Chapter 812: German tactics
The five small towns of Dartford, Sidcup, Bromley, Croydon and Epsom in south London are almost connected in a straight line. This caused the British army defending London to deploy heavy troops in these small cities. And with the help of these small cities, a solid line of defense was built. I want to rely on this line of defense again to stop the German attack on London. In other words, they want to use this line of defense to further consume the vital strength of the German army.
The British army knew that with their current strength, it would be very difficult to defeat the German army. Their only chance of winning is to consume as much of the German army\'s vitality as possible in urban street battles. Only in this way can the German army pay a heavy price in the battle and win. Knowing that the combat power of the British army was seriously inferior to that of the German army, the British army could only rely on the power of fortifications.
On the southern defense line, the British army originally deployed two armies, namely the 12th Army and the 13th Army. Later, the reorganized 1st Army was added. General Haig, who had retreated from the front line, was appointed commander of the southern defense line, with full command of the three armies here.
"General Haig, I hope you can lead the troops to hold out on the southern defense line for more than a month! In this case, we can not only use this time to further consolidate the defense line in London, but also allow the Germans to pay a greater price there. The price will lay the foundation for the victory of the Battle of London!" said Richard Haldane.
Although, Admiral Haig has already been regarded as the defeated general of the German army. He has been defeated by the Germans many times. However, this does not prevent his ability from being recognized. In Richard Haldane\'s view, Admiral Haig has the ability, but he is just a little bit unlucky. Another reason is that the German army is too strong. With such a huge disparity in strength between the two sides, no matter how strong Admiral Haig\'s personal ability is, it is impossible to help Britain win.
"Your Excellency, this is probably very difficult. The combat effectiveness of the 12th and 13th armies is inherently limited. Even the 1st army is nothing more than a rout in the southeast theater. Their will to fight has long been destroyed by the Germans." Yes. If it goes to the battlefield, I’m afraid it won’t have much effect. At that time, as long as the German army launches an attack, many people will definitely surrender directly to the German army.” Admiral Haig looked worried. Obviously, he didn\'t think that with these three armies, he would be able to hold on to the southern defense line for a month.
"General Haig, let\'s do this. I don\'t set a time limit. Once you think you can\'t hold on, you can choose to retreat. However, I hope to hold on for as long as possible and cause as many casualties as possible to the German army." After all, the current situation is very unfavorable to us. Even if we want to abandon the mainland and retreat to Canada, we must further weaken the strength of the Germans. Otherwise, the Germans may attack us across the Atlantic at any time!" Reason Chad Haldane said.
General Haig nodded: "Your Excellency, I will do my best!"
The entire southern line of defense is only more than 40 kilometers away. The British army has deployed 600,000 troops on this line of defense, which is considered very strong. Admiral Haig deployed the 1st Army as a reserve force to the north of the line of defense. The 12th and 13th armies were stationed on the defense line.
"The 1st Army attacked Dartford, broke through the British defenses, and entered London from here. The 2nd Army attacked Bromley, broke through and entered London from here. The 3rd Army attacked Croydon. The 8th Army attacked Epsom, and after conquering it, quickly advanced to the northeast, cooperated with other troops, and wiped out the troops deployed by the British on this line of defense!" Marshal von Falkenhain pointed to several places on the map said the city.
"Yes, Your Excellency the Marshal!" Several legion commanders replied.
"At this juncture, the British did not shrink their troops, but instead allocated such a large force, it is simply courting death!" Admiral Crook said.
London is an international metropolis, deploying millions of troops, there is no problem at all. In that case, if the German army wanted to conquer London, it would have to attack little by little, competing with the British for every street and every house in downtown London. In that case, not only will it take time and effort, but the casualties of the troops will not be too small. After all, in street fighting, one needs to face sudden dangers at any time, and even experienced veterans are very likely to lose their lives. However, now the British army has taken the initiative to deploy as many as 600,000 troops outside London. Isn\'t this giving the German army a chance to destroy them? Once the German army eliminated the 600,000 British troops. Then, there are not many British troops left in London. At that time, the difficulty for the German army to take London can be greatly reduced.
"Who knows, maybe the British haven\'t given up their delusion to keep London! They thought they could keep us out of London, so that their capital would not be turned into ruins." Admiral Bilow sneered.
Fighting in the British mainland, the German army can be said to have let go. In order to reduce the casualties of the troops, heavy artillery was used extensively. Anyway, if the city is broken, it belongs to the British, and it has nothing to do with Germany. But the British don\'t seem to want to leave their city in ruins. And this undoubtedly caused problems in their command, thus creating more opportunities for the German army.
"No matter what the British think. We just need to eliminate them and win this war!" Admiral Howson was very straightforward.
"Everyone, after dealing with the troops deployed by the British outside the city, the 1st Army and the 2nd Army attacked London from the south. The 3rd Army detoured to attack from the west of London, and the 8th Army needed to cross the Thames River and fight to Go to the north of London. I hope that the last remaining force of the British army can be wiped out in London!" Marshal von Falkenhain continued.
"Yes, Your Excellency the Marshal!" All the generals replied.