Struggle in Russia

In just a few minutes, the Nikolay Bastion and the Vorontsov Bastion were filled with corpses. The Russian army, the British army and the French army were mixed together. After each charge, another layer of corpses was left behind, and the last layer was piled one on top of another. On the second floor, both sides stepped on the bodies of dead and wounded soldiers and continued to fight until the battlefield turned into a mountain of corpses!

Vyazmitinov, who participated in this battle, later told his friends: "The corpses under our feet were covered with blood, and the air was filled with a thick layer of blood mist. We couldn't see where the enemy was at all. The only thing we could do was The best thing is to shoot in the direction where the enemy may be in the blood mist."

The French and British troops came in a steady stream, killing them all, while the Russian troops opened fire like crazy. You can see the British and French troops running forward along the trenches like crazy, with shotguns whizzing in their ears. Pass. From time to time along the way, you can meet injured soldiers and officers retreating. The closer you get to the Russian position, the more people are being carried down!

The ditch and the slope in front of the parapet were crowded with follow-up troops from the British and French armies. They could not move forward one step because the parapet above had been blocked. The fighting between the officers and soldiers of both sides made it impossible for follow-up reinforcements from both sides to approach.

The brutal hand-to-hand combat made both sides red-blooded. Soldiers from both sides fought repeatedly around every parapet, obstacle and fortification.

The battle lasted for a full hour, until the British and French troops on the breastworks of the bastion could no longer hold on. After they retreated, the Russian artillery fire was finally able to resume its power, and overwhelming cannonballs began to bombard the British and French troops in front of the breastworks and in the trenches. Army soldier.

Finally, the morale of the coalition forces collapsed. The soldiers huddled in the trench no longer ignored the officers' orders and turned around and ran away!

Suddenly the coalition front was in chaos. The follow-up reinforcements and the hastily escaping forwards collided head-on and trampled on each other.

The coalition officers realized that the situation was not good. They drew their swords and beat the deserters desperately, trying to stop them from escaping, but with little effect!

The reason is that most of these frightened soldiers are reservists and have never participated in combat before. Naturally, they cannot be compared with the determined veterans of the past.

Soon the rout turned into a wildly spreading infectious disease, and almost all coalition forces on the front line

The soldiers were all infected, and this trend caused greater chaos, so much so that Pelissier had to terminate all plans for the day in advance - the coalition's general offensive failed again!

This short-lasting general offensive cost the coalition forces about 20,000 people, including 15,000 French troops and 5,000 British troops, while the Russian army also paid the price of about 7,000 wounded.

It can be said that this was the day with the heaviest losses for both sides since the war began. In the words of reporters who witnessed this bloody battle - the blood has been drained on this day!

It was a particularly huge blow to the coalition forces. They had made sufficient preparations, fired so many artillery shells, and invested so many soldiers.

The result still failed to shake the Russian defense line. This gave them the idea that Sevastopol could not be captured.

Of course, Sevastopol is certainly not impossible to capture. In fact, the coalition's general offensive almost achieved its goal. If it weren't for the Russian army's desperate counterattack without fear of death, the defense line of Inkelman Mountain would have fallen, and Sevastopol would really have become a turtle in the urn at that time.

Even so, the situation of the Russian army that was lucky to win was not too good. The cost of more than 7,000 casualties was too high. It can almost be said that the defenders of Nikolay Bastion and Vorontsov Bastion were replaced by two. All over, the battle fatality rate of the troops originally stationed in the bastion was as high as 50%.

Kornilov put in almost all the reserves he had on hand to barely hold the position.

It's just that the position was defended, but the position was also changed beyond recognition by the fierce battle! The previously mighty and tall bastion was riddled with holes by the coalition's artillery fire, and a few walls collapsed and turned into powder.

The two bastions were littered with corpses. The corpses of oneself and the enemy were stacked together and could not be moved. Some were even turned into pulp by artillery fire from both sides.

The ground of the two bastions and the nearby soil were dyed red. When the sun shone, a disgusting stench spread everywhere, which was simply irritating to the eyes.

After Kornilov personally inspected the two bastions, he found that the two bastions were almost destroyed, and the remaining fortifications could no longer withstand the artillery fire.

It's no different than letting them die.

But if the defense line on Inkelman Mountain is abandoned, it means that the door of Sevastopol will be wide open, and the enemy will face the south port area of ​​​​Sevastopol. At that time, the situation in the city will be even worse.

What's more, without the Inkelmann Mountain defense line, Sevastopol's aqueduct will definitely be cut off by the coalition forces, and drinking water will be a problem for the entire city.

Even though Li Xiao had reminded him before to dig more wells and build reservoirs, so few wells and reservoirs simply could not meet the needs of the entire city.

Kornilov was in a dilemma for a while. Although giving up the Inkelman Hill position could avoid some sacrifices, it would make them more passive in the overall situation. And if he continues to defend the Inkermann Mountain defense line, it is a bottomless pit. With the strength and firepower of the coalition forces, he can continue to attack without stopping, uu reading; until he is exhausted.

The Inkelmann Mountain defense line has now become completely useless, leaving him in a dilemma. After pondering for a long time, he ordered most of the troops stationed in Nikolay Bastion and Vorontsov Bastion to withdraw, leaving only a few forces to contain the coalition forces.

He also ordered the diversionary troops to lay out mines or booby traps as much as possible, and even pile explosives in underground gun-proof holes. Once he made up his mind to abandon the two bastions,

Leave nothing to the enemy!

In addition, Kornilov also wrote a long letter to Nicholas I. In the letter, he bluntly told the iron-headed tsar that Sevastopol would fall sooner or later. It can hold on for three months to half a year. If it cannot open up the situation on other battlefields, then the fall of Sevastopol will cause an extremely huge blow to Russia.

He reminded Nicholas I that he must make early preparations so as to minimize the adverse effects of the fall of Sevastopol. In the end, he told Nicholas I in an extremely tragic manner that if he did not agree to the surrender of Sevastopol, then he would fight to the end. pinterest

It’s just that Kornilov didn’t know that Nicholas I would not be able to read his letter. Almost at the same time that he wrote the letter, Nicholas I, who was far away in St. Petersburg, was already seriously ill. This extremely proud and extremely confident man The Tsar is about to usher in the last moments of his life...