"Do it yourself?" Roosevelt was startled by this guy's madness. The two of them had less than 4,000 men in total. They wanted to attack 70,000 Spaniards. Even if their attack area was smaller, they would still have to face it at least.
Three or four times as many enemies, let alone enemies lying in the trenches holding rifles or machine guns, is a bit too crazy.
"We are volunteers. We don't have to listen to Schefter's command. Of course, we can't really do it all by ourselves. I think we are just as unwilling to huddle in this small port during the hurricane season and wait for the Spaniards to trap us to death. Army soldiers and
Quite a bit, right? Schefter is old and has long lost the courage he had when he was young. He is suitable for sitting in the office of the War Department and giving orders, rather than leading the army to fight on the front line. We cannot tie ourselves up because of such an old guy.
Hands and feet, and even if no one from the Army dares to do it, we still have Cubans to help!" Johnson said very confidently.
"But we have no artillery support. If we attack by ourselves, I'm afraid General Schefter will not provide us with artillery." Roosevelt said.
"I have twenty 82mm mortars. These are special alloy barrel types used by the Wolfsburg Training Center. They can have a range of nearly five kilometers, although there is a gap in range compared to the Spanish Bofors rapid-fire field guns.
It's very big, but it's no different from our army's artillery. It's enough to provide artillery cover, and if we adopt surprise tactics, I'm afraid we don't need to use artillery." Johnson said, in fact, the US Army has no artillery, and their field artillery is basically
They had all been destroyed by the Spanish, which was also an important reason why Schefter was unwilling to attack.
Roosevelt was still a little hesitant.
"Theodore, think about it, if a fight really breaks out, can General Schefter still ignore us? Although we are volunteers and have nothing to do with him, don't forget that we all came with honor. If
If he just sits back and watches us sacrifice, then the criticism against him in the country may not be as simple as criticism," Johnson said.
His words were the key point, and Roosevelt suddenly came to his senses. The victory of this battle was his own credit. If he lost the battle, it could only be said that Schefter's support was not good. Even if he just rushed over and then ran back, then what would appear in the newspaper
He must also promote his bravery. There is nothing he can do about Shaft's anger. He has no right to control volunteers like himself. It can be said that this is a battle purely to increase his reputation. It is estimated that the mercenary leader in front of him has the same goal.
.
After thinking about this, he was relieved. Originally, he was surprised that this guy who had just arrived in the United States less than ten years ago loved the United States so much. It turned out that after all, he was also making money for himself.
"Okay, let's do it, I'll contact the Cubans!" Roosevelt immediately stood up and said after thinking of this.
"Okay, I'll wait for your good news." Johnson said solemnly. Watching Roosevelt walk out, this guy smiled sinisterly. Another important task he came to Cuba this time was to find an opportunity to kill Roosevelt. Although it was not possible
I know why Prince Yang did this, but this is not what he needs to care about. Besides, it is not like he has never done this kind of thing in the United States. In recent years, there have been at least dozens of accidental fire cases and missing persons cases related to Umbrella Company.
.This is also the reason why the consortium bosses like them. This company is very efficient in dealing with those workers and unruly people.
As for Roosevelt's lobbying of the Cubans, it was very simple. After all, he was a man who wanted to be president, so his talk was naturally not comparable to that of ordinary people. In addition, these Cuban revolutionaries were full of hatred for the Spaniards and had long been full of desire for fighting.
Longing, the two sides have come together to meet each other.
In this way, without Scheft's knowledge, an army of tens of thousands of people had quietly prepared for the attack. Even several division commanders of the army got the news, and they responded to Scheft's shrinking tactics in the same way.
Dissatisfied, the firepower of the US military has increased greatly in recent times. Not only have machine guns and mortars been added, but even the rifles have been replaced by Raytheon's Bofors rifles. The increase in firepower has brought about an increase in confidence. Since someone is willing to take the lead,
Then just make preparations.
The Spanish troops in Matanzas were deployed to defend from the west and attack from the east. They built a defense line based on the river in the upper reaches of the San Juan River. This way they could completely avoid the threat of US naval guns at sea. There were a total of 20,000 people on this defense line.
The main force is concentrated on the eastern front, with 50,000 troops launching attacks from the east and south. Of course, the composition of these 70,000 troops is very complex. In fact, only 30,000 people can actually fight. After deducting the casualties during this period, it is now estimated that there are no more than 30,000 troops.
There are only 20,000 people left, and the rest are just following the wind. Before, gas bombs were used to suppress the situation, so they were brave and performed well, causing a large degree of misjudgment for Schefter. Now it is violently raining every day.
The poison gas bombs have long since been used up, and they have lost their offensive spirit. They can only focus on waiting for the hurricane season to pass, and the navy to block the US military transportation lines and wait to enjoy victory.
On a rainy night, with howling winds, the U.S.-Cuban forces led by Johnson and Roosevelt quietly left their respective military camps and moved to the U.S. position on the south bank of the San Juan River under the deliberate cover of other U.S. troops, together with some volunteer U.S. Army soldiers.
A total of 12,000 people quietly prepared, and behind them, 20 Bofors mortars were lined up with their muzzles pointing towards the sky.
Riding on a black horse, holding a saber in his hand, Roosevelt was watching the front with vigilance, ready to charge at the Spanish. He did not notice at all that two Chinese mercenaries from Umbrella Company were not far away from him.
Watch him quietly.
"Forward!" Following a series of low-pitched orders, the five hundred veterans of the first batch of commandos quickly hunched forward. These guys who had returned from the Asian battlefield could be said to be armed to the teeth, with automatic weapons in their hands.
Weapons, light machine guns, submachine guns, automatic pistols, and grenades on their bodies, all of which are original products from Bofors, Sweden. They wear helmets with cloth covers on their heads, and some are equipped with grenade launchers, and even bayonets are equipped with
Coated with black paint, they walked silently into the river like a group of black ghosts.
Behind them, dozens of Bofors heavy machine guns pointed their muzzles at the Spanish position. Behind them, more than 10,000 troops slowly moved forward, as well as more than 10,000 U.S. soldiers preparing to provide support.
The commando team's crossing of the river was not discovered by the Spaniards. It was very difficult to find five hundred black heads on the sparkling river on such a rainy night, not to mention that the Spaniards lacked lighting tools and only used bonfires on the river bank.
A lighting strip was drawn out, and the firelight was swaying dyingly in the rain. The sentries on duty on the position were also bleary-eyed, and they didn't even notice that the commando had landed and started crawling on the river beach. As for the ordinary soldiers, at this time
They are hiding in shell-proof caves or sleeping in sheds made of wood and tarpaulin! Such days are truly miserable for them. The current Matanzas front line actually has the appearance of World War I.
It smells good, but it doesn't have so much barbed wire that it becomes too tiring.
The commandos who landed continued to crawl forward until they were less than 50 meters away from the Spanish defense line, only to be discovered by a sentry who was awakened by the thunder.
"Enemy attack!" He rubbed his eyes, and then let out a heart-rending scream. He raised his gun and pulled the trigger almost at the same time. The sudden sound of gunshots suddenly woke up the sleeping position, and countless Spanish soldiers rushed in in panic.
They came out of their hiding place, but before they could enter their posts, the roar of mortar shells suddenly came from the sky, and countless shells exploded above their heads in an instant.
The commandos who were originally crawling forward immediately jumped up, and the submachine guns in their hands and the light machine guns placed on the ground for cover simultaneously spurted out flames, followed closely by the sound of heavy machine gun fire from behind.
The Spaniards in charge of the vigilance had just woken up from their drowsiness, and were suddenly stunned by this violent attack. Especially those machine gun positions, which were the focus of all firepower, not only those on the opposite side.
The heavy machine guns kept pouring bullets at them, and grenade shells kept falling. As for the riflemen who hurriedly ran out, as soon as they raised their heads, they were immediately hit by piles of bullets, facing light machine guns and submachine guns for the first time.
The Spaniards now have no idea how many enemies are on the opposite side. They just look at the black shouting figures and the muzzles of their chests that are constantly spraying flames.
Just as the commandos launched their charge, Roosevelt behind him excitedly waved his saber and shouted: "Kill!"
Then he rode his horse and rushed into the river. The U.S.-Cuban coalition forces beside him, who had been impatient for a long time, immediately followed them with shouts of death. Their appearance further aggravated the panic of the Spaniards. The shouts of kill like a roaring wave were louder than those above their heads.
The sound of exploding shells and grenades was still terrifying.
The distance of tens of meters was only a blink of an eye for the commandos. The ones at the front had already rushed to the position, and then pointed their guns at the trench. The advantages of submachine guns were fully demonstrated in this environment. Those with added weapons
The Spanish soldier, who had a rifle nearly one and a half meters long behind his bayonet, did not have enough room to swing it. He was beaten to pieces by the dense bullets before he even had time to take aim.
Seeing the commandos rushing up, Roosevelt, who was crossing the river, became even more excited. He really didn't expect that success would be so easy. No wonder Johnson made such big words. It turned out that he was really not bragging. The combat effectiveness of these mercenaries is indeed amazing, especially those with obvious
The organized skirmish attack by small groups is even more shocking to watch. You must learn from them after the war.
He was still thinking about the battle, and he didn't notice that at least four rifles were aimed at his back at the same time in the hands of the soldiers behind him who were charging and shooting.