C3266 French POW camp

On the third day after Thiers's surrender, the new President of France secretly took the train to Germany to meet with the old leader that he had opposed back then, Napoleon III.

In the past, Thiers was just a small councilor in the empire, and people talk about him but the emperor didn't remember him. But now, with the passing of events, Thiers had become the president of France, while the emperor had become a prisoner!

Normally, this kind of meeting would be filled with a dramatic face slapping storyline, the great reversal of one's identity would definitely bring about an interesting conflict, but he never would have thought that Thiers would actually be respectful in front of the emperor and pay his respects as a subject!

This was a top-secret visit, and the security in Germany was extremely thorough. In the short two hours of meeting, they had mobilized over ten thousand troops and countless intelligence personnel to support them.

Thiers was the ATM for both the Chinese and German families. Before the money was transferred to the ATM, the ATM would not allow any problems to occur.

No one knew what exactly Thiers had said to the French Emperor, and even the German did not dare to pry on the side. However, looking at the various things that happened afterwards, it was not hard to guess what had happened!

A week after Thiers left the French Emperor, the German Emperor William I officially announced to the outside world that due to the health reasons of Napoleon III, the German Empire would give up all charges against the French Emperor, and protect all of his assets in Germany and release him!

The British royal family immediately made a statement. He was willing to accept Napoleon III's exile, and hoped that he would be able to reunite with his family in Germany.

After Napoleon III lost the battle of Sedan, he did not suffer the slightest grievance at all. Instead, he received a rare vacation, and was teleported to England in the end.

From the relaxed expression that French Emperor had when he left, Thiers must have made some kind of promise to the restoration of the Bonaparte Empire in the future!

French Emperor himself was already completely disheartened, his age was old and his prestige in France could no longer be restored, but he still had hope that his son, Crown Prince Eugén!

What a brave, kind, and handsome Crown Prince he was! Every time he appeared in public, he would be surrounded by countless European princesses and noble ladies. The people loved him even more!

Furthermore, the French Emperor and Empress had purposely let their son develop good governance, so the people could not hate this crown prince. This was the foundation for the restoration of the people's hearts in the future!

If Thiers wanted to drive the three hundred thousand captives away, then there was no way that the French Emperor would be able to pass this trial. Those legions that were loyal to the Emperor, from ordinary soldiers to military officers, who would know who you, Thiers, were?

You, the President, cannot order it, if you want them to cooperate, then you have to ask the French Emperor. Don't underestimate the Emperor, he is already a prisoner, but a bill that is two fingers wide is better than you, Thiers!

Thiers had given the French Emperor some kind of secret promise for his future restoration, and the French Emperor had also secretly given secret orders to the generals loyal to him.

The secret envoy of the President soon arrived at the Alsace Province's French prison camp. General McMahon, who had been injured by gunfire in Sedan, was temporarily staying here.

When the emissary saw the old general, his tears almost fell. What a harsh environment this was, the German never raised prisoners for free.

The POW camp stretched for more than 10 kilometers, and all the troops were scattered and settled down. They dug iron ore and coal mines in the nearby mines during the day, and tortured themselves in tents at night.

Every day, he worked for more than 12 hours. No one dared to complain, as all resistance was brutally suppressed!

It was summer now, so it was better for them to live than to be repelled by the mosquitoes. The winter last year was truly miserable, the canvas tents could not withstand the biting cold at all. Countless soldiers were frozen to death that winter!

The German did not provide any fuel for them. If they wanted to earn more wood and coal, they would have to work another four hours to exchange for more.

The army is a very wonderful place. It's not like soldiers can't take hardships; they can bravely kill enemies on the cruelest battlefield. However, these people aren't hardworking. If you make them do high-intensity work day after day, they really won't be able to adapt to it!

Soldiers were intrinsically different from blue-collar workers, especially different from those lowly miners!

Excavating mines and cutting down wood was a job that only those slaves who had been completely tamed by life could adapt to. It made people like mules who had to work hard every day, which was tolerable for a period of time. However, people who had to endure for more than a month would go crazy!

Resistance erupted from almost every military camp. The French army began to secretly make weapons, sharpening wooden sticks, storing stones, using iron wire to make boxing gloves, and even began to steal iron tools from the mines!

On the coldest winter night, the rebellion began! But unfortunately, the strict German had always been good at making rules and regulations, and those rules would never be ignored.

The French sentries who were patrolling openly dodged, but they did not avoid the hidden sentry!

The sound of gunshots immediately rang out, and German Army, who was in charge of guarding them, immediately started to suppress them without mercy. Fresh blood splattered across the snowy plains, and on the second day, these frozen corpses covered the ground.

No one knew how many people had died in that riot, but there were nearly a hundred thousand French prisoners of war in the Alsace mine area. One could only imagine the scale of the riot, and it was recalled that at least six or seven thousand French soldiers had died that night!

The brutal massacre suppressed the French resistance. The desperate soldiers could only accept the conditions of working for 16 hours a day. Twelve hours for their food and lodging, and the remaining four hours for their winter fuel!

Despair filled the POW camp, and some of the injured soldiers even committed suicide!

The German wanted to exchange these captives for money. If they all died, what would happen? In the end, they could only imprison the high ranking generals of France here, hoping that their superiors would be able to calm the despair of the POW camp.

McMahon came to the Alsace Mining Area under such a background. He was the marshal of the Empire of France, and was also a high-class noble.

The German had provided them with very good living conditions. What they did every day was to wait, to wait for a long time!

When McMahon heard that he was going to be transferred to POW camp, which had a harsh living condition, not only did he not complain, he even packed his luggage and headed to POW camp!

The envoy of the French Emperor was looking at such an old marshal of the empire!

When the famous general of the France, who had become famous among the Crimean War, saw the secret envoy of the Emperor, he was together with the prisoners of war, pushing a mine cart and transporting iron ore on the iron tracks.

Dirty towels were draped around his neck, and his work clothes were covered in black mud and dust!

"Marshal!" The emissary was on the verge of tears. He pointed at the German officer in charge of the prisoners of war and cursed, "You bastards! How dare you humiliate the The French Empire's Marshal! "

"Just you wait, I want to complain to the Emperor... I am going to sue you in front of His Majesty William I in Berlin! "

McMahon stopped him, "Stop messing around, I was the one who decided to come here … They can't stop me! "

"My soldiers, my children are too bitter... I have to stay with them to give them some hope! "

"I have to atone for my sins!"