Chapter 1062: Smoke Rises Everywhere
Russian officers bellowed desperately, commanding their soldiers to form neat ranks, but it was impossible to restore order to tens of thousands of panicked men under a continuous artillery bombardment.
The Russian soldiers at the very front relied on their sheer grit to trade fire with the Persians, but soon, thousands of Turkmen cavalrymen swept past their flanks. The sound of bowstrings was as dense as the chirping of cicadas in summer; the cold weapons the Russians had looked down upon were now harvesting lives with an efficiency no less than that of a flintlock musket.
In less than twenty minutes, the Russian infantry began a full-scale retreat.
Gazmanov had no choice but to abandon his Cossack cavalry and turn back to organize a rearguard. However, under the repeated harassment of the Persian cavalry, he was unable to form an effective battle line.
By the time the Russian army retreated to the position of the two previous redoubts, another troop of Persian light cavalry charged in from the north, sealing off the passage that was less than a mile and a quarter wide.
Zubov, who was still waiting in the headquarters for news of a great victory, received instead a wounded messenger begging for reinforcements.
When he learned that the Persians possessed European-style heavy artillery and that Gazmanov’s legion was nearly surrounded by a force three times its size, he was instantly struck senseless with terror.
Ultimately, he left Strakhovsky to lead five thousand soldiers to support Gazmanov, while he himself retreated to Tabriz under the protection of the main central force.
However, Abbas Mirza’s prestige within the army was not particularly high, and the Persian force was essentially a patchwork assembly, leading to very low command efficiency.
The following morning, Strakhovsky fought desperately to clear the path between the two redoubts, finally allowing Gazmanov’s men to escape with their lives.
By the time they retreated to the vicinity of Mianeh, nearly sixty miles away, they finally stabilized their defensive line. The Gazmanov legion, which had originally consisted of twelve thousand soldiers, now had fewer than seven thousand remaining.
Abbas Mirza, the Persian crown prince, led his high-spirited army back to the front lines on the eastern side of Tabriz.
Meanwhile, Nikolai Bakhov, commander of the Russian Orenburg legion, was leading his troops along the Aral Sea toward the capital of Khiva.
A month and a half ago, the Bukhara army had launched a sudden raid on Khiva. At that time, Khiva’s military was almost entirely engaged on the eastern front, leaving the north completely undefended.
Coupled with the internal cooperation of the Khan of Khiva, Abu al-Ghazi Khan, Bakhov’s progress had been very smooth. He had already occupied places like Ustyurt and Kungrad, with his vanguard pointing directly at the city of Khiva itself.
Even before Bakhov’s battle was concluded, officials sent from Saint Petersburg began ordering various tribes in the occupied territories of Khiva to mobilize laborers to clear ancient irrigation systems, such as the Daudan and Kerki canals.
To make millions of hectares of land in Central Asia suitable for cotton cultivation, water would need to be diverted from the Syr Darya and Amu Darya rivers.
This promised to be an incredibly arduous undertaking.
When the news reached Tehran, Fath-Ali Shah and his ministers immediately grew anxious.
After a brief discussion, Fath-Ali Shah summoned the British special envoy. Over three months ago, Britain and Persia had signed the Tehran Trade Agreement.
On the surface, it was a trade agreement, but it contained many secret clauses, including Britain providing significant military aid and loans to Persia.
In the ancient Golestan Palace in Tehran, the Persian Vizier Karamani first briefed the British on the situation in Khiva before saying, "Mr. Malcolm, as you know, the Caspian coast is our country's most vital grain-producing region."
"If the Russians station a large number of troops in Khiva, it will threaten the region from Tabaristan to Mashhad," Karamani continued.
"At the same time, they could move south through Bukhara and expand toward Afghanistan."
When Malcolm heard the word "Afghanistan," his brow instantly furrowed.
Karamani caught his expression and went on, "His Majesty the Shah intends to mobilize the army to intercept the Russians on the northern front. It is just that His Majesty's warriors require some weapons."
Fath-Ali Shah interjected, "And military funds."
"Yes, military funds," Karamani said, looking at Malcolm with great sincerity. "Now, only the great Britain can help us."
The envoy returned to his residence and immediately began drafting a report to the Foreign Secretary, requesting an increase in aid to Persia.
Of course, this was also because Abbas Mirza had repelled the Russians at Zanjan, demonstrating their value.
***
South Africa.
The Cape of Good Hope.
Colonel Howard was commanding over two thousand British Marines in a fierce assault on the town of De Wecka.
This important town, leading into the heart of the Cape, had been occupied by Boer resistance forces for over a month, preventing all supplies from the north from reaching the port of the Cape.
Last week, the British Parliament had finally sent a reinforcement of fifteen hundred men, and the Governor of the Cape had immediately and impatiently dispatched troops to retake the small town.
After repeated shelling, British skirmishers launched a probing attack on De Wecka from three directions.
They encountered no resistance; the Boer resistance forces had clearly withdrawn long ago, and the British quickly secured the entire town.
Colonel Howard chewed on a piece of buchu sugar, turning to look at the cold and venomous glares of the town's residents, shaking his head inwardly.
Most of the people living here were Boers, but Britain currently relied on them for production, so they could not be driven out.
This meant that as soon as his troops let down their guard, the resistance would immediately return.
And there were more than a dozen towns similar to De Wecka surrounding the Cape.
If they followed the British East India Company’s plan to control the entire Cape of Good Hope territory, they would have to penetrate nearly two hundred miles inland, making it even easier for the Boer resistance to launch ambushes.
Howard sighed. "It seems I must have the Governor continue to petition Parliament for more reinforcements."
***
North Africa.
Medjana, eastern Algiers.
The Kabyle tribes had been maneuvering through the mountains against Kuloğlu’s army for over three months. At this point, they had been squeezed to the far eastern edge of Medjana, with the Tunisian border only ten miles behind them.
"Father, we have spotted Kuloğlu’s army on Mount Toso!"
His eldest son’s shout startled Bouzid Mukra out of his dejected state.
Mount Toso was directly opposite them, only half a day's journey away.
The valley to the south had long since been occupied by the Algiers army, which meant the Kabyle tribes were now cornered.
Mukra performed a solemn prayer before instructing his son and the tribal elders, "I will go and plead for mercy from Kuloğlu. You all must look after our people..."
"Father!"
"Malik!"
A group of people immediately surrounded him.
The Kabyle tribe was guilty of rebellion; Mukra would certainly be executed.
In truth, most of these tribesmen would likely not escape a similar fate.
Just then, a middle-aged man stepped out from among the clansmen and bowed to Mukra with his hand over his chest. "Respected Malik, you can lead your people to retreat into Annaba."
The leader frowned instantly. "Who are you? That is the territory of the Tunisians."
"No, that is the home of all 'Romans,'" the middle-aged man said with a smile. "I am Rum Ferhad. I am here to offer you assistance on behalf of His Excellency, the Duke of Tunisia."
Comments