The counterattack launched by the British and French forces pushed the German troops to a dead end. If the encirclement circle was closed, nearly 350,000 German troops would be surrounded. This means that on average, one out of ten German troops on the Western Front would be surrounded by the encirclement circle. This is
The German army could not bear the losses.
Therefore, after the British and French forces launched a counterattack, Ludendorff mobilized his reserve troops to defend Reims while ordering the troops that were about to be surrounded to move closer to Reims.
The Australian and New Zealand Army Corps and the Canadian Army, which were ordered to contain the German troops in the encirclement, did not give the German Third Army and the Fifth Army a chance to retreat. The Third Army and the Fifth Army had just reduced their attack intensity. John Monash, who commanded the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps in the battle,
The general and General Max Lloyd, who commanded the Canadian Army, realized that the German army wanted to escape, so they launched a counterattack against the German army, firmly attracting the German army in the encirclement to the Marne River and unable to move.
In order to get rid of the entanglement between the Anzac and Canadian Legions as soon as possible, Ludendorff authorized Hutier and Otto von Bülow to abandon part of their troops when necessary. This order allowed Hutier and Otto von Bülow to
They were in a dilemma, they didn't know which troop should be left to defend, which meant that the remaining troops would be completely annihilated.
On the ever-changing battlefield, opportunities were fleeting. The time Rock left for Hutier and Otto von Bülow was very short. After just one night, Hutier and Otto von Bülow discovered that they
What we faced was not the question of which unit to leave behind, but the question of whether we could lead the Third Army and the Fifth Army to successfully break out of the encirclement.
After a night's rest, the 1st Armored Division and the 2nd Cavalry Division continued to advance.
The route was full of defeated German troops. The Germans did not expect the British Expeditionary Force to be so fast. Sometimes a marching German army had just received an order to defend on the spot, and the British Expeditionary Force's tank troops had already rushed over.
Facing the crazy attack of the armored troops, the light infantry could not organize an effective defense. Near a small town, the Second Cavalry Division encountered a German army. Those German soldiers did not look like soldiers at all. They drove a group
A group of cattle, some with chickens under their arms, some holding boxes of letter paper, some drinking while walking, and some tearing down silk curtains embroidered with patterns and wrapping them around themselves as trophies, colorful and colorful
They were so proud that some even dressed up in comedian costumes and high hats and could hardly walk.
The officers and soldiers of the Second Cavalry Division invaded the town, and what they saw surprised them even more. The streets were full of German soldiers who were robbing, and some people got themselves drunk in the wine cellars. The soldiers of the Second Cavalry Division
The officers and soldiers had to drag the people out of the wine cellar by their feet.
Such an army would have no glory even if it defeated them.
In a resident's home, two soldiers of the Second Cavalry Division couldn't bear it and opened fire. Four German soldiers committed unspeakable abominations against the hostess of the household. When the soldiers of the expeditionary force kicked open the door and rushed in, the German soldiers
Didn't even have time to lift up my pants.
These German soldiers were regarded as stubbornly resisting and were shot dead on the spot.
In this town, the Second Cavalry Division captured a total of 800 German officers and soldiers. According to post-war statistics, the town lost property equivalent to 15 million francs.
At six o'clock in the afternoon, the expeditionary force finally merged with the French troops and surrounded about 350,000 German troops.
Roque and Pétain continuously put their reserves into preparations to encircle and annihilate the German troops in the encirclement.
Ludendorff was also mobilizing troops to launch an attack on Reims, hoping to rescue the surrounded German troops.
Reims was still in the hands of the Germans at this time.
The German units responsible for clearing Reims were the 11th and 12th Divisions of the Southern African Expeditionary Force.
The battle was not too fierce. Both the 11th and 12th Divisions of the Southern African Expeditionary Force participated in the siege of Constantinople and had very rich experience in street fighting.
The Germans relied on the fortifications and houses in the city of Reims to resist, but they were unable to stop the advance of the 11th and 12th Divisions. By the afternoon of the 15th, the 11th and 12th Divisions had occupied 80% of the city of Reims.
There are less than 2,000 German officers and soldiers remaining in the city.
In the past few days when the 11th and 12th Divisions were clearing out the remnants of the enemy, the German troops outside the encirclement and the Germans inside the encirclement were launching frantic attacks on Reims in an attempt to save the Germans inside the encirclement.
The 1st Armored Division and the 2nd Cavalry Division are responsible for the defense of the periphery of Reims. Tanks and armored vehicles have become the fulcrum of the defensive position. There is also the air force in the sky to assist, the artillery unit provides firepower assistance, and the weather is also helping. It is still snowing in April.
This created more difficulties for the attacking German troops.
In a house on the outskirts of Reims, there were about two squads of soldiers from the Second Cavalry Division responsible for the defense. The soldiers smashed open the walls of the house to set up machine gun positions, and the precision shooters climbed into the attic to clear the enemy's key targets.
, and also responsible for observing the enemy's situation.
The riflemen hid behind curtains to monitor the streets. There were two doctors and four nurses in the basement, and the wounded nearby were sent here for temporary treatment.
"Correggi, did you find anything?" Sergeant George, the squad leader, climbed up to the attic and brought freshly fried eggs and hot coffee to Correggi, the precision shooter.
"Thank you, everything is normal, except that the damn snow is getting heavier and heavier. Why is it still snowing now? I'm afraid I have to wear short-sleeves in Port Elizabeth -" Correggi quietly climbed away from the window, and the attic window was slightly open.
It was low, only one foot high from the floor. Correggi spread some straw on the floor, and then spread a blanket, making it a simple and warm nest.
"Because this is France, you eat first and I will keep an eye on you for a while." George threw another pack of cigarettes and half a bottle of wine to Correggi. Correggi needed the cigarettes but not the wine.
"Come on, I don't want to be punished for drinking." Correggi unscrewed the cap, smelled it, and reluctantly returned the bottle to George.
The British Expeditionary Force does not prohibit drinking, and sometimes alcohol is even needed to inspire the courage of the officers and soldiers. However, during combat, combatants in key positions, such as observers, precision shooters, tank drivers, and frontline unit commanders, are strictly prohibited from drinking.
The two tank crews who drove the tank into the river during the French counterattack were tragic because they drank too much before setting off.
Accidents caused by drinking during the World War were common. In the past winter, hundreds of soldiers froze to death in the snow because of excessive drinking.
"Low-alcohol wine, it's okay to drink a little, it can make your body warmer-" George unscrewed the cap and took a sip, then put his eyes to the eyepiece of the telescope, and then held his breath.
"What's wrong?" Corregi put down his unfinished coffee and grabbed the sniper rifle next to him.
The scope on a sniper rifle can also be used as a telescope under certain circumstances.
Two hundred meters away, at the edge of the forest, through the scope of the sniper rifle, I could vaguely see someone passing by a big tree.
"Come on, brothers, get ready for battle-" George didn't waste any time, put down his binoculars and ran towards the stairs.
The whole building suddenly became busy. The soldiers who were resting jumped up. The soldiers at the table drank the last sip of coffee and picked up their rifles. The soldiers in the kitchen were busy putting out the fire. The soldiers who were warming themselves in front of the fireplace were all over the floor looking for themselves.
boots——
If the German army launched an attack at this time, they would definitely wipe out all the soldiers in the house. They didn't need any clever tactics. They just threw a few grenades through the windows and set fire to them.
The first one to shoot was Correggi in the attic. Correggi carefully tightened the lid of the coffee pot and placed it on the floor next to him. Then he calmly put the cross in the scope on the head of a German officer.
Then the trigger was pulled.
Boom!
The German officer fell down in response. The bullet hit the German officer's head. A fan-shaped pattern composed of blood stains suddenly appeared on the big tree next to the German officer.
Corregi didn't have time to appreciate it, so he put the cross on the head of another German officer and continued to pull the trigger with an expressionless face.
Boom!
The German officer was already prepared for this shot and missed it.
The number of German officers who escaped was behind a tree, and Corregi lost his second chance to attack. But it didn't matter. Corregi had many targets. The next target was a man holding a Type 15 Maxim.
Machine gun shooter with machine gun barrel.
The machine gun shooter is busy assembling the heavy machine gun and filling the barrel with cooling water to complete all preparations before shooting.
This time, Corregi did not choose the head, but chose to do less damage but capture a larger area of the chest and abdomen.
If a German soldier is injured, the German army must send at least two people to take care of the wounded, which is actually more effective.
Boom!
The targeted German machine gunner fell down in response. The deputy gunner dragged the gunner's body back with a horrified look on his face. He had just taken two steps and was shot down by a shot.
Thanks to the incredibly fast shooter Lee Enfield.
In the silent snowy night, even though they were more than two hundred meters apart, Correggi seemed to hear the miserable screams of the wounded German soldiers.
A German soldier stretched his hands behind a big tree, probably begging other soldiers for help.
A backpack strap used to tie a backpack was thrown out from behind the tree, presumably to pull the person away. The person behind the tree did not dare to show his head. This has happened countless times. The precision shooters of the expeditionary force are best at taking advantage of injured soldiers.
Attract more German troops into the trap.
If Corregi didn't tie the rope, the probability of breaking the rope was actually very low. Corregi aimed at the wounded German soldier's arm.
Just when the injured German soldier had just grasped the rope, just like a drowning man who had just grasped a life-saving straw, hope and joy appeared in his eyes.
Correggi fired again, accurately hitting the arm that had just grabbed the rope.
Military weapons are so powerful that even with a 7.7mm caliber Lee Enfield, the huge kinetic energy released by the bullet when it hits the arm is enough to shatter the hit arm into a shattered fracture.
Looking at the German soldiers struggling on the verge of death in the scope, Corregi was neither sad nor happy, this is war!
