African Entrepreneurship Record-Chapter 751 - 55: Both Sides Scheme
As night fell, both banks of the Tugela River defensive line plunged into silence. The idea of crossing the river under the cover of darkness was not within the British Army's considerations, as night battles were never the preferred choice in war.
Even though East Africa had only one brigade across the river, unforeseen situations often arose on the battlefield, and intelligence on both sides was very limited. Therefore, the British commander Rost had to approach the situation cautiously.
No one could be certain if reinforcements would come for East Africa, when they would arrive at the Tugela River, or how many reinforcements there would be.
At this time, East Africa's policy of isolation proved extremely effective. Conversely, it was also difficult for East Africa to obtain information about the actions and plans of the British army in the Natal colony. While it might be possible to insert intelligence personnel in the rear areas such as Durban, there was simply no opportunity to do so at the Tugela River front line, as intruding into the combat zone could easily result in being discovered.
Under the dim light, British commander Rost was discussing the day's battle summary with his subordinates.
Rost's expression was very unpleasant; hitting a snag in the first battle upon arriving in South Africa was not at all what he had envisioned before coming to South Africa.
His subordinates, seeing Rost's gloomy face, did not even dare to breathe too loudly, especially the commanders of the British Indian troops, who feared that Rost would vent his anger on them.
"Today's battle left me very dissatisfied with each unit. A full four attacks were repelled by the East Africans, and the Tugela River is not an insurmountable natural barrier. If we can't defeat the East Africans under these circumstances, won't we be utterly at a standstill later if we are in the Drakensberg Mountains?"
"Neither our troops' fighting spirit nor military capabilities were on display. Instead, we lost face in front of the East Africans, and when our army loses face, it's as though the British Empire loses face!"
The commander of the British Indian troops retorted: "Commander, it's not that we don't want to exert ourselves, but the quality of the Indian soldiers is too poor. Although our recent attacks haven't been successful, our unit has sustained heavy casualties."
Rost: "Hmph, you have a ready excuse. I've seen the performance of the Indian soldiers quite clearly. Was that poor performance? That was cowardice before even engaging in the fight. While I could pardon the last landing operation, the previous three failures were caused by the Indians under your command leading the retreat, creating a terrible impact."
Although the fourth river crossing operation also failed, it did inflict some damage on the East African army, and the "entire" landing force was wiped out, so it still met Rost's psychological expectations. After all, he did not expect the troops to immediately breach the Tugela River line and defeat the East African Defense Army, but the failures of the first three operations were inexcusable, with no reason to evade responsibility.
"Commander, in my opinion, the main issue is not one of morale, but of hardware. I believe there are two points beyond our army's capabilities. Firstly, East Africa is equipped with a substantial amount of heavy weaponry, and their quality is impressive, which does not align with our previous colonial warfare model.
Secondly, our preparations are insufficient, especially the lack of boats. This made every landing operation seem stretched to the limits.
Therefore, to overcome these challenges, we must find solutions in these two areas, rather than blaming the subordinate units. After all, the Indians themselves are subjects, whose thinking and quality in various aspects are inferior to us Anglo-Saxons. This is a racial disparity; their innate shortcomings cannot be compensated for.
In a few words, they completely shirk their responsibility, as this is also the British mindset. If Indian soldiers had some blood rage, Britain wouldn't have so easily colonized India.
"Let's not discuss this issue now. We are an army, and an army's purpose is to win battles and achieve strategic objectives. I don't care what the reasons are; you must find a way to break through the East African defensive lines. Now, present a feasible plan," Rost said.
"Commander, in my view, our previous approach was mistaken. Compared to East Africa, our biggest advantage is in troop numbers, which can be seen from the number of cannons. Although East African artillery is powerful, their density is far less than ours. East Africa's troop strength along the Tugela River line must be smaller than ours, so we should leverage our advantage through multiple breakthroughs rather than concentrating forces for forceful attacks. We should consider the entire Tugela River basin and find an ideal place to break through, thus tearing a hole."
"Very well, but this would require us to prepare more boats. Constructing pontoon bridges over the river would be even better, but this could delay our window of opportunity. Today we lost three-fifths of our boats in four attacks. If we start building now, it might take considerable time."
"Commander, this issue might be addressed with flexibility. We can completely construct a batch of simple rafts. The Tugela River is not very wide, and using ropes and logs, we could have strong swimmers build the pontoon bridge. Of course, the biggest issue is the large number of crocodiles in the Tugela River, which could pose a significant threat, and constructing large-scale pontoon bridges might alert the East Africans, so it's best to act at night. However, operations on the river at night are certainly more challenging than during the day."
After discussion, the British ultimately abandoned the conservative approach, as their patience had been worn thin by the standoff with the East Africans along the Tugela River.
This might well ensure the safety of their personnel, since pushing Indian cannon fodder to the front lines was not reckoned as risking their own men. The British wouldn't shed a tear over Indian blood, just as East Africa's use of Black troops is perceived similarly.
Of course, currently, the East African army no longer includes Black auxiliary troops, and even the logistics are primarily handled by its own citizens.
The main utilization of Blacks in East Africa is now for maintaining production. Conscription for the army has had a large impact on East Africa, particularly in terms of young labor, which has intensified the demand for Black labor during wartime.
East Africa's model was actually quite common early on. Initially, Boers in South Africa also operated this way, with Boers serving as the military force and Blacks providing slave labor to create value.
Later, as East Africa's industrial and agricultural development necessitated it, more people turned to production activities, transitioning from a primarily military focus. Now, with the outbreak of war, they are returning to the former model.
...
The British planned to launch an all-out offensive, but the Ninth Brigade across the river had no intention of holding their position.
"Colonel, all the volunteers have been withdrawn to New Hamburg Port City. Now, only soldiers remain along the entire Tugela River defensive line."
Alydot: "Very well, we must also prepare to evacuate. However, we can't let the British have it too easy. We must slow down their movement and efficiency on the route to New Hamburg Port City and along the railway line. Additionally, I already have a plan, and if executed properly, it might bring us a pleasant surprise."
"Colonel, your plan..."
"There's no rush now. Once we deliver one final blow to the British at the Tugela River, we'll have time to make further arrangements. In short, we need to preserve our strength as much as possible. The military district has already informed us that we likely won't be getting reinforcements, and starting the day after tomorrow, they plan to cut off the Central Railway. We'll have to rely on New Hamburg Port City to maneuver against the British. Our primary task now is to ensure the safety of our combat capabilities while causing trouble for the British."
