I am the prince of the Ming Dynasty, I don't give up

Chapter 617 Military Reform Achievements
The fighting on the battlefield continues.

There were bursts of white smoke between the two armies, and the sound of firecrackers was continuous. The six-pound shells fired by the Northern Army's eight-pound cannon had great destructive power on the rammed earth walls in the village, and the Southern Army lined up in the ruins was constantly hit. These Baoyi who did not have much combat experience were highly nervous, and many of their grassroots officers did not have much experience either. Facing the continuous musket shooting from the other side, their spirits became more and more tense, and the screams around them gradually increased. Many soldiers had dry mouths and shaking hands.

The reason they haven't collapsed now is that the rigorous training in daily life has made them afraid to run away, and there is a supervision team behind them.

After another round of violent attacks by eight-pound shells, the first Confederate soldier finally couldn't bear it anymore and fired a flintlock. The Confederate soldiers, whose nerves had long been tense, opened fire one after another, and the Little Rock Village was like a boiling pot. The flashes of fire were connected, and the southern edge of the Little Rock Village was submerged in a cloud of white smoke.

Not only did the soldiers in the front row open fire, but the soldiers in the back row also pulled the trigger, because only in this way could they vent their emotions.
More than 20 Union soldiers were hit and fell to the ground, while others crouched down to avoid the most intensive shooting and then stood up to shoot. During the shooting, the Union troops defending the edge of Xiaoshi Village were shrouded in white smoke. At the same time, they were continuously fired at by six artillery pieces, and the subsequent shooting became more and more scattered. The attacking Union army only used more than 300 soldiers to cause great chaos to the Union generals' carefully arranged defense line.

The skirmisher tactics were part of the results of Zhu Houxuan's preparations for war and military reforms over the past three years.

Zhu Houxuan devoted all his efforts to the effort for three years, which was neither long nor short. At the beginning, Zhu Houxuan increased the investment in infantry weapons, hoping to achieve a breakthrough in this regard, but in the end he failed to do so.

After the development of the musket to the flintlock, every progress required too much technology. Zhu Houxuan wanted to develop a breech-loading musket, but found that there was no time. If he wanted to mass-produce breech-loading muskets, he needed to make great progress in metal smelting, precision manufacturing, and even the chemical industry before he could produce them.
The Royal Group can now produce some breech-loading rifles on a small scale, but the cost is very high and there is no possibility of large-scale equipment.
However, the Royal Group still mastered some musket technologies, such as rifling technology. The Royal Group used this technology to produce a number of rifled flintlock rifles. The trajectory of this type of flintlock rifle was more stable and the shooting was more accurate, but the production cost was also quite high, so there was no large-scale equipment. Now only some elite troops are equipped with muzzle-loading rifled rifles.

However, Zhu Houxuan did not place all his hopes on breakthroughs in musket technology; reforms in the military system and military tactics were also top priorities.

The skirmisher tactic was part of the result of the tactical reform. Skirmishers were also equipped with muzzle-loading rifles. With this more accurate musket, skirmishers often tried to target enemy officers during combat.
At this time in Europe, skirmisher warfare had not yet become popular. This type of skirmisher warfare required higher quality from soldiers and grassroots officers. In European professional armies or mercenaries, officers often had to worry about soldiers deserting the team, and all those who left the team would be severely punished. Therefore, skirmisher tactics could not be implemented in Europe at this time. All warring parties strongly emphasized the importance of infantry formations and volleys. Even the Prussian army in the early eighteenth century could only fight under the strict restrictions of the team, because Frederick was worried that once the team requirements were relaxed, the soldiers he recruited would become deserters, so it was even more impossible to use skirmisher tactics in the Prussian army.

In the Northern Army, this skirmisher tactic had been widely practiced and served as a barrier before the main force engaged in battle. During the attack, it could often disrupt the opponent's rhythm at a relatively low cost. The Southern Army received the infantry drill manual of the Guards two years ago, when there was no skirmisher tactic at all. At this time, the skirmisher tactic of the Guards became more mature after a series of small-scale battles.

Guo Xun looked at the chaotic Xiaoshi Village from afar, and his heart was heavy. According to his training standards, the soldiers in Xiaoshi Village actually performed quite well. It was a very good performance for a team of more than 4,000 people to hold out for so long without chaos under the bombardment of artillery and the continuous shooting of more than 300 scattered soldiers.
What made him even more depressed was that he felt that the Southern Army's tactics had begun to lag behind.

Moreover, this battle made him feel the difference in quality between the Confederate Army and the Union Army. He felt that the soldiers of the Confederate Army were too rigid. He did not think this was a problem before, but rather an advantage. Rigid soldiers were more able to endure casualties and execute orders. However, this battle gave him a loud slap in the face.
The Northern Army soldiers were very proactive in this battle. They were full of fighting spirit, flexible and adaptable. They firmly grasped the rhythm of the battle, and the rigid Southern Army could only passively take the beating.

Guo Xun didn't know how the Northern Army trained such scattered soldiers, but he knew that he couldn't train such proactive soldiers.
He also discovered early on that neat and dense formations could more easily maintain the morale and courage of the soldiers, making them braver and more tolerant of casualties. Dense formations also helped to unleash the firepower of flintlock rifles. He and Frederick had the same understanding on this point.

The skirmishers were completely against this point. With such a scattered battle line, the soldiers would soon lose their courage. Moreover, the Northern Army clearly gave the skirmishers extremely high combat authority, allowing them to make flexible maneuvers and even crawl.
The most important thing is that the skirmisher's fighting style and purpose are completely dancing on the edge of a knife, which is very dangerous.
In this battle, more than 300 scattered soldiers were shooting at the Confederate troops in the ruins of the village from a distance of 70 steps. There were more than 4,000 Confederate troops in the ruins of the village, and 3,000 to 4,000 loaded flintlock rifles were pointed at them. Anyone who saw the densely packed black muzzles would be frightened.
The purpose of the skirmishers was to induce the enemy to fire. At a distance of seventy steps, the power of the flintlock rifle was still very large. They might be directly riddled with bullets.
Their behavior is like putting their head in the tiger's mouth and then teasing the tiger's nose with a feather, for fear that the tiger will not get angry.
Soldiers who can do this need strong combat and military qualities.
Guo Xun could already imagine what would happen if he put the elite Southern Army he trained into the position of skirmishers.
(End of this chapter)