() The battle in Macheng seemed to be a little overdone. Both for the attacker and the defender, such a large formation from the beginning, with artillery fire like raindrops, really exceeded people's expectations.
After all, the troops defending Macheng were composed of irregular troops. The two regiments that Cao Kun transferred from Wuchang were only for support and containment, and had no intention of fighting.
In particular, the defenders did not have that much firepower at all, and even the heavy machine guns only had two or three boats. However, as soon as the Guards came up, they used all their strength to assume a decisive battle posture, even if Macheng wanted to retreat and escape.
, we can only bite the bullet and fight with the Guards.
However, as far as the current situation in Macheng is concerned, the worst thing is not the casualties of the armies on both sides, but the fact that the people in the city have been implicated in the war for no reason. Although the firepower of the three artillery pieces of the Pioneer Regiment is limited, it is not the end of the summer.
During this season, many farmers were unable to leave the city to work, and watched helplessly as the fruit season was wasted.
Soon, as the follow-up troops of the First Route Army arrived one after another, Chen Wennian himself also led the headquarters to the front line to command and arrange combat tasks. The situation in Macheng became increasingly unclear. After Chen Wennian listened to the reports of the Pioneer Regiment and various reconnaissance troops,
The summary of the investigation report. He is very dissatisfied with the current progress of the attack. In his expectation, Macheng, like Suixian, is a place that the rebels did not intend to guard seriously from the beginning, and it is also an entry point in the entire combat plan.
.
It has been about three days since the vanguard regiment first arrived in the northern suburbs of Macheng, and now the follow-up troops have arrived one after another.
However, during these three days, with the increase of the offensive troops, the suburbs of Macheng were not yet able to be breached until the arrival of the headquarters. How can this not be disappointing?
Chen Wennian held almost no combat meeting, and directly ordered the three regiments currently concentrated in the northern suburbs and the direct artillery regiment to use intensive firepower to suppress the enemy's defense line in the northern suburbs, and then launch a continuous charge until the suburbs were breached. After the official launch, it continued
Before the charge, each regiment concentrated all artillery fire and first covered the northern suburbs with a round of fire to maximize the damage to the enemy's defense line and morale.
At six o'clock in the morning on May 6th, the sky was still hazy. The artillery units of each regiment had been prepared for a long time. There were about twelve 70mm mountain guns and eight 75mm howitzers in total, plus two 100mm howitzers.
caliber artillery. At the hour, the cannons set their direction and began to roar. The shells fell towards the enemy's defense line about two miles outside the city, and soon exploded into clouds of smoke.
The powerful firepower output by so many cannons almost shook the entire Macheng.
Not to mention that the defenders currently in the suburbs are just temporary fortifications put together, mostly made of sandbags and stones, or simply dug trenches less than three feet deep. Even if they are regular fortifications, facing such powerful artillery bombardment
It's all too much to bear.
The artillery bombardment of the First Route Army only hit about a base, and the infantry team began to charge.
After the previous round of powerful fire suppression, the enemy's defense line completely collapsed. Basically, this line of defense did not have any underground fortifications to avoid the artillery fire. As the artillery fire fell like raindrops, ten soldiers who were still on the position were
It was inevitable to escape. There were officers who risked their lives to order the soldiers to hold on. This was of course a sign of ignorance. But not long after, the officers were also blown to ashes by artillery fire, and the remaining soldiers began to flee into the city in a hurry.
.
Before nine o'clock, the stormtroopers had already seized the northern suburbs.
After some rest and recuperation, Chen Wennian soon issued a combat order to advance into the city. Encouraged by the high morale brought by the arrival of follow-up troops, all the soldiers believed that taking Macheng was just around the corner, so they all actively
He went into battle and immediately began to capture the city.
But not long after entering the city, the fighting soon fell into a stalemate.
The dense residential areas and narrow streets and alleys of Macheng are not conducive to large-scale raids at all. On the contrary, the enemy troops who had earlier deployed street fighting defenses in the city took a huge advantage. The attacking troops were naturally unfamiliar with the place and were familiar with the old city.
After just walking around the city, I completely lost my way. There was even a fierce exchange of fire between the troops who entered the city after a while. After fighting for a long time, I found out that the opponent was the reinforcements who entered the city later. I didn't expect that I would circle back again.
Direction out of town.
After struggling for four or five hours in Beicheng District, the attacking troops were completely unable to break through to the center of the city.
Although the enemy troops defending the city do not have strong firepower, they can take advantage of some excellent geographical locations to set up heavy machine guns or ambush more troops, thus achieving the effect of "one man can guard the gate and ten thousand men cannot open it". The first route
Several battalions of the army took turns to launch strong attacks and carried out roundabout operations, but they were still unable to break through these intersections within a period of time. The advantage originally gained through intensive artillery fire was completely lost by this time.
It was not until evening that the attacking troops managed to open a gap, but the overall advance was still very difficult.
Especially since it was already dark, it was obviously more disadvantageous to conduct street fighting in the dark. In the end, under desperation, we had no choice but to temporarily stop the attack. The officers at the grassroots level on the front line quickly discussed relevant countermeasures. Now that the offensive was so embarrassing,
I'm just afraid that the higher-ups will definitely blame me.
In fact, Chen Wennian received reports from the front line that the attack was blocked in the afternoon, and he was indeed very annoyed. Macheng, a mere city with little defense, actually took four days to defeat. Suixian County
It only took one day and one night, and they were still members of the Fifth Division. He led Yuan Su's direct troops, and their military combat effectiveness should far exceed that of the Fifth Division.
After some hesitation, Chen Wennian finally made a more ruthless decision.
"Since the enemy troops in Macheng must engage in street fighting, it means that they have planned not to leave the city intact to us. We are not surprised either. Pass my order and the troops in the city will gradually withdraw to the suburbs. Two hours later
The artillery adjusted its firing direction and aimed a large-scale fire strike at the city."
"Commander Chen, what should we do with the people in the city?" Zhao Shanhe, the commander of the First Brigade who was assigned to the First Route Army, said with some worry. He is now not only the commander of the First Brigade, but also the commander of the First Brigade.
The Chief of Staff of the Route Army, so he followed closely at the headquarters and took command.
"Old Zhao, we are already a beat behind the original plan. If we still can't defeat Macheng before tomorrow afternoon, I'm afraid we won't be able to explain to the superiors." Chen Wenian said seriously.
"According to me, it's better to wait a few more days. After all the troops behind us arrive, the momentum of tens of thousands of us alone will be enough to frighten the remaining defeated generals in Macheng. They were just ordered to delay for a few days, regardless of
What kind of orders did Cao Kun give them, but I believe that the defenders here will never be able to carry out the orders meticulously." Zhao Shanhe said.
"Of course I know that scaring these rabble is enough to make them run away on their own. But I can't wait that long. How can women be kind in marching and fighting? If it is really because of your womanly kindness, I'm afraid we will be killed first.
The face of the First Army is completely lost. In short, you don’t need to say anything anymore, I have made up my mind." Chen Wenian said seriously.
Zhao Shanhe sighed secretly. He had always known that Chen Wennian was very arbitrary in his work. Even though he was appointed as the chief of staff of the First Route Army, from the establishment of the First Route Army headquarters to the departure to Hubei, Chen Wennian did not hold a meeting.
Formal military meetings were just simple discussions. All combat plans and march plans were arranged according to Chen Wennian's own wishes.
Although he felt that Chen Wenian's approach was inappropriate, he was his old boss after all, and he would of course obey orders. Moreover, Macheng had delayed it for four days, and the process was indeed a bit slow. What Chen Wennian said was lost.
The First Army's face obviously didn't want their side to be even more unsatisfactory than the Fifth Division's progress.
After receiving the order, the troops in the city retreated to the suburbs and stationed themselves there.
The artillery troops in the north had rested all afternoon and now had to prepare artillery fire overnight. Although it seemed a bit hasty, the artillery troops were gearing up one by one. According to what Chen Wennian sent down, they were going to attack the north of Macheng throughout the night.
The entire city was destroyed. Since the troops arriving at Macheng are not enough to intimidate the defenders in the city, a powerful artillery attack will be used to intimidate the defenders. I believe that after this night of disaster, the defenders in the city will realize the difficulty before dawn tomorrow.
retreat.
The troops who had previously retreated from the city specially lit some bonfires and abandoned houses before leaving, using these firelights to provide reference for the firing direction of the artillery units far outside the city. The artillery troops followed the light of these bonfires and fired at them.
The depth of the attack coverage area was pushed forward for about two miles.
At around ten o'clock, after confirming that all friendly forces in the city had withdrawn, the artillery immediately launched a new round of bombing.
For the defenders in the city, they have wanted to escape for a long time, especially those local policemen, patrol battalions and other local soldiers in Macheng. They had no intention of being enemies with the Guards, it was just who entered.
The city just listens to anyone's orders, just get a job and make a living. It happened that the two regiments dispatched from Wuchang had to hold on for six days. It was said that their order was to hold on for twelve days, but the facts proved that
This is obviously an impossible task.
Now we are in bad luck. Even if the mission is reduced in half, it is still a life-threatening hard work.