Chapter 843 Artillery shows its power! Blow up the Changzhou Army! 5200
Matabei has waited too long to come to the island.
As a die-hard radical among the Zunban faction, he has been looking forward to this day - go east! Go east! Fight to the capital! Fight to Kanto! Eliminate the Edo shogunate that has humiliated the country! Abolish all unequal treaties! Conquer the Western Yi capital.
Rush back to the sea!
The long wait, the constant disappointment... This day of the "Changzhou Eastern Expedition" was what he had been waiting for!
Not only was he able to fulfill the responsibilities of "going all the way east", but he also had the honor to become the actual commander of the Fushimi battlefield... It is no exaggeration to say that ordinary words can no longer accurately summarize Kushima Matabei's excitement.
In order to show that he attaches great importance to this battle and to show his determination to "win a complete victory", he specially put on the heirloom Fengzhewu hat (armor) and dressed up like a military commander from the Warring States period.
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If he was so complacent before, then how exhausted he is now!
Although on the surface, the scale of this Eastern Expedition army is astonishing, with a total strength of 12,000 people, to put it bluntly, this army is completely pieced together.
First of all, the vast majority of the soldiers were temporarily recruited ronin and peasant soldiers.
They have received little or no military training.
They were asked to roar a few times and march forward in formation, but they managed to do just fine.
But with slightly more complicated tactical moves, they are completely incapable of doing so.
As for bloody battles, tough battles, and headwind battles, we can't even count on them.
Thanks to the huge financial resources of Changzhou sitting on the Shimonoseki Strait, the actual annual fiscal revenue reaches millions of dan.
Otherwise, other vassal states would not be able to build such a huge army even if they tried their best.
In addition to the complex source of troops, this legion is also filled with many semi-independent armed forces.
In order to fight against the Western barbarians and realize the ambition of "respecting the king and repelling the barbarians", in recent years, countless Changzhou men have spontaneously organized teams and formed troops, ranging from a dozen to several hundred people.
The most famous unit among them is undoubtedly the "Arc Force".
This is a special armed force formed by Takasugi Shinsaku with the support of wealthy businessman Shiraishi Shoichiro.
The so-called "surprise soldiers" refer to a mixed army composed of samurai and common people other than feudal lords.
The original surprise team was just a cold weapon unit that gathered many people with lofty ideals.
As Takasugi Shinsaku gradually recognized the powerful national power of the Western powers and the huge gap between the East and the West, he began to vigorously introduce Western weapons and tactics, so that today's Qi Force has transformed into a "hot and cold mixed" special forces.
In terms of combat effectiveness alone, the Qibing Team is definitely one of the most powerful units in the Changzhou Army.
However, it is a pity... Because Takasugi Shinsaku and Kusaka Genzui broke up, and many people think that Takasugi Shinsaku has fallen. As a dignified Choshu man, he actually uses Western weapons. It is really shameless, so he is unwilling to fight with Takasugi.
Jin Zuo fought side by side, so the Qibing Team did not participate in this Eastern Expedition.
After Hisaka Genzui announced the "General Mobilization for the Eastern Expedition" across the entire domain, these independent armed forces, which had previously had nothing to do and basically could only enclose their own territories, responded to the call and joined the legion.
Although the morale and combat effectiveness of these independent troops are far superior to those of ronin, peasant soldiers who were temporarily recruited, they are also insignificant.
Not to mention anything else, just their strong personalities, excessive desire for expression, and undisciplined personality that doesn't listen to what is told, makes people extremely crushed!
The organizational structure and military philosophy of these independent forces are a complete mess! They are no better than the Peasant Rebel Army!
The establishment and operation of the army depend entirely on their own passion.
To put it harshly, these independent troops are not so much "armies" as they are "pretending to be armies"! They are just playing house!
Before that, they all lived a very free and loose life, and had no concept of "military discipline" or "military orders falling like a mountain" in their minds.
Although Kurushima Matabei was the actual highest commander of the Fushimi battlefield, he had no way to deal with these independent troops.
After all, in name only, they are just guest soldiers, here to help.
"We are here to help! You are not my master, what are you yelling about?!" - In this way, if they are driven to a desperate situation, they may really give up and lead the team away!
It is necessary not only to effectively mobilize those ronin, peasant soldiers with low training level, but also to appease these independent troops who are jumping up and down... The hard work of Matabei coming to the island is self-evident.
If it's just restlessness, then that's it.
But the problem is, these guys are so restless that they are delaying the opportunity to fight!
For example, Yamamoto Satsuyuki had just had a big quarrel with Kurushima Matabei and insisted on going out to challenge the Shinsengumi.
Yamamoto Satsuyuki, as well as Ishigami Moritsune and Akagawa Motoshou who subsequently went into battle against Aoden, were all from independent troops.
These guys all have one thing in common: due to lack of knowledge and education, their vision is not even as good as that of the radical Zunban faction who always talk about "the soul of Changzhou" and "wiping out the Western barbarians".
Because of this, they highly praise the so-called "retro style".
Although Kurushima Matabei is not opposed to the recent rise of "retro style", he is very disgusted with backward products like Ikkito that have long been swept into the trash can of history.
Moreover, as much as he didn't want to admit it, the Shinsengumi were indeed as skilled as the clouds!
Even "Nioh" Tachibana Aoden and "Tenken" Okita Souji, Nagakura Shinpachi, Saito Kazuo, Kondo Isamu and others are not fuel-efficient lamps.
After experiencing setbacks such as the Shimonoseki War, the August 18th Coup, the Tenchu-gumi Rebellion, and the Ikedaya Incident, Choshu's elite combat capabilities were seriously damaged.
Kawagami Hikosai, Yoshida Nomo...these martial arts masters who can ride a thousand horses, are dying and being injured.
Up to now, the Shinsengumi's high-level combat power has far exceeded that of Choshu!
To sum up, issuing a challenge to the Shinsengumi is tantamount to "attacking the enemy's strengths with one's own shortcomings", which is not a good idea no matter how you look at it!
Therefore, Kurushima Matabei would certainly not agree to Yamamoto Sakuyuki's request.
However, Yamamoto Sasayuki just refused to obey his command.
The two had a big quarrel... In the end, Yamamoto Cezhi ignored his dissuasion and made his own decision and rode out into battle.
What happened next... no need to go into details.
When he thought of this, Kurushima Matabei felt that the roots of his teeth were itching again, and his eyebrows furrowed even more tightly. He couldn't help but raise his hands to press the painful temples.
——It’s all because of the wanton behavior of these guys that led to such evil consequences!
Before the battle officially started, my side had already lost three generals, which damaged morale!
The so-called "unfavorable start" is nothing more than this.
On the one hand, morale has soared, on the other hand, morale has dropped visibly...
Kurushima Matabei closed his eyes and took several deep breaths to calm down his emotions.
——Forget it! Now that things have come to this, we can only try our best to find ways to make up for it!
While he was thinking this secretly, he suddenly opened his eyes, his eyes bursting with light.
Although the current situation is extremely serious, he still has a trump card in his hand - the guerrilla army he built by himself!
After Takasugi Shinsaku formed the surprise force, he was influenced by it and he also followed suit and established a new force that dared to fight, named it "guerrillas", and appointed himself governor.
Although the guerrilla army takes the surprise force as an example, it is not a "mixed hot and cold" special force like the surprise force, but a pure cold weapon force, using spears and knives as its main weapons.
For this unit that belonged to him alone, Kurushima Matabei could be said to have devoted all his efforts.
Only recruiting men of suitable age who are physically strong; both warriors and civilians are welcome; pay attention to discipline...
In this way, under the rigorous training of Kushima Matabei, the guerrillas became one of the main forces of the Choshu Army.
Kurushima Matabei dared to conclude that although the total strength of the guerrillas was only 600, as long as they were mobilized properly, they might be able to win by surprise! Reversal of the war!
——The next battle is the real winner!
At this thought, Kurushima Matabei felt a little calmer in his heart, straightened his waist again, and raised his head again.
At this moment, a general rushed over and shouted anxiously:
"Mr. Kurushima! The enemy has made a big move! They are attacking us!"
After coming to the island, Matabei listened and looked slightly gloomy:
"Are you here...! Have you seen clearly which division of the Shinsengumi the attacking troops are?"
The general looked troubled.
"This... we haven't yet identified which detachment of the Shinsengumi the incoming troops are, but they are all carrying iron cannons!"
Kurushima Matabei twitched his eyebrows:
"Iron cannon?"
…
…
Now that the Shinsengumi's morale is at its peak, it's the best time to pursue victory and rely on this high-spirited momentum to defeat the enemy in one go!
Thanks to the amazing assists from idiots like Yamamoto Sakuyuki, Aoto had an excellent start that he had never imagined.
Qingdeng's three battles and three victories showed a clear difference in the morale of both sides.
In this way, today's battle is expected to end early.
Naturally, Qingdeng would not miss this rare opportunity.
Therefore, as soon as his front foot returned to his own formation, his back foot immediately sent an order to the positions of the 6th and 8th divisions (musketeers): Start attacking!
…
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The positions of the Shinsengumi, Division 6 and Division 8——
"go ahead!"
Gensaburo Inoue drew his sword in his hand and directed the musketeers of Division 6 to move forward.
Because the terrain of this formation is higher, Qingto and others in this formation could clearly see: accompanied by the rhythmic sound of military drums, the musketeers of the Sixth Division lined up in a neat queue and moved forward slowly.
After the Sixth Division came into formation, the Eighth Division, which was lined up immediately behind them, also marched forward under the command of Toudo Heisuke.
Two squads, with a total of two thousand men, lined up in long lines, advancing slowly across the endless wilderness, with neither infantry accompanying them nor cavalry escorting them.
Although this formation was spectacular, it made all the feudal generals confused.
Their understanding of iron cannons still remains as "fairly useful long-range weapons" - although they are very powerful, they have many limitations.
The most famous musket-related battle in Japanese history is undoubtedly the Battle of Nagasaki where the Oda-Tokugawa Allied Forces defeated the Takeda Army.
In the third year of Tensho (1575), the Oda and Tokugawa coalition forces (38,000 people) and the Takeda army (15,000 people) launched a decisive battle.
Because this battle is so well-known, it is often adapted and re-created by later generations.
Novelists and playwrights only care about the plot being beautiful and easy to understand, so they make a lot of changes to historical facts, so that the world has a misunderstanding of the Nagasaki Battle - Oda Nobunaga mobilized 3,000 matchlock guns and set up a barrage of horses to resist the war.
Ma relied on them and set up a large musket formation. Takeda Katsuyori foolishly ordered his troops to attack the Oda Army's musket formation, and finally sent away the elite troops of the Takeda Army. Three of the Four Heavenly Kings were defeated.
In fact, this is not the case.
Oda Nobunaga did indeed mobilize 3,000 matchlock guns, and he also did stop the Takeda Army's cavalry with his horse.
However, Takeda Katsuyori organized 5 waves of offensive. Only the first wave of the offensive was blocked by the horse guard and suffered a lot of damage from the matchlock gun. However, as time passed, the attack firepower of the matchlock gun was no longer available, so the horse guard fence
It became a hand-to-hand fight.
The next 2, 3, 4, and 5 offensives were basically hand-to-hand combat, with no muskets involved.
In other words, the Oda-Tokugawa Allied Forces finally defeated the Takeda Army based on their excellent individual soldier quality and overwhelming strength advantage, rather than relying on hot weapons to crush cold weapons.
Because of the lessons learned from past mistakes, later generations’ understanding of muskets is roughly as follows:
First, muskets are defensive weapons, not offensive weapons.
It's very useful when fighting defensive wars, but very weak when fighting offensive wars.
Secondly, no matter how many muskets you have, no matter how good your musketeers are, it is still the infantry that ultimately determines the outcome.
After all, muskets are just an addition to the battlefield. They can only affect the outcome, but cannot determine the outcome.
As long as we understand the current people's views on muskets, it is not difficult to understand the current confusion of the feudal generals.
They ordered the musketeers to go into battle as soon as they came up, and they didn't send out infantry and cavalry to escort them. How could there be such a fight?
If the enemy launches an assault, wouldn't all these musketeers be destroyed?
The feudal generals looked at each other - they all saw strong confusion on each other's faces.
Someone couldn't suppress the confusion in his heart, turned to look at Qingdeng, and asked tactfully:
"Lord An Yi, this, this...is it too risky to send iron gunners out into battle without sending infantry or cavalry to escort?"
Qingdeng smiled slightly:
"You don't need to panic, this is our tactic."
As soon as this statement came out, the feudal generals became even more confused.
Tactics? Is there such a tactic in this world?
At this time, a messenger from the Ninth Division ran over:
"Lord! The gunners are in position!"
Qingdeng nodded lightly:
"Very well, let's begin!"
"yes!"
The ordering soldier responded and quickly ran forward to convey the order.
"Everyone, please wait and see."
Qingto glanced around at the feudal generals present and spoke in a meaningful tone.
"Although I really want you to see the power of our Shinsengumi musketeers immediately, but before that, it's time for the artillery to show off its power."
At this moment, under the command of Juro Abe (captain of the 11th Division) at the 11th Division (artillery) position not far from our main formation, all the artillery pieces were ready.
Juro Abe picked up the telescope in his hand, glanced at the target in the distance, and shouted:
"Basic gun, one shot to load!"
…
…
Changzhou Army, this formation——
Kurushima Matabei smiled excitedly while observing the formation on the opposite side with his telescope.
——God helps me! God helps me!
Just like the feudal generals around Aoto, Kurushima Matabei's views on muskets were still stuck in the Warring States Period.
Seeing that Qingdeng directly sent musketeers to fight without sending infantry and cavalry to protect him, he suddenly beamed with joy and could not even open his eyes.
——The "Nioh" Tachibana Aoden, who is rumored to be sure to win every battle and win every attack, is so ignorant of tactics!
Kurushima Matabei never imagined that Aonto would be so stupid! Just send musketeers to die like this!
It seems that it was only the Iga Peasant Rebel Army and the Tenchu Group that he faced before that were too weak, which made Seito and the Shinsengumi famous!
——As long as we send out troops to launch a strong attack, we will definitely be able to defeat the Shinsengumi's iron artillery troops in one fell swoop!
After making up his mind, he immediately put down the telescope in his hand, turned to the messenger next to him and said:
"Pass my order..."
Before he finished speaking...
boom--!!
A sudden loud noise startled Kurushima Matabei.
He lowered his body subconsciously, and then followed the sound - in the direction of the Shinsengumi military formation, something flew into the sky, roared and rolled to the rear with a rumbling echo.
When it landed, there was a huge explosion and everything was shaking.
After a while, his eyes widened, he swallowed hard, and murmured:
"cannon……?!"
These sounds and movements reminded Kushima Matabei of the Shimonoseki War a year ago - a tragic battle that he still didn't want to recall.
Facing the rain of shells from the American and French fleets, they had no power to fight back and could only be beaten passively.
Before the Matabei soldiers could calm down, the roar of cannons was heard again from the direction of the Shinsengumi military formation.
This time the sound of cannons was no longer single, but one after another, like a heavy rain!
…
…
Shinsengumi, the position of the 11th Division——
After Juro Abe used a telescope to observe the impact point of the reference cannon, he methodically adjusted the shooting points.
"Lift up 8 degrees, turn right 13 degrees."
As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of "Gululu" turning the muzzle suddenly rang out.
Each gun crew adjusted the muzzle direction with skillful movements.
After a while, the artillery batteries fell silent.
The black muzzle of each cannon is aimed at the same target—the Changzhou Army in the distance!
Juro Abe: "Let go!"
Suddenly, the cannons roared!
Boom——!!Boom——!!Boom——!!Boom——!!Boom——!!
Wishes of red light spread out from one end to the other.
Immediately afterwards, each ball of light rose high, drew a beautiful parabola after rising to the highest point, and plummeted towards the Changzhou Army!
Boom——!!Boom——!!Boom——!!Boom——!!
The sound of explosions one after another shook the world! Dominating all the sounds in this space!
The explosion's fire wave illuminated everything around it.
The terrifying movement was like an earthquake, causing the unexpected Kurushima Matabei to accidentally lose his balance and fall to the ground.
He blinked, his expression numb, like a sleepwalker who had never returned to reality.
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