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Chapter 103 - The Battle of Leżnica

As the morning mist gradually dissipated, and water droplets still clung to the armor, Bolesław IV spurred his warhorse to the front of the formation.

Across the field, the Imperial Army had already set up their formation, with war wagons forming a Wagenburg behind the main force. A squadron of men and horses remained within the Wagenburg to protect the army's supplies.

Another section of war wagons formed a long line, looking from afar like a wall erected on flat ground.

The left side of the "wall" was close to the river, and its right side was protected by solid infantry squares. On the flank and rear of the line were the Imperial Army's cavalry units.

The Polish Army consisted of 10,000 infantry and nearly 10,000 cavalry, among which the number of heavy cavalry exceeded 4,000.

These cavalry legions, composed of Polish military nobles, possessed extremely powerful charge capabilities; on the battlefield, they were the sharp blades that tore through enemy lines.

Bolesław didn't even glance at the long line of Hussite War Wagons. He had long heard of the Imperial Army's underhanded tactics, which was why he specifically chose this location for the decisive battle.

Leżnica's open terrain would provide enough maneuvering space for the Polish cavalry, and he wouldn't have to directly confront the Wagenburg's formidable defense and firepower.

He directed his cavalry to maneuver towards the Imperial Army's right flank, while the infantry slowly advanced towards the side, easily bypassing the wagon barrier.

Laszlo, who was constantly observing the battlefield situation, took everything in. He was unconcerned; the Wagenburg itself wouldn't perform well in such terrain, and he was merely using the wagon barrier to force the enemy to adjust their tactical positions.

At this point, there wasn't a single musketeer on the Hussite War Wagons. Laszlo intended to use them to teach the Polish knights a good lesson.

"Your Majesty, should we advance?"

Adolf glanced at the gradually rising sun and asked Laszlo.

Laszlo watched the chaotic Polish Army line stretching out and the Polish heavy cavalry reaching their intended tactical positions. He nodded slightly: "Order the first-line units to advance. Musketeers, prepare. We will finish this quickly."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Adolf issued the command to the messenger beside him, and the Imperial Army's first-line infantry units immediately began to slowly advance.

The Bohemia First Legion and the Saxony First Legion were deployed on both sides of the first line, with the armies of the two Silesian dukes placed in the very center.

Behind them, two squadrons of musketeers advanced in horizontal lines.

The second line, behind the musketeers, consisted of multiple squares formed by the Independent Army and Austro-Hungarian Army infantry; they were the true main force of the Imperial Army.

On the flanks of the main force were the poised Hungarian light cavalry and Imperial heavy cavalry.

The horn echoed through the sky, and the Polish immediately stopped their lateral movement, turning to advance towards the Imperial Army.

When the two armies reached a certain distance, the Polish archers were the first to loose their arrows.

The Imperial Army's ranged units were primarily composed of crossbowmen, whose range was slightly inferior to that of the Polish archers. After sustaining some casualties, they reached their positions and began counter-fire.

The Imperial Army excelled in melee combat, while the Polish Army prided itself on its cavalry. Ranged units served only as support troops in both armies.

Therefore, in the first engagement, both the Polish Army and the Imperial Army suffered some casualties, but not enough to cause any substantial impact.

Then came the real main event.

A gentle breeze swept across the battlefield, scattering arrows everywhere. The Imperial Army's infantry formed dense formations and pressed towards the Polish Army.

No matter how it was viewed, the Imperial Army held a significant numerical advantage in this battle. The only thing to be wary of was the Polish cavalry.

Sunlight spilled across the field, making the Polish knights' heavy armor gleam. Over four thousand heavy cavalry, upon receiving the King's order, were divided into three waves and would charge the enemy's flank.

"May God protect Poland." The cavalry general made the sign of the cross on his chest, whispered, and then lowered his visor.

The world instantly fell silent, with only the sounds of breathing and heartbeats clearly audible.

The movement of the Polish cavalry immediately alerted the Imperial Army. The main force halted its advance, and the musketeers, hidden behind, quickly rushed to the front of the army. They formed horizontal lines at certain intervals, checking if their matchlocks were lit and if their ammunition was loaded.

The Polish also noticed the Imperial Army's movements, but they were unclear what these soldiers who had come to the front were doing.

As their general led the charge, thousands of Polish iron cavalry, like a dark iron wedge, pointed directly at the Imperial Army's flank.

A Polish knight charged forward with the main force. He could feel the tremor caused by thousands of heavy warhorses pounding the ground. He could see the Kingdom of Poland's banner fluttering in the wind during the high-speed movement—until a series of thunderous sounds erupted from the front.

Large amounts of white smoke billowed across the battlefield. The Polish knight horrifyingly discovered that his comrades in front seemed to have been suddenly struck by something, then swayed precariously until they fell from their warhorses.

He saw it clearly: it was the damage caused by those strangely shaped weapons held by the enemy. That method of attack must have been muskets, without a doubt.

These Imperial Army soldiers were holding a new type of musket, and there was a very large number of them.

Before he could feel fear, the second volley followed closely. Fortunately, he once again narrowly avoided the bullets.

But more comrades died in this attack.

Finally, the distance grew shorter, down to just a hundred paces. The third rank of matchlockmen formed up, and a single volley directly knocked the charging knights off their horses, men and mounts alike.

He even saw their general—a great noble—hit in the chest by a stray bullet, screaming as he fell from his warhorse.

"Damn it, what in the world is this!" The knight cursed, but there was no time to think further. The musketeers quickly retreated to the second line, and the Imperial Army's infantry formed a tight formation, raising their pikes, ready to withstand the cavalry's fierce charge.

The unstoppable heavy cavalry held their lances level, easily knocking away the infantry in their path. Most knights, protected by their plate armor, broke through the forest of pikes, but many knights were still fatally pierced by pikes and died on the spot.

The first wave of heavy cavalry charge was ultimately halted by the Imperial Army's warriors with their flesh and blood, but the subsequent second wave left the Imperial Army helpless.

The defensive line formed by the Silesian conscripts was easily torn apart, and the undiminished Polish cavalry continued to charge towards the Imperial Army's second line.

The musketeers, already prepared, again formed horizontal lines, delivering a relatively dense hail of fire to strike the continuing Polish cavalry charge head-on.

However, this attack had no effect. Some cavalry even charged into the midst of the musketeers, swinging their longswords to cut down these cowardly musketeers.

But the opponents they were about to face were not musketeers, but the true elite of the Imperial Army—Imperial Army greatswordsmen wielding two-handed greatswords, who met the charging cavalry.

The spearmen behind them raised their pikes, while these greatswordsmen crouched low, waiting for the opportune moment to strike down horse legs with a single blow.

Knights who fell from their warhorses struggled to get up, only to be stabbed by Imperial Army warriors with longswords or daggers through the gaps in their plate armor, the sharp blades piercing through chainmail and taking the knights' lives.

Then, they faced the third, and final, wave of Polish heavy cavalry.

At this point, on the first line, the Imperial Army had already engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the Polish Army's infantry. The Imperial Army, whose lines had been broken, gradually retreated, with only the Saxon Army maintaining a relatively intact formation, grimly resisting the enemy's attack.

"It's time. Let Karl take the cavalry and sweep the battlefield from the flank!" Laszlo saw that the Polish cavalry's momentum was exhausted, and this was the perfect moment to strike.

The horn sounded again, and the Imperial Army's cavalry units immediately charged out, attempting to surprise the Polish Army's flank.

However, Bolesław had anticipated this. He had kept several thousand light cavalry in reserve, and now he sent them all out to intercept the Imperial Army's cavalry.

Soon, a fierce cavalry battle also erupted on the side of the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the Imperial Army's main force had now completely withstood the Polish cavalry's final charge. Although they suffered some casualties, the Polish losses were comparatively more severe.

"Brothers, follow me and kill!" Gunter personally joined the battle, his standard-bearer waving the Imperial Army flag. The Imperial Army's main force, led by numerous greatswordsmen, launched a counter-charge against the Polish Army.

The heavy cavalry, bogged down at this point, became prey on the battlefield. The cavalry who couldn't charge were exceptionally cumbersome. Facing the Imperial Army, who wielded greatswords or blunt weapons, even plate armor couldn't save their lives.

The battle quickly entered a stalemate. The sun slowly passed its zenith. As time elapsed, the Imperial Army almost completely routed the Polish infantry, and the heavy cavalry, due to heavy losses, withdrew from the battlefield first.

Bolesław IV still wanted to make one last stand. After reorganizing the retreating knight units, he personally led over a thousand cavalry to charge onto the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the Polish cavalry units on the flank were also on the verge of collapse due to being outnumbered. They simply could not contend with these highly skilled Hungarian horsemen, let alone the Austrian heavy cavalry.

Karl, leading his cavalry unit, broke through the enemy's resistance, intending to ambush the enemy's flank as planned, but suddenly discovered that the enemy seemed to be on the verge of collapse, and the conspicuous Polish royal banner at that moment caught his attention.

He seemed to see immense glory beckoning him, so this cavalry general made a decisive move, leading his cavalry unit directly towards Bolesław's position.

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