Holy Roman Empire
Chapter 394: The War's Turning Point

After October, the Russo-Prussian War entered a new phase. Both sides fought fiercely, resulting in a situation where the sky and earth seemed to merge and rivers of blood flowed.

In East Prussia, the Prussian army gained the upper hand, while in Poland, the Russian army pressed down on the Prussian-Polish coalition.

Austria also dispatched military observers. Observing the intelligence gathered from the battlefield, Franz couldn’t help but feel secretly grateful.

Truly, reputation is earned, not given. The title of continental hegemon for the Russian Empire was well-deserved. The combat capabilities of the Russian army in this era were undoubtedly among the world’s best.

Even when the Russian Empire in the original timeline faced setbacks, it was still feared by various countries. It wasn’t just because of the jokes about winter and its vast territory.

Geographical strategic advantages are only useful when defending. In war, it primarily depends on people, with geographical conditions playing a supporting role.

The Prussian army was already among those on the top of the world, yet their advantages on the battlefield were not evident.

Even with inferior weaponry, the Russian army managed to use their flesh and blood to block the Prussian forces. And after equipment upgrades, the ratio of casualties between the two sides gradually narrowed.

The Prussian army only maintained a slight edge due to their superior training. When facing certain elite Russian forces, they even found themselves at a disadvantage.

The Near East War was not fought in vain. Despite nearly a million military casualties, the Russian government still gained a highly capable fighting force.

At Schönbrunn Palace, during a high-level military meeting.

“Have you all reviewed the data? Based on the intelligence we’ve gathered so far, who do you think will win this campaign?”

Franz only asked about this campaign, not the overall victory of the war. The disparity in strength between Prussia and Russia is significant. As long as the Russian government is willing to go all out, the eventual winner is clear.

Not to mention Prussia, no country in the world dares to guarantee victory against a Russia fighting desperately.

Even if it’s Austria against Russia, Franz must use unconventional tactics to have a chance at victory.

Otherwise, if both sides go all-out in a fight to the end, with millions of casualties, would there really be a victory?

People of this era can’t imagine a war with millions of casualties in one go, but Franz understands it all too well.

Russia is so vast that it can’t be toppled in one fell swoop. So it can only be a battle of attrition. Once such a situation arises, who could claim victory?

Chief of Staff Field Marshal Edmund responded, “Your Majesty, based on the current situation, I am more optimistic about the Kingdom of Prussia.

They seem to be preparing for a major operation. From the deployment of forces, the Prussian army is preparing to engage the Russian army in East Prussia.

Once they execute their plan, at least half of the three hundred thousand Russian troops in East Prussia will likely be left behind.

The Russian commanders are too arrogant, solely focused on advancing without considering the risks. Even when at a disadvantage, they haven’t contracted their front lines.”

It’s understandable. The strength gap between the Prussian and Russian armies in combat isn’t significant. Even when at a disadvantage, the casualties might be a bit higher, but the Russian commanders aren’t timid.

Human lives are expendable to them, and the Russian government doesn’t mind engaging in a war of attrition with the Prussian army as long as they can secure victory.

With exchange ratios of 2:1 or 3:1 in the past, the Russian army dared to fight. Now that the casualty ratio has dropped to 1.3:1 and they occasionally have the upper hand, why wouldn’t they keep fighting?

Minister of War Albrecht analyzed, “Prussia’s recent actions are somewhat unusual. A large amount of strategic supplies have arrived at the front lines ahead of schedule, exceeding the needs of the front.

Stockpiling some extra food and ammunition might be justifiable, but the surplus tents and daily necessities are definitely suspicious.

Preliminary estimates suggest that even with a sudden increase of two hundred thousand troops, their supplies would still be ample. I suspect the Prussians are about to reinforce the Eastern Prussian front, and these are just initial preparations.

Currently, the chaotic Prussian forces amount to a staggering one million two hundred thousand troops.

Among them, the main force is about four hundred thousand strong, the second-line reserve forces number around one hundred fifty thousand, and the rest are newly recruited conscripts.

The main forces are locked in a bitter struggle with the Russians on the front lines, while the second-line forces are in Poland, joining forces with the Polish insurgents to resist the Russian advance.

The remaining conscripted forces lack combat capability. Currently, they are undergoing military training while guarding the coastal areas.

After being at war for so long, some of these new conscripted units have completed initial training and are ready for combat.

In a situation where both sides are evenly matched, deploying them onto the battlefield could indeed alter the course of the war.

This isn’t something the Russians can match. Constrained by logistics and supply, they can only maintain their current strength.”

In history, the Kingdom of Prussia’s comebacks were not solely due to their military strength surpassing the enemy by a significant margin. The crucial factor was concentrating superior forces to engage the enemy.

Both the Austro-Prussian War and the Franco-Prussian War were won by leveraging overwhelming numerical superiority. If the forces were evenly matched, it would have been a grueling battle, and an overwhelming victory wouldn’t be possible.

Despite the duration of the Russo-Prussian War, they haven’t employed this tactic yet, primarily due to two reasons: firstly, the Russian Imperial Army is too large; secondly, the transportation within Russia is too poor, making logistics a major issue for offensive actions.

Now that Russian forces have entered Eastern Prussian territory, the situation has changed. Prussia’s railway advantage can come into play in domestic combat.

This means the Prussians can reinforce a specific area in a short period, establishing regional force superiority and increasing the chances of success in the war.

Franz is no longer a military novice. He has acquired the ability to discuss military matters theoretically and is only lacking hands-on combat experience.

There’s no way around it. Small-scale battles don’t require the Emperor to command personally, and Franz dares not to direct a large-scale war, so this shortcoming remains unresolved.

After examining the simulated battlefield model, Franz quickly felt reassured. The simulation didn’t go awry. Despite bolstering Russian combat capabilities, they did not enhance the command skills of the Russian military high command.

The Kingdom of Prussia hasn’t reached a desperate situation. After all, it has a population of fifteen million which hasn’t been fully utilized yet.

As a semi-industrialized nation, the mobilization capability of the Kingdom of Prussia has significantly increased. Now with financial backing, achieving maximum mobilization is no longer a distant dream.

The newly mobilized troops may lack significant combat strength. However, when deployed during decisive battles, these forces suddenly appearing on the battlefield can also be the final straw that changes the tide of the war.

As for the Russian ambush, at worst, they might lose a few coastal cities. Warships can’t sail onto land, can the navy really venture deep into enemy territory alone?

Those in the midst are perplexed while onlookers see it clearly. As an onlooker, Franz had no intention to warn the Russian government despite being aware.

The Russian Empire has grand ambitions and can afford such losses. The Kingdom of Prussia has limited strength and can at most defeat this Russian army. It’s impossible for them to completely swallow up hundreds of thousands of Russian troops.

……

While Franz was conducting military simulations, the Kingdom of Prussia, which was prepared and ready, also started to take action.

Railways across the country swiftly started operating, transporting soldiers stationed in various locations to the front lines. In just two days, they had deployed 150,000 troops to the front lines in East Prussia.

The decisive battle was officially in full swing, and the sudden appearance of fresh troops immediately bewildered the Russian commanders.

Under normal circumstances, such a large-scale troop movement, even if expedited, would take at least ten days to half a month, providing ample time for adjustments in troop deployments.

However, in just two days, reinforcements from Prussia arrived. The Russian army had no way to adjust their frontline positions over hundreds of kilometers within such a short time.

In certain areas, the Prussian forces even gained a numerical advantage of four to five times, launching attacks against the Russian army.

The outcome was predictable. Despite the Russian army’s valiant resistance, they couldn’t change their inevitable defeat.

East Prussia was the heartland of the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Prussian forces were very familiar with the local terrain. After breaking through the Russian defenses, they immediately infiltrated deep into enemy lines.

At the same time, the Prussians also organized a special forces unit composed of soldiers native to East Prussia. This unit was tasked with disrupting the Russian telegraph lines.

In a battle involving hundreds of thousands of troops, telegraph communication was their greatest technological advantage. Without telegraph messages, relying on couriers to deliver messages was far too inefficient.

Due to inadequate precautions, the Russian army suffered heavy losses quickly. Without timely telegraphic communication, the Russian troops on the front lines soon found themselves in awkward situations, each fighting independently without coordination.

Especially the units that suffered defeats turned into headless flies, wandering aimlessly on the battlefield. The efficiency of couriers was too low and couldn’t keep up with the rapidly changing situation on the battlefield.

Many units lost contact with their regiment headquarters, regiment headquarters lost contact with division headquarters, and the entire Russian army in East Prussia descended into chaos.

This situation was naturally within Moltke’s expectations. What had started as a hard-fought battle now turned one-sided, prompting him to promptly deploy the fresh troops from the rear into combat.

With the numerical advantage, the Prussian forces quickly gained the upper hand on the battlefield. The disordered Russian troops were routed, retreating all the way back to the Western Dvina River (now within Latvia, known as the Daugava River) before managing to hold their ground.

By this time, the Russian army had been reduced from 386,000 before the decisive battle to 112,000, and they had also lost a large amount of strategic supplies and nearly all of their artillery.

The Prussian forces dared not continue their advance as winter had set in at the Baltic Sea region. They needed to quickly eliminate the remaining Russian troops within their territory and consolidate their gains.

The situation on the battlefield was interconnected. With the fall of Lithuania, the situation in Belarus suddenly became serious.

After their flanks came under threat, the Russian forces that were still attacking the Prussian-Polish allied forces had to contract their lines. However, by the time they made this decision, it was already too late.

After the conclusion of the battle in East Prussia, reinforcements from the Prussian forces arrived at the fastest speed possible. They seized an opportunity to deal a heavy blow to the retreating Russian troops.