The Prussia of The South - A Portuguese TL

[Karolus Rex]

Before I post the Prelude of this new TL, I will answer a few self made questions.

Q. Why haven't you updated your current TL?

A. Writer's block, tests and did I mentioned Writer's block?

Q. Are you abandoning your current TL?

A. Absolutely no. I will put it on hiatus and I expect to do a complete rewrite of the TL in December, mostly because I fell like I made too many changes and eliminated some ideas, that now that I think about it would make more sense than what is written.

Q. What is this about?

A. This is a TL that starts right after the end of the War of Oranges. And the main POD is that General von der Goltz is able to pass his reforms, that in OTL were blocked.

Q. Wait a minute. General von der Goltz? Wasn't von der Goltz a WW1 Field Marshal? And isn't this suposed to be a Portuguese TL?

A. This is a Portuguese TL, it might even fall into the spectrum of a Portuguese Wank but it will be more like "Portugal doesn't do the wrong choices all the time and sometimes their leaders decide to use their little grey cells", and von der Goltz, not the famous one but another von der Goltz (Karl-Alexander von der Goltz not Colmar Freiherr von der Goltz). And this von der Goltz was a Prussian officer that had served in the Danish Army before being hired by the Portuguese Army.

Q. So are this reforms really that important?

A. The reforms made AFTER we were invaded by Boney were the ones that von der Goltz saw blocked, so I guess they are important.

Q. Ok. When will you start?

A. I have a test tomorrow at 17h, so around tomorrow night or the day past I will post the Prelude and Chapter One. (The Prelude is basically finished, just like some chapters but I have to do some extra research to ensure maximum plausibility).​

Now if you want so more foresight into this new adventure of mine see this thread I made some time ago https://www.alternatehistory.com/discussion/showthread.php?t=370552.

My fonts of knowledge come from http://www.napoleon-series.org/, http://www.peninsularwar.org/penwar_e.htm and several books about the Portuguese Army on the Peninsular War and on the politics in the Napoleonic Wars. If any of you know any other source please post it, extra knowledge is always useful.

So I hope you like the idea and let's see how this goes.

Extra Online Sources:

http://www.arqnet.pt
http://napoleonistyka.atspace.com/
http://www.revistamilitar.pt
http://www.losarapiles.com/
http://www.peninsularwar.org
http://marinhadeguerraportuguesa.blogspot.pt

 

[johnfox77]

So, how much longer will it take?

 

[MorningDew]

Will there be any issue over Galacia?

 

[Karolus Rex]

So, how much longer will it take?

Sorry about that but it took me until TODAY to confirm that the Secretary of War and Foreign Affairs, Luis Pinto de Sousa, hadn't been in the office during von der Goltz time in Portugal.

It might not look like much but Luis Pinto was an advocate that the men should be promoted in the army according to merit and valor and the incressing of the professionalization of the Portuguese Army.

So another POD will be that his time in the office will be extended.

Will there be any issue over Galacia?

Are you referring to Galicia? If so there will be more problems about Olivenza and Uruguay than Galicia.

 

[unprincipled peter]

a naive question:

why does your prelude and the linked post both start with what looks like a schizophrenic argument with yourself?

 

[The Professor]

a naive question:

why does your prelude and the linked post both start with what looks like a schizophrenic argument with yourself?

It's from the TimeLine In A Day/Week/Month (TLIAD etc) fad that's going around at the mo. Usually used to jokingly question some of your TL decisions...

 

[Karolus Rex]

Now after some delays, mostly because I had forgot were I had placed my main book source "O Exército Português na guerra Peninsular", here is the Prelude.

P.S. - For those wondering this is a Timeline In as Much Time as Is needed .

P.P.S - The poems were made in Portuguese, so sorry if they don't rime/sound stupid in English.

P.P.P.S - Damn to many post scriptum, but I need to point this. In term of language, even if this written in English, the people would be mostly talking either Portuguese or French and sometimes German, but I will try to point it out.

P.P.P.P.S - thanks to machine3589 for editing my original, and crude, text, I have now changed the text with the new Edited Version.

*****

Prelude

Sometimes is good to lose a War.​

Salvador de Portugal
General valente e imortal

Esperança nos deste
Orgulho nos recuperaste

Liderai agora os vossos leais Lusitanos
Na vossa luta contra os Francos

Savior of Portugal
Brave and immortal General

Hope you offered us
Our Pride you recovered

Lead now your loyal Lusitanians
On your fight again the Franks
​

Epitaph written by Almeida Garrett, to the Marshal-General of the Portuguese Army, Karl-Alexander von der Goltz, Marquis of Villavelha​

*****​

General von der Goltz was outraged.

Why? He asked himself. Why must I care for those fools if they refuse to see what is right in front of their eyes?

He had been hired by the Portuguese to reform their Army, and for that he had begun to analyse the Army`s last two campaigns. What he had found out was terrifying.

In Roussillon the men of Exército Auxiliar à Coroa de Espanha, the Auxiliary Army to the Crown of Spain, had proven their worth. The men had fought hard and had showed their Spanish allies that they were as good as their best.

No, the problem weren't the men, of that von der Goltz was sure. The problem were the officers.

In Roussillon most of the officers, and especially a young upstart named Gomes Freire de Andrade, had proven that they were little more than fools. From what he had found out most of the trouble in that campaign had been created by the rift between de Andrade and John Forbes.

As far von der Goltz was concerned not one man had managed to prove himself of the lot that had fought there.

Had they been in the Prussian Army, he thought, they would be lucky if Der Alte Fritz didn't shoot them himself.

And as if that hadn’t been proof enough of how badly they needed to change their ways, there was the more recent War of the Oranges. And for that von der Goltz had no need to make an inquiry, for he had seen their incompetence. And the soldiers, most likely still feeling the effects of Roussillon, had not shown any will to fight for their own country!

He had pointed it all out to the committee. The Prussian had put it very clearly to them.

The men were good, they had proven their worth, but treating them like garbage was obviously counterproductive. The officers had to stop being promoted solely because of their aristocratic blood. Reforms had to be made, light troops had to be trained and a new officers corps had to be created.

Such ideas would be considered revolutionary, at least in Portugal, in the best of times. But in an age where the French Republic was the dominant power in Europe, this sounded too much like an attack to the holy rights of the Nobility to the General`s ears.

The Marquis of Alorna had been completely against the plans and had found support in the British mercenaries serving in the Portuguese Army.

And now von der Goltz had just found out that all of his work had been for nothing, as the committee had been crystal clear. The reforms were refused and he had just been sidelined by the Anglo-Portuguese Generals.

He tried to ignore the pain that the refusal had inflicted on him. During his time as Frederick the Great`s militar secretary, von der Goltz had learned to feel pride in his work and he knew he had done his duty well. Not that it mattered of course. Those fools only cared about their own personal gains.

Well. He thought after a sigh. I did my duty and it appears that because of it I am no longer welcomed here. Better to resign this commission and return to Prussia.

At the thought of Prussia, an image of his homeland came to his mind.

Yes. I might do just that.

*****​

The Prince Regent was analyzing the last details of the Peace treaty when his personal secretary entered the office.

"Your Grace, General von der Goltz would like to have a word."

At hearing the man's name, the Prince immediately knew who he was. Which, even the Prince had to admit, was notable. For in the midst of so many foreign mercenaries in his Army, it was common that a Prussian officer, even one that had been the Militar Secretary of Frederick of Prussia, would pass almost undetected to the Royals.

But the Secretary of War had spoken highly of him, going as far as calling him "The only General that knows what needs to be done and how to do it".

"Tell the General to enter." He ordered.

While waiting for the Prussian to enter, his mind drifted to the reforms that he had proposed. The Prince had been fascinated by them, especially the idea of creating light infantry regiments in the light of the Prussian Jägers.

Many of the ideas could be considered revolutionary, and that had been most likely the reason John Forbes had refused to accept them. The Prince sighed. De Sousa was right, as he usually was, the Army had come a long way from the time were men like the Marquis of Marialva and the Marquis of Minas had taken command.

And he had no doubt that the Portuguese Army was the laughing stock of Europe now.

But, if God allowed, he would change that.

For himself, for God, but most importantly for Portugal.

*****​

"Your Grace. The General, Count Karl-Alexander von der Goltz,." Presented the secretary.

"Please General, take a seat." Said the Prince Regent.

For a moment von der Goltz took the time to consider the man who sat in front of him.

Dom John of Portugal, Prince of Brazil, Duke of Braganza and Beja and currently Prince Regent of Portugal, was a man in his middle thirties and despite the rumors he was still fit for his age and rank. He might not have the physique required for a soldier, but there was something in him that gave von der Goltz the felling that this man had more in him that what the exterior showed.

The Prince was the first to break the silence.

"My personal secretary tells me that you wished to talk to me Count."

Surprisingly he spoke in German, something for which von der Goltz was more than thankful for. He still hadn`t learned Portuguese; to his ears it sounded far too much like Russian, and his French was too rusty and he was painfully aware of his excruciating accent.

"As your Grace probably knows, the Army Committee, presided by General Forbes-Skelater, has decided that my proposals were unfit." He said in a neutral tone. Noting that the Prince wasn't going to speak, he continued.

"With my the refusal of my plans and with several of the other senior officers openly hostile to my criticism, I have decided to present to your Grace my letter of resignation."

For a long moment the Prince looked at him and once again von der Goltz felt something. The Prince appeared impassible but his eyes sent another message.

"I am afraid I will not accept it." The Prince stopped von der Goltz before he spoke again. "In three days I am going to Badajoz and there I will have the unpleasant duty of signing a Treaty that will force me to cede Portuguese soil to the Spaniards."

The Prince stopped for a moment, but when he spoke again his voice was harder than ever.

"The Secretary of War and I have both read your report and your recommendations and we agree with them. Unfortunately this last conflict has removed much influence from the Secretary and it will take considerable effort to keep him in his office. I might be unable to help you now, but give me one year General, and I promise that you will have carte blanche to do as you wish."

Von der Goltz was speechless. He had arrived at Queluz thinking that there would be at lest some resistance to his resignation, but the idea that both the Prince and the War Secretary approved of his ideas and plans had never crossed his mind. And now the Prince had promised him carte blanche and all he had to do was wait a year.

"One year, General, and you will have free hand to create an Army that will protect my Nation. What do you say?"

Before answering one thought came to von der Goltz`s mind.

I better start to learn bloody Portuguese.

 

[machine3589]

Cool start, but the English in more than a few parts of the update is a bit off. If you want I can do a few edits and send you a polished version.

 

[Karolus Rex]

Cool start, but the English in more than a few parts of the update is a bit off. If you want I can do a few edits and send you a polished version.

My English ain't the best, so if you could do that I would deeply appreciate it.

 

[Nivek]

IF the grand daddy of the cold baron didn't knew Portuguese which language he talked to the king? french? latin?.

Wonder which other repercutions will have it long term, maybe portugal gaining spanish terriotry? alliance with prussia?

 

[Karolus Rex]

IF the grand daddy of the cold baron didn't knew Portuguese which language he talked to the king? french? latin?.

French was the Lingua Franca at the time and von der Goltz might be no Voltaire but he can still communicate in French.

Wonder which other repercutions will have it long term, maybe portugal gaining spanish terriotry? alliance with prussia?

Need to keep this secrete for now. But the most important repercussion will be that the Peninsular war will develop in a very different way, now that Portugal will gain an efficient and modern army, at the time of the invasions.

 

[machine3589]

My English ain't the best, so if you could do that I would deeply appreciate it.

I sent the edited version on a PM.

 

[Unknown]

Waiting for more...

 

[Karolus Rex]

Waiting for more...

Good to know , but unfortunately I have a biomatematics exam tomorrow and Friday I have another one of Organic Chemistry .

Can't promise I will post during the week, but in the weekend I certainly will.

 

[Deus Asmodeus]

Please continue. The premises is most welcome. And truly, I hope that Portugal does not fall to democracy. An Absolutist Portugal is always welcome.

 

[Karolus Rex]

Where is the update.

Sorry for the lack of punctuation, and orthographic mistakes. I will address that problem as soon as possible, but I just didn't add time to add the necessary comas and to do review of the text.

This update was now edited courtesy of mister Unknown, thanks a lot mate you just saved.

Next update, can't make any promises but I will try to have until Wednesday and I will go back to the third person narrative. I will keep changing between the third person perspective and the world narrative depending on the situation.

******​

Reforms, Military Coups and Conspiracy
(1801-1806)​

The Royal Hunters in their distinguished brown uniforms.​

The years after the infamous War of the Oranges were hard ones for the small nation of Portugal.

While the rest of Europe was embroiled into a war with Napoleonic France, Portugal was trying to reform its military, while avoiding being dragged into the conflict.

Under the guidance of General Karl-Alexander von der Goltz, the Portuguese Army begun the creation of a corps of light troops called Caçadores Reais (or Royal Hunters; RH for sheet). Recruited from among volunteers from the northern border regions of the country, the Hunters would soon gain a reputation as one of the best units of light soldiers in Europe. Armed with muskets, these men were trained to become expert marksmen and the best among them were usual group together to form an elite company called Atiradores (or Shoters) after the French Tirailleur, and they were armed with German Jäger rifles.

From the three original battalions created in the middle of 1802, the Royal Hunters would grow to form a force of 16 battalions during the Peninsular War.

But the Hunters were not the only light corps created in Portugal.

The growing competition inside the Portuguese officer corps was divided, with the Prussianos (Prussians) being named as such due to their support for von der Goltz and the Anglo-Portuguese conservatives caused the conservatives to create their own light battalions, which were named the Legião de Tropas Ligeiras (the Legion of Light Troops, LLT).

A mixed formation with cavalry and artillery included, the LLT was an experimental force, with its infantry being inspired by the Experimental Corps of Riflemen and, as such, their infantry were equipped with the soon to be famous Baker rifle.

With the Portuguese Army now having three battalions of the RH and three legions of the LLT, the need for light infantry had ended and just in time for, in 1803, a military coup, led by Gomes Freire de Andrade and the Marquis of Alorna, took place.

The two men thought that the Prussian general was only reinforcing the power of the absolutist regime, so they conspired to remove him from office and, also, force the Prince Regent to accept a constitution.

On July 24th, the 10th Infantry Regiment, led by Freire de Andrade, took up arms and marched against the Royal Army Arsenal. At the same time, the 2nd Legion of the LLT, commanded by the Marquis of Alorna, begua their march from Amadora to Queluz to capture the Prince Regent.

Unfortunately for them, the recently created Guarda Real da Polícia (Royal Guard of the Police, RGP) and the 1st Artillery Regiment stayed loyal to the regime, fought the insurgents, and was able to warn the royal family of the danger.

The Prince immediately sent word to von der Goltz and ordered him to raise as many loyal regiments as possible to quell the rebellion. Luckily for the royalists, a single messenger was able to pass through the rebels.

When news reached the general who, at the time, was in Santarém to evaluate the readiness of the 10th Cavalry Regiment, he immediately ordered the Regiment to prepare to for battle.

While the 10th Cavalry Regiment was preparing to advance to crush the revolt, von der Goltz sent a squadron to Setubal, with orders for the 7th Infantry Regiment to come to his support.

Some more messengers were sent to the other units of the Divisão Centro (Central Division) but, at the time, the loyalists only had the 10th Calvary Regiment and the men of the Royal Guard at their disposal; the Royal Guard, at the time, was under siege in Queluz with the royal family.

As the men under the Marquis were trying to capture the Royal Palace, the soldiers of the 10th Infantry Regiment were meeting harder resistance than they expected, with the RGP and the 1st Artillery Regiment being able to expel them from several parts of the Portuguese capital.

On August 1st, one week after beginning of the coup, von der Goltz entered Lisbon in front of the 10th Calvary Regiment and, with the help of the loyal soldiers inside the city, managed to capture Gomes Freire, forcing the 10th Infantry Regiment to surrender. At around the same time, the 7th Infantry Regiment clashed with the 2nd Legion. While the Legion had the advantage of being armed with rifles, the 7th Infantry Regiment was able successfully force them to retreat before being stopped by a combined attack of Hussars and cannon fire.

Seeing their companions fighting outside the Royal Palace, the Royal Guards, composed of the Royal Guard of Archers and the Royal Guard of Ginetes, left the protection of the Palace and attacked the rebels in the flank.

Being faced with the opposition of a full regiment and an attack on their flank, the 2nd Legion began to retreat and was eventually corned.

With ammunition growing sparse, the men of the Marquis are forced to surrender, ending the rebellion.

The military coup of 1803 ends in disaster for the rebels, with the Prince Regent losing whatever liberal sympathies he might had and with the support of General, now promoted to the rank of Marshal-General of the Army, von der Goltz.

As for the rebels, the regime decides to disband the 10th Infantry Regiment, with the soldiers being sent to Africa and Timor. The LLT was also disbanded. The 2nd Legion suffered the same fate as the men of the 10th, with the other two Legions being converted into Hunter Battalions.

The ringleaders were found guilty of treason, were dismissed from the army, and were sent into exile under penalty of death if they ever set foot into any land under Portuguese rule.

After this, the Prince Regent approved the formation of the Estado-Maior do Exército (or General-Staff of the Army; GSA, for short) headed by the Marshal-General of the Army and with the Marshal of the Army as his second-in-command.

The GSA, at the time of its foundation, was led by von der Goltz, with Forbes-Skelater as second-in-command.

The two men leading the GSA had, for all that is known, a troubled relationship and, after a year, Forbes would retire and the position of second-in-command was passed to the Count of Vioménil.

During the remaining years, the soldiers of the Primeira Linha (or 1st Line) were reorganized and retrained. In the end, Portugal had twenty-four regiments of line infantry, for a total of fifty thousand men. These were made up of twelve regiments of cavalry, representing 7,356 soldiers, and four artillery regiments, representing 4,400 men, making the total strength of the First Line of the Portuguese Army at home 61,756 soldiers divided between three divisions.

The Hunters and other special formations were not accounted in the numbers of the First Line but, rather, were part of the Guards Division. During the Peninsular War, and with the growing number of Hunter battalions, the Guards were divided into two divisions: the Divisão de Guardas Ligeiros (or Light Guards Division) and the Divisão Ligeira (or Light Division).

Another change happened in the troops of the Second Line. The men from this part of the army served in the militia and, with the implementation of conscription in 1804, the second line was divided into Batalhões de Conscriptos e Batalhões de Milicias (or Battalions of Conscripts and Battalions of Militias). With a growing need for soldiers, the state began to perform a census every ten years. The objective was to know how many men between the ages of 16 to 45 were in the country and were able to serve in the Conscript Battalions.

The third line, known as the Ordernanças, was kept unmodified.

It was in 1804 that the reorganization of the officer corps occurred. In 1803, the Royal Military College was founded in Lisbon and artillery schools were opened in all the capitals of the military governorships. The plan was to have a completely professional (and competent) officer corps, that would gradually replace the older and ineffective mercenary and aristocratic high command.

This and several other measures passed by the Secretary of War and Foreign Affairs, Luís Pinto de Sousa Coutinho, were vital for the good performance of the Army.

One of the most important measures was the standardization of the promotions. Until then, promotion in the Portuguese Army was only acquired by either patronage or bribes. Now, commissions were opened to sergeants and other non-commissioned officers, the Royal Army and Navy Academy were now opened to the bourgeois and, more importantly, promotions and other rewards were now given on the basis of merit and competence.

Needless to say, these changes enraged many of the aristocrats in the Army and they now found themselves forced to prove their worth.

It was in the midst of this that a palace conspiracy was formed and led by the Princess Regent. The objective was to remove her husband, Prince João, from the regency by claiming him to be mentally incapable and, then, she would assume the regency.

Luckily for the prince, one of the conspirators, the Marquis of Ponte de Lima, lost heart and told him all about the conspiracy.

At the palace of Mafra, where the conspirators usually gathered, the 4th Battalion of the Royal Hunters, under the command of the Lieutenant Colonel Silveira, captured the ringleaders.

For the Prince, this was the last straw. His relationship with his wife had always been a stormy one and the conspiracy of Mafra only served to poison him even more against her. He ordered her to be placed under confinement and began to plan his divorce.

Also during the period from 1801 to 1806, agrarian and industrial reforms were passed. To avoid the need of British food to feed the populace, protectionist measures were passed. The arsenals of both the Army and the Navy were upgraded and expanded. Under royal decree, the amount of land allowed to the production of vineyards was established and the production of potatoes, corn, and other cereals were encouraged, with several royal subsides being granted. Of course all of this had a stain into the finances of the state, but Brazilian gold was used to pay for the expenses.

Brazil also saw some changes during this time. A Royal Military Academy and a Naval School were created in Rio de Janeiro to prepare colonial officers. Colonial troops were also raised. To provide the necessary supplies for the growing armies in both Brazil and Portugal, food and weapons production was encouraged, with several arsenals being built in the colonies to provide the necessary muskets, cannons, and gunpowder in case of war in both Europe and the Americas.

Needless to say, these reforms were seen very badly by the British government, which had long considered Portugal to be little more than one of their puppet states, but the growing power of France forced them to stay still.

So, at the dawn of the War of the Fourth Coalition the Portuguese state had been changed.

From a weak country, the Portuguese state had (ironically, given the conservative and peaceful nature of their rulers) been transformed into a more liberal and militarist country.

But their time of grace had ended.

Napoleon had been concerned with other matters in northern Europe, but the idea of a more powerful Portugal was something he hadn't thought of.

The French general, Lannes, had been appointed the representative of France in the Portuguese court. His porpoise had been that to bully Portugal into submission. Unfortunately for him, the Prince Regent, under the guidance of the Marshal General and the Secretary of War, was able to successfully outmaneuver the arrogant Lannes. In the end, all of his bullying only served to put Portugal even more distrustful of France and to place them into the British field.

Lannes had presented the Portuguese Army as a ragged bunch of soldiers led by idiots. Trusting him, Napoleon sent an ultimatum to Portugal. They were to close their ports to the British, disband their army, place their navy under Spanish control, and to place the northern part of the country under French rule.

In Lisbon, the decision was unanimous. The ultimatum was refused and mobilization of the three lines of the Army was called.

When the news of the refusal arrived at Paris, Napoleon, at the time preparing to face the Fourth Coalition, ordered Spain to invade Portugal.

So on September 27th, a date soon to become infamous, two divisions of the Spanish Army crossed the Portuguese-Spanish border and advanced against Elvas.

The Peninsular War had begun.

 

[Karolus Rex]

Once again many thanks to Unknown for correcting my many grammatical and orthographic mistakes.

*****​

First Battle of Elvas

(September 28 - 1 October, 1806)​

Part One​

Rodrigo was thrilled.

The Spanish patrol had fallen into the trap, without suspecting what was about to happen to them.

Around the fifteen Spaniards, there were almost fifty men of the ordenanças, all of them armed. Some, like Rodrigo, had outdated muskets, others brought knifes, others had edged weapons, and he had even seen some men armed with bows.

"Pass the word for wait for my signal before attacking." he whispered to the man to his right.

He checked to ensure that everything was alright with the musket and took aim at the officer.

The man leading the cavalrymen was clearly an aristocrat. No officer on a soldier’s pay would be able to afford such a good horse and such much gold on the uniform.

The man was a peacock.

And the moment Rodrigo pulled the trigger he was a dead one.

Barely a second after the first shot was fired, the woods were covered with smoke, as more men pressed their triggers.

Not wanting to give time for the Spaniards to recover, the Portuguese ordenanças left their cover and charged with cold steel in their hands.

Fifteen men of the Hussares de Maria Luísa had entered the woods; not one left them.

*****​

"The Spanish are moving their men using this road here, sir." said the captain, before pointing at a road on the map. "From what we could gather, sir, the Spanish are moving some six to ten regiments of the line and at least two regiments of guards. Some reports even tell us that some of the supposed line regiments might actually be light infantry regiments, but we still haven't been able to ensure the veracity of the information."

"How much cavalry do they have?" asked Colonel Lecor.

"Their cavalry was being cut down by the ordenanças, according to some of the reports, and one of the companies reported to have killed some of them; from the description they gave of their weapons and uniforms, I dare say they brought at least one regiment of Hussars."

"And artillery?"

"Probably one battery of artillery but, given their numbers, I wouldn't put it past them to have brought more."

For a moment, Lecor turned his attention to the map in front of him and the pieces that represented the Spanish regiments. For now, he knew he had at least one division in front of him, but he had received intelligence that the Spanish had begun their offensive with two divisions.

So, where in hell was the other one, he thought to himself.

"Do you have any news as to where the other division might be?"

"No, sir." The captain seemed annoyed for not having found them. "If I may be so bold, sir, would you mind a suggestion?"

Lecor simply nodded and the captain began to move some of the pieces.

"We know, sir, that the Divisão Solano is moving towards Elvas. So wouldn't it be possible for them to be moving against Estremoz or Évora?"

"Yes, but they would leave us behind them and they would need more than two batteries to gun down the fortress."

"But, sir, what if they think that that is they need to capture the citadel?" Seeing that the senior officer wasn't following, he explained. "During the last war, they advanced without any opposition. Maybe they expect the same thing to happen again…"

"So they will think a simple show of force will bully us into surrender."

"Exactly, sir."

"Thank you, captain, for you toughs. You are dismissed."

The captain hadn't still left the room and Lecor's mind was already thinking about how to stop the Spanish.

He only had one brigade and cavalry regiment to face the enemy, made up of a mere three thousand infantry, supported by five hundred cavalry, and the enemy numbered some ten thousand, as far as he knew, and they had field artillery support; this was something he lacked and couldn't hope to get in time from Estremoz.

The situation wasn't perfect, Lecor knew that but, for an ambitious man like himself, a difficult situation could easily be turned into a chance to gain glory and rank, if he had the balls to gamble with an ambitious plan.

He began to plan, where he could stop their advance.

The Spanish general had taken the long route towards Elvas. He had crossed the Guadiana and, then, advanced towards Campo Maior. They could have crossed the Guadiana and, then, the Caga River, but that would force them to leave the artillery behind and, if what the captain said was true, they wanted to do a show of force, and artillery was usually more threatening than cavalry and infantry alone.

If he left now, he would be able to capture the crossing, and artillery could be brought from Elvas, but it would take at least a full day for the huge pieces to be brought into position. And there was always the other crossing, but the militias could probably take care of that; some guns could even be sent to aid them.

Lecor then noticed a problem in his plan.

He had forgotten about the other Spanish division.

Maybe it was that division that was moving from the other crossing, but if what the captain's idea was proven right: then the Spanish would be crossing into Portugal further south, leaving him to face one single division.

It was a gamble, but it was one he was willing to take.

*****​

Lieutenant General Francisco Solano y Ruyz, the Marquis del Socorro y de la Solana, was enraged.

He had expected an easy and calm advance towards Portugal, with little resistance facing his army.

How wrong he had been.

His regiment of Hussards had been almost wiped out by those bandits, or the men the Portuguese called ordenanças. He had even lost some of his guns because of the annoying little men.

And, now, four thousand Portuguese soldiers had dared, dared, to stop him from crossing into the other bank of the river.

Solano could order his men to cross further north or south, but he would be damned if he was going to allow those good for nothing Portuguese to stop him from conquering their country.

So, he had ordered his men to advance, with orders to crush and rout the Portuguese force.

The regiments he had selected had been the best in his division. The two Guards battalions he had included the famous Walloon Guards and the Andalusian Grenadiers.

This constituted three thousand soldiers of his Most Catholic Majesty's Army, against an equal number of Portuguese soldiers.

And they had failed.

They had been pushed back with huge casualties. The Portuguese had fired volley after volley of musket fire without taking a breath. Most of his soldiers had been unable to arrive to the other bank and, with the water almost to their arms, they had been unable to fire back against the blue-clothed infantry.

It had been a massacre. One shouldn't have happened, if only the Portuguese had just played their role and, after a couple of shots to save face, they had surrendered to him.

But, now, he was going to teach them.

The artillery was still on the road but, tomorrow, he was going to batter those idiots into oblivion.

Tomorrow, they would learn to fear their betters.

 

[r1ncewind]

great chapters!

 

[unprincipled peter]

I like.

However....
isn't Joao's diehard conservatism at odds with these liberal reforms? and it goes against the general trend of the times. I'd rather see him go the other direction. But it is good to see him grow a set of cojones. OTL, he was rather up and down in that regard.
Carlotta went for a palace coup during the War of Oranges. Don't think she's going to be ignored to foment another plot. OTL, she was suspected in Joao's poisoning, and she was a thorn in his side for most of his rule. If anyone deserves a push down a flight of stairs, she does. the flight to Brazil is probably going to be avoided, but she was a pain in the butt there, too.
I don't see Portugal going from a pathetic excuse of military ineptitude (apologies for being so harsh on your homeland) to anything resembling a minor power in such a short time. but, it's a fun what if, so go for it.

 

[Karolus Rex]

I like.

However....
isn't Joao's diehard conservatism at odds with these liberal reforms? and it goes against the general trend of the times. I'd rather see him go the other direction. But it is good to see him grow a set of cojones. OTL, he was rather up and down in that regard.

About the consevatism given that he was a follow the current kind of guy I think that if a man with a strong personality (aka the secretary of war) was with him he would approve anything.

About the cojones well he isn't a coward actually he was a brave man but liked peace. In this TL the warmongers rule not the pacifists so...

Carlotta went for a palace coup during the War of Oranges. Don't think she's going to be ignored to foment another plot. OTL, she was suspected in Joao's poisoning, and she was a thorn in his side for most of his rule. If anyone deserves a push down a flight of stairs, she does. the flight to Brazil is probably going to be avoided, but she was a pain in the butt there, too.

The coup actually happened, I didn't created one. She did a coup attempt after the war of oranges in OTL so i thought she would try in TTL.

I don't see Portugal going from a pathetic excuse of military ineptitude (apologies for being so harsh on your homeland) to anything resembling a minor power in such a short time. but, it's a fun what if, so go for it.

´
Once again I didn't created any line, cavalry or artillery regiments that didn't existed in OTL in 1806. The only difference is the consolidation of the hunter companies into battalions (that happened in OTL but in this TL it occurred sooner) and the transformation of the Legion of Light Troops into Hunters. In OTL Portugal paid salaries to the men I said it had in TTL but most than half either didn't existed or were useless. More in OTL Portugal did a complete reconstruction of his army during war time and managed to create a powerful army.