Big questions of the Crimean War: into the Valley of Death
HistoryExtra podcast
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The Transformation of the Russian Army
Most of the British and French troops are armed with rifles, not muskets. Russia doesn't have access to high technology. It can't manufacture rifles because of the British blockade. So it's condemned to fight this war with the weapons of Borodino. That is a major transformation. The most scientific thing the British took to the Crimea was horsepower. They absolutely transformed the nature of the cavalry charge from a short dash to a very long sustained gallop. And after the charge of the light brigade, the Russians never again came out on horseback to engage with the British. But even things like mass produced rations, the British are using machine made products where the Russians are using things
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