Prime Minister Bizen

Chapter 161 The Surprise Attack on Three Rivers ([-]) Okazaki Castle Breakdown (Thursday Supplement)
On June 12, 28th year of Tianzheng, just after dawn, the generals were deployed on the east and north sides of Okazaki Castle.
Okazaki Castle was built at the place where the Iga River merges into the Oto River, and the city faces the river on both sides. For the engineering team, crossing the river is very disadvantageous.

Yichuan on the south side is about 30 meters wide. Due to the need for water storage in later generations, a dam was built downstream to make the water depth exceed 5 meters. However, the water depth of Yichuan is about waist high now.

The Iga River on the west side is only 10 meters wide, and the water depth has just crossed the calf. It is more appropriate to say that it is a small stream. There are two wooden bridges on the Iga River connecting Okazaki Castle, making the Iga River an Okazaki city. The moat of the city.

At the same time, it built a lot of scull towers on the west, north, and east sides as a supplement to the defense force.The Honmaru Palace was built on the south side adjacent to Otokawa. Perhaps in the eyes of the builders, attacking the city from the south side was like a dream.

Of course, Hideka knew the information about Okazaki Castle in advance, so he prepared many rafts to be laid on the Oto River at Kami no Sato Castle, and built a pontoon bridge to connect the two banks.

As far as the current technical level is concerned, it is indeed difficult to attack Okazaki Castle from the south side without artillery support. Therefore, when the Takayama Clan had already crossed the river yesterday to form an array in the north of the castle, Hideka also decided to attack Okazaki Castle from the south this morning. Cross Yichuan and set up an array in the east of the city.

The person in charge of the strategy on the side of the Hideo family is Tomohiko Nishio, captain of the right backup team of Kamichi.It's just that the number of backup teams is not enough, so Xiujia specially added 500 people from the Firearms Battalion to join the battle.

The Hide family waved down with the Hide family's army, Shimizu Yuki also said "Attack~" at the top of his voice, and the sword piece flags representing the Bizen Hashiba family on both sides waved back and forth, officially announcing the start of the siege battle.

"Iron Artillery Squad, move forward!" Makoto Ito, who was promoted by half a level to become the commander of the first battalion of the firearms equipment because of the battle of Sanuki, ordered to his battalion after seeing the flag waving in the rear.

Following the commander's order, the ashigaru in the front row slowly approached the city wall on the east side of Okazaki, holding the wooden bun and the bamboo beam, and stopped before Tubori. The distance was only more than 50 meters, but just after 20 meters, the city head Flying arrows and iron cannons were already shot from above.

When the Ashgaru Osama bamboo bundle and other tools were put down, Tie Pao quickly ran to the bamboo bundle.After the wooden escape, hide, load ammunition here, insert a matchlock and wait for orders.

"Aim at the top of the city, prepare to fire~shoot~" "Bang bang~" After hundreds of iron cannons fired a round of salvo, there was a "cracking" sound from the top of the city, and some iron cannons pierced through the wooden screen and rushed into the other There were several wailing sounds from the body of the ashigaru who was hiding behind, but the projectiles that followed were blocked by the wooden screen and got stuck on the screen.

In many film and television works, the arquebus warriors of the old days often lined up to shoot at the enemy, but in fact this was absolutely not allowed in the arquebus era.

Because every time the matchlock of the matchlock gun is fired, it will be bounced around due to the reaction force given by the firing powder. At that time, the powder of ashigaru was often loaded in the powder pot around the waist, or hung on the shoulder. in his fire belt.

Just imagine how horrible it would be for a matchlock with sparks to hit the person next door who is loading gunpowder due to the reaction force of the gunpowder explosion, causing a chain explosion.

Therefore, in the old matchlock era, the iron gunners had to keep a distance of 2 to 3 meters, and the matchlocks had to be folded and circled to reduce the movable length. After the flintlock was widely used, the distance between the musketeers was gradually changed. was shortened to a distance of half a meter.

Hideka looked at the firearms battalion shooting in the front row, and facing the captain of the firearms preparation, Toshitsu Endo, who is the best at using iron cannons in Ukita, said, "I heard that there is a method of warfare in Kyushu called Zaohe. The projectiles and gunpowder required for shooting are packaged together and carried in bamboo tubes or paper bags. When in use, the projectiles and gunpowder in the bamboo tube or paper bag are poured into the gun barrel, and then tamped with a cleaning rod."

"Now I see a row of small bamboo tubes slanted across Tie Pao Zuqing's shoulders. May I ask Xiuliang, is this the early combination of tactics?"

As the leader of the Ukita Iron Cannon, Endo Toshitsutsu took the morale of the Ukita Naojia as the commander of the Iron Cannon Team. His greatest achievement was to kill the Mimura family with an iron cannon 200 meters away in the name of the Ukita Naojia.

"That's true. This is a strategy I learned a few years ago when I was in the Kii country. It can greatly reduce the time for reloading the iron cannon."

Xiujia nodded to show that he understood, and then continued to ask, "Do you know the famous technique of the Oda family - the three-stage strike method? Why didn't our soldiers use the second method to make the iron cannon fire continuously?"

As a fan of the Warring States Period, many people started to fall into the pit from the three-stage strike method in the game, so they have an obsessive worship for this method of combat. They always feel that this method of combat is an idea that transcends generations, and it is the victory of the Oda family. key.

Toshitsu Endo said, "In fact, this method also has disadvantages. The iron cannons need to line up in cross rows. The iron cannons waiting in the back row are easily killed by the enemy's long-range firepower. The continuity of their firepower can only last for the first three rounds." After shooting for tens of seconds, the entire iron cannon team fell silent and had no power to fight back, and the exchange of queues required extremely high coordination, even the Oda family rarely used it formally."

"Actually, Akechi Hinata Mamoru was the first to use the three-stage combat method. Later, Master Youfu carried him forward, but the disadvantages of it are difficult to make up for."

Xiujia nodded thoughtfully, and remembered the three-stage shooting during the Napoleonic War in Europe. The team lined up in three rows, the first row shot and squatted down, the second row continued to shoot, then squatted down, and then the second row continued to shoot. Strategies for shooting in three rows.

I just don't know if this is better than the Japanese design method at the moment?So Xiujia stated his thoughts for Toshitsu Endo's reference. At the beginning, he was surprised by Xiujia's thoughts, nodded thoughtfully, and then asked to deny this idea.

"A safe distance must be kept between the matchlock guns. Your Highness's idea may be difficult to realize. What if the matchlock in the back row hits the ashigaru hands in the front row who are loading ammunition and dies?"

"And the problem with the continuous shooting of this arquebus gun is not the formation of the city, but the problem of loading speed. Your Highness, this method is not as good as the three-stage attack method of the Oda family."

Hideka also nodded when he heard Endo Toshitsutsu's explanation. Indeed, as he said, before the flintlock gun was equipped, Hideka's idea was not practical, and then Hideka said again
"Why not let the iron gunners in the first row be responsible for shooting, and the iron gunners in the back row are only responsible for loading? The iron gunners in the front row stay still, and the iron gunners in the back row hand over the loaded new iron guns to the firing hands in turn. The fired old iron cannon ran to the rear row to reload."

"Because the rear loader does not involve firing, the entire line of iron cannons can be denser than before, and the fired iron cannon projectiles can also cause more effective damage in a certain area?"

"Then what's the point of missing the loader for the shooter if the shooter in the front row is killed?" Toshitsu Endo asked puzzled.

Xiujia heard that he didn't understand what he meant, and explained eagerly, "All firing hands and loaders need firing artillery, so they all need iron cannon training. Once the firing hand is killed, the next loader can take over. The position continues to fire."

"What's the difference between what you mean by doing this, and what is the difference between us hiding behind a cover after a round of salvo and reloading?"

"Of course there is a difference. Salvo can only cause short-term suppression of firepower. Although this method of warfare does not have a high density of iron cannons in a short period of time, it is persistent and can be widely used in siege warfare to suppress the city for a long time. Firepower!"

The reason for doing so is no longer related to the continuity of the physical firepower of the iron cannon, but more to cause psychological pressure on the opponent.

Imagine a large-area attack with a fixed time, and an uninterrupted small-scale firepower shooting. The former only needs to calculate the time to hide, and the latter does not know whether the next round of shooting will hit my head. Which one causes more psychological pressure?Obviously the latter.

"Souga, Your Highness's idea is really good! After this battle, I will train the firearms." After a little bit from Xiujia, Endo Toshitsu finally understood the mystery of it. "Please name this strategy, Your Highness."

"Well, let's call it continuous shooting." Xiujia thought for a moment and threw away all those fancy nouns, and finally came up with this plain but more fitting name for it.

While chatting with the Xiu family, cheers erupted from the north side of the city, and after a while, a messenger came to report that Okazaki Castle Oteguchi had been captured by Suzaku Bei.

Xiujia was very happy to hear the news, and ordered to inform the whole army to boost morale.

After getting the news, Tomohiko Nishio, the captain of the upper right reserve, ran to the front line to boost morale and said, "The friendly army has already broken through the north gate. Should we waste time here? There are only a hundred guards in the city, and it's time for me Wait until the drums are down, I will personally lead the team to charge the next attack, I hope you will join me in rushing into the city to hack and kill Ben Duo and win this battle again and again!"

"Hehe~hou~" Encouraged by Captain Bei, the morale of Shangdao Youbei was high, and after half an hour, he also attacked the Sakura Gate on the east side and entered the city.

However, because he rushed too quickly, he encountered the shooting of the Tokugawa Army Iron Artillery Team on the aisle in the city, killing and injuring more than a dozen people in an instant. General Yu Xiduo, the highest official who died in the battle.

Despite some minor setbacks, Sergeant Ukita's morale did not drop, and a second wave of offensive was soon organized. Like the first wave, the samurai would take the lead in the charge.

Under this wave of offensive, Okazaki Castle Nichimaru became in jeopardy. Ukita Iron Cannon Ashgaru climbed up the samurai house in Sannomaru through a ladder, and started shooting at the defenders of Nichimaru to cover the attack. Michiyoube's Ashgaru hit the door with a log.

"We must hold on, the lord's reinforcements will arrive tomorrow, the number of enemy troops is not large, and victory will be tomorrow!" Ishikawa Yasutsu, who was in charge of guarding the southern gate of Erzhi Maru, was desperately trying to boost morale.

(The entrance of Sannomaru of Okazaki Castle is in the northwest and east, the entrance of Nijimaru is on the north and south sides, and the entrance of Honmaru is in the southwest).

Seeing that the situation has stabilized, Xiujia has already begun to make arrangements for the capture of the city, so he said to Ukita Hidei next to him, "You take the 200 banners to go around from the north side, cross the Ise River, and be ready to intercept the enemy from the city at any time." The fleeing defenders." Ukita Hidei led the order and left.

However, this arrangement of the Xiu family was useless in the end, because except for a small number of samurai ashigaru who hung down from the west side, all the important samurai with names and surnames below Honda chose to guard Honmaru as the last trapped beast. fight.

At noon in the battle, Ukita's army broke through Honmaru from the southwest side, and began the final fight with the defenders.

At this time, the remaining soldiers of Kamichi Ubi, Akasaka Bei, and Higashi Sanuki, who were originally arranged by Hideo to rest in Kami no Sato for a night, arrived at Okazaki Castle with the artillery battalion equipped with firearms.

The Xiu family first asked about the situation of Shang Zhi Xiang Cheng, "Has His Royal Highness Miyoshi's Yuchai Army arrived yet? How is the situation of Shang Zhi Xiang Cheng and Xisanhe?"

As the youngest of the Hide family, Han Chuan Iemitsu said first, "His Royal Highness Miyoshi lost his temper when he first landed, but he calmed down after Mr. Zhuang's persuasion. In the end, he also agreed to lead the army of the Nakagawa family." A total of 3800 people have gone to attack Nishi Mikawa. They, together with the forces of the Tsutsui and Sakuma families, will set off from Kami no Kojo this evening."

When Xiujia heard this, he nodded to show that he already knew, and then he gave orders to the two of them, "Okazaki Castle is about to leave, and you two will take our team and artillery battalion across the Yahagi River to Anxiang City first. City set up a new Honjin and Tokugawa Senate decisive battle.

Be sure to send out more scouts along the way. The vanguard of the Tokugawa army will come from Owari at some point. Don’t make the mistake of Ikeda Settsushou. In addition, Mizuno Tadashige in Kariya Castle is Tokugawa Ieyasu’s uncle. An army of 1000 men may support Kariya Castle at any time, so you must pay attention. "

"Yes, I will understand." The two of them received the order and were about to leave. At this moment, Okazaki Castle resounded like a shout of celebration. This was the signal that Okazaki Castle had been taken down. The two stopped and walked towards each other. Zhuo Xiujia said: "Congratulations, my lord, for capturing Okazaki Castle."

Xiujia waved his hand and said, "This is just an appetizer. The garrison of Okazaki Castle is only 800. The real decisive battle is yet to come. You should not take it lightly when you go."

(End of this chapter)