Napoleon III's original plan was to gather more than 150,000 troops in the Metz area of Lorraine, and 100,000 troops in the Strasbourg area, with the remaining troops used as reserves for mobile operations.
The French Emperor knew that the Prussian army on the opposite border was expanding crazily at a gathering rate of 30,000 per day, and the balance of power would be seriously tilted every night.
They could only fight quickly and rely on the quality of professional soldiers to forcefully break through the Metz border. The army forced the four southern German states to surrender immediately.
At that time, the materials from the four rich southern German states can be used to supply the logistics of the army. As long as the vanguard army can reach the city of Jena, Prussia will no longer have geographical dangers!
The left-wing and right-wing armies will launch a pincer attack, and the navy will outflank Hamburg and the Prussian ports on the Baltic Sea. If necessary, small troops can be used to land on the beach to attract the main force of the Prussian army.
Such a plan was really seamless, at least Napoleon III thought so, but he never expected that his so-called perfect strategy had already been guessed by Prussia.
Militarily, Chief of Staff Moltke's plan was impeccable. He deployed Prince Karl's elite troops on the Eastern Front, directly facing Strasbourg.
In order to attract the attention of the French Emperor, he deliberately asked the First Corps to arrange more tents and desperately expanded the size of the camp to confuse the French Emperor.
Even Prussia's Eastern VIPs were sent to the Western Front to confuse the enemy.
Diplomatically, Bismarck also gained a lot. When the French Emperor's Chinese army arrived at Verdun, bad news came one after another.
"Report to Your Majesty! An urgent message has been sent from Paris! The Netherlands and Luxembourg have officially declared their neutrality!"
"What? Neutral! Damn it, haven't they received enough protection from us all these years? A bunch of bastards!" The King of France paced back and forth in the fortress hall angrily.
But before he could think of a countermeasure, another telegram completely shattered his illusions.
"Your Majesty! The Queen sent a telegram! The Austrian envoy has expressed neutrality, and there is no movement from the Italian states!"
"Now only Tsarist Russia has extended an olive branch to us, but they ask France to recognize their rights in Crimea and Romania!"
"Asshole! Are you taking advantage of the situation? What do Austria think? Have they forgotten the shame of the Austro-Prussian War? This is simply unreasonable!"
Facts have proved that the judgments of Xiao Letian and Bismarck during the Austro-Prussian War were absolutely correct. When they won a complete victory on the battlefield, Xiao Letian and Bismarck forcefully blocked the King of Prussia's order to march to Vienna.
Bismarck even threatened to resign, precisely because Prussia saved Austria's face and gave a very fair post-war treaty, which made the Austrian people feel the feelings of the same nation!
In addition, Austria and France also have a feud. Napoleon I was often at odds with Austria. Now it is a secret feeling to see France being defeated.
"Damn it, Austria actually refused to contain Prussia's Eastern Front! Are they really frightened by Bismarck?"
At this time, Marshal Bazin stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty! Every country in Europe has its own little calculations. They are all a bunch of losers, just like Bavaria and other four southern states. Whoever poses the greatest threat will surrender!"
"The only solution for now is to attack! As long as we can break through the German border and force the four southern states to surrender, I think other European countries will quickly adjust their diplomatic strategies!"
"As long as we are the most popular, as long as we can win the border battle, subsequent diplomatic breakthroughs are inevitable!"
The Emperor took a few deep breaths, "What about Tsarist Russia? Their appetite is too big. Do they really want to recognize their sovereignty on the Black Sea coast?"
"No, absolutely not!" The Crown Prince, who had been silent all this time, shouted.
"Father, the fruits of the Crimean War cannot be lost in vain, not to mention that we are fighting this war together with the United Kingdom. If we change the status quo, I am afraid the British side will not agree!"
When Britain was mentioned, the French Emperor became a little more rational. He thought for a moment and said quietly, "Send a telegram to Tsarist Russia and tell them that I cannot make concessions to the rights and interests of the Black Sea at this moment, but..."
"But if Tsarist Russia can stand with us in this war! I will support all their demands in the Far East, and after the war, my French navy will assist them in recovering the Far East!"
"Okay, my generals! The situation has now become a stalemate, and all countries are watching us! As long as we can defeat these Prussian troops on the German border, we can prove ourselves again!"
"France will prove once again... that we are the overlord of Europe! The reputation of being the number one in the army will always be ours!"
The generals in the hall cheered "Long live! Long live! Long live!"
Only the Crown Prince had a sullen face and wanted to speak but didn't know what to say. Marshal Bazin saw the inner struggle of the Crown Prince, so he secretly walked to the Crown Prince and whispered.
"Stop trying to persuade us. There was a telegram from Paris three hours ago. Today it is said that 300,000 people took to the streets shouting slogans asking us to fight to the heart of Germany!"
"The sound shook the whole city, and the glass of the Louvre was almost shattered. The queen and the prime minister were helpless! Your Majesty has no choice!"
"There is no choice...no choice..." Crown Prince Eugene was completely speechless. He gave up all thoughts of persuading his father. Internal and external troubles were all pushing the empire to fight this war. Victory would take another fifty years. The fate of the country, if it fails...
The prince no longer dares to think about it!
The emperor's general offensive order was officially issued, and the 150,000-strong army began its final combat preparations on the west bank of the Meuse River. The soldiers were issued with sufficient bullets and individual rations for two days, and all remaining non-combat supplies were unloaded. .
All five original stone bridges along the ten-kilometer stretch of the Meuse River were requisitioned, and the army rolled like a dragon towards the east bank! The engineers of the War Department urgently set up pontoon bridges. That afternoon, the ten pontoon bridges were also filled with French troops with high morale.
The artillery mules and horses moved forward hard, the grooms beat the horses' backs and buttocks desperately, and the heavy field guns moved forward with the army.
There were galloping war horses everywhere on both sides of the army, and the messengers issued the latest orders to the various units. Among them, the most common shouts were the same.
"Cross the Meuse River, head west, enter a state of war, and be ready to respond to the enemy at any time!"
"The enemy is fifty kilometers away! We have entered the battlefield at this moment!"
The lightly armed army was moving forward at a speed of seven or eight kilometers per hour. At this speed, the army would be able to see the jungle on the German border in the evening.
Among the overwhelming force of 150,000 troops, the French Second Army was the most prominent edge and the vanguard of the entire army. Army Commander Frossard successively issued emergency march orders to the soldiers.
"Forward! All-army assault! Our goal is Saarbrücken! Capture the southernmost border town in Germany and create a bridgehead for the emperor to attack!"
"Instruct all the cavalry deployed in the early stage to assemble to our troops! All cavalry regiments to assemble to our troops!"
