On April 16, 1940, the Battle of Norway, which brought together many forces, finally came to an end.
The rhythm of the war, which had been completely dominated by the British and French allied forces, became confusing again because of the decisive attack of the German 30th Division.
The combined strength of the British and French Expeditionary Forces exceeds two divisions, and they are only one German division away from capturing the Norwegian capital!
Although the expeditionary force can achieve final victory in Norway as long as this final obstacle is overcome, no one is optimistic about the outcome of this duel.
The war has entered a fierce part, and both sides have used all their strength.
The war has gone from testing each other with the vanguard at the beginning to a decisive battle involving all the main forces.
Tired British soldiers, dragging heavy steps, were constantly moving along the major thoroughfares in Lillehammer, and then rushed to the front line. Although the outer positions were slightly strengthened by the addition of the French Alpine Infantry Regiment.
However, the main force of the German 30th Division, which arrived on the battlefield one after another, once again overwhelmed the defense line.
Although the battalion that the Germans launched the previous raid had strong combat qualities and coordinated in an orderly manner, they had not used heavy weapons after all, and their firepower was basically at the same level as the British army.
At that time, the expeditionary force could still rely on French infantry who were also good at land warfare to compete with them.
But now, the main force of the German army brought not only more enemies, but also more powerful weapons. They poured artillery fire on the expeditionary force's defensive positions round after round, making full use of their firepower advantage.
Everyone knows that an expeditionary force without heavy weapons should never go head-to-head with the Germans who have more than one self-propelled artillery battalion as artillery support. As long as the Germans still have artillery shells, even if they plow the fields with artillery shells in a dull manner, they will not be able to do anything.
Sooner or later, the expeditionary force's defensive force will be worn down.
The officers who went to the headquarters to request a retreat were all driven back to the position in disgrace. They heard that the British Lieutenant General Oliver and the French Colonel Bernard in the headquarters looked like they were facing a powerful enemy.
Colonel Bernard was okay. At least he could communicate normally with the officers who went to ask for instructions. But Lieutenant General Oliver, whose face had almost lost all color, just kept mumbling "Can't retreat, can't retreat..."
....”
In this battle, Lieutenant General Oliver, as the top leader of the expeditionary force, has been forced into a dilemma.
In order to support their operations, after the British Admiralty lost a squadron and all the supplies on the fleet transport ship at Narvik Heights, it specially dispatched a second fleet to replenish supplies for the expeditionary force. For this reason,
This is to enable the expeditionary force to finally win this battle.
It was not easy to transport the huge amount of supplies required by two British divisions and a French regiment over long distances by sea to Norway. In order to protect the safety of the transport fleet, Lord Admiral Churchill specially dispatched a large number of warships from other routes to escort them.
.For this reason, the frequency of attacks by the Dönitz wolf pack on British import material transport teams has almost doubled in recent times!
It can be said that Churchill was trading huge losses on other routes in exchange for abundant supplies for the Norwegian Expeditionary Force.
After making huge sacrifices, you must get sufficient rewards. This is the message conveyed to Oliver by the British Admiralty.
If Oliver had wasted the huge sacrifices made by the Admiralty and lost this battle, one can imagine how bad his situation would be when he returned home!
And Hans is a famous German general who grew up in the war. He is famous for his steady and watertight military deployment. It is almost impossible to defeat such a cautious and famous general with the firepower advantage and rely solely on the superiority of troops and numbers.
something realized.
Oliver originally expected to rely on the French Alpine Regiment, which had excellent individual soldiers, as the lead, to break through the German fire line in an offensive-to-offensive manner, and go straight to the rear of the 30th Division, thus offsetting the German advantage created by self-propelled artillery.
However, when he discovered that in addition to their powerful firepower, the German army's individual combat qualities were not inferior to the French infantry, known as the world's number one army, Oliver realized that his strategy had failed.
Even if it is difficult to stabilize the defense line under the German offensive, let alone counterattack and attack the German attack position, that is simply a fantasy!
Speaking of which, Lieutenant General Oliver and Colonel Bernard looked down upon Major General Hans, their German counterpart, at first.
Ten days ago, they were still full of contempt for the German division that was huddled in Oslo and did not dare to move.
Compared with the unstoppable advance of the British and French allied forces, the German commanders seemed a little too cowardly.
At that time, Oliver and Bernard really thought that this German army might just be a spiritual symbol given by Germany to the Norwegian faction, just to inspire the Norwegians' resistance. Once the Norwegian troops were completely wiped out, this German division might be
It's time to flee back home in despair and avoid fighting with the expeditionary force.
But now, when the British and French forces were exhausted and exhausted during the attack and on the road, the Germans took action!
At this time, Oliver remembered that in order to achieve a quick victory, the expeditionary force gave up carrying heavy artillery that was difficult to pass through the Norwegian mountains and gave up its firepower advantage.
When facing the Norwegian troops with the same firepower, this weakness was temporarily covered up by the excellent combat quality of the British and French forces that far exceeded that of the Norwegian soldiers.
But when they encounter German soldiers who are equally well-trained and even have better individual qualities, all their weaknesses will be infinitely magnified in an instant!
Fatigued troops; low firepower; and the British army, which accounts for the majority of the expeditionary force, is far inferior to the combat level of the German Army... All of these have resulted in the expeditionary force now having a superior force.
Instead, they were suppressed by the German army.
The battle has reached its climax, and both sides have invested their strongest force. Since no one has a backup plan, it is only a matter of time before the expeditionary force, which is now suppressed by the German army, will fail.
If the fight continues, it will definitely end in failure. But if he chooses to retreat in embarrassment, Oliver cannot bear the responsibility.
"General Oliver," Bernard, as a colleague, advised in fluent English: "My people can no longer hold on, and I believe your people can't do better. Then...
.There is only one way we can go now."
Oliver knew very well what path Bernard was talking about. But he couldn't take that path, and he didn't dare to take that path.
"No!" Oliver loudly refused: "If I withdraw now, all my efforts will be in vain. The country will not agree to what I do... In short, we must not withdraw!"
"Wait a little longer, maybe things will turn around..." Oliver said with a sickly look on his face.
There will be no turning around, Bernard knows it very well.
All the strength has been used. If they can't win now, then this battle will never be won with their strength. However, Oliver, who is burdened with huge responsibilities and pressure, has begun to collapse at this moment. He can't listen.
Go into any analysis.
"General! A large number of Norwegian troops have appeared in the north, and they are launching an attack on the northern flank of our army!" The staff officer's report became the last straw for Oliver.
"Hold on..." Oliver felt a sweetness in his throat, then a mouthful of blood gushed out, and he interrupted his speech.
"Plop!" With a dull crash, Lieutenant General Oliver, commander-in-chief of the British and French Expeditionary Forces, fell to the ground unconscious...
