Struggle in Russia

This unsuccessful attempt by the Russian army did not awaken Menshkov, and the 10th and 11th divisions of the Fourth Army, commanded by Lieutenant General Soymolov, arrived at Sevastopol. Menshkov had nearly 90,000 troops on hand.

If the garrison troops of Kornilov and Nakhimov are counted, the number will be even larger.

At this time, the coalition forces on the front line from Balaklava to Sevastopol, according to the reconnaissance of the Russian army, were only a mere 70,000 people, including a large number of wounded.

Menshkov believes that his troops have an absolute advantage, so when will he not launch an attack at this time?

Moreover, although Colonel Fedorov's test was unsuccessful, it also made the Russian army find that the coalition's position was not strong and there were many flaws.

Even the British army themselves found that the problem was very big. Dressy Evans and Bergoying reminded Raglan several times that several key highlands were extremely vulnerable to attack, and it was necessary to strengthen the defense, especially the construction of fortifications.

The French also saw the situation as dangerous, with Bosquet writing to Raglan almost daily warning him of a weak defence.

It's just that Raglan didn't take the advice of these generals, and he didn't mean to strengthen the defense at all. Even if he encountered a tentative attack from the Russian army, he was still unmoved.

This left Bosque puzzled as to why such an important and exposed location was not protected by fortifications.

Raglan's inaction is not entirely due to negligence or indifference, but because he has a serious shortage of troops at hand. He has to continue to besiege Sevastopol in a forward configuration, and he has to guard against the attack of Menshkov on the flank. He doesn't have three heads and six arms, how can he take care of him?

And at this time, the British army was exhausted and urgently needed to rest. According to Private Henry Smith, they went to work immediately after the Battle of the Alma River and the Battle of Balaclava. From the end of September, the British army began to work every day. I never had more than four hours of rest, and many times I didn't even have time to make coffee.

On October 14th, even if bullets and artillery shells flew overhead like hail, the British army was too tired to respond at all, and many people even fell asleep during the Russian artillery bombardment!

Soldiers often had to be stationed in the trenches for 24 hours in a row, and the mud was so bad that many soldiers suffered from trench foot, and even many soldiers were soaked and covered with mud when they returned to the camp. It was very difficult, there was no clean drinking water, and the bread was often not eaten.

In this state, Raglan was overwhelmed, and he had no energy or ability to order the troops to strengthen their defenses.

It was at this time that Menshkov's desperate attack began. On November 4, Soymolov led a force of 19,000 men and 38 artillery pieces along Colonel Fedorov's line of attack.

Pavlov, with sixteen thousand men and ninety-six artillery pieces, crossed the Cholnaya from the east and attacked the British flank. After the two forces merged, General Dannenberg took over command and drove the British away from Inkerman. Meanwhile, Liplandi's troops were responsible for interfering with the French Bosquets.

This operational plan has high requirements for the Russian army. To be honest, it was impossible to achieve it with the quality of the Russian army and the communication conditions on the battlefield at that time.

Not only the Russian army can't do it, even if it is replaced by the British army and the French army, it will be equally useless!

In particular, it should be noted that the Russian troops participating in the war were all transferred from the direction of Ukraine and were not familiar with the terrain around Sevastopol at all.

And the Russian army didn't have enough military maps. Let's just say, the military map near Sevastopol is still on the road from St. Petersburg to Sevastopol. Before the war, Nicholas I did not expect the coalition to land in Kerry. Mia, didn't make any preparations at all.

At the end of the day, the Russian generals had only a few maps with very low accuracy and errors. If they were unfortunately lost, it would not be surprising at all.

Under such circumstances, Menshkov also made an inexplicable configuration. After the two armies merged, they would be commanded by Dannenberg. Isn't this a joke?

Such an arrangement is simply courting death, and Dannenberg, who is in charge of taking over the command, is not a famous general. This guy was famous for his repeated defeats and hesitation in the war against Napoleon that year. No confidence at all.

Of course, these are not the worst. The biggest mistake of this plan is to place 35,000 soldiers and 134 cannons on a narrow high ground, which is difficult to move and is full of bushes, only wide There are only three hundred meters, so many people and horses can't start.

Even Dannenberg, a scumbag, found this plan unrealistic after investigating the terrain on the spot, so the night before launching the attack, he suddenly ordered Soymolov to change his battle plan and stop turning the mountain from the north. Attacked below, but marched eastward to the Inkerman Bridge to cover the crossing of Pavlov's troops. Then use the bridge as a starting point to outflank the British flank.

This sudden change is also confusing, and the more confusing thing is still behind. At three o'clock in the morning, when Soymolov's troops had already started to move and were about to go to the Inkerman Bridge, they suddenly received a message. Another order from Dannenberg ~www.readwn.com~ made him turn around and attack from the west.

At this time, Soymolov was extremely speechless. His military literacy and common sense told him that such fooling would definitely cause a disaster, and changing the battle plan now would jeopardize the entire military operation. So he decided not to obey Dannenberg's orders, and instead attacked from the north according to the plan he preferred.

So this battle has not yet started, because Dannenberg's blind command has made the three commanders' combat plans completely different.

At five o'clock in the morning, Soymolov's troops had already ascended Mount Inkerman and had also brought up twenty-two field guns.

Because of the heavy rain for the past three days, the steep slopes were muddy and slippery, making it difficult for soldiers and horses to transport the cannons to the top. And because of the heavy rain, a thick fog rose in the morning, making it even more difficult for Soymolov's troops to gather.

However, this fog also covered the actions of the Russian army and played a key role in the development of the later wartime.

At this time, the Russian soldiers couldn't see anything. Because of the narrow ridge, everyone was crowded into a group. The officers couldn't find their soldiers, and the soldiers couldn't find their officers, and they suddenly became a mess...