Chapter 4 Japanese Estimates

Due to the birth of the Black Dragon Society in the Gengzi period, the regular Russian troops in the northeast region were nearly double the expected, reaching 1560,000 people, plus various militia organizations and expatriates, the total strength was more than 200,000. Pen "Fun" Pavilion www.biquge.info and their weapons and equipment are a little better than those in the other world.

In this way, both Japan and Russia have seen a considerable increase in their combat effectiveness, but the balance of strength is still close to one-to-one, and there has been no qualitative change.

After the outbreak of the war, Russia accelerated its military build-up to the Far East. In order to prevent the Japanese army from landing on the coast of Korea and the Liaodong Peninsula, the Russian army made the following arrangements: the "East Manchurian" detachment (nearly 30,000 people) occupied positions on the right bank of the Yalu River; The "South Manchurian" detachment (about 32,000 men) was deployed in the Yingkou Dashiqiao and Haicheng areas, and the Kwantung detachment (nearly 40,000 men) was deployed in the Liaodong Peninsula and Lushun areas. The main force (nearly 50,000 people) gathered in the Liaoyang-Fengtian area. In addition, nearly 40,000 people are on standby in South Ussuri and Vladivostok. Reinforcements from the Russian hinterland are arriving (about 20,000 men per month for the first half of the war).

While Russia and Japan were vying for sea supremacy, the Japanese Army began to land. On March 21, 1904, the 1st Army (about 35,000 men, more than 120 guns, 30 heavy machine guns, commanded by General Kuroki Hae-jeong) first landed in the Korean town of Nampo and advanced north. In mid-April 1904, the Japanese army reached the left bank of the Yalu River without resistance.

On the opposite bank was defended by the "East Manchurian" detachment of the Russian army, commanded by Lieutenant General Zasulich. Zasulich, with almost 30,000 men and 84 guns, has been occupying positions for 1 month, but has not strengthened the fortifications. The troops were scattered on a wide frontage, and there were countless chests in the direction in which the enemy might attack. Only a long trench was constructed, and there was little camouflage. The reserves, which account for about half of the total force, are deployed 10 kilometers away. The artillery positions were completely exposed.

On the night of April 30, 1904, the Japanese launched an offensive in an attempt to detour the left flank of the Russian army. On May 1, 1904, a fierce battle was fought in Jiulian City. The Russian army resisted the Japanese offensive with artillery fire and counter-assault. The Japanese did not have an advantage in strength, but their firepower was much stronger, and their artillery was fired from hidden positions, suppressing the Russian artillery fire.

Lao Maozi's infantry assault turned into a brainless pig burst under the side-fire fire of heavy machine guns, and one regiment of the counterattack suffered heavy losses, and less than a company could be withdrawn after the battle.

Fearing to be surrounded, Zasulich ordered a retreat to Liaoyang. The 11th Infantry Regiment of Eastern Siberia was encircled by superior Japanese forces, broke through the siege in successive battles, and suffered heavy casualties. This is the first defeat of the Russian army in a ground operation. The retreat of Zasulich's troops opened the door for the Japanese army to enter the northeast. The 1st Army immediately moved out of the Phoenix area and prepared to march in the direction of Liaoyang.

At the same time, the 2nd Army (4 divisions, about 40,000 men, more than 300 cannons, and more than 60 heavy machine guns, commanded by General Obaogong) landed at Piziwo in the southeast of the Liaodong Peninsula in early May in an attempt to capture Lushun from the north. At the end of May 1904, the 2nd Army entered Golden State.

Defending the area was the Russian 4th Infantry Division, which was responsible for covering the approach north of Arthur. This division had a total of 24,000 men (140 guns, commanded by General Fokk), but only 2 regiments (6,000 men) were sent to the position, and the rest were used as reserves, 10~12 kilometers away from the front. The 2nd Army was engaged in the attack with 3 divisions, 5 times the strength of the enemy, 8 times the firepower of the enemy, and could be supported by naval artillery.

In the battle of great disparity, the main force of the Russian fleet did not move, and only two or three ships were dispatched to strengthen the right flank of the Russian army. The commander of the Russian army on the Liaodong Peninsula, Stepel, ordered the Fokker Division to abandon Dalian and retreat towards Lushun. The Japanese then occupied Jinzhou and Dalian and advanced towards Lushun.

(The Battle of Nanshan in Jinzhou, Russia, Japan) Because the commander of the ground forces in Arthur, Kondelachko, insisted on taking advantage of the favorable terrain around Arthur to fortify, the Japanese army was blocked on the line of 25~30 kilometers north of Arthur. After the Japanese army landed in various directions, the "General Headquarters of the Manchurian Army" was established on June 20, 1904, with Marshal Oyama Iwa as the commander-in-chief, and unified command of all Japanese troops.

The military observers sent to the Japanese army by the Northwest Town Guard sent all kinds of information back to Taiyuan, and in the various reports sent back, many praised the Japanese army's proper tactics and the use of artillery and machine-gun firepower, which caused great casualties to the Russian army. At the same time, the report also said that the Russian army was extremely brave, and even if it was attacked by the Japanese army, which had absolute numerical superiority and absolute firepower superiority, it could counterattack with a furious attitude.

The few reports also mention that when the Russian army broke through, it seemed that a mythical creature similar to a werewolf appeared. "The body is shrouded in white hair, and the head is like a giant wolf, invulnerable, and moves like the wind..... A squad on the Japanese encirclement position was almost completely annihilated, and most of the corpses were shattered, as if they had been ..... by cold weapons"

The Japanese achieved tactical victories on all fronts in the early stages of the war, and in Hebei, in the fight between Liaodong and Chinese troops, the Japanese quickly learned the correct use of heavy machine guns and rapid-fire guns. These experiences exchanged for blood smashed the roughness of the war and made the Russians pay more blood.

The only bad thing is that the amount of ammunition consumed by these weapons is so great that the Navy has already expressed its dissatisfaction twice in a row. Fortunately, the Japanese doubled their steel production, solved the problem of the Yawata Iron and Steel Plant ahead of schedule, and had an extra year to produce the weapons and ammunition needed by the army.

In this way, in the early days of the war, the Russians were almost defeated. The so-called almost means that it has not been reached, and it is not true. The Russians, with their characteristic brutality and bravery, withstood the surprise attack of the Japanese, and although they retreated on all fronts, they were only defeated but not defeated, and the war was about to turn into a long war of attrition.

However, the Japanese at this time did not think so, and in their opinion, whether it was the navy or the army, they had achieved a decisive advantage. With a little more effort, you can be like the Germans on the battlefield of Sedang, and the Russians in the northeast will be served in a pot.

In the newly established General Headquarters of the Manchurian Army, Marshal Dashanyan can be said to be complacent, quite a sword drawn, looking around, and hearing who is a hero in the world. He also categorically rejected the Chinese government's intention to conduct joint operations.

In fact, he didn't want friendly troops so much, but the conditions offered by the Chinese government to enter the war were really not acceptable to the Japanese government and the War Department. If the treaty had really been signed, the warriors of the Japanese Empire would have shed blood and sacrificed for the Chinese in vain.

Xu Yuanhua's memorandum to Minister Nichiki said that if Japan could return all the land north of the Yalu River to China after the war, the Chinese army would fight the Russians together with the Japanese army. This kind of condition is not sincere at first glance, which one can agree, and which one dares to agree?

Anyway, according to Japanese estimates, there are two months at most, and the Russians will have to cede land and pay reparations, and they don't care whether they need help from the Chinese army.