Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 424 001 Barclay's initial strategy and Solovyov's self-confidence
This time when the Russian army retreated, they did not have to worry about the French chasing them from behind.

Although the victory was great and several French generals and Marshal Lannes were injured, the Russian army also suffered heavy losses.

"Your battle report is obviously a bit reduced, but it is still a relatively reasonable statistic. At least it is acceptable to the emperor if I show it to him."

Solovyov looked at Langgeron. He didn't expect that this guy had also learned the Russian tricks. It would have been fine if these Germans had learned them, but he, a Frenchman, also joined in the fun.

But there was no other way. If the battle report was not downsized and the French losses were not reported more, something was bound to happen, considering Alexander's reputation inherited from his father.

"But we dealt a heavy blow to the French army, and their losses must have been heavy as well."

"Of course, this is the first time we have dealt a heavy blow to the main force of the French army with relatively strong combat effectiveness. Previously in Dürenstein, even if we captured a French marshal, it was not a true victory. It can only be said that we took advantage of the advantageous terrain."

"Let Bonaparte boast of his victory this time; although he has taken control of Pultusk, he has gained nothing."

Also present at the farm today was Barclay de Tolly, who, after hearing the conversation between Solovyov and Langeron, became more determined in his own thinking.

In the future, when we fight with the French, since they neglect logistics in order to speed up the march, they will have a big weakness and will inevitably be greatly affected in areas where it is difficult to obtain supplies.

Now that the Russian army has improved its logistics system, although transportation from the rear is still somewhat difficult, a large amount of supplies can still be obtained through the soldiers' own supplies, the corps' supplies, the rear supplies, and local mobilization.

As for the future, if the French army enters Russian territory, they can implement a scorched earth strategy.

After he thought of this, he began to formulate a plan.

However, he did not tell Langgeron and Solovyov about his plan. Without a mature plan, he would not be able to put forward the idea.

So he touched his bald head and started writing at the table.

Although Solovyov is the youngest, he is also very exhausted.

Not only do they have to work in the general staff, but they also often have to patrol positions, conduct battlefield dispatches, communicate with various troops, and summarize intelligence to make basic judgments for the commander.

This consumed a lot of his energy and he didn't even think about picking up girls anymore.

But when I was sleeping, I dreamed that Madame Recamier and my fiancée were serving Louisa. This is such a weird thing. You must never talk in your sleep!

He always finds a single room for himself, and no one can understand what's going on even if he tells them.

Some people in the army also knew that this young colonel was very proud in front of his sisters.

As for the list of people who had made contributions and received awards to be submitted to St. Petersburg, Langgeron considered it again and again, and decided to give the first credit to Count Osterman-Tolstoy, who had fought hard in the rearguard battle along the way and made contributions in the counterattack in Pultusk. No one had any objection to this.

After all, they escaped from the French army once in Charnovo and brought back important intelligence. They fought the last battle really well.

Although the final winning operation in defeating the French army was Baron Sacken's counterattack and Solovyov's driving away the French Gudin Division, and then sending a dragoon regiment and the Cossack squadron at hand to defeat the flank of Suchet Division, without the 2nd Division's fighting throughout the battle, there would be no victory.

As for Solovyov himself, he has no idea yet. It might be another medal, which is Alexander's favorite thing to give him.

Although the medal is also linked to the pension, Solovyov really wants to be promoted in rank. He is very close to being a general now, and he can almost upgrade and gain points.

But others also envied him. He was very proud of finding a young widow outside, and among the officers of the same rank, he was always the one with the most medals.

However, Solovyov also had his own ideas in Pultusk.

In the past, he just wanted to get a promotion and a raise, to have a certain status, to have some position in the aristocratic circle, to be able to sit at the table and have some say.

Now, after this battle, he felt that he still had some ability.

But given his personality, he would not be as arrogant as Napoleon.

If you can do what is within your responsibility and in some cases exceed your expectations, you are fully qualified to be a general.

To be honest, if he had not been an 80-year-old in the Russian military sequence, among the people in the age group of 1775-1782, including Grand Duke Constantine (1779), the Tsar's younger brother and commander of the Guards, the rest of the people did not even have a division commander. The youngest who was promoted to the level of division commander was probably Kamensky the Younger.

Of course, this is already a huge progress. You have to know that the Russian army, like the Prussian and Austrian armies in the past, was also dominated by a group of old men.

Now, most of the troops fighting against the French army are young and middle-aged generals, which is a huge progress.

However, it’s not that there is no Old Deng. After Marshal Kamensky went to the rear, there was still Bukhoten.

This old guy was previously covering the rear near Königsberg, and received Kamensky's order to advance. Only the 5th Division commanded by Dokhturov arrived ahead of schedule.

You know, among the Russian army, the only general who was able to retain his original position as army commander after the last anti-French alliance was defeated was probably Buckholden.

Such were the thoughts that came to Solovyov's mind when he thought of him.

"Buckholden, you've lost the battle again" and the like are very ironic.

However, this drunkard is still able to hold this position and even lead a legion composed mainly of veterans.

Obviously, the entire legion still needs to be organized.

With this question, Solovyov also rested for a long time in the carriage or bedroom, thinking about a series of problems.

In the end, he didn't have any better solution.

So, when the new year, that is, 1807, came, he still slept there most of the time.

Even the next strategy was not given much thought.

Barclay had already thought of a preliminary plan and was ready to offer advice to Alexander at the right time.

Because of this, he did not attend the banquet held in the headquarters, no wonder he seemed out of tune with others. Then, Solovyov did not go because he rarely drank.

He came out and saw Barclay looking up at the stars.

My goodness, could it be that this guy has watched too much Romance of the Three Kingdoms and wants to learn how to observe the stars at night?
But Solovyov gave up this inappropriate idea and came over to greet him.

"Mikhail Bogdanovich, you look so cheerful, what are you looking at in the sky?"

"It's not summer, so I can't see some of the more prominent constellations. I'm just thinking."

"What are you thinking about?"

Barclay saw Solovyov, thinking that maybe this guy could provide him with some help. When he talked with young Kamensky before, the other party was not interested in the battle of scorching heat and clearing the countryside, while Count Osterman-Tolstoy had his usual friendly attitude, but they didn't get to the point.

"If one day, the French army, or the army of other countries, enters Russian territory and finally reaches Moscow, what do you think we should do?"

A Scottish+German is actually thinking about this question now.

However, if you look through history books, you will know that although Kutuzov was probably the most patient in the Russian army of this era, Barclay was the first person to advocate fortifying the city and clearing the countryside. In the summer of that year, he presented his idea to Alexander and got his approval.

"We should strike them down and make them leave Moscow in disgrace, just like the Poles did."

"This is just your determination, Baron."

Barclay addressed Solovyov by this title, and he was also discussing this issue in a serious manner.

"What do you want to hear?"

"As for the whole strategic concept, I thought about building a strong defense and clearing the countryside to make it difficult for the enemy to obtain supplies."

"This should be very useful against the French. They are like this, they like to collect supplies locally, and Russia is so big that it is difficult to requisition supplies. Even if we don't destroy the villages that the French army may pass through along the way, it will be difficult for them to mobilize supplies. Of course, if we sabotage like this, it will obviously be more troublesome."

"You agree with my idea, then?"

"If it were me, I might have a little compassion in my heart. What about the people in the villages along the way? Those nobles whose industries were destroyed may still have estates elsewhere, but for civilians, if the scale of the war is not so large and it is not so urgent, they can always evacuate the civilians. If the French target is Moscow or St. Petersburg, they cannot launch a large-scale offensive on other axes. With the current level of technology, it is still impossible. At this time, if the enemy attacks the villages and towns on both sides of the axis, and some of them are destroyed, the civilians can be evacuated."

"That makes some sense, but you also have to consider that this will come at a high price."

"Yes, when the war really gets to the most critical moment, we may encounter the enemy anywhere."

Nothing bad has happened in Spain yet, and if there is only resistance in the German region, it is not that fierce.

To be honest, the rise of the German nation seemed like guerrilla warfare without fighting. Even some monarchs and governments were dragging their feet, especially the King of Prussia. If we talk about guerrilla warfare, there are guerrillas everywhere in Spain. As for the casualties to the French army, the lethality of various diseases may be more severe than that of the Spanish guerrillas and the regular armies of various countries.

"What you said is quite interesting. If France or some other country launches a large-scale invasion of Russia in the future, it will become a war of all peoples, instead of being defeated in Poltava like Charles XII did in the past and relying only on our army."

"But this is not enough to guarantee that we can defeat an opponent like Napoleon. If he runs away, he will come back. As long as he has not finally failed, he is a banner."

"It makes sense. To finally defeat France, we also need to make Bonaparte completely defeated."

Barclay touched his bald head and probably had a better idea.

"Thank you for chatting with me at this time. We can also improve this strategic concept."

"But if you do this, you will be isolated in the future. Although I don't drink with them, I will always be there in other occasions."

"A Russian man who can't drink."

Barclay couldn't help wanting to laugh, but with his long face, laughing would probably be uglier than crying.

"It could also be easy to get poisoned. Sometimes, alcohol can be considered poisonous."

Solovyov also wanted to complain, for example, there are always people in Russia who drink fake wine. But it is also true that he can't drink much.

"That way, you can stay calm the whole time."

"maybe."

"This is also a personal advantage, Baron. Perhaps you have a bright future. Being just a legion chief of staff may not be enough. You can work harder while you are still young."

This was a well-intentioned blessing from Barclay, and he probably saw Solovyov's potential on the battlefield, at least that was the case during the pre-war deployment.

"Maybe. In a few days, when we reach the vicinity of the winter camp, I hope there won't be any hostilities this winter. In addition, I think Danzig is very critical. It's best to defend it. It can be used as a nail to threaten the French in the rear. At the same time, we can also draw troops from other places to continue fighting the French. You know, when we replenish supplies in the winter camp and replenish the troops of the battalions that have suffered losses, the French will also use their reserve troops."

"You've been to Paris, so you should know something about this."

"And I went to Normandy and Brittany, and even to the Vendée, in search of my stepmother's relatives."

By the way, he also "inflicted a heavy blow to friendly forces" and killed some key royalist generals.

"What's the catch?"

"I haven't found any relatives (in mainland France), but the French conscription amendment does have some things we can learn from. Many of our serf owners are greedy and selfish. It is precisely because of this that it even affects the quality of conscription."

"It's hard to change this, but France's conscription method is really powerful."

"Yes, there will definitely be a large number of reinforcements entering their new army. This winter, both sides will prepare for war. We can't let the French suffer so much that they have to go to the negotiation table. In the end, we still have to compete in strength."

In general, as 1807 began, even though the Russian army had achieved a small "victory" at the end of the previous year, allowing the main force of the army to successfully escape, it was still facing a huge crisis overall.

(End of this chapter)