Sleaford Mere Conservation Park and the 9th Roșiori regiment. The Brigade received the mission to cover the left wing of the troops who were retreating from the Jiu towards Slatina, pursued by General von Schmettow's Cavalry. On the night of 20/21 November, squadrons of the cavalry on scouting missions came into contact with German patrols. In the morning of 22 November 1916 the vanguard of the Brigade reaches the proximity of the village of Bojoiu. The situation of the armies is the following. The main part of the German army advances eastwards from Craiova towards Balș while the exhausted 1/17 Romanian Division is 	Battle of Robănești
15176975	retreating through Balș towards Slatina, while trying to resist on a front from Robănești to Câmpeni. The right flank of the German army is protected by Two battalions of the 11th Bavarian Division are entrenched in a forest south of the former village of Pârșani (about 4 km west of Pielești) and are protected by heavy artillery. In this situation Defence Group Oltenia orders the 2nd Roșiori Brigade to attack the flank and the rear of the advancing German army. Beginning of the battle. On 23 November 1916 at 6 a.m. under dense fog, captain Alexandru Filitti, commander of the 	Battle of Robănești
15176976	3rd cavalry squadron is called from Lăcrița Mare where his squadron was stationed to Popânzălești to join the main forces of the Brigade. At 7 a.m. the entire Brigade starts advancing towards Bojoiu, Robănești, and Pielești. At 8 a.m. the Romanian vanguard, including part of the 9th Roșiori regiment and a squadron of machine guns encounters the German lines east of Bojoiu and its advance is stopped. Receiving reinforcements, the Romanian troops attack and after a strong exchange of fire the Germans retreat and the Romanians occupy the village. In the meantime, two battalions of the 11th Bavarian Division, reinforced 	Battle of Robănești
15176977	by machine-gun units and artillery occupied a front line from Pârșani to Robăneștii de Sus. At 8:15 a.m. the 9th Roșiori regiment is ordered to attack the German left wing located in the village Pârșani behind the Pârșani forest. The regiment advances west of the village of Bojoiu, towards Lăcrița Mare along the valley of the Vlașca River being kept out of sight by the Robănești hills. Shortly afterwards, at 8:30 a.m. the rest of the vanguard of the brigade continues to advance, crossing Robăneștii de Jos, advancing despite some German attacks till about 8:45 a.m. where it encounters 	Battle of Robănești
15176978	strong enemy fire. The Romanians decide to attack the German positions. The 4th Roșiori Regiment is ordered to carry out the frontal attack and consequently dismounts. The fourth squadron takes position preparing for the attack along the Robăneștii de Jos–Pârșani road. On the right flank, three platoons of the third squadron take position covering the terrain to the Teslui River. To the left another platoon of the same squadron takes position, reinforced by the machine-gun unit. The first squadron of the regiment is kept as reserve. A unit of the horse-drawn artillery, under the command of captain 	Battle of Robănești
15176979	Vasilescu, is also positioned on the left side. The charge. In the meantime, the 9th Roșiori regiment had stopped near some straw stacks, at about 800 meters south-west of the Pârșani forest. Lieutenant Emil Mora, who had scouted the area, reported to Colonel Călinescu that he had identified the position of the German artillery and could indicate the line along which the Romanian cavalry could charge that position. However, the Romanians had no information about the position of the other German troops. Colonel Călinescu accepted the advice and ordered his second in command to select the squadron for the 	Battle of Robănești
15176980	charge. At this moment, captain Alexandru Filitti volunteered to lead his squadron to charge the German positions. Having lost some of its men in previous combats, the squadron was only 110 swords strong, and all other officers besides its commander had been sent on various missions. Captain Filitti decided to have two platoons, under the command of sergeant Ion Bălașa, advance northwards, under cover of a small hill and then to attack the flank of the artillery position. Captain Filitti decides to lead himself the main charge. Lieutenant Emil Mora, who was in charge of the supplied of the regiment 	Battle of Robănești
15176981	and lieutenant Iuliu Roșca aide-de-camp of the regiment commander volunteer to take command of one of two platoons. Another volunteer was 67-year-old sergeant Gheorghe Donici, who had participated in the Romanian War of Independence. When the charge approached the German positions, the Germans hastily pulled back their cannons. The entire 3rd squadron continued its charge to pursue the retreating artillery. In doing this they came under the fire of the German machine guns which had been hidden behind the haystacks and the fire of the German infantry which had been hidden in trenches along the Craiova	Battle of Robănești
15176982	–Balș road. Captain Filitti was wounded by fire but continued his charge until his horse was killed by a hand grenade and he himself was heavily wounded and taken prisoner. The result of the charge was the total annihilation of the 3rd squadron. Only two officers and 16 soldiers survived and were taken prisoners. The losses amounted to one officer and 94 soldiers. The Aftermath. The two remaining squadrons of the 9th Roșiori regiment try to advance to relieve the third squadron, though the action was so rapid that there was no time to intervene. From its new position, the 	Battle of Robănești
15176983	German artillery opens fire against them and the rest of the regiment has no other way out than to retreat. In the meantime, the attack of the 4th regiment is also engaged in heavy fighting and has significant losses. Having its left flank uncovered due to the retreat of the 9th regiment and being also under attack by the German infantry infiltrated in the gap, the 4th regiment is also obliged to withdraw. The Romanian losses on the battle of the 4th regiment at the officers level were three killed in battle, three wounded in action (out of which two 	Battle of Robănești
15176984	taken prisoners). The regiment's doctor was also taken prisoner. There were 58 troops killed in action, 17 wounded and 36 missing in action. While the charge succeeded in its immediate objective of dislodging the German artillery from its position, this did not have any bearing on the general outcome of the battle which was a total German victory. However, the general objective of the Romanian cavalry had been to divert the attention of the German army from pursuing the retreating Romanian 1/17 Division, and the battle was able to provide some badly needed relief to the retreating army. Legacy	Battle of Robănești
15176985	. A monument commemorating the battle of Robănești was erected in 1923. Battle of Robănești The Battle of Robănești (frequently referred to as the Charge of Robănești) is a confrontation which took place between Romanian and German troops during the Romanian Campaign of World War I. Background. On the morning of 23 October 1916, the Central Powers launched a surprise attack, with no artillery preparation. Due to their numerical superiority, they managed to conquer all the heights along the borderline by the morning of the next day. By 26 October, German forces reached the town of Târgu Jiu, but failed to 	Battle of Robănești
15176986	Sleaford Mere Conservation Park Sleaford Mere Conservation Park The conservation park consists of Sleaford Mere, a permanent saline lake, and a quantity of adjoining land in section 36 of the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Sleaford. It shares boundaries with the Lincoln National Park on its north and east sides along with a parcel of land to its immediate west. The land under protection was originally established as the Sleaford Mere National Park" on 20 November 1969 under the "National Parks Act 1966". On 27 April 1972, the national park was reconstituted as the "Sleaford Mere Conservation Park" under the "National Parks and  Wildlife Act 1972". As of 2018, it covered an area of . The following statement of significance was published in 1980: Sleaford Mere Conservation Park preserves a picturesque saline lake, which provides feeding habitat for a number of waterbird species, including chestnut teal which are known to breed in the park. Marine fish, including a large, land-locked population of skates are found in the Lake. The conservation park is classified as an IUCN Category III protected area. In 1980, it was listed on the now-defunct Register of the National Estate. Sleaford Mere Conservation Park The conservation park consists of