"General, according to the information we have received, British Expeditionary Force's troops in Le Havre are less than 300,000. Our two armies combined have 50% more troops than them. At the same time, our morale and weapons and equipment are far ahead of them. If we launch an attack, they will definitely not be our opponents." Lieutenant General Ludendorff is full of confidence in this battle.
British Expeditionary Force Among the two armies in Le Havre, 5th Army Corps, which has the largest number of troops, is just a new group army that has just been formed. How powerful can such a new force that has never experienced the baptism of war be expected to be? That's obviously unlikely. Facing the elite German Army, how could British Expeditionary Force be able to withstand it.
General Kluck nodded. "The only thing we need to pay attention to is probably the attack from the sea. The navy of the Britain people can send some warships to provide them with fire support. Although the Royal Navy was heavily damaged by our High Seas Fleet However, they still have some combat effectiveness. Among other things, the huge number of Pre-dreadnought, Armored Cruiser, and heavy cruiser main guns are extremely powerful and cannot be resisted by our infantry."
Lieutenant General Ludendorff's face couldn't help but become serious. British Navy's Capital Ships team was indeed severely damaged by High Seas Fleet. But this does not mean that British Royal Navy is no threat. As General Kluck said, Naval Gun those warships of British Navy are undoubtedly devastating to ground targets.
Those Pre-dreadnoughts of British Navy are generally equipped with 305mm Main Gun and 280mm secondary guns. Armored Cruiser also has 280mm main guns, and heavy cruisers also have 203mm Main Gun. And the artillery of the waiting army is already very powerful. But the largest caliber cannon they equipped was only a 150 mm caliber. Compared with the main guns on Britain Naval Warship, it is undoubtedly a big difference. As long as the Britain people deploy a few warships in Le Havre, it will be enough to cause great losses to German military. Even if it can't prevent the fall of Le Havre, it can at least make German military pay an unbearable price.
"God! It seems that we need help from the navy. Without the navy to help us clean up the sea surface of Le Havre, we have to be prepared to suffer heavy losses here." Lieutenant General Ludendorff said.
"Yes, I have already made a request for support to the Naval Ministry. It is expected that the navy's reinforcements will arrive soon. At that time, they can also cooperate with us to bombard Le Havre and reinforce our operations. In this case, we can win at the minimum cost!" General Kluck said.
"Yes, General." Lieutenant General Ludendorff nodded. In this case, it is undoubtedly the safest.
"However, in order to speed up the progress, our attack should start tomorrow! If a Britain warship is discovered, stop the attack immediately and wait for reinforcements from the navy." General Kluck continued.
"Yes, General, I have no objection at all!" Lieutenant General Ludendorff nodded repeatedly.
"Then let's do it this way! I hope that after we win Le Havre, French will have surrendered. In this case, we will have won more than half of this battle." General Kluck had a smile on his face.
"After France is solved, the remaining Britain will be unable to survive alone. Empire will definitely win this battle!" Lieutenant General Ludendorff is also full of confidence in this battle.
Of course, both of them automatically ignored Kingdom of Italy.
Early in the morning on May 7, German 1st Army Corps and 8th Army Corps were ready to launch an attack on Le Havre. Each Infantry Division artillery unit has already pushed the cannons into the artillery positions. A few kilometers away from Le Havre, a ferocious muzzle was raised.
Ammunition trucks are transporting artillery shells to artillery positions. Reconnaissance Aircraft of Air Corps discovered that British Navy's warship was not found on the nearby sea. Therefore, the artillery can fire without restraint without worrying about being suppressed by British Navy's Naval Gun.
At 8 o'clock in the morning, everything was ready. Artilleryman Commander gave the order to fire. One after another, the German military cannons began to roar.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Orange-red flames shone at the muzzle, and the shells flew towards Le Havre at high speed under the action of kinetic energy.
As for the infantry, they hid in the trenches and watched the artillery performance. According to the information they received, the fire preparations this time would last for a whole day. In view of the Le Havre battle, it may be the most intense battle on the European continent battlefield. Therefore, German military will not compromise on firepower preparation. The Commanders of German military also hope to use powerful shelling to eliminate the British Expeditionary Force entrenched in Le Havre as much as possible, undermine their fighting will, and minimize the casualties of the troops during the attack.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Artillery shells fell like raindrops, and dense explosions sounded in Le Havre. Britain Female Expeditionary Force The defensive position outside Le Havre was completely shrouded in smoke and fire. Huge craters appeared one after another on the British Expeditionary Force position. The fortifications they had built so painstakingly were destroyed at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Although, British Expeditionary Force evacuated the frontline position when German military's shelling just started. However, seeing such a fierce bombardment by German military still frightened the officers and soldiers of British Expeditionary Force.
"Damn it, the overwhelming bombardment of the Germany people has started again. They say that German military has the best combat power in the world. I think it is just piled up with artillery shells." A British Expeditionary Force officer looked angry.
"Don't worry about whether the Germany people are number one in the world with artillery shells. At least, there is nothing we can do against them!" said another Expeditionary Force officer.
Indeed, facing such a fierce bombardment from German military, British Expeditionary Force was completely at a disadvantage. They could only watch as their fortifications were destroyed during the bombardment of German military. British Expeditionary Force's own artillery, however, remained silent. British Expeditionary Force 1st Army Corps There aren't many cannons left. When evacuating Rouen, most of the heavy weapons were lost. Although British Expeditionary Force 5th Army Corps has many cannons, it is obviously not comparable to the German Army. In order to avoid losing these cannons in the tragic Artillery Battle, Commander of British Expeditionary Force ordered all the cannons to be hidden so that they could be effective at the most critical time.