Chapter 289 Is This a Strategic Victory?

Early morning of October 14, 1939, Admiralty, Whitehall Street, London.

The main members of the British cabinet are now gathered in the conference room of the Admiralty. Staff officers from the Admiralty are constantly coming in and out, telling First Sea Lord Pound the latest battle reports.

The battle report is somewhat surprising. The most powerful battlecruiser in the British Empire, the HMS Hood, was not able to sink the German HMS Scharnhorst...at least not yet!

The Scharnhorst was hit by at least eight 15-inch shells, seven 8-inch shells, and four to five torpedoes. But it can still escape at a speed of more than 20 knots.

Although the hit suffered by the "Hood" was far less than that of the "Scharnhorst", it could only sail towards the British mainland at a speed of less than 15 knots. And because the rudder was damaged, the destroyer could only be used to drag it to change the direction. In addition, the fire on the "Hood" also caused a lot of damage, and there was a torpedo hole in the middle of the ship that needed to be repaired. It seems that this giant ship, which once brought a lot of honor to the British Empire, will have to stay in the dock for several months.

In other words, even if the "Scharnhorst" is finally sunk, the British Empire will lack the capital ships capable of attacking the German break-up fleet in the Atlantic within a few months.

If the Germans send the "Gleisenau", the same class ship of the "Scharnhorst", and two "Seidlitz" class aircraft carriers to the Atlantic Ocean. Then I am afraid that the British Empire’s overseas transportation lines will really be interrupted...

"Everyone! We can no longer hesitate now!" Winston Churchill was probably the only minister in the conference room who didn't look too depressed. "Decisive action must be taken to occupy the Faroe Islands and Iceland. Only in this way can the German break-up fleet be prevented from entering the Atlantic again!"

The Lord Admiralty spoke solemnly, "Gentlemen, the British Empire has no choice! The 'Hood' will take at least several months to repair, and the 'Ark Royal' does not have a carrier-based aircraft that can fight against the Fokker Zero. In the 'Hood' Before Germany repairs and develops new carrier-based aircraft, we can only use slower battleships to blockade the Denmark Strait (between Iceland and Greenland) and the Norwegian Sea (between Iceland, Norway and the British Isles). Therefore, we must. Occupy Iceland and the Faroe Islands, and if possible, Norway as well!”

Chamberlain was shocked by Churchill's proposal. This was to lead the British Empire down a heinous path!

Iceland and the Faroe Islands are not yet part of Denmark, they are just annexed territories, and occupying them is not that eye-catching. But Norway is a sovereign and independent country, and it is also a member of the "Nordic Good Guys" (a group of well-meaning people). If you were to occupy it, the whole of Europe would regard the British Empire as the bad guy.

Moreover, there is also Sweden! Sweden's military industry is very powerful. If this country sides with Germany, the disadvantages of Britain and France in the field of industrial production will be magnified to the point of being irreparable.

“Prime Minister, we should consider occupying Norway,” said Imperial Chief of Staff Ironside, “not only because occupying Norway would completely block the German navy’s access to the Atlantic, but it would also cut off Germany’s iron ore imports in the winter. Germany needs to import 11 million tons of iron ore from Sweden every year, which is transported by rail to the Norwegian port of Narvik and then shipped to Germany. If we occupy Norway, German industrial production will suffer. A big blow!"

Chamberlain took a breath, occupying Norway can be considered, but it must be done with caution!

"Do we have the ability to occupy it now?" Chamberlain asked, "How much of the navy can we dispatch? How much of the army is prepared to dispatch? If Germany sends troops to rescue, are we sure of victory? In addition, is it possible for Sweden to completely fall to Germany? These are all It needs to be considered, and we cannot act rashly without a complete plan.”

"There will be a complete plan!" Churchill immediately said, "The navy is not a problem. We still have many available battleships, and we can also import F2A Buffalo aircraft from the United States to equip the 'Royal Ark'. This is a very advanced fighter aircraft. "It's enough to counter the Fokker Zero, and we can get Hurricanes and Spitfires on board at the same time, but of course that will take a few months to refine."

Ironside, the Reich Chief of General Staff, added: "Landing troops in Norway would allow France to provide a part of them, they have the best army, and can defeat the Germans."

"Okay, as long as the problems of carrier-based aircraft and ground forces are solved, we can consider occupying Norway." Chamberlain could not withstand the pressure of Churchill - the latter was the leader of the conservative war faction.

He thought for a while and then said: "Then what we have to do now is to occupy Iceland and the Faroe Islands..."

"The Navy can accomplish both tasks immediately," Churchill said. "Our men are already there and can be occupied with just one order!"

Several British warships have now entered the ports of Iceland and the Law Islands in accordance with the provisions of the Convention on Maritime Neutrality and are ready to occupy them at any time. Moreover, the Navy Department has also formulated follow-up plans to deploy radar-equipped frigates, heavy cruisers, destroyers and submarines in Iceland and the Faroe Islands, and to deploy bombers, torpedo attack aircraft and hurricanes at the airports in Iceland and the Faroe Islands. fighter jets (the number of Spitfires is too small, so we can only use Hurricanes to make up the number).

"Prime Minister, we must occupy it immediately!" Churchill emphasized again, "The whereabouts of the German aircraft carrier 'Seydlitz' is currently unknown. Once it returns to Germany, it will not attack with another aircraft carrier next time, and the Atlantic route will be cut off at that time!"

Now the British have also discovered that the "Seydlitz" aircraft carrier is powerful in the battle of breaking commerce. This aircraft carrier runs too fast and is difficult to catch up. And its efficiency in breaking commerce is too high. 9 Fokker 99s can bomb 3 transport ships at a time. If the Germans use two aircraft carriers to attack, at least 30 Fokker 99s can be carried, which means 10 ships can be bombed at a time. A convoy will be destroyed after a few bombings...

Of course, it is a stupid way for the Germans to use battleships to "finish the knife". If they use submarines to "finish the knife", the British Empire's maritime transport line will be finished this time!

"Then occupy Iceland and the Faroe Islands!" Chamberlain finally made up his mind. "In addition, the injured 'Scharnhorst' must be destroyed!" The British Prime Minister gritted his teeth and said, "For it, our 'Hood' will stay in the dock for several months, the 'London' will be severely damaged (just a nice way of saying it, it is actually scrapped), and the 'Exeter' will sink... If it returns to Germany safely, then the whole world will know: the British Empire has lost its sea power!"

...

"Where is the Scharnhorst?"

In the General Staff in Zossen, Marshal Hessmann once again asked about the navy.

According to the current system of the German Wehrmacht, the army does not have its own staff and general headquarters. The general staff is actually the army staff, and the army commander-in-chief is the Minister of Defense. Although the Air Force has its own general headquarters and staff, the general staff is still the superior of the Air Force.

But the German Navy has a long history, and it has not been broken in the Weimar period. It is self-contained (the Air Force is derived from the German Army). Now the general staff cannot govern the navy.

Therefore, Hessman's experience in later generations is difficult to use in the German Navy. Otherwise, the battleship "Scharnhorst" would not have fallen to this point.

"It has entered the territorial waters of Portugal, the territorial waters of the Azores belonging to Portugal... It will stop at Hero Port for simple repairs." Deputy Chief of Staff General Halder Infantry General replied. "According to the Maritime Neutrality Treaty, it can stay in Hero Port for a while."

"It's useless!" Hessman shook his head, "If it is an Italian port, you can still count on it, but what's the use of Portugal? The "Scharnhorst" is finished! These idiots in the navy..."

Herssman couldn't figure it out. In Germany, which has the most outstanding army and air force generals, how can it have a group of brainless naval generals?

How did they think of using battleships to make up for merchant ships? Why not contact submarines? They have 10 ocean-going submarines of more than 1,000 tons there. These are the best commerce-breaking boats. Why use these submarines to ambush the "Hood"?

"Marshal, in fact, the Scharnhorst has completed its mission, and its sacrifice is very valuable." Halder said what he had heard from Raeder, "Because the Hood was severely damaged, it will take at least 6 months to repair. During these 6 months, no British battleship can catch up with the Gleisenau, Seydlitz and Seeckt. And in 6 months, the Bismarck battleship will be in service, and it has enough firepower to fight against the Hood. And the Tirpitz will also be in service in the third quarter of 1940. In addition, the newly built B aircraft carrier is also a very ideal commerce-breaking aircraft carrier. As long as it is in service, it will definitely cut off Britain's sea transportation lines."

In this time and space, the construction of the Bismarck and Tirpitz started a few months earlier, so the service time can also be advanced by a few months. According to the plan, the Bismarck will be in service before May 1940, and the Tirpitz will be in service in August 1940.

The hull of the first "B aircraft carrier" has been completed by 85%. According to the plan, it will be launched before August 1940 and then begin outfitting, and it will be delivered in January 1942 at the latest. Since this class of aircraft carrier is the third aircraft carrier built independently by Germany, if the "Lenin" and "Karl Marx" built in cooperation with the Soviet Union are counted, the "Graf Zeppelin" is the fifth aircraft carrier designed and guided by German engineers. Its design and layout are much better than the historical "Graf Zeppelin". The standard displacement has reached 30,000 tons, with a double hangar layout, which can carry 82 aircraft (including 12 backups). It is really a big knife to overkill for breaking the deal!

Hersman smiled bitterly, and just wanted to say a few words to mock the navy, his former adjutant, now the second operations officer of the General Staff (equivalent to the director of the second operations department) Colonel Hans Speidel pushed the door and walked into the office.

"Marshal! The British invaded Iceland and the Faroe Islands!"