Chapter 350 France Don't Cry Thirty-Five

April 27, 1940, 10:45 am. The Battle of Arras-Dunkirk, which lasted for nearly a week, came to an end as a French officer walked with a white flag through the front line of fighting in Dunkirk. Nearly 200,000 French troops in the Dunkirk encirclement laid down their weapons and surrendered to the German 1st Armored Army!

On the previous 26th, most of the Belgian army (about 30,000 Belgian soldiers refused to obey the king's orders and instead pledged allegiance to the exiled Belgian government) gradually laid down their weapons and surrendered.

The coalition forces stationed in Belgium, which had 700,000 troops (more than 400,000 British and French troops, nearly 300,000 Belgian troops) more than ten days ago, now only have about 130,000 British troops and 30,000 Belgian troops left, and the defense zone has quickly shrunk to Austria. Near Stand, desperately waiting for the end to come!

"Admiral," Major General Harold Alexander, who had just assumed the post of commander of the 1st Corps of the British Expeditionary Force not long ago, dragged his heavy steps into the British Expeditionary Force headquarters in Ostend Port and sat down on a table in front of him. In the armchair, General Verrick, who looked completely defeated, saluted with a military salute, "I just received news that the French 1st Army Group surrendered to the Germans... They will be disarmed within 12 hours."

This news had been expected by Admiral Verrick. The corners of his mouth twitched slightly and he forced out a wry smile, "Harold, we are finished, aren't we?"

Major General Alexander nodded slightly. The British expedition seemed to be over! This is obvious. The 160,000 exhausted British and Belgians are now surrounded by 1 million German supermen with high morale, and those damn German supermen are still attacking tirelessly. It is only a matter of these two days that the whole line collapses.

"General, the troops can last up to 48 hours..." As Major General Alexander spoke, the dull sound of artillery continued to come from outside the headquarters. This was the German army shelling Ostend's outer positions.

"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"

"Admiral, I suggest that the expeditionary force headquarters be withdrawn to the battleship Rodney at sea." Major General Alexander said, "It is enough to have the 1st Army headquarters in Ostend."

Since Germany had previously claimed to "blow up Paris" and misled the British and French high commands, the number of British Expeditionary Forces was not as large as in history.

As of April 10, the Expeditionary Force had only 2 armies, 10 divisions and some auxiliary units, with a total number of only 218,000 people (nearly 100,000 less than in history, which means that the British mainland army had 10 more troops than in the original history). Ten thousand). In the past ten days of fighting, the British Expeditionary Force lost more than 63,000 people (killed, wounded and missing), but at the same time, 35,000 reserve troops were added (until the 19th, some soldiers were added to the British Expeditionary Force) ).

There are currently 120,000 British troops in the Ostend encirclement, which means that 70,000 people have successfully evacuated in the six and a half days since the 21st, including the headquarters and directly affiliated troops of the 2nd Army of the Expeditionary Force. The British Expeditionary Force remaining in Belgium was all integrated into the 1st Army commanded by Major General Alexander.

"How many people can be evacuated in 48 hours?" Admiral Verrick asked.

"It depends on the weather," Alexander said. "If there is heavy fog or rain, it is possible to evacuate more than 80,000 people. If the weather is good, then at most 50,000 to 60,000 people can be evacuated."

Because the German army is currently on the offensive, the number of withdrawn troops is on the line when it reaches 80,000. If there are more, there will not be enough troops to maintain the integrity of the front.

"Then make a plan based on 80,000 people first," Admiral Verrick whispered, "arrange as many senior non-commissioned officers and officers as possible to retreat, we still need them to surround the empire. Harold, you are here in 36 hours After retreating, I will be responsible for the rest... As the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, I should be responsible for the failure, but you still have a bright future and can lead the counterattack in Europe in the future! "

Harold Alexander said nothing more, but silently gave a military salute to General Verrick, then turned and left the building where the expeditionary force headquarters was located. This building was the original customs building of the Port of Ostend, facing the English Channel. Standing on the steps outside the main entrance of the building, Alexander saw an extremely tragic picture of war.

In the sky, fighter jets such as Spitfires, Hurricanes, and H-75s flying from the British mainland are struggling to prevent the German bombers from approaching the British fleet on the sea. The fighter planes were tumbling up and down, fighting each other, and from time to time, a hit plane would fall from the sky dragging long lines of thick smoke!

The sea is full of British transport ships and warships of all sizes. Some ships are full of soldiers and are speeding towards the other side of the strait; some are docked on the beach or next to the mostly destroyed pier, waiting with empty hands. Some British soldiers boarded the ships; others tried their best to fire at the German aircraft in the air and cover the ships of the retreating troops.

The beaches and piers were crowded with British officers and soldiers waiting to retreat. Although they were all very tired and their morale was not high, they were not desperate and the order was still good, despite the rain of German bombs and shells. There was no confusion at all. Under the command of officers, these brave soldiers either sat on the ground and waited quietly, or lined up and waded into the water to the waiting ships on the sea.

They are very good soldiers, better than the French, and with the right equipment and training, they will perform even better than the German soldiers! While Alexander was praising the British soldiers who had just defeated the battle in his mind, he slowly walked towards a deck chair placed on the beach. Then he sat on it calmly and watched calmly as the troops boarded the ship in an orderly manner. His adjutant also handed him an apple. The major general took the apple and gnawed it, regardless of the roar of planes in the sky and the artillery fire on the ground. After eating the apple, he saw one of his division commanders, Major General Bernard Montgomery, walking quickly.

"Commander, I just received the order to evacuate. What's going on?" Major General Montgomery asked Alexander loudly.

"I gave the order." Alexander stood up from the deck chair and walked gracefully on the beach. "Your third division has withdrawn one-third of its personnel. Now it is your turn as the division commander."

According to Alexander's plan, all besieged British troops must first withdraw one-third of their personnel, including the commander. With these personnel, the force could be quickly re-established on British soil.

"But I am a division commander, how can I abandon two-thirds of my men and run for my life?" Montgomery shook his head. "Please let me stay and fight with my soldiers!"

"No," Alexander smiled, "Bernard, you are an excellent division commander, but you can't play any role in the German prisoner of war camp. Your mission is to return to the homeland, rebuild the army, and then fight back to liberate France and Belgium, and then invade the German mainland and occupy Berlin! "

"Occupy Berlin?" Montgomery looked at Alexander, "Do you really think this day will happen?"

"Without a doubt!" Alexander laughed, "Victory will be ours, because the Germans are building an empire they cannot feed. The Royal Navy and Royal Air Force will collapse their economy, and then we will counterattack. Believe me, this day will not be too far away!”

…

"April 30 at the latest," Hersmann handed the report from the Western Front headquarters to Hitler and Schleicher, and said with a smile, "Ostend will be captured on April 30, and Ostend will be captured on May 1." We can march to Paris."

After sitting down in the headquarters conference room, Hessmann added: "The German 18th Army is now responsible for attacking Ostend. In addition, the 16th Army and Army Group C are responsible for encircling the Maginot Line. The other ground forces The troops are adjusting and resting. They can launch the offensive again on May 1st and implement the 'red plan', and they should be able to capture Paris around May 10th."

His tone was very relaxed, because the "red plan" had no chance of failure. The main force of the French army was either destroyed in the Battle of Arras-Dunkirk or was surrounded by the Maginot Line. Most of the troops that can be used to encircle Paris are new troops without combat effectiveness.

"Italy will also join the war on May 1st and declare war on Britain and France!" Hitler also said good news, "The victory of this war will undoubtedly belong to us!"

Hitler obviously overestimated the Italian army. As a military layman, it is not surprising that he made such a mistake.

The German leader smiled and asked Hessmann, "Has General Halder set off?"

According to the recommendations of the Grand General Staff, Germany's operational focus will shift to the Mediterranean in the next stage, so a southern headquarters will be established. According to the agreement reached between Hitler and Mussolini, the headquarters of the German Army's Southern Front would be in Rome, and the German Army on the Southern Front would also cooperate with the Italian army. At the appropriate time, a Mediterranean Theater will also be established to unite the German and Italian armies. General Halder was appointed commander-in-chief of the German Army on the Southern Front on the recommendation of Hessmann, and this morning he left for Rome with a capable headquarters.

"It has already set off, and we should be able to arrive in Rome tonight." Hersman said, "The southern front headquarters will be established by May 10."

"So... we really don't need to negotiate with the British?" Hitler asked thoughtfully, "If they lose North Africa and the Middle East, they should seriously consider obeying the leadership of the German Empire."

Hersman shrugged, "Leader, I think we can have peace talks through the League of Nations."

"League of Nations?" Hitler was stunned for a moment. "Marshal, what do you think?"

Hessmann smiled coldly: "The League of Nations should pass a resolution declaring the abolition of the Treaty of Versailles, the Treaty of Saint-Germain, the Treaty of Trianon, the Treaty of Sèvres, and the Treaty of Lausanne."