Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 634 066 A large-scale annihilation battle on the banks of the Danube (counterattack)

The sound of the explosion would naturally attract attention, and Arkady also knew that there would be two more explosions later, so he also sent out scouts to keep an eye on the direction of Rom.

When Solovyov heard this, he knew that this time Arkady needed to move first. After the ammunition depot exploded, at least one of the other two explosions would be successful.

"Karl, get the Selenge and Yakut regiments moving. If the messengers don't delay things like Christian, we'll get results soon. The reeds here are so tall, enough to hide our infantry, but it's not a good idea to put cavalry here."

The Turkish army was still attacking on the front. Their several attacks on the grenadiers were unsuccessful and they left behind many corpses. Their morale was definitely affected under such circumstances.

A flank attack is a very effective blow, especially when the front is so narrow. The only question is whether the Turks will turn around and whether Mustafa Bey will use the width of the battlefield to make a desperate move.

However, given the Turkish army's level of organization, this is still difficult.

After the hidden cannons were pushed out, they began to fire at the Turkish troops in front. With two divisions plus the cavalry artillery company together with the cavalry regiment, 150 cannons was probably the lower limit.

Such fierce firepower, whether it was solid bullets or grenades fired at the Turkish army, also caused huge casualties.

In particular, a 9-pound artillery company of the 12th Division had a range that could cover the enemies they saw head-on and cause casualties in a huge fan-shaped area.

When Arkady arrived at the battery, the commander was still looking ahead through his telescope.

"Captain, how was the fight?"

"Your Excellency, this round of artillery fire was very accurate, but there are some big fish ahead. If things go wrong, we can come and take advantage of them."

He said this in return, and Arkady nodded, and then replied: "You can do that, but what is your basis?"

"Sir, if you look ahead, you will see several gorgeous tents."

"Then just fire all your shells. I'm looking forward to your results."

Arkady also saw a few magnificent tents, which, according to Turkish custom, might be the tents of some important person.

This is not wrong. After all, some Baiyi masters would bring their harem and servants with them when they traveled. Women might be left behind during battles, but according to Turkish custom, there were always some pretty servants.
Besides, Turkish men may be tall and strong when they grow up, but when they are still little boys.
Arkady was personally using a monocular telescope to look at the direction in which the artillery commander was preparing to fire. After he adjusted the muzzle of his gun, a series of shells were fired from his barrel.

"Well done, it looks like the first shot hit the tent."

Mustafa Bey was sitting cross-legged in the tent, listening to a report from an officer who had returned from the front, and he had no idea that danger was about to come.

They mentioned not only the resistance of the grenadier divisions, but also these huge guns that suddenly appeared from the Russian flanks.

"Where did they get all that artillery?"

"Sir, the Russians probably have the most artillery. Their artillery firepower is even stronger than the French, but..."

Before he could finish his words, a 12-pound solid bullet came in, tearing a hole in the tent and hitting him directly on the left shoulder. The man's upper body was completely destroyed, and the tent was immediately filled with blood.

This shell also hit one of Mustafa Bey's black slaves. Although there was no need to worry about incomplete castration because the shell had hit him, there was a fear that the man would not survive.

Another shell passed through the door, smashing a guard's head and tearing down the door of the tent.

Faced with this kind of scene, Mustafa Bey immediately lost his majestic dignity, and now he was no less panicked than those panicked guys before.

The person who was supposed to report to him now disappeared, and the shells that continued to fall on the camp had apparently had a significant effect.

Solid bullets may not kill many people, but they still have a great deterrent effect.

Mustafa Bey simply crawled out through the hole behind the tent and tried to change horses.

This operation is far inferior to that of this old slave.

After all, Yuan Chonghuan only injured an old slave in Ningyuan, and the one who was really defeated was a Bayala commander. The battle report may not be wrong, but there was a deviation in the report, and he should be held responsible for it.

If he wanted to run away, he would not even look at the current situation on the battlefield and would completely ignore what his men would do.

It was only when one of his personal soldiers grabbed his horse's head that he was stopped from escaping.

"Why are you holding my horse, you bastard?"

"Master, you can't run away now. If you lose the battle, you will definitely be beheaded by His Majesty the Sultan."

In fact, Sultan Mahmud was quite tolerant towards the Pashas and Beys who were defeated on the battlefield, and many of them had the opportunity to be re-employed.

But if he runs away, there is nothing to say. Even a minor crime may be sentenced to a felony. If he runs away after being beaten for a while, his entire family will be killed in Constantinople. That may be the mercy of His Majesty the Sultan.

After he came to his senses, he knew that it would be better not to run away at this time, so he forced himself to "calm down" and still put on the posture of a big shot giving orders.

But even if he behaved normally, he would not be able to cope with the counterattacks launched by the two Russian divisions from the flanks.

What's more, there were two violent explosions on the bridge in the city of Rom. Although the bridge was not completely destroyed, it would be impossible for the army to pass through.

Based on this situation, Arkady quickly sent troops to continue the attack. The main goal was to capture several Turkish military camps near the town of Lom, in order to strangle them.

If the Turkish soldiers resisted, they could only do so with brute force. It would not be easy to really resist.

The attack launched by the Russian army was now very fierce. The infantry advanced very quickly and after a brief exchange of fire, they charged with bayonets.

It is true that hand-to-hand combat is the Turkish army's strong point, but the Russians are not bad in this respect either. The difference lies in the Turks' degree of organization.

When the Russian army came in formation, the Turks rushed over in a scattered manner and were naturally blocked by the Russian bayonets. During the hand-to-hand combat, the European army would try its best to maintain its formation, unlike the Turks who fought alone.

Some unfortunate guys who rushed in would only be stabbed with bayonets by the Russian soldiers in the last three rows in the gap behind the first three rows.

Always being stabbed is also a kind of total stab. Although the Turkish army has many desperate men, they will not attack so mindlessly. They were also driven out of the two small camps in front by the Russian army. At this time, the Russian dragoons also arrived. Although many cavalry regiments in the dragoons have always performed poorly against the Turkish army, the Turkish army's layout is cavalry in front and infantry in the back, so naturally there is no need to worry about this.

In order to deal with the chaotic Turkish infantry, the cavalry rushed forward directly, causing greater chaos in the Turkish camp.

In this way, many people will be trampled by the horses, whether by the Russians' horses or by each other.

No one could have imagined that such a battle might turn into a large-scale stampede.

As for Arkady himself, he also discovered the confusion when he rode closer to the front.

But the goal had been achieved, and the messenger he sent back quickly delivered the news to Solovyov.

"Sir, the Prince has already launched an attack on the Turks and captured two military camps. Now we can use our artillery to fire at the Turkish troops on the road."

"Very good. Ask the prince to use artillery to block the road as much as possible. We must cut off the enemy's retreat today."

"Yes!"

When the messenger rode back quickly, Solovyov's eyes revealed a serious look.

"Karl, it looks like we should take action."

"Do you want to call directly?"

"Four regiments are advancing together. After the infantry crosses the river, it's time for the grenadiers to launch a counterattack. This battle looks exciting, but the enemy is full of flaws. It's hard to be happy even if we win."

After all, the biggest opponent in the future will still be the French.

"Don't be like that. I think it's already good. It will be very helpful for some new infantry regiments to form combat effectiveness. Didn't you bring a few of them this time?"

Clausewitz said this, and Solovyov laughed.

"You're right, but in a battle like this, it's just to make the recruits more courageous. The first thing they have to learn is not to be afraid."

From skirmishes involving just a few people to current confrontations involving tens of thousands of people, Solovyov has probably experienced every level. He is quite confident about this. If he still cannot defeat the Turks, he might as well retire early and go home to hug his children.

The situation was not optimistic for the Turks. With the bridges in Lom destroyed and the roads cut off, they had to pass through some places to escape, and they might have to rely on their luck.

This was probably what Solovyov was more worried about. For this reason, he had asked Arkady and Uvarov to each withdraw the grenadier companies from their infantry regiments to form two joint grenadier regiments and place them near the high ground where Arkady's command was originally located. If the Turks wanted to escape by another route, this place would probably be more suitable.

As long as the high ground with an elevation of 144 is in the hands of the Russian army, this pocket can be gradually compressed and even the Turks can be driven into the river.

It makes sense to rush to the river, but it is not very friendly to the enemy.

If they chose to huddle together, the outcome would probably be even worse, as they would be torn to pieces by Russian artillery fire and bayonets.

On the Grenadier Division's position, the Turkish troops who had been attacking the Russian positions two hours ago were no longer actively attacking. Not only were they facing a greater threat from the flank, but their own retreat had also been cut off.

At this time, there is probably no such thing as fighting to the death. The Turks still have to collect some "faith points" from Imani. They can fight by relying on superstition and fanaticism, but the prerequisite is that the opponent is weak enough.

A typical example is probably the combat effectiveness of the Timurid Empire in the middle and late stages, which was entirely supported by rubbish soldiers mobilized by faith. Under such circumstances, it would be unfair not to lose the battle.

This cycle probably exists in the Middle East all the way to Transoxiana, but the Turks in the Near East and the Balkans have a different situation. In short, it doesn't seem so
If they could be considered devout Christians, they would rather believe in the thieves of Baghdad or the executioners of the Sultan.

The collapse of the Turkish army is probably just a matter of time.

However, Solovyov had not yet calculated how many days the fight would last.

Up to now, he still didn't have a clear idea of ​​the number of enemies. He only knew that the number of Turkish troops was at least 20,000 more than his own. The entire battlefield was too long, so he could only make an estimate for the time being.

It could be 55,000, or it could be 60,000, but if the number is too high, it’s a bit scary. What if I can’t finish it all in one bite?
Ahmed Pasha didn't know that these people were not following his deployment, and his Russian enemies were even more unpredictable. They were still organizing the defense in the rear, and could not let Kamensky the Younger easily reach the heart of Thrace.

After all, his side was the focus of the Ottoman Empire's defense, and a series of fortresses were difficult to attack from two directions.

Soon, it was the night of the second day of the battle. This time, Solovyov couldn't sleep because of the unknown number of enemies.

"Ah, if only counting sheep could solve that problem. But even if I counted sheep, I probably wouldn't fall asleep."

"Master, if you want to sleep..."

"Mihlima, don't worry about me, just go to bed."

But this girl, her identity is really a maid after all, unlike Adela who came and was actually raised as a sister.

"No, Master, I think I can share your burden."

Speaking of which, this child's personality is also unpredictable, as for her sitting in front of her camp bed in pajamas.

Her eyes are too big. Seeing these big eyes of Caroline staring at him makes him even more unable to sleep.

"Girl, you have beautiful eyes, but now you are sitting in front of my bed, it looks... Anyway, you should go to bed. I may not be able to sleep if you are here."

Mihrima was still reluctant to leave, but she took her scarf and put it in Solovyov's hand.

"My tribesman, if you find it hard to sleep, it might be helpful to cover your eyes with my veil, but don't tie it too tight."

What a delicate little tulip, but a little precocious.

(End of this chapter)