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Volume 3 Far East Story Chapter 731 (2) Catch the opponent by surprise

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    Such a German infantry company in 1918 also had 126 combatants, including about 140 people in the company headquarters squad, about 560 infantrymen in a battalion, about 600 people in the battalion platoon, and motorized vehicles.  Platoon and heavy machine gun company (administered three 2-gun heavy machine gun platoons, a battalion has a strength of about 700 people, an infantry regiment has more than 2100 combat soldiers, and an infantry division has a total strength of about 12600 combat soldiers.  .

    The 139th German Reserve Infantry Regiment is the main regiment of the 47th Infantry Division. It also has 3 infantry battalions. Adding the strength of the division's reconnaissance battalion, von Neuhaus's total strength during the attack that night reached 3,000 people!  For this attack, the German-Ukrainian Allied Forces Command transferred back the artillery regiment of the 3rd Ukrainian Infantry Division from the position of the 3rd Ukrainian Infantry Division fifteen kilometers east of Kharkiv in the evening!  The forest and night became the best cover. It was actually very dark after the sun set. The Ukrainian artillerymen, who were familiar with the road terrain, used German-made military trucks to tow cannons.

    After being intercepted by anti-aircraft artillery and mgo8 machine gun anti-aircraft fire at low altitude, the coalition's dh4 reconnaissance aircraft apparently increased its flight altitude over "Kharkov" from the afternoon, which improved the air force's reconnaissance and resolution capabilities for ground targets.  When the Ukrainian artillery regiment returned, all the vehicles quietly slipped back into the city along the forest road from the bridge over the Kharkiv River in the east of the city without turning on their lights.

    Von Neuhaus took the risk and decided to transfer the artillery regiment of the 3rd Ukrainian Infantry Division back to Kharkov just for the counterattack that night. The artillery was used to block the enemy's reinforcements and pursuers, and of course, to suppress the enemy.  Regarding the artillery position, von Neuhaus did not plan to win the battle by chance. It was absolutely unreliable to expect that after the artillery of the federal infantry division of the coalition was lost, the coalition forces on the front-facing position had not been able to replenish the artillery troops and participate in the battle.

    Although the engineers of the German-Ukrainian coalition destroyed more than 30 and nearly 40 kilometers of railways and roads from the first line of defense near the border to Kharkov during their retreat, they could not be looked at. As long as there are enough engineers and materials,  Materials, I believe that the coalition forces can repair the railways, fill in the big holes in the roads, and continuously transport cannons to the front line.

    Japan's Third Division at least"has a du1i field heavy artillery regiment and a field artillery regiment, with a total of at least 60 cannons. Of course, the Ukrainian Simon Petliura also suggested  Why not attack the middle?  Since it is possible for the enemy to transport artillery to the front line along railways and highways, wouldn't it be appropriate for us to counterattack in the middle and intercept the enemy's artillery positions?

    Hearing this, the German Major General smiled and said nothing. Simon Petliura asked for a long time before von Neuhaus confidently gave the Ukrainian Prime Minister some advice:

    "Your Excellency, Prime Minister, if my judgment is correct, after the enemy arrives at the city and repairs the railway line, the opponent's main force will be concentrated in the middle. If we sneak attack in the middle of the night, we may just run into the superior enemy. What's more,  I personally regard the artillery troops as treasures at the bottom of the box. It is hard for me to believe that the opponent does not have heavy protection in front of the artillery positions! "

    As a result, the Kikuchi Brigade northwest of Kharkov became the target of the German counterattack in the middle of the night. The division reconnaissance battalion of the 47th Reserve Infantry Division, under the command of the battalion commander Major Heit Westerman, served as the front line of the counterattack force.  1917 Chapter 731 (Two hits, one caught off guard.) On the left wing of the reconnaissance battalion is the 2nd Infantry Battalion led by Major David Yarolim, and on the right is the regimental commander Denis von Dicko  Colonel Meyer led Major Zelen Beltaram's 3rd Infantry Battalion.

    Division Commander von Neuhaus, together with Lieutenant Colonel Kevin von Dixol, Chief of Staff of the 139th Infantry Regiment, commanded the 1st Infantry Battalion led by Major Garneko Sternberg as the general reserve force.  At the back, in the city of Kharkiv, Major Denis Oger, commander of the medium artillery battalion of the 47th German Reserve Infantry Division, commanded the remaining five 15omm heavy field howitzers of the battalion and the 3rd Ukrainian Infantry Division.  Three 75mm Krupp field artillery battalions and one 1o5mm howitzer battalion provide fire support.

    In this counterattack, in order to strengthen the coordination of infantry and artillery, von Neuhaus specially arranged a communication service platoon of German soldiers to directly pull the telephone line from the left wing of the Khakkov ring defense line to follow his headquarters and provide support.  The position has wired telephone communications, so it is said that von Neuhaus went out of the city to counterattack with 4 elite German infantry battalions, but the fire support behind them was a total of 5 150mm heavy howitzers, 12 1o5mm howitzers and 36  The 75mm "Beiyang 1917" Lupp field gun is much more powerful in terms of firepower than during the day!

    On this dark and windy night of the month, among the many teams on both sides of the war, whether it was the coalition forces on the offensive side or the Ukrainian volunteer division on the defensive side, they were all exhausted after fighting all day and night. However, only those who had been stationed in Har were exhausted.  The 139th German Infantry Regiment on the southern outskirts of Kovov is the new force waiting to be worked. This is why Neuhaus refused to let the Ukrainian Volunteer Infantry Division transfer a regiment or even a brigade to participate in the counterattack.

    German Major General Simon Petliura and his Ukrainian volunteer infantrymen¡¯s onlyThe requirement is that when the German counterattack ends and retreats, the 2nd Brigade of the 1st Division of Ukrainian Volunteers can hold the circular defense line in the north of the city, and do not let the eager coalition forces rush into the city of Kharkov chasing their butts!

    Von Neuhaus calculated very clearly that when the Allied Air Force had absolute superiority in the air during the day, night fighting was the defender's only option before regaining air supremacy. It was impossible for forests to be used as camouflage and protective umbrellas everywhere.  It is impossible that the "Entertainment Show" biplane SE5 flying overhead every time instead of the coalition bomber group. Kharkiv's temporary anti-aircraft firepower is almost useless against the coalition bomber group that bombs at medium altitudes, but the anti-aircraft artillery position  and machine gun positions are easily exhausted by the opponent's air raids.

    As the former enemy commander-in-chief of the German-Ukrainian Allied Forces and the commander of the 29th German Infantry Corps, General Hermann von Francois's confidant and favorite general, the main division commander, if Neuhaus had a complete German army in his hands at this moment,  If he prepares the 47th Infantry Division, then he might not dare to attack in the middle to catch the opponent off guard, once again preemptively destroy the opponent's artillery position, and even annihilate a federal infantry division or a Japanese infantry regiment!  !
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