Chapter 1305: The Winner (3rd update, please subscribe)
In the twilight, the 4.7-inch rapid-fire naval guns on the train's flatbed trucks roared continuously, the muzzle flames illuminated the night sky, and shells weighing forty or fifty pounds continued to fall on the Boer army's defense line like raindrops.
Although the British army did not have a suitable barreled field gun, the British responded very quickly to the war, and they were not as conservative as the legend said. They quickly took out the navy's 4.7-inch rapid-fire gun. Although it was very bulky compared to ordinary field guns, it was not much of a problem when installed on a train, and it had a faster rate of fire and greater power.
Under the fierce bombardment, columns of smoke from the exploding shells continued to rise from the Boer positions.
At the same time, the British field artillery and mortars were also bombarding the Boer positions, but the shells fell into the soft soil. The semi-sandy soil absorbed most of the shock waves and shrapnel from the explosion, so the casualties were not great, and only black smoke columns continued to be blown out.
In order to stop the British attack, the Boers laid barbed wire in front of the trenches. The barbed wire and machine guns successfully stopped the British attack. Under the suppression of machine guns, both sides could only shoot with rifles through the barbed wire.
The battle continued from midnight until 5:30 in the morning. At dawn, the Boer artillery, which had been silent during the battle, also joined the battle, and mortar shells rained down on the British positions. Because the British positions were on a gravel area, the fragments of stone and shells caused greater casualties to the British.
As groups of mortar shells exploded in the British positions, General Cronje, standing on the commanding heights, carefully examined the battlefield situation and immediately gave the order.
"First, concentrate your firepower and attack the British western position, which has a relatively flat terrain."
At a command, 64 cannons under his command fired at the British positions at the highest rate for half an hour. The shells exploded like hail, creating countless smoke and dust columns, covering the enemy positions tightly.
As the artillery fire extended deep into the enemy's position, the two infantry regiments under General Cronje jumped out of the trenches one after another and launched an attack on the British western position from the west, southeast and south in multiple waves of skirmish lines. A spectacular situation soon formed all over the mountains and plains, and the area of two or three hundred meters from the parallel trench connecting the enemy to the enemy's position was filled with Boers.
Major Cheng Guotao, who was with General Kronzhi, wrote in his diary that day:
"…Although we had expected this, the so-called group charge should be just like this. However, we saw that the 5,000 Boer troops were not afraid of the shrapnel and machine gun fire and attacked the enemy camp at lightning speed. We could not help but exclaim in amazement. I thought that defending the country was the most absolute justice in the world, and it could inspire the supreme fighting spirit that nothing else could compare to…"
The attack of the infantry regiment was just a feint. The real deciding factor was the cavalry. When the British were trying their best to resist the attack of the Boer infantry, they did not notice that two regiments of Boer cavalry had already forced the British position from another direction.
The sharp cavalry swords were pointing forward, and more than a thousand cavalrymen were galloping on the battlefield like a whirlwind. The mounted cavalrymen did not hold sabers in their hands like the European cavalry. These Boer cavalrymen all held pistols or rifles without exception.
This cavalry unit was more like a group of armed Boer herdsmen than cavalry. They gathered together with the mission of defending their country. Although they were not proficient in using sabers, they were all good riders. When the cavalry attacked, the leading cavalryman clamped his legs on the horse's belly, and the spurs on the heels of his boots made the horses neigh in pain, making the horses go faster.
The two cavalry regiments were like tigers descending from the mountains, sweeping across the earth with the force of autumn wind sweeping up fallen leaves. The sudden joining of the cavalry became the last straw that broke the camel's back in the British defense.
The cavalry that broke into the battlefield kept shooting at the fleeing British troops with their rifles while galloping. These Boers had been riding horses and shooting on the vast South African plateau since childhood. Almost every shot would knock down a British soldier. Faced with the Boer cavalry that suddenly broke into the position, the British army was unable to organize an effective defense. After the collapse of the defense line, there were British soldiers everywhere who abandoned their guns and fled, and even more who raised their hands in surrender.
"The British are retreating..."
Seeing that they would be in danger of being wiped out if they did not retreat, General Payne Simmons ordered the entire army to retreat. Although the Boers had the advantage on the battlefield, the British army successfully withdrew from the battlefield by train thanks to the fierce firepower of more than a dozen 4.7-inch naval guns and machine guns on the armored train.
At the end of the battle, the defeated British army left behind thousands of corpses and a large amount of weapons, and retreated along the same route they came.
"The cunning Boers..."
While General Payne Simmons was complaining about the Boers on the speeding armored train, he didn't know that another troop had been waiting for a long time halfway.
With a loud bang, the railway track was blown into the sky. At the same time, the armored train packed with British troops suddenly rushed off the track and fell heavily to the ground. In the dust, wounded British soldiers were screaming everywhere. Those British soldiers who had just escaped by chance had not figured out what was going on before the dense gunfire rang out again.
It was not the Boer Army but the Irish Brigade that ambushed the armoured train.
Unlike the Boers who were passionate about defending their country, the Irish were filled with hatred for their country and their families, so they attacked fiercely. The British soldiers who were knocked unconscious were no match for the Irish.
The British who were resisting stubbornly around the armored train didn't even have time to organize an effective defense before they were blown into the sky by the Irish mortars. In the distance, an Irish soldier holding a Type 12 sniper rifle was lying behind a rock. Through the telescopic sight, he saw a British officer next to the carriage pointing and talking, as if he was commanding the troops to organize a defense. He aimed directly at the enemy and pulled the trigger.
When the gunshot rang out, the Irish sniper saw the officer fall down through the scope. After the officer fell down, the surrounding British troops fell into chaos.
Even the sniper himself didn't know that the person he shot was General Payne Simmons. This guy, whose hands were stained with the blood of Irish Fenian Brotherhood members, died silently under the muzzle of the sniper rifle.
(End of this chapter)
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