Russians reaction to bombardment
Experience shows that Russians have a near incredible capacity to hold up under strong artillery fire and powerful air strikes. At the same time, the Russian command pays no attention to huge losses inflicted by bombing and artillery fire, and continues to carry out its plans unswervingly. The Russians' indifference to the strongest fire was again confirmed during Operation Citadel near Kursk. To a certain extent, this is explained by the following reasons.
The incredible stoicism and slower reactions of Russian soldiers leave them unmoved by losses. Neither their own life nor the lives of their comrades is that important, so they pay no attention to shells and bombs.
Naturally, there are more sensitive Russian soldiers, but all of them have been trained to fulfill orders, promptly and without the slightest hesitation. There is iron discipline in the Russian army; punishment by commanders and political commissars is severe, which means complete obedience was a characteristic feature of the Russian military system.
Russians' indifference to artillery fire is not a newly acquired feature; it was revealed during WWI. We also find Armand Augustin Louis de Caulaincourt's remark on this score in his book "With Napoleon in Russia". Describing the Battle of Borodino near Moscow in 1812, the French general wrote "the enemy pressed from all sides, gathered its forces and held fast despite huge losses from artillery fire." Further on, he writes that it was impossible to understand why so few soldiers were taken captive at the seized redoubts and positions defended by Russians so stubbornly. Here, Mr. Caulaincourt quotes Napoleon: "These Russians cannot be taken alive. There is nothing to be done about it."
With regards to Russian military commanders, it is well known that:
(a) under nearly all circumstances they strictly and undeviatingly abide by orders and earlier-made decisions and ignore the changed situation, the enemy's response and their own human losses. Naturally, there are quite a few negative sides to this, but there are certain positive sides as well; (b) they had nearly inexhaustible manpower reserves at their disposal to replenish losses. The Russian command could go all lengths never minding huge losses.
In preparing for an operation, it is necessary to take due account of a reaction, or, to be more precise, the absence of a reaction on the part of Russian troops and their command. Combat cooperation in due time, the assessment of the possibility of success, and the quantity of the necessary military hardware largely depend on this factor. However, it should be pointed out that there were cases when battle-hardened Russian formations were struck with panic and displayed battle neurosis even during a relatively minor artillery attack. Nevertheless, this happened very rarely and it would be a gross mistake to count on this circumstance. It is much more useful to overestimate the Russian soldiers' staunchness. Their weakness should never be counted on.
