I Am Louis XIV

Some accounts of Pierre Corneille's offensive and defensive battles in Brussels:

Hundreds of years later, people still have many doubts about the details of the Sun King of France, Louis XIV's first personal conquest - the battle between France and Flanders. Of course, this battle, in the eyes of the time It's just a part of the movement that the European countries have been attacking and fighting with each other for thousands of years, even though this part of the movement started the 300-year glory of the Sun King and even the whole of France, and illuminated Yu Ze to the visible thousand years. Within a year—and with many classic and incomparable melodies.

For example, the supply and logistics system created by the Marquis of Lois—the former French army still adheres to the principle that "the commander of the army should be good at using all the resources of the country he invaded to ensure his military operations." Strict rules, of course, in previous wars, if the soldiers could obtain supplies from the enemy, it would be the best for the mobility of the army and the blow to the morale of the enemy. The two legs were running fast and furiously.

But such a supply method is usually more suitable for mercenaries rather than regular standing troops. Because, no matter what, when soldiers have to search for food and other supplies in the ranks of tasks, their ranking is undoubtedly the highest, and once soldiers are indulged in looting, the so-called military regulations and military laws will become castles in the air. In the battle of Flanders, Lois complied with the king's will, so that wherever the army marched, huge warehouses and convoys carrying supplies could appear there-the soldiers never lacked tents, blankets to keep out the cold, and clean As a result, they were determined and energetic. Although they went to many places to fight, they never had a large number of fleeing and mutiny, which was very rare at that time.

Some people even say that the Marquis of Loise created the logistics support system of the army-routes, warehouses and markets, quartermasters and supervisors, and military merchants, etc., but some people counter that these have been produced as early as after the Crusades , but no one can deny that in the Battle of Flanders, the Marquis of Lois did impeccable logistical support. After all, France used more than 50,000 troops in this battle. There are more than 30,000 people, including several siege battles. Everyone knows that the problem of supplies is more difficult to deal with when the number is large, and a stationary army is more difficult to deal with than a moving army. They were resolved one by one by the Marquis of Loise.

It is no wonder that, on his return to Paris, he succeeded his father as Minister of War, appointed by the king himself, and there were few at court who could object to this appointment.

What's more, in this war, Sebastian Vauban, who finally made his mark, was still a captain when the war started, and he became a general when the war ended—he was here In this battle, the three-trench tactics and mortar ricochet tactics were first used, and achieved considerable results. Interestingly, both Lille and Brussels can be said to be the meritorious service of Viscount Turenne and Vauban. With the defeat of the enemy, and after the war, it was Vauban who stayed in Flanders to strengthen the walls and fortresses for the new provinces and cities of France. The "stars" and "flowers" left by Bon in the Flanders region, especially Lille's five-star-shaped bastion defense system, while Brussels has a double-layer city wall with six "flower leaves" protruding.

In addition, it is worth mentioning that there are a group of bohemian women in the army. It is not unusual for women who have always wanted to earn money to follow the army. It is not that there have been more women in the past. The Bohemians are a well-known cross-border ethnic group. They advocate freedom, unfettered, and heretics. The women in the convoy often have sex with others, exchange money, or It was a whim, but these Bohemian women eventually became the prototypes of field nurses. Before that, there were women who took care of wounded soldiers. Generally speaking, it was for money or short-term favors, but it was not systematic, but In the Battle of Flanders, although the losses of the French army were not very serious, what is amazing is that the survival rate of the wounded in the army is as high as more than 70%, which is really surprising. The death rate of the wounded at that time was very high, and even in the course of the war, officers had to constantly recruit troops to ensure that the military strength would not be too short.

According to later generations, about a thousand Bohemian women joined the nursing and treatment team. Although the Bohemians have claimed so far that these women were employed by the king at that time, most people think that they It's wild bragging, but the International Council of Nurses is curiously willing to admit it. Why these Bohemians appeared in Versailles is temporarily unknown, but their work - formal and innocent, did reverse some people's views. At that time, the chastity of unmarried girls was extremely important, so No one would be willing to send their sisters and daughters to the military camp. After the Battle of Flanders, the soldiers who were favored by the nurses became their most staunch supporters. Later, their relatives and friends, also in Under their persuasion and proof, they entered nursing school and finally became field nurses.

At first there were only female nurses on the battlefield, and gradually, the nurse's white turban and white apron (in the battle of Flanders, the king gave the nurse's clothing) also appeared in various sanatoriums and clinics - compared with doctors The usual assistants - those rough butchers and barbers, people would of course prefer to see young and gentle girls.

There are many more places like this - and even some amusing and surprising ones, such as the "King's Watching Company," which eventually became a custom, which Marshal Vauban insisted in his memoirs. Inspiration and influence at the Battle of Dunkirk, and the Viscount Turenne insisted in his memoirs that this was the ego of Marshal Vauban, a poor way of flattery, which had nothing to do with him, but whatever they did Mutual accusations and prevarications——in every battle after that, King Louis XIV would indeed appear on the battlefield, with binoculars, sitting in a gorgeous tent, watching as if watching a grand drama The whole battle.

In the eyes of today's people, this is a stupid and ridiculous behavior-because only soldiers and officers shed blood and died, but at that time, the presence of the king in person was the greatest encouragement to soldiers and officers, regardless of other things. Every time Louis XIV watched the battle on the battlefield, he finally brought victory.

This may also be a puzzling question, but it is nothing compared with other doubts-some scholars even believe that the records and documents written by people at that time may have been extensively deleted and edited. Modifications cannot be viewed as historical facts, but can only be used as evidence and appreciation of literary works.

The most famous of these is the book "Battle of Flanders" written by Pierre Corneille, in which he wrote, "When the glory of the Sun King shone on the city walls, the Spaniards inside Wailing like an owl bird in the dark... Before the general stepped into the trenches, the city hung up a white flag, begging for a chance to negotiate... Every city was collecting women's bracelets and men's meals before the arrival of the army. Forked to cast a huge silver key, as a certificate of surrender... The king's entry into Charleroi is like entering Paris...In the French barracks, there is a banquet celebrating victory every night, even the most ordinary soldiers, Coffee, wine, and broth, too...Ten tents stretched for hundreds of miles, covering the plain...Beyond the walls, the fools of Flanders burned the oyster-packed houses, hoping to delay the king's progress However, their city fell completely within seven days, and countless women and children left their homes crying..."

If these are still credible, the events described in another manuscript, which was discovered after an interval of four centuries, can only be said to be the eccentric imagination of the playwright, because he It not only described a series of strange things that happened after he entered Brussels with the army, but also wrote werewolves, vampires and wizards-these were believed to exist by people at that time, but now we all know that these monsters only exist in fantasy and nightmares .

——

This manuscript finally sold for a good price at an auction, and people in the seventeenth century did not know about it. Pierre Corneille was born in 1606, and he was born in the twenties. Wrote his first play "Merritt" at the age of three, and later wrote a good play called "Med", even so, writing plays is not a career for a child of superior background , his grandfather was the Counselor Seal of the Parliament of Normandy, and his father managed the Mizusawa Forest for the Viscount of Rouen. Service in the Rouen department—unexpectedly for these two, Pierre Corneille ended up in power—at that time, Bishop Richelieu admired him because of his talent in drama. One of the five-member creative team under the command of Bishop Richelieu.

It’s just that what Richelieu admired was his talent in drama, and what was rejected by Bishop Richelieu was his talent—at the age of thirty, Corneille boldly wrote a big play "Cid", Cid is a real character in history. He was exiled by the king and recalled because of his meritorious service on the battlefield. He eventually became the Lord Protector and the ruler of Valencia. But to describe this character in detail, It was impossible to continue to follow the Trinity at that time, so while the play was very popular, it aroused the resentment of the rigid and stubborn Bishop Richelieu. He not only clearly expressed his displeasure, but also instructed other Scholars and playwrights criticized and condemned the play, and at the same time he exerted great pressure on Corneille,

No, it should be said that with the status and power of Bishop Richelieu at that time, Corneille was not qualified to be his enemy—Corneille soon succumbed, after all, he was still his father’s son and his son’s father. Not only did he repent to Mr. Bishop, but he also wrote three consecutive plays that strictly abide by the "Three Unities", "Sinna", "Horace", and "Polyekte". Although these three plays are excellent, they are all It was written to cater to the preferences of Bishop Richelieu, a tolerant monarch, a righteous citizen, and a devout believer... Finally, he wrote "The Death of Pompeii", which described Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt. A power struggle with her brother Ptolemy.

I have seen these plays before Louis was in power. I have to say that even the three plays with three uniforms created to cater to Bishop Richelieu have already revealed Corneille's incompetence in drama creation. The glory of resistance, and Corneille, who returned to Rouen in 52 years, came into the king's sight again, because Bishop Mazarin appointed Corneille as his lawyer when he was dying, so that he could leave his inheritance to his most beloved. The child of King Louis XIV, after the death of Bishop Mazarin, Corneille originally wanted to leave Paris and return to Rouen, but after reading his information and works, the king decided to keep this person .

Although Corneille's plays after "The Death of Pompeii" only paid attention to the twists and turns of the plot and ignored the shaping of the characters, Louis could see that this was more of a hidden resistance and oppression. Post-distorted vent——After the Battle of Flanders, the king will start to deal with domestic ideological and educational matters, and for most people who don’t even know their own names, it is necessary to establish the king in their hearts. The supremacy, the theater may be one of the best ways, don't forget, even those little plays with rough costumes and poor acting skills in the market, people are flocking to them, let alone created by characters like Corneille works.

In order to allow Corneille to return to the old style as soon as possible and discard the dross of the past, Louis XIV asked Corneille himself after consideration—as long as Corneille is over sixty years old this year, he is allowed to join the army this time. A real war can make this talented playwright have a broader mind and a sharper vision. As for the trinity, the king is dismissive of it-the trinity is a classic in the seventeenth century. To put it simply, there can only be one story thread (multiple lines cannot be advanced), the time of occurrence cannot exceed one day, and there must be only one location (scenes cannot be changed).

It is not without advantages, such a drama has a tight rhythm and substantial content, but the problem is that it is impossible to present a person's multi-faceted in such a short period of time, with a fixed location and monotonous clues, so in three All dramas are filled with a large number of stylized characters, black is black, white is white, almost as long as there is a beginning, the audience can guess the end, so these dramas mainly focus on real historical events and characters, In this way, at least the playwright does not have to expend energy to let the audience understand the character, the event, or even the whole process in such a short period of time. Therefore, in the later stage of the three-one drama, it is necessary to use the actors' costumes, props, and funny scenes interspersed to win. ...This is quite detrimental to the publicity the king wants. Louis can hardly imagine that whenever he plays, there will be a clown dressed in colorful clothes and running somersaults to blow the trumpet, drums and so on.

With the support of the king, Corneille, who had not created any works for seven years, suddenly rejuvenated. Not only did he insist on joining the army, but he also recorded the contents of ten Bibles along the way. Some of these contents He used it in his later creations, and the other part was censored and destroyed. As for what people have discovered now, it is very likely that Corneille wrote down the content with his memory after returning to Rouen in his later years. It has to be said that before Although Corneille’s records on Flanders are full of praises for the king, there are still some verifiable and detailed information in them, but the latest discovery...Researchers even have doubts It is a fake, a fake.

A little late, add 500 words.