228

Episode 228: What we will fight for (2)

March 12, 1943

New Fuhrer's Residence in Berlin, Germany

"Nice to see you again."

"Me too, hehehe."

At Hitler's invitation, Inönü went to Berlin again and met him. It was a reunion after 5 months.

Although some time had passed since the Second Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed, Germany was still in a festive mood.

While on his way to the new Fuhrer's residence, Inönü was able to see the Hakenkreuz flags and large leaflets celebrating the victory filling the city of Berlin.

The faces of Berliners walking down the street were so relaxed that it did not seem like it was an exhibition.

When Germany truly collapsed the Soviet Union and took over vast Russian territory, some in Turkey criticized the government.

If Turkey had participated in the Great Soviet War by helping Germany a long time ago, Turkey could have been proudly named as a victor.

Even the military, a strong supporter of Inönü, reacted similarly.

The military expressed regret, saying that they should have accepted Germany's request to participate in the war, and that they would have been able to receive the Caucasus, but Inönün also had similar thoughts, although he did not express it outwardly.

It would have been better if I had pretended that I couldn't win then... … .

Since Turkey had made many accommodations for Germany, Inönü expected that if they appealed now, the Congolese price would drop a little.

However, judging from the fact that there was no such discussion for more than an hour after the meeting began, I thought that Caucasus should give up completely.

"Now that the Soviet Union has collapsed, Germany's only remaining enemy is Britain."

"I guess so."

"So… … "Is Turkey not willing to help Germany in the war?"

yes. There was still England. Innönü, intrigued by Hitler's proposal, asked.

"What specifically do you want Turkey to do?"

"Cyprus, which lies in front of Turkey, has long been Turkish territory, but is now controlled by Britain. If the Turkish army attacks the island of Cyprus, Germany will help Turkey annex Cyprus."

Hitler knew that Cyprus was a land closer to Greece, where Greeks had migrated and lived long before it was ruled by Turkey, but he deliberately said that Cyprus was Turkish land for the benefit of Inonnu.

In the Turkish War of Independence, the Turkish army led by Atatürk achieved victory and defended Turkey's independence, but Britain demanded that Turkey give up Cyprus and not claim sovereignty over it, and Turkey accepted this.

However, for Turkey, Cyprus was a land that they could not give up even if they wanted to.

Since it was a strategic location and had remained Turkish territory for hundreds of years, Turkey had a strong desire to reclaim it.

It was no exaggeration to say that there were no Turks who did not want to regain Cyprus, just because they were quiet because they did not have the strength to do so.

When the words came directly from Hitler's mouth that he would help with the annexation of Cyprus, Inönü's eyes sparkled.

During his first meeting with Inönü, Hitler offered to help Turkey take over the Caucasus and Cyprus if Turkey entered the war.

However, Inönü rejected Hitler's proposal, and as a result, the Caucasus remained an independent country under German influence, not even Turkey.

Although Britain was a formidable opponent, if they rejected Hitler's offer this time, Turkey might have lost its chance to take control of Cyprus forever.

If he missed the opportunity to dominate the Caucasus and even Cyprus, it was questionable whether not only the people but also the military would maintain support for him.

However, it is also true that the state of the Turkish military is lacking in many aspects to support Britain.

Will you take the risk and devour the sweet prey of Cyprus?

Will you remain neutral until the end?

Inoenyu was worried.

"If Turkey enters the war, how much will Germany help?"

"The German Air Force will support the Turkish army's landing in Cyprus. U-boats in the Mediterranean are also planning to attack the British Navy."

"hmm… … ."

With the invincible German Air Force, there would be no need to worry about interference from the British Navy and Air Force. The number of British troops stationed on the island of Cyprus is about one division.

If, as Hitler promised, the German Air Force suppressed the British Navy and Air Force and helped the Turkish army land on the island, Cyprus could be completely taken over within a week.

"great."

Inönü, having made up his mind, nodded.

"Turkey will stand with Germany."

***

March 15, 1943

New Fuhrer's Residence in Berlin, Germany

Inönü, who had promised to participate in the war, returned to Turkey after an in-depth conversation with me regarding the invasion of Cyprus.

Now that Turkey has decided to enter the war, all that remains is Spain.

Spain participated in the German-German War, but still maintained neutrality with Britain.

I sent Ribbentrop to Madrid to persuade Franco, who was hesitant to enter the war.

If Spain follows Turkey into the war, Britain will have no choice but to divert the power it has saved to defend the mainland outside of the mainland in order to maintain its hegemony in the Mediterranean.

You can't tell how fortunate we are that Churchill was an imperialist who was crazy about colonies.

The more British troops are sent to the Middle East and India to defend their colonies, the fewer enemies our troops will have to fight when they land in Britain.

Anti-military guerrillas in Egypt, Iraq, and Palestine suffered a heavy blow from the British army's merciless suppression.

However, in Northern Ireland and India, the IRA and the Free Indian Legion were waging a guerrilla war and toying with the British army.

In particular, the MP3008, which was given to the soldiers of the Free India Corps, is said to have played a big role.

Although its performance was poor, thanks to the advantage of being easy and quick to make, it was copied and produced all over India and is still breathing fire at the British army.

We hope that they will continue to be active during and after Operation Sea Lion.

In addition to France, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, Ukraine, Free Russia, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria expressed support for sending troops.

The total number of troops that countries that have supported sending troops so far have said they will send is approximately 180,000.

Of these, 30,000 will land on the British mainland with German troops on the day of Operation Sea Lion and fight British troops on the beaches.

Albania understood that it would be difficult for King Jogu I to participate in an attack on Britain because he had lived in exile in England, and the armies of Belgium, the Netherlands, Slovakia, and the Baltic countries were stationed in the eastern Free Russia and the Soviet Union. Because they were tasked with defending the new border, they were also excluded.

The same goes for Ethiopian troops in Europe.

Although Selassie was said to have been treated poorly due to Italy's accession to the Allied Powers, unlike King Jogu I, who still owed a debt of gratitude to Britain, Selassie may have been resentful of the poor treatment he received from Britain, and at Germany's request, Ethiopia also declared war on Britain and British Somalia. They secretly announced that they would attack Rand.

However, I declined this and instead asked for the defense of French Somaliland.

This was because if Britain occupied French Somaliland, U-boats could no longer lay mines in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

There were many things our troops needed to prepare for Operation Sea Lion. One of them was a port for unloading supplies and troops, a prefabricated artificial port.

Even if the landing is successful, the war does not end there. You can win the war by advancing inland, fighting the enemy, and seizing the capital.

Therefore, smooth supply of military supplies is essential for a rapid invasion of the British mainland after the landing operation.

Even middle school students know that in order to smoothly supply supplies to troops on the front lines, it is much better to unload them through a well-equipped port rather than a beach made of sand and gravel.

However, there is no way the port will be safe when a fierce battle is taking place on the coast.

It is inevitable that damage will occur during the battle, and it will be quite difficult if the British army blows it up so that our troops cannot use it, or stays in the port and holds a sit-in.

Therefore, I planned to build an artificial port to unload supplies, just like the Allied forces did in the Normandy landings.

We have already thought about how to build an artificial port.

This also took the same manufacturing method of 'Mulberry Port' used by the Allied forces in the Normandy landings, and Mountbatten (that's the same guy who was taken over by the IRA not long ago) who developed Mulberry spent more than a year developing Mulberry. It took a while, but I was able to drastically shorten the time thanks to future knowledge.

Here's how to make mulberries: First, the old transport ships are lined up in shallow water near the beach at low tide and then sunk.

The length is about 1.5km so that only the superstructure remains above the water.

Next, a huge concrete box - the Allies code-named it 'Phoenix' - was dropped into the sea at low tide to create a breakwater, and a floating breakwater, code-named 'Bombardon', was created to serve as another protective layer for the port.

Lastly, by arranging 25-ton piers, codenamed 'Whale', each pier can dock one tank landing ship.

It is said that not only medium tanks such as the Sherman and Cromwell, but also the Churchill tank, the heaviest tank owned by the Allied Forces, could be laid down on the bridge without difficulty.

The two Mulberry ports created in Normandy were called Mulberry A and Mulberry B and were managed by the U.S. and British troops, respectively. Mulberry A was destroyed in a storm ten days after its completion.

However, Mulberry B was safely preserved and unloaded 2.5 million troops, 500,000 vehicles and tanks, and 4 million tons of supplies over the 10 months until the end of the European war.

"… … "Did you write it all down?"

"Yes, Mr. President."

"As expected, Mr. President, you are thinking of something that even we, experts, could not have thought of-"

"If you've written everything down, go quickly. "There is no time, no time."

I've heard so much flattery that I'm sick of it. There is no time to waste listening to embarrassing praise in a situation where every minute and every second is regrettable. I am different from the pigs in North Korea.

"Mr. President. Marshal Guderian has arrived."

"Please take me inside."

Guderian came to report on the production status of the previously ordered Panzer V, Type B Panther II. Panther II, which completed all tests, including shooting and driving, with stable results and was decided for mass production, was being produced at the factory that produced existing Panthers.

"Changes to production lines at Panther factories are proceeding without a hitch, and mass production of the Panther G is scheduled to be completely halted within the next week. "If you look at this table and document here-"

"Um, um."

If the German-German War had not ended, it would not have been dreamed of halting mass production of the Panther for a certain period of time to produce the Panther II.

Even the Soviet Union, which is currently overflowing with supplies, is in a crisis situation as tank mass production was temporarily halted in the process of changing the T-34/76 production line to the T-34/85, causing the tank ratio on the front line to drop to a level close to 1:1. There was an enemy.

Germany, which was in a worse situation than the Soviet Union, could not even dream of stopping tank production to improve production line efficiency.

If that were the case, all armored forces on the front line would be destroyed and only infantry soldiers would be left.

"-Therefore, it is believed that at least 200 Panther IIs will be able to be mass-produced and deployed before May."

"Good. not bad."

The Panther II, which will replace the No. 4 and the Panther as the main force of the next German armored force, has 100mm thick armor on the front of the hull, 60mm on the sides, and 150mm on the front of the turret, so its overall protection is at the level of a decent heavy tank.

In addition, the main gun is equipped with the KwK 43/1 main gun, which is an improved version of the KwK 43 tank gun mounted on the Tiger II and Yakht Panther, giving it the best firepower at the level of a medium tank.

Another difference from the existing Panther is that there is no need to install a muzzle brake due to the improved performance of the main gun discharger.

However, if you gain something, you also lose something.

As the armor became thicker, the weight also increased by a whopping 6 tons from 39 tons to 45 tons, leading to some saying that it should be classified as a heavy tank.

In addition, the size of the closure was reduced to reduce weight, and since the 88/71 was a large-bodied gun, the shells were also large, so the ammunition load was also reduced.

While the Panther G type could load 65 shells, the Panther II was limited to a maximum of 50 shells even if it was crammed into every spare space.

Also, in this case, the possibility of the ammunition exploding when hit increased, so it was not a highly recommended method.

"Normally, after only two battles, supply would be essential. The role of the supply unit will increase."

"Still, the UK is smaller than Russia, so as long as air superiority is not taken away, there will be no problem with supply."

As the Panther II equipped with the 88/71 main gun was released, it was decided to discontinue production of the Yacht Panther as well.

Even though I was told not to make it, I still made it, and it ended up being discontinued in less than a year.

Still, because the car bodies produced so far were a waste, it was decided to make the 300 car bodies produced previously into Yakt Panthers.

The 105mm 68-caliber main gun, which was originally scheduled to be mounted on the Tiger II instead of the 88/71, has just been prototyped and has begun testing.

This one, too, was scheduled to be mounted on a new turret equipped with a stereo range finder mounted on the Panther II's Schmalturm turret as soon as testing was completed.

It may be a bit early, but we decided on a name in advance. Tank No. 6, Type C Tiger III.

Another name is Säbelzahntiger (saber-toothed tiger).

"Is it all over now?"

"yes. "That's all on the agenda today."

"Good job. Let's go eat something. "What would you like for lunch today?"

"I'm thinking about making mashed potatoes with Weißwurst (a white sausage commonly eaten in Bavaria and Silesia)."

"Right. "I'm thinking of making silken tofu salad, schnitzel, and kimchi."

"Are you still eating weird foods like those incendiary bombs?"

Guderian asked with an expression of incomprehension.

Guderian, who was curious about the kimchi I was eating, tried it once, but as soon as he put it in his mouth, he spit it out and 'disinfected' his mouth with milk.

I thought it was just a slightly spicy sauerkraut, but the spiciness is on a whole different level.

In 21st century Korea, this level of spiciness is not even on the spicy list.

"I don't understand why you like those spicy and salty pickled cabbage pieces."

"My enemy is not used to spicy taste, but once he gets used to it, it's worth eating. "It calms down the throbbing."

"Wouldn't it be better to eat a salad?"

As we walked to the restaurant, talking about various things, Krause and Weizsäcker were walking briskly from afar.

"It's a good thing. "Will the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs also want to go for a meal?"

"Thank you, Mr. President. "But I have one thing to report to you."

"What's going on?"

"Mannerheim of Finland has informed me that he would like to hold a meeting with you, Mr. Führer."