A new day began, and the battle in Alem also started as scheduled. However, today was obviously different from the past. Abyssinia's attack was more ferocious, and it had no intention of retreating at all. It was a fight to the death.
If it weren't for the dissuasion from the Maxim machine guns, the Abyssinians would have rushed forward with a sea of people despite the casualties.
Facing the Abyssinian attack, the Italian officers and soldiers serving as defenders felt incredible.
"What's wrong with these Abyssinians? Why are they so desperate?"
As the commander of the 6th Mountain Brigade, Zelos couldn't help but ask when he saw his men struggling to hold on under the Abyssinian offensive.
"What else can there be? General Simeone's reinforcements must be arriving soon, and these Abyssinians want to make a profit."
Major General Pascal, who walked behind him, expressed his judgment. The commander of the Eighth Division did not look in good condition, with a tired look on his face and bloodshot eyes, but now he was in high spirits. He took a look
The Abyssinian army came over and turned to Zelos and asked.
"Can the Sixth Brigade withstand this enemy offensive?"
Hearing that the reinforcements were coming, Colonel Zelos, who wanted to gain more credit on the battlefield, said with a serious face. "Okay, I will let the officers and soldiers of the mountain brigade block the enemy."
"Well, I will tell the artillery not to save shells, and they will fully support you."
Yes, both of them are betting that the army led by General Simeone is not far away from them. Because if this is not the case, then how to explain that the enemy is desperate to seize their position. Because of this, Major General Pascal also
No more hesitation, just take out all your belongings and have a good fight with the enemy.
Major General Pascal's words greatly increased Zelos' confidence. Because he had to save artillery shells, he could not suppress the enemy's artillery, which put a lot of pressure on the defending mountain brigade. As long as there is no enemy artillery support, then these Abyssinians
Offensive is nothing to worry about.
With Major General Pascal giving the artillery the power to fire freely, the good days of the Abyssinian artillery were over. Due to the terrain and training level, the Italian defenders' artillery was able to threaten all the Abyssinian artillery.
position.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!!"
The shelling from the top of the mountain made it impossible for the Abyssinian artillery troops to suppress the defenders' positions. This artillery battle was very different from the previous ones. Both sides were not avoiding, and they were completely determined to kill the enemy.
The purpose of losing one thousand to eight hundred.
So a rare scene happened on the battlefield. The artillery positions on both sides were continuously destroyed, but they all agreed not to evacuate. One side relied on the advantage of large numbers, and the other side took advantage of its own technology.
While the artillery of the two sides was destroying each other, the battle on the position was still fierce.
There was no retreat this time. One troop could no longer withstand it. Immediately another troop took over and charged with them. There was a firing squad standing in front of the position at the foot of the mountain. Anyone who retreated past this point would be shot to death.
Strict orders from military law made all Abyssinians aware of the harsh consequences of retreating and dying. Unable to be forced into a desperate situation, these East African warriors burst out with a final roar and rushed forward to the position.
Faced with this deadly explosion, the defenders of the position could no longer bear it. They watched as these Abyssinians gradually approached the position despite their casualties.
One hundred meters!
Fifty meters!
Twenty meters!
Immediately there was a burst of cheers, and the Abyssinians rushed to the position and fought at close range with the officers and soldiers of the 6th Mountain Brigade.
"Well done, I want to congratulate the first brave man to charge forward, and I want to make him a noble."
At the foot of the mountain, Johannes IV looked at his own troops who were attacking the position. He was overjoyed and even gave out a noble title as a generous reward. You must know that the nobles of Abyssinia are closer to the Middle Ages, with their own fiefdoms, annual harvests, and
With an army, it is completely a small independent kingdom.
After saying that he wanted a large reward, Johannes IV immediately put down all bets.
"Follow the reinforcements and deal with the enemy."
Since the Abyssinians are so happy, the situation is terrible on the Italian side.
"Quickly, organize everyone to pick up weapons and reinforce the position."
Seeing the enemy attack the position, Major General Pascal immediately ordered all those who could take up arms to take the position. But even so, the four balls in his hand were still tightly squeezed.
On the position, facing the attacking Abyssinians, the Italian defenders drew their bayonets and engaged in hand-to-hand combat, trying to drive the enemies out of the position.
A brutal fight unfolded on the battlefield, and the desperate fight between officers and soldiers from both sides made the scene even more bloody.
Now the eyes of both parties were focused on the top of the mountain, waiting for the result. However, they did not notice that there was movement on the edge of the battlefield.
Not to mention that no one noticed that several Abyssinian cavalrymen came over with blood on their bodies, fighting hard.
"What did you say!"
With a shocked expression on his face, Johannes IV looked at the cavalry in front of him, his eyes showing an expression of reluctance.
Although the cavalryman who reported the news did not want to offend the emperor in front of him, he still had to bite the bullet and repeat it again. "Your Majesty, the enemy has broken through Duke Harar's blockage and is coming here."
The atmosphere at the scene was extremely depressing. Everyone present knew that this was a bad situation and it was too late to retreat.
With a frustrated look on his face, Johannes IV waved his hands and said, "Let the troops retreat."
Following the order of Johannes IV, the sound of retreating horns made the two parties fighting on the top of the mountain feel incredible.
But at this time, the defenders who reacted quickly shouted, "Our reinforcements are coming."
"Reinforcements are coming."
This sentence greatly boosted the morale of the defenders, and even made the Abyssinians who had attacked before look ashen. They did not even bother to fight with the defenders on the position, and hurriedly ran down the mountain.
But it was too late for them to go down the mountain now, because in the distance, the smoke and dust brought by the large-scale army march had already appeared.
The figures of the indigenous cavalry at the front were already looming, which meant that reinforcements would appear on the battlefield in less than half an hour.
Faced with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, Major General Pascal took out his final trump card. "The fourth regiment attacked, holding the enemy back and not letting them escape."
Following Major General Pascal's order, nearly two thousand Italian troops who were fully prepared burst out with endless fighting power. They chased the enemy's retreating footsteps and rushed over.
The attack of the fourth regiment was like the last straw that broke the camel's back, causing the Abyssinians who had just retreated to collapse. It was like a snowball, getting bigger and bigger, and was about to spread to the entire battlefield.
.
At this time, Johannes IV, the emperor of Abyssinia, made a surprising decision.
"You guys should retreat with your troops, I'll stay behind to break up the rear."
"Emperor, think twice."
"His Majesty……"
Faced with the dissuasion of the prince, Johannes IV waved his hand to stop him and continued to speak. "You retreat first. If I die in battle, let Menelik succeed to the throne. Let me end the fight with the Italians."
After saying these words, Johannes IV issued the final order. "Order the Praetorian Guards to come over immediately and prepare to fight with the emperor."
Johannes IV's Praetorian Guard was his most loyal force. The more than 10,000 Praetorian Guards were the best in terms of training and equipment. This was also the core force of Johannes IV to suppress the entire empire. But today,
He needs to use this unit to block the enemy and win a way for other units to survive.
Because he knew that someone must be responsible for this defeat, and no one except him, the emperor, could bear the responsibility for such a loss.
So Johannes IV, with his Praetorian Guards, became the anchor of stability for the retreating Abyssinian officers and soldiers, gradually calming down the already ongoing defeat.
However, the army led by Simone had already appeared in front of him, making it impossible for the emperor's guards to leave.
The old emperor pulled out his sword and loudly gave orders to his imperial guards.
