On the Russian battlefield, every time the German army took a step forward, they would encounter desperate resistance from the Russians.
Several famous urban offensive and defensive battles were fought over every inch of flesh and blood, with both sides paying a huge price.
Molotov had reason to despise the Allied forces in North Africa. The intensity of the battle in Kalamata was inferior to that of a small-scale encounter with a patrol in Russia. As soon as the bombs in southern Africa were dropped, the Italian troops responsible for the defense were in a panic.
The troops were so scattered that the landing troops did not encounter any resistance at all during the landing process, and many pre-war plans were not used.
Under normal circumstances, a landing battle should avoid port cities, choose a suitable landing site, establish a beachhead first, send heavy weapons ashore, and then launch an attack step by step.
Kalamata is an important port in southern Greece. It has relatively complete port facilities and a fort nearby. If the Italian army resists tenaciously, it will probably take a lot of effort.
When Arthur and Mike Tolan made their battle plans, they had different plans for different situations.
If the Italian army resists tenaciously, the landing force will give up landing at Kalamata and choose to land at Carioforo, about 20 kilometers away from Kalamata. The defenders here only have about one company.
After the fleet arrived at the port of Kalamata, it was not attacked by the fort at all.
Mike Tolan was still cautious and took the initiative to send Marines on landing craft to attack the fort first.
In the landing craft No. 22521 was Lieutenant Ford from Bechuanaland and the landing craft team he led.
The landing craft of the Cyprus Squadron can carry about 24 people, with a standard establishment of two classes.
Each landing craft team has a designated commander and an alternate commander.
If both commanders are killed, the highest-ranking noncommissioned officer will take over the command, or be integrated into other landing craft teams.
Different from the organization of the army, the landing craft team is equipped with flamethrowers and blasting canisters to meet various needs in combat. In addition to combatants, the team is also equipped with communications soldiers and medics.
The landing craft team led by Lieutenant Ford, the alternate commander is Sergeant Major Ferrari. The team is equipped with two general-purpose machine guns and two rocket launchers. After the rapid expansion of the Marine Corps, the number of precision shooters has declined. There are 2 of 11 riflemen.
A precision marksman.
The space inside the landing craft was so narrow that the Marines could not sit down and had to stand.
The speed of the landing craft was not very fast, only about 20 kilometers per hour. Today's luck was not good. The sea was a bit windy and the waves were a bit strong. A soldier's head accidentally hit the steel plate of the boat. Fortunately, he was protected by a helmet and was not injured.
At this time, several fighter planes roared past in the sky. These were carrier-based fighter jets that took off from the aircraft carrier "Cyprus". They were responsible for providing cover for the landing troops.
In fact, there was no need. The landing craft did not come under any attack after setting off. There was not even a single person on the port fort. I don’t know if all the defenders fled or if the Italians knew they were outmatched and simply abandoned the fort.
The landing point is a beach not far from the fort. The Kalamata fort is not large in scale. This has a lot to do with Greece's status in the Mediterranean. In fact, it is just a lookalike.
Greece is weak in the Mediterranean. It cannot afford to offend the current Britain, France, Italy, Southern Africa, and the former Ottoman Empire. If it is invaded, there will be little room for resistance, so the forts are of little use.
.
The team of 24 people successfully landed on the beach, divided into two teams under the leadership of Ford and Ferrari, and began to advance in depth.
There were still bunkers outside the fort. Lieutenant Ford did not dare to be careless and sent Ferrari to lead the riflemen to attack. The general machine guns and precision shooters were responsible for cover and stood ready.
As a result, it didn't take long for Ford to see Ferrari waving next to the bunker, but there were no defenders at all.
"There is no one, there is no one in the whole position, all the Italians are probably gone -" Ferrari had a strange expression, feeling both lucky to survive the disaster and regretful that his ambition had not been fulfilled.
"As expected!" Ford was not surprised. The Italian army in Greece was a garrison, and there was still a gap between it and the elite troops.
There are many craters on the bunker. These are not caused by the Marines, but are the traces left by the bloody battle between the Allies and the Germans during the Battle of Greece.
The Italians didn't even fix it, so no wonder they gave up so easily.
The fort was not empty. When the Marines entered the fort, an old man in uniform came to open the door.
The old man looked at Ford with neither sadness nor joy. When Ford came to the old man, the old man took the initiative to speak in Greek, which Ford did not understand.
"He said be careful, don't break things -" the translator's expression was troubled, this request was a bit high.
"Ask him, where are all the Italians?" Ford couldn't believe the battle would be so easy.
"He left. He left a few days ago. I don't know where he went -" The translator relaxed completely. This is a normal Italian army.
"Search this place thoroughly -" Ford also relaxed and looked back at the old man: "Be careful not to break anything unless you have to."
Ford still can't believe that victory is so easy.
Roosevelt didn't believe it either.
Southern Africa launched a counterattack in Greece and occupied most of the Peloponnese Peninsula in just three days.
The Italian garrison collapsed at the first touch, and no decent battle took place at all. The southern African army has suffered less than a hundred casualties so far, most of which were non-combat losses.
Greek civilians played an important role in the battle. They took the initiative to serve as guides for the southern African army and attacked lone Italian soldiers. In Marathon, hundreds of local farmers and hunters organized themselves to occupy Marathon before the Italian army retreated and assisted.
Southern African troops captured 4,000 Italians.
Thanks to the developed communication system in southern Africa, the daily battle reports from Greece can be delivered to Casablanca as soon as possible. Everyone has different reactions.
Winston was very dissatisfied with the private actions of the southern African army. He agreed to have 13 people pretend to be together, but he didn't expect Roark to attack behind Winston's back, which made Winston feel abandoned.
Molotov was even more dissatisfied.
On the Russian battlefield, both the Germans and Italians were as tough as granite, fighting to the death with the Russians and refusing to retreat even an inch.
The Italians on the Greek battlefield were real noodles. Some Italian troops even gave up escaping and did not dare to leave the camp voluntarily. Because they could survive by surrendering to the southern African army, but if they left the camp and fell into the hands of the Greeks, they would be waiting to be killed.
Hang the cross.
Considering the completely different battle reports between the Russians and the Germans, Molotov had reason to believe that Southern Africa had also manipulated the battle reports.
The traffic situation in Greece is worse than that in Russia. Russia is a vast plain, while Greece is mountainous and has inconvenient transportation. The advancement speed of the armored forces is greatly restricted.
This is not the case in the battle report.
On March 1, the southern African army launched an attack on mainland Greece and landed in many places on the Peloponnese Peninsula. Athens was recaptured the next day, and Marathon was recaptured the next day. At this time, there were still parts of the Peloponnese Peninsula.
It's in Italy's hands.
Considering the advancing speed of the Russian army, even if no time is lost and no fighting occurs along the way, it is impossible to run from Kalamata to Athens in three days. After all, Kalamata is more than 200 kilometers away from Athens.
Roosevelt was skeptical.
The Americans had previously determined that they would launch a landing operation in Sicily as soon as possible, and Eisenhower and Patton Jr. were already ready.
Since the conditions could not be agreed upon, Roosevelt postponed the attack and held back his troops.
Nowadays, good news in the direction of Greece is spreading frequently. Southern Africans beat Italians just like adults beat children, effortlessly.
Roosevelt had reason to suspect that this was southern Africa releasing smoke bombs. The casualties in southern Africa must be much more than what was reported in the battle report. Otherwise, it would be impossible to explain why the Italians, who were so ferocious on the Russian battlefield, became so soft when they arrived in Greece.
"The Italian army in Greece, whether in terms of training level or fighting will, is not the same as the Italians on the Russian battlefield. The southern Africans got a big advantage. The fat bald man noticed the mobilization of our troops and paid more attention to it.
Concentrating on the Italian mainland gives southern Africans a good opportunity." Giraud hoped that Roosevelt would launch a landing campaign as soon as possible, so that Giraud's prestige as the commander of the Free French Army would quickly increase in Free France.
Although Giraud was supported by Roosevelt and Winston, his support rate within Free France was far lower than that of de Gaulle.
After all, de Gaulle was the founder of Free France.
If the Free French Army can perform well in the landing battle, then Giraud's reputation will rise significantly and it will truly have the ability to fight against De Gaulle. This is what Roosevelt and Winston hope to see.
"If our troops land in Sicily, will they encounter stubborn resistance from the Italians?" Roosevelt was hesitant and was completely confused by the Italians' performance on the battlefield.
You think the Italians are not good at it? In Russia, the Italians have done things that even the Germans have failed to do.
Roosevelt himself did not believe that the Italians could fight. The performance of the Italians in the German-Italian Allied Forces in North Africa and the Italian garrison in Greece was not even considered a third-rate army.
"Absolutely not. The Italians have no fighting spirit. Without the German army, the Italians would be vulnerable." Giraud seriously despised the Italians and never missed any opportunity to slander the Italians.
"Then let's start. Your two 'Richelieu's will also participate in the attack to cover the landing force." Roosevelt made up his mind that what the southern African army can do, the American soldiers can also do.
Regardless of the size of the army or the level of equipment, the US military is no less than the southern African army.
What American soldiers lack is experience.
In the Southern African army, there are a large number of senior mercenaries from the Umbrella Company. These mercenaries accumulated experience in the Umbrella Company during peacetime. When the war broke out, they became Southern African officers or sergeants. Under their leadership, the recruits grew rapidly.
The quality of recruits in Southern Africa is already very good. Southern Africa has long advocated a martial spirit. Schools and units at all levels often organize military training. Even many children's games have a military nature. Therefore, recruits can quickly integrate into the army after joining the army.
environment, it doesn't take long to become a qualified soldier.
The United States is a little worse in this regard. Firstly, the education level of recruits is relatively low. On the other hand, there is a lack of experienced officers. Therefore, the US military relies more on its overwhelming firepower advantage over the enemy.
The number of machine guns equipped by the U.S. Army divisions is similar to that of the Southern African Army. The individual weapons are semi-automatic rifles and pistols. Among the Allied forces, only the U.S. Army and the Southern African Army can do this, not the British Army.
The U.S. Army divisions are also equipped with a large number of cars and tanks. According to European standards, the U.S. Army troops can be regarded as mechanized troops, or at least motorized, so Roosevelt was not surprised by the speed of the southern African army's advance.
In the Mediterranean, the only weakness of the US military is the navy.
This has also been greatly improved after the two "Richelieu" ships were added. The Italian Navy was seriously short of fuel and had not left port for several months. This reassured Roosevelt that at least the US troops would not be attacked when they landed.
Italian naval attack.
"Yes, I will send all warships to fully cooperate with the landing operation." Giraud made a desperate move. If he failed to achieve some results, Roosevelt and Winston would support de Gaulle instead.
De Gaulle had the full support of Roque and the support of the Free French Army. Giraud could only pin his hopes on France.
Stimulated by the actions of the southern African army, Roosevelt issued a combat order on March 5, and the US military was allowed to launch a landing operation in Sicily.
Eisenhower and Patton Jr. were overjoyed. The U.S. First Army, which had been severely damaged before, has now regained its strength and is better than ever. In addition to the American-made Shermans, the troops are equipped with 100 Little Patton tanks.
The unforgettable "leopard" style of southern Africa.
This is a real Leopard, not the castrated version that southern Africans sell to European countries.
It was a coincidence that this batch of "Leopard" tanks was originally provided to support the Free French Army. After Giraud obtained these tanks, he was forced to transfer these tanks to the Americans. This behavior was also criticized in southern Africa.
The opposition of the military and the strong dissatisfaction of the Free French Army.
The opposition of the southern African military is normal. Although the lead of the "Leopard" tank cannot be maintained forever, one more day ahead is a day.
The Free French Army was originally dissatisfied with the airdrop of Giraud, and now the antipathy towards Giraud is even stronger, especially the 1st Armored Division of the Free French Army. The division commander Andreu publicly declared that the 1st Armored Division will no longer accept Giraud from now on.
Any orders from Luo.
This statement amounted almost to open rebellion.
But this kind of thing is normal for the French army.
(End of chapter)
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