On June 21, the Western Sichuan Army launched an attack on Xi'an. The first was still an artillery performance, but this time the Western Sichuan Army's artillery was no longer invincible. The 105mm light howitzers and 75mm field guns on the Xi'an city walls were both
It caused great losses to the artillery of the Western Sichuan Army. On the contrary, the Qing army's artillery was hidden behind thick turrets. It was very difficult for the Western Sichuan Army's artillery to destroy the opponent's cannon.
Although the Western Sichuan Army has a very large number of artillery advantages, over the course of the morning, the Western Sichuan Army's artillery lost more than ten cannons, and the Qing Army also lost more than ten cannons, but they were all 75mm field guns.
The 105mm light howitzer suffered no losses at all. The artillery shells of the Western Sichuan Army were all blocked by the thick turret.
The Type 82 infantry artillery used by the Western Sichuan Army has an effective range of only 2.5 kilometers. The 105mm light howitzer of the Qing Army has an effective range of more than four kilometers. Therefore, the artillery positions of the Western Sichuan Army are completely within the artillery range of the Qing Army.
Inside.
The attack was frustrated, and Cai Yun quickly ordered the artillery to retreat. Artillery is very valuable, especially after the Western Sichuan Army has undergone a large-scale expansion. This kind of technical arms is extremely scarce, and it is difficult to replace it after losses.
"Chief of Staff, what should we do? The strength of Xi'an is far beyond our imagination! It seems that it will not be so easy to capture Xi'an!" Wang Yuze frowned. Since this time, the Western Sichuan Army has been fighting
It's been smooth sailing, but this is the first time we've encountered trouble.
"Stop the attack temporarily! The Qing army in Xi'an is very prepared to charge. It seems impossible for us to gain an overwhelming advantage in firepower!" Cai Yun's face didn't look very good either. Xi'an is the provincial capital of Shaanxi,
It is also the most important city in Shaanxi. Only by capturing Xi'an can the entire Shaanxi be ensured to be under the control of Western Sichuan. Therefore, the Western Sichuan Army must capture Xi'an, and they must capture Xi'an as soon as possible.
Soon, the Western Sichuan Army withdrew from the battlefield. In this attack, the Western Sichuan Army lost twelve cannons and dozens of artillerymen, which made Wang Yuze extremely distressed.
"General, we have repelled the attack of the Western Sichuan Army. The artillery of the Western Sichuan Army suffered heavy losses due to our counterattack. However, we also suffered a lot of losses. More than ten cannons were destroyed by the Western Sichuan Army!" Shaanxi Admiral Zhu Shijun reported to Zhu Hongzhang
road.
"More than ten cannons were lost? Are they big or small?" Zhu Hongzhang was surprised. He had participated in the war to suppress the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and resist the British and French coalition forces in his early years, and he knew the power of cannons. The British and French coalition forces relied on foreign guns and cannons at the beginning.
With such power, he defeated hundreds of thousands of Qing troops at the cost of only more than 400 men. Therefore, Zhu Hongzhang also attached great importance to cannons. There were only so many cannons in Xi'an. If they were blown up, there would be no need to fight the subsequent battles.
.
"General, the losses are all small ones. All the 105mm cannons are in the turrets. They are safe and sound. None of them were damaged. If we had known earlier, we should have built more turrets on the city wall!"
Zhu Shijun said with a happy face. Defending Xi'an is a great achievement! In the future, promotion and wealth are just around the corner!
"That's good! I ordered people to quietly draw artillery from the other three city walls to strengthen the defense of the West City. We must not give the Western Sichuan Army a chance to blow up the city wall!" Zhu Hongzhang said seriously. Hearing that all the 105mm light howitzers were fine, this made him
Zhu Hongzhang breathed a sigh of relief.
"Yes, General!" Zhu Shijun immediately accepted the order and went down to make arrangements.
In the afternoon, the Western Sichuan Army once again launched an attack. This time, artillery cover was used, and engineers rushed in quickly, laying bombs and preparing to blow up the city wall. However, the Qing army also fought very tenaciously, braving the artillery fire of the Western Sichuan Army, and
On the city wall, they fired at the engineers of the Western Sichuan Army. Although this caused heavy losses to the Qing army, the engineers of the Western Sichuan Army also suffered heavy losses, and they were unable to get close to the city wall under the strict firepower of the Qing army. At the same time, the artillery also suffered heavy losses in order to cover the engineers.
Not small.
In the end, the Western Sichuan Army had to stop the attack again. Of course, if the Western Sichuan Army had continued to attack, it was also very likely to break through Xi'an, but the Western Sichuan Army would also have to pay an unbearable price.
Wang Yuze and Cai Yun are not the kind of people who pour their own merits with the lives and blood of soldiers. Therefore, in order to avoid causing greater casualties, they suspended the attack until there was no good way.
While the main force of the cavalry army was fighting hard in Xi'an, the fighting in other directions had already made great progress. The main force of the first cavalry army going south, led by Commander Liu Zhiye, cooperated with the first brigade of the Western Sichuan Army and the newly-organized troops going north from Guangyuan.
The third division attacked Hanzhong. Hanzhong only had 30,000 defenders and lacked heavy weapons. After being besieged by more than 40,000 Western Sichuan troops, it only resisted for half a day before being defeated. Subsequently, the Qing army guarding Hanzhong joined
General surrendered, and the entire Hanzhong fell into the hands of the Western Sichuan Army. After taking Hanzhong, the Western Sichuan Army was divided into two parts again. The First Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army and the newly formed Third Division attacked Ankang, preparing to flank the Hubei Qing Army from the northwest to support
On the frontal battlefield on the eastern front, the main force of the First Cavalry Army detoured to attack Tongguan, closing the eastern channel of Shaanxi and forming a complete encirclement of the Qing army in Shaanxi.
On the eastern battlefield, the Western Sichuan Army won the opening victory with lightning speed, causing heavy losses to the Qing army. Then, on June 19, the Western Sichuan Army launched a fierce attack on the Qing army's second line of defense. The Qing army
There were 400,000 troops concentrated on the Eastern Front battlefield, including 200,000 well-equipped new troops, while the total strength of the Western Sichuan Army was only more than 100,000. The gap was very large, but even so, the attack of the Western Sichuan Army also made the Qing army
It was difficult to resist. Even if they managed to hold the line of defense, the losses were huge, and the entire line of defense felt shaky. Moreover, the Western Sichuan Army was already preparing to start investing in reinforcements, and the Qing army would face even greater pressure by then. In
After Wang Xiao agreed, the instructors and the new Ninth Division stationed in Chengdu have already set off. The new Ninth Division may have limited combat effectiveness, but the instructors are definitely the most powerful combat force in the Western Sichuan Army. Every soldier of the instructors is
Carefully selected from veterans who have served for more than three years, and placed in other units, they are at least the best candidates for squad leaders, and their combat qualities are the strongest. Generally speaking, instructors are the main force stationed in Chengdu, and only
They will only be sent to the battlefield in emergencies. Obviously, the Western Sichuan Army sent instructors to the Eastern Front with the intention of completely breaking through the Eastern Front.
On the southern front battlefield, the performance of the Qing army was even worse. Wang Wenshao, the governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, did not know military affairs at all. The admiral of Yunnan, the admiral of Guizhou, the admiral of Guangxi and the admiral of Guangzhou were all idle people, leaving the Qing army of 200,000 troops on the southern front empty.
, simply unable to withstand the attack of the Western Sichuan Army. The First Division and the Sixth Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army, which marched south from Panzhihua, achieved a great victory in Yongren, Yunnan, annihilating more than 30,000 enemies in one fell swoop, and advanced towards Kunming from the north. The Western Sichuan Army marched south from Luzhou.
The Second Brigade and the newly formed Eighth Division defeated the Qing army in Zunyi, Guizhou, wiping out tens of thousands of enemies. The main force of the Qing army in Guizhou was completely destroyed. Only the Guizhou admiral was afraid of death and fled in advance. The fall of Guiyang was imminent. It can be said that in three
On the battlefield, the southern front is undoubtedly the most developed. The Western Sichuan Army has laid the foundation for victory. If this continues, the Western Sichuan Army will be able to completely occupy Guizhou and Yunnan provinces in at most half a month. As for the sudden advance into Guangxi,
This depends on whether there is a chance. The French have always regarded Guangdong and Guangxi as their sphere of influence. If the Western Sichuan Army wants to get involved in Guangxi, it will inevitably conflict with the French. Although Western Sichuan is not afraid of France, if both sides
If there is an enmity, Western Sichuan's overseas trade in Europe will be seriously affected. You must know that France is the main sales place for various luxury goods produced in Western Sichuan. Western Sichuan does not want to become enemies with the great powers until it is absolutely necessary.
The development of the war situation was also known to the Manchu Qing Dynasty. When it was known that the Qing army was defeated in various battlefields, losing hundreds of thousands of people, and even Horqin's personal guard Boyan Namohu was killed in the battle, it made Emperor Guangxu furious.
He scolded a group of people from the Ministry of War, the Military Aircraft Department, and the frontline generals for harming the country and making the war so rotten.
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