Chapter 437: Naval Decisive Battle
Under the premise that drinking water is blocked, the fate of the officers and soldiers holding on in the Fergus Fort can be imagined.
Before he died, Major Jonard, commander of the fort, left these words to the soldiers: "Comrades, our blood is about to dry up. Life is given to each of us by God. It is the abominable war that takes away what belongs to us. We only have one life, and in order to eliminate this war, we gave up our lives. Long live peace!"
The final fate of the Fergus Fort was to be occupied by the Germans, but the strong will of Major Jonard, the commander of the fort, and all the French soldiers guarding the fort. , not only impressed the British media who came to report the latest news, but also impressed the French soldiers and people who learned the news.
After the capture of Fergus Fort, the German army encountered unprecedented resistance in the subsequent offensive. Not only was it unable to advance the front line further, but the captured area was also at risk of being lost at any time.
The French army, as if desperate for their lives, frantically attacked the captured fortresses including Fergus Fort.
In just three days, France suffered up to 40,000 casualties, but in exchange for a large number of forts and forts, including Fergus Fort, pushed the front several kilometers forward.
When the time came on April 15, 1916, the German army not only failed to complete the order issued by William II, but even suffered a large number of casualties and lost many previously occupied positions.
It was obvious that the German military had objections to launching the Battle of Verdun. Even many members of the German army, both middle and upper-level officers and middle- and lower-level soldiers, are already dissatisfied with the orders of German Chief of General Staff Falkenhayn.
It was Falkenhayn who insisted on going his own way and launched the Battle of Verdun, which caused the Germans to experience hundreds of thousands of casualties, but almost lost everything in the Verdun area.
Seeing that the British and French forces were about to launch a new campaign in the Somme area, a large number of German troops were restrained in the Verdun area and could not be mobilized, which put Germany's western front in danger.
Finally, around April 16, a big shock occurred in the German top brass.
Falkenhayn, the German Chief of General Staff who launched the Battle of Verdun against all odds, was impeached by senior German military officials including Hindenburg and Ludendorff, and was eventually dismissed from the position of Chief of Staff on April 20.
The person who succeeded Falkenhayn as the new chief of staff was Hindenburg, a member of the Junker aristocracy and the former commander-in-chief of Germany's Eastern Front.
This is not over yet. On the day after Falkenhayn was dismissed, German Prime Minister Holweg, Minister of Finance, Minister of Logistics, Minister of the Interior and other high-level government officials resigned from Wilhelm II. Many senior military officials became members of the government. important officials.
This is not good news for Germany. A large-scale political struggle broke out between the government and the military, but it ended with the military's overall victory.
Although Wilhelm II remained neutral in this dispute, the military had no intention of respecting Wilhelm II.
As early as half a year ago, Hindenburg blatantly violated the plans of William II and Chief of General Staff Falkenhayn, which led to Germany experiencing an incomplete victory on the Eastern Front.
The current Junker aristocracy is headed by Hindenburg. Facing this extremely large military group, even William II cannot suppress it at all.
It was obvious that Wilhelm II had missed the opportunity to suppress the Junker nobles. He had been sidelined by the military government dominated by Hindenburg and became a veritable rubber stamp emperor.
Speaking of the Junker aristocracy in Germany, we have to admit that a large part of the credit for the strength of the German Army is due to the Junker aristocracy.
The Junker nobility in Germany originally referred to the aristocratic children without knighthoods, but now generally refers to the large landowners and aristocratic class in Germany.
These people have controlled the military and political affairs of Germany (Prussia) hundreds of years ago, and it was they who single-handedly contributed to the powerful German Army.
But everything has two sides. The too powerful Junker nobility is a huge threat to the German government and imperial power.
William II originally thought that promoting Hindenburg, who was born in the Junker aristocracy, to serve as chief of staff would satisfy the Junker aristocracy. However, he did not expect that after Hindenburg became chief of staff, he immediately united the entire Junker aristocracy and brought down Germany. The government ignored William II.
The coming to power of the military has brought about huge changes in German policy. The German army has become more radical and more bellicose.
It is worth mentioning that the German High Seas Fleet, which had been shrinking for a long time, was now ready to leave the port to look for the British to fight to the death.
However, it is inevitable for Germany to dispatch its navy. After the offensive on both the east and west fronts suffered setbacks, Germany fell into a huge material crisis.
Because shipping routes and logistical supply lines were blocked, Germany had no other option except using its navy to break the blockade.
We can't let these painstakingly built fleets hide in the port throughout the war. In that case, there will be no point in building a navy.
If the previous German government and Wilhelm II were somewhat hesitant, then the new German military government that came to power appeared to be very firm in the war.
The Junker nobility needed new lands and the military needed more credit. The alliance between the two major forces has resulted in the German government's firm attitude towards the war. At least under the current circumstances, Germany does not agree to end the war. Due to the dual pressure from the military government and the Juncker nobles, the German high command had to change its original intention and shift the current strategic center to the sea.
First, the decisive battle at sea can have the opportunity to break through the British naval blockade of Germany and give the German fleet a chance to go to sea.
Secondly, if it can gain an advantage or even victory in the naval battle, Germany will open up trade routes with the outside world and even blockade France and Britain in turn.
In this way, the current passive situation can be reversed, and even passiveness can be turned into activeness, killing Britain and France.
In view of these two important factors, after careful study, the German top brass finally decided to look for opportunities at sea and engage in a decisive battle with the British fleet.
The Germans acted quickly. On May 17, 1916, the British Royal Navy's Home Fleet and the German High Seas Fleet encountered each other in the Atlantic Ocean, and an unprecedented naval battle broke out. It was the largest naval battle in history.
When news of the outbreak of the Great Battle of the Atlantic reached Australasia, it was already several hours later.
But there is no way, time is running out, Arthur will not get the results at all. But I have to admit that Arthur was shocked by the courage of the Germans.
The navy's decisive battle is not like that of the army, which can organize an orderly retreat even if it cannot defeat the enemy. A decisive battle in the navy is basically a matter of life and death, and there are definitely not many warships that can escape.
Moreover, once the naval battle is lost, the German High Seas Fleet will never have a chance to come forward. It is no exaggeration to say that the German High Seas Fleet after the defeat in the naval battle would no longer have any influence or help on the war.
This also means that Germany has really decided to go all out. Either severely damage the Royal Navy and change the current decline at sea. Or be severely damaged by the Royal Navy and the entire country suffer a tragic defeat.
However, no matter what, the possibility of victory by the German High Seas Fleet is very small. Unlike the army, the navy has little chance of defeating the many with less.
Unless there is an overwhelming advantage in warship performance, there is not such a huge gap in the combat effectiveness of the German Navy and the British Navy.
As of now, the British Empire's Royal Navy Home Fleet has 37 battleships, including 29 dreadnoughts and 8 super-dreadnoughts.
The German High Seas Fleet has a total of 24 battleships, including 17 dreadnoughts and 7 super-dreadnoughts.
In terms of main battleships, there is a huge numerical gap between the High Seas Fleet and the Royal Navy's Home Fleet. This quantitative gap is simply impossible for small and medium-sized warships to make up, and it is also a fatal shortcoming of the High Seas Fleet compared to the Royal Navy's home fleet.
You must know that the naval positioning of Britain and Germany in this time and space was already more intense. Stimulated by Australasia, the British built more fearless weapons.
In addition, Australasia assumes a considerable part of the defense of the Indian Ocean, allowing the British to mobilize part of the fleet in the Indian Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean to join the Home Fleet and increase their advantage over the High Seas Fleet.
What's even more terrible is that, looking at the number of main warships alone, although the gap is large, it is not that big.
But if the total number of warships in both fleets is calculated, the German High Seas Fleet only has more than 400 large and small warships, but the British Royal Navy Home Fleet has more than 700 large and small warships, and the total tonnage of warships is much greater than that of the German High Seas Fleet.
This makes it unlikely that the High Seas Fleet will defeat the Royal Navy's Home Fleet. There is a clear gap in the number of large, medium and small warships, which is simply impossible to make up for with tactics.
Currently, there are only two choices before Admiral Reinhard, commander of the High Seas Fleet, either to desperately replace the main warships of the Royal Fleet, or to huddle in the port and do nothing.
Either option is miserable. If you choose the first one, the best case scenario is to replace the same number of British main warships, but the High Seas Fleet will definitely suffer heavy losses.
Although this situation can avoid casualties in the High Seas Fleet, it violates the orders of the military government and the Supreme Command, and Reinhard will also face three aspects of accountability.
In fact, Admiral Reinhard has never been in a good mood after receiving the order from the country for a naval decisive battle.
As the commander-in-chief of Germany's only fleet, Admiral Reinhard was very aware of the gap between the German Navy and the British Navy.
You must know that the British fleet faced by the German High Seas Fleet is the Royal Navy's home fleet.
The British Empire has squadrons in all oceans and seas. If the number is added together, this is a huge fleet that neither German empire can match.
The enemy of the German High Seas Fleet is now the Royal Navy. Even a small local fleet is enough to give Admiral Reinhard a headache.
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(End of chapter)