CHAPTER 257: CHAPTER 246 HEIXINGGEN’S JOURNEY

On July 15th, shortly after the Third Conquest War began, France had already mobilized its army, and the next day, the French parliament voted to officially declare war on Prussia.

Following closely, the four Southern German states (Bavaria, Baden, Württemberg, Hesse) with rising nationalist sentiments completely sided with Prussia.

Prussia currently has three corps, with the southern part mainly led by Crown Prince Friedrich William (Frederick III) commanding the Third Corps, which comprises:

5th Army: Commander Kilchbach

6th Army: Commander Tumpelinger

11th Army: Commander Boze

Bavarian 1st Army: Commander Tann-Ratshamhausen

Bavarian 2nd Army: Commander Hartman

Wurttemberg Division,

Baden Division,

2nd and 4th Cavalry Divisions

Heixinggen Brigade.

Due to the unique status of the Heixinggen principality, it is categorized as an independent military unit, theoretically on par with the Prussian army.

This war saw the Heixinggen Brigade completely formed by the Heixinggen royal family. Besides personnel, the weapons and equipment were self-sufficient, provided by the Heixinggen factories in the German region, matching the standards of the Prussian Army, making it easier to integrate with Prussian logistics than other temporarily joined Southern German states’ armies.

Leopold served as the commander of the Heixinggen Brigade, receiving direct leadership from Frederick III.

The Heixinggen principality had a total participation of 4,372 people, apart from the third-year cadets of the Heixinggen Military Academy, it also included some second-year and first-year cadets, as well as volunteer recruits from Heixinggen and Sigmaringen.

...

"Boom Boom Boom..."

As the bells rang, the temporarily assembled Heixinggen Brigade gathered on the parade ground of the Heixinggen Military Academy.

The Heixinggen Brigade was composed of two infantry regiments, which quickly assembled under the leadership of Leopold, then changed routes to Stuttgart, advancing west along the road, taking advantage of the geographical location, and reaching the border area in three days. Besides the Baden Grand Duchy’s army being local, other state armies and the Prussian army had not yet arrived.

The Third Corps, mainly composed of Southern German states, was supplemented by Prussian troops, with 12 divisions totaling about 130,000 people (historically about 125,000 people) deployed in the southern region near Baden and Karlsruhe in the Palatinate.

Heixinggen neighbors the Baden Grand Duchy, and the Heixinggen Brigade, as the smallest unit of the Third Corps, is more flexible in maneuver.

Two days later, the Württemberg Kingdom troops, adjacent to Baden like Heixinggen, arrived in Baden territory, and the northern Prussian troops led by the Prussian Crown Prince arrived the same day.

As the highest commander of the Third Corps, Frederick III first inspected other state armies, except for the yet-to-arrive Bavaria Kingdom troops.

Frederick III had the most confidence in the Prussian army, but given the prolonged peace and lack of warfare experience in Baden and Württemberg, it was hard to trust them. As for the Bavarian army, it wouldn’t be too bad, considering the two countries clashed last time.

Quickly, all state armies assembled, and looking at the bustling state armies, Frederick III was not satisfied, his brows furrowed and never relaxed, their level compared to the Prussian Army was poor, the equipment was chaotic, even one unit was simultaneously equipped with weapons from France and Austria, their organizational ability was so poor even during normal times, how could they compare with the battle-hardened Prussian Army on the battlefield? Moreover, the enemy opposite was the world’s recognized number one—French Army.

Just as Frederick III lost hope in other state armies, the Heixinggen Brigade in the corner caught his attention.

First impression: young, second impression: capable, third impression: orderly.

"Leopold, is this the Heixinggen Brigade?" Frederick III approached Leopold and asked.

"Yes, Your Highness. They are all army cadets recruited and organized by the Heixinggen royal family."

"Uh! Didn’t I hear that Ernst is not interested in military affairs? Since he’s willing to form an army, why didn’t he directly join the army back then? Prussia could have provided him a position."

"Hahaha, Ernst claiming disinterest in military affairs is merely an excuse, just self-awareness. I think entering business is the right choice, besides these cadet soldiers are all prepared for his potential colonies, trying to place him in the army is totally impossible." Leopold laughed.

"Alas! Prince Constantine can be considered a renowned general; how come Ernst didn’t inherit this trait?" Frederick sighed.

"Everyone makes different choices, Your Highness, besides Prince Constantine had a late child, Heixinggen only had one heir, so naturally, Ernst wouldn’t be encouraged to encounter the battlefield again."

"Aside from that, Ernst runs the so-called Heixinggen Military Academy quite well, I hear he himself serves as the principal, managing and forming this army so well shows considerable ability, nicer to look at than other state armies, unfortunately, it’s just too few in number."

"Hehe, Southern German states have their military systems after all, if France hadn’t declared war, they would continue to exist independently, and the Heixinggen principality has always been a Prussian vassal, so the Heixinggen Brigade naturally copied the Prussian army template entirely, its instructors were all carefully selected from retired Prussian soldiers, and there’s something unknown to you, Ernst as the principal of Heixinggen Military Academy, is actually a hands-off manager, hardly involved in teaching and training, especially as his business expands, travels frequently, several times I visited Heixinggen, couldn’t see him at all," Leopold laughed.

"Ernst is shrewd, just does too much, besides business, he also engages in overseas colonization, spending less time in Heixinggen, overseas colonization seemingly not very difficult? Even a businessman like him can handle it smoothly, perhaps a unified Germany should participate more actively!" Frederick III said.

"Overseas colonization is indeed attractive, but the British aren’t easy to deal with, and the territory Ernst colonizes, though not terrible, isn’t particularly good either, considering even the Portuguese hadn’t tried their hand at East Africa for centuries."

"Forget it, let’s not dwell on this now, the priority is dealing with France, without defeating France, there’s no future for Prussia and Germany. However, these troops, within the Southern German states, the Baden and Württemberg armies seem worse than Heixinggen, and even the Bavarian army might not perform well, the battle against France won’t be easy," Frederick III said.

"This isn’t certain, the elite troops of Bavaria Kingdom might still be good, and army appearance is secondary, battlefield performance reveals the true strength," Leopold said.

"Do you think this seemingly well-trained Heixinggen Brigade can make a mark on the battlefield?"

Leopold confidently answered: "Of course, although these are cadet soldiers, never truly experiencing the battlefield might result in some losses, but enduring through the first phase, they’d definitely become an elite unit."

...

The enemy opposite Prussia’s Third Corps was France’s First Corps, both sides confronting along the border from Saarbrücken to Strasbourg.

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The Franco-Prussian War erupted. The declaration of war sparked immense patriotism across France, people flooded the streets to send off the troops, chanting slogans like "March on Berlin, crush Prussia!" Similar scenes unfolded nationwide, at rural train stations, people handed bottles of wine through train windows filled with soldiers, urging them to teach a lesson to the "square-headed Germans."