Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Chapter 525 037 Solovyov's Finnish Infantry Division (Part )
Here in Clausewitz, Queen Louise was quite happy to let him go, but she kept holding her child in front of the two young generals, and
Solovyov knew that his biggest flaw was probably something like "I have a disease and I am lustful", but he has always been able to remain restrained.

Even though Her Majesty the Queen has such a plump figure and is very beautiful, her neck is not as beautiful as in the portraits of her youth because of hyperthyroidism.

But the queen is only 32 years old now. Compared with many noble ladies, she is still young and beautiful.

"Colonel, I have something else to give you. This is a bonus from my husband for your outstanding performance. I think a medal of honor might be more suitable for your performance, but the conditions for issuing medals have always been quite strict. Of course, Count, you are Russian, and giving you the Order of the Red Eagle is also a special reward for your performance, and also to thank you for your long-term contribution to Prussia."

"Your Highness, I am going to join the army with Karl. Please take care of his wife. After all, you plan to stay in Petersburg for a while."

"The climate here is very good in the summer. As for the winter, I think it is better than the deserted Königsberg. Queen Elizabeth and her children are very cute. I think I can live happily here."

There were some hints from Queen Louise, she had no evidence, but she guessed many things.

Fortunately, this gossipy queen was more sensible when she went abroad, so nothing would happen. However, there were always rumors in Königsberg that the queen had an affair with the Russian Tsar and the "devil" Napoleon, and the identity of little Princess Louise.
"But your highness, you also have to pay attention to your own health. When taking care of a child, you should not only pay attention to the child, but also yourself."

Although she may have always been of a "big man, cute big tits" mentality.
The queen naturally laughed as well, but because she had a child in her hand, not a fan, she couldn't hide her smile.

"Haha, I know what you think. It is true that breastfeeding a child can be very exhausting. But don't worry, Count. You can leave with Colonel Clausewitz. I think you have a bright future. In the future, I think your achievements will catch up with your mentor and your 'uncle'."

When mentioning Napoleon, Queen Louise even emphasized her tone a little.

However, the achievements of the Field Marshal and Napoleon both sound difficult to catch up with. She was just talking about catching up here, after all, "surpassing" is too difficult.

After leaving the Queen's residence in Tavrid Palace, Solovyov decided to form a team according to his own plan.

Although it sounds like a return to the past "temporary formation" "column" model, the Russian army has also begun to form new hussar regiments and dragoon regiments on a large scale, which somewhat supplements his organizational method.

The "Finnish Division" will probably still exist in the future, but the underlying structure will undergo significant changes.

For example, the Georgian Grenadier Regiment, one of the core units of the Caucasian Grenadier Division, which later became famous, was still called the Caucasian Grenadier Regiment at that time. Its base was a place that Solovyov was very familiar with, Gori, Georgia.

Many of these troops were picked out by Solovyov on short notice, and even when they were presented to Grand Duke Constantine, he frowned.

"To be honest, if you hadn't come to me, I wouldn't have told the Minister of War this. Normally, I would have been lucky to have given you the Yakut Regiment and some ordinary regiments. Considering that this time the best steel should be used on the blade, it is natural that you should go to the front line to play a role. The Pavlovsk Regiment is handed over to you, but you must use it properly. After all, it is a unit of the 'Young Guards' standard."

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I think this regiment will become a more glorious unit when we return from Finland."

"Don't act rashly, Misha. You are always smart. I hope to see you return with honor, not lying on the shield."

Grand Duke Constantine then approved the transfer of the Pavlovsk Regiment and signed his name on the letter of recommendation to Clausewitz.

"As for your request for this colonel to join our army and serve as your chief of staff, you should also note that after arriving in Russia, he will be demoted to a lower rank, but his position can be transferred according to the commander's requirements. The difference between a colonel and a lieutenant colonel is just a matter of treatment. Both can serve as regimental commanders and chiefs of staff. Colonel, if you are approved to go to the Finnish Division, you must help Misha. He was a great chief of staff in the past, but this is the first time he is leading troops alone, so he still needs help."

"Yes, Your Highness, don't worry about that. Mick and I get along very well, and we have served as adjutant and staff officer for a long time."

"Then there shouldn't be any problems with the business. In addition, it's actually easy to mobilize the Tafred Grenadiers Regiment. But if you want to mobilize the Kostroma and Murom Regiments, you have to consider that their bases are near the western border at the moment, and the time for integration and training will definitely be affected. As for the Cavalry Regiment, they should arrive soon, so there's no need to worry about that."

"Thank you, Your Highness. If I want to train the troops this time, I will naturally have to make a career in Vyborg so that I can complete the planning of the winter strategy in the future."

"Let's not talk about this for now. My brother may send Admiral Norin to Finland. Can you imagine this appointment?"

"It is probably because of Barclays's qualifications that this situation has occurred."

At this time, Clausewitz could only listen. After all, Grand Duke Constantine and Solovyov were still talking about personnel appointments in the Russian army.

"Bukholden is definitely not good enough, but we have replaced him with such a veteran. I think it is better to let Gudovich come back. Although he is old, he is still very courageous, and he has performed well in the battles against Persia in recent years."

"Your Highness, but we don't have any suitable candidates. Can't the Master go?"

Everyone is quite clear about the command ability of Grand Tutor Saltykov. He was fine when he was a regiment commander or column commander, but he is old now, and the title of Field Marshal is just an honorary title for him.

"Master, you are so smart. But we need to choose a suitable person who is also ambitious. There are some suitable people at this moment, such as Tormasov and Bennigsen, but these are the only two candidates."

Solovyov knew very well that Tormasov was a good fighter, but he was a cavalry general who was more brave than a commander.

The reason why Bennigsen was pulled off the gallows list was because of several young officers who were present at the scene but did not take action, proving that he did not directly commit regicide. As a result, he was sent to the Caucasus for a long time and only recently returned to St. Petersburg.

If he were to go, with his adventurous behavior as a speculator, he might be able to play a role, but there is still a problem, that is, this means that he is replacing an old Deng with an old Deng who is one year younger. Both are old comrades in their sixties.

To be honest, these old men are not in good health. Lieutenant General Bennigsen is troubled by edema every day, and Admiral Norin has rheumatoid arthritis, which is common in the elderly, but the condition is not very serious now. Solovyov missed his master a little at this time. Although his health was not good in his later years, he did not have the kind of disease that could trouble battlefield command.

If it were Kutuzov, Alexander would definitely not want him to come now, and Kutuzov's actions were also more cautious.

As for the sneaky stuff, it still depends on Bennigsen’s performance.

After all, this speculator's luck was quite good. However, it was also because he did not appear in the Russian army of the Fourth Anti-French Alliance, and he did not do anything like Friedland's operation. After all, Langgeron was a middle-aged man with quick reactions and got along well with his colleagues. His big mouth did not cause any trouble.

Now in Finland, the arrangement of the new commander-in-chief is indeed quite contradictory. Bennigsen is actually a rather unexpected choice at this time.

If Admiral Norlin was captured, would Alexander accept Bennigsen, who participated in the regicide, as the commander of the Finnish battlefield?
This was not something Solovyov had to worry about, and even if Bennigsen came, it would not affect his command of the Finnish division's operations.

Moreover, part of the troop mobilization of our division has been completed. There are three infantry regiments near St. Petersburg, and the artillery will be formed soon. It is not easy to find an artillery brigade.

As for the issue of mobilizing troops, Arakcheev was more or less based on Kasolovyov's plans, and he quickly approved the infantry regiment.

"Misha, I'm not targeting you. If we mobilize some of the stronger hussars and dragoons to your place, although we don't have to mobilize the frontline forces, we still have to consider other issues, such as your supplies. We have to take into account what will happen when our army enters Swedish territory. You are not fighting in a friendly area this time."

Although Arakcheev was very annoying, he did put aside his previous prejudices this time and spoke to Solovyov more directly.

"I understand your concerns, but in order to implement the strategy that has been formulated, we must cross the ice and reach the Swedish territory to end the war quickly instead of hesitating."

"It's a pity that you are still not qualified enough. If you were older now, you would be qualified to be promoted to lieutenant general, and it would not be a problem for you to take charge. Compared with Bagration, you are certainly not as brave and resolute as him, but you are still smarter."

But when it comes to his senior brother, Solovyov has nothing to say. He can only take over the topic and laugh it off.

After all, no one knows whether there is any force in the court that opposes them and their fellow apprentices. Apart from artillery, Arakcheev's opinions are often of little value.

Solovyov even complained that the greatest contribution of the "military settlement" established by Arakcheev was that among the children of officers in the settlement, a great painter named Repin emerged, and among his works, the most noteworthy one is the masterpiece "The Reply of the Zaporizhia Cossacks to the Turkish Sultan".

Now the Minister of War approved his deployment of infantry and artillery, but the issue of cavalry was still rejected.

"There's still some time to think about it, Misha. If you want to complete this strategic plan, the cavalry can be mobilized quickly."

"So, what about the baggage train construction I proposed?"

"Of course, the transportation lines must be improved. The Aland Islands will be given to Bagration, and the Gulf of Bothnia will be Barclay's. As for your special forces, they are too few in number to be effective, and too many in number may be too much of a burden, making it difficult to achieve the strategic goal."

What Arakcheev said was not without reason. At least he was still relatively magnanimous now and would not be like some petty-minded people who would start to sow discord in person.

These words seem to be referring to Bennigsen, who has a very strong speculative mentality.

Arakcheev was also considering whether to let this regicide from Hanover be the commander-in-chief of the Vyborg Legion. There was always a lot of controversy.

Now, Barclay, Bagration and Solovyov all have relatively feasible plans and can actively participate in the action, so there is no need to find an inactive old man to blame them.

Then, the new commander-in-chief approved by the War Department was Bennigsen, which felt very strange.

The main change occurred in the direction of Türkiye. Since Russia was using troops against Sweden and the outcome of the war was still unclear, Sultan Selim III might have some bad ideas.

If war had broken out with Türkiye in 1809, it might have been necessary to draw troops from many places.

Therefore, Bennigsen took over the position of commander-in-chief of the Russian army in Finland. Although it was a bit surprising, it was not a problem considering his personal abilities.

Solovyov has now received approval from Arakcheev for the formation of infantry, artillery and logistics forces, but the cavalry issue has not yet been finalized.

But Arakcheev was also quite generous and provided the quota for six cavalry regiments. If the Finnish division could be eventually formed, it would be the largest division in the Russian army, with a total strength of more than 2 men.

If he could form a temporary group with some other troops on the battlefield, Solovyov might become the first "little general" to command a large formation on the battlefield.

Of course, the Swedes are not afraid of the Russian attack. They are still resisting even after losing most of Finland. They are not ordinary opponents and we must deal a heavy blow to them.

If Solovyov's Finnish division is fully organized, it will be the one to take the lead.

(End of this chapter)