Just as the First Division's staff expected, at five o'clock in the afternoon on May 4th, the Seventh Army finally advanced to the sniper position set up by the First Division at Ferenta de Noy.
Crown Prince William, who was already simmering with anger, did not stop to rest, but directly launched a fire attack on the positions where the 1st Division and the 32nd Division were launched.
Crown Prince William is also a very arbitrary person.
There is a very interesting phenomenon. In World War I, many high-ranking commanders were arbitrary.
France has Nivelle, who insisted on launching an attack on the Chemandeldam area in spite of everyone's opposition some time ago.
The British Expeditionary Force Commander-in-Chief, General Haig, is even more arbitrary and arbitrary. He does not even look down on the British Prime Minister. Now that the battle of Arras has not ended, Haig has proposed to launch an attack on Prussia from the direction of Ypres within this year.
Randers launched an attack to seize the Belgian ports. This plan also attracted opposition from many people, including the new French Commander-in-Chief Foch and the French Chief of General Staff Pétain, who reminded Haig that Flanders was next
It will enter the rainy season. If we launch an attack during the rainy season, it will be a disaster.
But it seems that Haig doesn't want to listen to other people's opinions.
The American General Pershing is also a god. Although this general has led his troops to Paris, no matter how French President Raymond and British Prime Minister George plead, Pershing has no intention of sending troops to participate in the war. Even if the French army now sees
Even though everything was in disarray, Pershing still insisted on waiting to obtain 3 million troops before launching an attack, and the victory would be accomplished in one battle.
Well, just three days ago, Pershing requested that the American training camp be set up in Orleans, Central District.
Where is Orleans?
In the southwest of Paris.
If Fernandez de Noy is the front line relative to Paris, then Paris is the front line relative to Orléans
Pershing was using Paris as a human shield. This approach aroused dissatisfaction from almost everyone. Lyautey even once again gave Qin Zhiyuan a share of the tanks that were to be equipped for the Americans.
Lyautey's reasons are very good: anyway, the Germans will not be able to reach Orleans for a while. Tanks are in short supply, so it is better to equip more needed troops first.
If we talk about being arbitrary, we have to mention the Italian commander-in-chief Luigi Cardona. Cardona launched the 10th Battle of Isonzo in May. This guy is simply not a human being, he is a beast in uniform. If there are troops
If the performance in the battle does not satisfy Cardona, Cardona will implement the rule of one draw out of ten in this army.
The so-called "one out of ten" means that for every ten people, he will shoot one.
It's a miracle that the Italian army, under the command of this beast, didn't break out like a mutiny like France.
It can be seen from this case that the Italians, who have always been called pig teammates, are actually quite good. At least they are good at patience and discipline, much better than the French who always refuse to follow orders.
Crown Prince Wilhelm is similar to Nivelle Haig, Pershing Cardona
No, you can't add Cardona, this guy is not a human being.
Well, guys like Crown Prince Wilhelm and Nivele Haig Pershing are similar. Perhaps because they are used to giving orders in high positions, these people no longer value other people's opinions. They are extremely conceited and arrogant. They believe that there is no such thing in the world.
What they can't do, as long as they work harder, the enemy on the other side will collapse.
Qin Zhiyuan obviously does not think so. Compared with those dictators, Qin Zhiyuan is a model of democracy and freedom.
Therefore, when setting up positions, Qin Zhiyuan not only had his own ideas, but also listened to the opinions of the French staff on the staff. Compared with the fledgling First Division, the French's understanding of artillery was master-level.
Therefore, the anti-gun holes of the 1st Division and the 32nd Division are still very good.
When Crown Prince William sent troops from Reims, he brought more than 400 artillery pieces. The calibers of these artillery pieces ranged from 77 mm to 150 mm. There were even larger calibers, but those artillery pieces were inconvenient to move and were not suitable for carrying with the army.
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Currently, self-propelled artillery is only available in Russia and France. It can also be said that it is only available in France. The one in Russia is at most a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. It can be seen that the military strength of the French was still considerable during the First World War.
It's remarkable, but it's a pity that this was also their last glory.
The same weapon, used by different people, can produce different combat effectiveness.
For example, if you give the 77mm artillery to the French, they can make ten shots miss the target. But if you give it to the Germans, the Germans will hit six out of ten shots, and the remaining four will not miss the target.
How many.
As a result, under the fierce artillery attack, almost all the fortifications and tunnels on the forward positions of the 1st Division and the 32nd Division were destroyed, and all the results of Liu Zizheng's soldiers' hard work for a week were in vain.
It cannot be said that all bunkers that use steel structures as supports are basically safe and sound. After all, such bunkers require the use of large-caliber artillery to directly destroy them.
It's just possible.
The German fire attack lasted for nearly half an hour, and then about one regiment of Germans launched a probing attack.
Since the war started, the infantry no longer uses mass formations when launching attacks, but skirmish line tactics coordinated by infantry and artillery. The Germans are the inventors of crossfire, and their understanding of crossfire surpasses all troops of this era.
This statement is not accurate, at least it does not include Qin Zhiyuan's first division.
Long before the Germans started shelling, Liu Zizheng's troops hid in the anti-bomb holes on the reverse slope. Only some observation posts were left on the position. The anti-bomb holes were fully equipped, just like those steel structure bunkers, unless they were hit by large-caliber artillery shells.
A direct hit, otherwise the anti-blast hole can provide sufficient protection for the soldiers.
This kind of protection is limited to shrapnel damage, and is powerless against damage from shock waves and vibrations. Fortunately, the First Division has received relevant training. The soldiers squatted half-crouched in the anti-gun holes, either with their mouths open, or covering their ears and closing their mouths.
, can avoid being harmed by shock waves and vibrations to the greatest extent.
Staying in the shell-proof cave and waiting for the bombardment to stop is simply torture. It is strictly forbidden to move around freely, whisper to each other, smoke and eat, and even go to the toilet. Just stay in the shell-proof cave where it feels like the earth is shaking.
, waiting for the German shelling to stop.
Fortunately, the Germans were far less prepared than the British and French, and the Germans did not have so many artillery shells to waste. The shelling only lasted half an hour, and then began to extend to the rear.
At this moment, a sharp whistle sounded, reminding everyone who was not dead that the battle had begun.
