Chapter 534: Conquering Paris (ask for a monthly ticket)
This is undoubtedly a heavy blow to the French army stationed in the northern part of the Seine.
After the British army surrendered, the French army fell into a lonely battle. Their strength is only equivalent to less than one-third of the German army. The morale of the troops has even dropped to a low point. If it weren\'t for the fact that they were fighting to protect their capital, the army might have collapsed long ago. But even so, with the increasing losses, the collapse of the troops seems inevitable.
Admiral Gallieni nodded. He actually had no confidence in the 1st Army\'s attack. After all, the German army is too strong. If the Seine is blocked, it may be difficult for the German army to reach the north of the Seine. However, after several bridges easily fell into the hands of the German army, the natural moat of the Seine no longer existed. With the strong combat effectiveness of the German army, it is naturally difficult for the French army to defeat the German army.
"General Despere, the current situation is very critical. Under the siege of the Germans, we may not be able to hold on for long." Admiral Gallieni\'s face was livid.
"Yes, Your Excellency, Commander." Admiral Despere was also very pessimistic about the current battle situation.
"I have asked someone to report the situation here to His Excellency the President. Before receiving the order from His Excellency the President, let us continue to resist." Admiral Gallieni said.
Admiral Despere nodded in agreement.
At this moment, the French government is heading south. After a brief rest in Orleans, they continued to go south. The destination is Bordeaux. The French government is preparing to move there first and wait for the changes in the current situation.
After receiving the telegram from Paris, President Poincaré left to convene the cabinet ministers to discuss countermeasures.
"Damn the British, they betrayed us, how could they do that?" President Poincaré was very angry. You know, in this war, Britain and France have always been the closest allies. They fought side by side against Germany. Britain sent millions of expeditionary troops to fight in France, and the French navy also sent its main fleet to Britain to prepare for the second decisive battle with the French navy. It can be said that both countries have tried their best to defeat Germany. But now, at this most critical juncture, the entire army of the British Expeditionary Force actually betrayed France and surrendered directly to the Germans, and put the French defenders stationed in Paris in an extremely dangerous situation. This is clearly stabbing the Frenchman from the back!
"Your Excellency, this should not be the intention of the British government, but the generals of the 4th Army of the British Expeditionary Force. I believe that the British government will not do that. After all, we will have closer cooperation in the future. said Prime Minister René Viviani.
"Yes, Your Excellency the President. I agree with the Prime Minister\'s opinion. The sudden betrayal of the British is a serious blow to us. However, this should be nothing more than an isolated incident. Generally speaking, the British are still fighting against us Germany. After all, our navy has launched in-depth cooperation." Minister Alexander Millerand said.
Poincaré nodded in general, and he believed it too. After all, if France is defeated, it will be of absolutely no benefit to the British. When the time comes when they are alone, they will definitely not be the opponents of the Germans. The surrender this time should be that those guys from the 4th Army of the Expeditionary Army surrendered to the Germans without authorization because they were greedy for their lives and fear of death.
But even this made President Poincaré very angry.
"Report this to the British and let them give us an explanation!" President Poincaré said through gritted teeth.
"Yes, Your Excellency the President." The Foreign Minister nodded.
"Your Excellency, what should we do about the war in Paris? The British betrayed and allowed the Germans to occupy the bridge over the Seine. General Gallieni and the others, it is difficult to hold on." Minister Alexander Millerand said.
President Poincaré hesitated for a moment, and then said: "General Gallieni and the others, let them decide for themselves. If they think they can\'t hold on, they can do it cheaply."
"Yes, Your Excellency." Minister Alexander Millerand nodded.
This undoubtedly means that, in the case of a very unfavorable battle situation, Admiral Gallieni and others can choose whether to continue to resist, or directly surrender to the Germans in order to save the lives of most people.
Even if Admiral Gallieni and others choose to surrender, no one will blame them. After all, the current situation is so unfavorable, it is not easy for them to persist until this moment.
In response to the surrender of the 4th Army of the British Expeditionary Force to the German army, France protested strongly to the British government. The British government was also very angry about this matter. They hope to use the French to delay time while weakening the strength of the Germans as much as possible. Now, the French were stabbed in the back by the British Expeditionary Force. No wonder the French are quite angry about this.
The British government assured France that this is just an isolated case. Like France, Britain hopes to continue the war. In order to appease France, the British government even said that Admiral Allenby would be tried. Of course, Admiral Allenby is now staying in a German prisoner-of-war camp and can only conduct trials in absentia. But this undoubtedly showed an attitude to the French. In the end, the British court-martial sentenced Admiral Allenby to hang. It\'s just that they never had the chance to execute it.
The German attack on Paris became more intense. Under the onslaught of the German army, the French army suffered heavy losses. Three days later, the French army staying in Paris surrendered to the German army in a desperate execution. The commander of the Paris garrison, General Gallieni, chose to commit suicide by swallowing a gun.