A German armored division, a Spanish quasi-armored division and five German armored infantry divisions of the German-Spanish Combined Corps have been divided into two groups, cutting off major traffic arteries such as the El Escorial Highway and cutting off the Republican Army's second line of defense.
The troop's retreat route.
Although the armored division under Rommel only had light tanks such as the No. 2 tank, it was enough to demonstrate its terrifying crushing combat effectiveness in the face of the Republican Army with backward weapons. Under the impact of the torrent of steel, the people's army temporarily formed by the Republican Army
The guards almost collapsed at the first touch and surrendered in large numbers.
The People's Guard, which was gathered by faith, did not lack the courage to fight. However, the government's chilling abandonment and the German army's despairing armored tanks drained their courage away bit by bit.
Looking at the flying Iron Cross flag of the German army, every Republican soldier who tried to resist could only feel a deep-rooted sense of powerlessness. They could not even pose the slightest threat to the German tanks and were forcibly broken through.
Position after position was broken through, and troops one after another were collectively wiped out. A few people were able to retreat to the rear positions, but most of them were either killed or surrendered.
It is conceivable that when the soldiers of the Republican Army saw the machine gun in the No. 2 tank calmly killing their own death squads, and saw that the defense line they thought was unbreakable collapsed in an instant, what was left in their hearts? Only despair.
!
The Germans are definitely not the "young soldiers" as advertised. They have efficient coordination tactics, an excellent non-commissioned officer command system, and rapid deployment methods. They have such outstanding soldiers and tactics, and military technology that far exceeds Spain. This
How could such an enemy be resisted by a militia like the People's Guard?
Not to mention the Republican Army representing half of Spain, even if the entire Spanish army is pulled together, it may not be possible to withstand the attack of five German armored divisions!
Take the German 5th Armored Division in front of you as an example. Wherever it appears, the defense zone will be completely eroded. It is like an invulnerable monster. No matter how many troops or dense positions, it can't do any harm to it.
harm.
This is a typical asymmetric war! This is the latest war mode!
As the commander of Germany, Rommel quickly mastered this mode of war. However, Darach, who could barely be regarded as Rommel's temporary opponent, had obviously been fooled by this new mode of war. The war had already broken away.
Having encountered the trench warfare that the Republican Army was familiar with, the panicked Republican Army could only flee.
Rommel, who had just moved to the new headquarters, looked at the newly marked combat map with satisfaction. The Republican Army's second line of defense collapsed much faster than he imagined. In just one night, this section of the combat map had already been found.
There are no more enemy positions.
All the blocking positions did not play any blocking role. Instead, they sent the troops to the 5th Armored Division faster. Those fortification groups built to the standard of permanent positions were not much different from the defeat time of the temporary positions.
.
Rommel has determined that his plan to capture Madrid in one week will definitely succeed. By then, he will become the first of the new generation of German generals to win such a huge victory!
From the selection of the timing of the attack, the formulation of the offensive route, to the decision of the pursuit plan after the breakthrough, all were completed by his command team. Throughout the process, he did not receive any guidance requirements from the country. Reinhardt gave him almost
With unlimited independent command power, he is about to reward him with an unprecedented victory. Once Madrid is captured, the outcome of this war will be determined. What is left is nothing more than the death struggle of the Republican Army. No matter how happy the struggle is, it will
Certain death!
The only thing that concerned Rommel was that his opponent had recently transferred 30,000 regular troops and 50,000 People's Guard troops to the southern front. In this way, his results could easily be misinterpreted as relying on Gambala and Vladimir Putin.
This was achieved through Lange's containment and cooperation. Obviously, this was not Rommel's original intention.
The reason why he waited so long before attacking was to train the Spanish troops of his 6 divisions, to master the advance speed of these German weapon divisions, and to avoid the phenomenon of disconnection between the two armies. Moreover, the stingy Reinhardt in China, even the aircraft
All the aviation gasoline used was provided by Franco. As a result, the 50 Me-109 fighter jets under his command have been afraid to dispatch on a large scale. It was not until recently that Franco collected enough aviation gasoline and sent it to him.
"Speed up the assault! The task of clearing the rear is left to 5 Spanish German armored divisions. The 5th Armored Division and the Spanish 1st Armored Division advance first. Within 5 hours, they must capture the forward D2 of the Republican Army's third line of defense.
Highlands!”
Rommel has been waiting for too long. Since his previous forbearance has become a joke in the mouths of many colleagues, he will let the current results become a myth in the eyes of those colleagues!
The two armored divisions of the German-Spanish Combined Corps formed two arrows breaking away from the group and formed a centripetal assault formation towards Madrid's last line of defense. At this time, it was less than 72 hours from the date Rommel launched his troops!
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"General, Commander Rommel of the German-Spanish Combined Corps sent a telegram, suggesting that we stop the attack on Bilbao. Set up a defense line on the spot and assemble reserves to the south." An Italian liaison officer sent it to Gambala.
A telegram just sent from Rommel.
After glancing at Rommel's "suggestion" for a few times, Gambara gave a wry smile: "I know. Reply to Major General Rommel for me. Bilbao is about to be taken by us. Now we are on the back of a tiger, and the frontline troops cannot withdraw."
Come down. The Italian Expeditionary Force can only try its best to capture Bilbao quickly and then make deployment."
Gambara actually fully agreed with Rommel's suggestion. The record of the German-Spanish Combined Corps had long been heard in his ears. Once Rommel captured Madrid, more than half of the war would have been won. Bilbao
Whether you can take it or not is actually not important anymore.
However, the domestic leader, Prime Minister Mussolini, strongly demanded that the Italian expeditionary force must capture Bilbao, the capital of the Basque Country. He believed that this was an opportunity for the Italian army to demonstrate its strength and increase Italy's international influence.
If the situation had been the same as before, Gambara would not have opposed Mussolini's plan. But now, Rommel's original prediction was confirmed, and the Republican Army sent an international column and 10,000 People's Guards north to Burgos.
, these reinforcements collected the defeated troops on the front line and established blocking positions. The Italian Expeditionary Force's offensive speed had been completely slowed down.
Others, Rommel, had already reminded him that five German weapon divisions belonging to the German-Spanish Combined Corps in the north had also been deployed through the Italian Expeditionary Force. However, Gambara still failed to succeed and failed to break through the Republican Army's repeated blockades.
On the southern front, Franco's troops have stopped advancing and have turned to defense across the board. Everyone knows that at this time, compared with Rommel's offensive, the results in other directions are negligible.
However, the leader of Italy is obviously not a person willing to make concessions. Apart from being full of fantasies, that idiot has no military knowledge at all. With such an idiot leading him, Gambara can only feel sad and desolate in his heart.
