Chapter 872: 780: Battle for Genoa

Chapter 872: Chapter 780: Battle for Genoa

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Alps, east side of the Cadipona Pass.

The nominal commander of the French-Italian Army, General Demobin, felt the warm Mediterranean breeze, which slightly relieved the chill threatening to fracture his aging bones.

He thought again of the order sent to him a few days ago by the Crown Prince and couldn’t help but let out a long, bitter sigh.

He had assumed his role would be mostly ceremonial, staying in the City of Nice—where, in fact, the young Buonaparte was commanding brilliantly, leaving him no need to interfere—but who would have thought the Crown Prince would suddenly assign him to replace Buonaparte and lead the army?

Near sixty, Demobin had no choice but to drag his aging body across the Alps, making a stance that suggested a strong offensive against the southern province of Monferrat, in Sardinia.

North of Monferrat was Turin, and Sardinia was in utter chaos by then. Amadeo III had gone mad, desperately appealing to Vienna for reinforcements.

After the disastrous defeat at the Battle of Toulon, Bolieu had fewer than 7,000 Austrian troops left on the Italian Peninsula, along with the 20,000 men under Koli’s Sardinian Army, plus 2,000 stationed in Milan.

This amount of manpower was insufficient not only for aiding Sardinia but for ensuring Milan’s defense itself.

Franz II, left with no alternatives, dispatched the Swiss Front Army to assist in the Italian theater and replaced Bolieu with Melas, commander of the Swiss Front Army, putting him in charge of the Italian Army.

Bolieu only relaxed once the vanguard of Melas’ troops reached Milan.

With Melas commanding 30,000 soldiers, the Italian situation was finally somewhat stabilized.

Meanwhile, Amadeo III added 10,000 reinforcements to defend Monferrat.

At this time in Northern Italy, the total combined strength of the Aus Alliance Army had reached 60,000.

In contrast, Demobin had merely 26,000 troops at his disposal. The General Staff had sent reinforcements of 5,000 recruits to the Italian Front Army, but they were intercepted en route by Napoleon.

Still, this did not concern him much.

The Crown Prince did not expect him to truly attack Sardinia but merely to posture. If it was just defense, his forces would hold out for a while.

Moreover, the Austrian Army had just suffered a defeat and was still demoralized. Even if a confrontation occurred, it might not pose much of a threat to him.

One week later.

Demobin was enjoying breakfast—since entering Italy, the rations had greatly improved compared to the mountains—when his staff officer knocked and entered, saluting him: “Commander, we have just received intelligence from Milan: Melas’ 30,000-strong army is heading south toward Monferrat.”

The old general took a sip of milk and asked, “How far are they from us?”

“About 50 kilometers.”

Demobin nodded, stood up, and commanded, “Order the entire army to assemble and prepare to march east.”

“East?” The staff officer asked in surprise, “General, isn’t that direction only Genoa?”

“Yes, Genoa,” Demobin nodded. “That’s exactly where we’re going.”

According to the Crown Prince’s orders, which were actually part of Napoleon’s plan, should the Aus Alliance’s main force move toward Southern Sardinia, Demobin was to feign an attack on Genoa.

Genoa was Northern Italy’s most critical port, nearly all supplies shipped to Sardinia and Milan arriving here.

If the French Army captured Genoa, the supplies shipped by the British from the sea would no longer reach the Aus Alliance Army.

This was a scenario Austria’s commanders could not tolerate. Likewise, the British could not afford to let Genoa fall into French hands, as over half of their trade with Italy went through this port.

As expected, once Demobin’s forces left Diego and began moving toward Volterra, a strategic point west of Genoa, the Austrian forces grew immediately anxious.

North of Monferrat, in the Austrian camp, Koli faced his officers, declaring firmly, “We must defend Sardinia’s territorial integrity. If anything happens to Monferrat, we’ll lose the trust of our allies.”

Bolieu, looking exhausted, shook his head and said, “If the French Army captures Genoa, they’ll immediately pose a threat to Alexandria to the north. At that point, we’ll have to divide our forces to defend east, west, and north, putting us in an extremely disadvantageous position.”

Alexandria was a vital transportation hub in Northern Italy, connecting cities such as Milan, Turin, and Piacenza.

Koli responded with some irritation, “But the stubborn Genoese insist on maintaining neutrality and won’t allow us to send troops to assist in their defense!”

“If we attack the French Army directly, we’ll have to cross the Alps, and by the time we arrive, the French may have already taken control of Genoa Port.”

To the south of the Alps lies a “V”-shaped terrain; Genoa is situated precisely at the bottom tip, creating multiple peaks that separate Demobin from the Austrian army.

Jean-Baptiste Chervoni, a quasi-general, rose cautiously as the debate continued and suggested, “Perhaps we could—”

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David was born a worker apprentice, self-taught and highly perceptive, yet he had no opportunity for advancement.

It was Gregory Watt who introduced David to the scientific community of the time, giving him significantly more room to grow.

Gregory passed away young, only 27 years old.

David was heartbroken and said he could have become one of the greats—he shouldn’t have died!

Indeed, in that age of scientific explosion, this was true.

Later, David truly made a name for himself and rose to prominence.

David was highly proficient in electrochemistry, discovering potassium, sodium, and iodine through electrolysis, and inventing the safety lamp and electric arc lamp.

David chose to forgo the patent rights to the safety lamp, benefiting countless coal miners.

In the early days, discovering new elements was incredibly challenging, and every discovery of an element was of Nobel Prize-level significance.

Eventually, David’s achievements earned him membership in The Royal Society, and he was knighted.

But David’s most important contribution wasn’t any of these; it was taking on an impoverished bookbinder as his apprentice.

That apprentice was the illustrious Faraday.

It was Faraday who discovered electromagnetic induction, enabling the mutual transformation of electricity and magnetism and ushering humanity into the electrical age.

Science, passed down like a torch, continues endlessly.

There are individuals whom historical records of kings and generals barely mention.

Yet, in their respective fields, they are indispensable, their work meticulously chronicled.

As they cannot be overlooked.

For instance, the Sharp brothers we’ll mention next—unfamiliar to laypeople, but well-known to those in information-related disciplines.