Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 439 016 A battle of flesh and blood (VI) What is Surt up to?

What the French army saw on the battlefield after the Russian army retreated really made Augereau and others laugh and cry.

These soldiers are now collecting all the scraps for themselves.
If the Russian soldiers knew that the French had to eat "swill" while fighting them, they would not know whether they should sympathize with them or ridicule them.

However, when someone creates an army pot in the future, they have to consider that the patent is probably in the hands of the French.

Bagration and Essen retreated safely back to Eylau.

"It was a close call. We were sweating as we watched."

"The Podolsk Regiment fought well, they should be commended."

"Don't talk about this issue for now. We have now opened up the southeast road. Even if we deploy the troops according to the current situation, we can only guarantee the safety of Kamensky's flank."

Bagration's face, which was already long, now looked even more serious.

And as they said this, Davout's offensive had already begun to take effect, driving Dokhturov and Tuchkov's troops out of their positions on the first line of defense.

Judging from the battlefield, the Russian left wing had actually been outflanked, and Davout once again changed the situation on the battlefield with his hard work.

When the report came in, the people in the headquarters all looked unhappy.

"This bald guy is really amazing. My iron bucket formation in the other two lanes was not beaten like this."

"Mishka, what are you going to do?"

"If we move the 4th Division over there, we will be able to stop Davout on this side, but it will be difficult for us to stop Napoleon from the southwest and southeast. The front line will be further compressed towards Eylau. The outer positions have been breached, and Eylau is actually infinitely defensible. We can only cause great setbacks to the French on the battlefield, and then choose the next action formation."

He didn't say retreat, but the psychological expectation of every sentence hinted at a retreat from Eylau.

But on the battlefield, at several key positions, we cannot retreat even a single step.

At least the 5th Division led by Tuchkov can now ensure the road to Königsberg in the north, and the road to the west is also unobstructed.

Napoleon also had good intentions in Eylau. He cut off the main road to the east, so that the Russian army could not consider returning to the other side of the border by the shortest route. They could only stay and fight or have their space further squeezed by the French army.

If Surt was not in the southwest, Solovyov might have considered changing his strategy, cutting off each other's retreat routes and finally engaging in a decisive battle to the death.

However, when this risky plan was proposed, those who advocated war could not agree with it. After all, it was too risky.

It’s not that people don’t have enough courage, but this kind of gambler behavior is indeed a bit crazy.

If we don't increase Napoleon's strength, I'm afraid he will continue to oppress us, and we can only fight here.

As for the attack launched by Surt, it seemed that he was evenly matched with Sakken, but he was always looking for the weakness of Sakken's formation.

Solovyov's iron-clad formation was indeed more dependent on the command ability of the division commanders, army commanders and commander-in-chief, as well as their personal determination.

Among those in the east, even the more hesitant Dokhturov fought bravely and carried out orders resolutely.

This is not a contradiction, because Dokhturov has this problem. He executes orders well, but acts hesitantly. Solovyov has seen it in Dürenstein.

But Essen and Sacken, the two German officers, although both were called "Kutks" by the soldiers, Essen was obviously more outstanding. Moreover, in the battle of this day, as the central axis of the southeast battlefield, he cooperated well with Bagration, Bagovut and Solovyov.

Baron Sacken, Solovyov could not explain his movements. Although Baron Sacken still had some ability and was better at commanding troops alone than Essen, he was not resolute and had his own considerations like an Austrian.

Therefore, he has been considering the issue of follow-up reserves. If Barclay takes the 4th Division out, should he leave the Somov Brigade as a reserve and split the troops for use?

While he was thinking about this, everyone noticed his monocle.

Of course, this won’t cause any craze yet. After all, it’s a new product. If it wants to cause a “fashion” trend, I’m afraid I’ll have to wait until I return to St. Petersburg.

Then, I'm afraid that Germans with deeper eye sockets prefer this.

"This side of Sakken. The east side I'm worried about is here."

Sacken's full last name is von Osten-Sacken, and Solovyov meant it as a pun, after all, the last name is there.

"Surter's attack is obviously to test our weaknesses. The intensity of his attack today is much smaller than in the previous battles. He did not launch a fierce attack like the three armies in the east."

"Maybe they're doing a diversion?"

"I'm afraid it's not just a diversion. Count, you also have to consider the attack from Davu's side. It's obviously to attract our attention. If our previous cooperation was a strategic feint to the east and attack in the west, I'm afraid Napoleon has already used this method to attack the northeast on the battlefield, and his main goal is probably in the southwest."

What he said was not wrong. Although the idea of ​​strategic maneuver was planned by Solovyov, without the close cooperation of the generals and putting aside their past grudges, it would have been impossible to move the battlefield from the Vistula River front to here. However, the losses of the Russian army itself were not very large.

Solovyov did not realize that he now understood Napoleon's thoughts, but Napoleon thought it was "mobilization" or "war mechanics", while Solovyov was acting as Russia's "moving Great Wall" and using the Thirty-Six Stratagems.

Fortunately, the things in the booklet that Mark took away were not complete.

It just looks strange, like a kitten teaching an old lion kung fu.

What Solovyov feared was that Surt would cut off his support, which would then lead to problems with his strategy.

Therefore, he also had the idea of ​​splitting up the reserve team.

At this rate, they will become even less capable of attacking.

As for Sakken, the current situation is indeed confusing.

Langeron looked at Solovyov and decided to let him go there. At this time, Solovyov handed over the work in hand to the chief of operations in the staff and the quartermaster general von Steinheil, and set off again with his entourage.

Langgeron focused his attention on the three battlefields in the east, while he was about to go to Sacken.

But when he arrived in Sakken, Solovyov felt the atmosphere was very strange.

Not only is it strange that he is wearing a monocle, but he also has a horsewhip in his hand, which makes it feel even more abstract.

On General Sacken's side, he happened to capture a French colonel. Judging from his heavy breastplate, he was a cuirassiers.

“What is going on here?”

"Michael, this colonel fell off his horse during the French charge and was captured by our men."

"You guys are really lucky to have captured such an officer. He must be a regimental commander, right?"

"Yes, we know he was from the 5th Cuirassiers."

"Ahaha, looks like I'll have to ask some questions."

He even took the horsewhip and pressed it directly against the big man's breastplate.

"Colonel, it seems that your luck is not very good. It is easy to be like this when leading a charge. Sometimes the cavalry under your command are brave, but they are not as brave as you."

"What do you want to say? But for a general, you seem a little young."

"There is also a 37-year-old bald marshal in France. My age is equivalent to your brigade general. What's so strange about that? In Prussia, this position is not even a general. Listen, what I want to ask is what Marshal Soult is going to do now. The attack of the cuirassiers should be a general offensive, but the actual situation is not like that."

"I have nothing to say, General. You may now choose to deal with me in your barbaric way."

"Ah, the Russians are not barbarians, and we also love French culture, even French women. I am fortunate to have developed a friendship with Madame Recamier that goes beyond ordinary friendship. As for you, Colonel, we will not shoot you, which is not in accordance with the rules. But as soldiers, your officers and your brothers, your lives are in the hands of your emperor. A truly brave soldier, unless he is so unlucky, would rather die in battle than be a prisoner."

Baron Sacken looked at Solovyov and felt it was a bit strange. He had never heard that he had German ancestry, but his speaking style was changeable. Today it was indeed strange, as he directly switched to the tone of a Prussian soldier.

After all, Frederick the Great believed that death in battle was a better reward.
Moreover, nothing could be learned from this colonel. All that was known was that of the two commanders of the Cuirassier Division, General Nansouty, was not on the battlefield, but Dopple was in the front line commanding. This time the Cuirassier attack was launched together with the light infantry of the Legrand Division of the 4th Army and a group of chasseurs who were temporarily transferred.

In fact, the losses inflicted by the Russian army on the cuirassiers were only two dead and one wounded, and the unfortunate commander of the regiment was captured.

But Solovyov did remember that Balzac had a book about a cavalry colonel, so there should be some prototype, and this unlucky guy was really tall.

Solovyov was no longer the pretty girl she was at the age of fifteen or sixteen. She had grown to be only slightly shorter than the Tsar himself, but there was still a big gap between her and this giant.

As for useful intelligence, although the colonel was also a French chatterbox, he only revealed the arrangements that the Russian army could see.

According to this statement, Solovyov was actually able to analyze something.

Soult's various probing and diversionary attacks were intended to hit the Russian army's weak points, just like what the old soldier Massena had done in Zurich.

Baron Sacken unfortunately suffered a tragic defeat in General Korsakov's column.

"Baron, don't you think that the French have not yet launched their final, decisive attack?"

"Yes, just like in Zurich."

"But you are not that Korsakov. Although it may be disrespectful to the emperor, if a favorite minister has no ability, he should not volunteer to go to war on his own."

Once these words were spoken, the destructive power was too great. After all, apart from the five Orlov brothers and Potemkin, the true nature of the rest of the people was really hard to describe.

It’s a good thing that he said it on the front line. If he had said it in the palace, he would have offended people.

"I understand what you mean. You are really a disciple of Alexander Vasilyevich. You have inherited the art of speaking, right?"

"I am not a running hare, but a greedy fox."

"Ah, that's interesting. Now let's talk about the most important issue. What exactly does Surt want to do?"

"He is probably looking for your weakness, or waiting for Napoleon's instructions to launch an attack at the right time."

"It makes sense, or both, and then he can make the final move."

"And after asking so many questions, we only saw two regiments from the Legrand and Leval divisions. Saint-Hilal was nowhere to be seen. Soult likes to use this guy to launch attacks or hold the front so that Leval and Legrand can use the hammer and anvil tactics."

"All of these people are imitating Bonaparte's holding the reserve troops, but what they are trying to do, judging from their actions and results, are still different."

"That makes sense. If you run into trouble, I would suggest that the 4th Division currently led by Barclay be split off to support your retreat. It is necessary to place Bagvout on your left wing. This road is narrow for us and the enemy as well. And the ice lake, although frozen solid, no one should let the main force go here in this season. Unless the French want to be something else? Just be the local 'honor drowned ghost'."

There was some humor in this, and Baron Sacken now relaxed a little.

"Okay, but I think we shouldn't give up this front so easily. It's still very beneficial to us."

"Not necessarily. You have cuirassiers here. When the killer moves come, we will have to shrink our troops. If necessary, we will organize a retreat, preferably at night. The size of our army is enough to consume the French for a while. Most importantly, you must act according to the deployment and cannot retreat until the reserve arrives and there is an order directly from the headquarters."

Baron Sacken was relieved and commanded the 3rd Division to continue holding its ground with peace of mind.

"Well, Michael, I think you're right. But there's another problem. If the French connect the front lines, they can use several army pairs to attack us on one front, and there may be large-scale infantry and cavalry maneuvers. At that time, the other divisions will also be affected."

"It doesn't matter. We just need to fight hard here now."

(End of this chapter)