Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

"To face the threat from the British Army, the Flemish Republic has yet to decide whether to accept our troops, so the 33rd Infantry Brigade remains in Brussels. The local Walloon army will coordinate with them."

It's not that the French General Staff looks down on the British Army, but only assigns 3,000 direct troops and less than 7,000 Walloon local troops to handle them.

The western front is truly not France's primary direction of attack, and even if an anomaly occurs, the Third Army stationed in Cologne can quickly advance west to reinforce.

Even if the Marquess of Wellesley personally commands, the British can't break through Holland plus Flanders plus Walloon Region in half a month. This amount of time is enough for reinforcements from Cologne.

As for the deployment situation along the Cologne-Koblenz line, Bertier didn't mention it again because the Crown Prince has just returned from inspecting there.

Due to the large number of Prussian troops stationed at the Cologne Fortress on the right bank of the Rhine, crossing the river to attack is very challenging, so this is the only region where France is not prepared for an active assault.

The vehicle entered the outskirts of Nancy, stopped at the station to change horses, and an intelligence officer who had been waiting there immediately reported important intelligence to Lavallette.

The latter hurried back to the Crown Prince's car and relayed: "Your Highness, our people in Vienna have noticed something particularly interesting. The Allied Forces meeting there frequently mentioned Switzerland. They are very likely planning a surprise attack there."

Bertier frowned, "Could Austria's main forces be planning to attack Switzerland? But there isn't any strategic value there..."

Joseph recalled Suvorov's historical raid on Switzerland. Back then, were it not for Massena's exceptional command, coupled with Suvorov's communication issues preventing him from joining forces with Kosakov and Austria's intentional undermining of the Russians, France's eastern regions would indeed have faced a very dangerous situation.

Even so, Suvorov still counterattacked in Mouton Valley, causing over ten thousand casualties to the French Army, then forcibly crossed the Panix Pass to escape.

Joseph said to the Chief of Staff, "The Allies controlling Switzerland could sever our link with Northern Italy, and they could threaten the Saran region at any time."

As he spoke, he and Bertier simultaneously smiled.

"However, Switzerland is mountainous everywhere."

"Indeed, Your Highness, the terrain is incredibly difficult to traverse, and it's very impoverished, especially in the east, making it impossible to gather supplies."

The Allied Forces' battle plan appears overly presumptuous.

Especially given their marching speed is generally much slower than the French Army, and it's extremely difficult to move through Switzerland's mountains. Even if the Swiss offer no resistance, by the time the Allies reach Lausanne and bring enough logistics supplies, it's likely the French Army has already taken Wurttemberg.

Even if the Allies perform exceptionally, achieving a stalemate with the French Army near Wurttemberg, the French will have ample time to gather forces and fortify Eastern Burgundy.

Joseph was about to continue discussing the Allied deployment with the Chief of Staff when a thought occurred to him: "Wait, did you just mention that Switzerland is difficult to procure supplies?"

"Yes, Your Highness."

Joseph pondered, "In that light, Switzerland is an excellent 'cage.'"

With roads difficult to traverse and no food supplies available, if the Allies are surrounded here, it would be easy to achieve a battle of annihilation.

Bertier clearly had the same realization and immediately nodded, "Yes, Your Highness, I will draft the corresponding strategy as quickly as possible."

He continued speaking about the Allies: "Madrid sent a message last month that they are reducing their forces heading to the Rhineland to 10,000. You know, the Portuguese launched an attack on New Granada and had to dispatch 8,000 soldiers to South America.

"This might also affect the assault on Gibraltar."

Joseph felt indifferent about this. Even if the Spanish troops come, they can only help protect logistical convoys; losing a few thousand men won't matter much.

He simply instructed, "Have them send 4,000 men to reinforce Gibraltar. It holds greater strategic value against the British."

"Yes, Your Highness," Bertier continued, "Modena, Milan, Florence, and Genoa altogether dispatched 14,000 troops. As per your orders, they are stationed near Mantua."

He hesitated slightly, "However, isn't it somewhat wasteful for the Sardinian and Parma forces?"

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There's still a bit left unfinished, please refresh and check in half an hour. The author apologizes sincerely.

The St. Gotthard Pass, located in the Le Pontin Alps of Southern Switzerland, is an important road and railway route between Central Europe and Italy, stretching 26 kilometers and standing at an elevation of 2,108 meters [2][4]. Not utilized during Ancient Rome, it became a vital crossing through the Alps in the early 13th century due to the development of Schöllenen Gorge [3][10]. As a crucial node connecting the Mediterranean trade network, its economic value originates from historical trade routes [1][5]. The St. Gotthard Railway Tunnel, built in 1882 under the pass, connects north and south traffic of the Alps [2][7]. The highway tunnel completed in 1980 links Göschenen and Airolo [2][6]. The St. Gotthard Base Tunnel, at 57.1 kilometers in length, is the world's longest railway tunnel, cutting the travel time from Zurich to Milan to just one hour [6][8]. These three tunnels together form the St. Gotthard transit system, continuously supporting Europe's north-south traffic function.

The St. Gotthard Pass, connecting Switzerland's Uri State and Ticino State, is a significant road and railway pass between Central Europe and Italy. The pass is 26 kilometers long and stands at an elevation of 2,108 meters. Not only does it link the Swiss German-speaking area with the Italian-speaking area, but it also connects further with Milan, Italy's financial center. The terrain here is treacherous; beneath the beautiful scenery lies hidden fortresses guarding this vital choke point. Though known to the Romans, the pass was not widely used to cross the Alps until the early 13th century. A modern hotel stands at the pass's steep section, with a winding road passing through.

Over the past two centuries, significant human construction has reduced the number of wild animals in this area. The left side of the photo shows a dam built in the 1940s, while the right side shows a small bridge and an old road crossing the pass. Since the 13th century, this has been the main route over the Alps.

Aside from the previously mentioned man-made structures, close observation will undoubtedly reveal more mysterious and peculiar artificial objects. These objects are clearly human-made but are intentionally disguised as ordinary stones found throughout this area.

Upon further inspection, one will find that these objects blend seamlessly into the surrounding natural rock formations. These artificial objects are cleverly camouflaged, making them indistinguishable from the landscape.