Dominate the Country

Bagration knew that as long as he could steadily open a gap in the outer defense circle of Astrakhan, the outer defense circle of the Chinese would be broken.

This was a critical battle. Although breaking through this outer defense circle did not mean breaking through the entire outer defense position of the Chinese side in Astrakhan, breaking through here would allow the Russian army to at least see the walls of Astrakhan with their naked eyes.

Moreover, it was possible to encircle and annihilate part of the Chinese by attacking the 015 position to make a detour. Although to achieve this goal, a large number of troops must be withdrawn, thus weakening their strength in other battlefields, they were Russians. The Russians, who were deeply influenced by the military ideas of Rumyantsev and Suvorov, were different from the Prussians and Austrians. They were not the kind of passive people. They could turn to counterattack at any time and annihilate the enemy's army in turn.

Bagration had already begun to seek a new plan when the breakthrough point was not completely stable. As for Chen Wei, the hot air balloon hanging high in the sky reported to him the latest Russian eastward movement, so he immediately decided to launch a fierce artillery bombardment and an overwhelming assault on the front of the Russian front. The breakthrough point was at the 010 position southeast of the 015 position. Use an overwhelming force to attack the Russian position, and at the same time send troops to keep pressure on the 015 position. After the 010 position smashed the Russian defense line, it will encircle the Russian troops at the 015 position.

Although it was shown at the beginning of the battle that this was not a battle that could be decided immediately.

So at three o'clock in the afternoon, after repeated attacks and long battles, Chen Wei and Bagration still found it difficult to predict when the battle would end.

Yermolov knew very well that as long as the Russian defense line was broken, he would most likely be surrounded and annihilated by the Chinese army. So he hoped to completely defeat the Chinese army in front of him first.

Unfortunately, life is not always satisfactory. Before he could realize his idea, the Russian defense line was breached, and the Russian assault force could only be transferred to plug the gap.

Whether it is Chen Wei or Bagration, only when they have a considerable advantage in the number of troops can they withdraw troops to implement decisive maneuvers according to their own intentions. But this is impossible, because when the battle began, the Chinese army had only 30,000 more troops than the Russian army.

On the battlefield of Astrakhan, the Russian army had less than 120,000 troops, and the Chinese army had less than 150,000 troops.

A considerable part of the Chinese military force was pinned down by the Vladikavkaz Fortress, and at the same time, part of the Seven Khanate cavalry was also scattered in the vast area of ​​the Volga River. They either attacked the Russian army's logistics transportation or attacked some small villages and towns that the Russians had just recovered, turning the Russian civilians who had just calmed down into refugees again.

Therefore, on the battlefield of Astrakhan, the military strength of both China and Russia was insufficient. There were many Seven Khanate infantry and cavalry in the 140,000 or 150,000 Chen Han army, and the combat effectiveness of these troops was worrying.

Of course, if one side is indecisive and passive in the battle, it will give the other side an opportunity to take advantage. But these two commanders are just a match made in heaven, and will not leave any loopholes for the other side to exploit.

Especially Bagration, if he were on another battlefield, he would not be indecisive but would probably go all out and take risky actions. This is Bagration's character.

But the battle in front of him is related to the fate of the country and the fate of Russia, which he knows very well. Therefore, Bagration restrained himself, followed the Russian army's big plan, tried to consume the enemy, and built new and solid defensive positions in the rear, relying on the transportation capacity of the Volga River to engage in a long-term confrontation with China, waiting for the enemy to be exhausted, morale is low, supplies are short, and the military spirit is shaken, and then take the opportunity to launch a devastating counterattack against the enemy.

But before that, the Russian army also needs to pay a heavy price.

Both commanders watched each other's every move in the command post, guessed each other's plans in their hearts, tried their best to avoid taking risks, and did not take new actions - after each other's plans succeeded half and failed the other half.

Both sides have tried their best and believe that these efforts can work and the results can be reflected in the battle situation. When the results of these efforts failed to be concretely reflected, they could only scare their opponents with their teeth and claws on one side and wait for action on the other side.

Just like the 010 position, after the Russian army arrived to block the gap, they chose to stay put after a wave of hard confrontation on both sides.

On the surface, Bagration seemed to be listening to the roar from the battlefield indifferently, constantly issuing orders and agreeing or disagreeing with the actions of the troops. However, he knew very well that if the war failed, the Tsar would put all the blame on him, unceremoniously let him go, and immediately let Leonti Bennigsen take over his position.

Alexander I was a tsar with great political skills. When the war just started last year, he pushed Barclay, who had a shallow foundation, to the position of commander-in-chief of the Russian army - if he could win, it would be his victory, and if not, he could be replaced at any time. Then, in less than two months, he summoned Kutuzov, the flag of the Russian native faction, from the shore of the Black Sea to his side. Barclay's successive defeats and the military concept of continuous retreat made Alexander I bear huge pressure from within the Russian army. In order to maintain the unity and solidarity of the Russian army, a respected person must be replaced by Barclay, so Kutuzov appeared. But at the same time, Barclay is still an important general in the Russian army, and he has made important contributions in the important Battle of Borodino - he held his position and was not broken by the French, and when the Russian army retreated, he attracted a large number of French troops, covering the retreat of the main force of the Russian army.

So after the Russo-French War, Barclay served as the commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the south. Although Kutuzov, who made immortal contributions in the Russo-French War, was promoted to the rank of Imperial Marshal, he was left in St. Petersburg by the Tsar due to physical reasons, responsible for the urgent training of new recruits and deprived of military power.

Bagration's deputy Leonti Bennigsen was a German who served in the Hanoverian army in his early years and participated in the Seven Years' War.

In 1773, he joined the Russian army with the rank of lieutenant colonel and performed well in the two Russo-Turkish wars, becoming a brave, calm and courageous cavalry officer.

During the Polish War in 1794, Bennigsen led a light cavalry detachment and made many military exploits. He was awarded the rank of major general (conferred by the famous Russian general Suvorov himself) and was awarded a third-level St. George medal.

In 1796, Tsar Paul I ascended the throne, and Bennigsen was promoted to lieutenant general, but was soon coldly received and forced to retire. Afterwards, Bennigsen participated in the palace coup against Paul. It was rumored that he was the first person to pounce on Paul I after Paul refused to abdicate, and he picked up a silver candlestick, and was the first murderer of Paul. The young prince Alexander was pushed to the throne, and this was Tsar Alexander I.

Then Bennigsen was promoted to General of Cavalry soon after, and was later "honorably exiled" to Vilno (now the capital of Lithuania, Vilnius) as the military and political chief.

Then the Russo-French War broke out, and the Russian army suffered a devastating blow. Bennigsen was one of the important commanders of the Russian army. After the war, he was forced to retire, but soon he returned to the top of the Russian army.

Because Bennigsen was the second naturalized faction in the Russian military system, second only to Barclay.

From a very early time, Germans began to serve in the Russian army. Bennigsen was the leader of the German faction in the Russian army. In a sense, his position was more stable than Barclay. The latter is a Scotsman, and few Scots come to Russia to serve. Barclay's high position is only due to the favor of Alexander I. Why did Alexander I favor a "foreigner" so much?

Haha, after the f*cking father was murdered by the Junzheng Group in his own country, no one can trust "their own people" 100%.

Do you know who was the governor of St. Petersburg when Paul I was killed? That was Kutuzov. Don't feel sorry for this guy, because he is definitely a very cunning heart hidden under his fat appearance.

You should know that during Paul I's five-year reign, Kutuzov was a Russian general who was very trusted by him.

After Paul I ascended the throne, in view of the decadence and corruption of the Russian nobles, he was determined to make them disciplined, principled and hierarchical, similar to a medieval knight order. As for the few modern knights who agreed with his views, such as his favorites Mikhail Kutuzov, Alexei Arakshiev and Feodor Rostopchin, Paul gave them more slaves in his five years of rule than his mother gave her mistresses in thirty-four years. And those nobles in the court who disagreed with his views on knighthood were deprived of their positions or lost their lands: seven marshals and 333 generals were punished - this was definitely a major reason why Paul I's rule was overthrown by the military and political groups.

Many of Paul I's actions made him deeply supported and loved by the Polish people. But it was useless! He was easily overthrown by the military and political groups in St. Petersburg and died a violent death.

And what role did Kutuzov play in that coup?

He can be said to be Paul I's favorite general. He was promoted to the position of general by Paul I, and Paul I put him in the position of the governor of St. Petersburg, which is equivalent to the commander of the Yanjing Garrison Military District and the former admiral of the Nine Gates.

Kutuzov is a role that the military and political groups cannot get around no matter what, but Paul I was easily smashed in the head by the coup group under his escort. So Tukuzov's "falling out of favor" in the following years is not worthy of sympathy at all.

After Alexander I ascended the throne, the relationship with France took a new turn. The two countries turned from friendship to war. After the disastrous defeats of the third and fourth anti-French wars, Russia changed its position again. With the end of the fifth anti-French war, France and Russia went to war again...

Outsiders only see the ever-changing diplomatic situation between the great powers, but they don't see that after the disastrous defeats of the two wars against France, a large number of old Russian generals were purged, including Bennigsen mentioned earlier.

Bagration, Dokhturov, Wittgenstein, Ostan-Sacken and a group of "newcomers" appeared in the Russian military.

Alexander I completely controlled the army, especially after the crisis of national destruction and family ruin was resolved, the military and political groups within the Russian army could no longer "force" him. Now the Tsar and Bennigsen are placed next to him, and the purpose is obvious.

Although Bagration can be said to be the new generation banner promoted by Alexander I, Bagration has now become the best successor to the banner of Kutuzov, the local faction of the Russian army, so don't blame Alexander I for treating him like this.

If Bagration was dismissed from the military, at that time, he, the famous commander, would have to go to the grave with shame.