Bismarck

"So... this is the only way?"

Churchill asked somewhat unwillingly, his tone somewhat questioning.

"Yes, that's the only way..." Auchinleck continued, shrugging his shoulders and spreading his hands.

“……” Churchill lowered his head speechlessly, looking somewhat depressed.

What made him so unwilling?

Of course I am unwilling...

No one would be willing to leave a place like the Suez Canal to the Axis powers without firing a shot.

Moreover, the consequence of losing the Suez Canal might be that the fleets of the three Axis powers would meet in the Indian Ocean...

That picture is so beautiful!

But the worst thing is that Auchinleck's analysis actually makes a lot of sense... He has no reason to refute it.

The key to the Mediterranean is actually not being able to fight those 'evil spirits' in the coastal areas!

In the previous Battle of El Alamein, Auchinleck's air force had an almost double advantage in numbers! In terms of airports, there were more than ten airports for the planes to take turns! However, the Germans relied on the Zeppelin aircraft carrier and the flexibility of Deba Airport being closer to the battlefield, using air cover at all costs to allow Bismarck, Tirpitz and the Italian cruisers to use the super attack power of naval guns to smash through Auchinleck's painstaking defenses! Auchinleck was helpless. He had done almost everything a commander could do, but he was really powerless to do anything else.

And that time, they had an almost overwhelming advantage in force at El Alamein! But now, whether it is the strength and weaponry of the ground forces or the number and combat effectiveness of the air force, the British Army is no stronger than the Axis Africa Corps!

"...I witnessed the bombardment of the German evil sisters in the Battle of El Alamein with my own eyes. They were even able to use incredibly accurate bombardment to destroy our 381mm main artillery in Alexandria from thirty kilometers away in one or two rounds...I can bluntly say that they were the reason why I couldn't withstand Rommel's attack with ten times the force in the Battle of El Alamein...My opinion is that unless we can hold out until the enemy's artillery shells are used up, we can either use a large number of air forces to sink them or chase them away. Otherwise, in the face of the salvo of their sixteen 380mm main guns, a mere army unit, no matter how many troops it has, will be defeated..." Auchinleck sighed, and was obviously at a loss as to what to do with these three heaven-defying existences.

"…It is true that the Bismarck was almost sunk that time, but it has been three months now…According to the current intelligence, not to mention the Tirpitz and Zeppelin, the Bismarck that was almost sunk before has been repaired almost completely…"

Looking at Churchill who remained noncommittal, Auchinleck continued to elaborate on his thoughts:

"I have read Lieutenant General Litchi's battle plan. Judging from the current situation, although we can theoretically defend the Suez Canal from the front, there are two uncertain factors... First, the reinforcement of German and Italian troops - not too many, just two more infantry divisions equipped with anti-tank guns, and kill Cairo, their main force can attack the canal without restraint..."

"Another uncertain factor is whether the Germans will rely on the power of evil spirits to directly attack Port Said, just like the previous Battle of El Alamein-Alexandria. If they do this, they may work with the frontal troops to either surround us on the east bank of the canal, or take advantage of the empty space in our rear to directly support Rommel's armored forces and rush all the way to the Middle East, causing the entire war situation to be completely passive, or even a complete collapse..."

As Auchinleck spoke, Churchill and Alanbrook's faces changed!

If I had a camera, I would definitely be able to record this wonderful scene, which is probably comparable to Churchill's cigar photo.

--------

Port Said, like Alexandria, is also a world-class port! If the Germans really occupied Port Said and used it as a starting point to rush directly into the Middle East...

As Prime Minister, Churchill knew the situation of the British Empire in the Middle East even better than Auchinleck, a soldier!

After all, with the decline of Britain after World War I and the rise of local nationalism, even the puppet princes supported by Britain as agents have begun to show attempts to become independent. Didn't the Iraqi independence faction come to power half a year ago?

Not only did it take a lot of effort to deal with the situation in Iraq, but now with the heavy casualties in the North African battlefield, the situation in the Middle East is even more of a mess!

The Turkish government, which has begun to waver, the relatively pro-German Reza Khan of Iran, the Saudi royal family, which has always believed in extreme conservative religions, and the Jordanian royal family, which claims to be the descendants of Muhammad, and even the self-organized militias in Jerusalem, which are separatist and preparing to establish an independent country, even rely on their weapons and their network of contacts in the Western capitalist world, and openly ignore the British government's Israeli settlements. These have always been here...

The northern part of the Sinai Peninsula along the Mediterranean Sea is a flat land composed of deserts and coastal lagoons, and has roads with good road conditions. The southern part of the Sinai Peninsula, all the way to the Palestinian region, is a large area of ​​mountainous areas, and the transportation infrastructure cannot be compared with the northern part!

If the African Corps really rushed into the Middle East along the Mediterranean coast, the Israeli kibbutz militia would definitely not be a match! And the last tens of thousands of troops in Africa would be trapped in the mountains south of the Sinai Peninsula and wait for their annihilation because their retreat was cut off!

Without the main force to stabilize the situation, Iraq, Syria, and Palestine... those Arab nationalists who were originally pro-German would certainly respond to the German army! And if Iran, which was originally pro-German, was added, under the pressure of the collective war in the entire Middle East, Turkey, which was originally a fence-sitter, might be forced to join the Axis! The result of Turkey joining the Axis is that the Axis' sphere of influence can instantly extend directly to Baku in the Soviet Union and British India!

By that time, not to mention that the Soviet Union, which was already fighting hard, would be defeated due to the complete cut-off of fuel supply, the most important colonies of the British Empire - the Middle East-India colonies - would also be on the verge of total collapse!

By that time, the end of the British Empire will be at hand!

Even if the United States fully expands its production capacity, I am afraid that it can only retreat to a corner of the New World and barely protect itself, that's all...

Not to mention Churchill, even Alan Brooke, who had figured it out, was already sweating coldly! Coupled with the cold, damp and foggy day in London in late November, it was chilling!

"...Is there any other way?" Churchill asked with some horror.

Auchinleck did not speak, but simply spread his hands, with a look of helplessness on his face. Churchill and Alan Brooke on the other side also looked sad when they saw his silent answer...

The three people in the room were silent for a long time before Churchill continued:

"... And, General Auchinleck, you seemed to have just said that we gave up the Suez Canal in order to ensure the security of the entire Middle East... right?"

"...Yes, Prime Minister, I did say that." Auchinleck smiled bitterly and shook his head: "There is no other way. I can only choose the lesser consequence between the two evils..."

"General Alanbrook, what do you think?" Churchill raised his head slightly and looked at Admiral Alanbrook, Chief of the Imperial Defense General Staff beside him.

However, under Churchill's inquiring eyes, Alanbrook's originally serious face now showed the same bitter smile as Auchinleck's...

"…It seems that you think so too…?"

Seeing this expression, Churchill knew that there was no need to ask any more questions...

"Yes, Prime Minister... Although I don't want to give up the Suez Canal..."

However... Alanbrook was interrupted by Churchill halfway through his explanation:

"You don't have to say it, I know... In fact, I can't bear to let go..."

As he said this, Churchill himself smiled bitterly.

After all, form is stronger than people...

Everyone knows how much of a blow the loss of the Suez Canal would have been to the empire. However, if the empire tried to keep the Suez Canal by force, it would end up in a crushing defeat and the entire colony would fall apart. This would obviously be even more unacceptable to the empire, and it would be nailed to the pillar of shame in history.

Churchill understood this. Right now, his head was already calculating like an old hand-cranked calculator, but the speed of calculation was probably not very fast:

If Britain is now unable to send more reinforcements to the Middle East, it can only retain as many troops as possible to suppress the Middle East.

If Litchi's 50,000 troops were annihilated in Egypt, Britain would not be able to spare more strength to stabilize the situation in the Middle East and India! At that time, without the main force to suppress the Middle East, apart from the unruly Jews who lacked regular troops, those princes and khans who were already half-hearted would fall to Germany like dominoes. No one in the world could predict it!

Relatively speaking, if they retreated to the Middle East, as long as they left the edge of the sea, Lütjens' evil fleet would be useless! And with the Jordan Valley-Golan Heights, a natural barrier of cliffs from below sea level to more than 2,300 meters, the Middle East is not undefensible!

In addition, with the 100% hatred of the Jews by the mustache, the first to bear the brunt must be the Jews who have always been arrogant, who regard themselves as God's chosen people, manipulate international finance, and are not submissive to this or that! At that time, these people will have to cooperate with Britain in order to survive! And those other "camel princes" who have different intentions will have to obey the interests of the British Empire under the premise that Britain still has the main force in place. They can even let these princes select a group of strong men to serve as scapegoats, and weaken their strength on the premise of alleviating the lack of strength of the British army!

Although Germany and Japan are likely to dominate the Indian Ocean after giving up the Suez Canal, India still has a little foundation to arm and train troops. On the premise that Britain still has troops to keep the battlefield, Germany, which has already invested all its main forces in the Soviet battlefield, cannot spare more troops to occupy the Middle East!

As for Italy... let's wait until Mussolini's industrial capacity is able to equip his "possibly (not yet) motorized divisions" with cars and turn them into "possibly motorized divisions"!

Sometimes, the situation of total chaos or stability may depend on these 50,000 troops...

“…I think, let’s do this!”

With a bang of his fist, Churchill made up his mind!

"Prime Minister?" Hearing Churchill's voice, Alanbrook and Auchinleck looked over together. At this time, Churchill finally showed some of the courage of the descendant of the Duke of Marlborough and the Prime Minister of the British Empire. The fat body stood up from the sofa, and the civilized stick in his hand stabbed heavily on the ground, making a crisp sound of "snap"!

"Auchinlake, I totally agree with you! You must board a plane right now and take up the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Middle East Theater - Indian Theater of the British Empire! Also, send a telegram to Litchi immediately, ordering him to abandon the Suez Canal! Except for a small number of diversionary forces left in Egypt to contain Rommel, and then gradually withdraw along the Nile Valley after completing the mission, all the main forces, including the canal garrison, must withdraw to Palestine! As for the decision to abandon the Suez Canal, I still have some face left, so I will go to the parliament to lobby - that's it! Do it now!"

Alanbrook and Auchinleck looked at each other, saluted and responded, "Yes! Prime Minister!"

Chapter 549: A canal fell from the sky

"What did you say! Li Teqi ran away?!"

At noon on November 1941, 11, at the headquarters of the Greater German Reich Southern Theater, several high-ranking generals had just finished lunch and had not even burped when they were struck by an emergency that had just been received. They were all so crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, emitting an enticing aroma.

A group of German and Italian high-ranking officials, including Field Marshal Kesselring, Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Theater and Commander of the Air Force, General Lütjens, Commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, and Mussolini's plenipotentiary representative and Chief of the Italian General Staff, Admiral Cavalero, were staring at Rommel and the urgent war report in his hands with uniform and direct eyes.

Rommel himself was looking at the battle report in his hand with a confused look on his face.

In the Nile-Damietta River Basin, Rommel, who had just repelled the British "Operation Crusader", had finally taken two days off to go home and spend two days with his wife. He had just returned to the Southern Theater Headquarters to cancel his leave, and before he could catch his breath, Nehring, the Chief of Staff of the African Corps, sent such an urgent telegram, which happened to fall into his hands just after he returned...

Not to mention Rommel himself, he was confused, and so were those around him. As the commander of the African Corps, everyone had already gathered around him, asking him:

"Why would the British give up the canal so readily? Is there a trick?"

"Fox, what on earth did Nelin say!"

"That's right, Fox, read it faster!"

The confused fox looked around. Several people around him were still asking him what was going on...

I just came here to report, and I haven't had time to go to North Africa when I received such a thing. What can I do? I am also desperate...

The fox was confused and depressed. He could only read the telegram in his hand carefully and read it as he read:

"...At present, I have deployed all the reconnaissance troops and two cavalry brigades to conduct reconnaissance, and have ordered all units to concentrate their forces and be on high alert. I have also instructed the motorized troops to slowly follow up behind the reconnaissance troops and cavalry troops to provide support...But as of 12:00 noon today, our troops have entered the city of Fagus, and the vanguard reconnaissance troops have arrived at the suburbs of Ismailia City on the canal, but there is still no report of the enemy situation. Local people reported that they had organized a large-scale retreat after nightfall yesterday, and their whereabouts are unknown...In addition, according to air force reconnaissance, no suspicious signs were found west of the canal, but there seemed to be a large number of British convoys and heavy weapons east of the canal, moving towards Palestine through the roads of the Sinai Peninsula. At present, it is still unclear whether these convoys are the main enemy forces or feints...The enemy's intentions and troop movements are still unclear, so I request tactical guidance from my superiors! Report completed."

Rommel finished reading the report, but everyone in the headquarters, including Rommel himself, still looked confused.

The superiors also need to digest the tactical guidance.

"Everyone, is this a trick...?" Italy's Chief of General Staff, Admiral Cavalero, sat down on the sofa and expressed his opinion with a look of disbelief.

"I feel the same way... But where are they hiding? That's the edge of the desert. Judging from the search force reported by Nelin, if there really is an ambush, it should have been discovered by now..." Rommel frowned, his head turning non-stop, looking at the battle report and the sand table map.

"Have they established positions behind the canal?" asked Lütjens.

"No, with a terrain like the canal, if we break through one point it will be considered a complete breakthrough. By then, it will be difficult for them to retreat. Then we can directly attack the Middle East... Wait! Wait!" Rommel was answering and answering, and suddenly he seemed to understand something!

"What's wrong? Rommel?" Hearing the fox's sudden shout, everyone looked over.

"I understand! The British want to leave a seed force to protect the Middle East! Their blatant retreat might just be a trick to confuse the enemy! - I will send a telegram to Nelin first, asking him to speed up the exploration and prepare to send troops to take over the places abandoned by the British. If there are any problems, ask him to report immediately..."

Rommel, who had figured it out, quickly gave orders and explained his conclusion to everyone in detail.

It must be said that the British were bold enough to suddenly abandon the Suez Canal. Even though Rommel had explained that the British might have given up the Suez Canal to protect the entire Middle East, and that the Suez Canal was a deception tactic, everyone was still surprised to see such a key point like the Suez Canal abandoned so easily...

"...Litch, a mediocre person, and Churchill, a person with a granite head, would definitely not be able to come up with such an idea. I bet the British commander must have been replaced, and it is very likely that he is a powerful one!"

Rommel said with certainty.

He and Li Teqi have been working together for such a long time that he has a pretty good understanding of the other side's tactics. From a big picture perspective, he definitely cannot have such courage.

"…But if what you said is true, they have the advantage of the terrain and the initiative in the Middle East, and a master has come to command them…that means they can no longer fight?" Catherine asked.

"Yes, the terrain over there in the Jordan Valley is too bad, with 2,500-meter-high cliffs... and the battlefield in the Middle East is too large, not to mention that the Jewish militia and the princes in the Middle East will definitely be mobilized by the British... Unless you can give me at least 300,000... no! At least 500,000 reinforcements, otherwise this war cannot be fought. But..." Rommel said as he spread his hands and shrugged: "But you also know that our country's current focus is on fighting against Russia, and it is impossible to give me so many troops..."

So, the main focus is on the eastern front, and he has no way to deal with this area.

"Yeah... In that case, I guess we will be transferred to the Eastern Front soon." Marshal Kesselring replied with emotion. But soon, as if he thought of something, he looked at the captain who was looking at the map in the corner without saying a word: "Speaking of which, if the British really give up the Suez Canal, I'm afraid that the one who is most 'in the way' here is Lütjens..."

"Eh? Me?" The captain was a little confused when the topic was suddenly mentioned.

"Yes, I'm talking about you!" Rommel also took over the conversation: "If the Suez Canal can be seized, you will definitely go to the Indian Ocean and cooperate with our dwarf ally in the East! Unlike us, I'm afraid that nine out of ten will go to the Eastern Front to endure the cold winter. By the way, didn't your Bismarck visit Russia as the Führer's flagship last time? How cold is it over there?"

"How would I know? I didn't go there. It was my deputy captain at the time, Hyde, who led the ship. But Hyde died in the Battle of El Alamein... You can't ask him about it."

Speaking of those things, the captain still feels like many things happened just yesterday. It's just that it was a cruel war after all, and there is always a feeling that things have changed...

Speaking of the Battle of El Alamein, Rommel was silent. In the past few months, Rommel knew how much the troops had lost, how difficult the fighting was, and how many troops had been replaced more than once, including officers and soldiers.

The atmosphere in the office suddenly became a little depressing. Although it seemed that victory was in sight, they were all generals who had experienced many battles. Behind every general's success were countless bones. I'm afraid they all couldn't shed tears easily.

Finally, Marshal Kesselring came out to smooth things over: "No matter what, we should report the situation to the Führer and the leaders of your allies first and see what they say..."

"That's the only way..." Rommel and Lütjens looked at General Caballero.

"Then I will report to the leader immediately." Admiral Cavalero responded tactfully.

-----

The report was sent up quickly, and not long after, the highest decision-makers in Germany and Italy also sent telegrams. Not surprisingly, Hitler and Mussolini both expressed their close attention to this and asked to find out the specific situation before reporting.

So a few people stayed in the headquarters, waiting for further information from the African Corps.

At dusk, Nelin sent the next report. Then several people gathered around the map table and looked at the detailed report sent by Nelin.

“…You are indeed the one, Rommel. They really gave up the Suez Canal and retreated to the Palestine region.” Field Marshal Kesselring looked at the contents of the battle report and said to Rommel with some joy.

Rommel ignored Catherine's joke and continued reading the battle report: "...The enemy has abandoned the Suez Canal and even Cairo. Most of the enemies in Cairo have retreated to the Middle East via Suez. Another armored division and a mechanized infantry division have retreated to the Nile Valley...Now the entire Suez Canal is under our control, but the British have carried out large-scale blasting and mining of the fortifications and waterways here, and they need to be dredged before they can be used..."

"The canal was blown up? Then it will take time to dredge it..." Lütjens and Cavalero looked at each other in confusion when they heard this.

Although Lütjens knew that there were at least two pets in his fleet that could sweep mines, a cat and a hamster. However, although he was afraid that the existence of his pets was known to many people, he also knew that his pets were not afraid of being investigated by those who were interested. To be precise, the warship was their "main body", but as long as they did not cause trouble, no matter how much they investigated the main body of the warship, it would only be an "ordinary" warship. And although those girls were regarded as evil witches in various legends in Britain and the United States, they were actually just a "projection", and it was useless to investigate from the "projection".

But... is it really okay to expose it so openly...

After all, this is Italy, the headquarters of the Catholic Church. Although the Catholic Church seems to have no power now, it still has a great influence among believers, and has deep connections with the powerful in Europe and the United States, including Italy and even Nazi Germany itself! Even Mussolini's ability to sit firmly in the position of Prime Minister of Italy is actually the result of the connivance of the Church and the Italian aristocracy (PS: If you don't know, you can check the Matteotti incident. In 1924, the anti-Mussolini congressman Matteotti was assassinated. The opposition used this to force the palace, and once pushed the newly-elected Fascist Party cabinet to the brink of collapse. But with the support and acquiescence of the King of Italy and the Pope of the Vatican, Mussolini finally survived the political difficulties)

You have to know that the Italian elite are not rubber stamps. Even the Italian royal family, which has always been considered a mascot, is not that simple. Among the few powerful generals in the Italian Army, the Italian Crown Prince Umberto II of Savoy is one of them! Moreover, he has many years of military experience and is the commander of a large army! As for his students and former officials, I am afraid there are countless of them!

The Italian royal family, a recognized mascot, has such power in the military without being noticeable. What about other powerful families and the Holy See that have existed in Italy since the Middle Ages?

Until now, in the Italian upper class, those who oppose Mussolini, whether in the military or in the political circles, still have considerable influence. And in Germany... Let alone the Junker officer corps of the army, which is close to the Catholic forces, even in the navy, God knows what Raeder, who can see the Führer all day long, said to the Führer! And if the political attitude of Italy changes, as a scapegoat in nine out of ten cases, no one knows what the Führer will do to me and the few ship girls!

After all, the vast majority of people in the entire European and American world still believe in God and oppose the devil. Listen to the British and Americans calling themselves and the ship girls evil spirits, witches, etc. here and there...

So if they can pretend to be one day at a time, it is better not to expose them. Although it seems that the combat effectiveness of these few ships on their side is already unscientific in the eyes of the Italian Navy...

Bismarck and I are lovers, and the other ship girls and those captains have been my comrades-in-arms for many years, and we even have a family-like relationship. Even if Churchill hadn't shouted on the radio to "hang the devil Lütjens in the name of God", I would never abandon them!

But... why do I always feel that the higher my military achievements, the more lonely I feel...

Well, Lütjens has been completely distracted... What is this all just nonsense?