Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 443 020 A Battle of a Meat Grinder (X) Grenadiers vs. Old Guards

The cavalry's charge was barely contained.

When Napoleon himself saw this scene near his new headquarters, he did not comment much.

"That's impressive. This should be enough."

However, the price paid was too high. The commander of the Cuirassiers Division, General Doppel, was seriously injured, and Murat's horse was killed once. The even greater price was that the dragoons and cuirassiers suffered heavy losses, and the Guards Grenadiers who went to support them also lost dozens of people.

After being attacked, the Russian army was still organizing its defense line.

"Marshal Lefebvre, lead the Guards and attack!"

After observing the battle situation, Napoleon ordered the Guards to attack the breakthrough point of the heavy cavalry.

After seeing the bearskin hats of the old guards, Soloviev did not remove his binoculars from his eyes, but said: "Count, I think Napoleon will launch the final attack now, using these guards just after noon."

"It looks like we're going to have to fight to the death. Are there any backup forces available?"

"We still have the Pavlovsk Grenadiers and several regiments that are being rotated out for rest. What should we do?"

"Michelle, do you have the confidence to stop this enemy?"

"It would be even better if we had two more combined grenadier battalions. As for the Pavlovsk Regiment, I joined the Guards from there, so I know what level they are at. At this point, I think they should be able to stop the French, but how long they can hold out depends on the situation."

Solovyov now thought that if the Russian Guards were still there at this time, they could compete with each other again.

After all, in this kind of battle that is purely a test of attrition, the quality of the soldiers still matters.

As for going to the Pavlovsk Regiment, Solovyov rode to the regiment's hiding place and met General Mazovsky, the commander of the 2st Brigade of the 1nd Division and the commander of the Grenadiers Regiment.

"Nikolai Nikolayevich, I have been ordered to come and command the reserve forces, including the Pavlovsk and Rostov regiments, as well as the combined grenadiers battalion, to launch a counterattack against the French."

"Where are we going? Face to face with Bonaparte's guards? Although I am old and my eyesight is a little blurry, I can clearly see those bear-skin hats there. To be honest, this is exactly what I want to do, to meet Bonaparte's most elite infantry!"

It seems that this 50-year-old comrade is still very confident.

"Okay then, let's go together."

If this general goes with us, he can also assist in command.

As for the soldiers of the Pavlovsk Regiment, these soldiers wearing bishop's hats are indeed tall and strong, and can be regarded as elite troops.

When Solovyov rode in front of the grenadiers, Mazovsky signaled to him: "Mishka, you are also an officer from this regiment. Whether it is the Moscow Regiment or this regiment, you have a deep friendship with them. You should say something before you set off."

"Well, since you insist, I'll say a few words to you all, too."

When the grenadiers saw Solovyov riding in front of them, they realized that the corps chief of staff, a young general from the regiment, was here, and they were going to have a tough battle.

"Brothers, although we have not been together for a long time, we are brothers who have eaten soup from the same pot. At this time, the French on the opposite side want to use their guards to compete with us! Napoleon, the enemy, is not a big deal. Now they have been forced to show their last trump card! At this time, the headquarters has given us the most difficult task. For the sake of the motherland and the emperor, we must carry forward the glorious traditions of our old Moscow Regiment and Pavlovsk Regiment and drive these French guys back from the front of the position! Hurra!"

He said this after speaking a long paragraph, which could not be heard clearly due to the interference of the on-site environment and artillery fire, but everyone could still notice the "Ura".

All the grenadiers here shouted "Ura" three times, and it was obvious that the atmosphere was aroused.

As for the officers collectively drawing their swords and asking their adjutants and followers to take their horses away, this was a desperate situation.

These Russian soldiers also put on bayonets, but according to the old Russian military rules, the bullets in the chambers were left.

In close combat, Russian officers generally equipped themselves with pistols.

Solovyov brought two revolvers with him, and even without reloading, he was able to fire two rounds back and forth.

As for the appearance of the Old Guards, according to Solovyov's plan, he used two combined grenadier battalions and the musketeers of the Rostov Regiment to hold back the opponent, while the Pavlovsk Regiment first carried out continuous shooting, and after destroying the Old Guards' intention to fight with bayonets, he took advantage of the opponent's confusion to launch a bayonet attack.

It's not that no one has tried this method, but I'm afraid that Solovyov and Wellesley will have to engage in a verbal lawsuit at that time.

The situation of the Russian troops on the front line was indeed not very good. The Old Guards rushed forward under the cover of artillery fire and quickly defeated the two Russian regiments and the one Prussian regiment that came to support them, thus retaining the gap opened by the French cavalry.

Now, they came to the second line and encountered the Rostov Regiment and the Combined Grenadiers Battalion.

In addition to the Guards, there were other troops on the French side that also launched the attack. Unexpectedly for Solovyov, some hussars and hunters attacked the flank of the grenadier regiment.

"Don't form a formation, just open fire and drive them back!"

This was different from the order from the French army. The order received by the Old Guard was not to fire but to launch a bayonet charge.

It can be said that the commanders on both sides, because of the differences in their respective troops and equipment, obviously have different on-the-spot command methods.

After the Guards joined the battlefield, Marshal Lefebvre chose to attack.

As for Solovyov, he ordered the Pavlovsk Regiment to drive out the French light cavalry first, and then fire freely at the Guards.

Because of the constant shooting on the battlefield, there was smoke everywhere, and even though the Pavlovsk Regiment used the most advanced breech-loading paper-shell rifles, it was difficult to guarantee the hit rate.

Unlike the Battle of Austerlitz, the Russian Guards' final volley provided a very clear view, at least from the two positions behind the Pratzen Heights.

Although this chaotic state caused considerable casualties to the French Guards, the accuracy of the Russian army also dropped significantly.

And the trouble for the Rostov Regiment and the Combined Grenadiers Battalion was that the Old Guards were too fierce when they charged.

Even though the Russian army had generally undergone bayonet fighting training, and even the new recruits could hold their bayonets and do bayonet fighting movements, the French army was obviously more experienced.

The Grand Marshal's curtain-raising tactics had been implemented before the Eighth Master. It was also quite troublesome to deal with these French troops who were determined to fight with bayonets. Speaking of which, life was pretty good. The first army master hired by those who sold scallops to America was still French.

These old guards have experienced dozens of battles before they are qualified to join the most elite troops of the French Army. Naturally, they are all veterans. Moreover, on the battlefield, those who have seen blood and those who have not seen blood have seen different amounts of blood, and the gap is quite large.

The Rostov Regiment and the Combined Grenadiers Battalion were thus driven from their positions.

"Okay, now it looks like we really have to take action."

At this time, the elite Russian grenadiers and the French Guards were about to engage in a showdown here.

Although the French Old Guard was composed of two grenadier regiments and two chasseur regiments at this time, the 2nd Guards Grenadier Regiment had just been formed and was not on this battlefield.

Therefore, the Russian Pavlovsk Regiment and the Rostov Regiment, as well as two combined grenadier battalions, faced the 1st Guards Grenadier Regiment and two Guards Chasseur Regiments. In fact, the French army had a slight advantage in terms of troop strength on the battlefield.

Solovyov, as the commanding general, could not retreat. Generals of this era were more or less with the soldiers when leading brigades and regiments.

As for the performance, it can now be seen very clearly on the battlefield.

After the Russian army barely blocked the French attack, the two sides engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

According to general practice, after a bayonet charge, the attacked party rarely chooses to continue fighting on the spot.

But now the Russian army has no way to retreat. If the French attack is effective, they will break through the second line of defense, and the Russian front line of defense will be breached.

At this time, the Russian soldiers did not retreat, but joined the hand-to-hand combat.

As for Solovyov himself, he was even blocked by two old guards during the battle.

However, he showed no martial ethics when facing the old guys. He just raised his hand and shot, knocking down one first. The other one pounced on him before he could load the next bullet.

This is more troublesome for Solovyov, as he is a ranged fighter. He does have melee skills, but they are also more troublesome.

On the one hand, he wanted to play with the knife, and on the other hand, judging from the medals he wore, the French soldiers knew that this guy must be a young officer with military merits. It was because he was too young that they didn't notice that he was a general.
This put him in a rather passive position, as he was forced against the wall by the old guard with a bayonet. It was rather troublesome to use a sword against a bayonet, and such a long sword seemed too short when facing a rifle with a bayonet.

However, some grenadiers saw this dangerous situation and ran over to help their officers.

Solovyov took a look and found that they were veterans from the Moscow Regiment. These old guys were really useful in such dangerous times.

As for the melee between the two sides, the commanders-in-chief on both sides are now terrified.

One was the Emperor of France, and the other was a general of the Royalist Party. They had each experienced many battles. The bitter battle in Eylau was so fierce and cruel that the bodies of officers and soldiers from both sides were everywhere. The wailing wounded would soon die of hypothermia if no one rescued them.

As for the officers on both sides who led their troops into the battle, many of them were also involved in the fierce fighting and actually engaged in hand-to-hand combat.

In the end, the French gained a slight advantage, and the Old Guards finally drove the Russians out of their positions.

But Napoleon couldn't laugh either. After a slight retreat, the tenacious Russian army actually organized a temporary line of defense.

Although they captured farms and positions, the Russian army was still barely able to maintain its front line in lines. This prevented the French army from breaking through and continuing to expand its victory, but only further compressed the Russian front line.

It seems that this is not a decisive victory.

But Napoleon had already seen the opportunity. If this continued, even if the Russian army could hold out through tonight, it seemed that they would have some strategies to defeat the enemy tomorrow.

On the Russian side, the heroic performance of the Pavlovsk Regiment was seen by everyone in the headquarters, not to mention that the chief of staff personally led the team to launch the attack.

Such a chaotic battle even made some old officers of the Prussian army who came to support recall the stories they heard from the old soldiers about the battles with the Russian army when they were young.

"Fortunately these Russians are our allies"

As for the Russian army itself, it was not considered a defeat. Even when the grenadiers attacked, even with the help of the Rostov Regiment, their strength was still slightly inferior to that of the Old Guards.

Being able to withstand the opponent's attack and allow the troops to hold on and maintain the front line at this time is already a huge victory.

For Solovyov himself, this was not a victory. His arm was scratched by the French bayonet, and not only was his uniform pierced, but the silk vest underneath was also torn.

His luck was pretty good. If the Frenchman's bayonet had been a little off, or if he hadn't dodged in time, I'm afraid this book would have ended right away.

Of course, as usual, his hat was hit again, as it always happens in every tough fight.

"How about it?"

"I'm fine. I was just scratched by an old man's bayonet. The soldiers who are more seriously injured should be taken care of. I don't even need a doctor. I just need a sterile bandage to stop the bleeding."

Langgeron looked at this guy. Although he regretted sending him to the front, he believed that this deployment was not wrong. At least the reserve troops blocked the Guards and also left the Russian army time to reorganize.

"It's just that the French have opened a gap in our position. In addition to the position on the Ice Lake, Tuchkov has also lost his horse farm. As for Sacken, I have ordered them to retreat to Eylau at night."

"Do we still want to fight? If we continue to fight like this, the outcome may not be decided tomorrow, but the situation is already very unfavorable. At this time, we should retreat to Königsberg, then retreat directly to Memel via the main road, and then go to Jelgava to spend the winter."

"That makes sense. Moreover, those who advocated a battle also agreed to retreat. But it was Bagration who wanted to continue fighting. This Georgian man, you and he are from the same school, so I can't persuade him."

"It doesn't matter. He still respects the result of the headquarters' vote. In addition, select some of the elite troops from the 2nd, 6th and 8th Divisions that can be mobilized to serve as the rear guard."

"That's just what I want. Let's do it."

The tone of retreat has now been set.

(End of this chapter)