2081 False propagation of imperial edicts (7000-word chapter please subscribe)
Erich von Manstein, Rommel, and Guderian are known as the three most famous German generals in World War II.
Manstein had a keen strategic vision. The original "Business Building Plan" was very similar to the Schlieffen Plan when Germany attacked France during World War I. Manstein did not agree with it.
Manstein proposed his strategic concept to the Army Headquarters through Army Group A commander von Rundstedt: the main thrust of the German attack should be on the left wing, not the right wing.
With powerful armored forces, the armored group serving as the main assault force skillfully passed through the Ardennes area where the terrain was steep and it was generally considered impossible for armored forces to march.
Thus, it bypassed the heavily defended "Maginot Line" and penetrated into weak areas of Allied defense.
In this way, the German army could cut off the connection between the Northern and Southern Allies, divide and surround the British and French Allies, and quickly destroy France.
This plan was rejected by Walter von Brauchitsch, then Commander-in-Chief of the German Army.
Brauchitsch did not continue to report Manstein's plan to the superiors, and transferred Manstein to the 38th Infantry Corps as commander.
Manstein took advantage of Mustache's opportunity to meet with the military commander and stated the tactics he designed to Mustache face to face.
Mustache "understands very quickly, almost like an elf."
So Army Chief of Staff Halder was ordered to re-formulate the battle plan based on Manstein's suggestions.
This is the third version of the "Yelou Plan", the "Sickle Plan".
Guderian, then commander of the German 19th Armored Corps, said that except for Mustache, Manstein and Guderian himself, almost no one had confidence in this plan.
At dawn on May 10, 1940, the German army dispatched JU87 Stuka dive bombers to suddenly and violently bomb airports, railway hubs, heavy troop concentration areas and cities in France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg.
At 5:30, on a front of more than 300 kilometers from the North Sea to the Maginot Line, the German ground forces launched a large-scale attack on the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, kicking off the invasion of France.
At this time, the British and French forces were hiding behind the solid Maginot Line and knew nothing.
Manstein's "Scythe Plan" completely bypassed the Maginot Line and selected weakly defended areas in the Ardennes forest and mountainous areas for focused assaults.
Unlike the last world war, the German army equipped with a large number of aircraft and tanks moved quickly. The airborne troops once again played an important role, assisting and attracting the main force of the British and French troops, the German Army Group B. First, the airborne troops attacked important bridges in the Netherlands and Belgium.
and fortress facilities to conduct raids.
This sudden blow immediately caused panic in the Dutch and Belgian troops. Immediately afterwards, the armored units of Army Group B took advantage of the chaos to launch an attack, and the Dutch and Belgian troops quickly collapsed.
Army Group B was progressing smoothly, and the main force of the British and French forces assembled in northern France quickly crossed the French-Belgian border for reinforcements. At this time, the British and French forces still firmly believed that the German army was carrying out operations in accordance with the deployment of the "Ye Lou Plan".
It is said that when the German army launched the attack, Mustache was restlessly waiting for news from the front line in the underground command post.
When Mustache knew that the main force of the British and French coalition forces was dispatched, Mustache was "so excited that he almost cried". He excitedly said to the staff around him: They have fallen into our trap! I just want them to believe that we are still executing the original plan.
They decided on the 'Business Building Plan' and still followed Schlieffen's advice. They were fooled. Just wait and see, the fun is yet to come.
It's indeed a good show.
When the main force of the British and French allied forces sent reinforcements to the Netherlands and Belgium, Loeb's Army Group also launched a feint attack on the Maginot Line, which played an important role in disrupting Gamelin's judgment.
Gan Molin had realized something was wrong at this time, but he had not yet discovered the real purpose of the German army.
Also in the early morning of May 10, Army Group A, which served as the main offensive, launched an attack on the Ardennes Forest.
Army Group A is composed entirely of well-trained German Wehrmacht troops, with a total of 45 divisions, including 7 armored divisions. The "Sickle Plan" does not have an official name. The original translated name was "Armored Sickle Trip". This translation
Fully reflects the characteristics of Army Group A.
Compared with Army Group B that was assisting the attack and Army Group that was feinting to attack, Army Group A was progressing smoothly.
Facing the powerful German armored forces, Luxembourg, with a population of only 300,000, surrendered without a fight on the 10th.
The 19th Armored Corps commanded by Guderian easily broke through the loose resistance of the Belgian army, and it took only two days to cross the 110-kilometer-long canyon of the Ardennes and penetrate deep into the French territory.
By the afternoon of May 12, Guderian's three armored divisions had reached the north bank of the Meuse River and captured the famous French fortress city of Sedan.
At the same time that Guderian crossed the Meuse River, the 7th Armored Division under the 15th Armored Corps also crossed the Meuse River near Nantes, 40 miles to the west. The commander of this division was Erwin.
Rommel.
At this point, all three major German generals have appeared.
On the day Germany launched its attack, the British House of Commons launched an impeachment motion against Neville.
Ever since Germany annexed Austria, British dissatisfaction with Neville began to accumulate.
When Germany annexed Czechoslovakia, the policy of appeasement reached its peak. When Neville returned to London from Munich, he excitedly waved a document signed by a mustache at the London Airport, and proudly declared to the British that he had "brought peace to Britain for an entire generation."
"The scene became a stain that Neville could not erase.
What happened next caught Neville off guard.
Before the ink was dry on the Munich Agreement, Germany completely annexed Czechoslovakia.
Then Germany and Russia divided Poland.
Germany launches the Norwegian Campaign.
Germany attacks France
Only then did Neville realize that the situation was completely out of control.
On May 10, the House of Commons passed the impeachment of Neville, and the coalition government cabinet resigned collectively. Edward VIII summoned Winston and ordered Winston to form a cabinet urgently.
Winston once again becomes a firefighter for the British Empire.
The situation Winston faces now is more dangerous than the last world war.
When Edward VIII summoned Winston, Luxembourg had already surrendered.
On May 15, before Winston's cabinet formation work was completed, he received a call from French Prime Minister Paul Reno.
Paul Reno said to Winston frustratedly on the phone: We are probably going to lose this battle.
On the 16th, Winston flew to Paris.
When Winston meets Paul Reynaud and Gamelin, Winston realizes that the situation is worse than he understood.
Both Paul Reno and Gamelin looked gloomy.
Winston asked Gamelin: Where are our reserves?
Gan Molin shrugged and spread his hands: There is no reserve team!
On the evening of the 16th, Rock received a call from Winston.
Gamelin has no reserve team.
Winston has.
The Southern African Defense Force is Winston's reserve force.
Winston told Rock frankly on the phone that the defeat of the British and French coalition forces was imminent, and the British Expeditionary Force was about to return to the British mainland to stand firm.
Winston firmly stated that Britain would not surrender no matter what, and would fight the Germans to the end.
Winston was worried that if France was defeated, Britain would lose its last ally throughout Europe and face the German attack alone.
Rock had already anticipated Winston's predicament.
What made Rock have mixed feelings was that during the last world war, Rock received orders from Kitchener and Winston many times. Once the war went unfavorable, Rock should bring as many British Expeditionary Forces back to Britain as possible.
.
In the last world war, even when the situation reached its most difficult level, retreat was not an option for Rock. It never was.
Now this situation has finally become a reality.
Before Rock could say goodbye to Winston, the call was cut off.
On May 16, the Germans bombed Paris.
Two days ago, on May 14, the British and French air forces and the German Air Force engaged in the most intense air battle in human history.
Germany broke through the Maas River, and the British and French forces finally woke up and realized that they had been fooled.
Gamelin became angry and dispatched planes to bomb the German troops crossing the Maas River.
German fighter jets took off for combat. The two sides invested more than a thousand aircraft in a fierce battle over the Maas River.
At this time, the ground forces of the British and French coalition forces had been completely defeated. The German Air Force had ground fire support. The British and French coalition forces suffered heavy casualties. Hundreds of aircraft were shot down. The German Second Antiaircraft Artillery Regiment alone shot down 112 British and French coalition aircraft.
In just one day, the British and French forces lost nearly 60% of their combat aircraft. They lost air superiority and could only operate at night.
Since the outbreak of the war, the 19th Armored Corps commanded by Guderian has performed outstandingly.
The speed of Guderian's advance not only caught the British and French forces by surprise, but also the German high command began to worry. Army commander Paul von Kleist issued two orders, ordering Guderian to temporarily stop the attack and wait for other German troops.
Guderian resigned in protest both times, giving full play to the characteristics of the armored force.
The advance speed of the 19th Armored Corps was faster than the escape speed of the British and French coalition forces.
The 19th Armored Corps did not even have time to take in the prisoners of the British and French coalition forces. When facing large groups of defeated British and French coalition soldiers, Guderian's armored troops used a loudspeaker to shout: We do not have time to capture you, you must put down your weapons and get off the road.
, don't block the road
On May 16, Guderian urged his three armored divisions to turn westward, with the goal of reaching the Dunkirk area on the east coast of the English Channel.
On the 20th, the 19th Armored Corps occupied Amiens and reached the English Channel near Abbeville.
This speed is too fast.
It was almost too late for the German high command to issue an order.
It was not until the next day that Guderian received the next operational order from the German high command: to advance northward from Abbeville with the goal of occupying the Strait ports.
At this time, the 19th Armored Corps was less than 100 kilometers away from Dunkirk.
Beyond Dunkirk is Saint-Roch.
The rapid progress of the Germans caught St. Roch unprepared.
As mentioned before, since the outbreak of the European War, Saint-Roch has become the main way for French people to escape from France.
Not everyone who arrives in Saint-Roch will leave Saint-Roch immediately. Some people who have illusions about France only stay for a short time. They also imagine that the war will end soon, so that they can go home.
The German attack speed was too fast.
On May 10, Germany launched the "Sickle Plan", and Luxembourg surrendered without a fight that day.
The Dutch performed even worse. Luxembourg only had 300,000 troops, which was not as large as Army Group A. It was reasonable to surrender without a fight.
In 1940, the Netherlands had a population of 9.2 million, its navy ranked ninth in the world, and its army had a standing army of 60,000. Although the number was small, the Netherlands had a complete military service system, well-equipped troops, high-quality officers and soldiers, and as many as 270,000 reserve personnel.
The day after Germany invaded Poland, the Netherlands launched a nationwide mobilization and organized ten infantry divisions to cooperate with the British and French forces to defend against the German attack.
The Dutch knew that they were unable to resist the German attack, so they placed their hopes on the British and French forces. The Dutch strategy was to hold off the Germans and wait for reinforcements from the British and French forces.
The severity of the German offensive far exceeded the Dutch's expectations.
On May 10th, four thousand paratroopers of the German 7th Air Division unexpectedly landed in the Hague and Rotterdam areas of the Netherlands. This area is the core area of Dutch defense.
After the paratroopers occupied the airport, a complete airborne division arrived one after another.
On the 11th, the German Air Force began an indiscriminate carpet bombing of Rotterdam, the second largest city in the Netherlands.
On the evening of the 12th, Winkelmann, commander-in-chief of the Dutch army, informed the Queen of the Netherlands and cabinet ministers that the Dutch army was no longer capable of resisting the German attack, and reinforcements from the British and French coalition were far away.
On the 13th, Queen Wilhelmina and several cabinet ministers boarded a British destroyer and fled to London.
Before leaving, Queen Wilhelmina authorized Winkelmann as plenipotentiary to declare surrender at an appropriate time.
On the 15th, just four days after the German attack, the Netherlands announced its surrender.
What the Dutch did not expect was that the Dutch surrendered too quickly and the Germans were not prepared. After the Dutch surrender, the German Air Force failed to get the news in time and carried out a ten-hour bombardment of Rotterdam.
Indiscriminate bombing.
By the time the Luftwaffe stopped bombing, Rotterdam had been completely reduced to rubble.
Compared with Luxembourg, which surrendered in one day, and the Netherlands, which surrendered in four days, Belgium had better luck.
This is also thanks to the smoke bombs released by Germany before the war, which convinced the British and French forces to believe in Germany's "Industry Building Plan". Therefore, after Army Group B launched an attack on Belgium, the British and French forces misjudged the direction of Germany's main attack and sent the main force to Belgium.
Troops were transferred to Belgium to strengthen its defense, so Belgium did not surrender quickly.
But it was almost over. When Guderian swept north, all the Belgian regular troops had been wiped out, and the countdown to surrender had begun.
Since the outbreak of the war, the 19th Panzer Corps led by Guderian has been the best-performing unit of the German army.
After launching an attack to the north, the 19th Armored Corps continued its unstoppable momentum, occupying Boulogne and Calais on the morning of the 23rd, and reaching Gravelines on the afternoon of the 24th, only 10 miles away from Dunkirk.
arrive
At this time, the German right wing, the 41st Panzer Corps led by Joerg-Hans Reinhardt, had arrived in Saint-Roch.
Since the launch of Project Scythe, more French and Belgians have flocked to Saint-Roch, hoping to escape Europe.
Not only ordinary people, but also panic-stricken British and French soldiers who poured into Saint-Roch at this time.
Southern Africa had not yet participated in the war. According to "International Law", Saint-Roch, as a territory in Southern Africa, could temporarily accept refugees, but it could not accept soldiers from the British and French coalition forces.
The officers and soldiers of the British and French coalition were not stupid. On the way to escape, they simply discarded their weapons, took off their military uniforms, and blended into the real refugee crowd into Saint-Roch.
Saint Roch initially tried to maintain order.
But as more and more refugees arrive, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain order. Luggage and weapons are piled up at all entrances. The roads are full of abandoned cars and carriages. The queues of people are endless as far as the eye can see. The explosions of artillery shells are heard.
It's already faintly audible.
Most of the staff in the Port Office Building have evacuated in advance, all valuables have been transported away, and all documents that should be destroyed have been destroyed. St. Roché Mayor Lin Zhu personally locked the door of the office building and said to Ben Field, the Customs Director-General beside him.
: "You guys go, I want to be the last one to leave Saint Roque."
Navy captains have a tradition of martyrdom on ships, and Lin Zhu, as the mayor of St. Roch, has to fight until the last moment.
"Mr. Mayor, there is no need for you to do this." Ben Field looked solemn. Lin Zhu is 32 years old. He graduated from Nyasaland University and has served in the Los Angeles City Government, Nyasaland State Government, and the Palace of Justice. He has a bright future.
.
"No, I am the mayor of Saint-Roch personally appointed by the Lord. I want to repay the trust of the Lord." Lin Zhu's attitude was firm. As long as there are southern Africans stranded in Saint-Roch, Lin Zhu will not leave.
Ben Field looked at Cao Shixiu, the commander of the St. Roch Squadron, with pleading eyes.
Cao Shixiu graduated from the Nyasaland Naval Academy and first served in the Indian Ocean Fleet. Starting as an ordinary communications officer, he successively served as frigate captain, destroyer captain, and light cruiser captain. Last year, he was appointed as the "Saint Roque"
Captain of the heavy cruiser, he served as commander of the Saint-Roch squadron at the beginning of the year.
"Old Lin, the French are destined to lose, and St. Roch cannot defend it. You have a special status. If you are captured by the Germans, it will cause greater trouble for the Lord." Cao Shixiu did not want to see Lin Zhu captured by the Germans.
As a senior military officer in Southern Africa, Cao Shixiu knew very well that once France surrendered, Southern Africa would not be far away from joining the war.
Once France surrendered, the only country in Europe still fighting Germany was Britain.
Although some French troops, like the Poles, would withdraw to the British mainland to continue fighting, the British Empire would ultimately be left alone.
The current situation is very dangerous, and Britain needs a strong ally, not only in terms of strength, but more importantly, to enhance the morale of the Allied forces.
France fought the last world war for four years.
It’s hard to say whether France can survive the 40 days this time.
After all, the weapons and equipment of the Germans in this time and space are more advanced than the weapons and equipment of the German army in another time and space.
Since the war broke out, Guderian's 19th Armored Corps marched straight in, advancing 400 kilometers in ten days and capturing 250,000 British and French troops. This has never happened in human history.
When the war broke out, the Allies had a total of 3 million troops on the Western Front.
Only half a month has passed, and already nearly a million Allied troops have been killed or captured by the Germans.
The Maginot Line is indeed impregnable. The 700,000 British and French troops stationed within the Maginot Line are now surrounded by German troops. Surrender is only a matter of time.
The German army is currently outflanking the defeated British and French forces. Once the German army completes the encirclement, the 500,000 Allied troops around Dunkirk will be unable to fly. This is the last viable force of the Allied forces.
Rock knew about the Dunkirk evacuation. The British in another time and space made countless movies and boasted about the Dunkirk evacuation. Looking at the Dunkirk evacuation from God's perspective is indeed a milestone in the history of human wars.
Miracle.
But when all this actually happens, only by being in the game can you know that everything is extremely uncertain.
Now even Rock is not sure whether Winston, who has just taken office, has a chance to complete the Dunkirk evacuation.
For the British and French forces, they need time and a lot of luck.
and confidence in winning the final victory of the war.
Southern Africa has the ability to give the Allies sufficient confidence.
As long as southern Africa joins the war.
"I am the mayor of Saint-Roch. I am not only responsible to the Lord, I am also responsible to the citizens of Saint-Roch. The southern Africans will not surrender. When the last moment comes, I will use facts to prove the courage and courage of the southern Africans.
Determination!" Lin Zhu was ready to commit suicide.
"No, no, no, Lin, you don't have to do this at all. Even if you become a prisoner, the Germans will give you treatment in line with your status." Ben Field looked horrified. Not to mention dying for the city, even if he died for his country, Ben Field
Field never even considered it.
"Ben, you don't know that in the history of the Chinese people, every time the Chinese people faced a war, countless people took the initiative to stand up and fight bloody battles for our country and our ethnic group without fear of sacrifice." Lin Zhu was indeed a bit pedantic.
But it is precisely because of countless people like Lin Zhu that the Chinese can flourish to this day.
Don't underestimate the power of civilization.
Ben Field frowned, he really couldn't understand why Lin Zhu did this.
Cao Shixiu can understand.
So Cao Shixiu didn't talk nonsense and quietly looked at the adjutant next to him.
The adjutant understood the situation and soon got back a telegram.
Cao Shixiu took it and took a look and was very satisfied.
"Telegram from the Palace of Justice in Pretoria, Mr. Lin Zhu, you have been relieved of your duties. The Palace of Justice requires you to return to Pretoria immediately and make another appointment." Cao Shixiu's face was expressionless, as cold as a robot.
"What?" Lin Zhu couldn't believe it. What a coincidence that this telegram came.
normal!
Since the outbreak of the European War, there have been too many coincidences. Some things are just like what the two parties have agreed upon. No matter how clever the screenwriter is, no one can create such a plot.
Such as the upcoming Dunkirk evacuation.
Guderian must have been very depressed because he had just received an order from the German command.
The German command ordered Guderian to stop the offensive and left the task of destroying the British and French forces in Dunkirk to the air force led by Goering.
This order was beyond comprehension by Guderian.
The 19th Armored Corps commanded by Guderian was less than ten kilometers away from Dunkirk at this time. With just a kick of the accelerator, Adrian could surround the entire 500,000 British and French coalition forces.
Guderian therefore questioned and protested to Commander Kleist of the Armored Corps.
Kleist's reply was simple: This is an order personally issued by the head of state and must be carried out.
Regarding this order of Mustache, later generations have different opinions and it has become an unsolved mystery.
One theory is that Mustache deliberately let the British go. He wanted to leave an escape route for future peace talks.
This statement sounds a bit ridiculous, but in fact it is very possible.
After Germany and Russia carved up Poland, Mustache once proposed a peace plan, hoping to end the hostility between Britain, France and Germany.
With the lessons learned from the Munich Agreement, Neville no longer believed in Mustache's sincerity, and the hope for peace eventually came to nothing.
This cannot be blamed on Neville. Mustache has gone back on his promise many times, and Neville has enough reason to believe that Mustache's suggestion for peace is yet another delaying tactic.
Another theory is that Mustache was uneasy about the unusually rapid advance of his armored forces. He was worried that the armored forces would be surrounded by the British and French forces, so he ordered Guderian and Reinhardt to temporarily stop the attack.
So Winston had the opportunity to implement his "Generator Plan".
"Your position has been dismissed. From now on, you will have no relationship with the city of Saint Roch. I am now informing you in the name of the Commander of the Saint Roch Squadron that Saint Roch has been placed under military control. All irrelevant personnel must be
Evacuate, and so do you, Mr. Former Mayor!" Cao Shixiu waved the telegram proudly.
The former mayor, who was mentally prepared to commit suicide, was stunned.
Damn, the script shouldn't be like this.
Shouldn't it be the mayor who died in the city, arousing the collective anger of southern Africans, uniting everyone to fight against evil, and justice being done?
Now he has become the former mayor out of nowhere!
Could this telegram be fake?
"Take it, this is a telegram for you. Are you going to disobey me?" Cao Shixiu had a fierce look on his face. Just now you had sworn to live up to his lord's trust.
Now the Lord's latest order has come, do you accept it or not?
"Shouldn't the telegram sent to me be sent to the Saint-Roch City Government?" Lin Zhu still wanted to resist.
"Haha, wait until you return to Pretoria to ask this question to the Lord in person!" Cao Shixiu was too lazy to talk nonsense to Lin Zhu. With a wave of his hand, the adjutant immediately came over to Lin Zhu with two sailors.
"Wait, what are you going to do?" Lin Zhu's head was in a mess. This was really a scholar meeting a soldier, and he couldn't explain why.
"Mr. Lin Zhu, please hand over your sidearms. According to the regulations of the St. Roch Squadron, you cannot carry weapons on board the warships of the Southern African Navy." The adjutant acted according to the regulations and there was no possibility of accommodation.
"It is my right to carry weapons with me!" Lin Zhu did not want to hand over the gun, whether to the Germans or the Southern African Navy.
Cao Shixiu didn't talk nonsense and gave the adjutant another look.
The adjutant suddenly gave Lin Zhu a smile.
Before Lin Zhu could react, his arms were firmly controlled by two sailors, and then he watched helplessly as the adjutant took away the pistol Lin Zhu carried.
Tsk tsk tsk, it’s still a gorgeously decorated craft pistol.
Don’t doubt it, craft pistols can also kill people.
"This gun is not cheap. I will keep it for you temporarily and give it to you when I return to southern Africa." Cao Shixiu proudly held Lin Zhu's pistol. Craft pistols are not cheap, they are quite expensive.
By the way, the mayor's salary is not low, so he can definitely afford it. There is no gray income.
"Cao Shixiu, you bastard, you faked the imperial edict." Lin Zhu finally came to his senses, Cao Shixiu could do such a thing.
"Hahaha, if you have the ability, go to the Palace of Justice and tell the Lord to sue me." Cao Shixiu laughed loudly. It will take ten years for the scholar to rebel.
Ben Field, who was watching the whole process, was stunned.
this
Is this the bloody battle without fear of sacrifice that Lin Zhu just said?
ps: For Yutou, a 7,000-word chapter is definitely a big chapter. Today I am going back to my hometown to worship my ancestors. There is only this chapter in the morning. Counting the morning chapter, today’s chapter really exceeds 10,000 words. It’s quite conscientious.
