The Rise of the Third Reich

"General, there is a wide minefield on the front of the Tobruk defense line. We have laid more than 150,000 mines there, half of which are anti-tank mines!"

In the British Middle East headquarters in Alexander, Alan Cunningham, who had just returned from the Tobruk front line, was confidently speaking to General Wavell.

"Behind the minefield is the defense line of the South African 1st Division and the Indian 5th Division. At the four important strongholds of Gubi Wells, Knightsbridge, Bir Hakim and Bir Ahmat, 4 troops of the Indian 10th Division were also deployed. regiment. The 1st New Zealand Division stayed in Tobruk.

In addition, an armored group consisting of the 1st Armored Division, 2nd Armored Division, 3rd Indian Motorized Brigade, Polish Independent Brigade and 1st Free French Brigade was deployed along the Capuzo Trail. If the German and Italian troops detour south of Bir Hakim's stronghold, the armored group will be dispatched to fight them. "

Alan Cunningham's idea of ​​​​fighting was actually similar to that of the French Army in the 1940s. He defended the front and used mechanized and motorized troops to fight against the roundabout German army. What Cunningham regarded as his trump card was the 1st Armored Division and the 2nd Armored Division (only one tank brigade).

The 1st Armored Division is the oldest armored division in the UK, founded in 1934. However, this division had already been annihilated by the Germans once in the Western Front campaign. The opponent at that time was the German 7th Armored Division commanded by Rommel (this time they encountered Rommel again). So now the British 1st Armored Division is a rebuilt unit, and its organization is not as heavy as before. The number of armored brigades was reduced from 3 to 1 (2nd Armored Brigade), and a mechanized infantry brigade (1st Mechanized Infantry Brigade) was also assigned. In addition, there were anti-tank artillery regiments, armored vehicle regiments, anti-aircraft artillery regiments and Two artillery regiments, as well as engineering units, medical units and other fragments. The division has about 200 tanks, half of which are Matilda 2s and the other half of which are Crusader cruise tanks.

The British 2nd Armored Division stayed on the British mainland during the Western Front campaign and therefore did not suffer any blows. However, after the Battle of the Western Front, its organization was also reduced, and the armored brigade was also reduced to one, which was the 1st Armored Brigade that came to North Africa this time (the mechanized infantry brigade of the 2nd Armored Division did not come), and it was equipped with tanks. Like the 2nd Armored Brigade, there are about 200 units, half Matilda 2 and half Crusader cruise tanks.

In addition, the British army on the Tobruk front line still has many miscellaneous tanks, such as Vickers light tanks and Italian L6 light tanks. All together, there are no less than 500 vehicles.

Alan Cunningham continued to talk about his plan. He said: "If the decisive battle of the armored group cannot be won, then the South African 1st Division, the Indian 5th Division and the Indian 10th Division will all retreat to Tobruk Fortress and the New Zealand 1st Division. The 1st Division formed a fortress garrison and relied on the strong fortifications in Tobruk to wait for reinforcements. The remaining troops of the Eighth Army would retreat along Balbia Avenue to the Alamein City line to build a defense line to delay the German and Italian army's attack. This will buy us time to shrink our forces and organize the battle in Egypt.”

Alan Cunningham's battle plan is basically quite satisfactory. Although there are no bright spots, it is acceptable to the current British political leadership - if Greece, Crete and Tobruk are to be abandoned immediately, and the troop strength is reduced to If Alamein holds on, the chances of winning may be greater.

But this also means that the British Mediterranean Fleet must evacuate, because once German and Italian air power enters Crete and Tobruk, Alexandria will be bombed every day!

Once the Mediterranean Fleet withdraws, it will mean a major failure for the British Royal Navy... and it will also mean that transportation connections between Britain and Turkey are basically interrupted. Türkiye would be caught between Germany, Italy and the Soviet Union. In order to protect themselves, the Turks could only turn to Germany. At that time, the German army will pour into the Middle East like a tide!

Therefore, the current British army in the Middle East can be said to have no choice but to hold on in Tobruk and Trik Island.

And their persistence gave Rommel an opportunity to show off his skills.

…

"No, no, don't crash into it so stupidly." Rommel was sitting on a half-track armored vehicle and wandering behind the Italian Tenth Army's defense line. He was checking the route where the armored group would attack in a few days. Still discussing tactical arrangements with Lieutenant General von Thoma.

"Although our tanks are more powerful than theirs, no one knows what is behind the British defense line. There may be minefields that we don't know about, and there may be more powerful anti-tank guns."

Rommel said to von Thoma: "Our 165 No. 4s are very valuable. If they are lost, we will not be able to enter Alexandria before March 1941."

Although Germany and Italy now controlled most of the Mediterranean, Rommel's logistics lines were unimpeded. However, the supplies and troops transported to North Africa are still limited, because the transportation line is a little longer, and hundreds of aircraft are now deployed to Benghazi. They consume a lot of fuel and bombs every day!

"General, if we don't use tanks to attack, how can we fight? Should we use infantry?" Von Thoma asked in a cold tone.

Von Thoma was the oldest armored commander in Germany. Unfortunately, his official career was not very good. He was overtaken by Rommel, who was originally less qualified than him. Naturally, he felt a little unconvinced.

"Draw out the British tanks and fight them," Rommel said. "The British command is relatively rigid, and their Matilda tanks are too slow. Once they fall into our trap, they will not be able to escape."

"What to seduce?"

"Use a small number of Panzer IV tanks and increase the number of armored vehicles and No. 3 assault guns of the German brigade." Rommel said. "The British will be fooled. Their commander is stupid."

"Use No. 4 tanks to set up an ambush?" Von Thoma then asked.

"You can't use the No. 4, they are too big to hide." Rommel said with a smile, "Use the 50mm anti-tank gun. This kind of artillery is only 1.05 meters high and is easier to hide. And its firepower is strong enough. The British The human cruise tank can't resist it. If the distance is closer, Matilda can also fight."

"Setting up an ambush... where to set up an ambush?" Fon Thoma frowned and asked. He doubted that the British would stay away from their position, because the 43-caliber 75mm main gun of the Panzer IV was too powerful. With the use of tungsten steel armor-piercing projectiles, it could kill the Matilda at a distance of 1,500 meters. The British commanders could not have been completely unaware.

"I don't know now," Rommel smiled. "Deploy some anti-tank artillery batteries and let them follow the armored cluster forward. When the armored cluster's advance is blocked, temporarily set up ambush positions, so that they can be caught off guard."

This is the latest tactic, which uses towed anti-tank guns to cooperate with tanks and armored vehicles to cover each other and advance. The advantage of this style of play is that it can enhance the firepower of the armored cluster and also create an ambush on the front line. The disadvantage is that the organization is too complicated and the requirements for the anti-tank gun crew are too high, but this is not a problem at all for the German Army that is currently hanging on.

...

Second Lieutenant Rudolf von Ribbentrop, the Nazi superman who had just arrived in Benghazi a few days ago, had already led his armored car platoon and other troops of the Grossdeutschland Infantry Brigade to leave Benghazi for more than 200 kilometers. Outside Tobruk advanced.

Because they had air superiority, the troops marched in broad daylight, staring at the scorching sun of the North African desert. Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop was a little uncomfortable with the hot, dry, and sandy climate, and the strict water restrictions also made him a little uncomfortable with it.

However, the morale of the troops is still very high, and everyone is gearing up and can't wait to go to the battlefield to teach the British a lesson. The somewhat aggressive plan formulated by Rommel was very much in line with the appetites of these German supermen.

Because the company headquarters was operating together with Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop's armored platoon, Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop and his boss Schwarzenegger were squeezed into an armored car.

According to the plan, after the German Afrikaans defeated the British army near Tobruk, they would pursue it all the way to the Messetru Port (in Egypt), more than 700 kilometers away from Benghazi. In advance, the 7th Airborne Division will airborne and occupy it, while the Italian fleet will escort a transport fleet composed of small and medium-sized cargo ships to this small port.

After obtaining a certain amount of supplies, Rommel's army will continue to advance towards Alamein, the gateway to Alexander, where Rommel is expected to fight another battle with the general reserve of the British army in the Middle East!

A decisive battle was first fought near Tobruk, and then the remnants of the British army were surrounded in Tobruk (the encirclement mission was carried out by the Italian army and the German army that subsequently arrived in North Africa). The main force continued to advance westward, and at the same time, airborne troops were used to seize a small supply port. After resupplying the troops, they immediately rushed to El Alamein - this was Rommel's plan to sweep North Africa.

The key to this plan is speed!

"After the troops arrive, they rest for a day and prepare for battle." Lieutenant Schwarzenegger took a written order he had just received and said to Second Lieutenant Ribbentrop while reading it, "It seems that the 23rd or 24th will be held. A war is about to begin..."

"Will it be that soon?"

"It seems so," Lieutenant Schwarzenegger shrugged. "Our military commander is obviously impatient. If nothing happens, we will be able to cross the Suez Canal in March."

Rudolf von Ribbentrop thought for a while, nodded and said: "It would be great if it could really be like this... After passing the Suez Canal, the entire Middle East oil-producing area will be ours. In this way, the United Kingdom and the United States will not have With the hope of winning the war, we will win!”