Of course, Duke Mikhail did not just hold on, he made timely adjustments. Forcibly crossing the Danube River proved to be ineffective, so he changed the focus of the attack to first deal with the enemies in Constanta on the east bank of the Danube River.
The Russian army in the region can attack the Turkish army from two directions, and can also obtain maritime support from the Black Sea Fleet, which is a great advantage.
The only problem is that the terrain along the Danube River west of Constanta is not ideal, and Heze is full of swamps, which is not conducive to large group operations.
Anyway, the East Route Army spent a lot of effort to pass through the swamp area, and almost everyone turned into a mud monkey.
Duke Mikhail of this generation is actually quite familiar with it. In the early years, the Russian army had been fighting with the Turkish army in this area and was made angry by the bad terrain.
This is also an important reason why he did not focus his attack on this area before. After all, the traffic conditions on the middle and west roads are much better. If the Turkish army's stronghold can be captured, the area behind will be almost smooth.
It's a pity that the idea is good, but the strength cannot keep up. The Russian army cannot capture the strong fortress at all, so Duke Mikhail can only turn his focus back to the direction of Constanta, hoping to open up the situation here as soon as possible.
I have to say that Duke Mikhail's luck is quite good. Although the Turkish army has built relatively strong defenses in the direction of Constanta, the strength of the troops is not particularly sufficient, at least compared to the middle and west roads.
, especially since they were not mentally prepared to face a naval attack by the Black Sea Fleet.
Therefore, forty days after the war began, as the Russian troops continued to pour into Constanta and launched rounds of strong attacks, the defenders were exposed to the powerful firepower of the Black Sea Fleet day and night, and finally collapsed.
The fall of Constanta was a blow to the Turkish army, and it also gave a boost to the Russian army, which had a slow start.
In Constanta, they annihilated and captured about 60,000 Turkish troops, which was considered a brilliant victory. The key was that after removing the nail in Constanta, they could drive straight in from the eastern coastal areas and threaten Varna and Bulga.
Sri Lanka or even Edirne.
Once this line of access is opened, it will not be far from Istanbul. Anyway, the fall of Constanta caught the Turkish army by surprise. Their previous successes in the middle and west roads increased their confidence. They believed that polar bears are nothing more than paper tigers. As long as they
If you are tough enough, you can give Russia some color.
But now the front line of Constanta fell, forcing them to adjust their defense focus and quickly mobilize troops from central Bulgaria to drive day and night in the direction of Varna and Dobrich.
In fact, the Turks did not need to be so nervous at all, because the Russian army did not move that fast. After the capture of Constanta, the Russian army was exhausted and needed to rest. The consecutive days of strong attacks not only caused them heavy casualties, but also exhausted most of their energy.
Then the sudden heavy rainfall caught Duke Mikhail off guard. If you think about it, the area of Constanta was originally full of swamps. After being watered by the rain, it was no different from a quagmire.
Not only was the march a problem, but logistical supplies were also intermittent, especially the heavy artillery groups that were very important for siege, which were even more difficult to move.
In any case, Prince Mikhail's wish to move south as soon as possible was in vain. The Russian army was trapped in the mud in Constanta and was unable to move.
After the recent rains passed and the sky cleared up, Turkish reinforcements gradually arrived, and Duke Mikhail was unable to move south quickly even if he wanted to.
"Try to capture Dobrich as soon as possible!"
Duke Mikhail knew that it was useless to be anxious now. The current situation was similar to that of the previous Russian-Turkish wars. The tug of war centered around the southern Danube area. Whoever could not hold on first would fall.
The good news is that the Russian army is very familiar with this kind of battle, and they can just follow the prescriptions of the previous pharmacies. The bad news is that the Turks seem to be much tougher and more powerful than before. They tenaciously hold on to every position and launch counterattacks from time to time.
The Russian army was caught off guard.
Two months passed without realizing it, and both sides of the war suffered nearly 100,000 casualties. Such a brutal tug-of-war made veterans like Duke Mikhail change their colors. Especially recalling Li Xiao's previous experience.
After analysis and judgment, he was really not optimistic about the prospects of this war.
The only thing that made him feel at ease was that Britain and France did not declare war on Russia. Although these two countries continued to condemn Russia and continued to provide economic and military assistance to Turkey, as long as they did not directly participate in the war, the problem was not too big.
Duke Mikhail thought it would be better for him to quickly think about how to deal with those annoying Turkish fortresses. The effect of heavy artillery bombardment can only be said to be average. The only useful tactic is to blast the enemy's bunkers through tunnel operations, but this is too time-consuming.
Yes, it takes weeks of preparation to remove each nail, so the efficiency is not very high.
If we keep this pace, we may not be able to capture Bulgaria in ten years. Moreover, according to the reconnaissance of the frontline troops, the Turks are still building fortresses, which means that they are at war with themselves and are ready to defend to the end.
Prince Mikhail's balls ache at the thought of having to pull out nails so continuously. Such tactics are simply a hooliganism. In his opinion, this is not a war at all. If you have the ability, use real swords and guns to show off your horses and horses. Let's fight.
, that is the battle!
Now it’s obvious that you are avoiding combat and don’t want to fight in the field. What kind of soldier are you?
Although Duke Mikhail despises the Turkish army, Turkey's tactical choices are right. If they really engage in a field battle with the Russian army, they are really no match for them and will be defeated in minutes.
But relying on solid defense to continuously consume the Russian army is completely different. Although the Turkish army still has to pay a heavy price due to its weak equipment and firepower, it also makes the Russian army miserable and has to pay blood for every step forward.
cost.
The tragic casualties made Duke Mikhail very worried. Fortunately, the tradition of the Russian army did not care much about casualties. As long as he could continue to win, neither the tsar nor ordinary people would care how many people died.
Russia is indeed cruel in this respect!
However, even if Russia's endurance is very strong, it is not without a bottom line. About ten days later, when Duke Mikhail demolished another Turkish army fortress and advanced one step further, the navy reported that
Here comes the “good news”!
In Sinop Bay, Nassimov caught the tail of the Turkish fleet as in history. After a fierce attack like a wolf and a tiger, the Turkish fleet was completely wiped out, and the port of Sinop also suffered heavy losses as in history.