The Third Reich in Desperation

As of October 1939, 10, Germany, which ranked fourth in military strength in Europe, Poland, which ranked fifth, Austria and Czechoslovakia, which ranked sixth and seventh, and Hungary, which was barely tenth, were basically all the components of the same country. .

And because of this series of miraculous expansions, the German Third Reich has become the third military power in Europe in name, surpassing Italy, which was originally recognized as the No. 3 throne.

Now, the actual strength of the Wehrmacht of the Third Reich, which has been concealed by Reinhardt, has actually reached 335 million!Plus 35 armed SS troops outside the Wehrmacht (10 are former Hungarian troops with poor equipment, and the combat effectiveness of these people is not ideal.)

As for the Imperial Air Force of Germany, with the personnel secretly trained in the Soviet Union as the backbone, plus those produced by Germany itself, those annexed by Austria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and some captured in Poland, there are currently a total of 3950 combat aircraft. And most of them were the latest fighters at that time.

One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, not to mention that there are four major European powers on the European continent at the same time, and none of them has an absolute advantage.Only by attracting allies to each other and confronting each other vertically and horizontally can we gain a stable foothold.

At this point, Britain and France have come together, and Germany and Italy have mixed together.

Body 2 Chapter [-] The Rise of the Fat Man

London, England, on October 1939, 10, was not destined to be peaceful.

"Chamberlain's appeasement, connivance, and surrender have already made the British Empire lose face. If this continues, the prestige built by the British Empire for hundreds of years will definitely disappear!" The leading member of Congress was filled with righteous indignation: "Chamberlain It's time to step down, and if he has any sense of shame, he should submit his resignation to the king immediately!"

The defeat of Poland has brought great shock to the British political arena.

Poland, the fifth most powerful country in Europe, which was originally regarded by the United Kingdom as the best pawn in Europe, collapsed in just one month.Such an unexpected result of the battle was like a high-strength bomb, which caused great shock from all walks of life in the UK.

The British people, who have been indulging in the dream of a superpower, suddenly woke up from the news of the subjugation of Poland. They finally discovered that the war is so close to them!

There are many people of insight in any country, not to mention the most powerful British Empire in the world.

These British elites, who were originally blinded by Chamberlain's appeasement theory, realized from the tragedy of Poland how terrible Germany is now.If you still think about it as before, imagine that Germany is under the firm control of the United Kingdom, and even let Germany continue to destroy the little allies of the British Empire.

Not long after that, when Britain needs allies, perhaps allies are already dead.By then, the British Empire would be alone against the German beast it had pampered and raised.

The civil, political and military circles in the UK have begun to reflect one after another.When Poland was fighting hard, what did we do who promised to rescue them? !

In the end, people were surprised to find that apart from a meaningless and symbolic Saar attack, the support given by the dignified British Empire, whether in terms of supplies or weapons, was actually so negligible!

"Chamberlain is not worthy of being our leader. His actions are not worthy of the position of Prime Minister of the British Empire! Only Mr. Churchill, who resisted all opinions and took the lead in criticizing the appeasement policy, is the real leader who can lead us to victory. !” At this moment, an elderly member of parliament thought of Churchill, who had just entered the wartime cabinet a few days ago because of his anti-German views.

When the appeasement policy reached its climax, Churchill ended his speech against appeasement amid boos, and lost his position as Secretary of the Navy.

But as the situation developed exactly as Churchill had predicted, the British people began to regret it.So Churchill changed himself and returned to the position of Lord of the Navy, becoming a representative of the British war faction in one fell swoop.

There have even been rumors that Germany has a master predictor Reinhardt, and Britain also has a super prophet Winston Churchill.Since the Germans can trust Reinhardt and thus achieved today's brilliant achievements, Britain should also learn to rely on Churchill, the "Reinhardt of the British Empire".

Although the British visionary looks a little fatter than other German heads of state, he always gives people the first impression of a fat man.But it wasn't his fault that he had a big belly!

How about that old saying in the East?Full of economics, full of talent, a big belly has great wisdom.

"To be honest, the Germans have a good eye." Churchill, who was surrounded by a group of main battle generals, puffed out his stomach, took the coffee brought by a naval colonel, and said to the officers who supported him: "We I have known this person a long time ago, just by looking at his ruthless determination to spare the entire German Western Front defenders to blitz Poland, I know that this person is definitely not simple!"

After he took a sip of coffee, he continued slowly: "No matter what method he uses, being able to knead the armies that originally belonged to Germany, Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary to the present level is enough to make the German people proud of him." gone."

For the amazing growth of Reinhardt, Churchill has always maintained a considerable degree of attention.

When Reinhardt first became famous, his performance was not as calm and deep as it is now.If it weren't for the fact that he publicly insulted the famous British general at the time, David Beatty, who was the former British Lord of the Navy, Churchill at that time would not even be able to pay attention to the nature of this little man.

As a member of a defeated country, provoking the famous general of the most powerful country in the contemporary era is simply an act of stupidity.

But it was precisely from this accidental incident that Churchill gradually discovered that Reinhardt, who seemed immature at the time, seemed to have some kind of incredible luck, standing in the most favorable position of his contemporaries time and time again.

Then, after more than ten years of polishing, the talents shown by Reinhardt not only did not fade, but became more and more sharp.From sergeant to head of state, he spent ten years walking a path that others could not finish in a lifetime.But he has come all the way, but he is as stable as Mount Tai, making people impeccable!

Over the years of observation, Churchill has a very thorough view of this future imaginary enemy.The opponent can always use some small favorable factors to the extreme, and is extremely good at predicting the development direction of the situation.

In all fairness, Churchill is definitely not Reinhardt's opponent if the chips are equal.

"It's a pity..." Churchill suddenly changed the subject and sneered in the middle of his praise: "Germany's geographical location is too poor and its foundation is weak. Even if the German head of state is so talented, Under such a harsh external environment, there is no way to turn things around. As long as the British Empire intervenes strongly, drags Italy down with appeasement means, and at the same time unites the French army, which has always been the overlord of the European continent, it will definitely not be us opponent!"

Churchill's self-confidence is not Mussolini's self-deceiving bragging, but a reasonable conclusion obtained after careful consideration and repeated reasoning.

Most of the French Maginot Line has been completed, which means that if the German army wants to attack France head-on in the future, it is inevitable to break out a fortified battle with the French defenders who are ready to go.

Once the Germans choose to attack the Maginot Line, they can basically declare defeat.

The strength of the French is not inferior to that of the Germans, and with the addition of the elite expeditionary force of 10 divisions that the United Kingdom has shipped to the French mainland, the combat effectiveness on paper is even slightly better than that of the Germans.

Churchill did not dare to guarantee the strength of the French.However, in the British Expeditionary Force of these 10 divisions, there are sufficient transportation equipment to ensure mobility and a large proportion of professional soldiers to ensure combat quality.

In addition, the Germans will more or less definitely leave a legion stationed in the Polish-occupied area on the Eastern Front to guard the border. The number of troops that the German army can use to fight the British and French allied forces cannot exceed the total number of the British and French allied forces.

In addition, the Belgian government, which has always followed the lead of France, can also provide 22 infantry divisions as cannon fodder.Churchill was sure that the troops on his side would definitely have the upper hand!

Unless the German commander is a once-in-a-millennium genius, and the coalition commander on his side is a rare idiot in a century, besides, Churchill really can't imagine the reason why he can't win the German army.

Body 2 Chapter [-] World War II

With the major victory of the German army in the Polish campaign, the British finally made up their minds to send all the Second British Expeditionary Force, which had not been transported to France, to the European continent.

Prior to this, Lord Gort, the British Chief of Staff, who served as the commander of the expeditionary force, had already entered France with Sir John Deere's First Army.

Since the war initiative was still in the hands of Britain at the time, it was completely impossible for the German troops on the western front to pose any threat to France.Therefore, the follow-up force of the British Expeditionary Force, that is, the 2nd Army under the command of Lieutenant General Alan Brooke, slowed down the schedule and did not leave for France for a long time.

But now, the Polish campaign has ended, and a large number of German troops have returned to the western front, and the pressure on the British and French allied forces has suddenly increased.Now that the German army has more and more troops on the Western Front, the British Expeditionary Force should also rush to France as soon as possible to increase its own strength.

"Dong dong dong!" Accompanied by a rhythmic knock on the door, Major General Montgomery, who had just served as the commander of the 2rd Division with the title of "Steel Division" in the 3nd Army of the British Expeditionary Force, came to Lieutenant General Alan Brooke. At the door of the office: "Commander, I am Montgomery, Commander of the 3rd Division. I heard you called me over?"

"Come in." Brook put down the documents in his hand, and solemnly looked at Major General Montgomery who was striding over.

Among the several division commanders under his command, the one Brook valued the most was Montgomery, a stable major general who was about to go to fight in France with him.

In terms of experience alone, Montgomery participated in the last World War, graduated with honors from the Camberley Staff College, led troops to quell the riots in Ireland and Palestine, and had experience as a chief instructor at the Quetta Staff College. Definitely one of the few experienced army generals in Britain today.

"Monty, you're finally here. There are many things I want to discuss with you." As soon as they met, Brook called out Montgomery's nickname very kindly.

In the hands of Brook, the most well-trained elite is Montgomery's 3rd Division.The troops in hand are good at fighting, and Montgomery's status among the several division commanders under the Second Army is naturally higher.

After all, if there is a fight, Brook will have to rely on Montgomery's "steel division" as the main force.It is extremely important to listen carefully to the opinions of the commander of this division.

"General!" Having received Brook's respect, Montgomery was also very satisfied in his heart: "If you want to hear anything, I will know everything and talk about it."

"Okay!" Brooke gestured to Montgomery to sit down, and said with all his heart, "The war is imminent, but I always feel that my heart is getting more and more uncertain. To be honest, I really want to hear your objective opinion on future wars." Do you have any thoughts on the possible upcoming war between Britain, France and Germany?"

This solicitation made Montgomery stunned for a while.He originally thought that Brook wanted to ask him about tactical issues such as the morale of junior officers and the level of combat readiness of the troops, but he didn't expect that what Brook wanted to ask was actually such a general question.

"It's not optimistic..." After thinking over and over again, Montgomery confided the worry that he had thought about repeatedly: "In the past ten years, our army has become more and more dull and rigid, and it has become more and more like an army with An old man with a glorious past. However, those blind pride and arrogance are still breeding in this group."

"But the Germans are different! They are constantly arming themselves and tempering themselves. The Polish army is so brave, but it only took them less than a month to beat the Polish army with their helmets and armor, and they were wiped out! As a thoughtful senior commander, he held his forehead and explained in pain: "The Germans have become stronger and braver than they were in the last war. But our mighty British Empire army is intoxicated by the past. The sweet dreams of my life are fading and retreating day by day!"

"Monty, do you still remember the big battle more than 20 years ago?" Brook patted Montgomery on the shoulder.

Montgomery raised his head and looked at Brook with fiery eyes: "Remember! It was a blood-boiling era!"