My Italy

Trento is located in the middle of the Alps and is the capital of the Trentino region in Italy. Although it is one of the thirteen regions, Trentino has a very small population, with currently less than 200,000 people. Compared with other large areas with millions of people, it can be described as vast and sparsely populated. Moreover, the Trentino region has always been at the bottom of the economic rankings, and the locals are used to it.

However, although it is located in a mountainous area, it is strategically very important to Italy. Because it is the barrier for the three major industrial towns in the north, there are quite a few troops stationed here.

Of course, there are also many army training bases here. At least the army's mountain combat training is basically conducted here.

Among them, the Valsugana training ground located fifteen kilometers east of Trento is the largest mountain warfare training ground in Italy. The training ground covers an area of ​​38 square kilometers and has the most complex mountain terrain. It is a great place for training officers and soldiers. test.

But today, the Valsujana training ground was bustling with activity because two troops were conducting a military exercise, simulating offensive and defensive drills in the mountains.

Among them, the Eighth Division of the Third Army was responsible for the attack, and its commander was Major General Pascal, who had made great achievements in the Ethiopian War.

In addition to the Eighth Division, the troops under his command also reinforced an artillery regiment. The officers and soldiers of the Eighth Division were attacking the mountain under the direction of their division commander. Their offensive movements were extremely skillful, and the cooperation between the soldiers was also very tacit. It can be seen that the division worked hard under the leadership of its commander.

As for the defensive troops from the 11th Division of the Fourth Army, they were also not weak. Under the leadership of the division commander Major General Carlo, they had been stubbornly resisting the attack of the 8th Division.

The two sides were busy going back and forth, and Carlo and the military generals at the exercise headquarters used high-powered binoculars to carefully observe the fighting process between the two sides.

The messengers, on the other hand, kept reporting the current situation on the battlefield to the exercise headquarters.

"Reporting that the 1st Brigade and 2nd Regiment of the 8th Division have broken through Position 1057. They are leading a detour to the right flank of the defenders under the leadership of their regiment commander, Lieutenant Colonel Harin."

"The number of casualties on both sides?"

"The attacking Eighth Division suffered 614 killed, and the defending Eleventh Division suffered 749 killed."

Following the messenger's report, a staff officer immediately appeared in front of the sand table and changed position 1057 to red, representing the attacking side. As for the casualty figures, they were registered on the casualty panels of both sides.

This panel is very user-friendly and marked with red and blue colors. The numbers on it are red 4571 and blue 5843. This can completely intuitively see which unit has more combat effectiveness. Of course, this is just the current state of affairs, and no one knows the final outcome before the fight is over.

At the observatory, Carlo took his eyes off the high-powered telescope and patted the shoulder of Lieutenant General Simone behind him. "The battle was exciting and you trained well."

Although Carlo is suspected of making up the numbers, after all, he doesn't know much about military matters. But no matter what, there are some things that even ordinary people can feel who is stronger between the two sides.

Although the Eighth Division is equipped with an extra artillery regiment, it is on the offensive side. It can make the casualties of the offensive side less than that of the defensive side. Doesn't this explain the problem? Not to mention that this is a mountainous offensive and defensive battle, which further deepens the impression.

I didn't see Lieutenant General Bazel, the commander of the Fourth Army on the other side, who looked unhappy. This was obvious evidence.

Faced with Carlo's compliment, Lieutenant General Simeone smiled slightly but did not speak. It is best not to speak at this time, otherwise it will be interpreted too much in public.

Carlo had no intention of making it difficult for Simeone. After he only praised him, he looked at Admiral Saragate who was still observing beside him.

"Admiral Saragate, this kind of drill needs to be done more often."

Carlo's words made the Minister of War take off his observation glasses. He looked at the king in front of him and said helplessly. "Your Majesty, such a division-level confrontation exercise costs 2.6 million lire. The Army can hold up to four such exercises and confrontations a year."

Yes, the Army is very generous this year and can spend 10 million liras for exercises.

Hearing the complaints from the Minister of War, Carlo simply ignored them. Neither the navy nor the army were fuel-efficient. Currently, Italy's finances are limited and it is impossible to give an extra lira to both sides.

"Admiral Saraget, why didn't you see the throwable grenade I mentioned last time being used in this exercise? Didn't you say it has been developed?"

That's right, what Carlo talks about is the grenade that future soldiers will have to have. This weapon was actually very common eighty years ago. The image that describes Napoleon's bravery is that Napoleon marches with tall grenadiers.

Grenadiers throw grenades. In modern times, this thing gradually disappeared from sight until the range of guns became farther and farther in the future. However, with the development of the times, hand-held grenades that were originally very large can now be designed to be very small. The grenade currently developed according to Carlo's requirements is less than 1KG, which allows an ordinary soldier to throw it 20 meters away.

This grenade, tentatively named M89, is a handle-shaped grenade, which is composed of a charge body, a detonating device and a wooden handle. Its total weight is 0.78KG, warhead weight: 0.23kg, total length: 385mm, diameter: 75mm, detonation time: 5 seconds.

That's right, it's the familiar long-handled grenade. This grenade has the advantages of long throw distance and accurate throwing, which is very important for the current Italian army.

Facing Carlo's question, Admiral Saraget shook his head and answered. "Your Majesty, this weapon has only been developed for more than a month. The soldiers are still getting familiar with it. In order to avoid accidents, it will not be used in this exercise."

Faced with the Minister of War's explanation, Carlo acquiesced. "Well, I hope I can see the soldiers using it skillfully during the next exercise."

Unexpectedly, Carlo's words made the Minister of War feel embarrassed.

"That might be a little difficult."

"Why?"

Carlo was surprised by the words of the Minister of War.

"Your Majesty, please listen to me. We are still exploring how to use this grenade. How should we use it? Should we concentrate it or distribute it to each soldier? In addition, what are the advantages and disadvantages of this thing for our tactics? , this is very important.”

Facing the words of the Minister of War, Carlo took a deep breath and answered. "The Minister of War is right. We do need to be more cautious. But I think one year should be enough."

"Almost, that's enough."

After talking about this grenade, Carlo's original intention of asking about the mortar faded away. This is just because I am anxious. What can I do if others are not anxious?

When the time comes, everything will depend on the results. It's too early to say anything now.

After discussing with the Minister of War, Carlo, who felt a little uninterested, returned to Rome after watching the exercise. It was a great honor to the Army that he was able to come and watch the exercise despite his busy schedule.

Hope there is good news in Rome.