The Rise of the Third Reich

"From the map, the Cazop Trail should be further north, but the Italian map is inaccurate. I think this road should be the Cazop Trail."

What Rudolf Ribbentrop said is true. Although the area around Tobruk has long been Italian territory, it does not mean that the Italians have carefully drawn a map of Tobruk. In other words, in the eyes of the Italians, the maps they provided to the Germans were very accurate, and any experienced scout could find the way to Egypt based on these maps.

By the light of the flashlight, Lieutenant Schwarzenegger looked at the map provided by the Italians for a long time, and finally threw the map aside.

"As long as the general direction is correct," he shook his head and said, "Now we need to find the Bazhi Highway, and then push eastward along the Bazhi Highway."

There are two roads that bypass Tobruk. One is the Kazop Trail, which existed before the Italians occupied Cyrenaica; the other is the Bazi Highway, which is a coastal road built by the Italians. A branch road of Balbia Avenue was built around Tobruk. As long as you find this Bazi road, you can drive your vehicle onto Balbia Avenue.

Although there are Gobi deserts everywhere in Cyrenaica, they are places where armored groups can pass. However, armored vehicles travel through the Gobi at a slower speed and consume more fuel, which is not as good as traveling on a flat road. Therefore, the current task of Lieutenant Schwarzenegger's 17th Company of the Grossdeutschland Brigade is to find the Bach Highway on the chaotic battlefield. Then see if the road is still passable.

Ribbentrop thought for a while and said: "Understood, sir, let's go east first, and then go north when we see a road going north. In this way, we can probably find the Bach Highway."

"Yes, that's it." Schwarzenegger smiled, "But you have to be careful. There will be Indians guarding the intersection leading to the Bach Highway. I wonder where your remaining two half-tracks are. The place was smashed up, and it’s not far from the Bazhi Highway.”

Gustav Schwarzenegger's crow's mouth soon came true. More than 30 minutes after the 17th Company's convoy moved eastward along the Katzop Trail, they were pulled by a group of 2-pound anti-tank tanks. The Indians blocked the cannon. One of the only two half-track armored vehicles of Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop's armored platoon was also damaged by the 2-pounder artillery.

"Fight back! Kill that anti-tank gun!" Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop responded quickly. Although the vehicle he was riding in was damaged by the 2-pounder (the tracks were broken) and could not drive, the 20mm machine gun on the vehicle was still intact. of.

"Aim at the target!" The gunner had already pointed the 20mm machine gun in the direction where the muzzle flash had just flashed.

"Fire!" Lieutenant Ribbentrop gave the order to fire without hesitation.

The gunner immediately pulled the firing wrench hard, and after a roar, a string of flames shot toward the dark front. The shell exploded near a crossroads, and a flash of light lit up on the sand. Through the light of the fire, some figures wearing khaki military uniforms could be vaguely seen, being blown up and down. To his disappointment, the 2-pounder gun was not destroyed, and another shell hit Rudolf Ribbentrop's car.

With a loud noise, Lieutenant Ribbentrop felt a ball of fire rising in front of his eyes. He seemed to fly up, and then hit the sand hard again, losing consciousness.

Second Lieutenant Rudolf von Ribbentrop was wounded on the battlefield for the second time...

…

"General, the Indian 10th Division reported that German tanks have arrived at Adem."

At the headquarters of the British 8th Army in Tobruk, most people were busy packing their things and preparing to run away. Only a few staff officers were still gathered around Lieutenant General Alan Cunningham, reporting to him the latest news. The progress of the battle.

After the 1st Armored Division and 1st Armored Brigade were defeated by the German armored forces, the 8th Army had lost the capital to fight the Germans in Tobruk. Moreover, the fact that Matrouh Airport between Tobruk and El Alamein was captured by German airborne troops also made the 8th Army's retreat urgent.

Therefore, after the fall of Knightsbridge in the afternoon, Alan Cunningham immediately issued an order for the main force of the 8th Army to retreat.

Except for the three Indian troops of the Indian 5th Division, the Indian 10th Division and the Indian 3rd Motorized Infantry Brigade, the rest of the British troops in Tobruk must begin to retreat before dawn. Needless to say, those three Indian troops were the unlucky ones in charge of the rear.

Of course, the reason why Indians are allowed to take the rear is not entirely because of racial discrimination, but because the combat effectiveness of these Indian troops is not weak. The officers and artillerymen of these troops are all British whites, and their equipment is no worse than that of the South African, New Zealand and Australian troops. There are also many Gurkha mercenary battalions with excellent combat effectiveness.

The most important task of these Indian rear-guard troops now is to prevent the German army from rushing onto the Bazhi Highway. Because as long as the German tanks march along the Bazhi Highway, they can quickly rush to the section of Balbia Avenue east of Tobruk. As long as the Germans rush there, the 8th Army will basically be finished.

Even if several British divisions, South African divisions, New Zealand divisions and Australian divisions in the 8th Army could rush out of Tobruk, if they retreated through the desert Gobi, they would definitely not be able to outrun the German pursuers pursuing them along Balbia Avenue.

"Adem must be defended! At any cost!"

Following Alan Cunningham's order, the troops of the Indian 5th Division, which had just withdrawn from the front line, were thrown into Adem, located at the intersection of the Kazop Trail and the Bach Road. At the same time, a large number of German tanks and armored vehicles also rushed to Adem along the Kazop Trail.

The bloody massacre happened again!

…

"Not only am I a loser, I'm a deserter!" Admiral Cunningham said.

While the Indians were fighting for the future and destiny of the British Empire, HMS Warspite, the flagship of the British Mediterranean Fleet aboard Admiral Andrew Cunningham, was slowly sailing into the Suez Canal.

The British High Command agreed to withdraw the Mediterranean Fleet! Because the remaining four "Queen Elizabeth" class battleships and two fleet aircraft carriers of the Mediterranean Fleet are very important to the subsequent defense of the British homeland.

"Admiral," Rear Admiral Crutchley, the fleet's chief of staff, comforted Cunningham in a low voice, "you did not fail. The naval battle was a draw. We lost because we did not have air superiority."

According to the reconnaissance of the British intelligence agency, the Italians lost 2 aircraft carriers, 1 battleship and 1 heavy cruiser in the Mediterranean operations. The British losses were 4 battleships and 1 aircraft carrier. Judging from the losses on both sides, it was roughly a draw.

But the Mediterranean fleet was now driven out of the Mediterranean, and Germany and Italy were soon to capture the entire Mediterranean, North Africa, and the Middle East.

"Admiral, I have just received a telegram from the First Sea Lord." Major General Crutchley took a copy of the telegram from a staff officer, read it over and said, "The First Sea Lord asked you about your plans for the Indian Ocean war. Opinion."

After the Mediterranean war is over, the next step is the mainland-North Atlantic war and the Indian Ocean war. First Sea Lord Sir Pound specifically sent a telegram to ask Cunningham for his opinion on the Indian Ocean war. In fact, he was preparing to appoint him as commander-in-chief of the Eastern Fleet.

Although Cunningham lost the battle in the Mediterranean, no one can deny that he is one of the admirals who is best at using aircraft carriers in the world today. The climate and sea conditions in the Indian Ocean are not too harsh compared to those in the North Atlantic, and are more conducive to aircraft carriers exerting their power. Moreover, in the British mainland-North Atlantic battle, because both sides have strong shore-based aviation, the role of battleships is obviously greater than that of aircraft carriers. So the only thing that can stay in the Indian Ocean is the aircraft carrier.

"Let the Ark Royal go to the North Atlantic with the four Queen Elizabeth-class ships." Cunningham thought for a while and said, "And then let the Ark Royal and the Centaur go to the Indian Ocean. I will need at least 50 submarines." And 1,500 regular aircraft, including 120 Short 'Sunderland' seaplanes. In addition, give me 10 equipped camouflage cruisers."

It requires 50 submarines, 120 long-range seaplanes that can serve as bombers, and 10 camouflaged cruisers... Needless to say, Cunningham is ready to break the engagement.

"Admiral, are we going to attack the German-Italian oil transportation route between the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea?" Major General Crutchley asked.

"No," Cunningham shook his head, "that's not a top priority... because the oil fields in Iraq and Iran will be destroyed, and the Germans won't be able to restore production there for another 12 months. And we'll still be doing it in the Gulf of Aden and the Gulf of Oman. Blockade Operation."

"So who are those submarines, seaplanes and camouflaged cruisers being used against?"

"Japanese!" Cunningham said, "The battlefield of the Eastern Fleet is not only the Indian Ocean, but Southeast Asia is also our battlefield!"

…

Rome, Villa Medici. Hirschmann was hosting a banquet in honor of Isoroku Yamamoto, who had just returned from visiting naval bases, shipyards and aircraft manufacturing plants in Germany. In addition to watching the war, Yamamoto's European trip also had the mission of inspecting the German navy, shipbuilding and aircraft industries. .

In the middle of the dinner, a staff officer from the High Command of the German-Italian Allied Forces in the Mediterranean came in and gave Hessmann a copy of the telegram he had just received.

After watching it, Hessman burst out laughing: "Admiral Yamamoto, the British Mediterranean Fleet has been defeated by us! An Italian submarine cruising near Port Said discovered that the British battleships were sailing into the Suez Canal. escaped, the Mediterranean now belongs to Germany and Italy!”