The decisive battle against the Third Reich

Of course, this is not about how powerful Qin Chuan is, but that it has happened in history... Of course, this is the history that Qin Chuan knows.

The person who used this tunnel was none other than the tunnel construction method used by China and Vietnam during the border stalemate.

The geology on the Sino-Vietnam border is also humid and rainy, and Vietnam has a dry season and a rainy season for half the year. During the rainy season, almost half of the tunnels are filled with water. The soldiers of the Chinese army who stand in the tunnels often soak in the water or even soak in their own bodies. Inside the filth...

The war on the Sino-Vietnamese border is quite special. The Vietnamese are not as squeamish as Britain, the United States and other countries. They also build tunnels, which is a tunnel war versus tunnel war mode.

Sometimes the tunnel between the enemy and us is so close that we are only a few meters apart, and we can hear each other's farts, so all the shit and urine are spread in the tunnel.

This is fine during the dry season, except that the tunnel smells a bit smelly. But when the rainwater pours into the tunnel during the rainy season, all the dried filth will float on the water and dangle in front of the soldiers... That is definitely not a problem. Something pleasing to the eye.

Of course, the tunnels built by Qinchuan at this time are still somewhat different from those at that time. At that time, Chinese soldiers had already used corrugated steel plates in large quantities... Corrugated steel plates are undulating steel plates, just like arch bridges. , which can effectively disperse the impact of the shell into the surrounding soil.

Therefore, the Chinese soldiers laid a layer of logs horizontally and a layer of soil, spread a corrugated steel plate and a layer of soil, and then laid a layer of logs and soil vertically... In short, they spread it until they felt safe.

But no matter how much security is provided, it is never enough, let alone on the battlefield.

Such a tunnel has a flaw: because it is horizontal, the entire tunnel is actually not far from the outside of the mountain. Therefore, if the surface position is completely occupied by the enemy, the tunnel can easily be dug out by the enemy and stuffed with grenades, explosives, etc.

However, considering that this battle is not a stalemate with the enemy like the Gabes defense line, but more importantly, it is to avoid artillery and bombing by enemy fighter planes, while the ground has to block the enemy's charge, so it is suitable.

While Qin Chuan and others were actively preparing for war in Sicily, Montgomery, Eisenhower and others were also discussing attack plans.

The supreme commander of the Allied Forces was undoubtedly Eisenhower. This was a joint decision made by Britain and the United States, and it was also a concession made by Churchill to Roosevelt... Most of the equipment and supplies of the British Army came from the United States. Now the United States is even willing to directly send troops to participate in this war that is almost irrelevant to the United States. The United Kingdom must give the United States some benefits no matter what.

As a result, the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee appointed General Eisenhower as the Supreme Commander of the Mediterranean Theater, and Alexander, known as the "Runaway General" who commanded the British evacuation of Dunkirk, as the Supreme Deputy Commander of the Mediterranean Theater.

But in fact, the command of the Allied forces was not in the hands of Eisenhower or Alexander. The direct command was in the hands of Montgomery, the commander of the British 8th Army.

The reason is very simple. Eisenhower, the supreme commander-in-chief, has no actual combat experience, and Alexander is a man who seeks fame... The Dunkirk evacuation was not strictly a battle, but a failure of the Germans to attack in time when they made mistakes. Basically mobilized and organized British ships to take the defeated British troops back to the United Kingdom.

The success of this operation did have great positive significance, because it saved hundreds of thousands of combat-experienced men for Britain.

But the problem is that replacing Alexander with any general can do the same.

This is not to say that Dunkirk was not great. In fact, it was great. It was a very difficult task to evacuate hundreds of thousands of people in a few days.

But it was not Alexander who created this greatness, but the countless British people who had no combat experience or common sense but volunteered to sail their fishing boats to Dunkirk to rescue British soldiers again and again.

As for what Alexander did in Myanmar, it goes without saying... The equipment and troops were superior to the Japanese army, and there were also Chinese elite troops to assist. However, in order to escape, he deceived the Chinese army again and again to act as a rear guard. On the other side, he ordered people with advanced equipment The British army fled for their lives, but in the end they failed to escape and were surrounded by the Japanese army. If the Chinese army had not desperately rescued them, the British army would have been completely wiped out in Myanmar.

But Alexander was proud of this as his own battle record.

Such a general who does not understand military affairs, as the supreme deputy commander-in-chief of the Mediterranean, will certainly not have much power in what he says.

General Patton, commander of the U.S. Seventh Army, although he is an outstanding general and has combat experience (Patton served as Pershing's adjutant in World War I), but after all, he does not have the reputation for fighting Rommel in North Africa and "driving the German army back" Montgomery in Tunisia.

So in fact, the Allies still had the final say. A rather risky but innovative plan formulated by the British and American Joint Staff was stillborn after Montgomery vetoed it.

"I think we can land from Messina!" General Patton said: "It is true that landing at the port of Messina will be very difficult. For example, the Strait of Messina is very narrow, and for example, we will be attacked by the Italian army on both sides. A flanking attack. But... it is precisely because of this that we were able to take things by surprise. In other words, because the enemy did not think that we would land in Messina at all, they had no defensive preparations at the Port of Messina. The Italian army, and even worse, the less effective troops in the Italian army... Gentlemen, what kind of troops are the less effective troops in the Italian army? We just need to wave the flag in their direction. The Wawei people came over and surrendered, I can guarantee that they surrendered much faster than they charged!"

There was laughter in the conference room. General Patton was always known for his vulgar speech. This was an eye-opener for the British gentlemen.

But there is a saying that goes, "Rough words are not rough words." Although Patton's words were vulgar, they were enough to hit a snake in the face. This plan was not only "surprising" to the German and Italian troops, but more importantly, once the landing was successful... ...The entire island of Sicily lost contact with Italy, as if the most important seven inches were pinched by the Allies.

However, Montgomery certainly would not agree with this tactic.

This is not only because this tactic does not conform to Montgomery's personality of always being cautious in using troops... In fact, this is nothing. Montgomery is cautious, but he still takes risks in emergency situations.

So the most important thing is...this is the plan proposed by American Patton.