Chapter 372: The eve of the storm

2500 British Royal Navy soldiers and Marines brought 2,000 horses, dozens of vehicles and tractors, and more than a dozen artillery pieces of various calibers to the front line by train. When they entered the fighting area, they also needed their own Both feet and horses come to find the French cavalry, and then kill the Boers with the French cavalry.

"The fundamental reason why the Boers were able to break our fortress this time was that they carried a large number of artillery. Their artillery units would certainly not move fast. Our task is to find their artillery units and keep them in our place. Within the field of vision, when we meet General French, we can launch a general offensive. At that time, the Boers have only two options. One option is to throw away their firepower pillars, and the other option is to fight with us. ! And we have a total of 7,500 people, we will never lose!" Colonel George wrote in a telegram to General French.

"The whole army is moving forward lightly. Except for the necessary weapons and enough dry food for 5 days, all the rest is thrown away! All artillery calibers larger than 75mm are dismantled and buried! Horses are filled into other departments! Reduce the logistics fleet, our supply The goods can be obtained from the villages and towns along the way." After receiving the telegram from George, French was silent for a while and gave the order!

"General, including the fighting time, we have to set aside food for at least 7 days. After throwing away the subsequent heavy artillery, our firepower will be at a disadvantage!" The staff officer next to him said embarrassedly.

"The horses that are no longer suitable for long-distance raids are our mobile granaries! The villages and towns along the way will give us supplies! If they are unwilling, then we will teach them how to be loyal to the Queen's government! Send all the scouts out , We need to understand the position of the Boers as soon as possible. If we can't defeat them in 5 days, we don't have to go back to Cape Town!" French words are full of trembling determination! This kind of desperate blow has not appeared in the British Army for a long time!

The order was quickly issued, and tents, cooking supplies, various vehicles, and personal belongings were discarded. Various sundries were scattered on both sides of the road where the British troops evacuated, giving people a feeling of embarrassment. The commander of the Burr 1st Cavalry Regiment, Paul, looked at the British army position like a junkyard in front of him, lost in thought. The British left, and they walked in a panic, because Paul even saw a pile of artillery parts thrown everywhere. .

"We won?" an officer asked tentatively.

"No, we didn't win, and we are even about to usher in the biggest challenge." Paul took a few steps, carefully observed the slightly messy horseshoe marks on the ground, and said: "The British are not defeated by discarding these things. On the contrary, they This is to reduce the burden of the troops and march quickly. Although their horse team is a little messy, it is still in order on the whole, which shows that their command system is still there."

"And look over there, after leaving the camp, the whole army is divided into three groups. The British cavalry should be deployed in an inverted triangle. This is obviously for the opponents who appear together at any time! The British are in a hurry, after all, they are still close. A force of 5,000! After hearing of the fall of Kelsberg, our opponent not only did not withdraw, but decided to fight to the death!" Paul said with a gloomy face.

"Give up all unnecessary items, we have to catch up with them before they attack the main force!" Paul commanded as he walked.

"But sir, before that, we have missed the supply twice in a row. Although we have more forage, we only have enough food for 3 days! We must go to the next supply point..." The adjutant quickly persuaded him.

"If you don't have enough food, kill the horse! You can still drink horse blood if you don't have water! Start with my mount." Paul said grimly.

"However, this is the property of the soldiers themselves. If we do this, it will cause a great backlash!" Before the adjutant's words fell, Paul had raised the semi-automatic rifle in his hand and faced the tired one next to it. The horses who were overly unable to continue their long march pulled the trigger!

Boom! Slightly sharp shots echoed in the wilderness, and this shot directly silenced everyone! "Now, starting from me, throw away all the things that are not needed! I promise that when we take the next British town, everyone can get what they want! All the price we pay here will be achieved. Even the entire South Africa will be our ranch! But the premise is that you can win under my command!" Paul almost roared in a roaring voice!

If someone can stand in the clouds and overlook the entire South African plateau, then it can be clearly discovered that the shadows of a large and a small group are moving fast, and the British in front are doing their best to move towards the Caliput Army, which was relatively slow in the past. The cavalry can now be described as fast. After they abandoned most of the supplies, their speed of action increased linearly. The entire cavalry unit was even divided into several villages and towns along the way, using sabers and rifles to obtain supplies. They are like locusts, wherever they go, "there is no grass~www.wuxiaspot.com~, but the troops behind them are a bit chaotic. The Boers have also given up a lot of luggage and supplies, and are also trying to bite the British tail. But the retreat of the British was entirely a roller movement. Several cavalry were scattered. The Boers found that there were British people everywhere. They could not tell which one was the main force of the British, or the British did not have the main force. Subsidiary. So it caused some confusion when tracking.

At the same time, the Boer’s tracking speed is actually slightly slower than that of the British. In addition to the unknown target, the other side is the problem of supply. The Boers run quickly with one man and two horses, but the premise is that the supply is sufficient. , Paul has missed two supplies! Horses can only use forage to satisfy their hunger. Can horses not fed with grains and alfalfa maintain good physical strength for a long time? Obviously impossible! And if you looted the villages and towns along the way, it won't work anymore, because the villages and towns along the way have been robbed by the British themselves! The granary can starve mice to death!

The British’s efforts were not in vain. They quickly discovered the traces of the Calypto Army. After a short three-day rest, the Calyptian Army raised supplies and transported the wounded. Three days later, he The army can finally go into battle lightly, but it is a pity that after this army experienced a tough battle, the total number of casualties reached more than 700 people, in addition to 200 lightly wounded, more than 500 people were lost in the battle!

However, this is not the worst. The worst is that the mobile artillery has been exposed at this time, and it is difficult to hide it again!

The second is more~~~!