands flank and devastated its first Infantry Line with Grapeshot while the Royal Guard Legion advanced.
• Berthier ordered the Royal Guard Legion to attack as the Netherlands lines rotated, and its infantry columns deployed and fired at close range.
• The Netherlands’ retreating and advancing troops became jammed together as the Royal Guard Legion closed in on the defensive line.
• Blücher received Major Christel’s report that Diekirch was too heavily garrisoned to attack, then learned from Hilde’s report that General Witt’s defensive line had been defeated.

Blücher ordered his forces to withdraw and regroup after French troops broke through the Netherlands line, while Lefebvre attacked the Prussians retreating from his position. The chapter ended with Blücher learning that a large French force had appeared behind his army.

• Blücher learned that more than ten thousand French soldiers had routed the Netherlands troops and ordered his forces to regroup near Winceler Town.
• Lefebvre refused to retreat from his position beside Leo, believing the Crown Prince would reinforce them.
• After spotting the Prussians preparing to withdraw, Lefebvre led his regiment and Austrian troops in an attack on Altman's force.
• Lefebvre's men broke through the Prussian rear guard and pursued Altman's marching column, while Mura joined the fighting.
• Two Hussars warned Blücher that a large number of French soldiers had appeared behind his army.

The Royal Guard Legion caught Blücher’s Prussian army while it was still forming up, and Captain Bonaparte persuaded Major Lacoste to place artillery where its bombardment could disrupt the enemy lines. Napoleon then used five cannons to strike the Prussian right wing with precise fire as the armies prepared to engage.

• Joseph routed the Netherlands army, then led the Royal Guard Legion toward Blücher’s Prussian force without stopping to rest.
• Blücher’s army hurriedly formed ranks as the French approached, and he learned that the Royal Guard Legion numbered eleven thousand men.
• Napoleon convinced Major Lacoste to send artillery to a position where its fire could push part of the Prussian line toward nearby woods and break its formation.
• The Royal Guard Legion opened the battle with cannon fire, and Blücher ordered cavalry and skirmishers to attack the French artillery.
• Napoleon waited with five Six-Pound Cannons, then accurately struck the Prussian right wing with five shells.

Napoleon’s artillery company ambushed the Prussian right flank, opening a gap in its line before retreating from pursuing cavalry. Unable to reach friendly forces, Napoleon rallied fewer than forty gunners to make a stand against the charge.

• Napoleon’s company fired accurate volleys into the Prussian right flank, driving its soldiers toward a nearby grove and tearing a gap in their formation.
• Berthier spotted the gap and sent five infantry companies to attack the Prussian right flank.
• Napoleon ordered his gunners to abandon their five cannons and retreat as Prussian cavalry closed in.
• When the cavalry caught up, Napoleon formed his fewer than forty gunners into a line and prepared to fight.

Napoleon’s artillerymen were rescued from Prussian cavalry by Kexer and the Crown Prince’s Royal Guards. On the main battlefield, the Royal Guard Legion broke through a gap in Blücher’s line, routed the Prussian right wing, and pressed on toward the second defensive line.

• Napoleon’s artillerymen fired nervously at the approaching Prussian cavalry, but the cavalry flanked them and left them trapped.
• Kexer arrived with the Crown Prince’s Royal Guards, scattered the Prussian cavalry, and explained that the Crown Prince had sent him to reinforce Napoleon.
• Blücher sent four squadrons of Dragoons to fill a gap in the Prussian line, but the French attack columns charged directly into it.
• The Royal Guard Legion fired volleys into the disorganized Prussians, then charged with bayonets and broke through the first line.
• The French columns advanced to the second Prussian line and fired again, causing its right wing to collapse in fear.

Joseph let Blücher’s Prussian army retreat so France could use its devastation of the Southern Netherlands as a pretext to reclaim Wallonia. Blücher escaped with nearly seven thousand men, but learned that Altman’s regiment was pinned down by Leo’s Austrian forces.

• Blücher ordered Maximilian to hold the French while the rest of the Prussian army withdrew toward Winceler Town, and told Altman and Dietlinde to cancel their mission and hurry there.
• Berthier urged Joseph to commit reserves and cavalry to break the Prussian final defense, but Joseph refused because he wanted Blücher’s army to ravage the Southern Netherlands and justify French intervention.
• Joseph directed Berthier to destroy the Prussian troops covering the retreat while minimizing French casualties.
• Blücher withdrew nearly seven thousand men after the French halted their frontal assault, then realized their forces were moving to encircle Maximilian.
• A messenger reported that Altman was pinned down by Leo’s Austrian forces, while Lefebvre led an attack against the Prussian flank.

The Royal Guard Legion defeated the encircling Prussian force, and Joseph met with Napoleon to recognize his artillery contribution. As the Prussians surrendered, Mason’s troops waited for a Southern Netherlands force that Vice Speaker Onck had brought there at Joseph’s prompting.

• Mura learned that the Prussians had surrendered, and the Royal Guard Legion celebrated its victory over the encircling force.
• Joseph welcomed Napoleon, praised his artillery work, and arranged his promotion to Major and award of a Silver Iris Medal.
• Joseph ordered Napoleon’s battalion commander, Lacoste, to visit his family in Corsica with news of the honors.
• A Prussian officer reported the army’s surrender, and Joseph assigned Berthier to accept it.
• Mason’s battalion waited for the Southern Netherlands force while Joseph’s orders kept the encircled Netherlands soldiers from being captured.
• Vice Speaker Onck ordered Major Acht to attack Mason’s force, unaware that Joseph had arranged his arrival.

Henry Onck helped General Witt’s legion escape the French and gained political influence in the Southern Netherlands, while Joseph arranged to pay Onck to withdraw his forces from Wallonia. Joseph aimed to weaken the rebel movement by turning its Parliament toward internal political conflict.

• Onck’s forces broke the French encirclement, joined Witt, and helped his legion retreat safely to Liège while repeatedly driving off French pursuers.
• Onck’s rescues earned him the nickname Miracle Maker Onck and increased the Conservatives’ influence in the Southern Netherlands Parliament.
• In Winceler Town, Mason told Joseph that Onck wanted five hundred thousand Livre in exchange for withdrawing the Southern Netherlands Army from south of Brussels within three months.
• Joseph ordered the Intelligence Bureau to give Onck fifty thousand Livre and demand that he withdraw from Wallonia within two months.
• Joseph explained that keeping Onck in Parliament would serve his goal of dividing the rebels and diverting them from opposing French control.

Joseph used the Southern Netherlands Conservatives’ return to set rival factions against each other while France and Austria moved against Prussia. As Hanover and the Dutch prepared to reinforce the Southern Netherlands, Joseph II heard that the French had stopped near Liège, leaving Austria reassured that France would not seize the region.

• Joseph planned to balance Onck’s Conservatives against Van der Noot’s Liberals and rely on the Royal Guard Legion to keep Austria from uniting the Southern Netherlands.
• Berthier pressured General Leo to attack the Prussian positions southeast of Liège, promising French support against any Southern Netherlands troops.
• The Hanoverian envoy told William II that Hanover would send thirty thousand more troops, including twenty thousand bound for Luxembourg to assist Blücher.
• George III approved aid for the Southern Netherlands, while the Dutch prepared to send several thousand troops there.
• Leopold II told Joseph II that the French had halted two li from Liège, suggesting that France would respect Austria’s claim to the Southern Netherlands.

Leopold II and Joseph II learned that Hanover and Prussia were massing forces in the Southern Netherlands and planned to send more troops to General Leo. In Paris, celebrations for the victory at Luxembourg lifted support for the royal family, and Louis XVI proposed honoring Joseph with a statue; the chapter then shifted to Tipu Sultan reviewing his army in Mysore.

• Joseph II ordered a commendation for Franz Sigmund Leo and 4,000 additional troops for his campaign near Liège.
• Count Kaunitz reported that Hanover had added 30,000 troops, with most heading to the Southern Netherlands, while Prussia planned to send 10,000 soldiers to Blücher.
• Joseph II and Leopold II agreed that General Leo’s success could draw Prussian troops away and give Austria time to prepare for a decisive campaign in Silesia.
• Parisians celebrated the Royal Guard Legion’s victory in Luxembourg, and Queen Mary opened Versailles Palace to the crowds and arranged food and music.
• Queen Mary asked Louis XVI to reward Joseph, and Louis XVI proposed building a statue of him in Versailles Palace Square.
• Tipu Sultan reviewed his 60,000-man European-style army in Mysore.

Tipu Sultan chose to delay war with Britain and prepare to attack Travancore, while French consul Salah began using the Crown Prince’s methods to undermine Jahan Zeb’s influence. The chapter ended with Salah proposing a French-Mysore marriage alliance, which delighted Sheikh Khan.

• Jahan Zeb advised Tipu Sultan to avoid conflict with Britain, use French weapons and technology, and march on Travancore instead; Tipu agreed and told Jahan Zeb to entertain the French.
• Frustrated by Tipu’s refusal to attack the British, Lafayette went to the palace to persuade him again, while Salah offered to carry out the Crown Prince’s methods.
• With the Intelligence Bureau’s help, Salah met General Sheikh Khan and proposed turning the people against the British to weaken Jahan Zeb.
• Salah asked whether Tipu Sultan would consider a marriage alliance with France, and Sheikh Khan enthusiastically approved before worrying that someone might have to convert.
• Salah assured Sheikh Khan that the alliance could involve a Muslim princess marrying into France without requiring conversion.

Tipu Sultan agreed to discuss a marriage alliance between his son Nawaz and Princess Amira Srisi of Tunis after learning that her dowry would include a cannon-production factory and technicians. He invited the French consul to Ambavilas Palace and offered 500,000 pounds in betrothal gifts.

• Sheikh Khan told Tipu Sultan that France proposed Princess Amira Srisi, a Muslim princess from Tunis, as a bride for Nawaz.
• Tipu Sultan realized France regarded him as Mysore’s true ruler, but hesitated because the alliance would require him to oppose the British.
• Sheikh Khan revealed that Amira’s dowry would include a cannon factory, production equipment, and at least thirty technicians.
• Tipu Sultan agreed to meet the French consul at Ambavilas Palace the next day and offered 500,000 pounds in betrothal gifts.

Salah used the secret marriage alliance between Mysore and France to strengthen their ties, then launched a paid propaganda campaign to turn Mysoreans against the English. Rumors spread throughout the kingdom, leaving the people fearful and hostile toward England as tensions awaited a spark.

• Salah persuaded Tipu Sultan to agree to a secret marriage alliance between Duke Haji and Mysore, with 600,000 pounds in bridewealth, and secured another 100,000 Pounds during negotiations.
• Salah asked Lafayette for 100,000 Livres to fund a war of public opinion, and Lafayette approved the request while requiring daily financial reports.
• Salah and General Sheikh Khan spread rumors about English atrocities through Mysore, while Sheikh Khan contributed 5,000 Pounds Sterling and rallied allied nobles.
• Mysoreans in Seringapatam, Madurai, and other cities repeated tales of massacres, slavery, religious persecution, and other English crimes.
• Fear and hatred of England spread throughout Mysore, leaving the kingdom ready for a spark to ignite unrest.

Callum Griffith persuaded Jahan Zeb to suppress rumors against the British, but Sheikh Khan’s faction turned the crackdown into a harsher military campaign that fueled public resentment. After Tipu Sultan rebuked Jahan Zeb and ordered prisoners released, Salah prepared to exploit the release as his next opportunity.

• Callum Griffith paid Jahan Zeb with the offer of cheap British goods to make anti-British rumors disappear, and Jahan Zeb ordered rumor-mongers arrested.
• Salah urged Sheikh Khan’s faction to help carry out the arrests even more ruthlessly, and Mysore’s military filled prisons and barracks with tens of thousands of people.
• Jahan Zeb rewarded the soldiers, but public fear and resentment grew, and he realized the military was arresting people indiscriminately.
• Tipu Sultan summoned Jahan Zeb over the mass arrests, and Jahan Zeb promised to review the cases and release those who were not serious offenders.
• Sheikh Khan’s allies celebrated Jahan Zeb’s loss of prestige, but Salah told them to prepare for the first prisoner release and launch their plan at noon two days later.

Sheikh Khan’s faction staged a prison massacre to turn public anger against Jahan Zeb and the British. As thousands marched to Ambavilas Palace to demand justice, Tipu Sultan learned what had happened and realized the crowd was not launching a riot.

• After Salah left, Sheikh Khan and his associates agreed to ensure Jahan Zeb could not reverse their plan.
• Thousands gathered outside Mysore’s largest prison to witness the promised release of more than 370 detainees, but the gates stayed shut and guards increased.
• Sheikh Khan’s planted agitators claimed the prisoners had been killed, prompting the crowd to force its way into the prison.
• The crowd found more than 300 bodies, and agitators blamed the British and Jahan Zeb for the deaths.
• Led by high-caste men, the enraged crowd escorted prison officials toward Ambavilas Palace and demanded justice.
• Tipu Sultan feared the gathering signaled a riot, then learned from an official in Sheikh Khan’s faction what had happened.