The Rise of the European Emperor

Just when Machiavelli was captured, other high-level officials of the Florentine Republic were also captured by Stade's men. Of course, their fate was not so good.

Before, Marin and the Pope had negotiated that Machiavelli would belong to him, and the top officials of the other republics would be handed over to the Papal State for judgment. Some big bosses may be sentenced.

After taking control of the city of Florence, Stade did not rush to control the rest of the Florentine Republic. Because, the current Republic of Florence has not annexed the Republic of Pisa, nor has it been incorporated into the Republic of Siena. The Republic of Lucca does not belong to the Republic of Florence.

Therefore, the current Florentine Republic is not equal to the later Grand Duchy of Tuscany or the Tuscan Region. Tuscany has 23,000 square kilometers. Without the above three countries, the Republic of Florence is actually only about 16,000 square kilometers. However, among the current Italian states, it is also a big country. In particular, Florence is also a city with a very developed industry and commerce.

However, since several other big cities have not been won, the current Florence is actually only a large main city of Florence. Several other small towns are not worth mentioning.

Therefore, Stade is not in a hurry to capture several other towns. As for the neighboring countries, who would dare to grab the territory? I'm worried that I can't find an excuse to clean them up...

In addition, the reason why Stade did not rush to receive other areas was because he was afraid of chaos when the French army was defeated. The rout was terrifying, and the French were on the verge of defeat. Once they escaped, they would definitely pass through Florence.

On the side of the Principality of Milan, the supply of the French army has been cut off. The French army must be very hungry at this time. Unknowingly, it is very likely that the rout of the French army would pass through Florence and beg for rations from the Florentine Republic, which is close to France.

Therefore, Stade needs to guard against the French army raiding the city of Florence in the event of an unsuccessful request. Therefore, the control of other parts of Florence was arranged by him after the French army passed through.

As for the possibility that villages outside Florence might be sacked by the French, Stade did not care. Why? Stade is not afraid of defeating the French army, but is afraid of helping Marin provoke the French king.

Stade's capture of Florence in the name of the Papal State made the French unhappy, but only unhappy. But if troops were sent to intercept the fleeing French troops, the nature would change. At that time, both the Papal State and Marin will become the mortal enemies of the French King Louis XII.

Therefore, neither Julius II nor Marin wanted to confront the French army head-on. Moreover, the Republic of Florence is not Marin's, the farmers here are harmed, and Marin will not feel distressed. As for the Papal State, although it will be distressed, it is also afraid to speak out. Who gave France the power of European hegemony?

The Papal State can't afford it either...

You know, the French have a very bad precedent. In the 14th century, the French took the Pope captive to Avignon in France and re-established the Holy See. The Holy See in Avignon is clearly a puppet of the French.

Therefore, even as the Pope, I am afraid that the French will repeat the old trick and tie the Pope to France...

Stade did not wait too long, and shortly after he captured Florence, the Spanish army also broke through the city of Naples...

The Spaniards themselves also had dozens of artillery pieces, but they were all two or three pounder rear-mounted bronze cannons, which were not powerful enough to break open the city gates.

However, these small cannons, combined with the 10 heavy cannons provided by Marin, have some effect. Because of the small number of heavy artillery, Gonzalo's army bombed for four or five days before blasting a hole in the south gate of Naples.

But Gonzalo did not rush to blow up the city gate, but waited for a few days. Because, he received news that the French were out of food...

At this time, the number of French troops in Naples was more than that of the Spaniards. If they rush into the city and fight the French in the streets, the Spaniards may not have the upper hand.

So, after hearing the news that the French were out of food, Gonzalo deliberately waited for a few days. After seeing that the French soldiers on the city wall were a little weak, Gonzalo understood that the opportunity had come...

Taking advantage of the time when the French were starving, Gonzalo asked the Demoman to use two powder kegs to blast open the south gate of Naples. Then, the Spanish sword and shield soldiers took the lead and rushed into the city of Naples...

The Spanish army has always been armed with swords and shields, although Gonzalo learned from Marin the phalanx, generally using spears and arquebuses. However, he did not give up the sword and shield soldier. No, when attacking a city, the role of swords and shields comes into play.

Hundreds of sword and shield soldiers, armed with large shields and single swords, took the lead in rushing in from the destroyed city gate, and formed a sword and shield formation inside the city gate to prevent the French army from counterattacking. Then, the Spanish army behind him kept pouring in...

The French army, who had been starving for a few days, fought back desperately, but the soldiers had no strength. Despite the frenzied impact, the Spaniards managed to gain a firm foothold in the city.

After that, Gonzalo commanded the Spanish army to form a dense formation, move steadily, and gradually advance along the street, and repelled the French counterattacks many times.

Seeing that the Spanish army was getting closer and closer to the palace, and it was getting late, the French army commander-in-chief Louis Armagnac, Duke of Nemours, once again used his ultimate escape-the Duke Armagnac let ten thousand people in the city escape. Thousands of Italian mercenaries went to withstand the attack of the Spanish army. The Duke of Armagnac, with the remaining 6,000 French knights and 9,000 Swiss mercenaries, quietly ran away from the north gate while it was dark...

The Italian mercenaries were initially unaware that the French had escaped and confronted the Spanish forces for a while. However, when news of the French running away came, more than 10,000 Italian mercenaries quickly collapsed and surrendered to Gonzalo.

Only, because it was night, the Spanish army was not trained for night battles either. Therefore, after thinking twice, Gonzalo gave up the plan to pursue the night. After all, the city of Naples has now been won, and the strategic goal has been initially achieved.

The French army who had left Naples, like wild horses that had lost their reins, suddenly began to mess around. In order to solve the problem of food shortage, the Naples villages along the way were all slaughtered.

The French army will not care whether the farmers in Naples will starve to death. Every time they pass a village, the French army will snatch all the food, including the bacon, salted fish and other food stored by the farmers. Even live chickens, live pigs, and even cattle and horses were caught and killed by the French army to eat meat... In short, as long as they were edible, they were all swept away, quite like a Guizijun Village.

The next day, the Spanish army began a pursuit. However, at the moment, the French army is not very good at attacking. The Spanish infantry could not catch up with the French and fell behind. Although the Spanish light cavalry caught up, they did not dare to attack lightly. Because, not to mention the powerful French knights, the spear formations of those Swiss mercenaries are not so easy to mess with.

Therefore, the Spanish army could only choose to hang behind the French army and look for fighter planes...

On the French side, although they were all elite, they did not dare to stop and fight the Spanish army. Because, the "Marin phalanx" used by the Spaniards is too restrained by the French knights, and it is also very lethal to the Swiss spearmen. Therefore, the French army had no intention of stopping, and just fled all the way north. However, their escape was organized and disciplined, not a rout, but a retreat in nature...