The Rise of the Third Reich

At 4 o'clock in the morning on August 13, 1942, 15 nautical miles west of Kotlin Island, a large submarine formation was quietly moving forward in the morning mist of dawn in the Gulf of Finland.

Lieutenant Colonel Hans von Tisenhausen stood in the control tower of the brand new IXD1 submarine U195, which was commissioned a month ago. He was very excited because he had finally waited for an important combat mission.

Due to the change of sea power in the Atlantic, U-boat captains still serving in the submarine force have few combat missions. Blockade of Britain was now the job of battleships, heavy cruisers, guided missile cruisers and aircraft. Submarines can only conduct reconnaissance, lay mines, or serve as transportation vehicles to transport supplies to areas that are inconvenient for large surface ships.

And Major Tisenhausen, the former ace U-boat captain and the idol of thousands of German girls, is no exception. Since April 1942, he has never carried out a combat mission to break diplomatic relations. A month ago, the superiors simply decommissioned the submarine he originally commanded for breaking diplomatic ties in the Atlantic, and then replaced him with a "special transport boat" No. U195.

Just when he thought he would be serving as a transport captain for the rest of the war. His "special transport boat" U195 was assigned to the Marine Corps. And he also learned that the large submarine with a surface displacement of 1,616 tons and an underwater displacement of 1,804 tons was going to transport tanks.

This is a submarine that can transport amphibious tanks to land on enemy beaches! It's an incredible idea that submarines and tanks are actually combined.

Captain Rudolf von Ribbentrop, commander of the 1st Tank Company of the 1st Marine Amphibious Assault Battalion, said that this "genius idea" came from the Japanese Navy, which is a navy with a tank force! Those Japanese navy soldiers who were full of strange ideas did not put their tanks on landing ships, but used submarines to transport the tanks to launch surprise attacks, and they actually achieved good results.

Therefore, senior officials of the German Marine Corps decided to imitate the Japanese tactics and built dozens of large submarines, which were modified and used to transport tanks and landing troops.

At the same time, a "customized version" of the No. 3 tank that can be used for amphibious landings was also manufactured. This tank is improved on the basis of the No. 3 N tank. It is waterproofed and equipped with detachable pontoons and propellers. It can propel on the water at a speed of 5-6 kilometers per hour. The KwK40L/2475mm main gun of the Type 3 N tank has also been retained, giving this tank quite powerful firepower when dealing with infantry.

There is currently a No. 3 P tank and an LWS amphibious transport vehicle tied to the deck of U195.

The LWS amphibious transport vehicle is also an imaginative device. It is a device that combines a crawler tractor and a water tug into one. It is 9 meters long, 3 meters wide, 3.15 meters high, weighs 15 tons, and has a crew of 4 people. In the water, the LWS can propel at a maximum speed of 12.5 kilometers per hour, and on land it has a maximum speed of 40 kilometers per hour.

This kind of integrated vehicle and ship equipment was developed as early as 1935, but it has never been put into mass production. It was not until the formation of the German Marine Corps that there was a big buyer.

The first batch of troops to receive LWS was the 1st Amphibious Assault Battalion of the Marine Corps. According to the plan, this strange "vehicle and ship" will drag the No. 3 P-type tank with insufficient power to the beach of Kotlin Island.

At the same time, a squad of amphibious commandos will also ride aboard this LWS amphibious transport vehicle and land together with the No. 3 P-type tank.

In addition, these LWS amphibious transport vehicles are equipped with anti-aircraft machine guns or anti-tank guns. The additional anti-aircraft machine gun is the French M1 large-caliber machine gun, and the anti-tank gun is a detachable 28mm conical bore gun.

"Can you see the Kronshtadt Fortress?" Captain Ribbentrop's voice came from below the command tower, and then there was the sound of the escalator. Captain Ribbentrop had climbed up and squeezed into the imperial palace. Major Senhausen's side.

"How is it possible to see Kronstadt?" Major Tisenhausen said with a smile, "It would be bad if we could see it. If we can see the fortress, then the Soviet Red Army can also see us."

Captain Ribbentrop stood firm on the top of the crowded submarine control tower, and then glanced around. The surrounding area was foggy, and the visibility was only a few hundred meters. It was indeed impossible to see anything.

"Then how do we know when to set off for the landing?" Captain Ribbentrop squinted his eyes and tried to look forward, but still couldn't see anything clearly.

"There will be searchlights to guide us, the Soviets' own searchlights." Major Tisenhausen said, "There will be them if we get closer... Although we can't see Kotlin Island clearly, the direction of sailing will not be Wrong. Wait until we see their searchlights and you can go."

Through reconnaissance, the Germans already knew that the Soviet Navy had set up many searchlights on Kotlin Island to illuminate the waterways north and south of the island. In fact, what the Soviets were worried about was not the German landing, but German submarines sneaking into the Leningrad harbor, dropping a few mines, and bringing a few spies ashore to wreak havoc.

So they stretched anti-submarine nets and laid mines on the waterways on both sides of Kotlin Island, and used searchlights to shine on the water when visibility was poor. These searchlights now pointed the direction for the German submarines coming to attack.

"Captain, searchlight! 11 o'clock ahead." This was the lookout post on the U195 boat shouting loudly.

Tisenhausen and Trop quickly raised their telescopes and looked ahead in the 11 o'clock direction, and found that there was indeed a flash of light in the fog, and then another.

Obviously, this is a searchlight scanning the sea.

…

"Comrades, cheer up and don't let any suspicious circumstances slip under our noses."

Nikolai Golubkov, the squad leader of the reconnaissance battalion of the 2nd Marine Brigade of the Baltic Fleet of the Soviet Red Navy, tightened his grip on the Bobosha submachine gun hanging around his neck, and then shouted loudly to the comrades behind him. On this foggy morning, he and his comrades were conducting a routine patrol on the beach west of Kotlin Island.

This is a somewhat demoralizing task, now is the climax of the world revolution!

The invincible Western Front of the Red Army has occupied Warsaw (the news of the occupation of Warsaw was announced at the end of July), although the German Nazis rushed into the Soviet border from the Baltic Sea direction like a dog jumping over the wall in an attempt to sweep Austria into the dustbin of history. Empress Liga once again supported the throne of the Tsar. But their plot will eventually go bankrupt, and the heroic Leningrad military and civilians will give these imperialists and their White Russian lackeys a hard lesson for daring to invade the Soviet Union.

And at a time when millions of Red Army commanders and fighters were on the front lines, severely attacking the enemy and making contributions to the world revolution, Golubkov and his comrades were walking on the beach of Kotlin Island... They said they were catching spies, but The question is, where could such a stupid agent come to Kronstadt and Leningrad to die?

The people living in Kronshtadt are all the families of Red Navy officers and workers and their families of the navy factory. They are all the most politically reliable people. How can they be deceived by mere spies? As for the glorious Leningrad working class, they launched the Russian Revolution and they are the mortal enemies of the Tsar!

Therefore, Comrade Golubkov had written a letter in blood a few days ago, requesting to go to the front line to fight with the Nazi army. But now his request has not been approved, so he can only continue to patrol the beach of Kotlin Island every day with a dozen Red Marines who are as absent-minded as him.

"I understand, comrade squad leader."

"We'll keep our eyes open."

"I'm just afraid that German and White Guard spies won't come."

The soldiers responded loudly, and their morale seemed to be okay, but Golubkov could still hear how impatient everyone was with the tasks they were currently performing.

Just when Golubkov was searching his mind, trying to find a few words that could boost everyone's morale, someone suddenly shouted.

"Target! There is a suspicious target on the sea!"

This shout immediately made all the blood in Golubkov's body rush to his head.

The legendary spy is finally here!

He quickly looked towards the sea and saw one, no, several small boats driving slowly on the water.

It seems there is more than one spy!

"Quick, find a place to hide, Sasha, set up the machine gun!" Golubkov immediately ordered.

"Yes, Comrade Squad Leader!"

Everyone's spirits suddenly rose - they were secret agents, and it was simply an opportunity to join the party and get promoted.

"Don't shoot yet, wait until the agents come ashore before shooting. Remember, you must leave a few alive." Golubkov led his men into the woods on the edge of the beach, loading the submachine gun and giving orders to his men.

After hearing his words, the comrades restrained themselves from firing at the approaching small boats. As they got closer and closer, they reached the beach, but no one came down from the top.

"Comrade squad leader," machine gunner Sasha suddenly shouted, "it seems that the boat carrying the agents has landed!"

The ship has landed? That's not a boat, it's an amphibious vehicle!

Golubkov and his comrades immediately knew something was wrong. They were not rustic infantry, but Marines. They had seen amphibious vehicles and amphibious tanks.

"Oh my God," Sasha, the sharp-eyed machine gunner, then shouted, "There are many ships on the sea. This is not a spy, it is a landing! The Germans are landing!"