Soon, under the leadership of Bruneck, 10,000 Prussian troops took advantage of the Continental Army's contraction of defense lines and detoured along the Greensboro line to the back of Rolling Stone, the capital of North Carolina. When Greene did not respond,
At that time, they immediately launched an attack on Luolie City.
Although Greene deployed heavy troops in Rowley City, the Continental Army was caught off guard by the suddenness of the Prussian attack. After two days of fierce fighting, Rowley City changed hands, and Greene could only retreat to the countryside with the remnants of the Continental Army.
Engage in guerrilla warfare.
After capturing the city of Rolie, Bruneck left 3,000 men to defend this important town. Then Bruneck led 6,000 Prussian troops to go north. Because of Green's retreat, the Prussian troops carried out attacks along the way.
It was very smooth. Except for sporadic battles, the Prussian army basically encountered no decent obstruction. Of course, Greene was not a vegetarian. Behind the Prussian army, the Continental Army led by Greene was also constantly causing trouble for the Prussian army.
However, Bruneke did not take this seriously. In his opinion, as long as he could hold important towns such as Rohle, it would be okay to give the rest to Green. Sooner or later, he would return to the hands of the Prussian army.
Under the city of Philadelphia, watching the Continental Army surge up like a tide, Clinton was extremely anxious. After so many days of fighting, despite the support of naval artillery, the British army still suffered heavy casualties, and the British army still suffered heavy casualties.
It is not as strong as the Continental Army. Under such circumstances, different voices have emerged among the British army. Some officers believe that they should either abandon Philadelphia and evacuate to Canada by sea, or break out and head to the south to join the southern Prussian-British coalition forces.
But Clinton rejected the suggestions put forward by his staff.
Clinton knew that if he gave up the South now, even if he joined forces with the Southern Prussian Army, the Prussian-British Allied Forces would be in a very bad situation. The Continental Army that unified the North would definitely take advantage of the victory and sweep towards the South. And some
The colonies that were wavering between the British Army and the Continental Army would also change their previous attitude. After all, beating up drowned dogs is what everyone likes to do, so Clinton firmly refused to give up Philadelphia.
"Your Majesty General, the casualties of our army are too great. If this continues, I'm afraid everyone will die here."
"Dalal, what do you mean? Our soldiers are guarding British territory. They are loyal to the British King. Even if they die in battle, they will die well and with honor!"
"But your Excellency General..."
"Dalal, you don't need to say anything. My mind has been made up. I will not retreat even a step in Philadelphia. The warriors of the British King will let those shameful thieves, liars, and traitors taste the taste of failure!"
Because the original residents of the Thirteen Colonies in North America were all kinds of exiled criminals or pagans, Clinton made this statement.
"Your Majesty General, reinforcements, reinforcements are coming!"
A British soldier waved his military cap and ran quickly towards Clinton's location. Clinton and Dalal, who were in a stalemate, changed their expressions.
"What did you say? Where did the reinforcements come from?"
Clinton hurriedly asked the British soldier, and the soldier ran to Clinton, took a few deep breaths and said:
"Your Excellency, the fleet, our navy has sent a signal. Their ship carries General Cornwallis's troops from the south, but because the port was attacked by the Continental Army, the navy hopes that we can provide a safe port and then
The soldiers on the ship were dropped"
"Quick, Dalal, you personally lead two battalions to fight back the Continental Army at the port. We must land these reinforcements as soon as possible, and send a flag to the Navy to ask them to move towards the Continental Army on the right front.
Five rounds of bombardment”
Upon hearing this, Clinton immediately turned around and gave Dalal the order. Dalal also changed his previous sad expression after hearing the news of the arrival of reinforcements. He immediately responded loudly and ran away.
"Very good"
Clinton gave a high-five. Of course, he knew that the reinforcements this time would not be too many. After all, Clinton still knew the British naval power in North America. The reinforcements this time would be smaller than a few thousand people at most. But this
It is undoubtedly a shot in the arm for the current precarious situation of the British army.
Sure enough, an hour later, an unexpected figure appeared in front of Clinton, and it was Cornwallis.
"Oh, Cornwallis. You are finally here. How many people did you bring this time?"
When they met, Clinton did not exchange pleasantries with Cornwallis but went directly to the topic.
"Your Majesty General, this time I have brought 3,500 soldiers."
"Very good"
The number of people was not large, but it was still quite a lot. Three thousand five hundred people were enough for Clinton to launch a small counterattack against the Continental Army on the opposite side of the battlefield. I believe that the Continental Army must not know the news of the arrival of British reinforcements.
"By the way, where are our Prussian allies?"
Clinton suddenly remembered an extremely important issue. Without the support of Prussia, even if he received 3,500 reinforcements, he would not be able to completely defend Philadelphia. He must get support from the Prussians.
"Your Excellency, General, before I came here, Count Bruneck of the Prussian Army had a communication with me. The Prussian Army planned to capture the city of Rolie before heading north."
"Oh, what's going on?"
Clinton frowned. It was obvious that he was very eager for the arrival of the Prussian troops. It would be best if the Prussian troops appeared in front of Clinton at the next moment. I believe that the commander-in-chief would show a happy expression.
Cornwallis took a look at Clinton's face and finally decided to tell the truth.
"Your Excellency, the general is like this. There is the main force of the Southern Continental Army Greene in Luo Lie City. Count Bruneck believes that this nail must be pulled out, otherwise keeping this Continental Army will cause harm to our situation in the south.
disastrous consequences"
This answer made Clinton relax for a moment, but then he became worried again. Luo Lie City has the main force of the Southern Continental Army, so how long will it take for the Prussian army to capture Luo Lie City? You must know that the current war situation is a race for life.
If the Prussians were dragged behind the walls of Rowley, what would happen to the British troops in Philadelphia?
"Immediately send someone to contact Governor Hawkery of the West Indies. I need his assistance. Remember to ask for help in my own name this time, otherwise that damn Hawkery will definitely refuse with various excuses.
And bring all the things in the warehouse, I think Hockley will agree to my request."
Clinton said to an officer beside him, and that officer was undoubtedly Clinton's confidant.
At present, the strength of the British army in the entire North American continent is still slightly insufficient. Except for the British army under Clinton, there are only less than 3,000 British troops in Canada, while France alone has sent more than 20,000 troops to the North American continent.
people.
Now facing the unfavorable situation, Clinton must invite reinforcements as soon as possible. Currently there is only one place with enough troops, and that is the West Indies. Because Britain and France have clashed several times in the West Indies, the British army in the West Indies
India has deployed an extremely strong force, with more than 20,000 people in this army.
It's just that Clinton asked this army for help several times before, but was rejected by the commander of this army, Governor Hockry. In the parliament, Governor Hockley said innocently in the face of parliamentary questions, because the French army's
The garrison that threatens the West Indies cannot be dispatched at all, otherwise the French army will definitely seize the loophole and attack the West Indies.
Although Parliament questioned Hockley's words, the many battles that took place between Britain and France in the West Indies last year had proven France's ambitions, so Parliament no longer decided to draw troops from the West Indies to support North America.
But in the face of Clinton's anger, Hawkery just expressed his helplessness in very polite words, and then in the conversation, Hawkery hinted to Clinton that if Clinton could offer benefits that made him excited, then Hawkery would
You can make some appropriate contributions to the friendly forces.
Now the extremely dangerous war situation has made Clinton no longer care about hating the fat man Hawkley. If North America is lost in his hands, then Clinton can conclude that his political career will be over.
"But, General, there is... in the warehouse..."
"Stop talking, do as I say, don't worry about the cost, no matter how much you promise, you must bring me reinforcements!"
Although it hurts, Clinton has to do this.
The reason why the officer said so many words was that there was a priceless treasure in Clinton's warehouse, and that treasure was the famous painting "Mona Lisa Smile"
This painting fell into the hands of the ancestors of the Clinton family in the last century. However, because of the fear of the treasure causing trouble, this treasure has been kept by the Clinton family. No one except the head of the family knows this secret. But there is no airtight wall in the world.
By the time it reached Clinton's hands, the entire British upper class basically knew the ownership of this famous painting.
"Wait a minute, tell Hockley that if he wants that painting, then he must send me more than 10,000 reinforcements, otherwise I would rather the painting be turned into ashes with me!"
Clinton's determination was touching. In fact, Clinton also knew that not only Hockley, but also the entire British upper class were eyeing the famous painting in his hands. The Clinton family was already in decline, and he alone could not keep this treasure.
We all know that money moves people's hearts. If he fails in North America, Clinton believes that he will not end well after returning to London, and by then this treasure will definitely not be saved. In this case, it is better to use this treasure
Maximizing his own interests, as long as he can quell the rebellion in North America, Clinton believes that he can achieve a greater future and the Clinton family will return to the British House of Lords.