King of German Mercenaries

The Battle of Fornovo was called a battle, but it was actually a farce. Because neither of the two sides are fighting for their lives. The only fierce battle was when the Venetian infantry crossed the river to attack the Swiss phalanx. And that battle lasted for more than an hour in total.

Of course, there were a lot of casualties in this battle. The Swiss suffered more than 1,000 casualties, and the Italians suffered more than 2,000 casualties. Including those who were scared and fled, the Italians lost a total of about 5,000 people.

But the strange thing is that Mandova and Milan's light cavalry, who were responsible for outflanking the French army, went to pick up gold and silver treasures on the way.

This is also a strategy of Charles VIII. He knows that the coalition has thousands of light cavalry. He was naturally not afraid of a head-to-head confrontation, but he was worried that the group of Italian cavalry would flank him.

So, in order to get out as soon as possible, he gritted his teeth and scattered all the gold and silver treasures that he was reluctant to lose on the roads on both sides of the French army's needle and thread...

It has to be said that Charles VIII's strategy was very successful. You must know that most of the soldiers of this era were mercenaries, and they fought for money. Charles VIII gave up his money and really attracted the Italian cavalry. Then, the 6,000 Italian cavalry also forgot that they were here to fight the French, and went straight to pick up the treasure...

At this time, Charles VIII also had no intention of fighting, and quickly took the people away from the battlefield and went back to the camp first, leaving only the Swiss and the Venetians to confront each other. After that, the Swiss also withdrew to the French camp. The remaining 5,000 infantry in Venice (in addition to the 2,000 killed, 3,000 were dispersed by the Swiss) did not dare to chase the Swiss, but retreated at the same time.

In the French army camp, the French and Swiss quarters were separate. The Swiss camp, on the northeast side, faced the direction of the coalition. The French knights were stationed on the southwest side, separated from the Swiss camp.

After returning to the camp, Charles VIII had already made plans to escape at night. Therefore, he directly ordered the man and the horse to rest. Scouts, on the other hand, are responsible for finding bridges and boats crossing the river.

In fact, this road was originally the route of the French army going south. Therefore, the scouts of the French army did not go too deep into the two northbound roads to scout, and they did not find the location of Marin's ambush.

Also, it was getting late, and the scouts couldn't look too far. After scouting a few kilometers away, the French scouts confirmed that there was nothing wrong. Moreover, the coalition camp was also monitored by the French scouts. After confirming that the coalition troops returned, they ate and drank and prepared to rest...

At about 9 o'clock in the evening, according to the report of the French scout, Charles VIII confirmed that the Italians in the coalition camp had basically rested, and began to gather all the French knights to run away.

At this time, the French scouts had just collected enough wooden boats to build a pontoon bridge across the small Tarot River to facilitate the French knights to cross the river.

Then, at more than 10 o'clock in the evening, the French army began to cross the river somewhere in the western section of the Tarot River, which was far from the coalition camp. At this time, the Swiss were kept in the dark, they were abandoned by Charles VIII...

Around 12 midnight, all the French knights and horses crossed the Tarot River. Then, under the command of Charles VIII, began to march in a north-easterly direction along the river promenade.

But after walking for 10 kilometers, we just arrived at the place where Marin dug the embankment...

What's the matter? Why did you stop? Charles VIII, who was in the middle of the line, asked before the horse.

Your Majesty, the river bank seems to have collapsed because of the torrential rain. Now, the roads and farmland are flooded by the river. Cavalry, it is difficult to pass...

So what should we do? Can we just turn around? Charles VIII said helplessly.

Your Majesty, I remember that there is another road leading to Asti, and that road saves more distance than this road. A scout officer recommended.

Oh, there is such a way? Why didn't we go that way last time?

Is such that,

It was a mountain road that people and horses could pass through, but it was difficult for artillery. The last time we were there, there were too many guns to go that route.

Indeed, when the French army came to Italy last year, they brought with them a hundred and dozens of artillery pieces. Walking on the mountain road is indeed enough. But by this time, the French had already lost their artillery. Even the carriages that carry the treasures do not need to be carried because the treasures are scattered.

It is still possible to ride horses through hilly terrain that is not too steep. After all, horses are four-legged animals, not road-hungry carriages. Horses can pass on mountain roads with little slope. The flooded roads on the plains were not easy for knights to pass through. Because the flooded roads and farmland will be very soft. The French knights in heavy armor have an amazing total weight. After passing through the flood zone, the horses' hooves are easy to fall into the quagmire and it is difficult to escape.

Moreover, Charles VIII was worried about being informed by the coalition forces and rushed to surround himself. Therefore, in order to hurry up, Charles VIII decisively ordered to turn back, take the legendary mountain road, and plunged into Marin's trap...

In fact, Charles VIII was useless even if he was cautious. Because, at night, the French scouts could not see very far. Even if he walked into the ambush, as long as he didn't fall into the horse pits and trenches, he couldn't see the ambush.

At the same time, because the French sent many scouts to scout the battalion of the Italian coalition, they repeatedly confirmed that the Italians did not send any troops or troops. Therefore, as smart as Charles VIII, he did not expect that someone would be waiting for him early.

And while the French were turning around, Marin was teaching his men to speak French:

Brothers, we're going to ambush the fleeing French. There are so many of them that it's hard to win against us. But the French can't see clearly in the middle of the night, so we can scare them.

Come on, everyone tell me 'surrender without killing' (French)...

Surrender without killing (French)... The soldiers were a little stunned, and at the same time, a little nervous.

But Marin fooled them, saying that the French army was defeated and morale was low. Otherwise, if these grandsons knew that they were facing 8,000 unscathed French heavy cavalry, they might not have the courage to fight. However, they were ambushed on the high slopes on both sides of the road, and the French cavalry could not rush up to the high slopes, so they were not worried. Moreover, even if the French find that they are few, they will not stop and attack the high slopes on both sides with all their strength. Because the French were running away, most afraid of disturbing the Italian coalition. As long as they can withstand a few waves of attacks, the French will not continue to waste time on the storm.

And Marin, did not intend to completely destroy the French army. His plan was to inflict heavy damage on the French army. At the same time, use the night to scare the French army, making the French army in chaos. If you can kill or catch Charles VIII in chaos, it will definitely be an extraordinary feat...

Because it was at night, it was difficult for the French to know how many people there were under Marin. As long as Marin's men pretended to be imposing, they could quell the French army.

Charles VIII is dead (in French)! Marin taught everyone to shout again.

Ah? Some soldiers who knew French were inexplicable. Isn't this a rumor?

And Marin, what he wants is the effect of spreading rumors. In the middle of the night, the French must have panicked when they were suddenly attacked. And shouting Charles VIII is dead in French on his own side will definitely cause great confusion to the French army. And Charles VIII, without a megaphone, justified himself. Of the 8,000 French troops, someone will always be frightened by this fake news.

This trick was learned from the Battle of Feishui. The 800,000-strong army of the former Qin Dynasty was tricked into retreating. Zhu Xu shouted The Qin army is defeated from the back of the battle, and then the top soldiers of the former Qin group, who didn't know why, really thought they were defeated, so they retreated instead of fleeing. As a result, the 800,000 former Qin army inexplicably lost to tens of thousands of Eastern Jin troops...

Marin planned to throw a round of stones and then a few rounds of arrows when the French entered the ambush. Then, they sent people to shout Charles VIII is dead! in French, and at the same time, sent people to make a lot of noise. Even if Charles VIII wanted to shout to prove that he was alive, he would be covered in noise. And then, it's hard for the French to think about chaos...

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