Chapter 5: Kennt Ihr Diese Farben? (Do You Know These Colors?)

After three weeks had passed, both sides were falling. The British forces were finally beginning to waver but the Colonists were about spent. It was at this crucial point that Christian requested an audience with the commanders. They were taken to the barracks and Christian stood before themwith several papers in his hands. These detailed the enemy positions and troop strengths.

"Gentlemen, as you are aware we are falling to the British forces as they are only just beginning to waver while we are on the brink of collapse. It is at this time that I call the troops to action. I propose that we strike now when the Brits least expect it." The officers looked at each other in amazement. Strike now? The British would not expect a counter assault now - of course not - but there was no way that the soldiers could be rallied together at this point. It seemed hopeless, but nevertheless, Christian relayed his briefing to them.

Later that afternoon, Christian returned home to a curious Emma.

"Well, Christian, what did they say?"

Christian smiled at her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm afraid I might be home a bit late tonight, sweetheart (Christian and Emma had started using nicknames for each other by now)."

"They accepted it!"

"Yes."

Emma threw her arms around Christian when she heard this. Normally she would have been terrified knowing that Christian was going off to battle, but after he received the letter from Frederick the Great, and after how she saw the hope that reentered his eyes and spirit, she knew that this was going to be a victory and she couldn't be more proud of her boy than now.

"The attack will begin tonight, when the Brits least expect it. One of our double agents has received information that the Brits are going to halt their attacks for one night to get some rest. Obviously they'll expect us to do the same. It's the perfect window of opportunity."

"Wait a minute." Andrew said. Andrew's temper had finally been tamed and he and Christian had reconciled. "How do we know that this isn't a British double agent?"

"Because it's James Watson." Emma replied. Christian smiled at the voice of his loved one. In fact, it was her idea to send James out as a double agent. Christian couldn't be more proud of her, as James played the part perfectly and the Brits didn't suspect a thing.

"Exactly. If there's one person I trust, it's James."

Emma gave Christian a playful look of shock after he said that. "Excuse me." he said. "If there's any soldier I trust, it's James."

Emma laughed at Christian's "save" as he pulled her into a tight embrace followed by a kiss.

Night arrived faster than usual and Christian headed to the barracks to assemble the 52nd Brigade, which, in the last week, had earned the title "The Prussian Brigade," after Frederick the Great had offered another token to Christian and sent of large number of Prussian volunteers to aid in the fight. Luckily, the Prussians didn't wear out as quickly as the Americans. The Brigade even bore the Prussian flag; a great, black eagle with gold lining on the wings, a sword in one talon and a scepter in the other with the letters "FR" (meaning "Fridericus Rex", the Latin words for Frederick the Great) on the breast and a crown above the eagle.

Before heading out the door, Emma grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. The two looked into each other's eyes and smiled before Christian pulled her into another tight embrace. Emma looked at him with a slightly worried look, but still confident in her boy's abilities.

"Remember, Christian, you won't have the wall to protect you this time. Be very careful out there."

"Anything for you." Christian replied before planting a quick peck on Emma's lips. As he headed out the door, John came up and placed his arm around Emma's shoulder.

"You're a really lucky girl, Emma. And I…we never apologized for poking fun at you for having feelings for Christian."

"Thanks, John. I'm glad you think that."

"No problem. And don't worry about Christian. He knows what he's doing."

Emma let out a deep sigh. "I sure hope so."

Meanwhile, the troops were assembling outside the barracks. The number of troops massed over five thousand (Yeah, that's one big damn fortress). The Prussian Brigade would be leading the assault, so it was a good thing that Christian had studied up on the tactics of the Prussian army. The plan was as follows: each battalion was to be given three cannons each, two six-pounders and one eight-pounder. An additional battery of ten twelve-pounders was to be given to every five battalions. The artillery would open fire at precisely midnight. After the enemy had been softened up, the Prussian Brigade was to lead a spearhead through the middle of the camp, along with the 14th and 72nd Colonial Militias. The 19th, 24th, 53rd, 63rd, 69th, and 72nd Regiments would follow in staggered formation. After driving the British out into the open, the battle would revert to traditional battlefield tactics. However, Christian had made sure that the men had mastered rank firing. The clocks all read 11:30 pm and Christian led the men out to the field. At his side was James Watson, their double agent who had performed so well.

"So, Christian, let's hope this plan works."

"I'm praying to the Almighty Father that it does."

At 11:45, the men were in position and were waiting for the artillery to open fire. Before the battle, Christian had taught the men a few basic German commands. Another thing that Christian decided to use to his advantage was his native tongue. In the 1700's, soldiers were not required to learn certain foreign languages as they are today, although it was advisable. Luckily, none of the British troops that the Colonists would be facing spoke German, so the German language was a valuable tool for the Americans.

Christian took out his pocket watch and looked at the time; midnight on the dot. He then raised his hand so that the artillery could see it, or at least a silhouette of it, saying "Kanonen auf der fertig…abzielen (Cannons at the ready…aim)," and dropped his hand and shouted "FEUER!" After he shouted this, the artillery batteries erupted and the rumble could even be felt (that's right, felt) back in the fortress. Andrew, Anna, John, Margret and Emma all felt the rumble of the cannons and Emma's heart began to race, knowing that the fight had begun.

Back on the battle ground, the troops watched in amazement as the British forces took round after round of several cannon shots, all different kinds of shots too. Not only were there solid shots, but the cannons also fired of exploding rounds that exploded over troops, raining down shrapnel, and the ball-and-chain shot that was usually used on ships to destroy the enemy's mast. These shots were devastating against enemy artillery, taking out the wagons that the actual cannons were placed on. The shelling continued for thirty minutes. After the guns had silenced, Christian ordered the men forward. The shelling left very little resistance in what was left of the camp, most of the enemy troops having left to escape the artillery fire. The camp was taken in less than ten minutes.

After that, the troops met in the open just a quarter of a mile away from the decimated camp. The British were in line and ready to fire and Christian rushed to get the men into position. The British had begun to open fire as the Americans formed up. By the time everyone was in place, the Americans had lost at least one hundred fifty men, including 30 from the Prussian Brigade. Christian then gave his orders to take aim and fire calling out the ranks first.

"Ersten Reihe…feuer!

Zweite Reihe…feuer!" and so on. The British were losing men at twice the rate of the Americans at this point. Soon, as the British troops were wavering, Christian unleashed his new weapon; a form of warfare that would not be used by the entire Continental Army until introduced by Baron Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben in 1777. Christian then called out, "Festlegen Bajonette! (Fix bayonets!)" Every soldier did as instructed and then Christian called out to "Legen Waffen! (Charge weapons!)" And after the troops did so he called out his last order: "Stürmen! (Charge!)" Christian von München led the first bayonet charge of the American Revolution. The British morale was crushed as the saw the American flag dancing in the wind as it sped towards them, and even more so as they saw the great eagle of Prussia bearing down on them as if the eagle had come to life; as if it had spread its wings and flew from the cloth on which it was bound to attack its foes in red.

The British were finally broken and fled for their lives. The Colonists broke out in cheers as they waved their beloved flag. The cheering could be heard back at the sanctuary but Emma couldn't tell if it was the British or the Colonists. Soon, a courier began to run through the sanctuary shouting the Colonists victory and the group began to share in the excitement. John and Andrew began laughing in joy and the girls squealed and broke out in tears as they hugged each other.

As they were cheering, Christian saw a British officer attempting to crawl back to his men. Christian went up, rolled him over and placed his foot on his chest as he glared at him.

"Kennt ihr diese Farben?" he said. "Do you know these colors? When you return to your commander, tell him you were defeated by men of Prussia. Tell him that it was the 52nd Prussian Brigade that defeated you in battle." and with that, Christian let the officer go. As the officer limped away, he waved the Prussian banner, shouting, "Es lebe Preußen! Es lebe Amerika! (Long live Prussia! Long live America!)" When he shouted this, the men burst into even louder cheers. The sanctuary was finally safe.

The men returned to the sanctuary and were greeted by several cheerful civilians. Christian pushed made his way to the crowd, trying to find Emma. As he was walking through, he was greated by several people who gave him praises of God bless you, Thank you for saving us, and We'll pray for you.

He finally spotted Emma and began to push his way through the crowd to meet her. She ran up to him and she threw her arms around him. As he caught her, he lifted her up and spun her around once before bringing her into a long, passionate kiss.

"We've won. It's all over. We're safe." Christian said.

Emma began to let a few tears of joy leak from her eyes and brought Christian's lips to hers again. As they were kissing, the band began to play a more symphonic version of the song, 'To the Colors'. Christian and Emma looked up to see the Grand Union Flag flying proudly on the flagpole while the Colonists burned the Union Jack. As soon as the band finished playing 'To the Colors', they began to play the Preußenlied. Christian beamed a huge smile as he heard the song and Emma noticed his smile and slipped her hand into his, kissing him on the cheek. Soon, the entire Prussian Brigade was singing along to the tune, and Christian joined in with them, Emma just standing beside him, listening to his voice as the Colonists celebrated their victory over the formerly most powerful army in the world. Christian and Emma walked back to the house with the rest of the group, hand in hand. When they entered, Christian immediately sat down in the chair that faced the window and let out a deep sigh of relief. He was still alive and his plan worked. Emma came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek. He looked up and smiled at her.

"I glad you're alright, sweetie." Emma said in a soft, quiet voice. Christian smiled and gave Emma a quick peck on the lips.

"I can't believe it actually worked. I owe a lot to Frederick the Great for this victory." Christian replied

"Well, it was your plan."

"It was Frederick's tactics."

Emma giggled at Christian's modesty. "You shouldn't sell yourself short, Christian. You did a lot to contribute to this victory." Christian smiled as Emma hugged him from behind the chair. "But I do love how modest you are."

"Thanks, Emma. I love you."

"You too."

After one final kiss, Christian retreated to his room and produced a clean sheet of parchment and his quill and ink. He then began to write a letter to the man who made their victory possible.

To Frederick II, King of Prussia,

I would like to thank you for sending me your book and I am writing to inform you of a great victory that has come from your tactics of war. Because of your book and your reinforcements, which I would also like to thank you for, the Prussian Brigade, along with the rest of the Continental Militia, struck a crushing blow against the British Army. It would seem now that it has been revealed that "the greatest army in the world" is vulnerable, even to what they would consider to be an army of peasants. Because of our victory over the British, our sanctuary is finally safe from attackers. The British morale has been crushed and they will not set foot within one hundred leagues of here ever again. I would like to thank you again for your book and military contribution and I pray that these tactics may take us even farther in the war, perhaps even to absolute victory and freedom. Thank you, my king.

Sincerely, your loyal soldier,

Christian von München