4 battles take place in the most severe weather in history

There were battles that took place in extremely harsh conditions, making the results remarkably changed, according to War History.

The battle on the Trebia River in 218 BC

The Romans and Carthage Citizens confronted in a large-scale fighting during the Second Punic War. Hannibal, the Carthaginian general and strategist, had been in Italy for many months and threatened central Italy. Hannibal's rival was consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus, who was very confident in his army, but chose the most successful plan to conduct the battle.

On the winter solstice in late December, Hannibal ordered small armies to cross the Trebia River to attack the Roman camp, while the remaining troops gathered for breakfast before dawn. The Romans were surprised, Sempronius Longus immediately sent troops to fight and strike the roof to repel Hannibal troops.

The Roman side was forced to cross the cold Trebia river under snow. Hannibal's small armies rode horses, while Roman infantry soldiers had to wade water up to their chests, making them unable to hold weapons due to cold hands. When the fighting took place, Hannibal saw the secret cavalry attack behind the Roman lineup as they rose from the cold river. As a result, the Carthage army easily won the shockwave across Rome.

Winter War of 1812

Napoleon's army was huddled in the cold winter of Russia.(Photo: War History).

When invading Russia, Napoleon was confident that his great army would advance to Moscow, forcing the Russians to surrender before the winter.

The Russians knew the strength of Napoleon's army and decided to carry out a vacant garden strategy. They fought many battles with the French but continuously withdrew, even if they won. Before the withdrawal, Russian troops carried all their food, which made it difficult for French soldiers to supply supplies. After the big battle in Borodino, the outskirts of Moscow, Napoleon easily captured this big city but the Russians still did not surrender.

Due to the food shortage, Napoleon forces were forced to retreat. During the retreat, the harsh winter in Russia caused heavy French losses. In addition, Russia's lightning attack at the Vyazma battle also hindered Napoleon's retreat when it first started.

In mid-October, temperatures below 0 degrees C helped Russians take advantage of the Krasnoi battle. Although Napoleon's army escaped with intact forces, frozen and starving soldiers feared the next attack by the Russians.

Finally, Napoleon also reached the river Berezina. The French only needed to cross the glacier to escape, but the newly cracked ice made it difficult for them. Some brave soldiers marched down the icy water to build a rudimentary bridge, while the Russians constantly attacked the tired French squad.

French soldiers panicked over the bridges, many fell into the river, causing thousands of troops to lose their body temperature and frostbite. The Napoleon finally managed to cross the river but lost tens of thousands of people. The tragedy of this campaign has made the French military significantly weaken, while affecting their reputation abroad. French allies switched sides when the 6th Alliance War broke out, leaving Napoleon in exile in Elba.

Civil war in the Alps during World War I

One of the tunnels in the Alps.(Photo: War History).

During World War I, Italy joined Germany, Austria and Hungary at the beginning of the war, then moved to the British and French side in hopes of gaining more territory around the Alps and Dalmatia. Its military campaign is bogged down in the Dolomite mountains of the Alps, the worst place in World War I.

Combat fortifications are formed in places that make it difficult for today's climbing professionals. Avalanches and collapses are not uncommon, while large amounts of explosives are used to make landslides more frequent.

Italy tried to move forward but German reinforcements pushed them back to the point where they almost had to leave the line. By the time of the tug of war, both sides dug amazing tunnels through the mountain, usually only about 30 meters from the summit.

In this battle, the steep mountains with rugged terrain made it difficult for both sides. However, the cold weather, frequent snowfall and thin air have a profound effect. Finally, Italy unleashed the decisive attack to pierce the defensive line here in 1918 and advanced deep into the Austrian-Hungarian empire.

Operation Neptune during World War II

The Normandy landing was the turning point in the European battlefield during World War II. Weather is one of the most important factors in the process of preparing and conducting this campaign. The Channel Strait often has swept storms, rainy weather, strong seas that affect all activities from airstrikes to landings with paratroopers and canoes.

The 29 DD tank is strapped to a cloth that prevents the waves from sinking in the Battle of Normandy.(Photo: War History).

Due to the importance of the weather, the Allies' best meteorologists in the world did the forecast, but the results were not really accurate before the June 5, 1944 landing. On the evening of June 4, the head of the meteorological group said that the weather was very bad on June 5. This is a reckless prediction because the weather was quite calm and pleasant, but there were storms that day, bad weather forecast will last for nearly two weeks.

The forecast said that during this period of time, the Allies could land in the morning of June 6. This is a very risky forecast because the weather is very bad. Although the Allied Eisenhower commander could delay the attack, waiting more than a week would affect resources, forcing him to relocate large numbers of soldiers and boats.

Eisenhower decided to take advantage of this forecast, instead of waiting until near June 19. The landing was successful on June 6, despite many casualties. The weather is not really good, but it can still be deployed. In fact, there was a worse storm on June 19 that swept across the English Channel.

In contrast, Germany's weather forecast is not good. They could not control the north and west seas, saying that the storms would continue to be continuous, so it was impossible to land a landing. Many German commanders had left the base, while a large number of soldiers were allowed to take leave. This affected German fighting power when the landings took place in Normandy.