Chapter Summaries

Joseph used his presence near the front to spur Duke of Brunswick into an all-out Allied assault, drawing the enemy deep into French territory. By the end, the Allied Forces had advanced near Arlon and were positioned to be trapped when Massena counterattacked.

• Scharnhorst warned Duke of Brunswick that the French retreat might be a trap and urged stronger reconnaissance, but the Marshal dismissed his concerns.
• Massena and Saint Hilaire worried that cautious Allied advances would prevent the French from luring the enemy far enough into Luxembourg before launching their counterattack.
• Joseph proposed appearing near the front to provoke Duke of Brunswick, then rode toward the southeast despite Massena and Saint Hilaire's objections.
• After a Hussar officer reported seeing Joseph at the front, Duke of Brunswick ordered an all-out assault and assigned Blücher, Tauentzien, and the Bavarian brigades to attack French positions.
• Two days later, Joseph saw that the Allied Forces had advanced near Arlon and west of Wiltz, leaving them unable to retreat to Trier once Massena began his counterattack.

Berthier and Surt broke the siege of Luxembourg and led a counterattack toward Trier, where Surt joined Oudinot’s Corps. Oudinot revealed that the Crown Prince had anticipated the counterattack and ordered their forces across the Zel River to attack Koblenz.

• Surt inferred that Massena had drawn the Allied forces west and urged Berthier to counterattack toward Trier.
• Berthier ordered a battle conference, and the French forces surprised the besieging Allies the next morning.
• French troops overran the northern artillery positions, encircled the Hanoverian Legion, and forced it to surrender.
• Surt’s infantry defeated the Trier Army while the Champagne Legion repelled Mainz reinforcements, breaking the siege around Luxembourg.
• Berthier left three thousand men to defend the fortress and ordered Surt to march toward Steinsel and then the Zel River.
• Surt met Oudinot’s Corps by the Zel River and learned that the Crown Prince had ordered them to cross the pontoon bridge and attack Koblenz.

Soult and Oudinot’s force swept through the Rhineland, taking Trier, Koblenz, and Mainz while the German states struggled to respond. As Massena’s main force routed the Allied Army, the Duke of Brunswick learned that the French had already seized Trier and were advancing toward Mainz.

• Soult and Oudinot learned of the Crown Prince’s bold countercharge against Ferdinand’s Prussian Hussars as they advanced toward Trier.
• Archbishop Clemens surrendered Trier before the French vanguard arrived, and Soult continued the march toward Koblenz.
• After Koblenz’s defenders surrendered Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, Soult left Oudinot to garrison the city and marched south.
• Soult routed a small Mainz force near St. Goar and occupied Mainz without resistance, securing the Rhine crossings.
• Massena’s 70,000 troops attacked the disordered Allied Army, drove it back through Wiltz, and broke through Brunswick’s defensive line.
• Brunswick ordered a retreat toward Trier, then learned that the French had taken the city and were marching toward Mainz.

Duke of Brunswick ordered a retreat as the French blocked the Allied Forces’ route, while Duke of York tried to reach Cologne but was delayed by the Walloon Corps. The chapter ended with Duke of York learning that Earl Kleffat had withdrawn the Austrian Legion, exposing his left flank.

• Duke of Brunswick ordered the Dernberg Corps to delay the French and the remaining troops to retreat north toward Geldern.
• Duke of York abandoned plans to rendezvous with Duke of Brunswick and ordered his forces to retreat to Cologne.
• Gaayar pursued the retreating Anglo-Austrian forces after Contain urged him to exploit their withdrawal.
• An English rear-guard officer turned to fight after American volunteers mocked the Englishmen, and Duke of York halted to support the seven thousand soldiers in the Jones Corps.
• Duke of York learned that Duke of Brunswick was surrounded and Mainz had fallen, so he headed for Cologne while leaving the Austrian Legion to hold off the Walloons.
• Earl Kleffat led the Austrian Legion out of the battle, leaving a large gap in Duke of York’s left flank.

Duke of York and Blücher’s forces faced French attacks while the Allied commanders struggled to decide whether to rescue their surrounded leaders or retreat. After crossing the frozen Uhr River, Blücher received a request to aid Duke of York at Düren, but Scharnhorst urged him to turn east instead.

• Duke of York learned that Kleffat had refused to return, then faced a French attack on his left flank as Gaayar charged through the opening left by the Austrian withdrawal.
• Blücher ordered his troops to prepare to rescue the surrounded Duke of Brunswick, but Scharnhorst persuaded him that retreating toward Cologne was their only chance to escape the West Bank of the Rhine.
• Scharnhorst stayed behind with a rearguard while Blücher led the main force toward the Uhr River, then withdrew when he learned the river had frozen over.
• At dawn, Blücher received Duke of York’s request for help at Düren and said he would continue to Cologne, but Scharnhorst urged him to turn east immediately.

French forces routed the Allied armies west of the Rhine, and Joseph set out to preside over the surrender ceremony at Rodeshausen. He learned that Massena had already moved to besiege Cologne while other French troops occupied the remaining Rhineland territories.

• Blücher redirected his army toward Kastellaun, while Saint Hilaire crossed the Uhr River and pursued what he believed was the Prussian retreat toward Cologne.
• The Duke of York prepared an English counterattack after hearing that Blücher was approaching, but French troops arrived from the south and Saint Hilaire and the Walloon Corps defeated the English Army near Düren.
• Saint Hilaire pursued the Duke of York to Cologne, where Austrian troops defended the crossing, and Surt arrived with reinforcements to join the siege.
• Captain Vidal reported to Joseph that Massena had captured the Duke of Brunswick and more than forty thousand Prussian and Bavarian soldiers after the Ferdinand Corps surrendered.
• Joseph agreed to attend the surrender ceremony at Rodeshausen, but Massena had already departed for Cologne; Berthier told Joseph that French forces were also advancing into the Palatinate, Mannheim, Aachen, and Geldern.

Joseph presided over the Prussian surrender ceremony in Diekirch, honoring the French dead before accepting the defeated army’s sword and weapons. He left Duke of Brunswick’s honor intact, hoping to weaken the Prussian-Austrian alliance, while Blücher remained at large.

• The Prussian surrender column arrived in Diekirch under French cavalry escort as thousands watched.
• Joseph called for three minutes of silence to honor the French soldiers who had died in the war.
• A Prussian officer surrendered his saber to Joseph, while Duke of Brunswick watched from below, spared the ceremony in accordance with Joseph’s promise.
• Joseph tapped the saber’s broken tip against Brigadier General Möllendorf’s shoulder, formally accepting the Prussian surrender.
• Prussian soldiers stacked their weapons and equipment in barricades as the crowd cheered.

Joseph discussed France’s plans for its gains on the Rhine and the balance between Prussia and Austria, arguing that France should keep the German states divided while focusing on Britain. A letter from Archbishop Brienne informed him that the Iberian-Apennine Summit was ready to begin, and Joseph saw it as the start of an Anti-British Alliance.

• Duke of Brunswick returned to Prussia with 400 soldiers under French Army escort, while Joseph left Diekirch for Paris.
• Lefebvre questioned Joseph’s plan to release Prussian prisoners, and Joseph explained that he wanted Prussia to remain a counterweight to Austria.
• Joseph rejected Lefebvre’s suggestion to invade Austria, reasoning that dominating the German states would unite them against France and provoke Russia.
• At Verdun, Joseph received Archbishop Brienne’s letter saying the Iberian-Apennine Summit was ready to open upon his return to Paris.
• Joseph welcomed the summit as a way to build an Anti-British Alliance and gain influence from France’s victory.

Joseph returned to Paris after leading France to victories across Europe, where the crowds and nobles celebrated him as a hero. At Versailles, Queen Mary welcomed him and revealed that Catherine II had agreed to marry her granddaughter to him.

• On October 27, Joseph entered Paris amid a grand procession, cheering crowds, and a ceremony honoring King Saint Louis.
• Joseph reached Versailles, where Queen Mary embraced him and warned him not to risk his life in battle.
• Nobles around Joseph repeated wildly exaggerated stories about his victories and miraculous escapes from cannon fire.
• Queen Mary told Joseph that Catherine II had agreed to marry her granddaughter to him.

Joseph learned that his parents planned to arrange his engagement to Alexandra of Russia and accepted a delayed marriage contract, seeing the match as a strategic alliance for France. After Paris celebrated, he recovered from a hangover and went to rehearse for the upcoming Iberian-Apennine Summit.

• Queen Mary told Joseph she had chosen a Russian Princess for his engagement, and Joseph realized she meant Alexandra.
• Joseph considered the diplomatic benefits of a French-Russian alliance and agreed to a marriage contract, with the wedding postponed until Alexandra was older.
• Queen Mary celebrated the agreement with her husband, and Paris spent the night celebrating as Joseph drank with the nobles.
• Camellia helped Joseph recover from his hangover and reminded him about the summit rehearsal.
• Joseph arrived at the Tuileries Palace and saw crowds gathered with flags from Sardinia, Parma, Genoa, Modena, and other countries.

Joseph met the Spanish Crown Prince Ferdinando and Count of Floridablanca at the Tuileries Palace and proposed that Spain use its troops to attack Portugal with French support. He then began offering Carlos IV help with reforming Spain’s church, but the chapter ended before he explained his proposal.

• Ferdinando greeted Joseph and praised his victories on behalf of his father, Carlos IV.
• Count of Floridablanca offered to send Marquis of La Romana and thirty thousand Spanish troops to Italy, but Joseph urged Spain to gather them in Cáceres instead.
• Joseph proposed a joint French-Spanish campaign to recover Portugal and potentially Gibraltar, promising French assistance after the fighting on the Rhine River ended.
• Joseph told the Spanish representatives that France could help address the influence of the Roman Curia over Spain’s church.

Joseph persuaded Count of Floridablanca that Spain should stay out of efforts to preserve the Holy See’s political power, then opened the Iberian-Apennine Summit by proposing a protected common market. The representatives began reviewing rules for trade protections and dispute arbitration, leaving the market’s framework under discussion.

• Joseph told Count of Floridablanca that he wanted the Holy See confined to its religious role and asked Spain to remain silent while Italian States acted against its political influence.
• Two days later, Joseph opened the Iberian-Apennine Summit and proposed a common market linking eight nations and nearly fifty million people.
• Prince of Parma Ludovico warned that free trade could destroy his country’s workshops and bankrupt farmers, and Joseph clarified that members could negotiate protective tariffs while imposing high tariffs on outsiders.
• Joseph outlined common market rules on equal treatment, consistent regulations, fair competition, patents, special protections, and arbitration of disputes.
• The representatives studied the proposed provisions and were astonished by the detailed trade system.

Joseph secured broad support for the Common Market by promising equal rules and technology transfers, then proposed creating a unified bank to support trade and investment. The member states prepared to join, with committee elections and tariff negotiations set to follow.

• Governor of Genoa Ebiasso declared that Genoa would join the Common Market, and the Prince of Parma and other representatives followed.
• Joseph announced that the first committee election would take place the next day, followed by negotiations over protective Tariffs.
• Joseph offered Lucca access to French textile technology and potential factory investment, exciting its minister, Padoan.
• Joseph offered Spain access to French brewing technology, prompting Count of Floridablanca to thank him.
• Joseph explained that technology licensing would earn fees and help keep other countries in lower-value industries.
• Joseph proposed a unified Common Market bank to provide trade advances, settlements, payments, and loans.

Joseph secured agreement to establish the Mediterranean Bank and make the Franc the Common Market’s standard settlement currency. At the next day’s summit, he proposed a member-run security organization that reassured the small Italian states by limiting war decisions and mediating disputes.

• Joseph proposed that member states jointly fund and manage the Mediterranean Bank for trade settlements and state-level loans.
• Governor Ebiasso supported the Franc as the standard settlement currency, and the representatives approved its use.
• Brienne hosted a stream of delegates seeking bank investments and loans, then praised Joseph for binding the nations to France.
• Joseph proposed the Iberian-Apennine Security Defense Organization, with a General Staff drawn from member states and member votes required for major actions like war.
• Joseph said the organization would mediate disputes between member states and bar them from deploying troops against one another before a ruling, easing the small states’ concerns.

At the Iberian-Apennine Summit, Joseph secured new members for the Security and Defense Organization and encouraged Milan to found a republic. The meeting approved the organization’s provisions, leaving France in effective control of the alliance.

• Spain requested to join the Security and Defense Organization, followed by Emanuele of Sardinia and representatives of Parma, Lucca, and Modena.
• Joseph urged Giuseppella to establish the Republic of Milan and use the Shap Signal Tower to inform Milan Parliament.
• Joseph told Governor Biaso that Genoa could hold a parliamentary vote on joining the organization, and Biaso agreed to convene a special session.
• Joseph handed the meeting to Archbishop Brienne, and the representatives approved the organization’s provisions.
• The organization established its headquarters in France, giving France decisive influence over its military and political decisions.

Genoa and Milan joined the newly established Mediterranean Security Defense Organization, whose members signed its founding agreement in Paris. At a royal hunt, Joseph urged the Italian states to take revenge on Tuscany and the Papal States for aiding Austria, while saying Napoleon could handle Mantua alone.

• Genoa and Milan voted to join the Security Organization, and representatives from France, Spain, Sardinia, Milan, Parma, Genoa, Lucca, and Baden signed its founding agreement.
• The Mediterranean Security Defense Organization established its headquarters in Marseille, created a five-thousand-man Peacekeeping Legion and an Intelligence Center, and elected Marquis de Lafayette as its first Chief of Staff.
• Member states ordered more than five million Francs' worth of French weapons, with Genoa and Milan planning to rearm their entire armies.
• At a royal hunt, Joseph asked the assembled representatives who rightfully owned the Apennine Peninsula, and Talleyrand and Sardinia's Crown Prince blamed Austria for Italy's suffering.
• Joseph said Napoleon had encircled Mantua and did not need allied troops, then accused Tuscany and the Papal States of aiding Austria and called on the Italian states to take revenge.

Joseph secured Spanish consent and Italian support for a campaign against the Papal States and Tuscany, promising France would not claim their territory. The plan left France poised to strengthen its influence over the Italian states, pressure the Holy See, and weaken Austria.

• Joseph asked Count of Floridablanca for Spain’s view, and the count tacitly approved an adjustment to the Papal States while making clear Spain would not become embroiled.
• Prince of Parma supported punishing the Papal States, while the Modenese Foreign Minister and the Governor of Genoa warned that Naples and Tuscany could resist.
• Joseph proposed activating the Mediterranean Security Organization’s protection clause and promised that France would return all occupied Papal lands to the Italian States.
• Modena pledged three thousand Royal Guard soldiers, and the other Italian nations agreed to send troops with French backing.
• Joseph planned to use the campaign and the division of territory to tighten France’s control over its Italian allies, pressure the Holy See, and weaken Austria.

Joseph and the representatives celebrated the Iberian-Apennine Summit’s success at Versailles, while the gathering’s political consequences began to shape royal relationships. In Pozztan, Duke of Brunswick returned to find William II insisting on war despite the army’s collapse, and he warned Wilhelmine that peace with France was their last chance.

• Joseph spotted a herd of deer being driven toward the hunting party and urged the representatives to pursue their prey.
• Louis XVI and Queen Mary announced the summit’s successful conclusion at the Versailles ball, where Prince Pasquale danced with Elizabeth and resolved to seek her hand in marriage.
• Paris celebrated through the night, and the representatives departed the following day to consult their rulers and parliaments about the summit’s agreements.
• Duke of Brunswick returned to Pozztan and learned that William II had been drinking heavily since the French captured Koblenz.
• William II asked Duke of Brunswick to prepare a counterattack, but the Duke described the ruinous state of the allied armies and declared that they could not keep fighting.
• Duke of Brunswick told Wilhelmine that this was their final chance to make peace with the French.

Wilhelmine moved to remove Prussia’s pro-war leaders and secure a ceasefire with France, while Austrian defenders at Cologne came under deadly fire from French soldiers beneath the fortress walls.

• Duke of Brunswick urged Wilhelmine to withdraw from the Anti-French Alliance and negotiate a ceasefire to recover more than forty-three thousand captured troops.
• Wilhelmine enlisted Duke of Brunswick’s support for removing Prince Heinrich and Baron Friedrich from power, and demanded that Julie leave Sanssouci Palace.
• Wilhelmine’s allies moved against Foreign Minister Ewald Friedrich, while protests and corruption accusations undermined Prince Heinrich and led William II to order him to stay at home.
• Count Schulenburg was appointed to represent Prussia in ceasefire negotiations and departed for Paris.
• At Cologne Fortress, French soldiers in white uniforms shot Captain Zimmermann, his orderly, and several Austrian soldiers through the battlements.

The French siege of Cologne continued to devastate the Austrian defenders, while the expected Prussian reinforcements vanished after Prussia withdrew from the Anti-French Alliance. The French captured the Central Embankment, and the Austrian Major fled through the fortress passages to keep fighting elsewhere.

• French Chasseurs shot down thirty-six men from Zimmerman's Company, leaving its 18-pounder Cannon silent through the day.
• An Austrian Major told the defenders that British reinforcements and Blücher's troops would soon arrive, but learned that Prussia had made a ceasefire agreement with France and left the alliance.
• The fortress defenders heard that Prussia had withdrawn its troops and agreed to recognize France's rule over Geldern, weakening Austrian resistance.
• A staff officer reported that the French had taken the Central Embankment, and the Major fled through a secret passage toward another fortress.