Holy Roman Empire

Ivanov was in a bad mood after receiving the telegram for help from the Fourth Army.

It was blatantly obvious, something anyone with a bit of military knowledge would understand that if an isolated force advanced and encountered an unexpected situation, it should immediately retreat.

The Fourth Army wasn’t operating under specific combat orders and had the freedom to adapt. Upon discovering a large enemy force, they could have simply adjusted their marching speed to maintain a safe distance and waited for reinforcements to arrive. Wouldn’t that have been better?

Even if they realized the situation too late, the Fourth Army could still have chosen to break out of the encirclement before the enemy closed the loop and regrouped with the Russian forces in the rear.

The Fourth Army had cavalry units, so it was impossible for them not to detect the enemy’s movements. The mobilization of tens of thousands of troops is something that simply cannot be concealed.

Even Ivanov, stationed in the rear, had received reports about the Prussian troop movements. Although the information came slightly too late for an immediate response, the distress call from the Fourth Army arrived almost simultaneously.

In this era of no wireless communication, the Fourth Army’s distress call had been delivered by an airship unit to the 107th Division in the rear before being relayed to headquarters.

Despite having ample time, no decisive action was taken, a failure that made Ivanov deeply resent generals like Obodov, who lacked a sense of the bigger picture.

Ivanov understood the reason all too well. The Fourth Army had acted without authorization. If they returned empty-handed without achieving significant battle merits, the careers of Obodov and the other commanders would be over.

Seizing opportunities and making decisive moves is only commendable if it leads to success. If it results in failure, it’s no longer considered good judgment.

Competition within the Russian military was intensely fierce. Any blemish on a commander’s record made further advancement nearly impossible. And undertaking unauthorized actions without prior approval? Even being allowed to retire early would be considered a stroke of good fortune.

For the sake of their careers, the Fourth Army’s commanders clung to wishful thinking and dragged things out until now.

The distress call, while appearing neutral on the surface, subtly hinted at shifting blame. It’s likely that everyone in the Fourth Army was hoping Ivanov would issue an order allowing them to retreat.

Those familiar with the deployment of Russian forces knew that the Fourth Army was critical to the upcoming Warsaw campaign, and the Vistula River was even more crucial as it directly affected the logistics and supply lines for the Russian military.

Bang!

Ivanov slammed the table with force and cursed angrily, “Damn it!”

“Idiots!”

…

Listening to Ivanov’s outburst, everyone in the command room was on edge, afraid of becoming the target of his anger.

After a full fifteen minutes of cursing, a parched and visibly furious Marshal Ivanov finally stopped. He was genuinely enraged. He had never seen subordinates so adept at sabotaging their superiors.

If the Fourth Army were wiped out, it would become extremely difficult for the Russian forces to win the Warsaw campaign. Militarily speaking, given the uncertain situation at the front, sending troops to their rescue would be highly risky and could result in the enemy exploiting the opportunity to encircle and annihilate reinforcements.

Ordering the Fourth Army to break out and preserve as much strength as possible was, from a strategic standpoint, the best option.

However, the reality was more complicated. At Ivanov’s level, a military leader also had to consider political factors.

If he ordered the Fourth Army to retreat and the troops suffered heavy losses, he would inevitably share the blame.

Judging by Obodov’s reckless actions, it was clear that there were powerful figures behind him. In such a situation, those individuals would undoubtedly seize the opportunity to stir up trouble and shift the blame squarely onto Ivanov. ℞ἈΝＯ𐌱ËS

In politics, it’s not about right or wrong but about advantages and disadvantages. Don’t expect opponents to show mercy. The bottom line for politicians has never had a lowest point, only lower.

After calming down, Ivanov furrowed his brow even more deeply. He scrutinized the map, pondering the enemy’s true intentions.

The Fourth Army was indeed significant to the Warsaw campaign, but in the grand scheme of the Russo-Prussian War, its importance was relatively limited. During intense fighting, Russian forces could easily lose more than 100,000 troops in a single month.

If sacrificing the Fourth Army could secure victory in the war, Ivanov wouldn’t even hesitate.

After a moment of thought, Ivanov approached the operations staff officer and asked, “How far has the closest unit to the Fourth Army advanced?”

The operations officer nervously replied, “The closest is the 107th Division of the Ninth Army, currently stationed in Radom. Following that would be the Fifth and Seventh Armies, but they’re north of Warsaw and unable to reinforce.”

Ivanov’s frown deepened further. Sending a single division as reinforcements would likely result in it being wiped out by the enemy before it even reached the battlefield.

To rescue the Fourth Army, at least an entire corps would need to be deployed. Unless units currently engaged in the southern campaign were redirected, no other troops could arrive in time.

After reviewing the map of Russian troop deployments, Ivanov shook his head. Abandoning the southern campaign to rescue the Fourth Army would be a strategic misstep with little return.

The southern campaign had the advantage of Austrian supplies, minimizing logistical pressure. Breaking through the enemy’s defenses there would open up enticing opportunities like advancing west to capture Berlin or heading north to seize Poznań.

Taking Berlin would spell the end for the Prussian-Polish Federation. Meanwhile, capturing Poznań would sever the enemy’s link to their rear lines, turning the Prussian forces in the Warsaw region into an isolated force.

After a moment of thought, Ivanov spoke slowly, “Order the Eighth, Ninth, and Tenth Armies to form the Southern Front immediately.

The commander of the Eighth Army, General Matilde, will serve as the Commander-in-Chief. The commander of the Ninth Army, General Mettler, will serve as the Deputy Commander-in-Chief. The commander of the Tenth Army, General Mourinho, will serve as Chief of Staff.

Instruct them to complete their organizational preparations as quickly as possible. Within one week, I want news of the start of the southern campaign.”

It was a highly irregular personnel appointment, but extraordinary circumstances call for extraordinary measures. In the Russian Army’s structure, there was no official “front” level of organization. The corps was the largest unit. Fronts were only temporarily established during wartime.

The enemy’s main forces were concentrated on the Warsaw front, while the southern forces were mostly second and third-line units. Although dubbed the “Southern Front,” these units would still have to operate independently.

If a formal airborne command structure were to be established, it would take at least a month just to get a clear understanding of the units and their status.

On the battlefield, speed is of the essence. Wasting a month would be catastrophic.

Previously, the Russian Army had a Southwestern Front, but it was effectively destroyed by Moltke during last winter’s campaign and subsequently disbanded.

As time went on, the Russian Army continued to expand its forces. A single corps now had anywhere from over 100,000 to as many as 200,000 troops, making them fully capable of independent operations. This reduced the need for establishing larger front-level commands.

Earlier, the Russian Army had focused on defense, with Marshal Ivanov personally commanding large-scale operations most of the time. However, as soon as he delegated authority, the Fourth Army went rogue and acted on its own.

Ivanov immediately dismissed the idea of forming a front command structure. If it weren’t for the pressing situation, he would never have agreed to establish the Southern Front.

It was clear that the potential losses caused by a rogue front far exceeded those of a single army.

The newly created Southern Front was rife with internal checks and balances. With three corps commanders simultaneously serving as front command officers, none of them would have the chance to act recklessly.

During combat, the forces would be directly divided and commanded independently. Since these were experienced units already well-acquainted with each other, no additional coordination was needed, allowing them to unleash maximum combat effectiveness in the shortest possible time.

As for the potential downsides, Ivanov no longer cared. As long as the war could be won, even major issues would seem trivial.

After a brief pause, Ivanov added, “Order the Fifth and Seventh Armies to launch offensives in the Warsaw region. Let them control the pace themselves, and ensure they don’t repeat the mistakes of the Fourth Army. I don’t have enough troops to clean up their mess.

Holt, draft a telegram to Saint Petersburg to report our battle plans and the personnel appointments I just announced.”

Ivanov clearly had no intention of mentioning the Fourth Army, effectively choosing to disregard them. After all, the Fourth Army had recklessly advanced for glory without orders due to being greedy, and even if they were completely wiped out, it wouldn’t be his responsibility.

A middle-aged officer mustered his courage and asked, “Marshal, what about the Fourth Army?”

Ivanov shot him a fierce glare, clearly displeased, and replied, “What about them? Let them handle it as they see fit!

Didn’t that fool Obodov pride himself on being a military genius? Now he has the chance to prove it. If he can lead the Fourth Army to defeat the Prussians, all the problems will be solved!”

Defeat the Prussians?

Everyone silently began mourning the Fourth Army in their hearts. Without a doubt, this was an impossible task.

Realizing his loss of composure, Ivanov sighed and added, “Order the Third and Sixth Armies in the rear to move to their aid. Let’s hope they can arrive in time.

Send orders to the Fourth Army to formulate their own battle plan. Reinforcements will arrive as quickly as possible.

Instruct the airship units to airdrop supplies to them. Send a telegram to Saint Petersburg, requesting they urgently secure a batch of transport airships, preferably the Austrian Hawk IV model.”

He had done all he could. The rest was up to fate.

This statement aptly summarized Ivanov’s orders. With the Third and Sixth Armies resting and resupplying in the rear, it would take at least ten days to half a month for them to assemble and reach the front lines.

If anything went wrong along the way, such as encountering Prussian resistance, it might take a month or more to arrive.

There was only one way to speed things up and that was to deploy cavalry. Unfortunately, Russian cavalry was scattered across various units. Otherwise, gathering ten to twenty thousand cavalrymen might have been a feasible rescue option.

Of course, this was purely theoretical. Assembling ten to twenty thousand cavalry would create a logistical nightmare, as their supplies alone could be overwhelming.

For now, the Fourth Army could only rely on themselves. The airship supply drops were more of a morale booster than a practical solution. The Russian military had only a few dozen transport airships in total. Even under ideal conditions, they could deliver at most 40 to 50 tons of supplies daily.

In reality, if they managed to deliver 7 to 8 tons per day, it would already be a blessing.

Airships required regular maintenance and inspections after every flight, consuming significant time. Additionally, the transport airships were dispersed across various locations, so only a limited number could be mobilized quickly. Bad weather also had to be considered. Averaging 7 to 8 tons of supplies per day was no easy feat.

This amount of supplies was merely a drop in the ocean for an army of tens of thousands. However, if all the deliveries were high-calorie food, it might at least sustain the soldiers’ rations.

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