Trench Bolts and Magic

Chapter 203 Rest and Tanka (Bonus Chapter 13)

"you"

John French was trembling with rage.

This is a bunch of lunatics! A bunch of lunatics blinded by so-called 'honor' and 'offensive'!
There's absolutely no way to communicate with them!
The first meeting between the two sides ended in a heated argument and on bad terms.

The more serious problem is that the meeting ended, but not a single word was discussed on the most crucial issues, such as how the expeditionary force should be deployed and how to coordinate with the Gallic army.

The next day, John French had no choice but to lead his expeditionary force toward Alas, despite his reluctance.

Because he knew that if he didn't plug the hole, no one else would.

However, just as his troops arrived in Alas and had not yet fully deployed, the advance of the First Saxon Army was already upon them.

"Your Excellency Marshal, all our troops have entered their designated positions."

On the front lines, a staff officer reported from behind John French:

"The defensive line has been initially completed, but our troop strength is far inferior to that of the Saxons we face."

John French lowered his binoculars and remained silent.

He was certainly aware of the significant disparity in troop strength.

He had only five infantry divisions and one cavalry division at his disposal, with a total force of only 100,000 men.

On the other side, the Saxon First Army Group was a significantly reinforced army group, with a total strength exceeding 400,000, according to vague intelligence.

The troop strength was four to one.

How to fight this battle?
He glanced back at his staff officers, whose faces, those who had crossed the strait to foreign land, all wore an undisguised look of worry.

He knew he had to give them confidence.

"Gentlemen, do not be intimidated by the enemy's numbers," John French's voice was steady and powerful. "We are soldiers of the Holy Britannian Empire! We possess the finest army in the world, and the most powerful accompanying mages!"

"Although the Saxons are numerous, they have traveled a long distance and are already exhausted, and they have no mages to aid them in battle. We, on the other hand, are well-rested and ready to fight!"

"Tell all the soldiers that the English Channel lies behind them! If Gaul falls, the Saxon barbarians will reach our borders! We have nowhere to retreat!"

His words were passionate and inspiring, and the staff officers' fighting spirit was rekindled on their faces.

John French nodded and told them to go about their business.

When only he and a few trusted men remained on the high ground, the resolute and decisive look on his face gradually faded.

Instead, a look of solemnity and helplessness appeared on his face.

Those words were meant for my subordinates.

He knew very well that this battle was likely to end badly.

Fight to the death?

What a joke.

He would not sacrifice his precious expeditionary force here for these Gallic fools. As the commander of the expeditionary force, he was first and foremost responsible for the Holy Britannian Empire and for the lives of his 100,000 soldiers.

He turned around and looked towards the plains to the southeast.

That's the direction of the Fifth Gallic Army.

His only hope now is that Langlezak, the guy who spoke so arrogantly to him at the meeting, can withstand the pressure and stop making such a foolish mistake.

As long as the Fifth Army can protect his right flank, he is confident that with the support of his accompanying mages and armored knights, he can put up a good fight against the Arras and Saxons.

But what if... what if the Fifth Army also collapses?
A chill ran through John French's eyes.

He had already thought of a backup plan.

He walked to the map and slowly slid his finger across a city behind Alas—Amiens.

The Somme River flows from east to west through the northern part of Amiens, and its average width in Amiens is about 20 meters.

That was a natural and excellent line of defense.

If the expeditionary force could not withstand the Saxon attack in Arras, or if there were problems with the Fifth Gallic Army, he would not hesitate to immediately order the entire army to retreat to Amiens and defend the Somme River.

As for these Gallic lands north of Arras?

If it's lost, it's lost.

That's Gaulish land. What does it have to do with John French and the Holy Britannian Empire?
He has done his best.

I had warned them at the war council, but they didn't listen.

Now, he must secure a way out for his army.

"Pass on my orders,"

He said to one of his trusted advisors:
"Order the engineering corps to immediately proceed to Amiens to survey the terrain along the Somme River, mark all suitable locations for establishing defensive lines, and prepare to blow up all bridges."

"Yes, Marshal!" The messenger accepted the order and left.

Watching the messenger's departing figure, John French felt a little more at ease.

With each member of the coalition harboring their own ulterior motives, the time quietly arrived at August 16th.

Morin and the Training Assault Battalion were still resting outside the northern city of Charleroi at this time, and some outstanding soldiers drawn from various units of the Second Army had been added to the Training Assault Battalion.

Currently, each company is conducting emergency training with these soldiers to enable them to adapt to the combat style of the training assault battalion in the shortest possible time.

According to the company commanders and sergeants, these soldiers might already be considered outstanding soldiers or even "top soldiers" in other units.

But after arriving at the training assault battalion, these soldiers were still just little girls and needed rigorous training before they could be of much use.
As night fell, the training camp of the assault battalion gradually quieted down. The 'recruits,' exhausted after a day of grueling training, lay down on their cots and fell asleep like dead dogs.

However, Morin was far from sleepy.

He was reflecting and summarizing, and the battles of the past few days had given him many new insights.

The combat effectiveness of the training assault battalion is undoubtedly top-notch.

While it's inappropriate to use training assault battalions for meat grinders, it's undeniable that in positional warfare, relying on their strong fortifications and powerful firepower, they were nothing short of a ruthless meat grinder.

However, war is not just about defense.
As a 'striker' unit, their core value lies in offense.

During the attack, he discovered a problem.

That is, during rapid maneuvers and infiltrations, the battalion's heavy firepower sometimes couldn't keep up with the infantry's pace.

Those MG08 heavy machine guns were indeed extremely powerful during that period.

However, during an offensive, it is necessary to first find a suitable firing position and then set it up, a process that wastes valuable time.

On the ever-changing battlefield, a delay of even a second can lead to the failure of the entire attack.

He recalled the brilliant ambush by the 1st Imperial Guard Cavalry Division on the southern outskirts of Charleroi.

General Hopner, the seemingly traditional old-school cavalry commander, fought a battle with a highly modern flair.

The key to his success lay in his use of the cavalry's mobility to quickly deploy a large number of heavy machine guns to pre-set ambush positions, forming a deadly crossfire network.

The mobility of cavalry, combined with the firepower of heavy machine guns.

This combination gave Maureen a great deal of inspiration.

The special nature of the training assault battalion also gives them mobility—the large number of trucks and supply wagons make them far more mobile than ordinary infantry.

They also possessed greater firepower than a typical infantry battalion—they had more heavy machine guns and automatic weapons.

So why can't we combine these two elements more perfectly?
Morin picked up a pencil and started drawing on a piece of paper.

He began to imagine what it would be like if his assault troops had a fleet of mobile machine gun platforms that could follow up at any time and provide immediate fire support when attacking enemy positions.
When the infantry's advance is stalled, these mobile machine gun platforms can immediately deploy on the flanks, suppressing enemy firing positions with concentrated firepower and creating conditions for the infantry to launch another assault.

When infantry breaches an opening, these mobile machine gun platforms can immediately follow up and secure it.

They even relied on mobility to penetrate deeper into enemy territory and expand their gains.

This idea excited Morin; he felt like he had grasped something.
But how exactly can this be achieved?
Mount a heavy machine gun directly on a truck?
The idea flashed through his mind, but he quickly dismissed it.

While trucks have decent load-bearing capacity, their reliability is indeed insufficient, and their off-road capabilities are currently limited, making them unable to traverse many complex terrains.

Using cavalry packhorses?

That won't work either. Although pack horses are good at off-roading, it still takes time to unload the machine gun from their backs and set it up.

He needs a more flexible platform, a platform where he can strike and run.

In that instant, Morin suddenly remembered a weapon he had seen in films and historical records from later generations.

On the vast plains of East Europe, during the brutal civil war, a weapon composed of a simple four-wheeled carriage and a heavy machine gun once reigned supreme, striking fear into the hearts of countless enemies.

Its structure was so simple as to be almost crude, but its tactical ideas were ahead of their time.

A name flashed through the fog in Morin's mind like lightning.

tachanka
Molin suddenly grabbed a pencil and paper from the table and quickly sketched on the paper. A simple but impactful prototype of a weapon appeared on the paper.

It was a four-wheeled carriage pulled by two horses. The rear of the carriage had been reinforced and modified, and an MG08 heavy machine gun was prominently mounted on it.

The machine gun muzzle was pointing towards the rear of the vehicle.

Inside the carriage, besides the machine gunner and assistant gunner, there were also piles of ammunition boxes.

Its structure is so simple that any field factory, or even a slightly larger blacksmith shop, can mass-produce it in a short time.

But its tactical value is revolutionary.

Imagine, on the battlefield.

When the bugle call to attack sounded, dozens of such wagons, following behind the infantry charge or on the flanks, moved forward rapidly.

When the infantry's offensive encountered fierce resistance from the enemy, these wagons could immediately turn and stop, with the drivers taking control of the horses.

The machine gunners inside the carriage didn't need to get off or set up their guns; they simply turned their guns around and unleashed a barrage of fire at the enemy's position!
Given the suppressive firepower currently demonstrated by the MG08 heavy machine gun, it can instantly create an impenetrable barrage, pinning down enemy firepower and preventing them from raising their heads.

When the enemy begins to retaliate with artillery fire, these wagons can immediately start moving to the next position, causing all the enemy shells to fall into empty air.

Hit and run, never linger in battle.

Mobility, firepower, and survivability are perfectly combined.

Isn't this exactly what he's been dreaming of—a mobile fire support platform that accompanies infantry assaults?
"Taqiangka"

Morin looked at the blueprints and softly uttered the name.

Of course, this relatively early and primitive firepower platform can only be considered an emergency solution.

What Morin really wanted was an armored vehicle with some bulletproof capabilities and stronger firepower.

However, given the current technology of Huijing vehicles, it will definitely take time to develop a practical armored vehicle. At least it's not something he can solve on the battlefield.

"Looks like I should write a letter to my sister Cecilia."

(End of this chapter)