(Sorry, there is only one chapter today. Xiaoyu is going to start writing a thesis for the school year. The topic Xiaoyu chose is the informatization utilization rate of agricultural websites, so Xiaoyu may be busy for a while, and the update will also be affected. I hope everyone can understand)
The news of the landing of the French army at Plymouth was uploaded to London on the morning of June 14. At that time, the Earl of Liverpool, the prime minister of the British government, was having breakfast. Cabinet members discuss countermeasures. He never imagined that the French army would land at Plymouth instead of Portsmouth and Dover as previously predicted. "Damn military equipment, it cost so much of the country's financial budget, and it didn't even get any correct information." Liverpu cursed at the officials and agents of the Military Intelligence Bureau, if it wasn't for their misleading information However, the French may not have landed in England so easily.
In less than half an hour, all the cabinet members gathered in the meeting room of the prime minister's residence in Liverpool. From the tired faces on their faces, it can be seen that these people were almost all called out from the bed. At the same time, there was deep concern on their faces, and Liverpool knew they knew what had happened.
"I believe everyone already knows what happened. Yesterday morning, the French army shamelessly attacked Plymouth and successfully landed there. According to the information obtained, the French invested more than 80,000 troops there. The 7th Infantry Division and the 2nd Cavalry Independent Brigade stationed in Plymouth suffered heavy losses under the blow of the superior force of the corps, and less than 2,000 people succeeded in breaking through." Liverpool introduced to everyone with a dark face.
Everyone sitting here was silent, and their hearts were beating drums, knowing that the matter was more serious. They all only knew the news that the French army landed in Plymouth, but they didn't know that 80,000 French troops landed. What kind of concept is that? The combat power of the 80,000 French army needs at least 150,000 British troops to match, and now the British army is very empty. How can there be so many troops to resist the French army's attack. Another point is that the 7th Infantry Division and the 2nd Independent Cavalry Brigade are both regular British troops, and their combat effectiveness is much stronger than the troops recruited later. I did not expect them to suffer such heavy losses. More than 20,000 people only fled Out of less than 2,000 people, more than 90% of them were killed or captured, which shows the strength of the French army.
"Let's talk about what we should do now? The French attack is in front of us. Could it be that we sit and wait to die?" Looking at the silent crowd, Liverpool finally couldn't suppress their anger and roared angrily.
At this time, the Minister of War, Hammurabi, saw that everyone looked like him, so he could only bite the bullet and said: "Your Excellency, no matter who's negligence caused the French army to land in Plymouth now, since things have already happened, let's say those things are no longer there. No, we should find a way to solve this matter. I think we should immediately send reinforcements to intercept the French army, otherwise they are likely to attack Portsmouth with the French army stationed on the Isle of Wight. If Portsmouth is captured by the French If the army conquers it, then our defense line will collapse, and London will be very dangerous in that case."
After his analysis, Liverpool also knew the seriousness of the matter, but he was also very embarrassed now because he no longer had enough troops to mobilize. "Your Excellency Hammurabi, what troops do you think we should send to intercept the French army? Could it be those newly formed infantry divisions?"
"Well, the 21st and 22nd Infantry Divisions that have withdrawn from Scotland have arrived in Croydon. We can order them to change direction and go to the southwest to resist the French attack." Hammurabi said after thinking for a while.
"Send those two divisions to the southwest front, what about Dover? Also, can two divisions withstand the attack of 80,000 French troops?" Liverpool said with a frown.
"At present, the main force of the French army has landed in Plymouth, and the threat facing Dover will be greatly reduced. Not only can we not increase troops to Dover, we can even temporarily transfer troops there to support other places. Moreover, the 1st Infantry Division is currently It is still stationed in Dover, which should be relatively safe. Of course, it is obviously impossible for the troops of the two divisions to stop the French army from attacking. We may temporarily transfer the troops from Portsmouth to support, or Send those newly formed infantry divisions to the front," explained Hammurabi.
"No, it's okay to send the newly formed infantry division, but the Portsmouth army can't move. What if the French army on the Isle of Wight takes the opportunity to land in Portsmouth?" Liverpool immediately objected.
"Then send the newly formed infantry division." Hammurabi finally had to compromise.
After discussion, Liverpool decided to send the 26th, 27th, 28th, 29th, and 30th Infantry Divisions to support while the 21st and 22nd Infantry Divisions went to the Southwest Front (the 23rd to 37th Infantry Divisions were all newly formed troops. ).
On June 17, the 3rd Infantry Division of the 89th Army attacked Bridport. With the support of naval artillery fire, the British 26th and 30th Infantry Divisions defending here suffered heavy losses and had to retreat.
On June 18, the 2nd Infantry Division of the 89th Corps and the troops directly under the Corps coordinated to attack Newell. The British 28th Infantry Division defending here and the remnants of the 27th and 29th Infantry Divisions that were withdrawn from Ekritt were fiercely attacked by the French army. Under the attack of the French Army, they suffered heavy losses and evacuated Newell after discarding more than 5,000 corpses. The French army followed closely. Fortunately, the 21st and 22nd Infantry Divisions arrived in time to stabilize the front.
On June 19, the 3rd Infantry Division of the 89th Army captured Wells. On June 20, the 1st and 3rd Infantry Divisions of the 89th Army approached the city of Poole, directly threatening Bournemouth and indirectly threatening the flank of Portsmouth.
Such a rapid attack by the French army greatly shocked the British government. Only one week after the start of the war, the casualties of the British army reached 50,000, while the casualties of the French army were only a little over 10,000. A large part of them were the casualties of the 2nd Marine Division when it landed in Plymouth.
On the afternoon of June 20th, the British Secretary of War Hammurabi broke into the office of Liverpool in a hurry. "Your Excellency, the front line is almost overwhelmed, and they need support. In just five days, the seven infantry divisions we sent to support lost one-third of the army. If there were no reinforcements, they would It is very difficult to withstand the attack of the French army. Especially the 26th and 30th Infantry Divisions defending Poole and Bournemouth, they cannot withstand the attack of the two elite French infantry divisions supported by naval artillery. It is possible to lose Poole and Bournemouth, and at that time, Portsmouth will be flanked by the French army, and our situation will be even more dangerous." Hammurabi complained. He, the Minister of War, was very aggrieved. The mobilization of troops for more than one division had to be approved by Liverpool, which caused him a lot of constraints.
"Your Excellency Hammurabi, I know, but you have to give me time. I need time to mobilize troops. At present, all troops are gathering in the south. We need time to prepare weapons, ammunition and various combat supplies." Liverpool was very unhappy. Said patiently. He is also very busy now, the front line and the failure have caused the people to continue to protest and march, and the king is also constantly questioning, all of which have made him burnt out.
"But Prime Minister, we are running out of time. If we don't send reinforcements to Poole, it will be very difficult for us to resist the advance of the French army." Hammurabi insisted.
"But the strength of a division in my hand is gone. It will take at least two days before I can send reinforcements to the front line." Liverpool also complained.
"Your Excellency, the only way we can do that is to send the troops from Portsmouth to Poole. It only takes one day for the reinforcements to reach Poole. As long as we can stabilize the front line, we have a chance of victory." Hammurabi suggested.
"What about Portsmouth's defense? Forget about the 60,000 French troops watching us on the Isle of Wight." Liverpool asked.
"Your Excellency, we have a full eight infantry divisions in Liverpool. UU Reading www.uukanshu.com We can temporarily transfer two to three to Poole, and then send four to five newly formed infantry divisions to Portsmouth. In two days, even if the French attack Portsmouth in this gap, I believe that the five infantry divisions defending there will be able to withstand the French attack." Hammurabi persuaded.
Liverpool thought about it, and finally agreed to Hammurabi's proposal. Now he has no other choice. Under his orders, the 12th, 17th and 20th Infantry Divisions left Portsmouth for Poole to support.
This military transfer of the British army was quickly discovered by the French side.
Eke happily said to Xiao Jie: "Your Majesty, our chance has come. This evening, three infantry divisions of the British Army stationed in Portsmouth were transferred away. It is time for us to launch an attack on Portsmouth."
"Very well, order the troops stationed on the Isle of Wight to prepare for battle immediately, and must launch a landing operation tomorrow morning." Xiao Jie also said excitedly. He had been delighted these days, first when the 89th Corps landed at Plymouth, sweeping across south-west England and forcing the British to withdraw Portsmouth's defenders. And this is creating conditions for the four marine divisions stationed on the Isle of Wight who have been waiting for an opportunity. As long as they can successfully capture Portsmouth, it is believed that the southern defense line of the British army will soon be disintegrated.