The Han culture is spreading strongly in Southeast Asia

Chapter 923 The Emperor Abdicates

France has a very peculiar characteristic: the people of its capital city are incredibly militaristic, unlike the border troops of other countries.

Before he was twelve, Mo Gongze spent more time in Paris than in Vienna, because Paris had the highest level of education in all of Europe, and many masters in various fields were there.

It could be said that Mo Gongze was half Parisian, so he was well aware of the fighting spirit of the Parisian people.

This is not to say that the people of Paris could fight against the anti-French coalition, but rather that there was no need to make things more difficult for themselves.

Moreover, these elite civilian soldiers have a huge flaw: they are used to city life and are naturally superior in discipline, but they are not good at enduring hardship and are easily subdued when their livelihood is cut off.

Conversely, the border troops and soldiers recruited from rural areas were much stronger in this regard, which is the underlying reason why France has never been able to reach the top in history.

French troops had high morale and strong fighting capabilities, but once they fell into a disadvantageous situation, they often failed to turn the tide and collapsed much faster than other countries' armies. They basically never had the last laugh.

It's a bit like Cheng Yaojin in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms; once you withstand his three axe blows, he'll be forced to kneel.

If these people had been as resilient and hard-working as the Qin people, they might have actually accomplished something. Unfortunately, they lacked that quality.

"Parisians can't endure hardship, but they have a chivalrous spirit, are impulsive and fond of martial arts, live for the moment and don't worry even when things are urgent. I often saw this when I was a child."

You can't push someone like that too far. If you do, he might fight back and cause a major incident.

The best way is to slowly wear him down. Spend a few days dealing with all sorts of trivial problems, and his heroic spirit will soon dissipate, leaving him at the mercy of others.

Moreover, most Parisians now consider themselves the murderers of the king and are extremely afraid that the Bourbon family will return and kill them all.

We are currently in a precarious situation, on the verge of collapse, so an immediate attack is not advisable.

This analysis highlights Mo Gongze's strengths; in military command, he might be on par with Qin San, or even slightly below him.

However, in governing the country, understanding people's hearts, and handling domestic and foreign affairs, Mo Gongze was even better than Nassanto in history.

Under his command, the anti-French coalition forces approached Meaux and confronted the French army, but did not immediately launch an attack.

Instead, taking advantage of the fact that the French army had few cavalry left, they sent a large number of Hungarian cavalry to gradually tighten the siege of Paris, allowing entry but not exit, slowly injecting high pressure into the city that the old Parisians could not tolerate.

On the other hand, Louis XVIII was relatively clear-headed and capable.

He knew that for France, the autocracy of kings and nobles was gone forever, so he enacted the Progressive Acts in history, calling for social reconciliation and appointing moderates to govern.

After discovering that his brother Charles X had completely sided with the conservatives, he lamented that Charles X would surely bring about the downfall of the Bourbon dynasty once again.

And because he has this awareness, he can effectively implement Mo Gongze's second decree.

That is, Louis XVIII, as King of France, extended goodwill to the citizens of Paris, promising to hold only those extreme liberals who participated in events such as the September Massacre accountable, and not to ordinary Parisians.

After this series of moves, Napoleon was horrified to discover that the fighting spirit of the Parisian people and their support for him were rapidly declining.

In a final desperate attempt, Napoleon decided to lead his army closer to Meaux to engage in a decisive battle with the anti-French coalition.

On December 22, Christmas Eve, Napoleon led his only 40,000 regular troops, along with 70,000 to 80,000 militiamen, including the Paris National Guard, to gather an army of over 100,000 at Meaux.

Mo Gongze launched another psychological warfare campaign, delivering a fatal blow to Napoleon.

He issued a declaration in his capacity as commander-in-chief of the Allied forces, stating that as long as Napoleon and his key generals surrendered, the anti-French coalition would not enter Paris and would not harm anyone.

If Napoleon was willing, then the war would be over. Although France was not conquered, the most basic objective was achieved.

If Napoleon didn't want to, all the crimes of the war could be pinned on him.

On December 23, Napoleon rejected Maurice's proposal, and the French army left Maurice and launched an offensive.

Mo Gongze positioned the main force of his army with their backs to the Marne River, concentrating it in a low-lying area.

Napoleon was overjoyed, thinking that Mo Gongze had made a mistake in his military strategy, and immediately concentrated all his elite troops to launch a fierce attack on Mo Gongze's location.

As a result, Napoleon completely ignored the news from the Russian battlefield that the 40,000 elite troops of the anti-French coalition had 57 hand-cranked machine guns and over 100 eight-pound cannons.

At the beginning of the battle, the French artillery inflicted some casualties on the Dayu army, but it was quickly overwhelmed by the Dayu's eight-pound field guns and became completely ineffective.

The French army had suffered heavy losses of heavy weapons in recent years, and the inflow of steel and gunpowder was also severely restricted. The newly manufactured cannons were mostly small cannons, and the gunpowder was not as pure as before, so they were no match for the eight-pound cannon of the Great Yu.

The old Imperial Guard's Banzai Charge fared even worse, not only because the Han army was most skilled at the Banzai Charge, but also because of the existence of hand-cranked machine guns.

When the French launched their mass charge, they were immediately riddled with corpses by hand-cranked machine guns firing 300 rounds per minute. Subsequently, the Han army began its mass charge.

Yang Fang, Di Feihu, Dang Shouzheng, Ge Yunfei, Li Chengbiao, Xiang Rong, and Bao Ning are all martial arts masters. How could the Frenchmen possibly stand up to them in a close-quarters combat?

As the battle raged into evening, even though Napoleon's Old Guard and Young Guard were incredibly brave, suffering losses of up to 40% but still able to maintain their formation, the disparity between the two sides was too great. No matter how valiant they were, they could not reverse the course of the battle.

After these old guards had shed their last drop of blood, the defeat of the French army was inevitable.

First, the old Parisian militia, under immense pressure, scattered in disarray. Then, Napoleon, unwilling to see his guards suffer further casualties, chose to retreat.

In this battle, the French army of 120,000 launched an offensive and lost more than 40,000 men in one day, while the anti-French coalition suffered less than 10,000 casualties. This basically marked the beginning of the countdown to the end of the French Empire.

On December 24, Napoleon led his last army of about 12 men out of Paris and fled to the southern region of Orléans.

Upon hearing this news, Marshal Saint-Cyr, who was holding off the British forces at Chartres, surrendered to the Duke of Wellington.

However, several thousand troops loyal to Napoleon still left Saint-Cyr's forces and went to the Orléans region to follow Napoleon.

On the same day, the anti-French coalition entered Paris.

This marked the first time in nearly four centuries since the Hundred Years' War that the French capital had fallen. Louis XVIII returned to Paris under the protection of tens of thousands of anti-French allied troops, and the Bourbon dynasty was restored.

As Mo Gongze predicted, after the initial bloodlust faded, the people of Paris faced a somewhat humiliating but barely livable future, and they simply accepted it.

This is the weakness of the petty bourgeoisie.

On December 25, the Allied forces of 12 infantry and cavalry entered the Orléans region. Count Talleyrand, the lame man, personally crossed the Loire River to persuade Napoleon to accept reality and surrender to the anti-French coalition, and not to continue pushing the French into hell.

Napoleon looked at the cripple and was so angry he felt like his lungs were about to explode. "I have never pushed the French people to hell. On the contrary, it is you traitors, you collaborators, who are harming the French people!"

Count Talleyrand did not want to debate with Napoleon here, and at the same time, he was afraid that if he spoke too harshly, he would break Napoleon's guard and have him shot dead.

"Your Majesty, there is no point in arguing about this. Whether you mean well or it is a mistake, France is suffering a calamity."

To minimize this loss and prevent your most loyal warriors from losing their lives, you know what choice you must make.

That's true. Napoleon might still have a chance to struggle, because the Allied forces still had some doubts about a long-term advance into France and were afraid that all the French would come out against them.

At the same time, southern and eastern France were also the regions that benefited the most from the French Revolution, with many members of the revolutionary government and the good families of the French Empire coming from there.

In fact, their support for Napoleon was higher than that of the Parisians.

Or rather, these people were more steadfast in their support for Napoleon than the Parisians.

But if Napoleon chooses to continue struggling, France will truly become a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood in the foreseeable future, and all those loyal to Napoleon will face the prospect of losing their families and lives.

"Your Majesty, we have not lost! The French people will not allow or accept the enslavement of foreigners!" Lieutenant General Marouaz, commander of the Imperial Guard cavalry, shouted.

As he shouted, the remaining 20,000 soldiers around Napoleon also began to roar in unison, their eyes filled with resentment as they looked at their emperor. This sentiment was infectious; even Marshal Brune, who was not initially trusted by Napoleon, blushed and was filled with righteous indignation.

Looking at these loyal soldiers and generals, Napoleon felt as if his heart, which had been completely filled with wealth and glory after becoming First Consul, had suddenly been opened up.

“I can’t let you all fall into a desperate situation with me again. You all have responsibilities to the country and your families. For you, I am willing to give up everything.”

But please remember, I left Orléans, the Orléans where Joan of Arc fought, for France!

After saying this, Napoleon patted Count Talleyrand on the shoulder and said, “Tell Ferdinand that I am willing to accept anything, but I should not be insulted. Ask him to give me the dignity due to an emperor.”

This emperor, who ranks among the top three in French history, was very good at stirring people's hearts and gaining sympathy. He said he was doing it for France, but he still hoped to get some protection for himself, at least to retain the treatment of a retired emperor.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured, King Louis and King Ferdinand are not fanatical rebels, and we will not send an emperor to the guillotine." Count Talleyrand looked at Napoleon with a sad expression on his face.

“If we can stop at the right time, we can at least have northern Italy and the Netherlands. Once we have absorbed these regions, we will not be the French Empire, but the Carolingian Empire.”

I can't even imagine how powerful a resurrected Carolingian Empire would be; the English definitely wouldn't last half a century!

“It is wonderful, the Charlemagne Empire, but it will be a Charlemagne Empire without the Bonaparte family, your Charlemagne Empire.”

Napoleon spoke his mind without any hesitation, since his most loyal soldiers were watching from afar and couldn't hear his conversation with Count Talleyrand.

“Talleyrand, you and your accomplices will regret it. They will regret not supporting me wholeheartedly. The only thing we can rely on to build the Carolingian Empire is the guns and cannons in the hands of the French. It is impossible to build it in the way you described.”

1815 1 Month 1 Day.

Napoleon signed his abdication decree at the Gerslow mansion next to the Orléans Cathedral, indicating his willingness to accept the terms of the Allied forces and to announce his abdication as Emperor of France and King of Italy, effective immediately.

He also dissolved the French Empire and the Kingdom of Italy he established, and dismissed the French Imperial Guard around him.

That afternoon, amidst the weeping of tens of thousands of Imperial Guards, Napoleon boarded the carriage sent by Mogonze to fetch him and was subsequently settled in the Palace of Fontainebleau.

As for its future fate, that will be decided at the spoils-dividing meeting of the anti-French coalition.

On the same day, upon receiving news of Napoleon's surrender, he hurriedly returned to Naples, where Joachim Murat, the King of Naples appointed by Napoleon, announced the surrender in Rome.

Eugène Boharnais, Napoleon's adopted son and son of his first wife Josephine and her ex-husband, also surrendered in Padua to the Sardinian coalition led by Mocombe.

With this, Napoleon's empire completely collapsed, and it seemed that Europe was about to transition from turmoil to peace.

Of course, the war was not completely over, as Tsarist Russia had not yet announced its surrender.

But this does not mean that Tsarist Russia will resist to the end; on the contrary, it foreshadows an even more brutal political struggle for Tsarist Russia.

This Slavic empire, to a large extent, did not belong to the circle of European countries; it was more like a monstrosity born from the Golden Horde.

It absorbed a large amount of the culture of the Golden Horde as its core, while on the surface it frantically catered to Western Europe, which made it seem very strange.

The biggest difference between Tsarist Russia and Western Europe is that court struggles were entirely Eastern in nature, far more bloody than in Western Europe, where everyone was related and there was a greater emphasis on dignity when stepping down from power.

At the Tsar's temporary residence, the tranquility of dawn was shattered by bursts of gunfire, and blood meandered across the ground.

One carriage after another rolled over the muddy road, a mixture of blood and snowmelt, escorted by over a thousand guards wearing bearskin hats, galloping wildly northward.

The reason for all this is that the actions of the Ross Empire in this war were simply too surreal.

First, Alexander I personally went to Tsaritsyn (Stalingrad) to meet with the elder statesman Sen, and they agreed to suppress France in exchange for the Great Yu ceasing its westward expansion.

After being soundly defeated by Napoleon in Europe, the pro-French faction gained the upper hand, and Russia subsequently sided with France in the Treaty of Tilsit. Its national policy changed to Franco-Russian cooperation, aiming to first secure Europe and then launch an offensive eastward.

This time, the national policy did not change, but it did change during the war.

Tsar Alexander I initially agreed to Kutuzov's scorched-earth strategy, but after watching Kutuzov retreat step by step, losing major cities such as Tsaritsyn, Simbirsk (Ulyanovsk), and Kazan, and suffering heavy losses, he changed his mind.

Subsequently, under his personal command, the Russian army fought a decisive battle against the Russian army led by Da Yu in Nizhny Novgorod, resulting in the loss of at least half of their resources.

Then, after repeated insistence, they agreed to Kutuzov's scorched-earth strategy, and even burned Moscow down for it.

But after all this was done, only a month later, bad news came from Western Europe: Napoleon was defeated and surrendered, and the French Empire was dissolved.

Now all the plans have come to naught. The Da Yu army will definitely not be able to reach Smolensk and Kiev, but the European coalition forces coming from the west can!

What's the point of your "scorched earth" policy? With attacks coming from both the east and west, Tsarist Russia can't possibly withstand it.

Even Kutuzov did not expect that the invincible Napoleon and the French Empire, which had conquered the entire European continent, would collapse with a bang.

Suddenly, all the blame was directed at the veteran. Kutuzov, who was already in poor health, collapsed and lay in bed, barely able to get up.

When he fell, the entire Tsarist Russia descended into chaos.

It was originally a rather fragmented empire, similar to Spain and Italy.

The reason they appear more resilient and united than these two countries is because they have no choice but to unite.

At that time, Tsarist Russia was not a good place. There were not many railways, and especially no fertilizers or improved seeds. The East European Plain, which was later incredibly wealthy and included the Ukrainian Plain, had very low yields per acre.

It mainly produces cold-climate crops such as rye and oats, so it's not a treasure land at all.

If the Russians living on this land do not unite, do not converge under the rule of the Tsar and work together to attack in all directions, try to acquire some rich land for themselves and seize the fruits of others' labor, they will only be slaves to others for life and suffer poverty for life.

This kind of unity is indeed very strong, and also very formidable.

However, if the Tsar fails to benefit those below him and makes a mistake that causes significant damage to the empire, the situation could be dire.

At this time, the Russian court was divided into several factions.

Western royalists hoped to preserve Alexander I and seek peace with the Western European countries. After stabilizing them, they would then negotiate with the Khitan Empire, even if it meant suffering more punishment, to preserve the empire and retain the possibility of a comeback.

The Eastern faction hoped that Tsar Alexander I would take responsibility for the defeat, abdicate in favor of his brother Grand Duke Constantine, and then have Grand Duke Constantine apologize to the Khitan emperor's crown prince, thus completely siding with the Khitans and avoiding severe punishment from Western European countries.

Local separatists, however, no longer wanted to be associated with the Tsar and attempted to use their actions to break away from the empire in exchange for avoiding responsibility for war crimes.

Let the territories directly under the Tsar take responsibility for the war, while they go home and become local tyrants.

There were also all sorts of bizarre and outlandish demands, creating a chaotic and spectacular scene.

The most frightening thing is that the separatists in the area, who seem to have no way out and are very naive and foolish, are actually in the majority.

The instinct to seek advantage and avoid harm is human nature. Many "clever" local nobles believed that the Khitan Empire could not control all of them. As long as they stayed away from big cities and kept quiet, they could escape disaster. In fact, the Khitans would even need their help.

The fact that the Imperial Guard protected the Tsar as he fled north was a result of the elites in the Russian Empire who were trying to save the country taking advantage of the conflicts among local separatist factions to seize Tsar Alexander I from their control.

These elites, belonging to the Western royalist faction, attempted to go to St. Petersburg to stabilize the situation before negotiating with Da Yu.

This was a truly excellent opportunity, but unfortunately, the Yu army's expeditionary force was unable to remain in the heart of Tsarist Russia due to the harsh winter and supply problems.

Not only was burned-down Moscow uninhabitable, but Nizhny Novgorod was also uninhabitable, and only a thousand or so of the most hardworking Korean soldiers remained in Kazan.

Otherwise, it's worth making good use of it.

(End of this chapter)