I was a tycoon in World War I: Starting to save France - Chapter 602

c594 I almost thought they were our allies

Falkenhayn and Lieutenant General Nicholas discussed it, and they felt more and more that Colonel Erwin’s combat plan was feasible.

Lieutenant General Nicholas pointed at the map and said:

“Our troops in the area north of Liege Fortress are in a long and narrow triangular zone, with the Dutch border at the rear and no retreat, and can easily be surrounded by the French army.”

“If we can capture Antwerp, it will not only cut off the port supply base of the Belgian defense line, but also open up living space for our more than 100,000 defenders.”

Falkenhayn agrees:

“And Leuven, which is surrounded on three sides by Antwerp, Brussels and Namur, we even considered abandoning the defense.”

“But if we can capture Antwerp, we can not only ensure the security of Leuven, but also put the enemy in trouble!”

Colonel Erwin added:

“The key point is that the main force of the Charles and the Belgian 1st Special Reconnaissance Army have all been transferred to Namur in order to attack Namur.”

“The British also intended to drive the Shire’s forces out of Antwerp.”

Falkenhayn and Lieutenant General Nicholas exclaimed in unison:

“Yeah?”

“Is this happening?”

Colonel Erwin pointed at the map and answered firmly:

“Yes, the British mean that the defense line from Antwerp to Brussels is garrisoned by the British.”

“Bussel to Namur are garrisoned by Charles’s 6th Army and the 1st Armored Corps.”

“They think this can avoid confusion between the two armies.”

Falkenhayn laughed “haha”: “The British have always been like this, they always take advantage of their allies.”

This seems reasonable on the surface, and confusion will indeed arise when the two armies intersect, especially when the rifles and ammunition of both sides are different.

However, the defense line from Antwerp to Brussels is in the weak area of ​​the German army. This area is at the tip of the triangular defense zone. The German army does not have many troops. The British army’s defense in this area is no different from being on vacation. The pressure of the war is all on Charles’s troops.

Nicholas said sarcastically: “The pressure of the war is all on the Shire’s troops, but they do not supply the Shire with ammunition. The British’s suppression methods have helped us a lot. I almost thought they were our allies.” ”

Falkenhayn’s eyes were always fixed on the map, with excitement in his eyes: “There is also the French Parliament. We should thank them, don’t you think?”

Several people laughed knowingly.

The atmosphere of the discussion became relaxed and happy. Falkenhayn opened a bottle of red wine when he was happy, and the three of them drank and talked.

Lieutenant General Nicholas concluded: “If this is the configuration of forces, when we attack Antwerp, it is unlikely that Charles’s troops will reinforce it in a short time.”

Falkenhayn and Colonel Erwin nodded in agreement.

This is because the Shire lacks supplies, and the second is because Antwerp is located at the other end of the British defense zone. Out of face issues, the British are unlikely to allow the Shire’s troops to cross their defense zone to reinforce Antwerp as soon as the war begins.

In other words, for a considerable part of the time after the war began, the German army had to face the British army.

The three of them smiled and toasted to celebrate. Their smiles were full of confidence and ridicule. They were afraid of the Charles’ troops, and they were 80 to 90 percent sure of facing the British army.

But at this time, Colonel Erwin hesitated: “The tricky thing is that Charles has strengthened and repaired some of the fortifications. Now these fortifications and defense lines are in the hands of the Belgians. They are a specialized fortress force. According to Charles’s tactics, Thought training.”

Falkenhayn agreed with a “hmm”, and anything left by the Charles should not be underestimated, not even the Belgian army.

After hesitating for a moment, Falkenhayn said slowly: “If the Shire can break through quickly with armored troops, why can’t we?”

Falkenhayn remembers Shire’s breakthrough against Antwerp and wants to replicate that victory.

But Colonel Erwin, who had studied the Charles tactics, shook his head:

“We can’t, General.”

“The tank used by Charles to break through Antwerp’s defense line is the ‘Charre A1’. This tank weighs only 7 tons and can reach a speed of 15 kilometers per hour or even higher.”

“And our army’s ‘Upper Silesia’ tank weighs 19 tons. Although the data on paper is 12 kilometers per hour, when driving on the muddy ground in this rainy and snowy season, it may not reach half of that speed.”

The result of the slow speed is that one vehicle after another is destroyed by the fortress’s artillery, unlike the “Char A1”, which exceeds the rotation speed of the fortress and renders it useless.

Then Erwin added:

“Unless we have a tank that is as fast as the Shire A1, or at least not slower than it.”

“Defense and firepower don’t need to be too strong. After all, our opponents are the British and British tanks.”

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“In addition, there must be a considerable amount, otherwise it will not have much effect.”

Falkenhayn looked at Colonel Erwin in astonishment, and said with pride and joy in his tone: “You guessed it, Colonel, we happen to have this tank in large quantities.”

“We have?” Colonel Erwin was dubious.

He couldn’t believe there were tanks that he didn’t know about, especially “there were quite a lot of them.”

“Yes.” Falkenhayn nodded firmly: “How many do you need? Is 200 units enough? If not, we may add another 100 units in half a month!”

Colonel Erwin was stunned. Can 100 units of this tank be produced in half a month?

Falkenhayn didn’t say much. He walked to the door and told the staff officer. After a while, the staff officer sent a file and placed it on the table.

Falkenhayn raised his chin to Colonel Erwin and asked him to open it.

Colonel Erwin took out the document and saw a photo of a new tank.

(The above picture shows the LK1 light tank developed by the German army in 1918. It looks very similar to the British “Whippet”, but it is actually completely different. The German army simply converted the scrapped and retired car chassis into a tank, which can be mass-produced in a short time and has a rotating turret.)

“It’s called LK1.” Falkenhayn introduced: “It weighs 6.9 tons, has a maximum speed of 18 kilometers per hour, and its main weapon is a heavy machine gun.”

Colonel Erwin carefully looked through the data, including the thickness of the armor, and then looked up at Falkenhayn with a happy face: “This is the tank I need, General, it was born for this battle!”

Falkenhayn was actually very surprised. This tank was not favored by the official. It was more of a “waste utilization” to use the retired car engine. Unexpectedly, it came in handy at this critical moment.

“I must remind you, Colonel,” Falkenhayn said, “They are likely to be disposable. I mean, they can’t be driven back after reaching the enemy’s position.”

“That’s not important.” Colonel Erwin replied, “What’s important is that it can lead us to break through the defenses of Antwerp!”