On March 19, the Russian Caucasian Front, after gathering superior forces, condescendingly attacked the Turkish army below the mountain.

The Turkish army, which had no advantage in anything, could not be stopped for long. They were quickly defeated and retreated back to slightly flat ground.

It was a bad decision. Here, the pace of the Russian army's advance will undoubtedly be even faster.

Fortunately, Kuster transported the troops on both flanks back through the transportation network in time and began to form a situation of encirclement of the Russian army.

In fact, the newly transported troops were very poorly organized and needed some time to regroup. During this period, it will be difficult for them to form any deterrent.

However, the Russians were still afraid of the Turkish troops on both sides, and soon mobilized some troops to return to help.

The growing intensity of the fighting does not mean that the commanders on both sides are helpless.

North of the Caucasus, inside the command of the Russian army. Their commander thought of a more conservative scheme:

As the main attack, the Russian army in the center advanced about 90 kilometers to the south, where Tbilisi, the transport hub of the Caucasus.

After taking it, continue to advance for a few more kilometers and occupy the steep Little Caucasus Mountain. After that, it will be used as a base to prepare for the next round of attacks.

Of course, the Russian army cannot ignore the threat from both flanks, even if they are not yet able to attack.

After a series of quarrels, the top of the Russian army finally decided to take Georgia first. The Turkish army there was more vulnerable, and the terrain was more complex than in the east, so it could be effectively defended after taking it.

As for how to defend it, the Russian army believes that it should focus on the junction between the Lesser Caucasus and the Greater Caucasus Mountains. According to Russian estimates, the city from Tbilisi to the Greater Caucasus Mountains was at least 100 kilometers, and they had to deploy heavy troops here.

In that case, the western front was about 200 kilometers long, which was mainly defended by the Lesser Caucasus Mountains and the Eastern Black Sea Seamount; 100 kilometers on the middle line, there is no obstacle here, they can only rely on themselves to build fortifications; The eastern front is 300 kilometers long, and the Turkish army has the largest number of troops deployed here on the entire front, but the Russian army can rely on the Greater Caucasus Mountains for defense, just pay attention to the more gentle areas in the east.

At the Turkish command south of the Caucasus, Kuster is also planning how to respond to the Russian offensive.

The difference is that Kuster has monopoly power in the Caucasus, and he has supreme power here. The military power of the Russian army is relatively scattered, and each unit fights separately; Their top brass also can't command precisely, so they can only give advice.

Therefore, in terms of decision-making, the Turkish army will appear to be very relaxed, and it will not take much time.

As the order for a strategic retreat was given by Kuster. This order had been circulated through the troops as early as last night.

He feared that while the fighting was taking place in the center, the Russian army would send cavalry to quickly maneuver to the eastern regions.

It is the only flat place in the Caucasus. If a mobile force sneaks up here, it will put the entire Turkish army at risk of being surrounded.

Fortunately, the Russians did not learn the skills of Kuster, so naturally they would not aggressively order the cavalry to raid the depth of the enemy army.

After making sure that the Russian army would not rush in, Kuster had a bold idea.

He decided to abandon Tbilisi, a Caucasus town, because he still had the more important place of Baku.

The Turkish army in the entire central and western part was ordered to retreat back and establish a defensive line on the Lesser Caucasus Mountains.

This will undoubtedly abandon most of Georgia, but at the moment the forces are concentrated on the Eastern Front, and the remaining two fronts are not enough to fight the Russian army. In order to preserve their strength, they had to retreat.

However, these Turkish troops were required to hold on to the Little Caucasus Mountains, not to give up a piece of mountain land to the Russian army, and to keep attacking the enemy on the high ground.

To appease them, Kuster wrote in his order: "We must hold back the enemy at the apex of the mountain." It may be difficult, but don't worry, Tsarist Russia can't beat us even if it overdraws its longevity for 3 years. ”

Having prepared for defense, Kuster once again focused his strategy on the plains of the Eastern Front.

Baku was the center of the campaign and a strategic location for the Allies.

When it had been captured by the Turks a few days earlier, it had transported large quantities of oil to the Central Powers through Asia Minor. Therefore, the German-Austrian Emperor demanded that he never give up it, even if there were no reinforcements.

Therefore, Kuster must focus on keeping Baku and then launch a series of offensives.

Fortunately, the Russians are far from enough to threaten Baku. They had transferred a large number of troops to the Georgian region, where the defense was empty. This is undoubtedly an attempt to capture Georgia.

Kuster temporarily changed his order and asked the western Turkish army to establish a defensive line from Poti on the Black Sea coast to Kutaisi, 85 kilometers to the east, in an attempt to control the communications network and slow down the Russian advance.

At the same time, he planned to let a small force try to break through the flat strip north of Baku, threaten the right flank of the Russian army, and contain part of the force.

He also noted the importance of occupying the high ground. Begin to infiltrate the Greater Caucasus Mountains with small groups of elite troops and try to overcome them in order to gain a greater local advantage.

Among the troops sent was his eldest son, Vasalai, under the command of his eldest son. To this end, he also gave Vasala his handwritten military treatise "On the Essence of Athletic Warfare - Lightning and Depth" as a family heirloom.

Of course, this kind of thing, which is mainly used strategically, cannot determine the life and death of Vasa Lai at the moment. So, he personally told Vasalai how to delicately command the infantry squad and how to adjust them. He even told him about the intricacies of C3I tactics so that he could draw attention to the importance of intelligence and control.

As for why Kuster was in such a hurry, it was mainly because he was worried that the impact of the Battle of Gallipoli was so great that even he was interfered with.

At that time, the entire Central Powers had to send additional troops to Istanbul to ensure that Turkey would not withdraw from the war.

He did not believe that Turkey would be able to resist the pressure of the Allied forces, and that its internal affairs would become extremely chaotic. So he must get rid of the threat of the Russian army in the Caucasus as soon as possible, and he will not be relieved until they become harmless to humans and animals.

During this period, Kuster could only command one battle after another, and could not interfere in other affairs.

The Caucasian native army came quickly and lost quickly. Finally, on March 22, the Turks abandoned Tbilisi and made a massive retreat towards the Lesser Caucasus Mountains.

Only 40,000 troops were left to hold central Georgia in the Poti-Kutaisi area. But this didn't last long, not to mention that their right flank was still under the onslaught of the Russians and gradually leaked out.

However, the Turkish army still has 220,000 troops in the east. They heavily defended the vast plains and put a lot of pressure on the Russian troops moving south.

But these Turkish troops did not dare to attack the Russian troops on the flank, after all, there were still quite a few Russian troops on the Greater Caucasus Mountains. As long as they attack the Russian army on the left flank, the Russian army on the Caucasus hill in the north will follow the trend and attack their flank.

Therefore, they cannot try any risky action, otherwise there is a risk of collapse; They can only wait for the opportunity to act, look for loopholes in the Russians, and defeat the enemy with one more move.

The war has become more complicated, and the offensive of the Russian army has gradually slowed down.

Now both sides are beginning to consolidate the fortifications and wait for the next large-scale exchange of fire.