On May 1, 1865, the Russian Navy attacked East Prussia, the Baltiysk region fell, and the turning point of the Russo-Prussian War appeared.

In Berlin, there was a wail within the Prussian government, and Wilhelm I hurriedly convened a military council.

The Minister of the Army and the Navy Ron, analyzed: "The fall of the Baltiysk region has bankrupted our strategy against the enemy outside the country. In order to avoid being flanked from behind, we had to withdraw our troops to West Prussia.

Before the outbreak of the war, for the sake of the stability of the colonies, we did not bring back the fleet in the Far East. The current home fleet is not capable of countering the Russian Navy, and the defense of the coastal zone must be strengthened. ”

This is just a pretext, and even if the Prussian Navy is all concentrated, it will not be useful in practice.

The Danish Navy can compete with them, let alone the more powerful Russian Navy?

Just because the Russian Navy made a joke does not mean that their strength cannot be overlooked.

From the very beginning, Ron did not count on the navy, and his positioning of Prussian naval power proved to be very accurate.

After the outbreak of the war, the home fleet was handed over several times by the Danish navy, and then it was blocked in the harbor, and its greatest contribution to the war was to contain the main force of the Danish navy.

Even if the Far Eastern Fleet is transferred back, at most it will suppress the Danish Navy, and if it is really a decisive battle, it is unknown whether it can be won.

The Kingdom of Prussia developed its navy in a very short time, and it lagged behind the naval powers in terms of shipbuilding technology, naval training, and officer command capabilities.

Now it is possible to use the lack of strength as an excuse to let the home fleet nest in the harbor, and if the Far Eastern fleet returns, it will be miserable to be forced to fight a decisive battle with the Danish navy.

Even if they won the Danish Navy, they would definitely not be able to defeat the Russians, and the total tonnage of the Tsar's Baltic Fleet was 2.7 times that of them.

The Navy is not an army, and a counterattack of this scale, unless it is an ironclad ship to fight a sail battleship, it is not a play at all.

The loss of the Baltsk region was a mistake of the General Staff. They underestimated the ability of the Russians to attack fortifications, and overestimated the combat effectiveness of the defenders.

The Navy and the Army are not the same, and in terms of artillery alone, the two sides are not of the same grade.

After the outbreak of the war, the Prussians attached great importance to the defense of the Baltiysk region, deploying three regiments here.

According to the estimation of the General Staff, even if it is attacked by the Russian army, it can be defended for at least a week by relying on the fortifications built in advance.

However, the empiricism of the army staff officers brought fatal losses to the defenders. The fact that these forts can withstand army artillery attacks does not mean that they can withstand naval artillery attacks.

If it was a regular Prussian army, even if the fortress was damaged, it could also hold off the Russian army for two or three days with the strength of three regiments.

It's a pity that these are all temporary recruits, and after being hit by artillery fire, many people's hearts are already upset.

After engaging the landed Russians, they soon discovered that the enemy was much stronger than the advertised Russians, and as casualties mounted, the recruits in charge of the defense were quickly routed.

William I said angrily: "In any case, you must turn the tide of the current unfavorable situation as soon as possible.

The consequences of the abandonment of East Prussia have already been felt, and if this continues, a revolution will break out in the country. ”

Hold accountable? Now Wilhelm I still needs the military to fight! Being able to gain the upper hand in the battle with the Russians and drive the Russians out of the Warsaw area is enough to prove their capabilities.

If you make a mistake and you change people, who can guarantee that the people behind you will be stronger?

Anyway, in the end, the war was won, everything is easy to say, and all problems can be written off; Having lost the war, then the military top brass is a scapegoat.

If you get people down in advance, the final pot will not fall on William I himself.

Chief of the General Staff Moltke said with some hesitation: "At this point, our original strategic plan cannot be implemented."

If it continues to delay, the Russians will take advantage of the superiority of the navy and constantly attack our coastal areas.

The last thing the tsarist government lacked was soldiers, these gray cattle were worthless, they only needed a rifle, and after a few months of simple training, they could go to war.

Once a large number of Russian troops land in Prussia, our homeland will inevitably be seriously damaged, and then in this war, we will be the first to be unable to hold on.

Even if we strengthen the defense of the sea, it is useless, and now we simply cannot take out so many troops to defend it, and everyone knows the combat effectiveness of these newly formed troops.

At this point, we have no choice but to risk a decisive battle with the Russians. ”

The "decisive battle", which the Berlin government tried to avoid from the beginning. The decisive battle between them and their life and death was only a local war for the Russians.

The tsarist government could lose once, twice, three times...... As long as one of them wins, Prussia can be knocked to the dust.

In that case, why is there a decisive battle? Do you still expect to win the war by killing and wounding the Russians?

War is not child's play, there are more than 500,000 Russian troops on the front line, and if you want to defeat them, you may be able to do it, but to annihilate them completely, it is a fool's dream.

The most ideal result would be nothing more than the victor losing 40,000 or 50,000 troops, crushing the enemy's main force, and annihilating the enemy's 180,000 troops.

After all, the Kingdom of Prussia and the Poles joined forces, and the total strength of the two sides was basically equal, and no one thought that the Polish rebel army and the Prussian army had the same combat effectiveness.

In the case of teammates not giving strength, the strength of the warring sides. has been pulled to the same level. This decisive battle with the Russians will not only test strength, but also the command ability and luck of the officers on both sides.

"What are the odds?" Wilhelm I asked with concern

Moltke thought for a moment and replied, "Seven floors! ”

This is only a decisive battle, and it does not mean that the Russo-Prussian War is over. The tsarist government was still capable of continuing the war, the only question was how much money the tsarist government had.

……

The sudden turning point of the battle directly attracted the attention of the whole of Europe. Many people were pessimistic that the defeat of the Prussians was only a matter of time.

In St. Petersburg, the tsarist government had already put up a feast of celebrations, as if they had won the war.

However, the situation on the battlefield was indeed tilting in favor of the tsarist government.

The Russian Navy performed well this time, conquering the Baltiysk region in the first place, proving to the outside world that they are not waste.

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