[NTW AAR] War Is Where The Home Is

[MuerteBear]

Mods Used - NTF_2
Difficulty - Hard/Hard

Note- This is the first time i tried this but how can you not make up a story when playing.


Home Is Where The War Is.

Excerpts from the Journal of Adalbert Wojeck

Early December 1804- I have finally arrived in a safe place where I believe I can rest. My friends have taken up residence in an inn and have used our last bit of wealth to keep us warm for the evening. Our flight from the Prussian government seems to have come to an end. I still cannot believe that these men risked everything to help me escape and I do not believe I will never be able to repay them. The revolution to make my homeland free again has failed and as an officer of that revolution my life is now forfeit. I swear to God as my witness that Poland shall be free of external influence one day.

Mid December 1804- I have found work as have my brothers in blood. We have found ourselves in a newly established country, the United Netherlands. They have recently thrown off the false government placed upon them by the French Empire, these people have succeeded where I had failed, I shall watch and learn how they accomplished this task and perhaps once stronger return to my home and return there lost glory.

Late December 1804 – There is no army in this nation no defense except for a collection of citizenry who are sadly trained and in no condition to fight. I have also learned that the only reason the revolution succeeded was that the French garrison was small and with a harsh winter making travel almost impossible the French where unable to send an army to quell the rebellion. I realize as do several others that this new kingdom will soon face a powerful threat in the French army once the weather lightens up battle will be upon us.
Late January 1805 – France officially declares war on the nation of the United Netherlands demanding that this rebellion cease and in exchange for a return to French rule all those who took part in the rebellion will be forgiven. Though I highly doubt the French will honor such an agreement. Also rumors resonate through the streets and in the inns as to another group declaring war on this tiny nation, the accounts vary but most point to the Ottomans as the other group that wishes to see us wiped off the map.
Late January 1805 – France has attacked led by their emperor Napoleon a small force has set up outside the capital and has sent in an offer of surrender by tomorrow morning. A man named Nicolaas Comstock has been talking of fighting back and many seem to be on his side, though I wonder if these citizens would take up arms if they knew that most of them would not survive. I and my friends have decided that we will help in the fight, though I may have failed in freeing my home I can help free another.
Battle of Freedom - Our Leader is General Comstock, serving under him are a few men of royal blood who invision themselves as knights of a new era. The General has pulled us back to the city and has us guarding the perimiter of the capital manning homes and any other defensable position.



From my vantage point i could see the approaching enemy though the force was small Napoleon seemed confident he would crush us and soon his cannons forced us from our position.


As we waited for the enemy to approach i saw the man next to me turn as white as the snow on the ground around us, he was not a soldier but a ordinary man who just wanted to live his life, but here he was ready to die because he was asked to out of the belife they had to fight to survive and keep what had been gained. As the enemy approached i took aim and fired, the ball struck its target true and the frenchman on the other side dropped over clenching at his chest. The men on my sides then opend up and out of the hundreds of bullets fired only 2 more French soldiers dropped. Their return was a reminder to all what it ment to be a trained soldier.



I fired again Striking the officer in charge of the unit across the way, the look of disbelife in his eyes shall stay with me for a long time. It seemed as if he questioned how this could happen, he was an officer not a soldier he was not ment to be killed.

I took refuge behind a nearby building as another unit charged forward to fill the gap left by my fleeing unit. And so the day continued the french rained cannonballs and lead balls down upon our lines. They finally broke after the third wave of armed citizens charged and overwhelmed their lines. Hardly a honorable fight but these where desperate men.


Finally all men able where ordered to charge the final French position, their cannons continued to fire down destroying the city. The charge was a blur to me men running towards the sound of the cannon fire and then picking themselves up as a blast tore the lines apart. I saw many men struck down by the blast or concussion yet they picked themselves up and continued on.

I later heard the news that Napoleon had been wounded and fled the field to recover and in that his men followed suit units left the field.

In our final charge on the last remnants of the French force took our brave Leaders life and only two men survived the barrage of fire. Amongst the fallen was a good friend of mine who i had meet shortly after arriving in the country. His Horse was killed under him and he gravley injured his arm, i stopped and with my only two other friends carried him back to his home so he could rest easily.


The next day the battle was over, familys searched for the bodies of there loved ones, we stood vigial over are fallen friend who by some chance of fate survived the onslaught that claimed so many others. I later that week found that Nicolasas Comstock had finally given into his wounds and now rested forever in the arms of God. His loss is and will be mourned by the country for a long time, it was his leadership that kept the army together and fighting.

[Nanny de Bodemloze]

Welcome mate! Thanks for contributing to our little library of stories. Well done! Can we expect more in future?

cheers!

Nanny

[LuckyLewis]

Nice work, sir! Good layout and nice balance of writing and pictures. Very easy on the eye. Please do stick around here, we love the new folk!

[MuerteBear]

Thanks for the feedback. Lets continue with the story.

February 1805 - As the wounds of the nation are healed, some decisions that are shaping this young country are being made.The first problem is the lack of an army for defense but with little time it is decided that we should train with the cannons that where recovered after Napoleon's attack. Though time was not to be on our side. A second French force invaded and was headed to Brussels, this one was under the leadership of Alexander Despreaux. Despreaux's force was again small much like Napolron's army, i belive they where to be merged into a single force but the impatient nature of the Emperor lead to his defeat.

The great problem of invasion was at our streets and now we would be caught without real leadership and the men would be harder to keep in line for this fight. Willem Bogardus was put in charge of the defense though his place as a cousin of the king is probably the only reason for his leadership. His plan was an exact copy of General Comstocks but this time we had no leader to follow if things would go badly.

The men seemed anxious but i wondered if our previous victory would have a negative impact on our defense.

My unit had been placed in a house near to the edge of town. I watched as the french line marched in under the cover of cannon fire and they seemed unwavered by our numbers and they marched on ready to take our city. Though i would have gladly fought in this second battle my action would end quickly. A barrage of cannon fire destroyed the home we had been ordered to hold, but as the attack continued we where ordered to hold. As the building came down i ordered the men of the unit to abandoned the house. As i was leaving a round struck the home and brought down the second floor sending hazardous shrappnel flying in all directions.



My right hand was trapped by falling stone and my knee felt as though it had been removed by a charging horse. My wounds where severe but i could do nothing but wait and watch the battle unfold. Units routed over and over yet they pressed on. The fighting was brutal street to street and finaly the battle ended with tthe french pulling out after taking severe casualties when attempting to take our headquarters.

As the French withdrew so many of the armed citizens of Brussels lay dying in the streets though again they had carried the day and pushed the French back, and now it was clear that this nation can not survive on the shoulders of its citizen soldiers.

March 1805 - As i lay recovering from my wounds i hear reports of the port of Antwerp being raided by French units and then the Liege was raided and the school was set ablaze. The King and leadership put funds into our defense and the training of the first of our line troops began along with a proper militia.

April 1805 - The training of our army continued bring up the number of units to 8 line companies and amongst these my good friends where given command They where the 51st German Line and the 54th Italian Line named so for the leaders of those units. As calvary officers where far and few between only a few units where trained and in this the eyes and ears of the army are no deaf and blind.

May 1805 - I was approached by the leadership of the army to train groups of men in the art of marksmanship and tracking. I belived that it was for the best and i took the offer, but in this i asked for the right to choose the best men to form two squads that would be an elite unit capable of long accurate fire capable of decimating enemy lines before they can even get a volley off.

[MuerteBear]

June 1805 - Liege was once again raided by a small French force yet no response was sent out by the King to this attack against our nation. In a desire to deal with our increasing threats from all directions the Minister of War has given command of are land forces to Willem Bogardus and given him the rank of General of the First United Netherlands Army. The reason for his appointment was for his "leadership" in the second of defense of the nation. I pray to God that we dont ever have to fall back on his leadership. The first orders where to run down the raiders who quickly retreated to the French boarder. My friend Clovis van Nievwenaar has returned to duty as a member of the 1st Calvary and with his royal family support he is treated like a hero and his men are outfitted with the best horses and equipment our forces can find.

October 1805- Ferdinand Mefternich brother of the leadr of a German line troops was given the head master position in Liege and begun his research on a variety of intelectual persuits. As he took up his position we did much te same a French army under the command of Louis-Nicolas Dayout marched in and attempted to destroy the school once again. Our army is now marching to engage the enemy force. The French are in for a supprise they now face a trained force of men fighting as they should. I pray our General will not lead us to our death. Many belive he is our answer to Napoleon...... I would like to slap each man who thinks that but my hand would tire and become useless before i was half done.

Battle of Liege 1805 - The artillery fire lasted for the morning exchanging shots that did little more then crater the ground and make the land a brown river of marks where once a field lay more suited to livestock. Our great leader becoming impatient sent our calvary forward to press the attack and destroy the French Artillery position. I watched as two units of Calvary rode into the woods ahead and into a fight that would claim half of their lives.


The echo of fire came from the woods and then the cries of men and animal filled our ears. I heard the screams and cries of man putting metal to man, but we could only watch the woods with anticipation and fear. We finaly saw an answer to our questions, when our calvary emerged from the woods at full speed they came with such speed that they had no intention of stopping till they where safly behind our lines. amongst the animals i saw many emerge riderless and in one case the animal dragged its lifeless master along the ground. We recived orders to enter the woods and remove the French from the woods, I would have ordered Artillery to leveal the woods but it was not my choice and so my men followed me into those cursed woods. As we moved the thickness of the trees made it easy to loose sight of my own men, I pushed forward when my sergent was struck down and i watched as the woods in front of me went white with smoke. I returned fire and my men finding targets began to fire at will at the French. The battle took its toll on the French but our numbers also suffered but not from the French. Our own artillery began firing on the woods and the surrounding area. As I pulled my men out from the woods i watched the French force move up and get cut down by our Howitzers and as we made our way back to our position on the hill I saw my force had been cut down by more then half. The only good thing to come from the miss directed artillery was that it was more deadly to the French then it had been to my men.


In the end the battle was a victory but the army is grumbuling of its concerns, i am not supprised against the disciplined and well lead French army we are sadly outclassed. Our Calvary has been wasted our light infintry used as a marker of where to point the artillery. And then our "brave" General sits atop his horse and standing behind the artillery plays at soldier as a child would not even watching the field.