I Am Louis XIV

  Chapter 96 The King Comes to Dunkirk (Part 2)

   The name Dunkirk comes from West Flanders, and in Dutch it means "church on the dunes".

With such a name, the topography of the city can also be imagined. When Viscount Turenne followed the order to tour the army with the king and the bishop, the scene they saw was not spectacular. Dunkirk was seen from outside the town. , that is an old and old city. Although the Spanish privateers used it as a fortress and made a fortune through its shelter, they did not value it itself, and even the troops stationed here were also In this way, it stands to reason that the move of the British warships to block the routes and ports a month ago should have aroused their vigilance, but they did not build new fortifications or reinforce the city walls except for opening the sluices and flooding the nearby lowlands.

The low-lying waters had caused some trouble for the French here, but many of them were farmers from the South who were no strangers to marshes and ponds, so they quickly managed to divert the stagnant water. Gone, now there are no major problems in those places except for the wet mud.

The king visited their camp under the guidance of the Viscount Turenne - there are about fifteen thousand people here, and four or five villages can carry such a large number of soldiers, which is enough to make Dunkers in normal times. A catastrophe in the nearby villages and towns of Ke - as previously described, the army at this time was no different from the robbers, they were fierce, brutal and shameless, without morality or shame, according to the custom, the village men, old people and Children would be killed, women would be a pastime for soldiers and officers, who would use up the last of the inhabitants' food, and burn their houses as they left, whether in France, or England, or It's quite common in two different denominations too - the Lord says to love your neighbors, the bishop doesn't care if you kill them, as long as they're heretics, although Louis never thought that the three-fingered and the two-fingered, the long cross and the Short cross, what's the difference between wine and grape juice (all of the above are justifications for religious wars).

The people here should feel lucky, because the Viscount Turenne knew that their king was merciful by nature, so when he accepted the surrender of the mayor of this town, he asked him to provide enough shelter and food for the army, and the people of those villages Although they still have to suffer from exploitation and expulsion, they can still save their lives. When the army leaves, they will certainly have to spend a very difficult time, but as the mayor said, they must thank God and the king.

It's just Louis or the bishop, who dare not take this kind of flattery seriously. When the king goes out, in addition to the musketeers, there are still two priests of the Inquisition to protect him. If you remember, there have always been rumors in the court. In order to seek his brother's throne, the Duke of Gaston made a deal with demons, who were brought back by him in some absurd paintings, and the accident of Louis XIII originated from this - and here is Fran At the junction of Del and France, no one knows what will appear.

  Viscount Turenne had heard that ghouls had appeared here.

The king had no time to take care of this for the time being. What he focused on was the difference between the new British model army and the French soldiers. In addition to uniform clothing, the new model army also had a rudder complexion, a more calm demeanor, and a more relaxed manner than the average French soldiers. They are full of confidence and pride, and they are full of vitality, like a tall and straight new tree, just like the Mr. Munch at the dinner party. Obviously, whether psychologically Physically, they were far superior to the king's soldiers.

  Louis disliked Cromwell, but he also had to admit that he was an outstanding leader.

When he saw smoke rising from a house, he rode over there, where three officers were meeting, although the ground (the family should have taken all the furniture as possible when they left, the king on the walls and even Saw a blank outline of a spinning wheel) spread out a map, but they should have dice or cards in their pockets, which made the king sigh again, gambling is almost the only thing the French now have other than dancing and hunting The new model is slightly better at this point, because Cromwell himself is a stereotyped Protestant, and all kinds of entertainment have been completely banned in the UK, and gambling is of course among them, so their soldiers are at least on the bright side. He never gambled, and the king saw all the way that all the soldiers in red coats were spending their spare time after training by taking care of their weapons and horses.

The house occupied by the officers apparently belonged to the wealthy yeoman farmers in the village. The house has two floors, with bedrooms upstairs, living room and kitchen below, brick rather than wood or mud brick walls, and fireplace and chimney. Officers There is a hearth where it is located. A funnel-shaped fume hood hangs above the hearth. The smoke from the burning of charcoal can rise to the sky from here. An iron pot hangs on the hearth. The steam and smoke that the king sees are both from here.

   "Is this your breakfast or lunch, gentlemen?" asked the king.

   "Lunch," said one of the officers nervously, "Your Majesty, it's lunch for the three of us."

The king can almost guess why he is so nervous, because in addition to the fresh fish soup in the iron pot, there are dried meat, black bread, cheese and eggs, and a bucket of ale, which can be said to be quite rich - "Where are the soldiers? ?" Louis asked.

   "Fish soup and bread too!" said the officer.

The king believed that he would not be deceived, but the supply of the French army was less comforting than the new model army with a continuous supply of meat and dairy products, and the king took this to heart, rather than a unified Coats or hats, soldiers will of course care more about their stomachs.

But after the inspection, the mixed clothes of the French soldiers still gave the king a headache. At this time, people did not have the concept of military uniforms, so everyone wore their own clothes, and the regulations on weapons were not uniform. At least there were several types of muskets. , mostly arquebuses, which can be seen at a glance by those who use them, because they carry a wide shoulder strap with a powder pack attached to it - the type of propellant that devout soldiers usually use The packs are arranged in twelve packs, called the Twelve Apostles, and a pack of gunpowder can be fired once; the projectile bag - which contains round lead bullets;

People who use revolving muskets will have a lot less cumbersome, because this musket uses the friction of sulfur ore and steel wheel to generate sparks to ignite gunpowder, or a newer flintlock gun, the flint on it can guarantee more than 30 times However, these guns almost all belong to the officers. In addition to being more lethal, the appearance is more gorgeous - like the black-backed **** is covered with gold, which is just a basic operation, and some people have embedded gems, pearls, ivory…

In addition to the appearance, there are some people who have tried their best to function, like a large-caliber musket with a muzzle like a trumpet, in addition to being loaded with lead bullets, it can also be stuffed with stones of the same size... Multi-barreled guns, From four barrels to twelve barrels...hybrid guns - no, not muskets, because they look like knives, axes or shields with a musket barrel attached...

  The king can only say that he opened his eyes.

Viscount Turenne is not surprised, and is even very interested in some of them. By the way, I forgot to mention that the current hot weapons, in addition to artillery, can only play a role in consuming the enemy's combat power when the war starts. The battle is still about swords and spears, so soldiers and officers have swords whether they use muskets or not.

  Louis made another note in his pamphlet.

They finally stood on the edge of the barracks and looked out at Dunkirk. The soldiers could be seen walking up and down on the grey city walls. The Viscount Turenne had dispatched a part of the army to besiege the city, while the main force stayed here and waited for the Spanish reinforcements. , he looked at the king a few times before the day was over, and Louis knew what he was worried about, and like any general in battle, there was nothing he was more worried about than someone deliberately taking his command - but if that person The king he swore allegiance to?

Especially, Louis is twenty years old this year, which is the best and most complacent age for a young man, and he is not a fool, so it is difficult to say whether the king will have his own views on the upcoming war, Or opinion, Viscount Turenne doesn't care if the king wants to point him, he's afraid that the king is too stubborn - he means that even if he has never commanded even a battle, the king will be eager to try it. People show off their military excellence (the devil knows if there is).

  Because in front of them, Prince Kongdai, who had become an enemy, won a huge victory as a commander in the first battle.

Louis saw his apprehension, and the young king couldn't help laughing: "No," he said: "No, Monsieur Viscount, I will not interfere in matters I am not familiar with, Monsieur Bishop, and you too. , you are my arms, I don't want to bind you like a child - I just want you to give me a victory, you can, right?"

"Your Majesty." The words of Louis made Viscount Turenne feel ashamed. The face of this man old enough to be the king's grandfather turned red, and even spread to innocent ears. He did have this concern, but when the king pointed it out, he felt that he was really It is too contempt for his monarch.

Louis has decided to be a bystander. He is a king, not a general. Even in the current war, the kings often go to war, but they can only be said to be a symbol or encouragement to the soldiers. It is up to Louis' personal bravery to turn the situation around - by then, he will not be far from the king of subjugation, just like poor Charles II.

   "Then," said Viscount Turenne, judiciously, "if possible, can you stay here until the war begins?"

  Louis looked at him.

The general's eyes were staring at him, and his fingers moved around nimbly. The meaning was obvious, the king should not go to the dangerous battlefield... "Here is a clock tower, Your Majesty, from there you can see the whole battlefield."

   "Have you determined the battlefield?" Louis asked.

  ——

"There are not many places outside Dunkirk that can be used as battlefields," said Mr. Bishop, opening a secret letter and handing it to the king: "Prince Condé and the Spaniards are coming here desperately, very in a hurry, Your Majesty, they He even dropped his own artillery."

   "Thanks to your spy," said Louis, "whether it was for misleading the Spaniards to Cambrai, or for all the secrets about them."

"It's hard to say," said Mr. Bishop, reservedly. "I'm still confirming some information, Your Majesty, but what is certain is that our Prince Condé is not having a good time - the Spaniards say it nicely, but it's not that good. After all, the main power of this army is still in the hands of Don Juan, of course, he is the illegitimate son of Philip IV after all, but Kong Dai is a Frenchman."

   "How many are they?"

"Similar to us, but more complicated in composition," said Mr. Bishop, who stopped abruptly, because his head throbbed violently, he pressed his forehead and closed his eyes, "among them there were Spaniards, as well as those of the Prince of Condé. Soldiers, and the mercenaries of the Holy Roman Empire, and the royal army of the Duke of York."

   "Wait, is the Duke of York the one I know?" Louis asked, he had been reading the secret letter just now, so he didn't notice the strangeness of Mr. Bishop.

"That's the one, the younger brother of Charles II," said the Bishop, with the same tone. "There are more people who support him than his brother. The people gathered under his command support his two thousand soldiers, but still Under the unified command of Tang Huang."

   said, Mr. Bishop glanced at the king deliberately, "This is the disadvantage of having brothers," he said.

  Louis just looked up and smiled.

   "That's right." Mr. Bishop said suddenly: "I may have to introduce someone to you in a few days."

"Who?"

   "Who wrote this secret letter," said Mr. Bishop.

This sentence really surprised the king. Everyone knows that Bishop Mazarin inherited an organization of spies from Bishop Richelieu, and the bishops for two consecutive terms fed them like a pack of hounds. Yes, they have grown and multiplied to a terrifying level in a short period of time. Their tentacles are not limited to France, and even Ottoman Turkey has been touched, but Louis never thought of touching this fine net, This is Mr. Bishop's bottom line, like the throne under Louis.

   But Mr. Bishop said to introduce this spy—probably the leader or an important nail to the king.

   "Why?" Louis asked.

By now the pain that had blackened Mr. Bishop's eyes had passed, and he raised his eyes to look at the king, who was already five and a half feet tall at the age of twenty, given that French units of length are longer than other nations (5.5 feet is basically equal to 5.5 feet). 5.9 feet), so now the king is a tall and fit young man, and he has begun to age, and every day when he opens his eyes, Mr. Bishop feels that the angel's trumpet has become louder.

If he had been shy about putting power (whether openly or secretly) in the hands of the king too early, he would do something out of his mind, but... the matter of the Duke of Anjou can finally make the bishop The final decision has been made.

   About the update - because I also suddenly found out that this book was on the shelves (originally wanted to be on the 1st of next month), so I didn't save the manuscript - until the 1st of next month, there will be a daily update for a week.

   Today is late, the daily update is usually at 8 pm, thank you.

   (end of this chapter)