Similar problems exist in the Volokolamsk direction.

The 16th Army simultaneously attacked the villages of Skirmaovo and Kozvo, with the 4th Tank Brigade and the 50th Cavalry Division attacking the village of Skirmano, and the 27th Tank Brigade and the 44th Cavalry Division attacking Kozvo.

The tragedy occurred in the direction of the village of Kozwo.

In front of the village of Kozwo there was a hill more than 100 meters high, on which the observation post of a German heavy artillery battalion was located, three kilometers in front of it was an open field, and further east was the edge of a forest.

The judgment of the High Command on this terrain was...... The woods were suitable for cavalry and tanks to ambush, and the open area was suitable for them to charge, and after a single round of artillery fire, cavalry and tanks could rush through the German positions and drown them.

This idea may still be true in World War I, where cavalry can quickly penetrate the enemy's fire density is insufficient, but in World War II, where artillery, machine guns, and tanks are common, the opponent is the Germans, who are very well coordinated...... It is a dangerous, even suicidal tactic.

After a heavy bombardment, Major Leohard, commander of the German 30th Infantry Battalion, realized that the Russians would attack his defensive line, so he immediately ordered his soldiers to prepare for battle, and at the same time had the adjutant get in touch with the heavy battalion.

"Russian tanks!" Someone shouted, and by this time the Russian shelling had not stopped.

Major Leohard raised his binoculars and looked in the direction of the forest, and sure enough, he saw several tanks slowly driving out from the edge of the forest.

"It's T34!" Major Leohard couldn't help but be taken aback, he knew that this tank was difficult to deal with, and the anti-tank guns in their hands could only penetrate it at close range.

But then half of his hanging heart was let go...... Only the five in front were T34s, and the large number of tanks that followed behind were T26s.

Oddly enough, these tanks were not accompanied by infantry.

"What's going on?" Major Leohard asked the adjutant.

"Look at that, Major!" The adjutant, who was also holding a telescope, pointed to the right flank: "On the right side of the woods, cavalry!" ”

"Cavalry?" Major Leohard was puzzled, he had never seen such a tactic before, and it was not infantry but cavalry that worked with tanks.

It is said that this was an attempt by the Soviet High Command, believing that the infantry could not keep up with the tanks during the charge, and the cavalry could, so the cavalry and tanks could rush to the enemy line at high speed.

What they didn't think about was ...... It is true that the coordination of infantry and tanks will slow down the overall attack, but the tank can provide protection and firepower for the infantry, and the infantry can provide information to the tank, clear roadblocks, etc., and this is the complementary synergy.

On the other hand, cavalry and tanks can be synchronized in speed, but they are different classes that are difficult to coordinate with each other, and they are actually fighting on their own.

The Soviet cavalry was on the right side of the woods.

At the front was the scouting party, then an outpost of fifty cavalrymen, who were highly skilled, for Major Leohard found that they could shoot with their guns raised while controlling the horses as they advanced.

In a few moments, the cavalry had grown more and more, numbering to a thousand, and they rushed out of the woods along a wide frontage, one after another, and then charged the German line with a strange cry from their mouths.

"Regimental cavalry charge!" Leohard immediately reported the situation to the artillerymen: "2500 yards away!" ”

"2000 yards away!"

……

When Major Leohard reported for 1,500 yards, the whistling of shells sounded in the air, and then the Russian cavalry troops, which had been imposing just now, immediately became a mess...... IN 41, THE GERMAN ARMY HAD 30 HEAVY ARTILLERY BATTALIONS EQUIPPED WITH 210MM CALIBER HOWITZERS, WHICH WERE USUALLY USED TO ATTACK THE SOVIET LINES, BECAUSE IT HAD 6.57 TONS AND WAS NOT EASY TO MANEUVER, AND THE WEIGHT OF THE SHELLS WOULD PUT A LOT OF PRESSURE ON LOGISTICS.

Of course, the Germans at this time, of course, could not take care of so much.

Shells exploded in the cavalry, blasting a crater in the ground and kicking up a cloud of mud, throwing horses and cavalry into the air and falling back to the ground.

Screams, neighing horses, gunfire and cannon fire were incessant.

But the Soviet cavalry did not stop charging, and they galloped towards the German line one after another, braving the fire and bullet rain, but as round after round of shells exploded in the ranks, the cavalry and horses fell to the ground in pieces......

Cavalry is not actually suitable for modern warfare.

The reason is that they are too vulnerable, especially since the cavalry is still riding high on horseback, and the shrapnel from the shells will fly high in a radial manner, which will multiply the casualty rate of the cavalry, and they will be torn to pieces by shrapnel on the horses.

Even if the shrenchnel hits not the rider but the horse, or the horse is frightened or injured by the blast wave of the shell...... Riders can be injured as a result, and they are often fatal, even if they are cavalrymen who grew up riding horses.

Occasionally, a few horsemen were lucky enough to break through the German artillery blockade, but soon fell into the mud under German machine gun fire.

In the blink of an eye, the front of the position was littered with the corpses of horses and riders, some torn to pieces, others trampled on each other to the point of injury and death. The fields were littered with surviving horses, and their survival instincts fled back into the woods or other directions away from the battlefield. The wounded cavalrymen could only wail, struggle, or try to flee on the battlefield.

Major Leohard wisely used artillery against cavalry, because the cavalry was completely uncoordinated when the tanks were routed.

In fact, even if there is cavalry, there is no coordination, to be precise, the tank will expose its right flank, that is, the side armor, in front of the German line, the German army only needs to adjust the anti-tank gun in one direction, can easily aim at the charging tank, and then destroy it one by one. Even the first few T34s are no exception.

"The enemy is under fire, and we can't break through their defenses!" The commander of the 27th tank brigade, Colonel Abram, reported to his superiors that he was not cowardly, but simply believed that he should attack in another way.

But he was soon disappointed.

A firm and stern tone came from the walkie-talkie: "You must break through and carry out the order at all costs, otherwise you will be judged by the people!" ”

As a result, Colonel Abram could only continue to order the tanks and cavalry to continue to charge.

The 27th Tank Brigade had been in the battle for less than a week from its formation, and the T34 tanks were assigned to a pitiful minimality, and the T26 tanks were simply unable to withstand the fire of German anti-tank guns and heavy artillery.

In fact, even the T34 can't do much without infantry coordination.

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