Chapter 213: Pit England and France (2 in 1 Chapter 5300)
Now the British and French armies are fighting fiercely with the Ottoman army in the Dardanelles Strait, and Edel is also prepared.
He planned to give the Ottoman side the news that Britain and France were preparing to retreat in advance, so as to give the British and French armies a surprise. However, he had forgotten the specific time. It seemed that they would retreat at the end of the year. Edel did not intend to dwell on it. If he guessed correctly,
The Dardanelles were unlucky for England and France, but they were lucky if they didn't guess correctly. All they had to do was ask Karust to arrange for the abandoned son to send a message to Osman again.
Edel has just received a tip that Romania's neighbor Bulgaria is now a little interested in the olive branch extended by the Allies. Now that Europe is filled with smoke, Bulgaria's position is very critical. If Bulgaria falls to the Allies, it will be able to form a threat to Serbia on the southern line to the west.
With support, it can pose a threat to the Ottoman capital Istanbul to the east. In addition, it can form a three-sided siege against the Ottomans with the Russian army in the Caucasus and the British army in the Middle East.
And if Bulgaria falls to the Allies, it will be able to form a joint attack with Austria-Hungary on Serbia and support the Ottomans. The most important thing is that it will allow Germany to provide military material assistance to the Ottomans.
Because the Ottomans are in a very critical position, they can not only block Russia's main external channels, but also threaten the Suez Canal, which is vital to Britain. Now 95% of the supplies in British colonies in Asia need to go through the Suez Canal.
, and most of them are daily necessities and industrial raw materials necessary for Britain. Moreover, the Ottoman Empire can mobilize many armies with its abundant manpower, which can also relieve the pressure on Germany and Austria.
Therefore, both camps are wooing Bulgaria. Now Edel mainly wants to know how Bulgaria is negotiating with the two camps, which will also have a great impact on Romania's participation in the war in the future. However, the two camps are secretly negotiating with Bulgaria.
, only a few people know about it, so there is no specific news about Edel now.
In fact, the two major camps are currently negotiating with Bulgaria on the conditions for joining. Because Bulgaria's losses at this time are not as great as in the original history, the conditions offered by both parties to Bulgaria are much better than those in the original time and space.
Among the conditions of the Entente, if Bulgaria joins the Entente, it can get East Thrace and the areas outside Constantinople. Because at this time and space, Bulgaria's losses in the Balkan War were not that serious (Adriaple in East Thrace is still in Bulgaria)
(in their hands), so the Allies also tried to find ways to get the Macedonian region from Serbia (as for Serbia, they promised to let it get the Bosnia and Herzegovina region, Croatia, Slovenia, etc.). They also promised to coordinate Serbia to give up Macedonian Bitola and Austria.
The Hrid region. This is what Bulgaria deserves in the Balkan War.
Regarding the conditions of the Entente, the Central Powers were much more generous. Their condition was that Bulgaria could take all of Macedonia. They would also coordinate with Greece to let Bulgaria take all of the Salonika region, and they could also let Bulgaria carve up the Nitze region in southeastern Serbia.
and Zajecar region, and the Kosovo region will also be included in the Kingdom of Bulgaria. In addition, a small part of Albania's territory will also be included in Bulgaria.
Although the conditions of the Allies allowed Bulgaria to add 70% of its territory, the excited Bulgarian government and King Ferdinand I still planned to wait. Even if their previous main ally, Russia, was defeated by Germany and Austria on the Eastern Front,
They want to see the current performance of the British and French troops in the Battle of the Dardanelles before they can decide whether Bulgaria will participate in the war.
In fact, Britain and France are currently fighting a very difficult battle in the Dardanelles Strait. On August 6, in order to break the current predicament, a new round of landing battle was launched at Suvla Bay northwest of the ANZAC landing site. In conjunction with this
Two planned battles were fought at Dupine and Nick Valley.
This operation was commanded by General Frederick Stopford, a senior general of the British Army. Due to the weak defense of the Ottomans in Suvla Bay, the British troops did not encounter much resistance when they landed. Unfortunately, the troops
After landing, they failed to expand the landing site in time, consolidate the beachhead position and advance inland to occupy the commanding heights, and precious fighter planes were missed again.
General Otto Liman von Zanders, commander of the Fifth Army and head of the German advisory group, urgently mobilized nearly 20,000 Ottoman troops from other defense lines to Suvla Bay and set up a line of defense on the Salibail Ridge.
Temporary defense line. Kemal personally led the Ottoman army to successfully curb the advance of the Allied forces. As a result, the British and French armies failed to complete their goals, and the war began to reach a stalemate again.
The British and French troops who had landed had to continue to endure the harsh environment of lack of water and food. Because they only managed to grab the beach, half of the transport ships of the British and French fleets were used to transport water and food. Unfortunately, it was still not enough for the front line. Many people suffered from lack of food and food.
Drinking water morale was low. In September, Hamilton was recalled and relieved of command, and General Charles Monroe replaced him.
But this still cannot change the situation of the Allied forces, and the number of casualties is still increasing day by day. The most important thing is that the British and French governments fighting this battle are exhausted and still have not achieved any goals. And as time goes by, winter is coming, and
The unpredictable weather in the Dardanelles caused severe frostbite to quickly spread among the British and French troops who lacked warm clothing. By November, more than 16,000 people suffered frostbite, and some even froze to death. At this time, the British and French troops could no longer withstand it.
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At this time in Istanbul, a man claiming to be James Bond appeared in front of Talat Pasha, one of the Ottoman Triumvirate. As the interior minister of the Triumvirate, Talat Pasha was also in charge of the Ottoman Empire.
In the intelligence department, he did not know anything about the man who claimed to be named James Bond. However, the intelligence given by this man made Talat Pasha decide to meet this friend of God.
"Mr. James Bond, the Ottoman Empire is generous to every friend who is willing to help him. I wonder what good news you can bring this time?"
Seeing one of the Ottoman giants in front of him greeting him politely, James Bond said in a low and hoarse voice. "I wonder if the news that Britain and France plan to withdraw their troops can satisfy you."
Talaat Pasha, stimulated by the news brought by James Bond, stood up from his stool.
"This is real?"
"When will the troops be withdrawn?"
Looking at Talat Pasha's reaction, James Bond said, "Your Excellency just said that the Ottoman Empire is generous to its friends."
After reacting, Talat Pasha said to Mr. Bond, "Please wait a moment."
After saying that, he took out a large checkbook from the drawer, scrawled a few lines on it, tore off the written check and handed it to Bond and said. "For your news, these are all important."
No reward."
Bond took the check and saw that it was a large check from **** Bank, with the amount of 200,000 US dollars written on it. Satisfied, Bond put the check in his arms and said to Talat Pasha, "I got it.
According to the news, because the two governments cannot bear the current situation, they plan to evacuate their troops from the sea at the end of December."
Talat Pasha asked greedily. "What's the specific date?"
"If I knew all this, I would be commanding the British and French troops on the coast or in No. 10 Downing Street right now."
After hearing James Bond's words, Talat Pasha knew that he could ask no more questions, so he asked his servant to send Mr. Bond out.
Watching Mr. Bond leave, two people walked out of the next room. It was the other two giants, Enver Pasha and Cemal Pasha. Both of them were watching all this in the next room.
In the eyes, Enver Pasha, the head of the Big Three, spoke at this time. "This news is very important to us. It can give us the opportunity to severely damage the Allied forces."
Another giant, Cemal Pasha, the Minister of the Navy and the Superintendent of Istanbul Police, asked worriedly. "Yes, this news is indeed important to us, but I don't know if this person can be trusted?"
As the Minister of the Interior and the person in charge of the intelligence department, Talat Pasha said it to the point. "It should not be said about this person, but the information obtained by the organization behind this person is unreliable."
Enver Pasha also asked with concern. "What do you think?"
"There is at least an 80% chance that this news is true."
After hearing Talat Pasha's words, Enver Pasha, who was in charge of the army, made a decision. "In this case, let me ask General Otto to make a plan. This time, I will let Britain and France know that the Ottoman Empire cannot be humiliated."
The General Otto mentioned by Enver Pasha was General Otto Liman von Zanders, who was born into a manor family in Stolp, Pomerania. His ancestors were Jewish. He joined the Army of the Grand Duchy of Hesse in 1874.
.Served in the dragoons and entered the German General Staff in 1887. In 1900, he was promoted to major and commander of the light cavalry. In 1908, he was promoted to major general and in 1911, he was appointed lieutenant general and commander of the 22nd Division. He was awarded noble status on June 16, 1913.
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Because of his Jewish ancestry, he was ostracized by his military colleagues, so in 1913 he took the initiative to apply to go to the Ottoman Empire to serve as the head of the military advisory group. He rebuilt the Turkish Army after the disaster of the First Balkan War. The Second Balkan War assisted Turkey in regaining part of the East.
Thracian region, he was awarded the title of Pasha, and later he was transferred to the Turkish Army Director. He mainly helped the Ottoman Army complete the modernization task.
In the Battle of Dardanelles, he served as the commander of the Fifth Turkish Army that defended the Strait, and was also the main opponent of the Allied forces. At present, it seems that General Otto made a mistake. He left the Allied forces with a strong force in the air.
The army was helpless.
The other two giants agreed with Enver Pasha's words. Without General Otto, it would be difficult to predict the outcome of the Battle of Dardanelles. The three giants also knew this well. Although this propaganda
In order to take care of the sentiments of the people, they made Kemal, who led 20,000 Ottoman troops to seize the Saribayir Ridge, a national hero. However, they all knew who the biggest hero was this time.
So Enver Pasha personally came to the headquarters of the Fifth Army and informed General Otto of the news he had obtained. Then this very experienced general began to prepare a farewell gift for the British and French troops.
In November, faced with the fact that there was no breakthrough in the war situation, the British government sent Secretary of Defense Kitchener to inspect the battlefield to check the situation. The Secretary of Defense rushed to the front line on the 23rd and saw that his soldiers were lacking food and clothing.
Drinking water needs to be rationed and compressed on the defense line less than 400 meters away from the beach. Kitchener was deeply saddened. Then when he ventured onto the defense line to check, he found that the terrain of the Dardanelles Strait was very unfavorable for landing operations.
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There are many cliffs here, and if you want to attack the Ottoman army's position from the beach, you need to pass through several gaps and the terrain is extremely difficult. Moreover, because the troops in this battle were suppressed on the beach for a long time, their morale was extremely low and it was completely impossible to win.
.So after the inspection was completed, Kitchener immediately reported to London demanding an end to the Dardanelles Campaign, and said in a stern tone that this campaign was completely a wrong choice.
The British government responded quickly. In the evening of the same day, it called back the Secretary of Defense Kitchener, agreeing with him to terminate the campaign and withdraw the Allied forces from the sea.
So starting from December, Britain and France prepared to quietly withdraw their troops from the Dardanelles Strait. They planned to withdraw personnel in batches. First, auxiliary personnel would evacuate first, and then gradually evacuate other personnel from the defense line. Britain and France were preparing to withdraw their troops from the Dardanelles Strait.
They were very patient and prepared to take half a month to evacuate the army.
Starting from December 23, British and French transport ships quietly approached the beaches of the Allied Powers under the cover of darkness, and then used small boats to gradually evacuate the personnel. If someone had not reminded the Ottomans, this evacuation would have been a very exciting operation. But it is a pity.
The Ottoman army, which received the tip-off, secretly left observation posts on the coast, waiting for the British and French evacuation.
The British and French were discovered by the Ottomans on the day they evacuated, but the wily General Otto planned to let go of the evacuation in the previous two days to let the British and French relax their vigilance, and then let the Ottoman army launch a counterattack against them and drive the Allied forces towards the sea. In order to
In this plan, he also gathered all the mines in stock in the Ottoman Empire here, intending to use small boats to quietly lay these powerful mines in the strait during the night.
On this Christmas day, December 25, the Ottoman army prepared the best holiday gift for the Allied forces. At ten o'clock in the evening, the British and French fleets arrived as promised. The Ottoman small boats were invisible to the British and French fleets.
The place quietly entered the water.
These sneaking boats were filled with mines. They blended into the British and French transport boats and secretly put the mines into the sea while no one was paying attention. The depth of these mines had already been set to ensure that these busy boats could not touch them.
Encountered a mine.
Today, God is helping the Ottoman army. The night is very dark tonight. These mine-laying boats have successfully fulfilled their roles. In the early morning, the small boats launched by these British and French transport ships will need to evacuate people and material equipment.
After boarding the ship, they began to withdraw. At this time, the Ottomans had prepared 476 cannons of various sizes and began to bombard the Allied forces. Among them, as the main force of the sea attack, 4 305 caliber train guns and 12 240 caliber train guns were all from the Ottomans.
People from all over the country were mobilized just for this attack.
"Bang, bang, bang"
At this time, three illumination bombs will illuminate the British and French fleets hidden in the night. Then, while everyone is stunned, a large number of heavy artillery shells hit the surroundings of the British and French fleets.
Aboard the flagship pre-dreadnought HMS Edward VII, the observing officer yelled, "Bombardment."
For a moment, the British and French fleets were in chaos, and each warship immediately increased their power and began to move. At this time, the transport ships did not care about the small boats transporting people and materials, and they also weighed anchor and prepared to leave. As the British and French fleets moved, they hid underwater
The fatal danger will deal a fatal blow to the British and French fleets.
"Boom"
In the panic, a Majestic-class pre-dreadnought ship was hit by a mine.
"There are mines. Pay attention to the mines. Each ship will follow the ship in front."
General Sackville Cardon, commander of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, saw this scene and ordered to the communications staff.
A staff officer asked a question. "But we are being bombarded."
Admiral Will Cardon refuted the staff officer. "Now I would rather endure the bombardment than let the fleet be sunk by mines."
Subsequently, the British and French fleets set up anti-mine formations, and the losses of warships were greatly reduced. Only three destroyers and one armored cruiser were lost. The pre-dreadnought, the core of this fleet, never suffered any losses again.
However, the transport fleet was not so lucky. A large number of transport ships sailed to the open sea for fear of bombardment. At least twenty transport ships were sunk by artillery and mines during this attack. Eight more were damaged, resulting in heavy losses.
substance.
In fact, in the surprise attack on Christmas Day, the Ottoman army relied on the advantages of heavy artillery and mines to prevent the British and French fleets from evacuating personnel for a week.
The Ottomans took this opportunity to launch a counterattack against the Allied forces still stranded in the Dardanelles Strait. During this week, nearly 10,000 Allied soldiers were killed or injured. General Charles Monroe, who was in charge of commanding the battle, strictly ordered the naval fleet to
Help troops evacuate.
So on January 3 of the new year, the British and French fleets and the Ottoman heavy artillery force in the Dardanelles launched a rare naval attack on the coastal defense positions.
With their numerous ships, the British and French fleets finally defeated the Ottoman heavy artillery force. All Ottoman 305 train guns were destroyed, and only 3 of the 12 240 train guns survived. At the same time, a large number of 210 and 150 cannons were lost.
The British and French fleets also paid a heavy price for this victory. Three pre-dreadnoughts were sunk, five were damaged, three armored cruisers were sunk, four were damaged, and nine small warships were damaged.
The ship sank, and the total tonnage of warships lost reached 74,000 tons. Even the United Kingdom, which has a large number of pre-dreadnoughts, was heartbroken by this result, let alone France.
As a result, the calls for accelerating the withdrawal of troops from the Dardanelles Strait became louder and louder, so the British and French transport ships located in the Dardanelles Strait even dared to transport personnel during the day. Of course, this was also the case when the Mediterranean fleet composed of Britain and France was guarding the side. The Ottoman army because
The heavy artillery unit suffered heavy losses, and could only use the remaining 240 trains of artillery to fight guerrillas and harass them from time to time.
The last battle of Dardanelles, which was fought under someone's intervention, finally ended on January 21, 1916. In this battle, the Allies lost 189,000 people and the Ottoman army lost 204,000 people. Now both sides are in this strait.
Fighting until exhausted.
Edel is pleased with the results of his intervention.
