Captain Saba's telegram exposed the reinforcement fleet led by Vice Admiral Sturdy.
As for the exposed Lieutenant General Sturdy, since he had been discovered at this time, he simply stopped covering up and directly increased the speed of the fleet to 18 knots and headed towards the Mediterranean Fleet.
The exposure of the reinforcement fleet led by Lieutenant General Sturdy caused great chaos in Italy.
In the capital Rome, a group of senior military and political officials were summoned by Carlo.
"Everyone, our navy's airship No. 29 has been keeping up with the intruding British and French fleet. According to the identification of the airship, there are twenty-seven enemy fleets sneaking in this time, including seven battleships, including the Monarch.
, Thor, Agincourt, Ireland, Guba, Flan
West, Jean Bart. Currently, the new British and French fleets are sailing eastward at a high speed of 18 knots, and to the east, the British Mediterranean Fleet is also sailing westward at a speed of 18 knots. According to our Admiralty
It is estimated that the two sides will complete the rendezvous at 6 p.m. tomorrow at most."
Listening to the content of Admiral Argyle's report, everyone else present frowned. As a monarch, Carlo also had an unswerving expression.
Although they didn't know much about the navy, their calculations were pretty good. The sudden appearance of this new enemy put the Italian navy in a bad situation.
The enemy's main battleships already have an advantage in number, which is not good news.
If for Britain the navy is its lifeline, then the same is true for Italy.
Not to mention Italy’s long coastline, the key point is that most of the raw materials needed for Italian industry need to be transported from the provinces of Libya, Albania, and Kosovo to the Apennine Peninsula to meet industrial needs.
As long as the navy fails, then all of this is out of the question.
Italy will fall into industrial stagnation and will no longer be able to maintain the consumption of the war. Failure is only a matter of time.
Of course, Carlo came here with senior military and political officials not to hear how serious the naval defeat was to Italy, nor to hold the navy accountable for its failure to discover the British and French reinforcements fleets in advance.
That’s not to say that’s it, but now is not the time to pursue the case.
As for how to investigate specifically, whether to lift it high and let it fall gently, or to deal with the navy to clean it up hard, we will have to wait until the naval battle is over.
If the combined fleet fought well and won a complete victory, then this was because the navy deliberately lured the snake out of its hole and made an outstanding contribution to the final victory of the alliance camp.
If the battle is not done well, it will be a naval reconnaissance error that leads to the defeat of the war, and then the Navy Department will be responsible from top to bottom.
Therefore, for the navy, the next naval battle with the British and French fleets will directly affect the kingdom's evaluation of it.
Of course, they also knew this, so Admiral Yagir personally explained it to Carlo and other senior officials.
"Regarding the convergence of the British and French fleets, our Navy has sent a combined fleet led by Vice Admiral Leifer to intercept and prevent its intention to converge. Of course, our Navy has also dispatched a large number of airships and ships to track it in real time.
, ensuring that their positions will not be lost even in the dark.
In addition, the reserve fleet that is supporting the island of Malta will also move eastward and carry out support and interception missions depending on the situation. In addition, we will also deploy a harassment formation composed of cruisers, destroyers, and torpedo boats from the mainland, which will also be divided into 6-8 groups.
Prepare to conduct interception or cover missions such as harassment."
Facing Admiral Yagier's report could be regarded as a make-up. After Carlo and others listened, they did not give any suggestions. After all, the navy is the most professional when it comes to maritime issues, so Carlo could only give an answer.
"Now that the navy has a plan, let's go ahead and do it. The royal family and the government can give you sufficient support."
Although Carlo didn't say anything, Admiral Yagir knew that if he screwed up this time, the navy's status would be dealt a huge blow.
Of course, in the face of this raid by the British and French fleets, the navy fell into extreme passivity. The entire Admiralty Department became ruthless and had to restore its reputation. So after receiving the news, the entire Admiralty Department was busy and finally came up with the plan.
plan.
Moreover, time was tight. Considering the time for the two fleets of Britain and France to converge, they immediately sent a report to their respective fleets as soon as the plan was formulated, requiring the warships they allocated to prepare to set off for rendezvous and regroup immediately.
And this telegram also caused the various fleets to panic. Some warships had just completed their mission and returned, while others were resting. However, in the face of the strict order of the Navy Department, they could only cheer up and gather the manpower, and what supplies were even more difficult.
After endless rounds, finally at twelve o'clock in the evening, all the warships assigned to each fleet were dispatched and went to their respective mission gathering places for formation.
Of course, there will definitely be mistakes in such hasty preparations, but no one can care about the issue that affects Italy's victory or defeat in the war.
Of course, in addition to Italy's own remedies, news of the British and French reinforcement fleets was also sent to Vienna and Berlin. Vienna was fine, after all, the best part of its navy had been integrated with Italy.
It was already eleven o'clock in the evening when Germany received this telegram with a hint of resentment.
Marshal Tirpitz, who was about to take a rest, saw the telegram and said with a wry smile. "It seems that our Italian colleagues are complaining about our intelligence work."
Facing the words of Marshal Tirpitz, Admiral von Holzendorf, Chief of Naval Staff, said, "You can't blame us. The British Home Fleet announced a sea exercise a week ago. We can't watch it from the sea.
They, but the British really tried their best to hide it from us for a week."
Speaking of this, Admiral von Holzendorf's eyes sparkled. "But this also gives us a chance."
Marshal Tirpitz, who knew what opportunity his subordinate was talking about, did not reply to him, but sat there tapping his fingers on the table unconsciously.
Admiral Holzendorf knew that this was a habit of the founder of the German navy when he was deep in thought, so he did not dare to disturb him.
After a while, the knocking stopped, and Marshal Tirpitz had already made a decision. "This is indeed a good opportunity. Send a telegram to Admiral Ingenol and ask him to find a favorable opportunity to engage the enemy's home fleet."
Since the British gave the opportunity, it would be against the common sense of the veteran navy to not seize it. Not to mention, at this time, the Home Fleet and the High Seas Fleet no longer have the absolute advantage. If they do not take the opportunity to fight, wouldn't this make Germany even more vulnerable?
The navy was in an unfavorable situation.
Well, at this moment, Marshal Tirpitz is actually not particularly eager to fight. But in view of allies and rare fighter opportunities, the public fleet is asked to look for fighter opportunities. Although the current situation is more favorable to the German Navy, this person who exists in the fleet
The founder still has a sense of protecting the ship.
It is indeed very difficult for this person's personality to completely change.
Of course, with the order of Marshal Tirpitz, the German High Seas Fleet also became busy. For the German naval officers and soldiers, they did not panic when they were suddenly asked to prepare for battle, because they had already simulated it many times before.
At this moment, batches of supplies and ammunition were loaded onto the ship, and Admiral Ingenohl, as the commander of the High Seas Fleet, was very confident at this moment. He had learned that the Home Fleet had four battleships and secretly headed to the Mediterranean.
At this moment, he thought that the decisive battle with the British was a good time, and naturally he was very excited.
"Report, Major General Hipper sent a telegram asking if the reconnaissance formation will sail tomorrow morning."
"Tell him to set sail tomorrow morning and that the Grand Fleet will be behind him to protect him."
