Battle of Morana

Battle of Morana
Part of the Middle East Campaign of the Second Europan War
Erebonian and Rubrumian troops marching to Maysashniyah after the battle
Date 25-29 September 1940 Location Morana, Syrianna; 2 miles south of Maysashniyah Result Decisive Allied victory; Southern Imperial Flank exposed
Belligerents
Erebonian Empire Rubrum	Empire of Quenmin Trungdong
Commanders and leaders
Brian Regnitz Elliot Testarossa	Thạch Hung Sõn Chiến Kiều Dũng Quang
Strength
27,000 troops 75 tanks 30 guns	33,000 troops 100 tanks 35 guns
Casualties and losses
2,752 troops 27 tanks 10 guns	9,785 troops 56 tanks 22 guns

The Battle of Morana was the prelude to the Battle of Maysashniyah, which had occurred 2 days before the battle itself. The battle involved the ERUAC Forces under the command of Major General Brian Regnitz and the Imperial Quenminese Forces under Marshal Thạch Hung Sõn Chiến.

Crucial to Allied plans, Morana was where the Quenminese garrison was located and as long as it stood, the Imperials would call in reinforcements from the village. Lucian Commander-in-chief of the Middle East, Archibald Sugiyama needed to have it placed under allied control in order to prevent the Imperials from reinforcing once the next major battle had occurred. Sugiyama ordered the southern armies composing of the Rubrumian and Erebonian forces to push from the south and engage with the Quenminese garrison at Morana.

During the battle, The 3rd Erebonian Division, supported by the 6th Independent Armoured Brigade, and the Duke of Albarea's Royal Artillery Division engaged head on with the Quenminese 3rd and 5th Divisions stationed at the Morana Garrison. However, Chien managed to reinforce the garrison with 2 artillery divisions and 3 armoured brigades, stalling the Erebonian advance. Regnitz sent in reinforcements but the Rubrumian forces under the command of Major General Elliot Testarossa were delayed for a day, prompting Regnitz to call off the attack and regroup. By the morning of the 27th, Chien attempted a massive frontal assault on the Erebonian forces but were driven back, due to the Land Mattresses that were deployed that early morning. The following morning, almost half of the Land Mattress detachments were destroyed by Quenminese counter batteries, granting Chien another attempt to outrun the Erebonian forces. By the 28th, Testarossa's Rubrumian Forces finally arrived and reinforced the Erebonians from the right flank, prompting Chien to divert resources in order to force the Rubrumians back. By this time, however, Chien had already exhausted 3/5ths of his original strength and that Morana had already been half destroyed due to intense Erebonian shelling the previous day. The arrival of the Rubrumian forces enabled Regnitz to charge onto Morana and capture the village, and prompting Chien to finally retreat to Maysashniyah, where the Quenminese and Archadian forces regrouped.