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On March 21, 1941, the time had come to land in the United Kingdom. The German High Seas Fleet was dispatched in full force. After joining 6 battleships sent by Italy and France, they headed towards the south coast of Great Britain.
In addition, the German Air Force dispatched 600 fw190s from land airports, and the rest of the fighters also took off from the aircraft carrier and flew from south to north towards their destination.
Following closely behind were 500 Stuka bombers and 180 transport planes loaded with paratroopers.
In the first batch alone, the German army invested 120,000 troops in combat.
Since the German army launched a sudden attack on Britain, the progress was very smooth. The German army concentrated on the Allied forces that had previously landed in France and launched a fierce attack on Dover. The Luftwaffe also took advantage of the favorable conditions of clear weather and dispatched in large numbers.
The French troops fighting in Dover sent reinforcements in an attempt to disrupt the British counterattack.
Under the command of the famous French general Weygand, the French landing force sent a small elite group, risking casualties and taking advantage of the chaos to occupy the strategically important 47th Heights southwest of Dover.
Although the British army also knew the important value of Highland 47 and organized many counterattacks, they failed to succeed against Weygang, a master of defense.
Subsequently, the British army, which had already deployed heavy troops in Dover, quickly concentrated all its artillery fire and bombarded Hill 47 with all its strength.
Under the fierce shelling, the French army could not hold on, so they had to abandon Highland 47 and retreat to the southwest of the highland.
However, although the British army recaptured Highland 47, they were still under fierce attack by the Luftwaffe. They were unable to concentrate on using the armored forces they had left around Dover, and they were unable to exert the huge assault power of the armored forces.
Due to the high-density bombing of German bombers, the British army can generally only use 200 infantry and 15 to 20 tanks to form small battle groups for short attacks, making it difficult to win. In addition, in a few hours, their tank losses have reached approximately
100 vehicles, but no replenishment.
Then, the British army, which was late in driving the French army back to the sea, discovered that a large number of German transport ships had sent a second wave of reinforcements - a large number of soldiers wearing gray Norwegian military uniforms!
Since the German Navy provided a large amount of artillery support, the British Army almost never gained an advantage in the artillery battle near the beach. And if it continued, their losses would be even greater!
In order to ensure that London was safe, Churchill had no choice but to order the abandonment of some coastal positions in Dover, and withdraw 700 of the 900 tanks in Dover to the suburbs south of London, where they would be deployed with the French and Italian infantry who had lost naval gun support and could not advance.
They start a confrontation.
The key role in breaking the confrontation was the German airborne troops. They played a very important role in this landing mission, which is why the French and Italians were willing to be the first wave of cannon fodder.
The mission of the German airborne troops was to airdrop at a shallow depth 10 to 15 kilometers away from the coast on both sides of the landing beach, penetrate deep into the enemy's rear, prevent reinforcements from the enemy reserves, and attack the British coastal defense positions from the side and rear to coordinate with the sea landing.
However, because in the first 1 to 2 days, the Allies only landed three and a half infantry divisions provided by France and Norway, they only put the armored divisions into combat after establishing a large landing site for the armored divisions to deploy.
Both sides knew very well that if the British army could break through the defense line of the landing force before the armored forces landed, it would bring disaster to the landing. Therefore, the actions of the German airborne troops were crucial in the early stage of the landing!
The German 1st Airborne Division was the first unit to enter combat operations. As early as 00:16 midnight, they were airdropped to the left wing of the landing area. Their goal was to seize the bridge near Jaffre's left wing to prevent British armor from attacking.
Troops headed to the coast for support.
The German paratroopers quickly captured the bridges and successfully held them until the landing of commandos later that day. The objective of this operation was also to capture the bunker on the right flank of Jaffre. Although the bunker was not destroyed, it was not destroyed during the battle.
Afterwards, all the British troops in the bunker except 6 were killed or injured.
In contrast, the German 2nd and 3rd Airborne Divisions were not so lucky. Due to inexperienced navigators and complex ground conditions, coupled with the interception of British artillery fire, the troops were scattered everywhere. Some paratroopers were very
Unfortunately, they landed in low-lying areas in the sea or inland that were deliberately flooded by the Germans. Many people drowned in knee-deep water due to their heavy equipment.
After 24 hours, the 2nd Airborne Division had only assembled about 3,000 men.
However, from the overall strategic point of view, the German army can be said to be a blessing in disguise. Paratroopers were dropped throughout the Dover area, causing the British army to fall into chaos. The paratroopers fought independently, dispersed the British army's strength, and achieved considerable success.
Results.
Moreover, they caused the British commanders to greatly overestimate the number of paratroopers, mobilized more unnecessary troops, and largely dispersed the pressure on the beach landing sites. Many paratroopers were still fighting alone behind enemy lines for many days after the landing.
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The 3rd Airborne Division, the new airborne division where Lane is located (Wlane's infantry squad was not part of this combat mission), occupied the offshore town of Dover on the morning of the 24th, and this town became the entire
The first town in the British Empire to be captured by the Third Reich.
Although the German airborne troops had many problems, they still achieved great success, which shows that Reinhardt's point of view is correct. The German airborne troops captured vital transportation hubs, bridges, and beaches in the initial period of landing.
The passage destroyed the British artillery positions, undermined the stability of the British defense, contained the British reserves, and put the British army in a passive situation. It created conditions for the victory of the landing.
As soon as the German army landed on the southern coast of Dover, it was overwhelming and conquered many British defensive positions. Churchill was also very angry about this.
"Prime Minister, the Dover Theater is tight. Do we need to deploy an armored regiment from the suburbs of London to support it?" Churchill's colonel staff suggested in a low voice.
"Oh? Do you think our frontline defense strength is not enough? Or do you think our army is not strong enough to resist the German attack?" Churchill asked calmly, with a look that left no room for doubt.
A drop of cold sweat ran down the staff officer's cheek.
"Well, the prime minister has been in a bad mood these past two days." The staff officer thought silently in his heart.
During these days, when I work as a staff officer for Fatty Qiu, I always have to be careful. I am afraid that if I am not careful, the angry Fatty Qiu will tell me that he is a German spy and my life will be lost.
"Ah, no," the staff officer replied hurriedly: "Prime Minister, that's not what I meant, and I don't think our army can't defeat the German army. I just want to ask you if you need to send more manpower to ensure nothing goes wrong."
"Colonel, I know what you mean, but do you really think that the Germans will definitely be able to successfully launch a general offensive from Dover?" Churchill narrowed his eyes, looking unfathomable.
"Isn't this the case? The German army has such an obvious strategic tendency..." Before the staff officer could finish speaking, he was immediately interrupted by Churchill.
"Colonel, tell me what month it is now?" Churchill said casually.
"Hey, why did the Prime Minister ask this question so suddenly, but since it was asked by Churchill, I will answer directly." The staff member thought in confusion, but still immediately replied: "It is March."
Seeing that his staff still had a confused expression, Churchill continued with an expression of hatred for steel: "What will happen to the English Channel at that time?"
"March...Oh! I know! Prime Minister!" The staff officer suddenly realized.
British people all know that around March every year, there are always strong winds and rough waves in the English Channel, making it difficult for ships to sail.
