Beiyang 1917

() As for the coalition forces, nearly half of the infantry of the 5rd Division suffered casualties. The 4th Brigade of the Kikuchi Infantry who attacked the city lost more than 13%, and the devious Muto Brigade also lost more than 200%. The loss of the 48000th Division also exceeded 8000%. Even the Chinese Armored Duli Regiment also lost about 1500 armored combat vehicles and vehicle-mounted infantry with more than 13 casualties. The main losses of the two brigades of the regiment were close to 4000, the Yonezawa Cavalry Wing lost 3, the [-]th Federal Infantry Division lost [-], and the Allied Artillery artillery lost about [-] battalions. ..

This battle has left an indelible memory for both the offensive and defensive sides... The forces invested by the coalition forces were more than half of the German-Ukrainian coalition forces, and the casualties were close to one-third of the opponent's, but this was based on the huge The record was obtained under the premise of air superiority, and the firepower of the ground troops of the Ukrainian Volunteer Division and the National Army Infantry Division was lower than that of the coalition forces. Compared with the coalition forces, the armored forces suffered the least losses and the greatest results, but even so, in the forest and With the help of excellent infantry coordination, the German army relying on field fortifications did not have a clear disadvantage when facing the Allied armored forces...

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1918年8月1ri07:00，萨马拉联军司令部

"Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, a telegram from the Kharkov front line, Lieutenant General Daba commanded the Southwest Front Army's Central Route Army. After a night of hard fighting, it has defeated the crazy counterattack of the 47th German Reserve Infantry Division and occupied Kharkov city an hour ago. Now we are searching and clearing out the remnants of the enemy in the city. The German-Ukrainian coalition forces have lost most of their main forces and have all retreated to the area south of the Lopan River on the Uda River.

After working overnight at the headquarters, the Chief Staff Officer of the War Room of the Allied Forces Headquarters, who had hardly slept all night, excitedly took the telegram he had just received and broke into the office of the Allied Commander-in-Chief. Not long after I woke up, I was drinking coffee while reading a long telegram received from China. I was not surprised when I heard this, and said with a smile,

"Didn't sleep all night? The Germans really withdrew? It seems that Chief of Staff Jiang won the bet this time. If you can't stop withdrawing, I'm afraid you won't be able to escape at all... How about the casualties of the Central Route Army?" Wang Geng didn't go to pick up the telegram from the director of the war room, but asked Qian Tianfu with a smile.

"The casualties are not small. The combined casualties of the two main infantry brigades, Kikuchi and Muto, exceeded 8000, and the casualties of the 13th Federal Infantry Division also exceeded 4000. Moreover, the artillery of these three main forces was basically wiped out... last night played the leading role In addition to our armored units, there are four artillery battalions that have been reinforced by the 14th and 15th Divisions of the Federal Infantry... The Wu Keren artillery battalion that Lu Huanyan improvised has also been basically wiped out, but the Germans are also having a hard time. What we lost was the 4mm field artillery unit, and the opponent’s three 75mm howitzer battalions were basically wiped out. This is the first time we have fought against the Germans without the help of the air team!"

Qian Tianfu's face was full of excitement, and the sleepiness of the night disappeared at this moment. Of course, he also admired his commander-in-chief, even Jiang Fangzhen and Tanaka Yoshiichi, the two deputy chiefs of staff of the Eastern Allied Forces of the Allied Powers. Wan Leng just went back to rest in the middle of the night. It seemed that he couldn't hold his breath and kept being anxious like being scratched by a cat's paw. He stayed in the telecommunications room and grasped the situation on the front line of Kharkov...

"What about the casualties of the Germans? The lieutenant general, don't just think about using the Ukrainians to make up the number..." Wang Geng still didn't put down the telegram in his hand, but raised his head and asked his war room director. At this time, he didn't want to take money. The chance of joy and excitement when Tian Fu personally reported the battle report...

"The troops have just entered the city. The streets and houses in the old city fortress were seriously damaged. Many houses were almost destroyed by our bombardment. The troops are maintaining order and searching for remnants of the enemy... It may take time to clean up the battlefield. The Central Army didn’t sleep almost all night. At this moment, the troops are so tired that they can fall asleep if they fall down. Fortunately, the Germans are more tired than us, and they are running as far as they want at the moment. I don’t think they have the intention to make a comeback We, Lieutenant General Oba's battle report said that at least 35000 enemy troops were annihilated, of which the German army had about 3000 soldiers and more than 5000 prisoners, but the German prisoners were only about 1000..."

Qian Tianfu's tone couldn't hide the sincere joy. This battle in Kharkov was the first head-to-head battle between the Allied forces on the Eastern Front and the Germans. If the Ukrainian army was added, the firepower and strength of the defenders far exceeded The attacking coalition army's southwest front army's central route army relied on the air force to control the air. At the same time, the troops were well equipped and had high morale. The division is worthy of the title of the main division of the national army, but the performance of the two volunteer divisions and the 1rd and 2th divisions is remarkable...

"Victory always comes inadvertently. Director Qian, send a congratulatory message to the Central Route Army in my name, congratulating them on their great victory. Do not place too many main forces in Kharkov, and beware of the Germans. The retaliation of the Air Force's comeback, the troops can be dispersed to the Kharkov Forest to set up camps and rest...I heard that Tao Dayong led the First Armored Battalion to capture the town of Katina and the North Donets River Bridge...To commend Their outstanding performance allowed the Central Route Army to submit the list of casualties and meritorious promotions as soon as possible..." Wang Geng stood up and put down the draft telegram in his hand, looking in a good mood.

Commander-in-Chief, will the Luftwaffe return to the sky over Kharkov so soon?" Qian Tianfu asked a little worried.

"It will come sooner or later... Kharkov was originally a tasteless city for the German army, because the city is only 40 kilometers away from the border. I guess the next stage will be the defense of the central route army waiting for the Germans to bomb. ... The opponent will not easily dispatch ground troops to gnaw this bone ... Well, let the 14th Federal Infantry Division prepare to replace the 13th Infantry Division in Voronieri, and let the 15th Federal Infantry Division replace the 13rd Japanese Infantry Division Let the infantry brigade of the [-]rd Division and the rest of the [-]th Federal Infantry Division withdraw to rest and supplement when the situation stabilizes..."