Can infantry with pure musketry defeat the impact of cavalry in plain areas without relying on fortifications?
There has always been strong controversy within the Xia Army.
Many people think it can.
Their reason was that the musket formations were stacked on top of each other, the firepower was continuous, and the cap guns had an obvious range advantage, which would not give the cavalry a chance to get close.
And there are also many people who think it is not possible.
The mobility of the cavalry in the plains is too fast, and the flaw in the infantry phalanx will definitely be found in the constant changes of formations.
And no matter how dense the musket array is, it will always be sparse. Without fortifications, as long as the cavalry rushes in, it will collapse immediately.
For this reason, the two sides argued endlessly, and no one could convince the other.
Even Zuo Mengeng was not sure about this.
Since the establishment of the Xia Army, it has never had a real chance to face a cavalry attack.
Under Qingshui Pass, the Xia army's fortifications were complete, and it was almost evening, so the visibility was not good, which was not a normal battlefield situation.
During the Korean War, both the Xia and Qing armies had to abandon their horses and climb mountains when faced with the complex and rugged terrain.
Therefore, the argument of musketeers and cavalry has never been able to provide effective persuasive evidence.
When facing the Qing army, even if there was a chance, Zuo Menggeng did not dare to let the generals below try.
After all, once the experiment fails, what will happen will be a disastrous defeat and tragic sacrifice.
But now facing the Japanese cavalry, Tang Wenhuan thought he could give it a try.
After all, the Japanese cavalry was much inferior to the Eight Banners cavalry, and it was unlikely to cause too much losses to the Xia army.
Furthermore, the terrain of Aino is more suitable.
It is a plain area, but the two sides are either the sea or rugged mountains, making it impossible for the shogunate army to outflank it.
In this way, we can only face each other head-on.
So he sent out two battalions of musketeers to fight against the shogunate's cavalry.
Although the strength ratio is 1:2.5, it seems that Xia Jun's side is slightly inferior, but Tang Wenhuan has strong self-confidence.
Does the 1st Marine Regiment really have no artillery support?
actually not.
Not far behind them, more than twenty infantry artillery pieces were ready to guard against emergencies.
Under Tang Wenhuan's intentional actions, a duel between musketeers and cavalry took place.
The Xia army's first wave of attacks was very effective, wiping out a large area of Japanese cavalry.
Although the distance between the two sides was still relatively far at this time, it was beyond the range of the infantry's aiming and shooting.
But when fighting in a musket array, what matters is not accuracy, but coverage.
The musketeers only need to raise and lower the muzzle according to the distance, and control the trigger towards the approximate position of the enemy directly in front.
Whether they can hit the enemy is not something they need to consider.
Even if one bullet fails to hit, hundreds of bullets will always have a killing effect.
The first row of soldiers finished shooting and quickly retreated. The second row of soldiers stepped forward and finished raising their guns while standing still.
The commander reports the data.
"Four hundred meters away, shoot!"
With the rapid speed of the cavalry, Xia's army had already completed two rounds of shooting just after running out of a hundred meters. You can imagine the difficulty.
As the distance gets closer, the killing effect of the musket increases a lot.
Seeing the scene of the shogunate's cavalry tumbling on their backs, Yamada Yuei and others were all sweating, and their thoughts were greatly impacted.
The Japanese began to attach importance to the use of muskets from a long time ago, and they caused great damage to the Ming army during the Imjin Japanese Rebellion.
But they always felt that the slow rate of fire and poor accuracy of muskets could not be used against cavalry.
But now, Xia Jun has completely overturned their understanding.
Yamada Yuei had already discovered that Xia Jun's muskets did not have match ropes on them. Although the loading steps were the same as Japanese muskets, they only needed to fasten a small thing on the back to fire directly.
In this way, the rate of fire is much faster.
And what is most unbelievable to Yamada Yuei and others is the range of the flash cap gun.
The traditional matchlock gun attacks the enemy A, and basically cannot penetrate it beyond fifty steps.
But Xia Jun's flash cap gun completely ignored this.
The equipment of the shogunate's army is not bad, and the armor on them is not easy to cut even with the sharpest sword.
But under the attack of Xia Jun's guns, everything was as fragile as white paper.
Three hundred meters.
Xia Jun started the third round of shooting.
More of the shogunate's cavalry fell, their formation became more chaotic, and their running speed stagnated.
But Xia Jun's array transformation was as accurate as measuring it with a ruler.
The first wave of soldiers returned to the front.
Their faces were expressionless and they just repeated the same actions.
Reload, raise gun, shoot.
It seemed like a simple action, but it caused a devastating blow to the shogunate cavalry.
The effect of this blow becomes more painful as the distance gets closer.
Behind the shogunate cavalry, Matsudaira Nobutsuna and others all had tears in their eyes, feeling only the tragedy of these samurai.
The elite army that could clearly conquer the world is now like moths flying to the flame, rushing straight to die.
When did war become like this?
Tachibana Munege, who was charging, didn't feel much. He just felt that there were fewer and fewer people around him. But now that the cavalry had unleashed its full speed, it was impossible to stop.
Then rush bravely!
Break through the obstacles ahead and return to the vast world.
The musketeers on the opposite side must be tired after fighting for so long, right?
The barrels of their guns should be too hot to shoot anymore, right?
The rising smoke should have blocked their view, right?
It's a pity that Tachibana Muneshige ignored one point.
The area of fighting is on the seaside.
Under the strong sea breeze, the smoke caused by the musket shooting was quickly blown away and did not affect the sight of the Xia army soldiers.
When the shogunate's cavalry rushed within a hundred meters, they seemed to have hit an invisible wall.
Both men and horses fell down one after another in front of this wall, either dead or injured, but could not move forward one step.
Tang Wenhuan saw clearly and knew that this distance was the limit that the cavalry could reach when charging towards the musketeers.
For the soldiers of the Xia Army, shooting at a distance of one hundred meters was very accurate.
With direct aim, even if there is a fish that slips through the barrage, it will be quickly taken care of.
I saw on the 100-meter line, the Japanese cavalry rushed up one layer after another, and fell one layer after another. Soon, they piled up into a wall of flesh and blood as high as a human chest.
Of the more than 5,000 cavalrymen, there were only two or three kittens left at this moment.
Tachibana Muneshige finally understood that everything was over.
A feeling of powerlessness surged through his body, making him inexplicably sad and angry.
A loud shout spurred the war horses to cross the wall of flesh and blood.
Even if they all die in battle, so what.
As a warrior, why should you fear death?
Alone, he held his sword high and rushed forward without stopping.
Bang bang bang bang bang...
Under a series of gunshots, the war horse neighed, and his body suddenly tilted to the side, throwing him off the horse.
Tachibana Munesege was thrown heavily to the ground, feeling that all the bones in his body seemed to be out of place.
He managed to hold himself up with his arms, his throat suddenly felt sweet, and scarlet blood spurted out.
The severe pain in many places on his body made him realize that he must have been shot.
Xia Jun on the opposite side is getting closer and closer, as if he is out of reach.
I think he is known as the unparalleled one in the Western Kingdom. He has fought countless battles in his life, and his glory is as numerous as the stars.
But at this moment, he couldn't even touch the enemy's face.
What a fuss!
Tachibana Muneshige reluctantly stood up and roared sadly and angrily towards the opposite side.
"Duel like a samurai!"
The Xia Army soldiers on the opposite side had no idea what he was talking about.
Hundreds of muskets puffed out thick smoke, beating him into a hornet's nest.
Tachibana Munesege lost control of his body and fell backwards.
His last gaze was towards the sky, which was getting darker and darker, as if foreshadowing the future of the warrior. This chapter has been completed!