The changes on the battlefield in Prussia aroused Franz's close attention. Although I don't believe that the Pop Federation can turn the tables, no one really knows for sure about war.

If you open the history book, you will know that records are created by people. Ancient and modern Chinese and foreign classic cases of winning more with less:

The Battle of Julu, the Battle of Weishui, the Battle of Guandu, the Battle of Chibi, the Battle of Yiling, the Battle of Weishui, the Battle of Salamis, the Battle of Issus, the Battle of Agincourt, the Battle of Cress......

There are too many, and the victors in these classic battles have a common characteristic - "famous generals".

Although the Prussian army is at a disadvantage, it is not without the strength to fight, and with Moltke, a genius commander, there is really a possibility of victory.

Franz's fears did not last long before he was persuaded by himself. The reason is very simple: "Moltke has only one, and Ivanov is able to mass-produce." ”

In the army "stupid and genius" are in the minority, and most of the officers are ordinary people. As long as the boss above doesn't toss around, let them fight in a stupid way step by step, it's really no problem.

Moltke was able to calculate the Fourth Army, could he still calculate a division and a regiment below?

Most of the time, the fronts that stretched for thousands of miles were commanded by officers at the division and regimental levels below, and the quality of the officers of the Prussian army was slightly higher, which was also erased by the superiority of the Russian army's troops.

The commander can only dispatch and command the big battles in the center, and the small battles still have to be played by these ordinary officers, and it is not only the command that determines the victory or defeat, but also the quality and quantity of the soldiers.

Accumulating small wins can also be big wins, and when you play steadily, the test is more strength.

The Russians launched three major battles at the same time, and no matter how powerful Moltke was, he could only take care of one battlefield. Those who know only a little about the situation at the front and hide in the rear to command, and can achieve victory are "myths".

If you don't have the ability to pinch and calculate, and you don't know the real situation on the front line, how can you accurately arrange the troops?

Some people may say that it is not realistic to know the situation at the front through the information reported by the "telegram", and many things can only be understood by looking at them in person.

The army is made up of people, and where there are people, there are rivers and lakes, and where there are rivers and lakes, there are disputes, and telegrams mixed with the interests of all parties have actually covered up a lot of things.

Franz asked: "Albrecht, are the Russians about to abandon the Fourth Army?" ”

It's not that Franz can't see it, the problem is that hundreds of thousands of troops just gave up, it's unbelievable.

Let's put it this way, the Fourth Army alone can rank among the top 10 armies in the world, and the standing armies of the four countries of France, Austria, and Prussia in Europe alone exceed 200,000.

Albrecht shook his head and replied, "Yes and no!" It can only be said that Ivanov made the most correct choice.

Strategically speaking, the most important thing for the Russian army at the moment is to launch an offensive on the southern front and not leave time for the Prussian army to prepare.

If the Southern Front offensive is abandoned in order to rescue the Fourth Army, the key to determining the outcome of this war will be the battlefield of Warsaw, which is exactly what Moltke wants to see the most. ”

After a pause, he picked up his baton and put it on the map: "Your Majesty, you see that this is Warsaw, right in the center of the battlefield.

Prior to this, the Russians were not preparing for a decisive battle here, did not stock up on supplies around Warsaw beforehand, and once the main forces of the Russian army converged, logistics became a big problem. ”

Franz nodded, Warsaw was strategically important at the center of the battlefield, and the Poppo Federation had long since turned it into a fortress city.

It is just that the defense is perfect, the point is that the logistics line of the Russians has become longer. With the Baltic Sea to the north and Austria to the south, supplies are easy, but the Warsaw area has to be transported by land.

The point is that winter is coming soon, and no matter how much the Russians rush to transport supplies, it will not be able to support the consumption of millions of troops.

There was no way, the siege of the Vistula River by the Fourth Army had already fallen into the hands of the Prussian army, and the only water passage could not be counted on.

Even if you take it back, it's easier to destroy than to build, and it's too easy to do a little damage in the river and make it impassable for ships.

Albrecht: "In addition to the strategic needs, the Prussian army may also use the Fourth Army as a bait to lure the surrounding Russian troops over to encircle and send reinforcements.

Ivanov is very cautious in his use of troops, and has always liked to fight steadily, and this kind of high-risk battle has always been deliberately avoided by him.

Now it seems that the Fourth Army has been abandoned, but in fact he has already begun to rescue, but in a roundabout way.

The Russian army sent troops to attack Warsaw from the east and north, which was bound to contain a large number of Prussian troops, and Moltke did not have more troops to encircle and annihilate the Fourth Army in a short time.

While maintaining the encirclement network, the Prussian army was not much more capable of fighting on the front line than the Fourth Army.

As long as the commanders of the Fourth Army are not stupid and stabilize the morale of the army, there is no danger of destruction for a while.

Yesterday the tsarist government had just leased a hundred transport airships from us, presumably for the purpose of supplying the Fourth Army.

If all these airships are given to the Fourth Army, they will be able to drop more than 100 tons of supplies every day, plus the materials they carry themselves, and if they are lucky, they will be able to support the arrival of reinforcements. ”

On the issue of "military morale", one has to admire the Russians. Being besieged is not a matter at all, as long as the supplies can be guaranteed, the woolly bear has combat effectiveness.

Perhaps due to the special cultural influence of Russia, or perhaps because of the nerves of the soldiers, the Russians are fully worthy of the title of "fighting nation" in this regard.

Even so, Albrecht was not optimistic about the Fourth Army. The reason is self-evident, everything is theoretical, and it is impossible for the Prussian army to watch the Russian transport indifferent.

Under the enemy's resistance, it is unknown how much supplies can be put in the end.

Of course, it's not terrible to be blocked. In these years, the power of anti-aircraft fire was limited, and as long as the airship did not fly at low altitude, it would not be so easy to shoot down.

The best way is to deal with the airship, but it takes time for the airship to start, unless it happens to collide, or the people will run away by the time you take off.

Against this background, "luck" became the key to determining the fate of the Fourth Army. However, pinning your hopes on luck is itself an unreliable performance.

"Ivanov has already made a move, so what is Moltke thinking at this time? It's not just for a Fourth Army, it's going to be so aggressive, right? Franz asked, confused

Albrecht waved his hand and replied with some embarrassment: "Your Majesty, you think too highly of Moltke. No matter how capable he is, he is just an ordinary person.

No matter how powerful his layout is, the Russians must be willing to be fooled. Ivanov was very steady with his troops, and no matter how many decoys he released, he was indifferent.

Intrigue and intrigue do not work, and in the end it is strength that determines the outcome of the war. Next, as long as the Russians do not act as demons, winning the war is almost inevitable.

Moltke wanted to turn the tables, but he could only quickly win the Battle of Warsaw on the battlefield, and then quickly send troops to cut off the rear of the Russian Southern Front and engage in encirclement and annihilation again.

IMHO, militarily this is almost impossible to implement. The Russians are not fools, there is no need for a decisive battle on the battlefield of Warsaw, just delay the time and wait for a breakthrough in the southern front. ”

Franz asked uncertainly, "Yes?" ”

Albrecht nodded with certainty. This problem is a common problem for travelers, and they will be a little more afraid of famous figures in history.

Moltke was put on the altar of the original plane, and Franz listened to it so much that he left the impression of "invincible".

Although after the crossing, celebrities have seen a lot, and this impression has faded a lot, the fear in my heart has not dissipated.

Naturally, Albrecht did not know these things. He was completely incomprehensible about Franz's excessive attention.

After thinking about it, Franz said perfunctorily: "I know. It may be that the newspapers of the Pupo Federation have read too much, and they have touted it too much, and they have been affected. ”

……

Looking at the Russo-Prussian War as a bystander, there are loopholes everywhere, problems between Prussia and Russia are endless, and there are countless mistakes made.

However, this is all the opinion of the layman. In fact, there is still a lot to learn from this war.

The greatest impact on Europe was the cultivation of military personnel, and the Russo-Prussian War was also a watershed in the cultivation of military personnel.

Prior to this, when European countries cultivated military talents, except for grassroots officers, they were all going in the direction of cultivating famous generals.

However, the "famous general" thing is not to be found, and the element of luck is too big. The most troublesome thing is that no one knows what the goods are before they have undergone the test of war.

The Russo-Prussian War told the world that in the era of thermal weapons, the "halo of famous generals" is fading, and strength is the key to determining the outcome of the war.

"Famous generals" can indeed improve the odds of victory, but after the scale of the war rises to the millions, the role of individual power on the battlefield is too small.

Especially for a big country like Austria, instead of betting on the probability of a "Moltke-style genius", it is better to cultivate thousands of stable generals like Ivanov.

Quality cannot be made up by quantity, and improving the military quality of officers as a whole is far more valuable than cultivating one or two "famous generals."