Battle of the Third Reich

The German squads were marching forward. In the vast area from Dover to Folkestone, the main German troops were divided into assault clusters from the battalion to the regiment level, and they advanced toward their respective attack targets according to the marching route marked on the map. : ..／

Guderian put his war wisdom and battlefield commanding skills to the extreme. Under his command, the German ** team was like a huge octopus, stretching out thick tentacles in all directions, sweeping around and grabbing all the touches it touched. object. At the same time, some sharp tentacles began to extend to every corner of the theater, exploring the surrounding environment, looking for hidden dangers. When all the preliminary work is completed, the strong octopus will shrink its strong wrists and entangle the biggest prey, and then squeeze, knead, shred, and send it into sharp mouthparts one inch by one inch. Chew into pieces. Although it sounds grotesque, it is indeed the most vivid description of the German mode of action at the time.

As these tentacles advanced, a series of small-scale battles broke out in this area. The defensive defensive force on the outermost line encountered several British reinforcements that were advancing toward the Dover theater. The famous German right The uppercut has always been violent and tyrannical. The task of this strengthened assault force is the brace on the right uppercut arm. They are ordered to destroy all obstacles encountered, use all means to isolate the theater of traffic from the outside world, and protect the main force. Side, so when these reinforcements appeared in the sight of the Germans, they were immediately crushed to pieces without mercy.

The British Army’s first armored division no longer had to worry about their missing follow-up troops. These poor guys lined up in long queues and marched slowly on the road. As a result, they were met with strong German troops without defense. Ambush.

A German battalion of light armored troops from a battalion was killed from the woods on the side of the road. These wheeled off-road armored vehicles were violent and tactical. Before this, they had used car-mounted machine guns and machine guns to control the unprotected light infantry and load The trucks were poured from beginning to end. The trucks of the heavy soldiers and artillery were taken care of by machine guns. Many people had no time to escape from the vehicles, and they were killed in groups in the trucks.

This huge convoy extended 20 kilometers back and forth, and a mechanized infantry regiment of the German army plus a light tank company was attacked in three ways. They were used to this kind of highway ambush battle in France, pinched their heads and cut their tails, and the small units were interspersed with divisions and siege. These tactics have been extremely skilled.

The performance of the British team is not much better than the French army. Their resistance lasted only five minutes. In the early days, the infantry were still able to rely on the cover of the vehicle and Douji to shoot at the German army in a panic, and even several infantry companies and infantry platoons bravely launched a continuous bayonet charge against the German infantry, but When several command vehicles in the middle of the team were screened together with the officers on board, the battle situation immediately became an irreparable total collapse.

Even some subordinate officers try to regain command. But the main force of the troops has fallen into complete chaos. The soldiers abandoned their weapons and vehicles and screamed like a woman. The fields were covered with brown-brown British army uniforms, and abandoned roads were everywhere on the road. Guns and helmets, backpacks and various debris.

Some light vehicles are rushing off the road in a panic way. Without much off-road capability, they can only hobble in the soft fields even if they are fully throttled, so they have become the best targets for German tanks. The captains of the No. 2 and No. 3 tanks turned these thin targets into bonfires in the fields according to their own preferences.

There is no shortage of expensive fuel. For example, a tank platoon swears that he saw a brand new Rolls-Royce phantom, but he didn’t wait for him to order alive. The beautiful car was hit continuously by 20-mm machine shells, and the shiny car body was suddenly covered with a large hole in the bowl. The tank platoon had to grind his teeth to make up for the scrapped vehicle. A shuttle traced the incendiary bomb.

It took much more time to capture British captives than previous operations, which gave German soldiers a specific understanding of the current combat effectiveness of the British Army. Many of them fought against British forces on the Belgian and French borders, and French beaches. Compared with those strong and stubborn enemies, the group in front of them is like creatures of two worlds.

It took a lot of effort for the German soldiers to catch up with some of the defeated soldiers. There were only more than 500 British soldiers who actually died in the battle, but there were almost two thousand captives. The Germans expected at least one more More than a thousand people have escaped their pursuit.

The gasping German infantry said that it really could not catch up with the remaining British. The group of guys took off only one pair of trousers and ran faster than the rabbit. You stop to load bullets, and when you look up, you find that the guy running ahead has turned into a small spot on the horizon.

These soldiers were scattered in the fields and trees within a dozen kilometers of the surrounding area, and the sky had already begun to dim. In the end, the German ** team could only stop searching, and each company returned to the highway to start clearing the battlefield, counted the seized weapons and materials, and established a night defense line on the spot.

Since the Germans launched the attack, dozens of large and small battles before and after, many British soldiers have fled the battlefield. Although the Germans have been working hard to continue the time of battlefield intelligence cover, but at this point, the German presence has been exposed, and London can no longer be kept in the dark. Then next, the Germans must be the craziest counterattack for the British. Guderian and Bock already have a consensus. This first night after landing is very critical. For many people, this will be a sleepless night, no Know how many people may never see the sunrise the next day.

When Churchill received the first report of the British Army, he was happily inspecting his new command post. The underground shelter in Downing Street proved to be unable to withstand the direct hit of the German 250-kilogram aerial bomb. The head of the British Empire must To find a more sturdy and safe place to work.

The new command post was set up in a concrete structure government office building near Stoll Gate. British construction personnel filled the first basement with high-grade cement, leaving only the stairway to the second basement, which is equal to A five-meter-thick concrete cover was laid on the top of the second basement floor, and the Germans' largest tonnage aviation bombs could not damage it. They also installed a foot-thick armored door for the entrance of the basement. It is to resist the inhuman incendiary bomb attack in Germany. The door made of special armored steel can be maintained at a temperature of two thousand degrees for three hours. After cooling, it will not deform and can be opened and closed smoothly. This was already a very high-end technology at the time.

The space in the underground shelter is very spacious, and the small underground cave in Downing Street cannot be compared with it at all. The bright lighting system and powerful ventilation system make people feel that they are not in the deep underground, full of British-style interior decoration and snow-white. Walls and smooth floors are combined. This shelter has no sense of depression that ordinary bomb shelters give.

All this made Churchill feel refreshed. While he was proud of Britain's advanced civil air defense engineering technology, he ordered immediate preparations for relocation. He planned to move the wartime cabinet and the War Department here.

Churchill liked this place very much. He decided that he would not go anywhere until the end of the war. Staying here, he will lead the British people through this brutal war. Churchill is full of confidence in this. He estimates that with the generous help of the United States, this process will not be very long. It may only take only two years. Like the last war, the Germans will once again beg for mercy. At that time he would be able to return to Downing Street... No, he would stand on the steps of the German Chancellery in Berlin and accept the surrender of the blond kid.

Just as Churchill sat in the basement lounge still smelling of wall paint and sprayed clouds and fog, an army major brought the information just obtained by the army headquarters. Judging by his pale face and sweat beads, this would never be the news that Churchill wanted to see.

"This is completely nonsense, at best a few German paratroopers." Churchill dismissed what was written in the report.

"What happened to the German infantry, the Germans were equipped with large-caliber artillery, this is simply a fantasy, I have never seen such a ridiculous report, can the Germans fly the cannon with the cannon, we do not know In the case of love, go deep inland and run behind the Dover fortress to attack a small air police post?" Churchill threw the report on the table with a sneer.

"But Your Excellency, this was reported by the soldiers who escaped from the outpost. The Army Command believed that the information should be true, and they did encounter the German army..."

"I think it's more like a group of deserters making up a lie for their stubborn duty." Churchill was very dissatisfied with the major's attempt to overthrow his inference. He stood up and walked toward the lounge door. After two steps. He stopped suddenly.

"The Army immediately dispatched personnel to investigate and verify the situation reflected in this report. Perhaps some German paratroopers infiltrated the British mainland. I have no doubt that the Germans will do this. They must want to disrupt the rear supply line of the Dover Fortress. Once If you have a new discovery, report it to me immediately. But before you have to verify these things, don’t just hand over the nonsense of some mentally collapsed soldiers as intelligence. My time cannot be wasted in identifying the truth of these intelligences. Fake above, this is the job of your Army Command."

Churchill felt his good mood was ruined by this group of stupid army fools. He frowned and climbed into his special car. His bodyguard Thompson closed the door for him. The tall former policeman cleverly wound around From the other side, he took the position of co-pilot.

By the time I returned to Downing Street, the sky had begun to glow the pink of the setting sun, and the breeze gently blew through the narrow streets, blowing away the disturbing heat on the stone pavement. Churchill dragged his heavy and tired body and slowly climbed out of the car. Alcoholism, overeating and staying up late had seriously injured his health, but Churchill had a plan, he thought that after careful conditioning and appropriate He will be able to reawaken the sober and sensitive mind and healthy and powerful body.

When Churchill walked to the door of the underground shelter in Downing Street full of sandbags, he was surprised to find that the Chief of the Navy Chief of Staff Marshal Pound was standing at the gate of the shelter to greet him, which had never happened before.

"Good afternoon, Marshal Naval." Churchill stepped forward and extended his right hand to shake hands with each other, but he found that the navy Marshal who was always personable, now had a sad expression on his face, even from the corner of his eyes. Seeing the flash of tears.

"What's going on, Pound." Churchill stopped, he looked to the left and right, and saw Admiral Thomas Phillips, the deputy chief of the navy, who came with Pound. The short navy general was also full of sadness. He lowered his head slightly and carried his big brimmed military cap in his hand.

"Hi Tom, what the **** happened."

"My Excellency Prime Minister, I just got the report. We think we must let you know this unfortunate news in the first place. The British Empire Fleet was intercepted by the German High Seas Fleet in the strait, and the commander of the fleet, Admiral Tovey, fought bravely At the last moment, the fleet suffered a great loss, and we don't know the exact situation.

A half-damaged destroyer fled back to Portsmouth half an hour ago. The base command reported to the command via a communication cable. The destroyer participated in the entire battle and witnessed the whole process. I have ordered that The captain immediately rushed to London for questioning. "Pound said desperately to Churchill, what the news meant for the Royal Navy was self-evident. The admiral with the rank of marshal was full of tears, and the glory of hundreds of years was here. Was swept into the dust in a moment.

"Is the information confirmed?" Churchill's complexion turned blue, his forehead burst out of the veins of blood vessels, he gritted his teeth fiercely, the muscles around his jaw were tight and the whole face became twisted Too. He was like an angry lion, arching his back, ready to launch a violent attack at the next moment.

Churchill paced back and forth at the door. He breathed the cold air in the evening and forced himself to calm down. Eventually, he set his feet and turned to the two navy generals. "Don't stand at the door, let's go in and say." Then he walked a few steps quickly and took the lead down the stairs of the underground shelter.

In front of the checkpoint at the entrance, Churchill saw her chief confidential secretary at a glance. She was carrying a small handbag out of the aisle.

"Miss Christine." Churchill tried his best to call his secretary in a calm tone.

"Hello, Prime Minister, what's the matter?" The confidential secretary was about to leave work, and she had a private appointment at dinner time. The other party was a very handsome civil servant.

"Please immediately issue a notice. I will immediately convene a plenary meeting of the Wartime Cabinet Military Committee. Please inform the members of the committee to come here immediately. It is not allowed to evade for any reason. You must arrive at the command post within half an hour. The Chief of Staff also attended the meeting. The situation is very urgent. This is the order of the Prime Minister of the British Empire. Immediately execute it, Miss Christine." Churchill issued a call order loudly.

"Follow your orders, Your Excellency Prime Minister." Christine found Churchill's look very poor, and it looked like the situation was really urgent. She can only secretly apologize to the boyfriend of the civil servant. Perhaps she can call the other party after she is busy, hoping that the person can acknowledge her explanation and forgive the embarrassing missed appointment.

Churchill walked into his command room with two admirals, where a huge map of Britain was hung.

"Tell me about what you know, where Tovy fought the last battle." Churchill sat on his special sofa and lit a cigar, which he used to re-stabilize emotionally active thinking. means.

"According to the report, it should be this sea area. Tovey played very tenaciously..." Admiral Phillips took a pointer and drew a circle on the strait map. (To be continued.)