Chapter 8 Chapter VII Wars of the Eighteenth Century Maropolo and Friedrich II

The war of succession to the Spanish throne from 1701 to 1713 had an extremely obvious duality.Politically, it is a rare phenomenon in the history of warfare, its purpose very limited, but at the same time a decisive struggle for the strengthening or weakening of Louis XIV's dominance in France.Strategically speaking, the war was largely a direct one with little success, with uniform operations and few deliberate maneuvers.Of course, there are also several excellent examples of the indirect route in the course of the war.And it is mainly associated with the famous name of Marubolo.Because these actions became turning points in the war, they aroused widespread interest.

The countries that participated in the anti-French alliance at that time included Austria, the British Empire, several small Germanic countries, the Netherlands, Denmark and Portugal.The allies of Louis XIV were only Spain and Bavaria. At the beginning of the war, there was also a small country of Savoy. The war was first fought in northern Italy.But the armies of other countries are preparing for war at the same time.The Austrian army, led by Prince Eugene, was now concentrated in Tyrol, and on the surface it looked as if it would soon turn to the offensive.To counter this, the French sent a corps under Catillatte to occupy a position in the defiles of Livri, with the object of blocking the enemy's approach.However, Prince Eugene had already conducted secret reconnaissance, and knew that there was still a difficult path in the deep mountains, and it had not been used by troops for a long time.Therefore, he led the troops to march from the small trails, carried out far-reaching roundabout maneuvers, marched eastward, and reached the plains.After that, he continued to maneuver and continue to develop the advantages he had obtained, and used this to confuse the enemy, making the enemy uncertain of his true intentions.Finally, the French were finally induced to launch a blind attack on him at Chiari (near Briscia).Eugene defeated the French army in this battle, thereby firmly consolidating his foothold in northern Italy.

The fruits of these indirect lines of action were a valuable moral stimulus to the allies in the early stages of a war against a great sovereign.Hitherto it was still believed that the armies of a great sovereign were invincible.At the same time, these indirect actions dealt a devastating blow to French and Spanish influence in Italy.One of its major consequences was that the Duke of Savoy, who had always followed the trend, immediately changed his direction and joined the camp of the anti-French alliance. In 1702 AD, the two sides launched a decisive battle.A huge French army was massed in Flanders.It built an almost 100-kilometer Brabant line of defense, extending from Antwerp to the city of Huy on the Meuse River, with the purpose of ensuring the safety of its rear when it turned to the offensive.At this time, the Dutch had seen that their homeland was threatened by enemy invasion, so they decided to rely on fortresses for defense.However, Marubolo had his own views on war.However, he did not replace the passive defense with a direct attack, and did not directly attack the French army led by Beaufort, which was marching on the Rhine.Leaving aside the Dutch fortresses, he quickly led his army towards the Brabant line, advancing in the line of retreat of Beaufort's troops.After feeling the depression of this spiritual attraction, Beaufort immediately turned around and retreated.A physically exhausted and mentally oppressed French army could easily become prey for Marlboro, who was waiting for an opportune moment to encircle and crush this enemy.The representatives of the Dutch Parliament, however, were content to drive the invaders out of the country and refused to annihilate the enemy troops.In this year, Marlboro twice lured Beaufort into a trap, but both times the French army was prevented from being destroyed because of the hesitation and lack of determination of the Dutch.

The next year Marlboro devised another plan of clever maneuvers, the purpose of which was to take Antwerp and penetrate deep into the enemy's fortified embankments.He attacked directly to the west from Maastricht, hoping to contain the main part of the French army under the command of Villeroy.The corps was stationed on the southern side of the Brabant Line at the time.In the second step, a Dutch army under the command of Kohorn, supported by a naval fleet, launched an attack on Ostend.At the same time, another Dutch army led by Spar approached Antwerp from the northwest.By making these moves along the coast, the Dutch army intended to induce the French commander-in-chief in Antwerp to look back and draw some of his forces from the northern end of his Brabant Line.Four days later, another Dutch army led by Updamm launched an assault on the French army from the northeast.Therefore, Mari Polo also abandoned Wilroi, marched northward at a forced march speed, joined forces from all walks of life, and captured Antwerp along the centripetal direction.

The first phase of the campaign went well.The threat of Maribolo forced Velroy's army to move southward, approaching the Maas River.However, Kohorn soon canceled the deep roundabout attack on Ostend, and together with Spar, carried out a shallow maneuver near Antwerp.This action of Kohorn certainly failed to attract the attention of the French.Updam had brought disaster upon himself by launching the offensive early.The situation in the future became more and more complicated.This is because, when Marlboro began his rapid march northward, he could not get rid of Velroi.In fact, Verroy was ahead of them and sent Beaufort to support Antwerp with thirty squadrons of cavalry and 3,000 grenadiers.He made the grenadiers hold the stirrups and marched side by side with the cavalry, so that in twenty-four hours the mobile force covered almost sixty-five kilometers and reached Antwerp on July 1, 1703.Subsequently, this force, together with the defenders of Antwerp, immediately launched an attack on Updam, causing Updam to suffer a disastrous defeat.In this way, what Mario Polo once arrogantly called the great project, also went bankrupt.

After this defeat, Marlboro suggested a direct assault on the Brabant Line in a sector south of Antwerp.However, the Dutch High Command rejected his proposal, thinking that it would be futile to launch a frontal assault on an enemy of approximately equal strength and occupying a strongly fortified position. This fact proves that despite his many skillful maneuvers, Marlboro sometimes behaved like a crazy gambler, especially when he failed.British historians, because they were shocked by Mario Polo's achievements and admired him as a person, often criticized the Dutch somewhat unfairly.They make the Dutch seem less noble than Marubolo.In fact, the Dutch were facing the threat of a powerful enemy at that time, and the country would be in danger of subjugation if they were not careful, so of course they did not dare to treat the war as a joke or a gamble.In fact, their thinking is very reasonable, which is the same as the opinion of the British Admiral Jalico two hundred years later: if they rashly challenge themselves in an extremely dangerous situation, they are likely to lose within a few hours. Throughout the war, due to the unanimous opposition of the Dutch generals, Marlboro had to give up the idea of ​​storming the Brabant defense line in the Antwerp area, and returned to the Meuse River, where he covered the siege of Huy.At the end of August, he was there again to convince the Dutch to launch an attack on the Brabant line.This time the reasons were stronger, as the conditions seemed ripe for an attack on the southern sector of the line.Still, his arguments did not convince the Dutch.

Mari Polo easily accepted the viewpoint of the Austrian Emperor's envoy Vulakisla because of his great dissatisfaction with the Dutch.Vulatisla urged him to transfer his troops to the Danube.As a result, 1704 produced an excellent example of an indirect line of action rarely seen in history, based on Marlboro's broad strategic views.At that time, the enemy had several main forces: one under the command of Villeroy, stationed in Flanders; Between Strasbourg; the third is the Bavarian coalition army, led by the Elector of Bavaria and Marshal Marsin, and deployed in the Ulm area on the Danube. This last army is posing a threat. Vienna advances.Marlbolo decided to transfer the British army under his command from the Meas River to the Danube, and then deal a decisive blow to the Bavarians, because they are the most vulnerable in the enemy camp.This is a massive transfer.The area he will be stationed in is too far away from his main base.The immediate task he was to accomplish was not the one to be pursued in the north.So, seems like a reckless move.All the more so from the point of view that the strategy of his day was always inclined towards caution.The safety of this maneuver depends entirely on his astonishing suddenness.In the process of advancing, he often changed the direction of movement, threatening different targets in each section, so that the enemy could not figure out the real purpose of his mobilization of troops.

Marlboro, having advanced southward to the upper Rhine, appeared at first to follow the course of the Moselle into France.Later, its troops entered Koblenz.It was then thought that he might have targeted the French army in Alsace.This impression was then reinforced when he made a feint and made the appearance of preparing to bridge the river at Philipsburg.After he drove his troops to the city-state of Mannheim, he was supposed to head southwest, but he deliberately turned to the southeast, and suddenly disappeared in the forest on the edge of the Neckar River valley.Then he crossed the bottom line of the triangle formed by the Rhine and the Danube and drove directly to Ulm.During this march, in order to conceal strategic intentions, the speed of movement was reduced to a certain extent, and the average distance was only 16 kilometers per day and night.

Marubolo's entire march lasted nearly six weeks.After joining forces with Prince Eugene and the Marquis of Baden at Grosseebach (sixty-five kilometers northeast of Mannheim), he joined forces with the latter in joint operations, while Prince Eugene turned around in order to fight on the Rhine. To divert or at least delay the actions of the French army.At this time, Velroy, who came from the Flanders area to follow Marubolo, was one step late, but after all, he caught up. Marlboro, by maneuvering, placed himself in such a position that, in relation to France, he was already in the rear of Bavaria and the allied forces of France, while in relation to Bavaria he was still facing it. front.With the army in such a position, and with other conditions, it is unlikely that he will take advantage of the strategic advantage which has developed in his favor.Among these conditions, one is that the tactical organization of the troops is still inflexible, making it difficult to meet strategic requirements.A commander can push the enemy to the water's edge, but he cannot make the enemy drink water, that is to say, he cannot make the enemy accept the battle.For Mari Polo, the Marquis of Baden was the one who constrained him the most at that time, because he was cautious and had to divide the power of command.

The combined forces of the Elector of Bavaria and Marshal Marsin took fortified positions on the Danube from Ulm to the east of Dillingen, and even further east between Dillingen and Donauförth On the bank of the river in the lot, there are also troops guarding it.Marshal Tallard's army could easily advance eastward from the banks of the Rhine, so Ulm was a dangerous stronghold for Marlboro if he were to enter Bavaria from there.Therefore, Marubolo decided to first seize the ferry on the Danube in the Donaufert area.In this way, Donaufert became the natural end point of the new traffic line of Maripolo.Once this line of communication is opened, security can be better ensured, and a route to Nuremberg can be opened to the east.Once he had mastered the Donaufert, he opened the way to Bavaria and was free to maneuver along the banks of the Danube.

It is a pity that the target is too exposed and the speed is too slow to conduct a circuitous march close to the enemy's forward positions in the Dillingen area.This made it possible for the Elector of Bavaria to see through his attempt, and in time to send a strong force to defend Donauferth.Despite the increased speed of Marlboro's march in the final phase, when he approached his objective on July 2, 1704, the enemy was still on Schlennberg and the high ground directly covering Donauförth. Fortifications were strengthened.In order not to give the enemy the last chance to complete the defensive deployment, Marubolo decided to immediately switch to the offensive at dusk that day.The first impact suffered heavy losses, killing almost half of the troops engaged in the battle.But when the main force of the coalition forces arrived, he had a four-to-one advantage in the number of troops, so he was able to turn defeat into victory.Even so, its final victory was achieved by maneuvering to the enemy's flank.During the battle, Maru Polo found a weak spot in the enemy's line of defense, so he sent troops to wedge into the depth of the defense from there, which decided the outcome.Mari Polo later admitted in a private letter that the price of capturing Donaufert was high.Critics of his tactics agreed that it was not he, but the Marquis of Baden, who made the decisive maneuver in this battle. After this battle, the main force of the combined French and Bavarian forces retreated to Augsburg.Marubolo then swept south into Bavaria.He harassed the neighboring villages, and burned hundreds of villages, and all the crops, in order to force the Bavarian elector to come to sue for peace, or make him accept the battle under unfavorable circumstances.Marlboro himself had to feel a little secretly ashamed of this barbaric action, and it had little effect.Because in that era, war was only a matter between the rulers and had nothing to do with the people, so taking such inhumane actions could not make the Bavarian elector feel heartbroken.This gave Tallard enough time to move his forces from the Rhine to Bavaria, and he himself reached Augsburg on 5 August. But fortunately, when Tallard's troops arrived, Prince Eugene's troops happened to catch up.Prince Eugene quietly got rid of Velroy in order to join forces with Marubolo.According to the original agreement, when Maropolo and Prince Eugene joined forces, under their cover, the Marquis of Baden should march to the lower reaches of the Danube and besiege the enemy's Ingolstadt Fortress.Then, on August 9th, word came suddenly that the combined enemy forces had turned north and were advancing on the Danube.From the looks of it, the enemy's goal is to strike at Marubolo's lines of communication.Nevertheless, Marlboro and Prince Eugene let the Marquis of Baden continue to attack the Fortress of Ingolstadt in a detour.In this way, their combined forces were reduced to only 56,000 men, against an enemy force of almost 60,000 men, and their numbers may continue to increase.It is easy to explain why Marlboro and Prince Eugene wanted to condemn the Marquis of Baden. Neither of them liked the Marquis' overly cautious attitude.But the dispersal of forces at this time was a little strange, for they had already decided that they should engage the French at the first favorable opportunity.This decision may prove that they have full confidence in the quality advantages of their own troops, but judging from the intensity of the battle in the future, their self-confidence is too much. Fortunately for Marubolo and Eugene, the enemy also held an overconfident attitude.The Elector of Bavaria tried to attack before his main body reached the field of battle.At that time, Tallard believed that the most reasonable way was to dig trenches on the spot and temporarily take a defensive position to wait for the arrival of the main force.But the elector denounced such caution.So Tallard also retorted, saying: If I hadn't had a correct understanding of your highness's honest character, then I would have thought that you wanted the troops of the King of France to take unnecessary risks, and at the same time, you didn't care about your own.In the end, a compromise agreement had to be reached. The French army first leaped into the Blenheim area, seized nearby positions, and blocked the road leading to Donaufort on the other side of the Niebel Creek. The next morning, the morning of August 13, 1704, the French were suddenly taken over by the Allied forces there.The coalition forces came along the north bank of the Danube.At that time, Marlboro directly attacked the right flank of the French army close to the Danube, while Prince Eugene assaulted the left flank of the French army between the river and the highlands.In this way, the French army was forced to have no freedom of maneuver.The main advantage of the coalition forces lies not only in the better mental quality and well-trained soldiers, but also in the suddenness of their actions.As a result, the two French armies could not conduct coordinated operations and had to fight on their own.This situation itself inevitably undermines their stability.As a result, the French were forced to occupy the wide center of the front and felt short of sufficient infantry.However, this fundamental weakness was not clearly revealed until late in the day.If the French had not made other mistakes, it would not have had a great impact on the outcome of the battle. The first stage of the battle was still unfavorable for the coalition forces.Marlboro's attack on Blenheim on the left was repulsed by the enemy with heavy losses; his attack on Obergrau on the right was also defeated.Prince Eugene's impact was repulsed twice.As the central attacking force of Maropolo crossed the Nibel, its vanguard met the counter-attacking cavalry of the French army, and it took a great deal of effort to repel them reluctantly.Fortunately for the coalition forces, the enemy's actions were uncoordinated, and the counterattack was carried out by only a few cavalry squadrons.It didn't fit Tallard's plan.Immediately after the first counterattack, Marzin's cavalry launched a second counterattack against Maripolo's exposed flank.However, this counterattack was promptly repulsed by Eugene's cavalry.When the situation was tense, Eugene received an urgent appeal from Marlboro, so he threw in his reserve team without hesitation. Although the danger of annihilation has passed, instability persists.If Mari Polo couldn't move forward, he would fall into a more difficult situation, because behind him was a swamp connected to the Nibel River.At this point, however, Tallard had to pay a heavy price, for he should not have allowed Marlborough to cross the Nibel, or rather, he should not have done nothing about it. Do nothing.Because Tallard's cavalry counterattack failed to achieve his goal, and because the French army failed to wipe out the first echelon of the Mari Polo Central Group, the surviving units of Mari Polo's crossing of the Nibel River were able to cross the river. Strengthen the position on the other side.At this time, although Tallard still had fifty battalions of infantry in his hands, which could be used to deal with Marlboro's forty-eight battalions, but in the central area he had only nine battalions, while the enemy had two. Thirteen.Tallard had made this mistake when he first deployed his troops, and he had time to correct it later, but he did not correct it.When at last the few French infantry were routed by the superior numbers of the English infantry and by close-range fire, Marlboro rushed through the gap which had been opened, and on the banks of the Danube, near Blenheim, Cut off the dense mass of French infantry while threatening Marisine's flank.Marisine, however, escaped Eugene's pressure, and withdrew without much loss, while the bulk of Tallard's force was driven across the Danube, where it was finally forced to surrender. Blenheim's victory came at great cost and was a huge risk.If we analyze it calmly, it is obvious that the victory of this battle depends first on the firm spirit of the ordinary soldiers, secondly on the miscalculation of the French commander, and lastly on the generals of Marubolo.However, winning at the end distracts people from noticing that it was really just a big gamble.Of course, due to the results of this battle, the myth of the invincibility of the French army finally went bankrupt, and since then, the situation in the whole of Europe has also changed. After the French army was defeated, the Allied forces followed suit, advancing to the Rhine and crossing the river in the Philipsburg area.However, the price of Blenheim's victory was too great, so except for Marubolo, all the generals did not want to continue fighting, so the military operations gradually stopped. In 1705, Marlboro devised another plan to attack France by detouring around the fortresses in Flanders.According to this plan, Prince Eugene was responsible for containing the French army in northern Italy, the Dutch army occupied defensive positions in the Flanders plains, and the main force of the coalition forces was led by Marubolo along the Moselle. The upper reaches of the river attacked Thionville, while the army of the Marquis of Baden marched along the Saar River to meet Marlboro.However, this plan could not be carried out due to insufficient supplies of food and fodder, lack of means of transportation, and insufficient reinforcements.In addition, the Marquis of Baden is not very willing to cooperate this time.It has been suggested that his motive was jealousy, but a more plausible explanation is that he was badly wounded, from which he died shortly afterwards. Although the conditions for victory have been lost, Marlbolo still insists on carrying out his plan, so his actions become direct-line actions in a very narrow sense.He moved his troops up the Moselle, apparently to lure the French into battle with his small number of troops.However, Marshal Villars of France waited patiently and could not hold on.He expected Marubolo's army to weaken itself due to lack of food.At the same time, Verroy's attack on the plains of Flanders was again successful, and forced the Dutch to send an urgent appeal to Marlboro.The pressure from these two aspects forced Marlboro to give up his adventurous plan.Thus, in the midst of infinite disappointment, Maru Polo regarded the Marquis of Baden as a lamb for atonement.He even wrote a letter to the opponent's general Villars, expressing his regret for his retreat, and put all the responsibility on the Marquis of Baden. Marlboro took a forced march back to Flanders and soon improved the situation.Immediately after his arrival, Villeroy lifted the siege of Liege and retreated to the fortifications of the Brabant Line.Marubolo then concentrated on drawing up a plan to break through this line of defense.According to his plan, first of all, a feint attack should be carried out on a certain section of the Meuse River area where the enemy's fortifications are relatively weak, so as to induce the French army to move south, and then take a forced march back, trying to break through a fortification near Tiermont. Although strong, the defenses are relatively weak.However, when his initial attempt was successful, he failed to take the opportunity to expand his results, and failed to immediately enter Reuven and cross the Dale River.The cause of this misstep may have been the rapid depletion of his own forces, or it may have been that he deceived his allies even more than he deceived his enemies.At that time, the famous Brabant fortification line was practically no obstacle. A few weeks later, Marlboro made a new plan.The project partly reflected his progress in the art of commanding.Although the new project did not lead to greater achievements, it did show Marubolo's genius.His past maneuvers in the Flemish plains were based on sheer deceit, and if they were to be successful they had to be executed with swiftness, and such swiftness, with allies like the Dutch army, was very difficult. Difficult to do.This time, however, Marlboro moved by an indirect route in a direction involving several important objectives, thereby forcing the enemy to spread out his forces and thereby freeing himself from demanding the same speed as before. Marlbolo avoided the position held by Velroy near Reuven, and turned to advance southward. The line he chose confused the enemy as to the object of his next move, because he threatened at the same time those who were in that area. Many fortresses, such as Namur, Charleroi, Mons and Atre, etc.Afterwards he advanced as far as Gnape, and then turned north again on the road to Brussels via Waterloo.At this time, Villeroy decided to return immediately in order to save Brussels, but when the French army just drove out from Leuven, Marlboro immediately turned back to the east, marched again at night, and suddenly appeared in front of the French army.As Marlbolo arrived at the field earlier than his Dutch allies expected, the Dutch found yet another excuse against his immediate attack.They reasoned that, despite the enemy's confusion, the enemy's position behind the Isco River was actually stronger than the position at Blenheim, where the Allied forces had earlier won victory. In the campaign of 1706 Marlboro had envisioned an indirect line of action on a larger scale.He intends to cross the Alps to join Prince Eugene, and hopes to take joint action, that is, to coordinate his land advance with the actions of the marines in the port of Toulon and Peter Polo in Spain, so that Drive the French army out of Italy, and march into the French mainland with honor.This time, the Dutch, contrary to their usual prudence in the past, agreed to take the risk and agreed to Marlboro to carry out his plan.However, this time the plan was still not realized, because the Marquis of Baden was soon defeated by Villars, and Villeroy also launched an attack on the plain of Flandres.Why did the French take the risk this time?The reason for this may lie in the calculations of Louis XIV.He thought that if he turned to the offensive everywhere, he would be able to create a strong impression that he was powerful, and thus conclude a peace treaty in his favor, and such a peace treaty is now very necessary and urgent for him. that's it.However, as far as the battlefield where Marubolo was located, after the French army took offensive actions, they did not find a shortcut to peace, but embarked on a path to failure, and made all peace plans come to naught. empty.At this time, Marubolo did not waste time, but made full use of the opportunity in his favor.According to his opinion, this is the second time that the French have helped him realize his plan.Now, the situation is in their favor, of course he can't stay on the ground quietly.He encountered the French at La Mille.At that time, the French army happened to occupy a concave line position, and he himself was in the position of the bowstring.Therefore, he took full advantage of his superior position in the terrain and adopted a tactical indirect route of action.Maropolo first attacked the left flank of the French army, forcing the French to throw their reserves there, but then he skillfully withdrew his troops from the battle and quickly threw them on his left flank. Used to develop the initial victories achieved by the Dutch army, as the Dutch cavalry had already broken through the enemy's lines there.This threat from the rear, combined with the pressure from the front, caused the French army to begin to rout.Subsequently, Marlbolo took advantage of the victory to pursue and expanded the results of the battle extremely effectively, so he quickly captured all the fortifications in the entire Flanders region and the Brabant line of defense. In this year (1706) the war in Italy also came to a virtual end.This can also be regarded as another example of effectively embodying the indirect route strategy.At first, Prince Eugene was forced to retreat.He retreated east to Lake Garda, and even into the mountains.At the same time his ally, the Duke of Savoy, was also besieged at Turin.However, Prince Eugene then deceived the enemy with a clever maneuver.Instead of rushing forward with a fighting approach, he managed to slip away, avoiding the enemy, and breaking free from the shackles of his own base.He led his troops through Lombardy, entered Piedmont, and finally dealt a decisive blow to the enemy in Turin, causing a crushing defeat to the enemy army, which was numerically superior but mentally weakened. Now, whether in the south or in the north, the fighting is burning to the frontiers of France.But in 1707, the lack of unity of purpose among the Allies gave the French a chance to make a comeback.And in the next year, they were able to concentrate their main force to deal with Marubolo.Marubolo was trapped in Flanders by the superior force of the enemy.He then made a decision to take the method of maneuvering to the Danube again, and repeat the last marching route, so as to change the current situation.Thanks to this maneuver, Prince Eugene was able to set out from the Rhine and lead his army to meet Marlboro.However, this time the main general of the French army has been replaced by the capable Fan Dumi, who led the French army to meet Marubolo before Eugene.Van Dume caught up and forced Marlboro to retreat towards Reuven, whereupon he turned abruptly westward and recaptured the Scheldt, Brugg, and nearly all of the Flanders west of the Scheldt at no cost.However, Maru Polo did not go to meet the enemy, but bravely broke into the southwest, and went straight to the area between the French army of Fandumi and the French border.Then came the Battle of Odenlaard.Marlboro relied on strategic maneuvers to win the initial victory, and defeated Van Dumey tactically. If Mari Polo had been able to make his own decisions, he would have attacked Paris immediately, and the war might have ended soon.Even in the absence of such an attack, Louis XIV was compelled this winter to sue for peace, on terms which should, so to speak, satisfy the Allies.However, the Allies refused to accept Louis' peace proposal, and they counted on the complete annihilation of the French army.From the perspective of grand strategy, this is really an irrational decision.As for Marubolo, he should understand the value of Louis' suggestion, but as far as he is concerned, peace is not what he likes, and he is more interested in war. Thus, in 1709, the flames of war were blazed again.Marlboro's plan at this time still took a military indirect route, but aimed at an important political goal to capture Paris.His attempt boiled down to one point, which was to bypass the various fortresses, avoid prolonged entanglement with the enemy's field troops, and rush directly to Paris.It was a project so bold that even the belligerent Prince Eugene felt out of step.The plan was therefore amended, with smaller objectives, avoiding a direct assault on the fortifications of the Brabant Line covering the section of the frontier between Douai and Beton, and first capturing Tournay on the flank. and the fortress of Mons, and finally follow the road east of the fortress into France. This time, Maru Polo's tricks of deceiving the enemy had paid off.He first carried out a feint attack on the enemy's fortress lines, and induced the French to withdraw the main body of the garrison from Tournay to reinforce these fortresses.Afterwards, he made rapid progress and led the troops to besiege the fortress of Tournay.But the remaining troops in this fortress still resisted so tenaciously that Marubolo was delayed there for two months.He then made new threats to the defenses of the fort near Lebasse, and was soon able to approach Mons, and took it without much effort.However, the French army moved fairly quickly and cut him off quickly, blocking his approach and preventing him from further developing his victory.This setback aroused his outrage, and he turned to action in the direct line.This time, he appeared to be very unwise, lacking due awareness of the consequences of the current situation.Compared with Cromwell's disposal at the Battle of Dunbar, he is far from it.Marl Praquette in France is a pre-built strong fortified fortress with gates and arches in front.Although the allied powers’ attack on this fortress was successful, the cost was so high that the defeated French commander Vilars wrote in a letter to King Louis XIV: If God Let us suffer another such defeat, and likewise shall be ruined the enemies of his majesty.這是一個實現了的預言，同盟國方面正是因為這樣一個代價極高的勝利，斷送了對於奪取整個戰爭勝利的希望。 一七一○年，戰爭陷入了僵局。法軍建立起一條從瓦郎西延直到海岸邊上的特強防線，把瑪律波羅阻止住了。同時，他的政敵找到了損害他威望的新藉口，在英國國內掀起了反對他的浪潮。幸福女神對於那些糟踏她的恩賜的人們，是決不會加以饒恕的。一七一一年，尤金親王的軍隊也由於政治上的原因而被召回國。瑪律波羅不得不單個地對付一個實力遠為強大的敵人。他的兵力過於單薄，不可能採取某種決定性的行動，於是便充分發揮他的軍事藝術手段，粉碎了法國人對於其特強防線不可攻克的誇大宣傳。這一次，瑪律波羅特別成功地採用了間接路線戰略，他使用各種機動，時而迷惑敵人，時而欺騙敵人，終於不發一槍便穿過了法國的這一道防線。然而，兩個月以後，他卻被召回國，並接受了不榮譽的處分。到了一七一二年，被戰爭弄得精疲力竭的英國終於退出了戰爭，拋棄了自己的盟友。 此後，只有尤金親王統率下的奧、荷兩國軍隊還在繼續進行戰爭，並且延續了相當長的時間。不過，作戰雙方都已經同樣地疲憊不堪。一七一二年，法將維拉爾斯採取了一個很高明的機動行動，從其謀略性、隱蔽性和快速性來說，都可以與瑪律波羅的類似機動相匹敵。結果，法軍在德南地區獲得了一個廉價而又具有決定性意義的勝利。由於這一勝利，同盟國方面終於瓦解，路易十四世則獲得了一個比較有利的和平，比起瑪律普拉奎特會戰失敗時所提出來的和平條件要有利得多。這佯，僅僅一個直接的行動，就使過去許多次採取間接路線而積累起來的全部戰果，完全付之東流了。然而值得注意的是，直到最後，問題還是採取另一個方法解決的，即仍然是靠間接路線的行動解決的。 同盟國的主要目的，即阻止法王路易十四世和西班牙結成實際上的聯盟這個目的，沒有能夠達到。但是，英國卻在這一次戰爭中取得了領土上的收穫。這應該歸功於瑪律波羅，主要是他具有遠見，把眼界推廣到了自己的戰場以外。為了引開法國方面的注意力，保證在政治上獲得利益，他在地中海地區採取了軍事行動，以來配合自己在弗郎德勒地區的作戰。在一七○二年和一七○三年，通過先後進行的遠征，使他得以阻止葡萄牙和薩伏依繼續倒向法國方面，並為進攻法國的主要支柱西班牙鋪平了道路。一七○四年，英國奪得了直布羅陀，因此，彼得波羅得以在西班牙順利地完成牽制任務。到了一七○八年，英軍又作了另外一次遠征，佔領了米羅卡島。後來，儘管英國在西班牙的作戰因為指揮失當而遭到失敗，但它卻是帶著領土收穫退出戰爭的。戰爭結束以後，英國始終佔領著直布羅陀和米羅卡島，而這卻是控制地中海的兩把鑰匙。此外，英國人還在北大西洋中佔領了新斯科夏和紐芬蘭。弗里德里希二世的戰爭。 一七四○年至一七四八年的奧地利王位繼承權戰爭，也是一次沒有決定性結果的戰爭。證明這一點的最好事實，莫過於法國人的一種口語，即在戰爭中取得勝利的人們在戰後用以罵人的一種口語，說什麼：你真愚蠢，完全像個俗物。弗里德里希大帝是在這次戰爭中獲得勝利的唯一的一位君主。他很早就搶佔了西里西亞，然後便退出了競爭。雖然後來他又重新回到戰場上，並且冒了許多的危險，但卻沒有得到更多的收穫。不過，他自己卻因為累獲勝利而威名大震。普魯士作為一個強國的基礎，也是由這次戰爭奠定下來的。 一個值得注意的事件是，根據一七四二年在布勒斯勞簽訂的和約，西里西亞被割讓給了普魯士。這年初，對於普法聯軍來說，前景似乎並不理想。是的，法軍和普軍都已開始向奧軍主力發起進攻。但是法軍很快就被阻擋住了。這時，弗里德里希沒有按預定計劃向西方前進，去與盟軍部隊會師，而是轉折向南，直趨維也納。雖然他的先頭部隊已經到達了敵人都城的門口，但是他卻很快地向後撤。這是因為奧軍已在進行機動，很可能就要切斷他與後方基地的聯繫。弗里德里希的這次進攻，常常遭到批評，說它是一種魯莽的示威行動，可是，如果考慮到他的後果，那就應當說，這指責本身就是太魯莽了。因為他的這種迅速撤退，是根據自救的原則進行的。而且，他竟以此促使奧軍落入了圈套，誘使他們跟蹤追擊，一直深入到西里西亞內部。然後，在赫圖希茨附近，當自己處境艱難的時候，他卻進行了強而有力反突擊，並在以後的追擊中打垮了敵人。三個星期以後，奧國即同弗里德里希進行了單獨媾和，答應把西里西亞割讓給他。要從這樣一個事件中作出什麼大的結論，可能是不值得的，但是，至少也要指出一點，奧地利人突然同意簽訂這個對他們不利的和約，正是這場戰爭中使用間接路線方法的唯一一個事例。這一次的間接路線行動，就是弗里德里希突然地在維也納城下出現，並且在瀕臨失敗危險時取得了一個小小的戰術勝利，它與弗里德里希的其他許多勝利比較起來，光彩畢竟暗淡得多。 在十八世紀的中葉，奧地利王位繼承權戰爭沒有產生決定性的結果，而接著它以後發生的另一次大戰，即七年戰爭（一七五六年至一七六三年），從歐洲的政治觀點來看，也並不見得好些。這一次，只有英國是達到了一定結果的唯一國家，而這些結果對於歐洲歷史的進程產生了決定性的影響。但是，英國卻不是七年戰爭的直接參加者，儘管它對這次戰爭作出了自己的貢獻，並且採取間接的方法從戰爭中獲得了好處。當歐洲各國的軍隊把自己和國家搞得精疲力竭的時候，英國的大不列顛部隊，只以少數小型支隊進行活動，就削弱了歐洲各國的影響，而擴大了大英帝國的實力。應該指出，當普魯士處於實力消耗殆盡的時刻，它寧願獲得一個不確定的和平，而避免屈辱投降。這種事實的產生，是因為法國在殖民地方面遭到失敗，俄國也由於沙皇的死亡而拒絕給予普魯士以最後的決定性的打擊。命運之神對於弗里德里希大帝是很慈悲的。到了一七六二年，他在取得一連串巨大而光榮的勝利以後，差不多已經完全沒有資源，不能繼續進行抵抗了。 在許多次的戰役當中，就軍事和政治的結果來看，事實上只有一個戰役可以稱得上是有決定性結果的。這就是以英國人佔領魁北克而告結束的那次戰役。這次戰役不僅是時間最短的，而且是在次要戰區裡進行的。如果說，佔領魁北克和在加拿大剝奪法國的統治權，是因為借助於海軍的勢力，並在大戰略上採取間接路線的結果，那麼，在加拿大戰役中軍事行動的實際進程，就是在戰略上採取間接路線的結果。這次戰役的結局之所以值得人們思索，是因為其勝利是一種看來似乎冒險行動的結果。而這個看來似乎冒險的行動，是在蒙特莫勒西瀑布方向採取直接路線失利之後，也即是在兵力遭到嚴重損失，士氣大大低落之後，才不得不採取的。如果替英軍主將沃爾夫作點辯護，就應該指出，他當時採取直接路線的行動，是迫不得已而為之。他曾採取各種辦法來引誘法軍，如炮擊魁北克，以少數孤立的支隊在勒維士角地區和蒙特莫勒西瀑布附近進行佯動，但始終未能把法軍從其堅強陣地上誘出來。然而，從他們的這些失敗當中，和他們後來在魁北克以北法軍後方冒險登陸的成功當中，我們可以獲得一定的教益：光有把敵人誘出陣地的願望是不夠的，必須迫使敵人遠遠地離開其陣地。沃爾夫曾準備採取直接的突擊，而為此所進行的誘敵行動卻是不成功的。從這裡又可以獲得一個教訓：僅僅使敵人感到神秘還不夠，必須使敵人迷惑不解，達到無所適從的狀態，並要使敵人在這種狀態中喪失行動自由，不能調動部隊以來採取反機動的行動，甚至使其部隊自行瓦解。 沃爾夫最後採取的那個機動行動，從表面上看來，好像是賭徒的孤注一擲，但是，這卻符合各種條件要求，因而終於取得了勝利。那些通常只是根據兵力對比來研究戰史的人們，似乎總是認為，法軍當時被削弱的程度，並不能作為他們遭受失敗的充足理由，許多研究著作曾經探討了這個問題，指出法國人在當時情況下應該採取什麼行動便可以改善自己的處境。然而，魁北克之戰非常鮮明地證實了一個真理：由於瓦解敵軍的士氣和破壞敵軍指揮部的計畫而奪得的勝利，要比從體力上損害敵軍去奪取勝利快得多。這些因素的效力，也要比地理因素和統計資料的計算帶來的效力大得多，而一般的軍事史書籍，十分之九都是充滿了對這一類計算的分析。 歷史事實表明，在七年戰爭的過程中，在歐洲這個基本的戰場上，雖然有過許多的戰術性勝利，但是卻很缺乏決定性的戰果，為什麼會出現這種情況呢？值得加以探討。弗里德里希的敵人太多，這是一種通常的見解。但是，他也有各種的優點，似乎足以抵銷敵人的優勢。這種解釋當然不可能令人信服。對於這個問題，我們應該進行深入一些的研究。 弗里德里希類似於馬其頓王亞歷山大和拿破崙，而有別於瑪律波羅，他不受一個戰略家身上所承受的那種責任和限制的束縛，有著自由行動的特權。他一身兼管著大戰略和軍事戰略兩方面的工作。作為一個國王，他和他的軍隊之間有著永久性的聯繫，可以不斷地準備和發展自己的這個工具，來達到他所選定的目的。此外，戰區之內的要塞較少，對他來說也是一個有利條件。 儘管他的盟友只有一個英國，而面臨的敵人卻是奧地利、法國、沙俄、瑞典和薩克森的聯軍，弗里德里希從開戰之日起，直到第二戰役的中期，其兵力的數量實際上總是居於優勢。此外，他還具有兩個優越條件：一是他的戰術要比任何一個敵人都更優良；二是他占著一個中央的位置。 由於占著中央位置，弗里德里希得以採取一種通常稱之為內線作戰的戰略。這也就是說，他可以根據具體情況，從中央位置向邊緣地區的某一部分敵軍實施突擊。而當他為此調動兵力時，其距離總是最短的。所以，在敵人還來不及相互救援之前，他就搶先集中兵力把敵人逐個擊破了。 誰都可以一眼看出，敵人的駐地彼此相距愈遠，則取得對敵的決定性勝利也就愈容易。毫無疑問，從時間、空間和數量的角度來看，這是正確的。可是，這裡又出觀了一個精神因素的作用問題。當敵人彼此分散時，他們必須獨立自主地採取行動，因而又會產生一種加強自己抵抗能力的趨向。當他們彼此相距很近時，必然會力求聯合作戰，因而是把自己當作整個集體中的一員，並在精神和物質方面都互相依賴。這樣，一個司令官的活動，必然會影響到另一個司令官，致使精神作用很快產生效果。甚至於某一支部隊的平常的調動，也很容易給另一支部隊的活動帶來困難，或者使之組織渙散。處在中央位置上的部隊，就進行機動來說，時間可能少一些，空間可能小一些，但是引起敵人的反映或震動，卻可能比較快一些。處在邊緣地區的部隊，當他們相距很近時，一旦某一部分遭受來自中央位置的敵人的打擊，則臨近它的另一部分可能感到完全出乎意外，因此，對這另一部分部隊來說，這就是一種間接路線的行動。與此相反，如果這些部隊彼此之間的距離很大，那麼，它們就會有相當長的時間，用來抗擊來自中央敵人的下一次突擊，或者躲避開他的第二次突擊。 這樣進行內線作戰，正像瑪律波羅在向多瑙河進軍時所作的那樣，是間接路線的一種形式。由於這樣的機動是對敵軍整個集團採取的，因而對其某一部分，即對該項行動的直接目標來說，如果不能使敵人整個集團感到突然，產生迷惑，那就並不一定構成間接性行動。因此，在沒有使敵人整個集團感到突然時，就應該採取新的間接路線行動，即能影響到目標本身的新行動。 弗里德里希曾不斷利用自己的中央位置，來逐次集中兵力，以逐個攻擊敵軍的孤立集團，並且經常採取著間接路線的行動。正因為如此，他獲得了許多次的勝利。不過，他的戰術性間接路線的基礎，首先是利用幾何因素，而不是心理因素，並且也不像西庇阿那樣，能夠用突然襲擊的方式來加以補充。因此，弗里德里希的機動，儘管在執行時很夠技巧，但這些運動的路線卻很狹窄。對於敵人來說，如果自己的指揮遲緩，或者部隊的組織鬆散，那麼，儘管弗里德里希的打擊對他們並不是完全出乎意外，但仍然有可能無法作好抗擊其下一個打擊的準備工作。 一七五六年八月底，弗里德里希為了破壞同盟國的計畫，首先侵入薩克森，於是便開始了七年戰爭。弗里德里希借助於突然襲擊，取得了初步的勝利。他接著不斷擴大這一勝利，幾乎沒有遇到什麼抵抗就進入了德累斯頓。奧國軍隊雖然趕來救援，但時間已經太晚了。弗里德里希為了迎擊奧軍，前進到易北河上游，並在萊特米里茨附近的洛博西茲會戰中，把他們打敗丁。隨後，他便佔領了整個薩克森。一七五七年四月，弗里德里希翻越山地進入了波希米亞，並向布拉格開進。當他接近城市以後，立即發現奧軍已在河對岸的高地上扼守著堅固的陣地。於是，他留下一個支隊的兵力，用來掩護自己的行動，同時監視著河的對岸，而他本人則率領大軍乘著黑夜向上游轉進，隨後在上游渡過易北河，並從那裡向敵軍的右翼發起進攻。他的這個機動，在開始的時候，應該算是一個間接路線的行動，可是到了最後階段，卻轉變成了直接的進攻，因為奧軍有著充分的時間來變換他們的正面。結果，普魯士的步兵被迫進行正面攻擊。他們在衝擊奧軍的防禦前沿時，遭到了敵人的猛烈射擊，死傷了幾千名官兵。最後，幸虧澤登的騎兵經過深遠迂迴之後突然出現在敵人面前，因而決定了布拉格會戰的結局，普軍取勝，奧軍被迫後撤。 普軍接著對布拉格進行了圍攻。但是，由於道恩率領一支新的奧軍前來解圍，普軍便暫時停止了進攻。弗里德里希在獲悉奧國援軍即將到達以後，馬上停止了對城堡的圍攻，而調動差不多全部的兵力來迎擊道恩。一七五七年六月十八日，弗里德里希在科林地區同奧軍遭遇。他立即發現，敵人已經挖掘了很好的塹壕工事，而且在兵力數量上幾乎也要超過他一倍。這一次，他本來也想迂迴奧軍的右翼。但由於進行機動的路線太窄，過於靠近了敵人，結果，他的縱隊為奧軍輕型部隊所乘，遭到了射擊，並被迫終止迂迴行動，因而不得不從正面向敵人實施彼此互不協調的攻擊，以致最後遭到了慘敗。就這樣，他不得已放棄了對布拉格的圍攻，退出了波希米亞。 此時，俄軍已經進入東普魯士，法軍已經佔領了漢諾威，而由希爾德堡豪生率領的同盟國聯合部隊，也從西面對柏林構成了威脅。為了不讓這兩支軍隊匯合起來，弗里德里希立即實行強行軍，經過萊比錫，由原路趕了回來，從而消除了這個威脅。隨後，他又被迫向西里西亞開進，因為那裡正孕育著一場危險。可是，當他還在半路的時候，奧軍的一支快速部隊卻已侵入柏林城，正在進行破壞。他剛剛把奧軍從柏林驅逐出去，希爾德堡豪生又發起了新的進攻。於是，弗里德里希又匆忙地去迎擊這個敵人。 接著便發生了羅斯巴赫會戰。戰場在波恩以東約四十公里。當時，同盟國的軍隊在數量上大約是弗里德里希的兩倍，他們也試圖採取迂迴的辦法，正好是想以其人之道還治其人之身。然而，同盟軍實施迂迴的深度太小，他們又都沒有根據地誤以為弗里德里希將要撤退，因而自己亂了步驟，各自改變隊形，準備著對弗里德里希進行追擊。這樣，就使弗里德里希猜透了他們的企圖，並得以組織反機動的行動。他決定對同盟軍部隊的深遠翼側實施突擊，並力求把敵人消滅。結果，由於敵人犯了錯誤，弗里德里希採取的間接路線了不僅具有機動性，而且具有突然性。羅斯巴赫會戰，在弗里德里希所有獲勝的會戰中，是最成功的一次會戰。他在這次會戰中，打敗了總數為六萬四千人的敵軍，使其死傷達到七千七百人，而他自己的損失，卻總共只有五百人。 對弗里德里希來說，遺憾的是，他在前幾次會戰中，已經使自己的兵力消耗得太多了，因而不能充分擴大這次勝利的戰果，他還要繼續對付奧國軍隊，那是他在布拉格和科林兩次戰鬥中都未能擊敗的。後來，在洛依森會戰中，弗里德里希由於採取了他那個著名的斜形戰鬥隊形（這是間接路線的一種形式），終於又獲得了勝利，但是，其代價實在太高，以至於負擔不起。 就這樣，戰爭繼續拖延下來了，而到一七五八年，其前景更加黯談。為了對付奧軍，弗里德里希既採取了間接路線，同時又從正面和從翼側實施進攻，他還前出到了阿羅木次地區，進入敵人後方，那裡離分界線已有三十二公里。甚至於當他在行軍途中，在遠離一個巨大的補給縱隊之後，他仍然沒有後退，而是繼續向前行軍，經過波希米亞，從右邊迂迴到了奧軍的後方，接近了敵人科尼格內茲這個築壘基地。然而，由於過去在布拉格和科林喪失了有利的機會，他又不得不受到報復。因為俄國人這台蒸汽壓路機終於充滿了蒸汽，並已經滾到了波森（即今波茲南），接著就要滾向柏林。於是，弗里德里希又放棄了波希米亞戰役，隨即揮軍北上，以阻止俄軍的進攻。他雖然獲得了成功，但是，佐恩多夫會戰卻成了第二次的布拉格會戰。這一次，弗里德里希仍然是實行機動，避免向俄軍堅固設防陣地的正面實施進攻，他迂迴到了敵軍的東側，打算從其後方進行攻擊。可是，俄軍也仿效著奧地利人在布拉格所作的榜樣，他們改變了正面，把弗里德里希的間接路線行動變成了正面的攻擊。這使弗里德里希陷於極端艱困的境地，一直等到他手下的騎兵名將塞德里茲趕到參加戰鬥，才得以轉敗為勝。當時，塞德里茲在一片號稱不能通過的地形上完成了迂迴行動，對俄軍新構成的一個翼側實行了出敵不意的突擊，這也正是一種間接路線行動。弗里德里希在這次會戰中的損失，雖然要比俄國人稍輕一些，但是從他的人力物力資源來說，其損失也可以說是很夠慘重了。 由於兵力遭到了很大的削弱，弗里德里希不得不放開俄國人，讓其自由恢復元氣。而且，自己又重新掉轉頭來，以對付奧國軍隊。弗里德里希的下一次敗仗，是在赫克爾希（德累斯頓以東七十公里）。其原因主要是他過分自信。他認為，奧軍的主將是他的老對手，即從來不敢自己首先發起攻擊的那個道恩。結果，道恩卻利用夜間把弗里德里希的部隊團團圍住了。這一次所以能夠避免毀滅，完全靠著澤登的騎兵，他為步兵打開了一條撤退的通路。 一七五九年，戰爭還在繼續往後拖。弗里德里希的兵力也在日益減少。在庫恩斯多夫（庫勒爾斯多夫），他被俄國人打敗，這是他一生中所遭到的最慘重的一次失敗。而在馬克森，他又一次被道恩打敗。這兩次之所以失敗，又是由於他自己過分的矜持自傲。從此以後，他就再也不能採取什麼重大行動了，只是消極地把敵人封鎖著而已。 不過，當普魯士的命運正在黯然失色的時候，在加拿大方面卻出現了勝利的陽光。由於沃爾夫在加拿大取得了勝利，促使英國人願意派兵到歐洲去了。英國軍隊在明登打敗了法軍，拯救了弗里德里希，使他避免了最後的失敗。 雖然如此，一七六○年對於弗里德里希來說，在各方面都是最困難的一年。在東方，他對俄國人使用了一條妙計，從而獲得了一個喘息的機會。當時，他故意讓俄軍虜獲一份假造的檔，其中寫道：今天奧軍已完全失敗了。現在該輪到俄國人。請按我們原來的協議開始行動。雖然使俄國人上了當，退了兵，而且後來在托爾高也終於把奧國人打敗了，但是，對於弗里德里希來說，這次勝利已是強弩之末。他自己的慘重損失使他也形成了癱瘓狀態。儘管全部剩餘兵力還有六萬人，但他已不敢再去冒險作另外一次會戰，只很孤立地停駐在西里西亞，甚至同普魯士的聯繫也都被割斷。僥倖的是，奧軍的戰略還和過去一樣，沒有一點生氣，俄軍的後勤組織，也不斷地發生障故，因而經常感到補給匱乏。正當這個危機四伏的時候，俄國的女皇卻突然死了。她的繼承人不僅願意講和，而且還有倒過來幫助弗里德里希的意願。以後幾個月當中，法奧兩國的軍隊還是繼續行著漫無目的的戰鬥。然而，法國的軍隊由於在殖民地裡遭到挫敗而大大削弱了。奧軍也被消耗巨大的戰爭拖得疲憊不堪。所以，不久以後也就簽訂了和約。幾乎所有參戰國家都弄得精疲力竭。可以說，他們在七年的流血戰鬥中，什麼也沒能得到。當然英國是一個例外。 在弗里德里希二世的各次戰役中，固然可以吸取許多教訓，但是看起來最主要的一條，似乎就是他的間接路線還太直接化了。換句話說，他把間接路線戰略，只當作一種機動性的運動，或者只看成是機動性和快速性的結合，而把突然性這個因素丟掉了。而實際上，間接路線戰略，是機動性和快速性、突然性三者的緊密結合。因此，他的技巧儘管很高明，但其節約兵力的原則並沒有起什麼作用，他的兵力還是不免消耗殆盡。