Chapter 17: Winter Exercise

After the Great War, the Allied powers attempted to eliminate Germany's ability to wage war again through the Treaty of Versailles. However, history proved that this heavy shackle had the opposite effect: on the one hand, it provided ambitious individuals with opportunities to incite the masses and seize power, thereby forming a more radical and dangerous dictatorship; on the other hand, the various constraints imposed on Germany militarily did not dampen the spirits of the resilient German military personnel. After the initial pains of the war's end, the German army and navy began their new journey.

Under the leadership of knowledgeable figures like "Father of the 100,000 Army" Seeckt, the German Army cultivated and retained a large number of highly qualified talents. The military technology department actively sought ways to enhance the combat effectiveness of the army without blatantly violating the treaty. They also secretly formed and trained their armored forces through cooperation with Eastern countries.

On the naval front, the first post-war warship, the light cruiser "Emden," had already entered service. Three Konigsberg-class and one Leipzig-class light cruisers were under construction, and the typical product of the treaty, the "pocket battleship," had also received parliamentary approval, with the first ship scheduled to start construction in the spring of 1929.

Although revitalizing the navy was fraught with challenges, naval officers and sailors worked hard to maintain the combat effectiveness of this prestigious force. Like the German Army, they actively engaged in internal exchanges, regularly conducted various scales of military exercises, and closely monitored the technological developments of foreign armies.

The naval winter exercise held in November 1928 was the first exercise attended by Admiral Reuter after assuming command of the navy. He personally named it "Dawn," with profound implications.

At the same time, it was also the first naval exercise attended by Zhang Hainuo after returning to serve in the German navy. He was invited to sit with Admiral Reuter to review the fleet and observe the exercise aboard the latest commissioned light cruiser "Emden."

With the idea of leading Heidrich back to the "right path," Zhang Hainuo specifically brought along this young naval lieutenant, hoping that he would increase his sense of honor for the navy through such occasions. However, he seemed to forget that as the communications officer of the flagship "SMS Schleswig-Holstein" of the Baltic Fleet, Heidrich had participated in quite a few naval exercises in the past few years.

The location of this exercise was in the Baltic Sea area east of the Kiel naval base. The participating forces included four old battleships, three cruisers, sixteen torpedo boats, and five auxiliary ships. Compared to the naval exercises of the German Empire during its heyday, this scale seemed somewhat modest, but it represented nearly half of the current German Navy's strength!

As the four old battleships sailed past the reviewing ship one by one, Zhang Hainuo, standing on the bridge of the "Emden," felt a sense of nostalgia. These four newly painted old battleships, without exception, had a displacement of no more than 15,000 tons, were equipped with four 280mm guns, and had been in service for over 20 years. The Brunswick-class armored battleships "Brunswick" and "Hessen," launched in 1903, and the Deutschland-class armored battleships "Hannover" and "Schleswig-Holstein," launched in 1904, were already outdated when dreadnoughts appeared. They were all relegated to the reserve by the end of World War I. Ten years after the war, they now played the role of the main force of the German Navy, a scene that was lamentable.

At this moment, Zhang Hainuo couldn't help but reminisce about his former pride, the "SMS Seydlitz," one of the top battlecruisers of the warring parties during World War I. With a nearly 30,000-ton hull equipped with ten 280mm heavy guns, it was awe-inspiring during full-speed cruising. Its excellent watertight design allowed it to miraculously return from the British storm of shells, while the German battleship "SMS Pommern" sank with just one torpedo hit during the Battle of Jutland!

What was somewhat comforting was the neat appearance and high morale of the naval officers and sailors on the decks and sides of the battleships. Their young faces contrasted sharply with the four old ships that had been in service for over 20 years.

Following the four armored battleships were two light cruisers built and commissioned before World War I. Their outdated designs could no longer meet the requirements of modern naval warfare and were now mainly used as training ships in the German Navy. They hadn't even been modernized like those armored battleships!

Next, the torpedo boat formation, which finally brought a breath of fresh air. Their hulls were new and had sleek lines, sharp bows cutting through the waves, and high-speed propellers leaving large white wakes in their wake. The naval flags fluttered in the wind—due to the Treaty of Versailles, Germany could neither retain nor build the former destroyers and large torpedo boats, but small torpedo boats were not subject to such restrictions. Therefore, in the 1920s and early 1930s, torpedo boats were the most numerous and fastest-developing type of ship in the German Navy.

After the confrontation exercise, several light cruisers and auxiliary ships underwent replenishment and repairs at sea. Finally, Admiral Reuter personally received the outstanding officers and sailors of the exercise and commended them accordingly. Among the participating formations, the 4th Torpedo Boat Flotilla commanded by Karl Donitz performed the best. Therefore, Reuter specifically invited Donitz and the main officers of his four torpedo boats to dine together in the officer's mess of the "Emden," while Zhang Hainuo dined at the same table as a spectator.

Donitz, now thirty-seven years old, was at the peak of his naval career. Compared to the old photos in the records, the real person in front of Zhang Hainuo appeared younger, but due to his long-term work on ships, his skin was slightly tanned, with numerous small spots that seemed to be pigmentation. At this time, the future "Wolf of the Atlantic" was dressed in a stiff naval uniform, still using a stand-up collar shirt and a black tie under the collar. He wore the medals he had won during World War I on his chest, and he was gentle in his manners, only speaking when spoken to first.

At such dinners, Röder spoke more often than he did at home, though most of the time the officers' mess was filled with the clinking of knives and forks against plates. Onboard food leaned heavily towards meats, supplemented with fresh vegetables and fish. While the dishes were varied, in Zhang Hainuo's opinion, the ship's chef could still take a few lessons from Mrs. Röder.

After dinner, Röder pulled Dönitz aside for a private conversation on the aft deck, which lasted about half an hour. Afterwards, he brought him over to introduce him to Zhang Hainuo.

Zhang Hainuo had initially intended to recruit this future "Wolf Pack King", but now he hesitated a bit—after all, he was just a Navy Lieutenant while Dönitz held the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Commanding a Lieutenant Commander as a Lieutenant didn't seem appropriate, especially considering that Dönitz was commanding four cutting-edge torpedo boats here, while Zhang Hainuo only had UB-901 and UB-902, two small submarines, under his command.

Nevertheless, Zhang Hainuo politely inquired if Dönitz was interested in going to South America to serve as a training instructor for the Chilean Navy's submarine fleet—a position that he could openly offer at the moment.

Dönitz politely declined Zhang Hainuo's invitation, explaining that he had just taken command of this torpedo boat squadron and needed to focus more on routine matters like fleet training.

Though disappointed, Zhang Hainuo thought it over. With Dönitz commanding a proper torpedo boat squadron and himself in a position as an adjunct instructor at the edge of the Navy's structure, considering the treatment, status, and prospects of both options, most people would probably choose the former.

Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Röder intervened, saying, "You both served as submarine commanders before, I remember you submitted a submarine squadron combat plan to the Navy in 1917, about coordinated attacks with multiple submarines, right?"

This statement hit the nail on the head. Zhang Hainuo briefly explained, "Yes, according to my idea at the time, several submarines would form a combat squadron. During routine operations, they would search in line abreast or in a fan formation. Once one submarine detected an enemy convoy, it would immediately alert the other submarines in the squadron via wireless communication and set up ambush positions using their superior surface speed advantage. When the attack commenced, one or two submarines would divert the attention of the escort ships while the others lurking nearby would attack the merchant ships!"

This immediately resonated with Dönitz, who responded, "Yes, that's a tactic I've been considering adopting! Towards the end of the war, we suffered greatly due to the enemy's tight escort system. If we had employed such tactics at the time, the outcome might have been very different!"

Zhang Hainuo regretfully added, "Unfortunately, my report wasn't approved by the Navy. We secretly conducted a similar experiment in the 4th Submarine Support Division and preliminary evidence proved the effectiveness of this tactic. However, on the way back, one submarine hit a mine and sank. Several captains involved in the experiment were taken away for investigation by the Military Police! In the end, I was transferred out of the submarine force. Although I managed to return to the submarine force after various twists and turns, the situation was irreversible!"

With a shared topic, Dönitz's enthusiasm grew, "Unfortunately, I have been fighting in the Mediterranean area before. If I had the chance to meet Lieutenant Commander von Finkenstein earlier, perhaps we could have worked together!"

"Maybe we would have been invited for coffee by the Military Police instead!" Zhang Hainuo said with a wry smile.

Dönitz nodded in agreement, feeling equally frustrated by the conservative nature of the old Navy.

The conversation then turned to submarines again. Zhang Hainuo mentioned, "By the way, Lieutenant Commander, you should know Captain von Hessen, the commander of U-21 in the Mediterranean area!"

"Of course, Captain von Hessen is a legendary figure in the German submarine force! I had the privilege of chatting with him a few times during my time in the Mediterranean, although we weren't very familiar with each other, I admire Captain von Hessen's exploits!"

"I actually served briefly on U-21 and forged a deep friendship with Captain von Hessen!" Zhang Hainuo lowered his voice. "For the past few years, I have been working together with Captain von Hessen on a significant project!"

At this point, Röder walked away, ostensibly to give the two former submarine captains some privacy and discreetly discuss sensitive matters.

Dönitz sensed that they were discussing something far from ordinary. He looked at Zhang Hainuo attentively.

Zhang Hainuo decided to tease him a bit, speaking very discreetly, "This project is somewhat related to the tactics I mentioned earlier. However, due to its importance, it has been kept confidential!"

Having been introduced by Röder, Dönitz already knew about Zhang Hainuo's role as the head of a "special project group." Given the current situation in Germany, this so-called special project group was most likely established to circumvent the Treaty of Versailles, much like the Shipbuilding Department and Tractor Factory.

Sensing Dönitz's complex expression, Zhang Hainuo maintained a cautious attitude. He told Dönitz that he could always come to the Naval Staff Headquarters to find him whenever he had time—of course, he was often "on official business," so it would be best to call ahead before coming.

"I can't promise you anything else!" Zhang Hainuo said. "But I believe this project will definitely pique your interest!"

Back in Berlin, Zhang Hainuo continued to select personnel for his "overseas project department." Undoubtedly, the best candidates for this project were officers and sailors who had served in the submarine force and naval aviation during World War I. Given the large size and outstanding record of the German submarine force during the Second Empire, there were still many submarine elites serving in the German Navy. Armed with a list provided by the Navy Archives Department, Zhang Hainuo personally visited some submarine officers who had served during World War I. Most of them were currently serving in the Navy Torpedo Boat Force or Light Cruiser Force, or were in logistical civilian departments. After discussions, Zhang Hainuo found that the younger officers serving in mid-to-low-level positions in their respective units were highly motivated to rejoin the submarine force, while those who had reached middle age and held respectable positions in their units, such as torpedo boat squadron commanders, destroyer or cruiser captains, were less willing to return to their former occupations.

The German Navy's aviation force during World War I was far inferior to the Army's aviation force in terms of scale, equipment, and strength, and most of the aircraft personnel were airship crew members. After the war, most of the few combat pilots left the service, with some lucky ones finding jobs as civilian pilots or test pilots in Nordic countries such as Denmark and Sweden, and others, like Fred, returning home to seek new opportunities. It was difficult to gather these old pilots together. After careful consideration, Zhang Hainuo thought it would be better to select some naval personnel who were interested in flying for training. His idea was fully supported by Röder, and the secret internal selection began in some torpedo boat squadrons and logistical units. By September, Zhang Hainuo had recruited 70 qualified naval personnel willing to undergo flight training. After selection, Zhang Hainuo chose 35 of them as the first batch of personnel for the "overseas project department" and sent them to Brazil along with the young submarine officers.