Han Naji was sincerely asking for advice, but it was a pity that Zhang Bingzhong could not answer this question.
The Ming Dynasty's version of the hollow phalanx is also a little different from the hollow phalanx used by Westerners in history, but this is not the most fundamental problem. The more fundamental problem is that the hollow phalanx presented by Zhang Bingzhong and his son yesterday is a castrated version.
Compared with the hollow phalanx that Gao Pragmatic first proposed to Qi Jiguang, yesterday's hollow phalanx lacked artillery support. This was of course influential, otherwise the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo might have changed.
After Qi Jiguang's research, he had some doubts about whether the Ming army could achieve the high pragmatic discipline required by the hollow square formation, so he designed and improved the car camp mechanism on this basis. According to the drills he sent (he was responsible for training troops)
, there are currently two versions of the uncastrated version of the Ming Army’s hollow phalanx:
In the first version, the sidecars form a square on the periphery, and the cannon fire on the cars is turned outwards, launching the first wave of ultra-long-range strikes. At the same time, spears or bamboo spears are inserted on the outside of the sidecars to force the horses not to charge hard;
The musketeers were behind the sidecar, relying on the blockage and protection of the sidecar to strike with rounds of continuous firepower;
Finally, a row of grenadiers were arranged in all four directions to throw grenades outward to clear out the dense enemy troops that rushed to the car camp.
This version can also be called the Bayonetless Hollow Phalanx of the Chariot Camp, which is suitable for heavy troop groups carrying a large number of vehicles and baggage, especially heavy troop groups with average fighting will.
In fact, this version was used by Qi Jiguang when he sent troops to defeat Chang'ang. Chang'ang felt that he was not getting a favor after a wave of attacks, so he turned around and ran away.
The advantage of this version is that it downplays the importance of strict military discipline, so that the soldiers will not face the cavalry charge. It is a change made by Qi Jiguang considering the actual level of the current Ming army. As for the disadvantage, it is the baggage
If you bring too many, your marching speed will definitely be slower.
The second version is the Gao pragmatic version. The artillery adopts a new gun carriage that can adjust the muzzle firing angle (in the first volume, Gao Pragmatic has proposed to Qi Jiguang how to manufacture the gun carriage. In fact, the muzzle elevation angle can be adjusted according to a fixed scale.
), the artillery carriage is placed in the "hollow" of the hollow square array, and the direction in which to provide artillery support is determined based on the direction of the opponent's attack.
In addition to the artillery, all the power of the defensive cavalry charging into the bayonet formation was used as mentioned before, taking advantage of the animal instinct of the war horses not to foolishly choose "suicide".
The tasks of the musketeers and grenadiers have not changed much. They are still to maximize the amount of bombs dropped by the unit and drive back the enemy with a large amount of damage.
Generally speaking, this hollow phalanx is similar to the hollow phalanx in modern Western times. Its purpose is very simple, which is to kill a large number of enemy troops. And what it relies on, in addition to the bayonet array, are two main points:
Sufficient firepower and strict military discipline.
Only with sufficient firepower can the cavalry rush to the front of the formation and put maximum pressure on the bayonet array to inflict pain or even destroy it. Before the rise of nationalism and nationalism, everyone's ability to withstand casualties during this period was relatively poor. As long as
After a wave of pain, the opponent will most likely choose to retreat.
As for the strict military discipline, this is very obvious. You have to hold a bayonet on the ground and forcefully resist the cavalry on the opposite side. How can you do this job without courage? But courage alone is not enough. This kind of
A strict system must be formed so that the bayonet array will not waver and retreat when facing the charging array - you must know that if they retreat, the musketeers in the rear will basically be lambs to be slaughtered.
As for asking Han Naji why there are only these few rows, Gao Pragmatic really didn't want to do arithmetic problems with him. He told him that this way can ensure that the firepower is fully utilized without wasting it, and at the same time, it can form enough firepower on one side to cause an instant massive damage to the enemy.
Mass casualties.
Later generations of military historians said that combat was a matter of arithmetic, with discipline and the amount of bombs dropped per unit time determining victory or defeat. This was actually from this perspective.
Zhang Bingzhong's stunned look made Han Naji know that the other party actually didn't understand either. He was a typical person who knew what he was doing but didn't know why. He couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
Gao Pingshi took over the conversation with a smile and said: "This formation is specially designed by me to defeat the cavalry on foot. I will explain the principles to you in detail next time when I have time. But if it is just a simple explanation, then
It relies on the power of my Ming Dynasty's increasingly powerful firearms to deal a huge blow to the cavalry before they rush to the front of the formation. At this time, coupled with the bayonet formation that can hinder the momentum of the war horses, the defeat of the cavalry is guaranteed."
He paused and then added: "As for the cavalry, if they are willing to pay heavy casualties to break this formation, it doesn't matter. If one side is broken through, the other three parties can turn their guns and rush into the Chinese formation."
The enemy forces in front of us engaged in an encircling battle."
Well, the short version of this passage is: I exchange infantry for cavalry, and I make a profit!
What's more, even if we don't discuss the value of cavalry and infantry, the Mongols can't stand this Duizi-like combat mode - how many people are there in the Ming Dynasty, and how many people are they? Duizi is simply as stupid as a pig.
After thinking about Han Naji in his mind for a while, he barely understood what Gao Pragmatic said, but he was shocked in his heart - then the Mongols would really be useless against the Ming Dynasty!
Although Bahan Naji knew it well, when he thought that the cavalry that the Mongols once relied on to dominate the world could not even deal with the infantry phalanx, he felt very uncomfortable in his heart. He sighed: "It's only you, Brother Gao, who can come up with such a stupid idea."
Here comes the flawless infantry phalanx."
"No flaws?" Gao Pragmatic shook his head and said: "No formation is without flaws. Likewise, there are no tactics that can always be effective and will always be invincible."
Han Naji didn't expect that Gao Pragmatic would take the initiative to say that the hollow square array also had flaws. At that time, he was hesitant to speak. He wanted to ask, but he was afraid that Gao Pragmatic would misunderstand him, so he didn't ask. He felt really panicked.
Gao Pragmatic seemed to know what he was thinking, and smiled slightly: "Brother Ji, are you confused about how to break this formation?"
Han Naji said: "I can't figure it out, but it doesn't matter, I won't go against Ming Dynasty."
Gao Pragmatic laughed. He also knew that this sentence was just to prove his innocence. Who knows how high the credibility was. He still took the initiative to "explain" Hannaji and said: "Brother Naji, in fact, the cavalry may not be the same."
It really can't deal with the hollow phalanx, but that requires some conditions, such as... a more powerful artillery unit."
"Artillery?" Han Naji was stunned.
Gao pragmatic nodded and said: "Yes, it's artillery. As long as enough artillery can be concentrated to attack one front line, if the force of this front line is too thin, it is very likely that it will not be able to hold it."
Han Naji suddenly realized it, but he secretly thought in his heart: If you want artillery, then this matter has nothing to do with me...
