Battle of Marle-Tarascon

The battles of Marle and Tarascon, fought on the same day roughly 6km apart, were the final battle of the Bonaventurian Wars, resulting in the final defeat and capture of Walter Bonaventura.

### Initial Situation

After their defeat at the Battle of Pedraza in March, the Allies fell back into Celtica to regroup. Bonaventura followed them carefully, attempting to destroy their forces but wary of being lured too deeply into the countryside as he had been earlier.

In September, Bonaventura noted that the main Celtican Army, with their Draken mercenaries, had encamped at Tarascon, approximately ten kilometers west of Prince Elouan's joint force (composed of the Liotainian, Erisian, and Firoccan armies). He decided to knock out the Celticans in a daring strike, and then deal with the other allies on the following day.

To prevent Elouan from interfering in his attack on the Celticans, Bonaventura sent his most trusted Marshal, Henrique Martinez, to hold them up at Marle.

### Order of Battle

#### Battle of Marle

**Allies**

* Liotainian Army: Prince Elouan - 28,000 men
* Black Army of Erisia: General Patrizju Borg - 17,000 men
* Firoccan Expeditionary Army: General Inigo Santander Montoya - 12,000 men
* Total: 57,000 men

**Antargentina**

* 2nd Army Group: Henrique Martinez - 39,000 men
* Total: 39,000 men

#### Battle of Tarascon

**Allies**

* Celtican Army: Marshal Orphee MacOrphee - 61,000 men
* Draken mercenaries - 18,000 men
* Total: 79,000 men

**Antargentina**

* 1st Army Group: Walter Bonaventura - 75,000 men
* Total: 75,000 men

### Opening

The Allies were not taken completely by surprise, and took steps late on the afternoon of September 2nd and in the early hours of the 3rd to prepare.

### Battle of Marle, Morning

The eastern flank.

Early in the morning of September 3rd, Elouan roused the Liotainians and moved them forward to the village of Marle. The Erisians and Firoccans did not begin moving until dawn, however. Due to congestion on the main road, the Firoccan troops took a different road further to the north, which eased the problem but prevented them from reaching the battle until later in the morning.

Martinez saw only the Liotainian advance guard in Marle (where he'd intended to defend) and decided to attack them in order to get his preferred defensive position.

The battle became a slug-fest between the Liotainians (eventually reinforced by Patrizju Borg and the Black Army) and the Antargentines, who took Marle but couldn't hold it. Martinez slowly fell back, reluctantly yielding ground.

Then the Firoccans came out of the woods on his left flank...

> Santander-Montoya: "Raise the black flag, my sons! No mercy - no retreat!"
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### Battle of Tarascon, Morning

The western flank.

Bonaventura attacked the Celticans barely minutes after they formed up on their first defensive line. The elite Antargentines overran them, and pushed the Celticans back.

The collapse of one of the Draken mercenary regiments between the Celtican main body and the left wing resulted in the Celtican Army being split. Bonaventura attacked into this gap, but MacOrphee refused the flank, slowly bending his line around the hill of Tarascon. Around 50,000 Celticans on the right held on here.

On the left, 15,000 Draken mercenaries and 5,000 Celtican cavalry also held, likewise refusing the flank by bending around a hill. Bonaventura wasted two hours trying to dislodge them with a quarter of his forces.

> Walter Bonaventura: "Why are those damned mercenaries still up there on that bloody hill? Do I have to pay them to get off?!"
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### Battle of Marle, Afternoon

The eastern flank.

Martinez was now outflanked by the Firoccans, but discipline prevented his army's total collapse. The Allies now pushed ahead. The Firoccans took the north flank, the Liotainians held the center, and the Erisians flooded out of the forest onto the south flank.

Martinez had wasted too much manpower early in the day trying to take Marle. Now he couldn't hold it, and he was driven back by superior numbers.

### Battle of Tarascon, Afternoon

Receiving reports from Martinez, Bonaventura realized he was going to be surrounded by evening. He decided on a bold movement; continuing light attacks against the Celticans while redeploying his main body to crush the forces at Marle.

He left 20,000 infantry under Torres to keep the Celticans tied down, and redeployed 55,000 infantry northeast, toward Marle.

Due to terrain the Celticans couldn't initially see this, but the Draken mercenaries could - so they began attacking Torres on his flank. Encouraged by their progress, the Celtican army attacked and swept forward like a tidal wave.

### Battle of Marle, Evening

Bonaventura's arrival on the battlefield reversed the tide. Elouan decided to stick it out, slowly yielding ground and letting the Antargentines attack at the disadvantage.

The sound of guns to the south convinced the forces in Marle that the Celticans were pushing north en masse.

Bonaventura finally realized that he was not going to break through the Liotainian center, and realized he'd lost. In order to escape, he decided to crush the Firoccans, who occupied the road northward. He committed the Old Guard.

It was too hasty a maneuver. The Old Guard made one magnificent but piecemeal charge into the Firoccans, who held firm and fought them off. Antargentine morale collapsed as the Celticans crowded in from the south.

> Santander-Montoya: "That's Bona's Old Guard, boys! Let's feed them to the vultures!"
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Bonaventura tried to escape, but shortly before dusk, he was captured by a Liotainian uhlan named Vytenis Mazeika.