Chapter 1572 - 1478: The Most Critical Line of Defense
Chapter 1572: Chapter 1478: The Most Critical Line of Defense
Kosciuszko’s pupils suddenly contracted: "What did you say? That’s impossible!"
He had been travelling from the north, with the Russian Army trailing far behind. How could the enemy suddenly appear on the southern side?
It should be known that he hadn’t deployed any troops on the left flank.
The nearby staff officer said, "Could it be the Russian Army coming from Astrakhan?"
The Astrakhan Plain is located in the North Caucasus, where the Russian Caucasus Corps’ main base Mozdok is situated.
Kosciuszko’s expression froze.
He initially thought it would take the Caucasus Russian Army at least three months to reach the western front. But now, it’s been just over two months since the Russians withdrew from Georgia.
He was unaware that Alexander I had ordered Good维奇 to reach Smolensk before March.
Thus the Caucasus Corps had been rushing tirelessly, losing nearly a quarter of their soldiers, only to hear halfway that the Polish Army was retreating to Novgorod-Seversky.
At that time, Good维奇 happened to be in Poltava, so he changed his plan temporarily and pursued the Polish Army westward.
However, he couldn’t obtain the exact position of the Polish Army, so he had to search while advancing. Unexpectedly, upon reaching Bobrovytsia Town, he discovered the Poles were directly north of him.
Kosciuszko tried hard to calm himself and turned to ask the staff officer: "Which troops are on the left wing?"
The latter quickly recalled and replied, "It’s the King’s 19th Infantry Regiment, which has just rotated for rest, Marshal."
Kosciuszko glanced at the fiercely contested Kozelrets Town. The defending force there was the Samoylov Corps, which had been previously crushed once. Its combat power and fighting spirit were both very low, and at the current rate, he could capture it in another half day.
West of Kozelrets is the Dnieper River, where his troops can return to Poland.
He spoke sternly to the order officer beside him: "Command Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich to hold off those Russians for 4 hours. No, 3 hours will suffice. Let Kilinsky lead the Guard Cavalry Camp for immediate reinforcements."
The Guard Cavalry Camp mentioned was more than 5,000 Winged Cavalry, who were being used as reserve infantry after losing their horses.
The staff officer hurriedly said, "But Marshal, the Nineteenth Regiment only has less than 2,000 men and had just engaged in intense combat recently..."
"I know!" Kosciuszko said with a lowered head, "They certainly can do it. They must do it."
Southeast of Kozelrets Town, five kilometers away in Ignaty Village.
Soldiers of the Polish King’s 19th Infantry Regiment, who were eating, suddenly heard the assembly drum. They immediately stuffed the piece of rye bread into their mouths vigorously and grabbed their guns to run out.
In the nearby wounded barracks, someone suddenly shouted, "The Russians launched a sneak attack from Bobrovytsia. We don’t have defenses there yet; who can still stand up? Come with me to hold them off a bit."
Immediately several bandaged soldiers stepped forward, "I can still fight."
"I’ll go too!"
"Me too..."
As the news spread, quickly, hundreds of wounded soldiers gathered, some even with their arms in slings.
Then more soldiers with infectious diseases came from their camp. Most of them were feverish, yet with relatively agile limbs. Although according to the French military doctors’ orders, they shouldn’t contact others, due to the urgent situation, these procedures were disregarded.
When the Nineteenth Infantry Regiment completed assembly at the village entrance, more than 3,000 wounded and sick had spontaneously gathered beside them.
Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich ran past them, frowned, and said, "You can barely stand; go back quickly!"
No one moved their feet, and instead, the wounded soldiers straightened their backs with all their strength.
The Lieutenant Colonel repeated the command, but ultimately said helplessly to the staff officer, "Distribute ammunition to them. Hurry up, the Russians could charge at any moment!"
Half an hour later, when the Russian Caucasus Corps’ Cossack Cavalry prepared to make an assault on the Polish Army’s flank, they unexpectedly saw an infantry line array waiting for them not far away.
Judging from the line array’s length, there were at least four or five thousand men.
This was entirely different from what they had previously reconnoitered.
The Cossack Cavalry had to return to report. Subsequently, Good维奇 personally organized the infantry main forces to launch an attack on the Polish defense line.
When they were just a hundred meters apart, the Polish Army started their fire.
However, their shooting was very disordered and sparse.
Indeed, these wounded and sick soldiers were temporarily gathered, without any formation, only able to hastily elect experienced veterans as lower officers. It was a feat in itself to get the teams aligned.
The Russian Army immediately rallied and launched a volley at about 40 meters, charging with bayonets for a melee assault.
Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich calmly awaited the enemy’s approach to less than thirty paces before waving his sword and shouting, "Fire——"
The King’s 19th Regiment was a Polish Army elite, fully equipped with French Caplock Guns.
As the Russian Army charged halfway, they were suddenly halted by fierce volleys, turning back in retreat.
The Polish defense line burst into cheers.
But just over 20 minutes later, Good维奇 organized a second offensive.
Fortunately, the Russian troops were fatigued from long marches, and their cannons were lagging behind by dozens of kilometers, so the assault was not ferocious.
Hoarse shouts erupted from the Polish defense line, "For the motherland!"
"Long live Poland, we shall not retreat an inch!"
"Yes, defending the line with our lives!"
Those soldiers, initially too sick to rise, miraculously erupted with astounding energy, loading, shooting, and reloading with almost normal speed.
The Russian Army, previously defeated in Transcaucasia, had low morale. Terrified by the imposing spirit, they were hesitant to advance.
Yet, the Polish wounded soldiers soon exhausted their last bit of strength and after less than two hours of fighting, the Russians found the firing rate sharply reduced.
Good维奇 promptly pressed all forces forward and ordered the Cossack Cavalry to attack the Polish defense line’s flank.
The Polish defense line began showing signs of collapse.
Many soldiers could only sit while firing, yet they unwaveringly focused on the Russians, expending their last ounce of energy to pull the trigger.
When the Russian Army charged into their line array, the fallen corpses were still there, slowing the enemy’s steps.
Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich looked at the broken defense line and gritted his teeth, commanding his guard to form lineups on the flank to block the enemy’s cavalry assault.
He glanced at his pocket watch; there was still one hour left until the Marshal’s required time.
He drew his pistol, turned, and shouted hoarsely, "Hold fast! We must hold fast!"
Not far away, a Russian soldier aimed a gun at him, the lead bullet "thumped" into his scabbard.
Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich was shocked, about to shoot back when he saw the Russians hesitate several meters away and eventually retreat.
"Is it reinforcements?"
Excitedly, he turned to look and saw a crooked line approaching from behind, the flags clearly not belonging to any unit he recognized.
Then he saw the familiar face of Doctor Venishko.
It was not reinforcements but military doctors leading 800 wounded to desperately aid.
Among them, half could not lift a gun, but the infantry line suddenly emerging amid the battlefield smoke frightened the Russians into retreat.
At three-thirty in the afternoon, when thousands of Winged Cavalry breathlessly arrived at Ignaty Village, they saw only a line array of blood and broken limbs. Along with Lieutenant Colonel Lemlovich and less than a thousand remaining soldiers sitting among the corpses, exerting themselves to shoot at the opposite side.