North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 262 Beware of Tricks...!
"Even if we encounter reinforcements from the Sioux cavalry, my independent cavalry brigade is absolutely confident of victory!"

Youma's confidence stemmed from the cavalry brigade's powerful weaponry and the formidable combat capabilities of his soldiers.

Azu, of course, had the same confidence in his cavalry.

However, he still made thorough arrangements: "Allen, in the name of the Western Command of the United States, issue orders to the Northwest Command and the Southwest Command."

Edgar Allan Poe quickly picked up a pen and paper to take notes.

Azu said in a deep voice: "Order the Northwest and Southwest Commands to assemble all cavalry and ranger units and make all preparations for battle by the end of March 1853!"

The total number of troops stationed in the entire western United States was less than 30,000.

In order to control the vast western region as much as possible, both the Northwest and Southwest Commands possessed a considerable number of cavalry units.

The two headquarters together had a combined force of seven thousand cavalry.

With the addition of the California Independent Cavalry Brigade, the number of cavalrymen has exceeded 12,000.

Although the American cavalry was far less powerful than the California cavalry brigade, they were still capable of fighting against the Native Americans.

With this cavalry force of 12,000 men, even if they couldn't sweep across the entire West, they would have a huge advantage against any Native American tribe, and there would be almost no possibility of defeat.

Edgar Allan Poe noted down Azu's orders and continued, "Boss, are there any other orders?"

Azu pondered for a moment and said, "Issue orders to all states to prepare sufficient supplies, and the National Guard and militia of each state must also be ready for combat by the end of March."

"We may not need these National Guard and militia members to fight on the battlefield, but we do need them to transport logistical supplies."

The reason for choosing to do so after the end of March is that from November to the end of March or the beginning of April of the following year, it is both winter and rainy season in the west.

In this cold and damp season, it is clearly not suitable for combat, especially for long-distance raids by cavalry units.

Azu continued, "Especially Wyoming, which is the region most likely to see large-scale battles. Therefore, it is imperative to require Wyoming to prepare all necessary food and supplies in advance."

"If there are any problems with food and supplies, don't blame me for turning my back on you!"

“Understood, Boss!” Edgar Allan Poe replied after recording the command.

Azu then turned to look at Youma and said, "By the end of March, our independent cavalry brigade will be able to complete its expansion and training."

"But even so, we must not underestimate our enemy."

"You Ma, Ellen, Colonel Robert E. Lee, Shi Dakai, and Feng Zicai, you are responsible for leading the staff to develop a detailed battle plan. Ensure that this battle achieves the greatest victory at the lowest cost!"

"Yes, sir!!"

The people who received the task stood up and responded almost simultaneously.

Azu then added, "If we can subdue the enemy without fighting, that would be the best!"

"Whether we fight or not, the purpose of this battle is to establish California's absolute prestige among all the western Indian tribes."

“If our fists aren’t strong enough, no one will listen to what we say.”

"Whether it's Native Americans or any other adversary, carrots alone are not enough; only by adding the stick can you be truly persuasive."

Azu then changed the subject: "For those Native American tribes that are willing to accept the conditions, we must also fulfill our promises."

"This matter will be handled by your government office, Ellen."

“No problem, Boss!” Edgar Allan Poe replied.

……

After explaining the situation with the Native Americans, Azu changed the subject.

"The port of Colon in the Caribbean was severely damaged after the Panama War."

"After more than a year of intensive renovations, Cologne has been fully restored to the full functions of an important port."

Azu pondered for a moment and said, "I think it's necessary for us to deploy a fleet in the port of Colón!"

As soon as he spoke, everyone fell silent, waiting for his instructions.

Azu continued, "The purpose of this fleet is twofold: first, to eliminate pirates in the Caribbean Sea and protect important sea routes."

"Secondly, if the North and South armies go to war in the future, it will be very necessary to have a naval force belonging to us in the Atlantic Ocean. In critical moments, it may even play an unexpected role."

"Third, our ties with Europe are becoming increasingly close."

"Whether it's arms trade or ordinary commodity trade, Europe is both an important source of goods for us and an important sales market."

Azu added, "Last year, the value of all the goods we sold in the European market, including penicillin and weapons, exceeded $150 million... That Jones kid is doing a good job in Europe!"

"Europe will become increasingly important to us in the future. Having a fleet in the Atlantic is absolutely essential to protecting our interests in Europe!"

"At the same time, Huamei Shipping Company will also set up a branch in the port of Colón, and deploy a portion of its merchant ships there long-term, mainly running routes to the East and Europe...!"

Upon hearing this, everyone exchanged bewildered glances.

Has the boss's vision already reached that far? Are they already preparing to extend their reach to distant Europe?
Azu continued, "Therefore, our fleet stationed in Cologne must take on multiple tasks, and its size cannot be too small."

"I propose that our Coast Guard's Atlantic Fleet be formed by two Guangzhou-class armored cruisers, leading six armored frigates and about ten offshore gunboats, and proceed to Cologne as soon as possible for a long-term deployment!"

Currently, the Coast Guard fleet has a total of four fast steam armored cruisers: the lead ship "Guangzhou", as well as "Guilin", "Fuzhou" and "Hangzhou".

Then came sixteen fast steam armored frigates of 1,500 tons each, the lead ship being the "Taishan," hence the name Taishan-class.

The majority of these were 500-ton-class coastal fast gunboats, numbering more than twenty. The lead ship, the "Panyu," was thus named the Panyu-class.

Coast Guard Fleet Commander Vic said in a deep voice, "Boss, this is about half the strength of our Coast Guard Fleet...!"

“Yes…!” Azu nodded and said, “In the near future, we are unlikely to have any rivals in the Pacific region, let alone any major crises.”

"On the contrary, the situation we face in the Atlantic is more complex and more unpredictable."

"Therefore, the size of this fleet cannot be small, otherwise it will be unable to demonstrate our strength and protect our interests in the Atlantic."

Azu pondered for a moment and said, "Moreover, I anticipate that I will travel to Europe again this year...!"

"Going to Europe again...?"

“Yes!” Azu nodded and said, “Regarding the acquisition of Alaska, in my judgment, I must personally go to Tsarist Russia, to St. Petersburg, to negotiate with Tsar Nicholas I personally…!”

“We made an offer to acquire Alaska last April, and eight or nine months have passed since then. The Tsar should have received our offer by now.”

"Given the current situation in Europe, the contradictions between Tsarist Russia, which pursues territorial expansionism and imperial chauvinism, and countries such as Britain, France, Turkey, and Austria have become largely public."

"With the joint pressure from Britain, France, Turkey, Austria and other countries, war was imminent for Tsarist Russia."

"That is why Alaska, which was far from Tsarist Russia but close to the British Canadian colony, was in a precarious situation."

"Therefore, I judge that His Majesty the Tsar will agree to our offer to acquire Alaska. But he will invite me to go to St. Petersburg in person to negotiate."

"In order to secure Alaska and expand our customer base in Russia, I will most likely have to travel to St. Petersburg in person this year."

At this point, Azu couldn't help but smile slightly: "Perhaps, Tsarist Russia will become another major arms customer of ours...!"

Historically, the Crimean War, which broke out in October of this year, was the largest international war to break out in Europe since Napoleon.

Britain, France, Turkey, and the Kingdom of Sardinia sent a total of over one million soldiers, while Tsarist Russia also deployed nearly one million troops.

The two sides fought a bloody war for more than two years, resulting in the loss of over a million young lives, and ultimately ended in the defeat of Tsarist Russia.

After this battle, Tsarist Russia lost vast tracts of foreign territory that it had gradually annexed over the years, suffering a crushing defeat in Eastern Europe.

For this reason, Tsarist Russia turned its aggressive gaze toward the Far East and toward China.

Less than three years after the end of this war, Tsarist Russia took advantage of the Second Opium War to force the Qing Dynasty to sign the Treaty of Aigun and the Treaty of Beijing.

Taking advantage of the situation, Tsarist Russia swallowed up a large area of ​​Chinese territory north of the Heilongjiang River, south of the Outer Khingan Mountains, and east of the Ussuri River, including Sakhalin Island, with a total area of ​​more than 150 million square kilometers.

……

This time, Azu decided to support Tsarist Russia, so that this land-greedy country would fight fiercely with Britain and France in the Crimean War, leaving it with no time to turn its attention to the East.

Even if the Tsarist Russian Empire turned its attention to the East, to China, within a few years, Azu would have the means and the power to destroy all their greedy ambitions.
-
Time flies since that important meeting at the beginning of the year.

In April 1853, under the command and deployment of Azu, the commander of the American Western Command, the California National Guard Independent Cavalry Brigade, after completing its expansion and training, set off from San Francisco under the command of Yuma, Rock, and others, to launch an expedition against Wyoming and the Cheyenne Indians.

This was a massive cavalry force of over five thousand men, including four thousand cavalrymen and over a thousand artillery and supply troops.

The straight-line distance from San Francisco to Wyoming is over 700 miles, but the actual trekking distance exceeds 1,000 miles.

In an era without highways or railways, crossing such a long distance by land was an exceptionally arduous expedition from any perspective.

Therefore, each soldier in this unit was equipped with an average of five horses!
These 20,000-plus horses included 10,000 warhorses and over 15,000 packhorses, as well as hundreds of supply wagons.

Meanwhile, Azu arranged logistical support for the state governments along the way, with militias and National Guard troops from each state joining in gradually.

These militia and National Guard units were primarily responsible for the logistical support of this force. Meanwhile, two other cavalry units, belonging to the Southwest Command and the Western Command respectively, also set off around the same time.

Each of the cavalry units under these two headquarters had three to four thousand men, and they were also equipped with a large number of logistics and supply personnel.

Three cavalry units, like three sharp swords, plunged straight into Wyoming, a thousand miles away!

……

After this period of continuous contact with various Native American tribes throughout the West, the frequent Native American conflicts in the West have shown a tendency to gradually subside.

However, several large tribes, led by the Sioux, Apache, Comanche, and Cheyenne, completely rejected Azu's generous terms of amnesty and continued their raids on various towns in the west.

If the carrot-and-stick approach doesn't work on them, then Azu won't mind wielding the stick!
Through this battle, he wanted to establish his authority over all the western Indian tribes!

……

In May 1853, after a long journey of nearly a month, the independent cavalry brigade led by the siblings Yoma and Rock finally entered Wyoming.

Once inside Wyoming, the Independent Cavalry Brigade did not wait for the other two cavalry units, but immediately accelerated and rushed straight to the Cheyenne tribe's settlement with lightning speed.

The Xiayan tribe, with a population of nearly 10,000, was divided into several small tribes. The main tribal territory was precisely the Fenhe Basin, which was richest in coal resources.

With the equipment and training level of the independent cavalry brigade, the various small tribes of the Cheyenne tribe had almost no chance to fight back.

The independent cavalry brigade swept through the area, and in just over ten days, it almost completely wiped out the Xiayan tribe!
The remaining Cheyenne tribes, in utter panic, retreated eastward into the Sioux territory in South Dakota.

This is the core territory occupied by the Sioux, the most powerful of all North American Indian tribes.

As allies of the Sioux, the remaining Cheyenne tribes naturally sought help from the Sioux as they retreated into South Dakota.

Upon learning of the attack on their ally, the Cheyenne tribe, the Sioux quickly organized a powerful Indian army of nearly 10,000 men.

Meanwhile, two cavalry units from the Southwest and Northwest Commands arrived in Wyoming one after the other and joined forces with the Independent Cavalry Brigade.

The three cavalry units together numbered over 10,000 cavalrymen, along with a logistics and supply force of up to 5,000 men.

With the addition of militia and National Guard troops that joined them along the way, the total number of this force has reached approximately 18,000.

The Su tribe, along with the defeated Xiayan tribe, had more than 10,000 cavalrymen!
Ultimately, the two cavalry armies engaged in an unprecedented decisive cavalry battle on the vast plains at the western foot of Black Mountain, the sacred mountain of the Su tribe!

……

1853 5 Month 21 Day.

The sky was just beginning to lighten, and the thin morning mist had not yet completely dissipated!

Yuma, who hadn't removed his armor for several days and whose face was weathered, slowly put down the binoculars in his hand.

The ghost horse, riding on its back, addressed the Blackfoot Clan war chieftain beside it, its own brother, and Blood Eagle on the other side, saying in a deep voice, "If we're talking about cavalry alone, this is almost a decisive battle with evenly matched forces!"

"However, we must make full use of the advantages of machine guns and artillery to inflict maximum damage on the enemy on the other side!"

Boulder clenched his fist and excitedly replied, "Sis, just tell me, how should we fight this battle? I'll listen to you!"

Youma continued, "Brother, Blood Eagle, you each lead an independent cavalry brigade and hide in the woods on the north and south sides of the plain."

"Wait for my signal, then flank the Sioux and Chayen cavalry from the north and south respectively, from the rear...!"

Faced with this unprecedented scene, Jushi felt his blood boiling, and the war genes buried in his blood by his ancestors were rapidly reviving!

But Jushi barely suppressed his impulse and asked, "Sister, we've taken the Independent Cavalry Brigade, so what about the front line?"

"Hehe!" Youma chuckled softly: "Leave the machine gun and artillery battalions to the front... I will leave two cavalry units from the Southwest Command and the Northwest Command to protect our flanks!"

As he spoke, Youma smiled at his older brother and said, "Don't worry! No matter how brave and skilled the Su and Xiayan cavalry are, they will never be able to break through our machine gun and artillery lines from the front!"

"Our flanks are protected by two cavalry units, one from the southwest and the other from the northwest!"

"Behind our machine gun and artillery battalions are the supply train, as well as thousands of militia and National Guard troops from various states. Even if the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes have cavalry lying in ambush and launch a surprise attack from the rear, they can hold them off for a while in phalanx formations!"

Youma said with unwavering confidence, "Therefore, we are certain of victory in this battle!"

After a moment's thought, Jushi nodded and said, "Then, sister, please be careful... If anything happens to you, I won't be able to explain it to your husband!"

Youma smoothed her hair behind her ear, then put the helmet on her head, and smiled at her brother: "My men all have confidence in me and trust me to lead the troops into battle. Do you think my brother doesn't have confidence in me?"

"Hehe...!" Boulder scratched the back of his head and chuckled憨厚ly, "That's true...!"

……

Moments later, Boulder and Blood Eagle each led a cavalry force of two thousand men, and under the cover of the fog, they quickly disappeared from the battlefield.

As the sun rose high in the sky, the thin fog on the battlefield completely dissipated, and the two sides could clearly see their respective opponents from afar.

Through Youma's telescope, two or three thousand yards away, countless Indian riders, like densely packed ants, formed a long battle line a thousand yards long.

Many of these Native American knights carried Minié rifles secretly produced by the Huamei Armory.

But most of them still used traditional bows and arrows and spears!

It wasn't that the secret agents hadn't given them enough Minié rifles; rather, most of the Minié rifles had run out of ammunition since Azu cut off the arms supply.

Now, the limited ammunition is concentrated in the hands of a small number of elite Sioux and Cheyenne archers.

This weapon, capable of accurately taking the lives of enemy soldiers from four or five hundred yards away, is extremely important to the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes.

This is one of the reasons why they dare to rebel against white people and against America!

But for Yuma, even the Mini Gun was just an outdated weapon that had long been obsolete.

The current Independent Cavalry Brigade, in addition to each soldier being equipped with an HM1849 short-barreled carbine, also has each soldier equipped with an HM1852 breech-loading high-powered revolver.

Moreover, each cavalryman was equipped with a large number of hand grenades, as well as the sabers essential for cavalry, making them armed to the teeth.

Not to mention the more than one hundred HM1851 water-cooled heavy machine guns, nearly one hundred 81mm mortars, and dozens of 75mm infantry guns that were deployed early on the front.

This is a crushing battle of firepower and weaponry, definitely not a fair fight as it appears on the surface!

After clearly seeing the opposing cavalry line and their equipment, Youma couldn't help but let out a slow sigh.

"According to my husband, if you don't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences!" Youma sighed. "Why don't you learn from our Blackfoot tribe, follow my husband, and live a peaceful and happy life?"

"Hopefully, you'll face reality soon and surrender, so fewer people will die...!"

Despite leading a vast army, Youma was still a woman after all.

Deep down, she still felt a slight pang of reluctance to personally slaughter these tens of thousands of Native Americans.

Despite her reluctance, she still skillfully deployed her troops.

As she issued her orders, the two cavalry units, belonging to the Southwest and Northwest Commands respectively, formed neat cavalry formations on both sides of the front.

Behind them, more than 5,000 supply trains, state militia, and National Guard troops, along with hundreds of horse-drawn carriages, began to form several thousand-person square formations.

These thousand-strong formations surrounded hundreds of wagons on the outskirts, thus preventing a direct attack by the Native American cavalry.

Inside the wagon, the thousand-man phalanx held thousands of HM49 rifles and a variety of other rifles, enough to hold off the Indian cavalry for a considerable time.

Furthermore, the thousand-man formation also possessed a large number of grenades. In close combat, these high-explosive grenades were the ultimate solution.

Yuma commanded his troops, who stood ready and awaited the Indian cavalry's customary charge.

……

Meanwhile, two or three thousand yards away on the other side, the combined forces of the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes were also on high alert.

Hongyun, who commanded this crucial battle, was only thirty-two years old. He was extremely strong, brave, and warlike, and was the most famous warmongering leader among the Su tribe.

The previous raids on white towns were mostly led and directed by Hongyun himself.

Although Hongyun was a veteran of many battles, this was the first time in his life that he had commanded such a large-scale battle with thousands of troops!
Therefore, at this moment, Hongyun was trembling slightly with excitement.

Beside Hongyun, a young Indian warrior, barely eleven or twelve years old, was observing the opposing camp with a somber and calm expression.

"Uncle Hongyun, something seems very wrong with the formation opposite us...!"

The young Native American boy, whose face still looked quite youthful and whose head was adorned with the iconic Sioux feather, said in a deep voice, "The opposing side has deployed heavy cavalry on the left and right flanks, but has left the front wide open!"

"Their front was so thin that it was visible to the naked eye that there were at most a thousand soldiers."

"And behind these thousand soldiers were the white army's vital artillery positions...!"

“This arrangement is just too strange!” the Indian boy continued. “In the previous war with the whites, they would have protected the most important artillery positions, and the defenses on the front of the war would have been extremely thick.”

"But now they've set up such a strange formation; it's probably a trap...!"

(End of this chapter)