by Griff Hosker
“Tiny, ride across to the other bank of the river. See if this is the deepest part.”
I heard him splashing behind me and then he was next to me. The water was deep on his mount but, as he took another step forwards he began to rise and within two yards the water was knee deep again. He turned and grinned. “Looks like just a deep hole. I’ll ride left and right of you to see.”
I clambered back on to Killer. There was little point in me getting even colder. As Tiny rode upstream I rode downstream. It was just a hole in the riverbed. I shouted over the river. “Charles ride back and tell the general we have his ford. Francois, keep two men there and send the rest over. We will scout the other side. You can watch the ford in case there are other guards we missed.”
They both waved their acknowledgement. When my men were across I headed in the direction of the town. I could hear the distant crack and pop of artillery and muskets. I wanted to make sure that there were no more surprises waiting for us. We rode two miles down the valley until we could see the smoke shrouded town. “I think that we will secure this bank and await our soldiers.”
When we reached the ford I saw that Pierre and his section had joined us. I waved him over. He was shivering when he emerged from the water. “They told me that you walked across on foot?” He seemed incredulous.
“I wanted to make sure that infantry could get across and they can. There is just one hole which is deep enough to cause problems and they can get over that.”
“I don’t know some of these light infantry men are midgets you know.”
“Well we can fish them out then.”
We set the men to collecting firewood while others filled a kettle with water. The easiest food for us would be a soup of some kind. Tiny wandered over. “I’ll try and catch something corporal. Fish or something.” He pointed to the river. “There might be something in there.”
Pierre shook his head. “Your lads are very keen. Mine would have sat on their backsides and watched others work.”
“Tiny is a good lad if a little lonely. I know what it is like I grew up alone.”
“Well you are lucky. I had two brothers and four sisters. I couldn’t wait to leave home.”
“Ah but you had a home. I just lived in a big house.”
“Did you share one bedroom with your brothers, sisters, mother father and two grandmothers who smelled of cat pee?”
“Well no.”
“Then don’t complain.”
It was quite pleasant eating by the side of the bubbling mountain river. We could still hear the occasional crack of small arms fire from lower down the valley. If it were not for that we could have been having a peaceful ride in the country. We sent food for the boys on the other bank and set sentries. We would not be caught out as Bessières was at Dego.
Chapter 8
It was late morning when the troops came to cross the ford. We were acknowledged but that was all. Captain Aristide signalled for us to return to the other bank. He nodded his approval. “You did well. The prisoners gave us some useful information. General Bonaparte was pleased.”
I gestured at the departing General Augereau, “He didn’t look very happy.”
Albert laughed sardonically. “That is because the soldiers were so hungry when they finally captured the town that they pillaged food and ransacked shops. We lost more men than we should have and the general has chewed him out. Some Swiss Grenadiers recaptured it and he lost six hundred men.”
“So we captured the ford for no good reason.”
“No, the general is chasing General Colli, who is trying to get the remains of the army away to safety. The ford will save time as our forces can go around the town.”
Jean shook his head, “I would have thought that was a perfect role of us.”
“We are considered too few. Besides Captain Bessières arrived with the new Guides who are to protect the general. They have fine new uniforms and I believe our former colleague is trying to impress the general. They have much dash and élan!” He shrugged. “Let them chase Colli all over the mountains. We have been ordered to Alessandria where we will meet the general. We are then to scout around Milan. We will be travelling for some time my friends.”
One of the first things Albert did, when we reached the captured town of Mondovi, was to requisition as many pack horses as he could. The wagons we had been using were no use at all in the mountains. It also meant that the farriers and cooks could keep up with us. Of course the cooks complained that they would not have their ovens to use but the captain promised them that they would have the best kitchens in whatever town we were in. They were mollified. He had been with the regiment so long now that no one would argue with him anyway.
With only a hundred and thirty troopers in the squadron now we were able to move much quicker. We were a compact force. It may sound silly but I preferred being a small regiment. Since the departure of Captain Bessières I felt as though I was now in a real family and I liked that family. With so few officers left Claude was promoted to Sous Lieutenant and Pierre to Sergeant Major. When I was made up to sergeant I was amazed. Pierre put it all in context. “When you joined up Napoleon Bonaparte was a lieutenant and now he is the most important general in the French Army and one of the three most powerful men in France. The Revolution has meant we all have the chance to shine. You deserve your promotion.” He grinned mischievously, “And of course, I certainly do. If we ever get paid then we might be able to afford to eat!”
The two main issues every soldier had was the lack of food and money. We were no different although we managed to acquire money through the taking of prisoners. So long as I was being fed I was happy and I still had the money Jean and I had received from the count as well as my treasures from my mother. I had not spent them yet and I knew that some day I might need them. I was young and enjoyed life, worries about money did not even enter my head.
Alessandria was a pleasant little town and we managed to obtain a nice piece of land close to an inn. I suspect the man who let us have the land at such a low price was doing so to ingratiate himself with us, the victors. It was one advantage of being the first ones in a captured town. We took advantage of it, of course. I was no longer a boy. I had grown wiser and less naïve. The last couple of years had seen me grow into a man. I did not drink to excess and I still exercised each day as I had with Jean on the estate. I was keen to be the best that I could be. Now that I was sergeant I felt I had more responsibility. It had all come so fast and yet everyone seemed to think that I had deserved such a rapid promotion. I was the only one who did not.
When General Bonaparte arrived, he made a point of coming to speak with the captain. We were all waiting outside when his secretary, a fussy little man, even smaller than the general, came out to us. “The general would like all the officers and sergeants to hear the briefing.”
It was still a small group even with all of us present. “You are my lucky charm gentlemen. When others let me down and fail to do what I demand of them, you go beyond what I ask. It has not gone unnoticed. Captain Aristide, despite having such small numbers in your regiment I believe you warrant the rank of colonel. It may help when you have to work with other colonels.” He smiled impishly. “At least you will not be outranked. Now as to your duties; I need a detailed break down of where the Austrians are in relation to Milan. I want every ford and river crossing finding.” He sat in a chair but still leaned forwards, his eyes bright with enthusiasm. “They think I will take time to secure Piedmont and Sardinia.” He waved an impatient hand, “I have concluded my peace treaty already and that is thanks to you and our little excursion to Turin. I want daily reports as to what you find.”
“Where will you be general?”
He smirked, “I will be in the saddle colonel. You will have to find me.”
The next week was hectic. We lived in our saddles as we traversed the land around Milan. At least the roads were wider than they had been further west in the mountains of Piedmont but we still fou
nd pockets of Austrians and remnants of the Sardinian army.
We had four columns of thirty men. I rode with Jean. We had enough numbers so that we did not fear the enemy but we were in danger of being seen by the enemy. If we were spotted then the enemy might ambush us. I still remembered the two ambushes I had walked into and I did not wish a third. On the first day Jean put my mind at rest about that. “The general is using us. We are fast and can move around a great deal. The Austrians will think that there are more of us than there actually are. He is keeping them guessing as to where he will strike. He will keep moving troops around when he hears the chasseurs are close by. Albert is helping the illusion by splitting us into four. It is very clever.”
We had found out a great deal of information. Every day we sent riders back to the general with the new maps and lists of troops. On the third day we ran into the rearguard of the retreating Austrian Army. We had seen the column snaking away towards Lodi and wondered if it was a column of refugees. As soon as we approached and heard the popping of individual muskets we knew we had not. We reined in. “Robbie, send a rider back to the column and tell the general that we have found the Austrians.”
Tiny was next to me and it saved me repeating the order. “Tiny, you heard. Go!”
Jean said, “Form line.”Even as I repeated the order I looked at him. He pointed towards the infantry who had halted and were speculating what to do. “If they think we are about to charge then they will form square. That means they can’t move. It gives the general more chance to catch up with them.”
“But surely that only works for a short time unless we charge.”
“That is it Robbie, we are going to charge. At least we are going to make them think that we are about to charge. Draw pistols!”
Thanks to our recent victories I now had two pistols. They did not match but that mattered not.
When he was sure that every trooper held his pistol Jean shouted, “Charge!”
We had no bugler but the Austrians got the message quickly and began to form square. They were not as fast as they should have been and we were within forty yards when Jean shouted, “Halt! Fire! Fall back!” in quick succession. The pistols sounded feeble and I had no idea of the effect but the smoke helped to hide us as we turned and retreated. We heard a ragged volley and I felt some musket balls flying through the air above our heads. We halted a hundred and twenty paces from them. They could still fire at us but we knew they would be wasting ammunition. I checked the line. Jean Claude had been struck on the leg but I could see that it was superficial and he waved at me as Charles bound it. He was in no difficulties. As the smoke from the two volleys cleared I could see that only one man had been struck but they were in square. Further ahead I could see that other battalions were now in square.
Jean rode to our front and the Austrians would assume he was exhorting us to charge again. “Well done. This time we ride forwards when I say halt take out your muskets and fire. Aim low, they are inaccurate guns anyway and will buck up. Then we retreat.” He returned to the centre of the line. “Forward!”
We lumbered forwards and I could see the infantry bracing themselves for a charge. The front two ranks now had a solid wall of bayonets facing us and the third rank had levelled muskets. That suited us for it meant they had fewer muskets aimed at us. “Halt! Fire!” This time the muskets sounded louder. “Fall back!”
As we rode away we heard another volley but we were out of range by then. As I checked the line, waiting for the smoke to clear I saw that the horse of Alphonse had been nicked. He was stamping his hooves in anger. Once again there was but one casualty. Then I heard a bugle from the Austrian lines. The call sounded like our cavalry call. Sure enough we saw a column of brightly dressed cavalry approaching. After the battle we discovered they were Neapolitan cavalry.
Jean shouted, “Reload.” To me he said. “They will charge us. One volley and we retreat.”
The cavalry formed themselves into two lines before the relieved square. I saw them draw sabres. As soon as they charged Jean shouted, “Aim, fire!” As the muskets cracked out he shouted, “Retreat!”
We wheeled and went into a column of twos. I stayed at the rear with Francois. I could hear the cavalry as they roared their charge behind us. As I clipped my musketoon to my saddle I glanced under my arm and saw that they were an ill disciplined lot. They had not kept a straight line. That meant that some of the eager riders were closer to us. “Francois, get your sword out.” I drew my sword and deliberately slowed Killer down. The Neapolitan who was closest suddenly saw the black hindquarters of my horse approaching. He tried to jink his reins to come around us. I slashed at his face and watched as he plunged to the ground. His horse veered away. I urged Killer on and Francois and I rejoined the column. The Neapolitans soon gave up the chase. Their horses did not look as good as ours.
We soon found Albert and the rest of the squadron. “You have done well but the general wants to bring this army to battle. He doesn’t want it to get inside Milan and its walls. We have to slow them down.”
“They halted when they saw us. Perhaps we can continue to do that.”
He nodded in agreement. “It is the only option we have until the dragoons catch up with us. Let us ride.”
Jean led the way and my section formed the rear. By the time we had caught up with the Austrian column they had begun to move again. The cavalry had left the rearguard. I would guess they thought they had chased off the handful of scouts. As soon as we formed line again they formed square. We just waited and they didn’t move. After a short stand off the rear guard commander obviously thought we were bluffing and they began to form column. As soon as they did so the bugler ordered the charge and we rode in two lines. As we neared them each section loosed his pistol and then rode to the rear. They began to form square again but we had killed a handful of men. We retreated to our original position and waited. Every moment bought Bonaparte more time to bring up the army. I could see the column ahead had halted while they waited to see what we would do. Inevitably they sent the Neapolitans back to discourage us.
They were similarly armed cavalry to us, they were Chevau-legers but I did not see any muskets on their saddles. That gave us an advantage although they outnumbered us by three to one. I could not see Albert indulging them by charging at them. It was not to our advantage. He saw them forming a line to charge. “Front rank muskets! The rest ready your swords for a charge.”
The bugle sounded their charge. When they were fifty yards away we fired and our bugle sounded the charge. The smoke made it difficult to see the effect of our volley and we were only trotting when we struck them but we must have thinned them out because they were no longer boot to boot. I held my sword forwards. It was an infantry sword and longer than the cavalry ones. I saw a blur through the smoke and felt the tip of my blade strike something. When the trooper rolled backwards from his horse I knew that I had struck a man. A sword came at my left hand side and I quickly parried it and then I was through their lines and facing their infantry. I was relieved to hear the recall and I turned before the infantry could fire at me. I was the last trooper to reach our lines and I saw the worried look on Jean’s face as I galloped up.
Albert smiled, “Killer is always a little eager to get you into a fight my reckless young friend. Haul back on his reins next time.”
We had a stand off for an hour while the Neapolitans and Austrians worked out what we already knew; we were too few to harm them and the infantry went into column and marched away leaving the Neapolitans guarding the road and preventing us from pursuing. Albert was not put out by this he shouted.”Load!”
“Captain Bartiaux, take Second Troop forwards and form a skirmish line. FirstTroop. Dismount. Horse holders remain here. First Troop forwards.”
While we sat astride our horses with musketoons at the ready the rest of the squadron came forwards and knelt in front of us. Our weapons were notoriously inaccurate on the back of a horse but when kneeling they were a service
able weapons. The Second Troop all had musketoons at the ready. Sergeant Major Alain shouted, “Choose your targets and fire at will!”
There was no volley. Every man chose an enemy to fire at. The range was fifty yards and more musket balls struck than missed. A man on a horse was a big target. The Neapolitans became annoyed at this and started forwards. Jean roared, “Second Troop fire!”
The combined firepower of the squadron did the trick and they turned tail and galloped off to join the column. Once we were all remounted, we followed. This was repeated many times for the rest of the afternoon and the following morning. It was not glorious but it was relentless. We were wearing them down. We saw the town of Lodi grow closer and then we heard the thunder of hooves behind us. Two squadrons of Dragoons had come to relieve us. General Bonaparte had arrived. His flashily dressed Guides announced his arrival.
He leaned over to shake Albert’s hand. “Well done colonel. You have stopped them from fleeing to Milan. Tomorrow we will end the Austrian presence in Italy! You and your men may retire and rest.” He smiled, “Until I need you again!”
We were able to watch the battle of Lodi, the battle which made Napoleon Bonaparte’s reputation, from the hills overlooking the town. Once again his men had to force a bridge and, once again a ford was used to outflank the enemy. At the end of the battle the general was careful to control the troops and prevent the mayhem of Mondovi. We did not mind missing out for it was an infantry battle. Bessières and the Guides sat like a protective cloak around their leader and any messages to the generals and brigade commanders were delivered by the green and red clad horsemen.
The victory finally forced the Sardinians to sue for peace and the surviving Austrians took refuge in Mantua. We marched across Italy to join the army besieging that ancient town. When we reached Mantua we were assigned a piece of ground well away from the entrenchments. It seems our role was to give advance warning of enemy incursions. If the general could capture Mantua then the rest of Northern Italy would fall to France.