Struggle in Russia

Facts have proved that the capabilities of the coalition generals are not much better than that of the Russian army. Even though their navy has an absolute advantage and can defeat the Black Sea Fleet, their response was very slow after discovering Nakhimov's feint.

After they finished the meeting and organized the fleet to go to sea to intercept, when they arrived in the waters outside Kerch, where was Nakhimov's shadow?

After circling the local area three or four times, they found the steam clipper they were responsible for reconnaissance and tracking of the Black Sea Fleet. According to the captain's report: the Black Sea Fleet took a circle outside Kerch and sank one of their steam reconnaissance ships. Then he swaggered back to the Sea of ​​Azov.

To be honest, this situation made the coalition naval generals very confused, and they had no idea what the Black Sea Fleet was doing on this trip. You said that they couldn't hold it back and went to sea to seek a decisive battle, but they didn't go to Sevastopol at all.

You said that they work hard just to adjust the taste. Isn’t that crazy?

Just when they were confused, the Danube Fleet, which had been blocked at the mouth of the Danube River, finally slipped out of the sea as the attention of the coalition fleet was diverted.

They circled around the sea in large numbers to the other side of the Black Sea. After the coalition fleet returned to Balaklava and Kamish, they entered Kerch without any danger.

After a few days of rest, the Black Sea Fleet set out to sea again. After once again attracting the attention of the coalition navy, the Danube Fleet set out to sea again with full supplies.

Six steam boats of more than 300 tons quickly cut into the southern side of the Black Sea and plunged into the main channel of the coalition supply ships.

Soon they discovered a sailing ship with a displacement of more than 500 tons. Without saying a word, they pounced on it. After several rounds of gunfire, the merchant ship quickly raised a white flag and surrendered.

After arresting the entire crew and looting the ship of its valuable cargo, the raiding fleet scuttled the galleon.

All this was done quietly, and after the attack fleet evacuated with a full harvest, the coalition patrol ships slowly arrived at the scene.

Naturally, they found nothing and continued to move along the scheduled route without any suspicion. It was not until a week later when the port director in Balaklava reported that the supply ship did not arrive at the scheduled time to unload that the coalition forces discovered that they were doing this. A ship is missing nearby.

However, they still did not realize that this was an attack by the Russian army, but thought that their supply ship had encountered a shipwreck. After a symbolic search at sea, they declared a certain ship missing.

As for what to do after the disappearance, that is not the concern of the coalition forces. Anyway, there are insurance companies. If it fails, the Ministry of War is responsible for reparations and compensation. Does it have anything to do with them?

But they soon realized that this attitude was a huge mistake. In just ten days, they received one or two dozen missing reports one after another. Seventy-seven and eighty-eight lost more than a dozen ships and a large amount of supplies.

This dealt a huge blow to the coalition army, which was already lacking in supplies, especially the stubborn and clumsy British. Their soldiers became increasingly underfed and clothed.

But the coalition forces still didn't realize what happened. It wasn't until another week later, when their patrol ships finally encountered the Danube Fleet's attack ships attacking merchant ships, that they discovered that the Black Sea Fleet had unknowingly infiltrated behind them, and even Give them a hard blow!

But yes, it’s still a but. The coalition navy still did not take the Russian harassing fleet seriously. In their opinion, it was just a moment of negligence on their part that allowed the Russian army to take advantage of the loophole. As long as they paid attention, they could crush these sneaky Russians in minutes.

In a sense, the coalition's judgment is accurate. If they pay attention, they can indeed easily repel the Danube Fleet, but repelling is not annihilation, because the attack ships of the Danube Fleet are too fast, and their battleships and cruisers cannot catch up at all. On the battleship, the patrol steamships that could barely keep up were weak in firepower and too few in number. They really couldn't take care of the wolf-like attacking fleet.

What's more important is that the Russian army is also very cunning. It never confronts the coalition forces head-on. It always turns around and runs away when it finds something is wrong. The coalition forces can only stare blankly.

Another half month later, even though the coalition strengthened maritime patrols and protection of supply ships, four more supply ships were still sunk.

To make matters worse, the Danube Fleet also changed its tactics and went beyond attacking supply ships to infiltrate and lay mines in the main shipping lanes off Kamish and Balaclava. It sank a British battleship and a French steam frigate, forcing the coalition forces to temporarily close Kamish and Balaclava for a period of time.

Finally in March, the coalition forces could no longer endure the harassment of Russian attack ships and began to concentrate their efforts on killing them.

It’s just that the actions of the coalition navy can only be said to be loud with thunder and small with rain. Even if many raiding ships are discovered, these pesky flies disappear quickly every time the coalition fleet starts to pursue them, leaving the coalition fleet with only Ability to pay attention.

"This is crime and war avoidance, a tactic used by despicable villains!"

Newspapers in Paris and London strongly condemned the "atrocities" of the Russian fleet. In their writing, the Russian fleet was a gangster who did not abide by the rules of engagement and only bullied civilian ships. The behavior of the Russian army must be severely condemned and put on 10,000 feet!

It's just that no matter how much they scold them, it can't change the fact that they can't help the Danube Fleet. In desperation, the French and British fleets can only alternately monitor several major ports and waterways where the Russian attack fleet appears, and use the stupid method of waiting and waiting. Solve the problem.

Does this work?

It was indeed useful in a short period of time. After the British and French fleets went to block the gate respectively, the activities of the Danube Fleet were indeed greatly restricted, and the coalition's maritime supply lines were finally restored.

But, this also greatly consumed the main force of the British and French naval fleets. After all, both people and ships, especially those expensive steamships, needed maintenance. When they had to perform missions at sea for long periods of time, both morale and equipment availability plummeted.

Soon the main ships of the coalition had problems one after another and had to be sent back to the factory for repairs. As more and more ships had problems, their blockade became increasingly weak.

The situation on the Russian side is completely opposite. The previous series of successful maritime attacks not only made them a lot of money, but also brought an unprecedented surge in morale. Even if they are blocked by the coalition fleet and temporarily unable to perform their missions, the officers and soldiers are actively resting and maintaining the ships, waiting for the opportunity to continue to fight!