Chapter 1,493 The End 2
Chapter 1493 The End 2
To be honest, if you want to kill a country, you really don't need to destroy all its troops, nor do you have to occupy the capital. Sometimes, the fortress can be breached from the inside! The current regime in Russia is already very unstable. Even the British government is considering that if Nicholas II steps down one day, or the Nomanov dynasty that has ruled Russia for more than three hundred years is over, then What should Britain and France do? Supporting a new agent and then continuing to fight with the Germans is the only option. Otherwise, what else do you want? Let Germany and Austria concentrate their forces and then give the British and French forces a clean victory on the Western Front?
However, no matter who the new agent is, there is one problem that cannot be avoided, that is, if Russia wants to continue fighting, it needs ammunition, supplies, and funds! And these things must be transported in by Britain and France, otherwise, it will be for nothing to anyone who goes up! No one would fight a war of self-destruction!
Therefore, under the current situation, no matter how many difficulties there are, the top leaders of Britain and France are consistent on the issue of the Balkan theater. Even if they cannot break the German blockade, they can contain some of the Bavarian legions and reduce the pressure of the Russians. Pressure is good too!
"However, the Allied Mediterranean Fleet suffered heavy losses this time. They will not be able to go to sea in a short time. We can always recover faster than them." Sir Fisher, who wanted to understand this point, said to Major General Duff.
There is nothing wrong with this statement. In fact, judging from the current situation, the navies of both sides were driven out of the battlefield almost simultaneously in a short period of time. Britain and France still have a large number of destroyers and auxiliary warships available to lay mines and auxiliary warships at the exit of the Dardanelles Strait. After the submarine cordon, transport ships can still provide a large amount of supplies to the front line. The Bavarian Air Force's combat effectiveness has been greatly reduced due to distance restrictions, and the threat to the ground is not too great. Therefore, before the Allied Mediterranean Fleet is restored, the British and French armies can still implement The landing operation was just delayed for a while.
The impact of this battle on the Allied Powers in a short period of time was not considered subversive. In Sir Fisher's view, what was truly fatal was that once the Allied Mediterranean Fleet recovered its strength, the Bavarian Air Force completed the rearrangement of the airport. So after sailing out of the Dardanelles Strait again and cutting off the retreat of the British and French landing troops, what should Britain and France do? !
Maybe I came back very late during this period. After all, it takes a long time to repair the fleet, replenish auxiliary warships, or deploy aviation forces. But this is like building momentum. Once the German army is truly completed, everything will fall apart! Irreversible!
Unless, Britain and France can deploy hundreds of various aircraft on the islands dotted in the Aegean Sea, and deploy more elite armies in Greece and Turkey to block their opponents in a decisive battle! Only in this way can this battle turn around!
But this involves another question: Is it worth investing so many troops on this battlefield? Will the British and French forces still have the ability to invest so many troops? This question was almost impossible for Sir Fisher to answer;
Because he didn't know where the limit of the Allied military power was. He is now far away from the core of power and has neither the ability nor the mood to pay attention to this issue.
At the same time, General Pétain, the French Commander-in-Chief in the Balkans, also received relevant information about the entire campaign. He was not too concerned about the losses of the navy. What really hurt him was the losses of the landing troops, which took just one night. , the British and French forces suffered nearly 8,000 casualties, lost at least 20 various transport ships, and no less than 7,000 tons of ammunition, weapons and supplies. This is equivalent to reducing the current supplies needed for the French army to land by at least 40%!
After contacting high-level officials, the French government's reply to Pétain was that if it wanted the government to replenish all weapons and personnel, it would have to be delayed for at least 20 days. And this is just to send troops and personnel to the Balkans. The landing craft and logistics transport ships needed for landing will be behind. Even if it is implemented according to the "simplified" plan proposed by Pétain, if the French army continues the landing operation, Then it will be 2 months later.
However, what surprised Pétain was that the defeat in this battle did not shock the British and French senior officials. Through his own channels, Pétain learned that the British and French senior officials were very "lenient" to the failure of this battle. The relevant parties were not held accountable. And expressed firm support for continuing the Balkan campaign.
"The Ministry of National Defense firmly believes that Russia is our indispensable ally, and for this reason, we can tolerate paying some price. The fundamental reason for the failure of this battle is the failure of British intelligence. This is not your fault, so, You don’t have to worry about it, France will replenish the personnel and equipment you need, and we will help you solve all non-land warfare aspects, and all you need to do is lead a powerful army to land in Asia Minor, and then force Turkey Surrender or withdraw from the war!" Ferdinand Foch, who had been promoted to Chief of General Staff of the French Army, wrote in a telegram to Pétain.
As a result, Pétain, who had obtained the guarantee, began to accumulate strength again. Although the rhythm of the entire campaign was lagging behind, so far, the British and French coalition forces are still very determined in defeating Turkey! Think about the losses suffered by the British and French forces in the Dardanelles Strait in history. Although this loss is painful now, it is far from unbearable!
In Bulgaria, after receiving the battle report of this battle, Ruprecht's reaction was very calm. How should I put it? The result was expected. The only thing the prince is worried about now is that if Britain and France are afraid of being beaten this time and give up their offensive against Turkey, then this matter will be a bit troublesome. Because, to contain part of the British and French coalition forces in the Balkans is not only a military task, but also a political task!
The prince needs to maintain fighting on two battlefields at the same time. There must be wars on the Eastern Front and the Balkans at the same time. Only in this way can Ruprecht have sufficient reasons to refuse the large-scale westward transfer of the Bavarian Army. Although he can also shirk it, The Prussian General Staff is not stupid. They can see some of the tricks in it. The prince must ensure that when necessary, a light force of more than 200,000 can be quickly transferred back to Austria-Hungary or Germany from the Eastern Front or the Balkans. Come and participate in some domestic political events!
"Your Highness, Prince Leopold sent a telegram about the war situation in Ukraine." At this time, Lieutenant General Kaript sent a telegram, and this telegram also included Ruprecht's Attention shifted from the Balkans to the Eastern Front.
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