I Am Louis XIV

   Chapter 10 The troublesome Prince Kongdai

As for why the Queen Mother Anne and the Bishop of Mazarin are so afraid of this Prince Condé, Louis also understands a little bit. Although he has not officially participated in government affairs so far, he can still get it from some talkative attendants and maids. Enough information - at least for him now, enough.

As I have said before, when Prince Condé, Duke of Enghien, was twenty-one years old, the fiercest battle between Spain and France was at Rocroix. The Spanish army had twenty-six thousand soldiers, led by a Called Don Francisco de, led by a veteran of the field of Meello, went deep into France and landed in Paris. At that time, Louis XIII went to see God, and Richelieu even left the hustle and bustle a year before him. In this world, only Mazarin, who was still unstable at the time, remained in Paris, the Queen Mother Anne of Austria, the young King Louis XIV, and the younger brother Philip. The Spaniards even thought that they could break through Paris and capture France. King, this idea is not regarded as whimsical - Paris was clearly at a disadvantage at that time, including the Royal Guard controlled by Gaston, Duke of Orleans, the Red Guard of Cardinal Richelieu, and the Royal Fire. The Gunners, the former two cannot be trusted, the latter cannot leave the palace, and the only general is the young Duke of Enghien, who has no combat experience at all.

Just as any skilled craftsman always starts with an apprenticeship, people at the time also believed that a credible general should emerge from battle after battle - Louis was young at the time, but he knew the situation was critical When the Duke of Enghien came to bid him farewell, Poitier, the queen mother's personal priest, even performed a blessing ceremony for him. Although he said so, everyone at the time knew that this was because he was afraid that he would die in the battlefield. It is too late to do the sacrament of the last day and it is deliberately done.

Contrary to people's imagination, the Duke of Enghien knew that he was despised by the Spaniards, so he also took advantage of this contempt - the then Spanish general Mayo deliberately led the French army into a trap, and Rocroix was surrounded by forests or There is only one narrow road in the swamp, and it is difficult to escape once you enter it. For this reason, he even withdrew his soldiers and did not attack when the Duke of Enghien led his army into Rocroix.

On the second day, the two sides first shelled, and the Spanish musketeers suffered a lot of losses. Then in the evening, the Duke of Enghien attacked the Spanish left-wing front-line troops at night, and then routed the second-line troops, and the Spanish cavalry fell. Into the bag of the French army - it is a pity that the Spaniards' proudest infantry unit was not lost, as well as the eighteen cannons living in the infantry camp, neither the French infantry nor cavalry can help them. , After a whole day of mutual torment, the Spaniards proposed to negotiate. If the negotiation can be successful, the Spaniards can at least surrender gloriously (without disarming and withdrawing), but how could the Duke of Enghien be willing to let go of the easy victory? Hypocritical words perfunctory Spanish messengers, while sending the main cavalry slowly from the forest to the rear of the Spaniards, while waiting for reinforcements (nearly 4,000) of infantry to arrive, when everything was in order, he rode to the negotiation site, He was shot by the Spanish infantry with muskets.

The victory of the underdog is not only applicable to the East. The soldiers of the Duke of Enghien suddenly fell into a frenzy and rushed towards the despicable enemy like a tide. At the same time, the cavalry of the Duke of Enghien also attacked the Spaniards from the rear, and the French artillery also There was a roar that resounded throughout the world. The Spaniards encountered such a rapid and fierce blow when they were unprepared, and they were suddenly dizzy, and the trap set by the Spanish general Melo to the enemy also gave them a blow - The dense forests and swamps slowed down their escape, and finally the Spanish officers had to pounce on General Enghien's feet to beg for mercy, and then they were able to escape from the ferocious French soldiers.

In this battle, the Spaniards lost 8,000 people, captured 6,000 people, lost 24 artillery pieces, and the commander Meillot died; the French lost 2,000 people, wounded nearly 6,000 people, and relieved the siege of Paris. It was a brilliant victory.

   Of course, how the Duke of Enghien was so acutely aware that someone was shooting at him, and how he avoided that shot unscathed, no one knows. Although some people in the court continued to criticize him for acting out of grace and etiquette, for France, which was becoming more and more vulnerable in the military, such a talent with combat talent was simply more lovable and lovely than an angel.

In a hundred years, France has not seen such a victory, François I was better at negotiating than fighting, Henry IV was too tolerant - the Edict of Nantes came from him, when Louis XIII was on the throne , the French won so-called victories that even the most flamboyant tabloids didn't bother to report - not because they were scornful, but because these victories were followed by defeats.

Later, the Duke of Enghien won the two cities of Philipsburg and Mainz for France in the battle with the Germans, and after the Duke of Orleans Gaston evacuated Flanders, he captured Dunkirk. Much to the heart of the French, the legends of him continue to be sung about him - from the fact that he could sleep soundly on the battlefield and needed to be woken up to prove his composure, to how he threw his marshal's scepter to the ground. In the enemy's trenches, then he drew his sword to command the army to attack, and retrieved his scepter to prove how bold and brave he was... For a time, his name was shining brightly, no one could compare, and no general could compare. Bishops and kings are more like forgotten.

   As much loved on the battlefield he was hated at court.

Prince Condé is also very clear, but he is still a young man after all, a young man who has not yet received setbacks. He brought the skin of a Serbian werewolf. It is difficult to say whether he really wants to be courteous to the king, or is playing a prank. mentality, but he has been prevarication and prevarication, unwilling to face the mob for the queen mother and the king, but it is an obvious fact.

In this regard, Bishop Mazarin and Queen Mother Anne had to give in repeatedly. They let Prince Kongdai sit next to the king, and they also asked the Minister of Finance to replace the servants to change Prince Kongdai's clothes, and so on, and to fulfill every request made by Prince Kongdai, As mentioned in the previous chapter, in order to replenish the armament, the Queen Mother took off the diamonds on the crown and dismissed many servants. The Princess Henriette of England was ill and had a fever, and there was no good enough doctor to treat her. Louis had to order the servants to use The towel soaked in the river water cooled her down.

   And the werewolf skin that Prince Condé offered to the king, the king put it under his seat, and everyone who saw the king could see it - although most people didn't know it was not a wolf skin.

  Prince Condé, after delaying for several weeks, had to go out with the eight hundred soldiers.

It is ridiculous to say that, although the high court that set off the riot has always prided itself on being honest and respectable, impartial in matters, and only loves the interests of the country, when facing the army of the royal family, they did not hesitate to ask the two appointed by Bishop Richelieu. Ten judges extorted 150,000 livres each for "forgiveness fees", seized the royal family's property equivalent to 1.2 million livres (one livre equals one pound of silver), recruited a The army of 20,000 people also ordered that the wealthy people who could allow carriages to travel by the gate of each house provided one person and one horse (this army was called the door cavalry), and the private soldiers of Archbishop Collins, about 800 people, were arrested. Also known as the Collins Regiment was requisitioned by the High Court.

And then there were the citizens of Paris, with their crude muskets, knives, clubs, and tines from their homes, wearing the sashes that the High Court had given them, and their caps with feathers, joyfully joining in against the king Therefore, there are 100,000 enemies that Prince Kongdai thought he had to face.

But whether it is the soldiers recruited by the High Court, or the knights of the car door, or the Collins regiment, or the citizens of Paris, they have no desire to fight the Prince Condé and the real army, and they walk out of Paris every day. The suburbs, and then turned back, and his clothes were not stained with any blood except dust. As the 800 soldiers of Prince Condé gradually approached Paris, in the last day or two, there was no such ceremonial expedition. .

  Prince Condé took over Paris peacefully.

   (end of this chapter)