"Isn't this Lyon? Since your people are here, it seems that the division headquarters is also going to join this transport fleet."
Because they had fought side by side in the Polish campaign, Hoffman, who was already the commander of the main battalion of the main regiment of the 30th Infantry Division, was no stranger to Lyon, the commander of the guard battalion of the 30th Infantry Division.
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Both of them were promoted from the previous lieutenant to the current captain. However, Hoffman is still fighting on the front line, while Lyon has become the guard battalion commander in the hands of Lieutenant General Hans, staying behind to protect the safety of the division.
Yes, the division commander of the 30th Infantry Division, Hans, was also promoted. He became a lieutenant general and concurrently served as the division commander of the German 30th Infantry Division.
In fact, to put it bluntly, Rommel, whom Reinhard sent to Africa, had two generals under his command.
The first general Rommel got was a little-known one. His name was Newman Silko. He was a major general of the German armored forces. He had a deep understanding of tank warfare and was a very good executor.
Although Major General Newman may not be so bold and brilliant when commanding troops in combat, he will definitely be faithful when performing military tasks assigned by his superiors.
Rommel himself happened to be a master of bold and adventurous armored commanders. The 15th Armored Division of the Wehrmacht assigned to this general by Reinhardt was originally a unit for him to use as his team.
As for Major General Newman, he was just Reinhardt's deputy for Rommel. After all, the 15th Armored Division in Newman's hands had to be dispatched by Rommel himself most of the time.
Newman's task was to carry out Rommel's orders and requirements.
As for the other general, he is famous. It can even be said that his fame is not much less than that of Rommel.
Yes, this general was the one who used a division in the Polish campaign to resist the 72-hour uninterrupted attack by a Polish group army led by the French Army Berlant. After the large forces arrived,
He led the remnants of less than a thousand men to launch a joint counterattack, and cooperated with the army internally and externally to annihilate Hans von Furmanred of the 200,000-strong Polish Army Corps.
Now, Hans, who was qualified as an infantry lieutenant general and received the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, once again received an important assignment and was sent to Africa by Reinhardt to command the infantry corps of the German Africa Army.
Coincidentally, Berlant, who once fled back to France from Poland in despair because of the deadly battle of the 30th Division under Hans, got involved with Hans again this time. However, this time they were no longer enemies.
camp, but a cooperative relationship.
And the troops commanded by Hans were no longer just one division.
Yes, Hans is also a lieutenant general after all. What he has to do now is to command the troops of the two countries, a total of one army.
According to the agreement reached by Reinhardt and Mussolini, Italy needs to jointly form an African Army with Germany, and "strong" Italy should bear more military contributions and provide all the logistics supplies of the African Army.
In fact, this is the opportunity that Germany has always longed for, and it is also Reinhardt's favorite method.
Sending a small number of German troops to pull the large troops of other countries, and using the national strength of other countries to fight a war that is beneficial to Germany, Reinhard is already familiar with this kind of thing.
As early as the Spanish Civil War, Reinhardt asked Rommel to lead a German armored division as a team and formed a German-Spanish combined corps that could command 10 other Spanish German armored divisions at the same time. In the name of helping Franco,
The Spanish Republican Army was eliminated and the Kingdom of Spain became a member of the Allied Powers.
Later, Reinhard asked Hans to lead a German infantry division as a team to form the German-Norwegian Combined Corps. He also commanded a division of German troops and other Norwegian defense forces to eliminate the British and French expeditions in the name of protecting the independence of Norway.
army, turning Norway into a member of the Allied Powers.
Now, Rommel and Hans, two German generals with rich experience in commanding troops from other countries, were sent to North Africa together and resumed their old profession again.
People, Italy paid more than half of it for them.
German Armored General Rommel received an Italian armored division and merged it with the German 15th Armored Division to form the First Armored Corps of the African Army.
German Infantry Lieutenant General Hans will receive two Italian infantry divisions, which will be merged with the German 30th Infantry Division to form the Second Infantry Army of the African Army.
As for the fuel, ammunition, food and other supplies for the entire African Army, Italy will be responsible for them. The Italian Navy will escort the transport fleet in the Mediterranean to ensure that the supplies reach the hands of the African Army safely.
For many years, Italy's attitude in North Africa has been very resolute, resulting in Germany simply acquiring military bases here and meddling in local interests.
But this time, under the huge threat of being driven out of Africa by the British army, Mussolini not only allowed German power to enter Africa, but also agreed to give up part of Libyan land after the war in return. In addition, he also provided the German army with Italy.
As helpers and subordinates, the troops provided material support for Rommel's Africa Army.
As long as it can win, Italy can recover most of its pre-war benefits, and Germany can also gain benefits that it did not have before the war. This is a win-win situation for Reinhardt and Mussolini.
Now, even the transportation tasks of German African troops are shared by the Italians.
Previously, Rommel had already taken most of the 15th Armored Division on an Italian transport fleet, escorted by the Italian Navy, and headed for French Morocco.
Now, Hans's 30th Infantry Division has also embarked on a journey to Africa.
"Captain Hoffman," Leon, who heard someone saying hello, looked back and immediately recognized this old acquaintance: "I didn't expect to meet you here."
Leon walked forward with a smile, fist-bumped with Hoffman and said, "Long time no see. Now the division commander told me that the division is leaving for Africa. I guessed that I might meet friends from other units in the division on the way. It's really not like that.
I thought it would be you."
"Hey, you haven't answered my question yet." Hoffman poked Leon on the shoulder and reminded: "Commander Hans is also with us, riding in this batch of transport fleet?"
"Of course." Leon laughed, patted Hoffman on the shoulder and said, "Isn't the guard battalion I lead always responsible for protecting the safety of the division? We are here, and the division commander will definitely be here."
If someone looks carefully, it is not difficult to find that the two people talking are both well-known grassroots commanders who have appeared on the propaganda page of the German Social Workers newspaper.
Lyon, who fought with a small number in the Polish campaign, and Hoffman, who served as a vanguard in the Norwegian campaign, were all stars whose photos appeared in newspapers.
In addition to their Division Commander Hans and General Rommel who has already arrived in Africa, the officers sent by Germany to Africa this time can be described as an extremely luxurious star lineup!