While Allied leaders negotiated in Berlin, the battle for Berlin was ongoing. Artillery
The British 1st Airborne Division suffered heavy losses, which did not affect the morale of the Russian army. On the contrary, after leaving the solid defensive positions, the German army was unable to confront the Russian armored forces in the wild.
Rokossovsky acted very quickly. Before the German army could set up positions along the Oder River, the Russians built several pontoon bridges overnight. As the Russian armored forces advanced, the German army was defeated across the board.
The First Belarusian Front led by Zhukov also made smooth progress, continuously breaking through the German defense belts on both sides and attacking the outskirts of Berlin.
In order to break through these two German positions, the Belarusian First Front paid a huge price. Two tank armies under Zhukov were forced to withdraw from the battle and retreat to the rear to rest.
After breaking through the first defensive belt, the 1st Belarusian Front encountered tenacious resistance from the Germans. The Germans took advantage of the favorable terrain and tenaciously defended every trench and foxhole, causing huge casualties to the attacking troops.
Zhukov concentrated all the artillery of the front army and violently bombarded the German positions. At the same time, he sent nearly a thousand tanks to launch a fierce attack on the German positions.
At this time, Mustache had a premonition that the end was coming. He ordered all staff officers and civilian personnel of the headquarters to withdraw from Berlin, while he stayed in Berlin to continue commanding the operations. Artillery
In order to strengthen the German army's determination to fight, Mustache executed commanders who were unfavorable in the battle, and all German officers and soldiers who retreated would also be shot, even if they were forced to retreat after running out of ammunition and food.
After all, flesh and blood could not compete with tanks. Although the German army fought to the end, it could not stop the advance of the 1st Belarusian Front.
On the fifth day of the battle, the First Belarusian Front finally arrived in the suburbs of Berlin, and the entire Berlin was within the range of Russian artillery.
Faced with what seemed like an easy victory, Zhukov did not take advantage of the situation and instead concentrated all his artillery once again to launch an indiscriminate bombardment of Berlin.
At this point in the war, there is no difference between the military zone and the demilitarized zone. Even civilian residential areas will be shelled by the Russian army.
After passing the most difficult stage, Russia's military-industrial capabilities gradually recovered, and now 100,000 artillery shells arrive in Berlin every day.
Zhukov is not stingy with artillery shells. In fact, if it were not for Moscow's urging, Zhukov might have truly razed Berlin to the ground before launching a ground attack on Berlin. Artillery
The "razed to the ground" here is not an adjective, but a literal meaning.
While the 1st Belorussian Front was shelling Berlin, the 1st Ukrainian Front advanced westward to the Elbe River. Here, the leading troops of the 1st Ukrainian Front and the Southern African Expeditionary Force completed their rendezvous.
After the battle of Remagen, the Southern African Expeditionary Force continued to advance towards Berlin without stopping.
At this time, in order to strengthen the defense of Berlin, the German army had mobilized all available troops to Berlin. The Southern African Expeditionary Force encountered almost no resistance and could advance at a speed of 50 to 80 kilometers per day.
This speed is astonishing. Even if the Southern African Expeditionary Force is entirely mechanized, the fact that it can reach this speed fully proves the smooth progress of the expeditionary force.
Joining forces with the 1st Ukrainian Front was the reconnaissance force of the 9th Armored Division.
After the Battle of Remagen, Qining received a hero medal and a three-month vacation.
Qining did not choose to take a vacation, but continued to fight with the army.
As the scouts of the armored force, Qining and the others naturally have vehicles, but their vehicles are not light tanks, but armored vehicles with stronger maneuverability.
"Will they shoot at us?" Little Wright controlled the dual-purpose machine gun on the top of the armored vehicle, feeling slightly nervous.
It is the season when spring is warm and flowers are blooming. It is said that the plan for the year lies in spring, and the Germans also need to farm. At the foot of the mountain in the distance, there are several Germans working in the fields.
Strictly speaking, these people were not threatening. After all, there were only two elderly women and two children who looked less than ten years old. In addition, there were two children playing on the roadside next to the field.
This is Germany now. Young people are now either serving in the army or in Allied prisoner of war camps. Only the real old, weak, women and children have not been drafted.
During the Battle of Remagen, a considerable number of the German soldiers captured by the expeditionary force were seriously overage, and some of them were even 60 years old. Artillery
"It shouldn't be——" Qining held a telescope and did not notice that these people were carrying weapons.
It doesn't matter whether they have weapons or not. As long as Little Wright thinks they are a threat, Little Wright can shoot them. This is the prerogative of the occupying forces.
Of course, the Southern African Expeditionary Force rarely does this, but it is normal for the US military.
Don't look at the movies made by Americans. American soldiers are all handsome and compassionate, and they are always giving out candies, chocolates and so on.
In fact, the U.S. military is very brutal during combat, and innocent passers-by are often shot and killed by the U.S. military.
The Americans have very good reasons. In their view, all Germans are guilty.
During the war in the Netherlands, there were many reports of atrocities committed by the US military, which prompted protests from the Dutch government-in-exile.
The Netherlands is also amazing. After being invaded by the German army, the country's government was split into two. One part joined the Axis powers, and the other part went to the UK to form a government-in-exile. It was a standard double-faced approach.
This cannot be said to be because the Dutch are cunning. Almost all countries invaded by Germany are like this. Even France is hedging its bets and cannot demand too much from the Dutch.
"The war situation report in the Far East said that any Japanese they encountered might launch an attack on the Allied forces. They would even tie bombs to themselves and detonate the bombs when they got close to the Allied forces. It was so terrifying!" Little Wright
I still have little experience. Compared with Europe, the battlefield in the Far East has long been reduced to hell.
In fact, the Russians are similar to the US military during combat.
The Russians really hate the Germans, and when fighting in Russia, the Russians were quite restrained.
After invading Germany, the Russians completely let go. Organized looting and massacres, and large-scale rapes were common. The areas occupied by the Russian army can really be described as being fought like a grate.
It was precisely because of the Russian army's revenge that Dönitz organized Operation Hannibal. Artillery
Operation Hannibal is still ongoing.
But Dönitz must have been confused. Even if the German navy evacuated the Germans from the occupied areas of Russia, Dönitz did not know where to send them.
Now, no place in the world is safe for Germans.
"If you knew what the Japanese had done, you would treat the Germans more harshly than the Russians." Qining regretted that he was not sent to East Asia.
When fighting against the Germans, even if you win a complete victory, you will always feel like you have unfinished business, and you will always feel angry and unable to vent your anger.
It would be great if it was in East Asia. Qining would pay back double the sins committed by the Japanese in East Asia to the Japanese——
Doubling is not enough, you have to double it super.
"How about this watch? Some people say it's worth 50 yuan -" Cargill was not in the mood to participate in war discussions and was exchanging souvenirs with Parker beside him.
Although the Southern African Expeditionary Force will not kill innocent people indiscriminately, they still need spoils of war.
The trophies here are not limited to looting from the German troops, but also the German residences passed by during the march are also included in the collection.
It has to be said that in the past few years since Germany conquered Europe, it has robbed a lot of good things. Cargill's wrist was covered with watches, worth more than a dozen dollars, and they looked as bright as wearing armor.
"Lord brand goods, worthless, at most 20--" Parker was disgusted at first glance. For southern Africans, any watch not produced by Iteno is a no-name brand.
Kargil is from Najd, and his standards are not that high, otherwise this watch would not have been his turn.
Real southern Africans are not very interested in industrial products. Instead, they are more interested in artworks that are a bit older, especially oriental cannons.
After the Battle of Remagen, Parker sent a large box of various daily necessities to southern Africa, most of which were porcelain, calligraphy and paintings that were not easy to cash.
Everything that could be easily converted into cash was sold to the military service agency.
"Twenty is money, how much is your monthly allowance?" Cargill complained, and then sighed.
Kargil’s monthly allowance is less than RMB 20.
Parker's allowance is more than 20.
They are all serving in the same army, accepting the same tasks, with the same risks, but receiving different allowances. It is simply unreasonable!
At this time, the 9th Armored Division had already invaded the hinterland of Germany. Because there was no war breaking out nearby and the road traffic conditions were not bad, the armored vehicles and artillery were very fast.
"There is the Elbe River ahead, be vigilant!" Qining had already seen the Elbe River in his telescope.
The Elbe River is one of the main shipping waterways in Central Europe, with a total length of approximately 1,165 kilometers, two-thirds of which flows through Germany.
According to past experience, the German army would often stick to the river and rely on the river to set up positions.
The Elbe River has a wide surface, gentle flow, and fertile farmland on both sides. The area has little strategic value and has basically not been bombed by the Allies, so it still retains its original appearance and has not been devastated by the war.
Before Little Wright had time to respond, sporadic gunshots suddenly came from the distance.
Dong dong dong dong——
Little Wright was in a state of extreme nervousness, so he immediately swept over with a shuttle, although he didn't see anyone at all.
"Don't shoot!" Qi Ning was furious. This was obviously not an attack.
No one on the battlefield warned before firing. If it was a German ambush, they would open fire after the armored vehicles approached, and they would not use rifles, but anti-tank guns or rocket launchers.
The protective capabilities of armored vehicles are limited. If they are ambushed by the Germans, they will most likely be destroyed immediately and there will be no chance of counterattack.
Qining's judgment was correct. After Little Wright fired, a Russian military flag suddenly erected on the river embankment in the distance.
This was the first time Qining saw the Russian military flag on the battlefield.
Since he had never seen it before, Qi Ning was stunned for a moment before he realized it, and then ordered the car to stop.
Without Qining's orders, Kargil and Parker immediately jumped out of the car and established defensive positions and artillery next to them.
It doesn't matter to the Russians, I'm just afraid that the Germans are pretending.
"Do you want to get closer?" Jensen, who was driving an armored vehicle, was bold.
"Do you speak Russian?" Qining didn't want to take risks. The meeting of the two armies was of great significance, so there had to be some sense of ceremony.
Qining didn't know how to deal with the relationship with the Russian army.
Although they are friendly forces, there is an obvious competitive relationship between the expeditionary force and the Russian army. At this time, there is still the possibility of misfire.
Fortunately, the armored vehicle had a walkie-talkie, and Qining immediately asked his superiors for instructions.
The superiors don’t know what to do and have to ask their superiors for instructions.
The order hadn't been issued yet, so Qining noticed that someone was riding over from the opposite side.
It was really a horse. Qining never thought that it was 1945 and the army still used horses as transportation!
This cannot be blamed on Qining's lack of knowledge. Long before the outbreak of the world war, the southern African army had already completed motorization, and the number of military horses was not as large as that of military dogs.
Judging from the military rank, it was a Russian second lieutenant who came with a telescope on his chest. He probably saw the military flag and military emblem on the armored vehicle, so he dared to come over casually.
"Southern Africa?" The second lieutenant spoke in Chinese. Although the pronunciation was a bit weird, the enunciation was still very clear.
"Yes, we are the Southern African Expeditionary Force -" Qining thought for a long time and only remembered the sentence "Davarich".
This is enough. Cannon
The second lieutenant had a cheerful personality. After receiving a clear response, he jumped off the horse with a loud laugh, gave Qining a big hug, and babbled words that Qining could not understand.
Yes, this person probably knows the same thing.
"Hello, hello, where are you from?" Qi Ning was also enthusiastic, but unfortunately the second lieutenant couldn't understand him.
Then communicate in a way that everyone understands.
Qining took out a pack of cigarettes produced in southern Africa and handed them to the second lieutenant.
The second lieutenant was very happy and handed Qining a cigarette.
What surprised Qining was that the cigarettes the second lieutenant took out were actually produced in southern Africa.
That's right. It is estimated that this is aid given to Russia by Southern Africa. Compared with Russia's heavy industry, Russia's light industry capabilities are still a bit poor.
Many people may not have thought that the most abundant supplies from southern Africa to Russia were not airplanes and cannons, but cotton-padded clothes.
Most of Russia's territory is in the Arctic Circle, and it is winter for most of the year. It is said to be the country with the least shortage of cotton-padded clothes.
The cigarette was lit, and the second lieutenant naturally took out the kettle and handed it to Qining.
Qi Ning took it, smelled it, frowned slightly, and handed his kettle to the second lieutenant.
The second lieutenant's expression became even more satisfied.
The Russian people's favorite thing, besides taking revenge on the Germans, is probably drinking. How many people drink to death every year?
The potato vodka produced in southern Africa was introduced from Russia. Of course, the production of vodka has already surpassed that of Russia.
"Dost!" the second lieutenant raised the kettle and signaled to Qining.
