I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 679: Burning Eastern Europe VI
The Russians' firepower was more intensive and their shooting accuracy was higher than that of the Poles.

When their infantry line came to about 40 steps in front of the breastwork on the east side of Zagazyk village, several gaps had appeared in the Polish position.

The number of Polish soldiers who came in later was gradually decreasing.

On the bell tower not far away, a Polish captain put down his binoculars and said anxiously to Lieutenant Colonel Lubinska, who was in charge of commanding the defense line of Zagazyk Village: "Commander, with the current level of casualties, if we don't send in the reserve troops, there is a high possibility of... collapse."

Lieutenant Colonel Lubinska frowned.

He knew that his staff officer was right, but those 300 soldiers were the last of his strength.

Today is just the first day of the war.

If the reserve troops were also exhausted, he would have no choice but to abandon Zagazik Village. His mission was to hold on here for three days.

General Kosciuszko said that the Russian army must be dragged into the rhythm of an offensive battle before the subsequent combat plan can be implemented.

Lubinska took a deep breath and said in a deep voice: "I believe them."

The Russians' firing became more and more intense. In just over ten minutes, the narrow line of troops covering the north and south sides of the village had reached a position more than 30 steps in front of the Polish defense line.

"Don't be afraid!" Drasovitz's voice was hoarse, but he still shouted, "The motherland is behind us!"

He remembered this sentence when he listened to a speech by someone from the Barr Alliance last month.

He actually heard a lot that day, but only remembered this sentence.

Yes, behind him is the motherland, and even more so his son and daughter.

The invaders have no chance of getting past him.

Unless, you die.

The surrounding recruits followed suit and shouted: "Protect our motherland!"

"For the sake of our motherland, let's fight them!"

The Russian infantry lines opened fire.

The Polish defense line suddenly lost twenty or thirty people.

But the next moment, the Polish soldiers responded with a volley of fire.

Although their shooting skills were poor, the Russians still suffered nearly thirty casualties.

Although the breastwork is only slightly higher than the abdomen of an adult, it can still provide a certain degree of protection. This is also the only thing the Polish army can rely on.

The Russian commander also loudly encouraged his men. The infantry line with a numerical advantage had successfully approached the Poles, and the quality of their soldiers was also much higher. There was no reason why they could not capture this line of defense.

In just seven or eight minutes, the two sides had engaged in dozens of rounds of face-to-face shooting.

The formations of both sides became uneven, and the fierce exchange of fire left them with no time to deal with the corpses, and it was difficult for the rear team to replenish their forces.

In the Russian rear headquarters, General Morkov observed the Polish defense line through a telescope and said to his staff, "Order the baggage battalion to prepare. Zagazyk Village will be ours soon. Start attacking Marece Town before 2:30. That will require a large number of artillery shells."

He had clearly seen that the Polish defenders had lost at least one-fifth of their troops. Even the powerful Russian army would collapse in the face of such heavy casualties, not to mention the weak Poles.

In fact, he wanted to praise the Polish army. If it were the Ottomans, they would have surrendered as soon as their infantry line approached 40 steps.

"Poor Poles," he smiled and shook his head, "How long can you hold out? 20 minutes? Or can you wait until Stepashin starts the attack?"

Fierce fighting continued in front of the Zagazki village defense line.

Polish soldiers continued to fall, and those who were still alive were suffocating under the Russian fire.

However, it was completely different from what Morkov had expected.

This army, mainly composed of new recruits, might be nervous, panicked, or even scared, but no one wanted to escape.

Their souls have been closely linked together by the concept of "Polish nation".

These are not just individuals, they are part of Poland. No one should think of invading their most cherished homeland!

Coupled with the blessing of the Crusades' belief in holy war, life and death at this moment are just insignificant things to them.

All they have to do is to shed their last drop of blood for their great motherland under the watchful eyes of God.

Even if you are the only one standing behind this breastwork!

The senior officers of Drasovitz's company had all been killed. At this moment, he silently repeated the drum beat in his mind and shouted loudly: "Aim--"

No one questioned his order, and the 70 or so people around him raised their flintlocks at the same time.

"emission--"

Drasovitz's hoarse shout seemed to penetrate the battlefield, carrying dozens of lead bullets that hit the Russian army's line formation hard, killing six people including the drummer, and their flesh and blood flew everywhere.

The Russian officers were shocked to find that although the Poles suffered heavy casualties, they did not waver at all. Instead, some of their own people began to retreat.

Several Russian company commanders killed six or seven retreating soldiers in succession, and only then did they stabilize the situation.

At this moment, a sneer appeared on the face of the Russian infantry commander. He heard the sound of horse hooves coming from the northwest.

"Look, these bastards are scared!" Drasovitz noticed that some Russian soldiers were retreating, and immediately shouted to encourage his comrades.

At this moment, someone on the left side of the defense line suddenly shouted: "There are cavalry! Be careful!"

The captain of the nearest Infantry Company 7 turned his head and suddenly felt nervous. More than forty Cossack cavalrymen, under the cover of skirmishers, sneaked past the northernmost end of the defense line.

Behind the line of defense is our own artillery position.

Yes, although there are only two guns, they have always played a huge role.

In fact, they accounted for at least a quarter of the Russian casualties.

Drasovitz was just a soldier, and he was not aware of the thrilling containment, feints, and fighting that had just taken place elsewhere on the battlefield. But he knew that although 40 cavalrymen could not shake the infantry line, they could destroy the two cannons.

The captain of the 7th Company drew his sword and shouted, "Follow me to protect the cannon! Only veterans, quick!"

Drasovitz immediately ran towards him and waved to Yannick: "Come too!"

"it is good!"

The commander of the 30th Company led more than veterans to run towards the artillery position. This was the maximum number of people he could mobilize from the defense line. If there were more, the defense line would not hold.

Drasovitz ran desperately, but his heart was filled with despair. He remembered that there were only a dozen guards left at the artillery position, and by the time he rushed over, the cannons would have been destroyed by the Cossacks.

A quarter of an hour later, the commander of the seventh company led his men to the artillery position and saw that the artillerymen were still loading and firing, and he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"Where's the enemy cavalry?" he shouted to the nearest gunner.

"It's blocked over there." The latter raised his hand and pointed towards the northeast.

The company commander immediately saw that 200 steps away, a small group of people were relying on two dilapidated farmhouses and engaging in fierce fire with the Cossack cavalry.

No, the battle there was no longer fierce. The number of people resisting the cavalry was too small, and they had been mostly wiped out. In an instant, only sporadic gunfire could be heard from behind the farmhouse.

"Who's there?" The company commander frowned. He knew that the dozen or so soldiers guarding the artillery position alone could not hold off the Cossacks for so long.

The gunner lowered his head, picked up a cannonball, ran towards the muzzle, and said in a low voice: "It's Father Starshak, and the leatherworker and the blacksmith..."

The army of this era could not do without these craftsmen - they had to repair boots and guns for the army at any time, and they were precious skilled workers.

There are 12 leatherworkers and 10 blacksmiths in the village of Zagazyk.

It was they, together with the priest, who assisted the 14 infantrymen here and used their lives to hold back the Russian cavalry for nearly 20 minutes.

(End of this chapter)