Ultimately, Maximilian I, thoroughly fed up with the stagnant proceedings of the Imperial Diet, began to move independently. A force composed of the Habsburg family’s private army and the private soldiers of loyalist lords began to march toward Lorraine. However, their march was anything but smooth.
Most of the lords whose territories lay along their route were uncooperative. This was, of course, true for the lords who followed the new denominations, but even Catholic-believing lords frequently refused to cooperate.
‘This action was not decided by the Imperial Diet, therefore we have no obligation to support it!’
This was the reason they proffered. Because of this, the army that had set out from Habsburg lands had to procure necessary supplies, including food, at its own expense.
“This is treason!”
Maximilian I roared in anger when he received the report, but that was all he could do. To take one step further would be to make an enemy of the entire Imperial Diet, which would be the worst possible outcome. And the Imperial Diet, including the seven Prince-Electors, had already sent Maximilian I a warning.
‘We have no obligation to support a military action not agreed upon by the Diet.’ ‘Even the Emperor cannot coerce the lords.’
“Dammit… The enemy was within.”
Maximilian I ground his teeth as he read the Diet’s notification. After reading it again, teeth still clenched, he let out a long sigh and looked around at his vassals.
“Hooo~. Behold. This is the treatment the Holy Roman Emperor receives.”
The vassals all bowed their heads in silence, sensing the thick anger radiating from his words.
“Hooo~.”
Letting out another long sigh, Maximilian I gave his command. “Tell Count Tilly: ‘You must win, no matter what.'”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The commander of the Habsburg army heading for Lorraine was Count Tilly. He was a devout Catholic and a loyal vassal of the Habsburg family. After giving the order to Count Tilly, Maximilian I turned his gaze out the window and muttered, “We must win this war. Only then can I suppress those high-nosed bastards who control the Imperial Diet.”
Maximilian I ground his teeth as he thought of the nobles in the Diet who thwarted him at every turn.
Meanwhile, Count Tilly, having received Maximilian I’s order from a messenger, gave a bitter smile. “I’ve received no easy command.”
The force he currently led numbered approximately 40,000, including cavalry, infantry, and artillery. It was a considerable force, but the French army already in Lorraine numbered over 30,000 and was continuing to grow. The only saving grace was that the French forces were scattered across three different areas within Lorraine.
If he could destroy them piecemeal before they could regroup, he had a chance of victory. But this was by no means an easy operation. It was something that could only succeed with rapid maneuver and concentration of firepower. However, looking at the Habsburg army’s current situation, this was next to impossible.
As mentioned before, almost no one was helping them. After confirming the order from Maximilian I, Count Tilly assessed his army’s situation, picked up a pen, and began to write a letter. The contents of the letter, addressed to his lord Maximilian I, could be summarized as follows:
‘I am confident I can win the first one or two battles. But I have no confidence in what comes after.’ ‘I will do my utmost to inflict damage on the French. However, I cannot guarantee victory.’ ‘In the end, the final victory will be decided by diplomacy.’
***
When Count Tilly’s Habsburg army arrived in Lorraine, the French army had already moved more than 50,000 troops into the region. However, the French forces were dispersed between Metz, Verdun (Virten), and Toul. These areas were the former bishoprics. And in the future, they would be French land.
‘There is no need to scatter our forces to unnecessary places and bleed needlessly.’ ‘The Habsburg army will have to come here anyway. Why? Because we are here.’
While they had avoided unnecessary dispersal of their forces, the deployment of 15,000 to 20,000 troops in each location meant they were at a numerical disadvantage compared to the advancing Habsburg army. France was well aware of this, but they did not expect to be defeated. They had learned a few things from the Empire during the last Italian War.
‘Urban warfare is now the dominant trend, not siege warfare.’ ‘In a pitched battle on open ground, maneuver warfare is impossible due to barbed wire and trenches. Such battles must be decided by firepower.’
Although they had paid an expensive tuition fee in the form of massive casualties, France had transformed itself into an Imperial-style army faster than anyone else. Armed with large quantities of cannons, hwacha (rocket-arrow carts), and sohwacha (small-arms carts), the French army was burning with fighting spirit despite their numerical inferiority.
‘We might lose once. But even if those bastards win, it won’t be a true victory for them!’
The battle that followed unfolded similarly to what both Count Tilly and the French had expected, yet differently. The first battle, which took place in Metz, the easternmost of the former bishoprics, was a fierce urban engagement. The Habsburg and French armies clashed in a bloody, seesawing battle over control of the bridges crossing the Moselle River, which flowed through the city of Metz.
In this urban warfare, the sohwacha—the submachine gun—which was the French army’s secret weapon, shone. Though a sohwacha was overwhelmingly smaller than a hwacha, it suppressed the enemy by pouring out a hail of bullets in a short time. However, the Habsburg army they were facing was not the same one that had backstabbed Venice in Italy.
This Habsburg army was armed with long rifles copied from the Florentine long rifle and hwachas copied from the standard-issue hwacha, and they countered the French by ‘carving a path with cannonballs’. In the end, after a bloody battle that stained the streets and walls of Metz with blood, the French army, having sustained heavy losses, was forced to retreat from Metz to Verdun.
The Habsburg army was in no better shape. The textbook military strategy was to pursue a retreating enemy and expand one’s gains, but the Habsburg army that had captured Metz had no strength left to do so. Count Tilly focused on resting his tired and wounded troops to restore their strength, while simultaneously sending a dispatch to Maximilian I pleading for aid.
***
Count Tilly did not just sit idle. First, he strengthened security to prevent the Habsburg army’s true condition from being known. Next, he dispatched spies in all directions to start spreading rumors throughout the Lorraine region.
‘I heard the French army took massive losses in Metz!’ ‘They say the reason the Imperial army is resting in Metz is to prevent unnecessary bloodshed!’ ‘I heard the Imperial army will soon attack the other areas where the French army is staying!’ ‘I heard the Emperor promised to show mercy as long as no one cooperates with the French! They say this was already settled with the Imperial Diet!’
The rumors spread by the spies shook the lords of Lorraine. It was clear that France had suffered a major defeat and withdrawn from Metz. It was said the Habsburgs had also taken heavy losses, but this was uncertain. At this, the lords once again calculated their profits and losses.
‘France is powerful, but the Emperor is also powerful.’ ‘He is at odds with the Imperial Diet now, but if he reaches an agreement with them, the situation will change again.’ ‘In that case?’
The lords of Lorraine, calculating their interests this way and that, slowly began to make their move. First, the Catholic lords began to actively support the Habsburg army. Soon, carts loaded with large quantities of food and medical supplies began to flood into the city of Metz.
On the other hand, the lords who followed the new denominations began to pull back one by one and declare neutrality.
‘If France wins, we just hand over the bishoprics as promised. If the Emperor wins, we use the excuse that we remained neutral and ask the Imperial Diet for help.’
With their support cut off by the lords’ decisions, the French had to bring in supplies from their homeland. The chancellor, receiving this report, relayed it to Charles VIII and added, “I will begin preparing for negotiations.”
“We’re not going to be the ones bowing our heads, are we?”
“No, Your Majesty. Instead, I am thinking of tormenting those lords who are just watching from the sidelines.”
“Torment them thoroughly.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Meanwhile, Maximilian I, having received Count Tilly’s report and request, was making a similar decision. “Send the requested reinforcements as quickly as possible. And supplies as well.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“And prepare for negotiations.”
“Yes, however, Your Majesty… are you truly thinking of showing mercy?”
“I don’t recall ever saying such a thing.”
“Still, it would be best to appear merciful.”
“If we are to prevent the same thing from happening again, we must first make an example of them, and then show mercy.”
As Maximilian I considered the idea of taking the heads of a few lords, one of his vassals raised another issue. “What about Count Tilly? He brazenly used Your Majesty’s name to spread false rumors, which is a serious offense.”
At the vassal’s criticism, Maximilian I feigned ignorance. “Count Tilly said that? I have heard no such thing.”
“Ah…”
At Maximilian I’s words, the vassals’ mouths snapped shut. As Maximilian I said, the rumors were circulating, but there was no definitive proof that Count Tilly himself had said such things. Maximilian I put on a stern expression and warned his vassals, “There must be no reckless slandering of a general who is currently fighting valiantly on the front lines.”
At Maximilian I’s strong warning, the vassals turned pale and bowed their heads low. “We will take it to heart!”
This conversation, through various channels, eventually reached Count Tilly’s ears. Hearing the story, Count Tilly gave a bitter smile. “So, I have drunk from the ‘poisoned chalice’.”
Maximilian I was letting the matter go for now because Tilly was producing good results against the French and the lords. If, however, he produced poor results in the future or fell out of favor, this incident would undoubtedly be added to his list of transgressions, leading to an even worse outcome.
***
After the Battle of Metz, the French and Habsburg armies continued to face each other, centered along the roads from Metz to Verdun and Toul. After three months of minor skirmishes, involving at most two or three hundred troops on either side, negotiations for an end to the war finally began.
‘The territory that France is currently occupying without authorization is the territory of our Holy Roman Empire! Withdraw immediately!’ ‘What nonsense is this? We were merely staying to ensure the safe supply of our iron ore and coal when we were treacherously attacked! It was a surprise attack without any declaration of war!’
The representatives of the two nations continued their fierce war of words, endlessly talking past each other. As the negotiations continued amid repeated recesses, adjournments, curses, and shouts, the representatives glared and snarled at each other.
“Are you unaware that this will lead to war again?”
“Are we not already at war?”
“France does not fear our Holy Roman Empire!”
“Why should we? If we look so amusing to you, why don’t we have another go?”
While the two sides were stuck at this impasse, the nobles of the Imperial Diet began to move quietly.
‘Let us end it here. If you end it here, we, too, will strive to maintain a good relationship with the Emperor.’ ‘We would also appreciate it if France would moderate its greed. If you continue this, we will support the Emperor with our full strength.’
Under the subtle mediation and warnings of the great nobles who held the Imperial Diet, the Habsburgs and France finally reached an agreement.