Hearts and Minds

After news of the Battle of Warsaw spread, the Russian command headquarters was shrouded in gloom. The favorable situation in the Warsaw region had vanished overnight, and within the Tsarist Government, calls to abandon the northern and southern campaigns and reinforce Warsaw grew louder by the day.

The very day he received the battle report, Ivanov took a train back to Saint Petersburg and held secret talks with Alexander II through the night.

No one knew the details. In any case, the internal turmoil in Russia was suppressed once Alexander II stepped in personally.

Having settled the internal disputes, Marshal Ivanov turned his gaze back to the battlefield. Looking at the casualty figures in his hand, he let out a deep sigh.

"Order the Fourth Army to withdraw. There is no need for them to remain there any longer."

Perhaps there was a touch of mercy in it, but more than that, there was simply no longer any need. Ivanov had originally hoped the Fourth Army could pin down the main Prussian force and buy time for the Russian Army.

Now that the Fifth Army had been shattered beyond recognition and the Seventh Army had suffered grievous losses, even with the Third and Sixth Armies arriving, the Russian Army had lost the ability to encircle and annihilate the Prussian Army's main force.

At this point, there was no need for the Fourth Army to make a sacrifice. No matter how much Ivanov disliked them, he still had to consider the political consequences if the Fourth Army were wiped out to the last man.

The middle-aged officer reminded him, "Marshal, according to intelligence from the front, the Fourth Army's main force has already been all but destroyed. General Opodo has fewer than thirty thousand men left under his command. Breaking out