The Rise of the Third Reich

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

The roar of bomb explosions rang out in the city of Rome again, accompanied by the buzz of aircraft motors and the sounds of various anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns firing.

It was a very noisy night. The military observation groups from various countries gathered in Italy had not yet seen the majesty of the Italian Navy, but they had first seen the power of the British Royal Air Force in the city of Rome!

Although the daytime bombing was a mess from a tactical perspective, it was quite successful strategically. The British Empire is on the verge of blowing up the Vatican, not to mention Madrid and Paris?

Moreover, when more than 30 tons of bombs were dropped, they still destroyed many places of interest, which made people feel distressed just to see them.

At night, the scale of the bombing became even greater. There were not only 13 B-17s and 12 Lancasters flying from Gibraltar, but also Wellington bombers and Blenheim night fighters flying from Crete and the Peloponnese ( Bombs can also be hung). The total number was one hundred and forty-fifty, and the bombs dropped were not just thirty tons, but hundreds of tons.

Hersman, who had already guessed that there would be a big bombing tonight, did not show any courage and got into the former underground wine cellar of the Medici Villa (now a "World Cultural Heritage-level" air-raid shelter) early on. They also invited two Japanese Japs, Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto, to explain to them the latest naval and air combat modes.

A "liar god of war" is now going to teach Isoroku Yamamoto how to fight at sea. I wonder if he will fail in teaching him?

However, Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto listened very seriously. They even brought notebooks and took notes while listening. They looked like good students. The two of them were not deceived by Hessman, because from their professional perspective, the Great Battle of the Eastern Mediterranean was truly epic.

Moreover, Field Marshal Hersman's level of commanding naval battles is really very high. He is so clever that it opened the eyes of Yamamoto and Kuroshima, two guys who have studied naval battles for most of their lives.

"General Yamamoto, I currently have 18 squadrons of Ju88 bombers, 20 squadrons of S.M.79 torpedo bombers, 5 squadrons of Z.1007 medium bombers, and 15 squadrons of Fokker Zeros (including 3 squadrons in Italy) ), 3 squadrons of Fw-190s - they are currently the most powerful fighters in the world in air combat, and 3 squadrons of BF-110 night fighters. In addition, I have a fleet of 5 battleships and 6 battleships. The Italian naval fleet including heavy cruisers. If you were Cunningham, how would you prepare to fight?"

A map was spread out on the table between Hessmann, Yamamoto and Kuroshima. The map marked the situation of the Mediterranean battlefield and roughly listed the strength of the British army.

Facing Hirschman's question, Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto looked at each other, and then they both fell into deep thought.

After a while, Yamamoto Isoroku said calmly: "Marshal, your shore-based aviation is too powerful. Cunningham's fleet simply does not dare to approach Crete or Tubruk Port during the day when the weather is good. This is a complete death penalty, even if there are 100 Spitfires on two aircraft carriers, it will be useless... Therefore, Crete and Tubruk cannot be defended! The only feasible option is to concentrate on the battlefields of Greece and Yugoslavia. Troops guard the Nile Delta, secure the Suez Canal, and block the road from Africa to the Middle East for Germany and Italy.”

Hessmann nodded slightly. These days, he, Hans Jeshunek and several senior staff members of the Italian Navy were also studying Cunningham's possible strategy.

Because Germany and Italy had too great an advantage in shore-based aviation - the Ju88's dive bombing coupled with the S.M.79's torpedo attack, and the air superiority of the Fokker Zero and Fw-190 were simply invincible.

Moreover, the Eastern Mediterranean is just a small pool. If the British fleet wants to avoid the threat of German and Italian aircraft, there will be little room for movement.

"The fleet withdraws from the Mediterranean?" Hersman asked calmly. He actually wanted to trick Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto.

Most of the Italian naval admirals preferred that the British Mediterranean Fleet would run away and then let the army and air force defend North Africa - but this seemed to Hersman to be courting death, so that Rommel would have control of the sea. And this time Hessmann also gave him the powerful strength of 2 armored divisions and 1 light division. The British and their Indian Asan couldn't defeat them even if they took medicine!

Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto talked in Japanese for a while, and then switched to English and said to Hersman: "If I were Cunningham, I would let the aircraft carrier withdraw, and then use the surface fleet to fight the Italian fleet again. !”

It is understandable to let the aircraft carrier withdraw, because the British biplane torpedo planes are too weak and can be wiped out at every turn. The reason why two Italian aircraft carriers were able to sink last time was entirely because the shore-based aircraft taking off from Crete entangled some Fokker Zeros. But this time Cunningham had no chance at all, because Hersman chose to destroy the British shore-based aircraft and airfields in Crete and Tobruk before launching a landing operation. But the idea of ​​using a surface fleet to fight a decisive battle still puzzled Hersman.

Hessman thought for a while and asked again: "Is the surface fleet fighting at night?"

Kuroshima Turtle Man said: "Of course it is a night battle. If the weather is not suitable for the plane to take off, it can also be fought during the day. Although there is no guarantee of victory, it is definitely better than not fighting. If not fighting, then it will be possible before September 41 The Battle of the English Channel occurs... If the two Veneto-class ships can be severely damaged in the battle, it is possible to postpone the Battle of the English Channel to 1942. "

The "Fairy Staff" analysis is good. If Cunningham leaves without a fight, the two "Veneto" class ships and the two "Richelieu" class ships will definitely fight against the German High Seas Fleet before the weather in the English Channel worsens in September. Convergence.

At that time, 6 new battleships from Germany, Italy and France (including two Bismarcks) plus two "Dunkirk" plus "Gneisenau" and 7 old battleships will fight against the British "HMS Hood" , "Nelson", "King George V", "Prince of Wales", 2 "Prestige" class, 2 "Revenge" class and 5 "Queen Elizabeth" class.

In this way, in terms of the number of battleships, Germany, Italy and France will have 16 battleships against Britain's 13. Moreover, Germany, Italy and France also have air superiority, and Britain's chances of winning will be quite low.

Hirschman asked: "Where will it be played?"

The Black Island Turtle replied respectfully: "Marshal, where your troops land, the British surface fleet is likely to seek a decisive battle there. Because the landing operation cannot be completed in one day, at night the fleet must be responsible for protecting the beachhead. and the mission of the landing force.”

The analysis is quite accurate! Hessman nodded. He knew that the Japanese Navy was actually the apprentice of the British Royal Navy. The apprentice knew the master relatively well - just sitting back and waiting for death could not be the style of the British Navy.

Moreover, with the level of the Italian Navy, even if the force is superior, it may not be possible to defeat Cunningham. The fleet battle at night is obviously the best chance for Cunningham to win.

However, in addition to the powerful shore-based aviation, Hessmann also had another trump card-Erwin Rommel, who was not a character that Cunningham could deal with.

At this moment, Hessmann's adjutant, Colonel Schnetz, suddenly walked in quickly, then leaned into Hessman's ear and whispered: "Marshal, Major General Reinhard Heydrich reports, the Pope His Majesty's ward at Queen Margaret Hospital has just been hit by a 50-pound British bomb!"

Reinhard Heydrich was a rear admiral in this time and space (he was originally a naval officer), but he served in the Central Security Bureau and was a confidant of Admiral Canaris. He was originally a senior officer responsible for implementing the "maximum security measures" Intelligence Director. Before Hessmann came to Italy, he gave Canaris an order to send Heydrich to Italy to lead the intelligence station in Rome...

Hersman remained calm and just waved his hand gently, telling Colonel Schnetz to resign. Now he shouldn't know about the Pope's ascension, so he pretended that he didn't know and started discussing Japan and Germany with the two Japanese. It’s about naval cooperation.

"Are you building four 70,000-ton super battleships? Will the first of them be put into service this year?"

Hirschman spoke again and asked a question that surprised both Yamamoto Isoroku and Kuroshima Kameto. The construction project of the four "Yamato" class ships of the Japanese Navy is completely confidential and has not been disclosed to the Germans at all.

Seeing the two Japanese in a daze, Hessman sneered and said, "Aren't they just four 70,000-ton battleships? What's there to hide? I can also tell you that we are also building four now. A 70,000-ton battleship. However, our project started relatively late. The keel was only laid in August last year... The four ships were started at the same time! If the project goes smoothly, they will all be in service in early 1944.

However, the recently passed Double Ocean Naval Act of the United States also includes a construction plan for five 70,000-ton battleships. If we push forward with all our strength, with the national strength of the United States, it will be completed by 1944. In addition, the United States has also compiled a construction plan for six 45,000-ton battleships, as well as four 35,000-ton battleships currently under construction, as well as two 'North Carolina' class ships to be built and three of the world's seven largest ships. The Colorado class... a total of 20 super battleships. In addition, the United States also plans to start construction of 18 fleet aircraft carriers! If we wait until all these battleships and aircraft carriers are completed, even if we combine the strength of our two countries, we will not be able to defeat the United States at sea! "