The Rise of the Third Reich

Kremlin, Office No. 1, Privy Council Building.

Joseph Stalin was holding a telegram sent by the Western Front Command and reading it again and again. His face, which had become very serious since the beginning of the world revolution, finally showed a relieved smile.

Warsaw was really liberated, and Warsaw really returned to the hands of the Polish people!

Although the Battle of Warsaw was won very reluctantly, it was won after all. According to the traditional Russian rules, everything will be easy if you win.

Stalin put down the copy of the telegram in his hand and looked up at the four people in front of him. They were Molotov, the People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs, Kulik, the Deputy People's Commissar of Defense (because Stalin was the People's Commissar of Defense, Kulik actually presided over the People's Commissariat of Defense), Chief of the General Staff Shalashnikov and Navy Commander Kuznetsov. After Zhukov, Voroshilov and others left Moscow, these four people plus Stalin became the core of the Supreme Command.

"Although the Western Front fought hard, it won the victory in the end." Stalin said with a smile, "This victory reversed the unfavorable situation we faced. From now on, the situation has become favorable to us." Kulik and Shalashnikov were both stunned when they heard this, as if they did not understand what Comrade Stalin said - the current situation is favorable? Why does it not look like this? Stalin seemed to understand the thoughts of the two old generals. He smiled and said: "Whether the situation is favorable or unfavorable should be viewed from the perspective of the world revolution. If we only talk about the situation on the Soviet-German battlefield, it is of course very serious, because Leningrad is surrounded by the enemy. But you should also see that Germany is facing a two-front war, and we have also taken Warsaw... This proves the correctness and necessity of the world revolution!" Stalin has Stalin's height. If we look at the problem purely from a tactical perspective, the Soviet-German War lasted for more than two months, and the Soviet side suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties and prisoners, and Leningrad was surrounded by Germany, and only Warsaw was obtained, which seemed to be a big loss (in fact, it is much better than in history). But the question is, can we not fight? If Stalin had not risked launching a world revolution in June, Germany would have conquered Ireland by now. Once Germany conquered Ireland, the British mainland would be in a state of total blockade. At that time, the British mainland would most likely surrender to Germany - the British were actually ready to do so!

And once the British mainland surrendered, the United States would have no springboard to send troops to Europe. Roosevelt might really make peace with Germany and divide the earth equally with the Atlantic Ocean as the boundary. What would the Soviet Union do then? There was only one way out!

So Stalin could only bite the bullet and fight whether he could win or not. And from the current situation, he still had a little advantage in terms of face, and he could explain it to both the domestic and international parties.

"The war must be fought," Stalin said with a smile, "It's good that we haven't lost now. Comrade Pavlov really did not live up to the trust of the party and the people."

The four people standing in front of Stalin knew that Pavlov would soon be promoted to a general, and he might even be promoted to deputy people's commissar of defense.

Stalin went on to say: "Comrade Pavlov suggested switching to strategic defense, appropriately shrinking the troops, building strong fortifications near Warsaw, and starting to stockpile supplies to prepare for long-term defense. What do you think?"

Warsaw cannot be lost. Having or not having Warsaw is the difference between winning and losing a war! The Russian people are like this - the victors are not condemned.

"Warsaw must be defended!" Shalashnipov immediately stated, "Hold on at all costs!"

Deputy People's Commissar of Defense Kulik, who had a Hitler-style mustache, frowned at an inappropriate time: "Comrade General Secretary, now the Western Front's offensive momentum has been exhausted, so the initiative of the war has fallen into the hands of the Germans. I am worried that they are preparing for a larger offensive. If we want to hold on to Warsaw, our troops will be stretched..."

"Warsaw must be defended!" Stalin glanced at Kulik with a mustache. "We must defend it, otherwise we will fall into a more passive situation."

In fact, in Stalin's deepest calculations, Warsaw is still a bargaining chip, a bargaining chip for peace with Germany when necessary!

As long as Warsaw is in hand, Leningrad, Belarus and the right-bank Ukraine will not be lost. The Soviet Union can negotiate peace with Germany as a victor... Even if Warsaw is finally spit out, as long as the Soviet Union can liberate 100 million people in India, Stalin's world revolution will be a small success.

Therefore, in Stalin's view, taking Warsaw, the Soviet Union can switch to strategic defense - as long as it can be defended, most of the German troops can be attracted, the British mainland can be maintained, and then the strength of the three countries of Britain, the United States and the Soviet Union can slowly consume Germany, and finally a good result can always be achieved.

"Comrade General Secretary, the key to defending Warsaw is not Warsaw, but the Brest-Minsk-Smolensk line." Seeing that Stalin was about to get angry, Shalashnikov quickly changed the subject, "Therefore, we should reduce the strength of the Western Front to about 1 million, so that it can defend the city of Warsaw and maintain the transportation line of the Warsaw-Brest Fortress. Moreover, the Western Front no longer needs a large mechanized cluster, and they should be transferred to the Belarusian Front (formerly the Reserve Front) and the Kalinin Front. At the same time, Warsaw, Brest, Minsk, Smolensk and other places must be prepared to be surrounded by the German army."

"Are you ready to be surrounded?" Stalin looked at Shaposhnikov, "Is it that serious?"

"The possibility exists," Shaposhnikov said with a slight frown. "Before the mud season comes, we may have a tank battle with the Germans in Belarus. If we cannot win, we will face a large number of tanks. The fate of the troops is to be divided and surrounded by the German army... and our mechanized troops are very likely to be unable to defeat the Germans. "

"So they are simply preparing to be besieged?" Stalin asked.

"Yes, we should be prepared." Shalashnikov said, "The Battle of Warsaw taught us that mechanized troops play a small role in urban offensive and defensive warfare. If you want to capture a city garrisoned by a large army, you must make countless efforts. Hundreds of thousands or even millions of lives.”

Shalashnikov's calculation was also good. He knew that the Soviet tank corps and tank brigades would probably not be able to defeat the German armored divisions. Therefore, the Belarusian Front is very likely to lose in the tank battle!

Then as the chief of general staff, he must arrange solutions for possible defeats. Retreat is definitely not allowed. Stalin will not agree to hand over Belarus under any circumstances. So the only choice is to defend the fortified city... Let the Germans besiege Warsaw, Brest, Minsk and Smolensk, plus Leningrad. If each city has 600,000 people Siege, then 3 million German troops would be contained.

"Okay, let's make such preparations!" Stalin also agreed very much with Shaposhnikov's suggestion. "We must prepare for at least 18 months of siege. Food, weapons, and ammunition must be prepared as soon as possible. The useless population can be relocated.”

What Stalin said was not a problem, because the war broke out one year later than in history, and massive amounts of US aid had been received before. Therefore, the Red Army is very well prepared and has sufficient supplies in Minsk and Brest. Now just spread out and go to Warsaw and Smolensk. As for evacuating the population, it is not difficult. Warsaw and Brest have few residents. Only Minsk and Smolensk need to be evacuated, but this is not a problem for the Bolshevik Party at all.

"Comrade General Secretary, I have another suggestion."

The Chief of General Staff and the Deputy People's Commissar of Defense were speechless. Navy Commander-in-Chief Kuznetsov spoke again: "We should ask the United States to send an army to Ireland."

"Comrade People's Commissar of the Navy," Molotov interjected with a smile, "do you think we haven't proposed it? I think the British must have proposed it too. But now that the sea power in the Atlantic is in the hands of the Germans, it is very difficult to transport supplies. So. It is simply impossible for the Americans to send large numbers of troops to Ireland."

"No, this possibility exists." Kuznetsov said, "Because the German sea power is ultimately based on air supremacy. What really scares the British and American fleets is not the German battleships, but the weapons carried by the Ju288 bombers Fritz X Remote Control Glide Bomb.”

In fact, what Kuznetsov said is only half right. Americans are not afraid of Ju288 and Fritz X bombs alone. The problem is that Germany still has aircraft carriers, Fokker Zeros, many cutting-edge battleships, and 4 terrifying missile cruisers!

The combination of these factors turned the British and American navies in the Atlantic into existing fleets, and they did not dare to go to war with the German navy in the North Atlantic.

"But once the autumnal equinox passes, the situation may change!" Kuznetsov said, "Because of the angle of the earth, from the autumnal equinox to the spring equinox of the next year, it is always night at the North Pole, and it is close to the Arctic Circle. The North Atlantic voyage also has short days and long nights, and the weather will become very bad, with snow and fog even during the day. In this case, it is difficult for German aircraft to dispatch, so they have to rely on both sides. The battleships decide the outcome."

"Battleship?" Stalin seemed to have thought of something, "We have the Soviet class and the Kronstadt class!"

"There are 6 ships in total!" Kuznetsov said with some pride, "All can be dispatched in October. In addition, the United States will have 2 powerful South Dakota class ships, and the United Kingdom should have 2-3 King George V class ships. There will be a total of 6 ships in total!" 10-11 super battleships are enough to escort the US military to Ireland.”

Stalin looked at Molotov, who immediately said: "Comrade General Secretary, I will go to London and Washington right away."

Stalin nodded and added: "Tell the Americans that we have fulfilled our end of the bargain and now it is their turn."