Chapter 2069 Gap Three
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The evacuation of millions of troops is definitely not an easy task. Take the Dunkirk retreat in history as an example. In fact, when France's defeat was a foregone conclusion at that time, the British as early as May 19, 1940 It is already ready to start the retreat, but in fact, the time to actually start the retreat is May 26! In other words, the preparatory work has been carried out for a full 7 days! And from the evening of May 26th to the end of June 4th, the British retreated with almost all their strength, but only withdrew 340,000 troops in 9 days! And this evacuation was only realized after throwing away all heavy equipment and the troops had been concentrated near Dunkirk!
And now? Hehe, the British Expeditionary Force still has at least 1.2 million troops left. The superiority of the German Air Force has made the air over the English Channel almost a no-fly zone for the British Air Force, and these 1.2 million troops are still scattered in the The front is 200 kilometers long, so judging from the current situation, it is almost impossible for the British to escape from birth. Although they can use more ports now, they are not as good as the huge This bonus point is nothing compared to its disadvantages.
"When can we evacuate?" After Asquith made an opening, Marshal Haig pursued the victory, and he wanted to finalize this matter first.
"At present, the time cannot be determined at all. We need to negotiate with other personnel. We are still allies with the French. You will have the opportunity to withdraw from the French front only after blocking the first wave of German attacks. The cabinet will finally issue a retreat. Before the order, you must persist until the last moment!" Prime Minister Asquith finally emphasized.
"So, under the current circumstances, can I shrink my troops and build a ring of fortifications?" After hesitating for a moment, Marshal Haig asked. If we fought side by side with the French before, then it is still necessary to maintain a coherent front, but now? If the French give up, then maintaining the front will become meaningless. Although there is support from trenches, the 200-kilometer front is really too long. It has grown to the point where the British are unable to guard or even want to guard. It is clear at a glance which effect is better, the one-word long snake array or the group defense. Therefore, at this time, Marshal Haig has already thought about cutting with the French and then shrinking the troops.
In fact, the proposal made by Marshal Haig was very close to the correct result, and he even suspected that the French army might have made some kind of deal with Germany, but it is a pity that Marshal Haig still missed two points. Point, he didn't expect the German offensive to come so fast in the future! After all, the German army launched an attack from the southern front before, and it is still surrounding the Hamilton Army. According to the knowledge of the British, it would take a week to eat this more than 200,000 army, right?
Another point is that he still underestimated the German military strength. Ruprecht was ready to fight on both fronts almost at the same time, and although Marshal Haig realized that the Germans were far from doing their best, he never imagined that there was still The strength of the four armies can launch an attack at any time. According to Haig’s inference, the German army should go north to launch an attack after the German army has eaten the Hamilton army. Counting the time for fighting, resting and continuing to go north, Haig believes that at least he still has Ten to twelve days to prepare for defense and retreat.
But what about the actual situation? Ruprecht didn't have to wait for Army Group B to deal with Army Group Hamilton before launching an attack. In fact, Army Group B was just a supplement. Army Group A, which was really in charge of the British on the other side, was ready to launch at any time. Ruprecht wanted to Only the Air Force is waiting! The large-scale transition of the Air Force can be completed within 2 days!
In order to ensure the success of the attack,
The French also made preparations. They really thought that after two years of repairing the defense line, the Germans could easily cross the depth of tens of kilometers as long as the troops were withdrawn? What are you thinking? Among other things, at least minefields must be cleared and marked, and trenches up to a few meters wide and several meters deep also need to be filled, or a suitable area must be selected for bridge construction. Barbed wire and obstacles need to be ready to be removed or blasted, and where to set up supply points and military stations along the way also needs to be determined after inspecting the entire battlefield under the leadership of the French. By the way, there is another point, that is, to go deep into the rear of the French army Then you also have to understand the traffic, the rivers and the terrain, these Germans are already doing it, and the French are really cooperating this time!
But all of this is a later story. At least in terms of time, the British miscalculated the situation, not only the Germans, but also the French. According to Marshal Haig's worst idea , the French and the Germans compromised, but they would not make great efforts to help the Germans deal with the British. However, in fact, except that France did not directly use force against the British, everything else that could help was helped!
Some people may be surprised, how can the French be so cowardly? In fact, this is the correct way to deal with the matter. It seems that it will not work. If the French are not honest at this time, will they wait for Germany to settle their accounts after the fall? Take a look at how Italy and Romania attacked the Germans immediately after they surrendered in World War II. This is actually a very normal operation! To put it in a more vulgar way, it is to vote for a certificate!
"We can make appropriate adjustments to the defense line, but the connection with the French cannot be interrupted. After all, we are still allies now." Asquith thought for a while and said.
In fact, this has opened the door for Marshal Haig. As long as the front line is not broken, first leave a certain amount of troops on the front line as a facade, and then the main force is ready to withdraw, and then shrink its troops to prepare to defend Isn't it enough for the coastal areas?
"Okay, since that's the case, then I'll go and arrange it." Marshal Haig breathed a sigh of relief after obtaining the permission, but for Prime Minister Asquith, the real troubles had just begun.
"Your Excellency, Mr. Lloyd George, Lord Balfour and Sir Jericho have arrived. They are waiting for your summons in the side hall." Just as he put down the phone in his hand, Prime Minister Asquith was about to prepare for the next meeting. Lloyd George is the Minister of War, and he is still in charge of military supplies. It is natural to come. Lord Balfour is in charge of foreign affairs, and Sir Jericho is in charge of the navy. These people are all heavyweights. The fate of 70% of the British Empire depends In the hands of these people!
"Well, now the British Empire has reached its most critical moment, and we need to work together to win a chance for the empire. The content of the meeting is top secret, and we must keep it absolutely secret!" Prime Minister Asquith said.
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