Dumouriez rode at the forefront, with Joseph and Napoleon on horseback, brandishing their swords and leading the soldiers towards the smoke-covered heights of Jemappes.
Perhaps due to exhaustion or the obscurity of the battlefield, the Austrians did not react immediately. Dumouriez took the opportunity to press forward with his soldiers.
As the troops neared the range of the Austrian cannons, Dumouriez shouted "Forward!" and waved his command sword. The soldiers picked up the pace, but Dumouriez slowed his horse, falling to the rear.
Joseph followed suit, recognizing that the earlier show of bravery was merely to boost morale. Actual battle wasn't about commanders charging forward like in "Three Kingdoms" or knight duels from chivalry novels; that wasn't how it worked.
However, as Joseph looked around, he realized that Napoleon was missing. Where had he gone? He was right behind them a moment ago, and they hadn't crossed a river. How could he disappear?
Anxiously, Joseph scanned the surroundings and spotted a figure riding a horse at the front, brandishing a gleaming sword, leading the charge. "Damn, this guy's over the top!" Joseph muttered to himself.
"Joseph, how did your brother end up in the front? He's so small, yet incredibly brave!" Dumouriez also noticed Napoleon had raced ahead.
"Brave my foot! He's completely out of his mind!" Joseph cursed, determined to give that troublemaker a good talking-to when they got back, so he'd understand why things were the way they were.
Austrian forces began to react, and their cannons opened fire. The cannonballs of that era moved slowly, and Joseph could almost see the small black dots rising into the air, seeming to pause briefly at their apex before rapidly descending, kicking up dust on impact, rebounding like bouncy rabbits. One of them whizzed dangerously close to Joseph, nearly making him shrink into his own body.
"Napoleon is even closer, and therefore in more danger, this damned troublemaker!" Joseph thought.
"I can't let him be alone in that place!" Joseph shouted to Dumouriez. He whipped his horse and galloped after Napoleon.
"Ah, Joseph, you, usually so bookish, are surprisingly brave," Dumouriez shook his head. He didn't chase after them; he was the commander, and he needed to oversee the big picture.
Joseph, fueled by anxiety, caught up and grabbed Napoleon's reins. "You idiot, are you out of your mind? I called you here just to show your face to the soldiers. Why did you run off? You can't just run around! Get back with me quickly!"
Napoleon turned around, giving Joseph a peculiar look. "Joseph, is there something wrong with your head? We've come this far; we can't turn back now, can we?"
Joseph was momentarily perplexed, but then he understood what Napoleon meant. Dumouriez had boosted morale with his show of bravery earlier, but now he had fallen behind the formation. If Joseph and Napoleon turned back, it could demoralize the troops.
"You rascal!" As Joseph grasped the situation, his anger grew. He now had to accompany this troublemaker into the heat of battle.
"Haha... Maybe I should be touched that you came all this way for my safety. Really!" Napoleon teased.
"Touched, my foot! You're not a woman!" Joseph retorted but relaxed his grip on the reins.
A cannonball struck nearby, hitting a small detachment. The flag bearer at the front was obliterated, and the flagpole split in two, causing the flag to soar into the air, then tumble down. A hand reached out and caught the falling flagpole, raising the tricolour flag high. It was Napoleon, who had caught the plummeting flag and raised it high, then jumped off his horse, shouting to the stunned soldiers, "French soldiers, for our homeland, charge!"
The soldiers, inspired by his actions, followed his lead, shouting and advancing.
Joseph gritted his teeth, drew his sword, and urged his horse onward. "Idiot! Get off your horse! You're too conspicuous, like a magnet for bullets!" He scolded Napoleon while pulling him off his horse.
Joseph felt a strange mixture of emotions. He had never imagined that he would be charging into battle alongside his younger brother. Yet, in a matter of moments, he had gone from cursing Napoleon to feeling moved by his courage.
"Joseph, you've shown more bravery than I ever expected from you," Napoleon said, taking in Joseph's iron-willed determination. He chuckled, his usual mischievous self showing.
"You dare to call me a coward, you troublemaker!" Joseph replied, but at that moment, another cannonball whizzed by. Joseph realized that his life had taken a wild turn.
In this battle, the French suffered over 600 casualties, with more than 1,300 wounded, totaling around 2,000 casualties. The Austrians, on the other hand, had approximately 300 killed, over 500 wounded, and about 600 taken prisoner, totaling roughly 1,500 casualties. If you only considered the numbers, it seemed like the Austrians had a slight advantage.
However, this was a defensive battle that relied on terrain and fortifications. The French were mostly inexperienced volunteer soldiers. Even with these factors against them, the Austrians couldn't hold their ground against the French assault. Without the terrain advantage and fortifications, they would have been even more vulnerable.
This battle demonstrated that even with less-experienced French troops, the Austrians were still vulnerable to various forms of French warfare.