Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 308
Only Noblemtl
#308. Russian SteamRoller (8)
As a result, further fighting was impossible for Nogi and the Third Army.
The front and rear of the battle line had collapsed to the point where they no longer had any meaning.
The last attempt was to insert the 15th Reserve Infantry Brigade into the empty space on the right wing of the front line to relieve some of the pressure on the Roske’s men, but they were one step ahead.
The 15th Reserve Infantry Brigade bravely fought them, but could not withstand the numerical disadvantage and was defeated.
At the same time, enemies appeared on the retreat route and blocked it.
That damn Mischenko and the 1st Siberian Corps, who had been constantly harassing the rear of the 2nd Army during the Battle of Lushun, came back without even dying.
Despite the fact that the Akiyama area and the 2nd Army had inflicted several unforgettable defeats on them, they seemed to have stood up like a rock and rushed back to the front lines.
The inspector dispatched from the Manchurian Army Headquarters had already escaped before the encirclement was completed.
No, it would be more correct to say that he ran away rather than escaped.
The cause of the problem was following his orders to install a command post close to the front lines while the headquarters directly took charge of the stagnant units.
However, the headquarters, whether aware of the situation or not, was shouting at Nogi’s 3rd Army to immediately counterattack and push back the enemy’s front line.
Nogi stopped listening to Oyama, cut off the wire, and went back to listening to his staff.
“The enemy is infiltrating our elite infantry into the front lines. It is no longer possible to maintain the line.”
“···Is there no other way than retreat?”
“As of now, yes. Their strength is more than three times that of our forces.”
Now, the 3rd Army could barely control 20 battalions of 15,000 men, less than half of the 52 battalions of 38,000 men that had been called up just before the battle.
It was clear that even if two brigades of reinforcements from the Manchurian Army headquarters arrived immediately, it would not be able to turn the situation around any further.
Meanwhile, Roske continued to send new units to the front.
Even taking into account the distorted information from those who were terrified, it was clear that they were surrounded by layers of troops, more than 100,000 men in 200 battalions.
Even if Nobunaga, who had commanded the Sengoku period, returned to life and took command of this battlefield, he would never be able to overcome this gap.
As his thoughts reached that point, Nogi barely managed to hold onto his scattered thoughts and twitched his lips that would not fall.
Most of the artillery battalions that were directly supporting the frontline units were running low on ammunition and were withdrawing to their headquarters, and only the formidable 280mm siege guns were continuing their artillery fire, but at some point they too fell silent.
Perhaps they had been attacked from behind by the enemy.
“Unbelievably, we’ve been taken down by Kuropatkin. We’re getting out of here before their encirclement closes.”
The word escape, not retreat or withdrawal, came out of the commander’s mouth.
The 3rd Army Command, including the Chief of Staff, ordered the destruction of documents and wired telephones, the gathering of headquarters personnel, and preparations for a retreat, while the remaining regimental units of the 2nd Cavalry Brigade were gathered to block the enemy’s pursuit.
It wouldn’t last long, but it was thought that it would at least buy some meaningful time until Commander Nogi retreated.
And finally, less than an hour later, the Third Army gathered its remaining forces as best it could and began a desperate withdrawal in the direction of the main force of the Manchurian Army headquarters.
He decided that he had to defend Lushun by preserving the remaining troops at all costs.
Because the Tsar’s wrath was not to be limited to land.
The real end of the war may not begin on land, but at sea.
***
“Commander! Our forces on the right wing of the front have achieved a great victory! The enemy unit attacking Cheongha Castle has been destroyed, and they are currently in hot pursuit!”
“What is Bill Dedling doing?”
“We have joined forces with the 2nd Manchurian Army and are greatly protecting the right wing of the Japonski front. They will never be able to threaten Mukden again!”
Kuropatkin clenched his fist at his aide’s words.
“Wow!!”
“Long live the Great Russian Empire!”
Along with this, cheers of victory erupted from the Russian Manchurian Army headquarters.
Finally, Gripenberg’s gamble and Kuropatkin’s delaying tactics of gathering all his strength while delaying the showdown paid off.
“The 8th Army Corps crushed Japonsky’s 3rd Army like a shock corps!”
Is that the Tsar’s hammer that was supposedly prepared?
That must be why they gathered all the officers and non-commissioned officers who served in Korea and took them away.
In any case, Gripenberg broke the wings raised by the enemy and now prepared to split the remaining body apart.
The enemy, whose wings were broken, hastily gave up the front line and began to retreat slowly while desperately fighting a delaying battle, but the Russian Manchurian Army High Command, including Kuropatkin, could not just let them go.
Just as Napoleon’s Grande Armée had been annihilated, Kuropatkin intended to strangle Oyama’s Japanese troops in the name of the Tsar, preventing even a single one from leaving Mukden.
“Send messengers to Linevich and Kaulbars and tell them to keep pushing the front. Do not let a single one live. This place, Mukden, is their grave, and the epitaph on their tomb will read: Make them regret challenging the graves of empires.”
“Yes, Commander.”
The 1st and 3rd Manchurian armies, led by Linevich and Kaulbars, were also making significant inroads into the front that Yaponsky was desperately defending, but Kuropatkin intended to increase the pace.
Anyway, since the Japonskis no longer had any more troops to mobilize, they were now in a situation where they would be hit back no matter what they hit, so an operational environment was created where they could do whatever they wanted.
“The war ends today. Release all remaining reserves and strengthen the offensive.”
“The rain has finally stopped, so all the hot air balloons belonging to the special flight can now be launched. I will quickly organize the information and report to you!”
The front line was shaking greatly.
As the entire Russian army of 360,000 men launched a general counterattack, Oyama, who was commanding the Japonskys, conducted an effective defensive operation while reducing the contact area on the front line as much as possible.
Of course, this had fatal consequences and caused considerable damage to the Russian divisions belonging to the Manchurian Army Headquarters, but that was it.
What had been a situation of being outnumbered on a tactical level has now snowballed.
At present, the defeat of the Japanese army has been confirmed as it has led to a disadvantage at the grand strategic level.
There were no longer any reserve forces available to the Japanese military.
And the absence of such a reserve inevitably led to their downfall.
The Russians’ strong point, a large number of cavalry units, charged into the gap left by the failure to replace the fallen units and broke through deep into the enemy’s defenses.
What had been a breach made by a single Sotnia was soon transformed into a cavalry regiment, and after half a day it was large enough for divisions and corps to maneuver through.
The center and left wing of the Japanese army were separated.
Only then did they realize the situation and, in shock, desperately tried to withdraw while covering the rear guard, but it was already too late.
The cavalry swarmed in from all sides and gradually gnawed at their flanks, until finally the rifle regiments charged at them, and there was no further resistance.
Most of them either threw down their guns and surrendered, or died of mortal wounds somewhere in the mud.
The 210,000-strong Japanese army, which had been fighting using its superior exchange rate until then, has now been reduced to less than 150,000.
Like the Swedish army at the Battle of Poltava, the Japonskis were falling apart very quickly.
They were no longer something to be feared. They were just prey before an angry bear.
“Commander! The reserves are ready. Where will you deploy them?”
“Destroy the enemy corps trapped on the left wing! Do not let even a single one of them live.”
“yes!”
After thinking about it for a while, he decided to hunt down those called the Yalu River Army.
I thought about capturing the 2nd and 4th Armies, but since Kaulbars was in charge of that area anyway, it would be more efficient to support Linevic’s 1st Manchurian Army, which was fighting fiercely on the left wing of the front.
Actually, there was another reason.
While the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Armies suffered major blows, the Yalu River Army still held its ground and retained considerable strength.
Therefore, Kuropatkin judged that they would be an obstacle to future operations, namely the plan to recapture Port Arthur and Dalian, and wanted to actively eliminate them by deploying reserve forces.
“The Baltic Fleet under Admiral Rozhdestvensky will soon arrive in the Far East. In order to achieve total victory, we need to reclaim Port Arthur and support the Korean forces on the Korean Peninsula. We must actively push them back.”
“Yes, Commander!”
Just a few days ago, you could see soldiers, demoralized and defeated, marching proudly, chanting the names of the Tsar, the Russian Empire, and the saints.
This must be the grandeur that only a great empire can display, Kuropatkin thought as he mounted his steed.
***
“No, what does that mean! The connection with Nogi is cut off?!”
“It looks like they’ve been hit hard too. They can’t hold out any longer and are making a hasty withdrawal. The last transmission was that all the units under the 3rd Army were destroyed!”
“The counterattack on the left wing of the front was my order! It was Oyama’s order! It is impossible for Nogi, Nogi to fail!”
“Commander, Commander! This is a big problem, a big problem! The Yalu Army and the Fourth Army have been completely cut off. It is now absolutely impossible to maintain the front line! The right wing of the front line is completely trapped!”
The Manchurian military command could not hide its embarrassment.
There were no more troops to pull from.
Now, the Japanese military’s Manchurian Army Command was no longer a party to the battlefield, but was merely an onlooker.
The Japanese soldiers’ wings were all clipped, and they were on the verge of being pecked at by Russian two-headed eagles with their sharp talons and beaks.
Chief of Staff Gotama Kentaro hurriedly headed towards the 2nd and 4th Armies to try to control the remaining troops, but as there was still no news, it was judged that the situation was not very good.
Marshal Oyama, who had barely come to his senses and resumed command, instinctively cursed at the dire situation.
“Kuropatkin… Gripenberg… These sly Roske bastards!”
“Commander, we must be calm and collected. The war is not over yet, and our fleet is holding on. If we can stop their fleet, we may be able to end the war on favorable terms.”
The clever Chief of Staff, Ijichi, briefly calmed down Oyama, who was in a state of panic.
And thanks to that, he was able to come to his senses for a moment.
Now the only way left was to withdraw as many troops as possible to Lushun and defend it.
If Port Arthur were to fall into the hands of the Roske Army and Navy… it was clear that what would happen to the Japanese Empire would be unimaginable.
“In the end… should we withdraw to Lushun?”
“Only then can the navy fight properly. If we defend Port Arthur, we can prevent the tactical victory of the Roske from turning into a strategic victory. If we fight any longer, we will lose our strength beyond repair. The moment the Roske fleet enters Port Arthur, the war will surely end in defeat.”
Chief of Staff Lee Ji-chi was right.
Oyama thought about it for a moment, but that was all he could do right away.
After the defeat at Fengtian, the only way to end this war was in the hands of the Combined Fleet commanded by Admiral Togo.
“And Joseon is still in the hands of our army. If we only hold on to these two places, Lushun and Joseon, even if the Roske win here, it won’t be easy to expand the battle. Commander, it’s unfortunate for the Yalu River Army, but we must withdraw all the remaining troops. Since the failure of the operation is certain, we must save Lushun and Joseon before it’s too late.”
“···Are we going to have to give the Navy guys the chance to end this war?”
Bongcheon, Bongcheon is right in front of him. Oyama barely managed to control his emotions that were on the verge of tears.
He should have won the victory even at the cost of thousands of dead and tens of thousands wounded, but he could not.
“No matter how detestable the Navy may be, the fate of the Empire depends on it. Commander, you must go to Port Arthur before it is too late.”
Thanks to Ichichi’s words, Oyama was able to collect his confused mind.
In the end, whether it was Choshu or Satsuma, army or navy, the faction had to rise to give meaning to the Japanese Empire.
The moment we lost all of the 150,000 soldiers we had managed to collect while trying to maintain our modest pride here and there, the war was over.
“···Thank you for opening my eyes, even if it was only for a little while, Chief of Staff.”
After expressing his gratitude to Chief of Staff Ichichi, he gave new orders to the Akiyama Unit.
And although it was nearly impossible, it was absolutely necessary.
No matter what happens, we must establish a defensive line at Heukgudae and delay the Roske as much as possible until the 3rd Army joins the main force of the Manchurian Army Command, and we must protect the retreating ranks of our troops.
Akiyama accepted the order and left with an expression on his face as if this might be his last, but Oyama couldn’t say anything else.
And as soon as he left, an urgent telegram flew into the Manchurian Army headquarters in the name of the commander of the Korean Army.
[Receipt / Manchurian Army General Headquarters / Sender / Korean Army General Headquarters / Fall of Wonsan / Korean Army General Counterattack / Enemy Size Unknown / Korean Peninsula Theater / Yalu River Army / Request for Redeployment]
However, there was no longer any equipment or personnel left to read this.
Everyone was busy destroying or dismantling their equipment and withdrawing, and this telegram was just floating around in vain.