Russian fighters in the memories of opponents

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

Otto von Bismarck once remarked: "Never fight the Russians." Presumably the Chancellor knew what he was talking about. History knows many battles with the participation of Russian troops, and after each such battle, the archives of military leaders, representatives of the officer corps of our opponents, were replenished with new memories and memoirs about the heroism of Russian soldiers and officers.

Russian-French War of 1812

This war remained in the memory of the French soldiers, and then in their memoirs, painful but vivid memories of a long battle with the Russian army. It was a large-scale event in its tragedy. The refusal of the Russian emperor to support the continental blockade against Great Britain forced Napoleon to lead the greatest army at that time - over 400 thousand French soldiers - against the Russian Empire. Later, the Emperor Bonaparte gathered about two hundred thousand more soldiers.

With the numerical superiority of the French, Napoleon's army was completely defeated. This was the collapse of the greatness of the European commander, the end of his ambitions and plans to seize the Russian Empire. The emperor launched an offensive against the Russian Empire in the summer of 1812, and planned to return to Paris before winter, not even assuming that these plans were not destined to come true …

Here are some memories left by General Rapp, the emperor's adjutant:

Infantry, cavalry rushed at each other with ferocity … I have never seen such a massacre.

The general also noted that he had seen many military campaigns, but had never witnessed such a strong and fierce confrontation that the Russian fighters had.

Crimean War

The Crimean, or, as they also write about it, the Eastern war, can rightfully be called a world war, if we take into account its scale and the number of participants in the conflict. By 1840, anti-Russian sentiment had grown significantly in Europe, and the Ottoman Empire took advantage of this. By the time the war began, Russia had political opponents in the form of England, France, Sardinia and Turkey. The imperial army was forced to fight on several fronts - the Crimean, Georgian, Caucasian, Kronstadt, as well as on Solovki, Kamchatka and Sveaborg, which significantly dispersed its military power.

Minor military support in the person of the Greek legion and the sent Bulgarian troops to the Russian soldiers in the battle practically did not help. Although the outcome of the war was unfortunate for Russia, the valor and military tactics of the Russian army were remembered in Europe for a long time. Charles Bochet, a member of the Crimean expedition, later published a book called "Crimean Letters", where he described the fury and determination with which the Russian troops defended their state. The forwarder admitted that it is not easy to lay siege against the Russians.

Russo-Japanese war

Despite the fact that as a result of this war, Russia did not achieve its goals - control over the Asian countries Manchuria and Korea, but it declared itself as a strong political and military enemy. To be deservedly appreciated by the Japanese as great masters of military battles is not the worst fate for the Russian troops.

During this confrontation, an ordinary soldier of the Russian army, Vasily Ryabov, became famous. Being held captive by the enemy, he behaved with impressive restraint and dignity, both during interrogations and before being shot. This fact could not fail to arouse respect from the Japanese officers, who later reflected it in a note addressed to the Russian command. The text of the note expressed admiration for the discipline and qualities of Russian soldiers.

During the Russian-Japanese battle, Russian troops had to hold the defense of Port Arthur for 58 hours. The action ended in failure, but the memories of the Japanese officer Tadeuchi Sakurai testified to the courage of one of the Russian soldiers, who until the last breath, being wounded in the head, performed his military duty.

World War I

It is generally believed that Russia was defeated in this war, but numerous cases of courage and self-sacrifice of Russian officers testify to their unprecedented heroism and willpower, as a result of which Przemysl was captured and the Battle of Galicia was won. In addition, the achievements of the Russian army in the war include the successful implementation of the Trebizond, Sarykamysh and Erzemrum operations against the Turkish troops, and the famous breakthrough of Alexander Brusilov in the Southwestern Front area became legendary. As a result of the breakthrough, the Russian fighters managed to destroy the 1.5 million Austrian enemy army and return the lands of Bukovina and Galicia to the protection of the Russian Empire.

Before the start of the war, the General Staff of the fascist troops drew up an analytical portrait of Russian soldiers, which described both the merits and demerits of the soldiers. The Russian fighter is described as courageous and strong, resilient and loyal to command.

In the famous work of the German general von Pozek, "German cavalry in Lithuania and Courland", the best qualities of the Russian cavalry, the ability to conduct battles with different tactics, discipline and heroism of the personnel are noted. This does honor to the Russian soldiers, because the German general often became a participant and witness to fierce battles with strong rivals.

The Second World War

World War II is perhaps the most brutal and large-scale war in the history of mankind. Warriors of 62 states out of 73 existing at that time, shed their blood on its fronts. Like Napoleonic France, Hitlerite Germany strove for a lightning victory "with little blood on foreign territory." But the blitzkrieg plan failed, and it became clear that conquering the lands belonging to Russia is now even more difficult than during the reign of Emperor Alexander I.

Much is known about the courage and valor of the Russian army, but a truly truthful and objective picture of the soldiers of the Red Army can be created on the basis of the memories of German officers. In particular, Field Marshal Ludwig von Kleist, in his memoirs, left detailed descriptions of the battles with Russian troops. It is known that this German officer took an active part in the Battle of Uman in 1941. It was one of the most terrible and bloody episodes of the war that went down in history under the name "Uman Cauldron". Obviously, von Kleist described the act of breaking through the combined units of the Russian army from the double cordon near Uman, when, exhausted by incessant fighting and being in poor conditions, the Red Army soldiers paid their last respects to their homeland.

The Russians showed themselves as first-class warriors from the very beginning, and our successes in the first months of the war were simply due to better training.

And here is another memory left by SS Obersturmbannführer, Otto Skorzeny, regarding the Russian troops:

… The Russians were equal to us - courageous, resourceful, gifted camouflages.

Skorzeny also pointed out that Russian fighters were ready to join the battles, sacrificing their lives, since the military duty was put above personal benefits.

In the same vein, another representative of the fascist elite, the chief of staff of one of the armies, Gunther Blumentritt, made notes about the behavior of the Russian fighters. In his memoirs, the soldiers of the Red Army are hardy warriors and unsurpassed masters of hand-to-hand combat who deserve real respect.