When supplies from southern Africa continued to arrive in Alexandria, Wavell and Cunningham were discussing how to launch an attack on Italian North Africa.
The Second Army of Southern Africa has almost occupied the entire Italian East Africa, and the Nile Army cannot remain idle.
After receiving reinforcements from the Indian army, the strength of the Nile Army Group has been strengthened, with its strength increasing from the initial 50,000 to the current 80,000.
The additional 30,000 people belong to five infantry divisions.
That's right, five.
This was really unacceptable to Weiweier.
They are also infantry divisions. A British infantry division has 18,000 troops.
An infantry division in southern Africa has 16,000 men.
India only has 6000?
This isn't really a division, it's more like a brigade.
"Don't use common sense to measure India. You know, India has many young people who are eager to prove themselves on the battlefield, so it is normal that the number of Indian officers is a bit high. After all, India has a population of 400 million." Cunningham is used to it.
No wonder, the young people he was talking about are high-caste princes and nobles. As for the lower castes, sorry, lower castes are not considered human beings in India.
If the children of high-caste princes and nobles want to make achievements on the battlefield, they need to have enough troops to deploy, so it is understandable that a division only has 6,000 people.
As for the combat effectiveness of the troops
Letting the Indians attack the strong Italian fortresses probably wouldn't work.
Then it's okay to fight with the wind blowing.
Wei Weier prayed secretly.
"I still suggest that after the Third Army in Southern Africa is in place, we can then attack the Italians. But this is just my suggestion. The decision is in your hands." Cunningham did not overstep his authority. The Royal Navy theoretically did not command the British Army.
power.
"I know, but General Cunningham, we have no time to waste. The Italians are waiting for German reinforcements. We cannot give the Italians and Germans a chance to join together." Wavell also had no choice. Italy has nearly 300,000 people in North Africa.
Although the number of troops was much greater than that of the Nile Army led by Wei Weier, Wei Weier was not without a chance of victory.
The Allies had already deciphered the German military codes and had a clear idea of the movements of the German troops.
The latest intelligence is that Germany is about to send troops to assist the Italian North African colonies. The commander is Rommel, who performed well in "Operation Sickle".
Now Rommel is not the world-famous "Desert Fox", he is just a rising star in the German army, and his reputation is not even as good as Guderian's.
If Weiweier knew Rommel's ability, then Weiweier might be more cautious.
"The Germans can never cross the Mediterranean!" Cunningham had confidence in the Mediterranean fleet.
Of course, this confidence is not very sufficient.
The Italian North African colonies have a long coastline. Alexandria, the home port of the Mediterranean Fleet, is more than 1,500 kilometers away from Tripoli, and the Italian mainland is only 450 kilometers away from Tripoli.
The key is that the three are not in the same direction. If the Mediterranean Fleet wants to cut off the connection between the Italian mainland and Italian North Africa, it will be impossible unless the home port is changed from Alexandria to Malta.
It's just possible.
Considering the threat of Italian submarines, the Mediterranean fleet tried to avoid night attacks, and one night was enough for Italian transport ships to reach Tripoli from the mainland.
At this time, the geographical location of Malta, located between mainland Italy and Tripoli, is very important.
Malta is a small island located in the center of the Mediterranean Sea, known as the "Heart of the Mediterranean" and the "European Countryside".
After the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1815, Malta became a British colony and a key strategic node in British control of the Mediterranean.
Because Malta is too close to the Italian mainland and is easily attacked by the Italian navy, the British do not have many troops stationed in Malta.
Miraculously, despite Malta's important status, Italy did not launch an attack on Malta after the outbreak of the European War. This is simply incredible.
This is also thanks to the restraint of the mustache.
The Germans did not want to see Italy dominate the Mediterranean, so Mustache firmly opposed Italy's attack on Malta.
See, it's not just the intrigues within the Allies, there are also irreconcilable conflicts of interest within the Axis powers.
Even before the battle was won, Germany and Italy had already begun to divide their territory.
"What I'm more worried about is how much our interests in North Africa will be affected if the Third Army of Southern Africa passes through French North Africa and defeats the Italian North African Army." Wavell has an overall view, and this issue cannot be ignored.
Referring to the distribution of interests after the last World War, if Southern Africa occupied Italian North Africa, then after the war, Italian North Africa would most likely become the territory of Southern Africa, and the British would have no chance of getting involved.
Strictly speaking, Tanganyika and South-West Africa are not actually southern African territories yet. They are only entrusted by the League of Nations to manage Tanganyika and South-West Africa.
But no one cares about this.
Tanganyika and Southwest Africa have now been de facto integrated into Southern Africa. Whoever wants to take Tanganyika and Southwest Africa away must first ask whether Southern Africa agrees.
"General Weiweier, this is not a problem for us to consider. We are only responsible for defeating the enemy opposite us." Cunningham also knew that the threat in southern Africa was getting bigger and bigger, but Cunningham had no choice but to muddle along.
This is the crux of the problem. Smart British people know that the British Empire is no longer glorious. It not only faces challenges from Germany, but also faces threats from southern Africa and the United States.
But no British person could jump out and turn the tide.
Neville once tried to do this and ultimately failed.
Winston is more likely to solve this problem than Neville, but Winston also has more concerns. He must ensure the status of the British aristocratic group, take into account the interests of capitalists, and win the support of the majority of members of Congress. At the same time, he must also
Need to get more votes.
Even if Winston can do all of the above, it is only possible.
"I'm going to launch a tentative attack on the Italian North African Army. I'll have to try it before deciding whether it works or not." Weiweier himself didn't notice, and his confidence was actually insufficient.
"The Mediterranean Fleet will fully assist you." Cunningham supported Wavell's attempt. Even if it fails, it is better than doing nothing.
While Cunningham and Wavell were planning their attack on Italian North Africa, the Cyprus Squadron had fully taken over the Twelve Islands.
Although the Twelve Islands are small in area, their geographical location is very important. As long as they control the Twelve Islands, the Cyprus Squadron can effectively control the Black Sea outlet even if it loses the Dardanelles Strait.
The day after the Rhode Island garrison surrendered, the federal government of Southern Africa sent officials to take over the Twelve Islands and pacify the residents of the islands.
The Greeks living in the Dodeca Islands were very welcoming to the arrival of southern Africa. Even Southern Africa's refusal to hand over the Dodeca Islands to the Greek government did not cause much reaction among the Greeks living in the Dodeca Islands.
After all, the protection of the Southern African Defense Force is more reliable than that of the Greek army.
The Greeks living on the Dodeca Islands actually don’t have much affection for the Greek government. After all, the Dodeca Islands were territory of the Ottoman Empire before they were ceded to Italy.
Therefore, the Greek government's request for the Twelve Islands is just the wishful thinking of the Greeks.
Some of the civil affairs officials sent by the federal government of Southern Africa to the Twelve Islands are women. With their outstanding abilities and excellent affability, they have played a huge role in appeasing the people.
Chen Jing from Brazil was assigned to Rhode Island.
After the Brazilian Civil War, Chen Jing went to southern Africa to reunite with her family. She married a naval officer the year before last and gave birth to a son last year.
Also last year, Chen Jing's husband was transferred to work in the Cyprus Squadron. Chen Jing and her husband came to Cyprus together. After the surrender of the Twelve Islands, Chen Jing took the initiative to sign up to go to Rhode Island as a civil affairs officer.
Chen Jing's first job was to count the number of residents on Rhode Island.
Chen Jing did a great job in this job.
Nowadays, except for southern Africa, the management of household registration is not strict in all countries.
There is no need to emphasize the role of population in a country. In order to compete for population, European countries even recognized dual citizenship. The Twelve Islands are very close to the Asia Minor Peninsula. During World War I, many Ottomans fled to the Twelve Islands to settle.
There are a total of 15,000 permanent residents on Tokushima.
Like most European cities, Rhodes City did not have urban planning when it was founded. Therefore, Rhodes City also has most of the problems of European cities, including but not limited to narrow streets, imperfect supporting facilities, and uneven roads.
, difficulty in transformation, etc.
After Southern Africa entered the war, Rhode Island was bombed for a long time. Most of the buildings in Rhode Island were destroyed, the residents were displaced, and there were heavy casualties. Therefore, when Chen Jing first came to Rhode Island, the residents of Rhode Island felt
There is hatred in southern Africa. If Chen Jing goes out alone, her safety cannot be guaranteed.
Now Chen Jing is no longer the quiet and weak Chen Jing who only knew how to make clothes. In terms of the use of firearms, Chen Jing's proficiency is comparable to that of her best friend Li Qing. The python detective produced by Nyasaland Military Industry
The pistol has also replaced Li Qing as Chen Jing's best partner.
"Uncle Isaac, you'd better go to Cyprus as soon as possible and come back after this winter. Cyprus at least has warm houses, enough food and warm clothes, as well as better medical conditions. Your rheumatism is in Cyprus.
You can get more effective treatment." Chen Jing's main job now is to mobilize the residents of Rhodes City to live temporarily in Cyprus, at least until Rhodes City is rebuilt before returning.
Winter is coming. Rhodes City suffered heavy losses in the previous bombing. If these people stay in Rhodes City, they may not even be able to survive the winter.
