Chapter 655: Adapting to Local Conditions
"I'm here to learn from you about tank development and tactics." Brusilov said directly and sincerely.
Most officers who have experienced battlefields have this trait.
The reason is that they have experienced life and death, and know that in the face of victory or defeat on the battlefield, the "face" that ordinary people care about is not worth mentioning.
"You know." Brusilov sighed softly, "Our army performed very badly on the Eastern Front. No matter how great our geographical and military advantages were, our casualties ratio with the enemy was about 5:1. Sometimes it was even worse, even when fighting against the Austro-Hungarian army."
The combat effectiveness of the Austro-Hungarian army was much worse than that of the German army, but the army of Tsarist Russia was still in disarray and defeated in the face of their attack.
Brusilov looked up and looked Charles in the eye. "But you. To be exact, you, Lieutenant General Charles, were able to defeat the German army with a much smaller army. You penetrated Antwerp and captured more than 100,000 German soldiers in one go, and penetrated Hasselt and captured more than 200,000 German soldiers. Sometimes I wonder if our army can also achieve similar penetration..."
"Of course." Charles answered confidently: "You just need to find the enemy's weakness."
"I know." Brusilov's eyes were filled with helplessness. "I have studied your tactics, Lieutenant General Charles, for a long time, ever since you successfully stopped the German attack in Ypres."
That happened at least a year ago, and Charles had almost forgotten it.
"We even developed our own tank," Brusilov said, turning to look at the translator.
The translator understood what he meant and immediately took out a blueprint and instruction document from his briefcase and handed them to Charles respectfully.
Charles took it and looked at it. It was a tank he had never seen before.
Maybe it's because it can't be called a tank.
(The picture above shows the "Tsar Tank" developed by Tsarist Russia. The large wheels are in the front and are 9 meters high. The Russians tried to use these large wheels to cross trenches and obstacles, but when the prototype was produced in August 1915, they found that the large wheels could indeed cross, but the small wheels at the back would get stuck and make it unable to move, so it was eventually abandoned.)
Charles took only one look and pointed out the weakness of this tank: "Aren't you worried that the huge wheels in front of the tank will become a target for the enemy's infantry artillery?"
The bigger the wheel, the bigger the target, making it easier for the enemy to hit it.
Moreover, it is a wheel that supports the tank and helps it move forward. If the enemy has such a big weakness, a random shot can cripple it or even overturn it.
I really don’t know how this design got approved!
Brusilov nodded and sighed: "It turns out that your 'Char A1' is the best design. Even now it is still not outdated. However... our transportation channels with Europe have been basically blocked, and it is difficult for us to import this tank from your country."
This is the Quartermaster General's pot.
The arrogant man provoked the Ottoman Empire as soon as the war started, which not only resulted in heavy casualties but also cut off the most important route from Europe to Russia.
Another route is from the North Sea into the Arctic Ocean and then to Russia.
But firstly, the North Sea is blockaded by German submarines. Second, and more importantly, the Arctic Ocean is frozen for about six months a year (November to April of the following year). Even if it thaws, it is full of icebergs and is very dangerous, so the transportation volume is not large.
As a result, Tsarist Russia was basically isolated and helpless.
Brusilov took a sip of the coffee in front of him and said worriedly, "The situation on the Eastern Front is not optimistic, Lieutenant General. We may collapse at any time. I was wondering if you could design a tank for us, a tank that can be mass-produced in a short time without spending too much money. This may be of great help to us."
Only with such tanks could he form an armored force like the Charr, copy the Charr's tactics and apply them on the battlefield.
Finally, Brusilov added: "This is beneficial to the Western Front, and it is also in the interests of France and even you. I believe you will be willing to help, right?"
This is indeed in the interests of France.
Germany's current policy is "West first, East later". Falkenhayn intends to defeat France first and then turn back to deal with Tsarist Russia with all his strength.
(The reason is that Tsarist Russia was large in size and had many troops. Even with a 5:1 casualty ratio, it was difficult to defeat it in a short period of time. No one would have thought that Tsarist Russia would collapse from within in the end.)
For France, helping Russia win on the Eastern Front, or at least hold out a little longer, would indeed relieve the pressure on the defense line.
However, Charles hesitated for a moment and shook his head: "It's not that I don't want to help you, General, but I don't think tanks are what you need. Besides, even if you have tanks, it will be difficult to penetrate like my army."
"Why?" Brusilov looked puzzled.
"Terrain, climate, and transportation, General." Charles replied: "I wonder if you have considered that the weather in Russia is much colder than ours, and the snow in its winter is very thick, which is not suitable for tanks to move quickly."
Charles turned his eyes to Brusilov.
Brusilov was stunned and nodded in agreement with Charles.
It is common for snow to be half a meter thick in Russia in winter. In extreme cases, the thickness can even reach more than ten meters in some areas, making it difficult for tanks to move quickly under such conditions.
Charles continued, "When the snow melts in the spring, there will be large areas of water accumulation. Many areas will become swamps and the roads will be muddy. In addition, you have far fewer train lines than France and cannot guarantee logistics..."
In this case, even if the tanks successfully penetrated to the designated position, they might be surrounded and annihilated by the enemy because the logistics could not keep up.
The reason why Germany's penetration and encirclement strategy was successful during World War II was that it took advantage of the window period before the arrival of winter.
After that, the cold winter came and before the final victory was achieved, the balance began to tilt towards the enemy.
At this time, Tsarist Russia's organizational, logistical and reconnaissance capabilities could not achieve the same infiltration and encirclement tactics as the Germans, and ultimately failed to achieve its goal.
Brusilov's expression gradually became serious:
"You are quite right, Lieutenant General. You are quite familiar with the terrain and conditions in Russia."
"But, is there no other way?"
Ciel replied calmly:
"Of course there is a way, General. There is always a way."
"I think you shouldn't always think about tanks, but should play to your strengths."
Brusilov looked confused: "Our advantage?"
All he could think of was the disadvantage. At this moment, the confidence and morale of the Russian army were in a state of collapse.
But Charles answered confidently: "Yes, advantages: more soldiers and familiarity with the terrain."
(End of this chapter)
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