Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 551 063: It is not easy to create a ghost of honor drowned in the battle of Ice Lake (Part )

For von Essen, he had no expectations for this war.

Actually, because his noble identity was certified as a German from the Baltic region, he was also a distant relative of the Baron Essen in the Russian army, so the relationship might not be that distant.

But later, for various reasons, his group came to Sweden.

Solovyov never paid attention to the situation in Northern Europe. After all, these countries were synonymous with "crappy" in the early 19th century. Moreover, he won two great victories at the beginning and captured Stockholm without firing a single shot.

In such a situation, it is inevitable that young people will underestimate their enemies, even though their mental age is relatively mature due to the time travel factor.

Especially since he defeated Armfeldt at the very beginning, he was considered a more capable general in the Swedish army besides Sanders and von Essen.

However, because Sweden will not play a significant role in the future, even hardcore military fans will rarely touch upon this place, and the only people who can pay attention to it are probably a few local scholars who study the history of this region.

For the entire Napoleonic Wars, Sweden was just an insignificant link, even though Bernadotte later became the King of Sweden - however, he would not have such an opportunity here. Just based on the several battles between the Russian and French armies and the fact that he had no chance to come into contact with the Swedes, he would not have had the opportunity to obtain the crown.

Even if the Swedes sent someone to Paris to ask Napoleon's opinion, the final result would be unknown.

Solovyov's attention is now on the British. He captured Norrköping in order to block the main transportation routes. If he wants to fight in Sweden, it is more suitable to fight when there is thick ice, which can make up for the various geographical barriers caused by its complex terrain.

Even when they arrived in Norrköping, the Russian army did not see any trace of the Swedish army, and the British army was even farther away. According to intelligence, they were still at the naval base.

"If the British were so far away, we should have taken action here, occupied Söderköping as well, and then waited for the Swedes."

Clausewitz did not despise the enemy as Solovyov did, and he put forward his own opinions.

"You have a point, but where are the Swedes now?"

He was also worried that the Russian army's baggage was left behind, so he stopped in Norrkoping.

"Then we should also send out scouts to investigate the surrounding situation."

"That's right, Karl. You need to send the Hussar Squadron to several major directions to find out the enemy's situation."

Although Solovyov perked up and became somewhat alert, for the Russian soldiers, the Finnish Division had never suffered any losses since joining the battle.

Therefore, it was inevitable that the army would underestimate the enemy. When passing by some marching columns, I even heard people talking and saying, "We only need to charge with a bayonet, and those Swedes will collapse on their own."

Recalling this, Solovyov could not help but feel alert. However, for an army in 1809, especially the army of Tsarist Russia, it was a little unrealistic to ask them to make a post-war summary and not underestimate the enemy.

Moreover, the Russians have always learned how to fight and defeat their enemies in wars, so it is inevitable that they will get a little carried away in the process.

He wanted to remind several regimental commanders, but after arriving in Norrköping, several infantry regiments were each looking for bases, setting up barracks and basic positions so that they could supply supplies and provide a place for soldiers to rest after long marches.

Therefore, he did not hold a small meeting on the infantry regiment's side in time.

The cavalry commanders are all here, as well as the leaders of the Tatar regiments who came with them.

The regular army didn't take it seriously, but Menglik and Mahamu said nothing.

After everyone else left, Solovyov kept both of them.

"Why don't the two leaders say anything at this time?"

"The Khans and Khatuns of the past never summoned us to the north, where the sun never sets in the summer and the nights are long in the winter. My Lord, even if we don't speak, we still have to listen to what the leaders have to say."

"That's them, Monlik, just tell me what you want to say."

"Well, wise Count Bartel, such a strategic road, according to the tradition of Khan encountering such enemies, they should guard the key road and hold the fortress. The concerns of the Germanic man are reasonable. We have been leading our cavalry and we must be prepared by your side. Our enemies are like the wolves on the grassland, the lynx in the forest, or the tigers and leopards."

Seeing that he had brought out a bunch of metaphors again, Solovyov also interjected at the right time: "If a goshawk is catching rabbits or a falcon is chasing geese, it's just like this."

"That's right. You also have to be careful of ambushes. When you're hunting, if there's prey with claws hiding in the grass or woods, that's the most dangerous time."

"It's the same if you're injured, Monlik. If you were a regular officer, you would definitely be a general."

"Unfortunately, I don't have such an idea. I just want to be a herdsman on the grassland. If I were young..."

According to his current age, he should have been a member of the tribe when the Torghut tribe returned eastward, but he was the one who did not leave and was separated on the other side of the river.

Moreover, the Mongols always wanted to be a Darakhan and were unwilling to accept any conscription. Besides, the Russian Tsar was not a regular Mongol Khan or the Hun Taiji of the Oirat tribes. Their conscription was normally illegal, and the same was true for the kurultai they convened.

If a conference is really to be held, it should be personally attended like Nader Shah did, which would be more effective.

However, as a general of the aide-de-camp, he could not say this out loud. If he had the chance to teach Nicholas in the future, he could talk about it.

After all, the textbooks he mentioned, in addition to the regular educational content, also include various extracurricular reading materials, such as chronicles and various works, including scripts and some literary masterpieces. It would be good if Nicholas could be influenced by them, as long as he does not restore history and make a joke like "I only regret not having read enough books when I need them".

Looking back, Monlik's concerns were definitely justified, so Solovyov explained it to him again.

"You don't have to think about how to become a general. It's still the most comfortable to be a Darahan. I have been a soldier since I was a child and became an officer in my teens. I am afraid that I will be inseparable from the army for the rest of my life. Freedom is still good."

"If you come to our Aobao someday, the tribe will definitely give you a warm reception."

"That's great. I also want to go to Astrakhan, and I can visit you on the way."

At this point, the Russian scouts did go out to scout, but the Russian cavalry on the Linköping route did not go too far. Seeing that there was no enemy, they did not continue to observe near the city. They just took a look in the forest from a distance and left. In fact, von Essen had already brought his troops here and was ready to fight the Russian army.

"Since Solovyov was able to defeat Armfelt twice, we should not underestimate him. But what will he do?"

"Your Excellency, there are some Russian hussars in the eastern part of the city, but they have not entered it."

"It's good that they didn't enter the city. We are stationed in the west of the city. We need to pay attention to their movements. The Russian army generally has a habit of taking a short break at the destination or the station along the way after a long march. Since the Russians are here, we should give them a surprise at this time."

Solovyov was unaware that the cavalry of the Izyum Hussar Regiment, which was reconnoitring to the west, had only moved to the eastern part of the city.

Moreover, the weather was not very good in the past few days, and the communication was somewhat affected. When the cavalry came back, he still believed that the Swedish army had not appeared in Linköping at this time, so he sent the Pskov Dragoon Regiment and the Kazan Dragoon Regiment to Söderköping. The Semenovsky Regiment and the Guards Jager Regiment that marched together strengthened their strength, and Solovyov also sent two infantry regiments there.

This weakened himself, but the main force of infantry under his control was still very strong.

After receiving the report, he thought that there would be no Swedish troops in Linköping, the direction he was most worried about, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

"It looks like everything is fine, but it's still worrying. But it's always good to be fine, Carl. Have you asked the commanders of each regiment to confirm?"

"They all signed the report."

"It just means who's responsible, but if someone calls, it'll be lively enough."

He hasn't realized yet what impact his words have.

Von Essen's troops are larger than his 25,000-man advance team, with a total strength of 30,000, which is also the largest force that the Swedish army can mobilize after conscription.

His appearance in Linköping was indeed to take advantage of the Swedish terrain, which was able to conceal the army relatively well. Moreover, when the Russian scouts were on the move, they were only careless on the western side and missed the opportunity to scout the urban area.

This also gave von Essen an opportunity. He decided to concentrate his forces and use the troops at his disposal to defeat part of the Russian vanguard troops while they were still unstable and had just arrived in Norrköping.

This strategy was indeed not wrong for the weaker side, and Solovyov did divide his troops.

The only difference between him and Ma Su was that he set up camp along a major traffic route, and the Russian army was also working hard to build fortifications on the icy and snowy road using all the materials they could find, and were even digging trenches.

At this time, it was obviously because the ground was frozen very hard and they couldn't dig too deep, so they had to pile the excavated soil in front and reinforce it with stones and wood underneath.

When von Essen arrived near Norrköping and saw the Russian positions, he couldn't help but admire them.

"These Russians are well-organized, but their deployment direction is not right."

"Sir, according to our reconnaissance, the Russian army has two infantry regiments and dragoons stationed in Söderköping. Should we attack the Söderköping side?"

"It's too far to march there, and it will expose our flanks. Whether we win or lose, we still have to fight the Russians in Norrkoping, which is in our favor."

Von Essen was somewhat confident, but only because the Swedish army had been defeated too quickly before. If he were to lead the troops, that is, when the main force was still there, things might be better.

Amfeldt's level was certainly not as high as his, but according to post-war analysis, in the first battle between the two sides, the Russian army had superior forces and was well-rested, which determined the subsequent results.

He also recalled Suvorov's expedition to Italy, and he felt like Moreau at that time.

The French performed poorly in the early stages of the battle and ended up digging a big hole later on.

However, the Swedish army still has an advantage in terms of manpower, but the British army is gathering supplies at the port and is not here due to the long journey.

Therefore, he was the only one who attacked all the way.

This is indeed an opportunity for battle. Even if other generals are replaced, when they see that the opponent has divided its troops and they still have a clear advantage in terms of military strength, they will definitely fight regardless of their level.

As for Essen's attack direction, he planned to launch an attack on the main road on the southwest side of Norrköping. Even on the ice lake, there was not much room for operation, but there were additional options for marching or maneuvering.

But it is unlikely for him to launch a surprise attack because the nights are still very long during this period. Although the daytime hours will increase from January to March, considering the Nordic environment, the time available for action is relatively limited.

Besides, the distance from Linköping to Norrköping for the Swedish army is not far, even just a day's journey. Even if the Russian army did not discover their movements at the beginning, there is enough time to deploy the troops and even adjust the direction of part of the army.

This means taking advantage of the Swedish army's larger number of troops and having a greater advantage in the battle, and ultimately taking advantage of the troop strength.

As for the Russian troops in Norrköping, they also noticed the situation when the Swedes came over.

Solovyov realized that he had made some mistakes, but the order to send 6000 people to Söderköping had already been issued. According to the marching speed, it would take at least half a day for this force to arrive.

In this way, he had no choice but to prepare for the battle. At least along the coastal route from Söderköping all the way south, there were currently no Swedish soldiers active there, and no spicy crayfish to be seen.

"Karl, we should deploy in a diagonal formation. I always feel that the enemy outnumbers us."

"That may be the case. Even if the enemy is close in size to us, we should focus on attacking one of their flanks to facilitate our victory."

"Also, sometimes there are no rules to follow in war. There is only one rule, which is to be good at winning. You have to attack from a direction that the enemy doesn't expect, but not on the ice lake."

"Aren't you going to take a detour?"

"We don't intend to defeat the enemy head-on, but we do need to be creative in our battle formation."

It’s just that Solovyov always had too good an appetite. He even wanted to use a small number of troops to defeat a larger one, not just defeat the enemy, but even route and even annihilate the enemy.

(End of this chapter)