Chapter 97: Artillery Plows the Earth

With Milan falling into the hands of the French army, all of Italy lay open to them, with war supplies continuously flowing to the front lines via sea and land. Among these war supplies, a significant portion consisted of artillery shells, ensuring that the French army need not worry about running out during combat.

"Fire!"

"Yes, General." A communication officer immediately went to relay the orders.

At noon, the French gathered their artillery and launched a fierce bombardment on the outskirts of Tortona. This time, the French deployed two heavy artillery brigades and all the cannons of seven infantry divisions, totaling 80 guns of 25-pound heavy artillery, and 160 guns of 18-pound and 15-pound light howitzers.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

First, the 80 25-pound heavy howitzers opened fire, orange flames flashing at the muzzles. Accompanied by a thunderous roar, shells weighing nearly 25 pounds each whistled towards the Austrian positions. Various other calibers of cannons followed suit. For a moment, the thunderous roar echoed like thunder.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Intense explosions erupted on the Austrian positions, causing significant casualties among their troops.

The scene of hundreds of cannons firing together was truly awe-inspiring. Cannons, truly the gods of war, had held their irreplaceable position on the battlefield ever since their deployment. With Napoleon's masterful use of these weapons, they had become the dominant force on the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the Austrian artillery began to retaliate. They had deployed numerous heavy cannons in their fortresses, whose firepower was no less than that of the French 25-pounders. However, their numbers were too few to effectively impact the scattered positions of the French artillery.

"What an intense bombardment! Those Austrians are sure to be blasted to bits. When we advance, we won't face any significant resistance," Lana remarked, watching the fierce artillery fire in the distance from the forward position.

"Yes! With such intense shelling, even the rats would likely be shaken to death, let alone humans," Moro, the commander of the Second Division, agreed beside her.

Here is the English translation of the continuation:

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However, despite the intense artillery fire, Lana did not relax his vigilance. From reconnaissance scouts, he learned that the Austrians had constructed solid defensive fortifications in Tortona. He knew this battle would not be easy. The intense bombardment might not necessarily destroy the Austrian forts. If the artillery couldn't clear the obstacles, the infantry would pay a heavy price during the attack.

...

In order to destroy the Austrian fortifications and defensive works in Tortona, the French artillery bombardment continued for a full three hours. After the bombardment ceased, the forward observation teams began to assess the results. Surprisingly, despite the fierce artillery barrage, the damage to the Austrian fortifications was not severe. Only a few of the forts were destroyed, while the majority remained intact. This undoubtedly proved that the Austrian fortifications were very strong and not easily destroyed.

"The Austrian forts are very solid. The 15-pound field guns and 18-pound light howitzers are not very effective against them. Cease firing with these two types of artillery and concentrate the fire of the 25-pound heavy howitzers from the 1st and 2nd heavy artillery brigades on the Austrian forts," quickly reported the artillery observers at the front.

When the report reached Napoleon, his expression turned serious.

"Order all 15-pound field guns and 18-pound light howitzers to cease fire and conserve ammunition. The 1st and 2nd heavy artillery brigades continue firing! Focus on targeting the sturdy Austrian forts," Napoleon immediately ordered.

With Napoleon's command issued, the artillery quickly resumed firing. However, the largest number of 15-pound field guns and 18-pound light howitzers had stopped firing. These guns were too weak to pose much of a threat to the sturdy Austrian forts. Only the 25-pound heavy howitzers could barely threaten those fortifications.

...

Inside the underground command headquarters of the Austrians in Tortona, General Vasili received the report on the losses of the fortifications at the front.

Learning that despite the intense artillery barrage from the French, most of the forts on the positions remained intact, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The fall of Milan had placed immense pressure on him. After all, Milan had also had comprehensive defensive works, yet Napoleon had managed to capture it in just two days.

"Damn Frenchmen, I want to see how many shells you have to expend! When your ammunition runs out, you'll have to fill the gaps with human lives, won't you? Let's see how you handle that!" General Vasili's face was grim.

Retreating from Milan in disgrace was a humiliation for him. There were already many unfavorable rumors circulating about him within the Austrian army. This time, he would wash away this disgrace with the blood of the French.

However, General Vasili was destined for disappointment. The French army was not sparing with their ammunition at all. Although the 15-pound field guns and 18-pound field guns had ceased firing, the bombardment from the 1st and 2nd heavy artillery brigades continued unabated with their 80 large-caliber heavy cannons.

They targeted specific Austrian fortifications systematically. They concentrated their fire on a segment of the Austrian fortifications until it was destroyed, then moved on to the next target.

This approach, although it took more time and required more ammunition, effectively targeted the Austrian defensive works in Tortona.

Napoleon, having started his military career in the artillery, understood the power of heavy cannons on the battlefield. They were weapons that could change the course of battle at any moment. Therefore, from the outset, Napoleon had vigorously developed artillery.

Especially after coming to power, Napoleon had summoned craftsmen from across France and built numerous artillery factories dedicated to producing 25-pound heavy cannons. During production, Napoleon had also encouraged innovation among the craftsmen, and there were rumors that breakthroughs had been made in the development of 28-pound heavy cannons.

However, despite Napoleon's efforts in artillery development, technological advancements were gradual. Currently, the production of heavy cannons in France was extremely limited, only enough to replenish losses in two heavy artillery brigades. This was why Napoleon had only organized two heavy artillery brigades.

Firing large-caliber artillery shells required more gunpowder, which caused significant wear on the rifling of the cannon barrels. Often, a cannon barrel could be rendered unusable after a short period of use. Nevertheless, French factories were still able to meet the basic demands on the battlefield.

Therefore, the heavy artillery units had enough confidence to directly use heavy cannons to smash the sturdy Austrian fortifications, gradually destroying all of them piece by piece.

Tortona truly lived up to being a labor of love for the Austrians. The intense French artillery bombardment on Tortona lasted a full five days. During these five days, the French artillery never ceased firing. A rough estimate suggested that they had fired at least a ton of shells during this time.

The shells fired from the heavy cannons plowed through the Austrian fortifications on the outskirts of Tortona. Over ninety percent of the forts and bunkers were destroyed, with only a very small number surviving in blind spots from the artillery fire. However, these remaining fortifications were few in number and posed little obstacle to the upcoming French assault.

"We've used a ton of shells just on Tortona alone! If we were to attack Venice or Southern Italy, that number would multiply, which is quite worrisome!" Napoleon said, furrowing his brow.

After the French artillery cleared the outer fortifications of Tortona, it meant that the final assault was about to begin, prompting Napoleon to join the battlefield himself.

On one hand, this allowed him to observe the battlefield situation more keenly, and on the other hand, it boosted the morale of the soldiers.

"There's no other choice! Without using a large amount of heavy artillery, we'd have to fill the gaps with human lives. It's better to solve problems with shells than to let the soldiers fight desperately," Lana said helplessly.