The relationship between the French navy and the army is relatively harmonious. Although there will be some disputes over resources, everyone is very restrained. After all, there are only so many resources in the country, and we must proceed from the overall situation and optimize the allocation of resources. Since the French navy annihilated the British navy, their losses have also been very large. At this time, all the resources of the navy are used to restore its strength. It is far from being incompatible with the navies of other countries in order to compete for limited resources.
After receiving Davu's request, French Navy Commander-in-Chief Boult immediately stated that the Navy would give the Army the greatest help. After consulting the General Staff, Burt transferred a team from the Strait Fleet consisting of 1 'Dreadnought' class warship, 1 'Pre-Dreadnought' class warship, 8 'Bonaparte' class warships, 14 'Iberia' A huge fleet of sub-class warships and 11 large transport ships rushed to London for support.
The fleet set out from Le Havre and arrived at the mouth of the Thames two days later. On July 29, the fleet sailed up the river and arrived in London at 10 am that day. Due to the depth of the water, the tonnage of the French Navy's "Dreadnought" and "Pre-Dreadnought" class warships is too large, so after discussion, it was decided to choose the Charlton area as the crossing area. For a while, the French army began to gather in the Charlton area. On the opposite bank of Charlton was Silverton, where the British army only deployed a division of troops, and further north was Canning Town, where the British army was also very few.
The arrival of the French navy frightened the British defenders in Silverton. They saw a large number of French warships moored in the middle of the river, with dark running gates pointing at them, and a large number of transport ships also docked on the south bank of the Thames. Major General Croton, the commander of the 3rd Infantry Division and the supreme commander of the British army stationed in Silverton, immediately knew that something was wrong. It seemed that the French army was preparing to forcibly land in his defense area.
"Come here, report to the headquarters immediately, saying that a large number of French naval forces are gathered in the Silverton area, and the French army is also gathering in the Charlton area. It is estimated that they want to forcibly land in the Silverton area, and request the headquarters to give Our department sent support troops." Croton called a signal soldier to order.
The messenger responded, and immediately galloped to the headquarters of the British army on horseback.
Hammurabi's new headquarters is at Buckingham Palace, which was originally the residence of the British royal family but became vacant after the royal family and the government cabinet withdrew from London. After Hammurabi's failure in south London, he fled back to the north and just used this place as his new headquarters.
As the residence of the royal family, Buckingham Palace was magnificently built, but Hammurabi had no intention of enjoying it at all. The reason is simple, because the French army is pressing every step of the way, which makes him worry all day long. On July 26, the forced landing of the French army was defeated, which made him happy for a long time. But then the French army did not move again, which made Hammurabi's heart hang again.
"Hurry up and invite Marshal Wellington here." After learning that the French naval fleet had arrived in the Silverton area, Hammurabi immediately became nervous, and quickly ordered Wellington to be called to discuss countermeasures.
Wellington, who was inspecting the defense line, did not dare to delay after receiving Hammurabi's order, and quickly returned to Buckingham to attack. "Your Excellency, Marshal, the French army is going to forcibly land in the Silverton area? Is the news reliable?" As soon as he entered Hammurabi's office, Wellington asked eagerly.
"That's right, the French navy has assembled more than 20 warships in Silverton, as well as more than 10 large transport ships. The troops are also gathering in the Charlton area. It seems that they are really planning to forcibly land." Hamm The rabbi said helplessly. He didn't expect that Davu and the others would ask for the help of the navy. In that case, their original plan to use the Thames to block the French army in south London would go bankrupt.
"Marshal Wellington, what do you think we should do?" Hammurabi asked, now he had no idea at all.
"What else can we do? Since the French army has decided to forcibly land in the Silverton area, we can only send troops to stop them. There is only one 3rd Infantry Division deployed there, which is obviously not enough." Wellington was also a little frustrated replied.
"Then is it possible for us to resist the attack of the French army?" Hammurabi asked.
After that, Wellington sent the first batch of reinforcements of 3 divisions to the Silverton area after obtaining Hammurabi's consent. If there is a change in the war, they will send more troops to stop the French army .
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the French army had gathered three divisions in the Charlton area, namely the 3rd Marine Division and the 4th and 5th Infantry Divisions of the French First Army. Other troops are still on their way. The 3rd Marine Division began to board the ship after arriving, and they will serve as the vanguard of the landing. Eleven large transport ships are enough to transport the strength of two regiments and all their equipment and combat materials. Davout and his party also rushed to the temporary headquarters in Charlton.
After Davout communicated with the naval commander, at 2:30 in the afternoon, the naval fleet began to bombard the British positions. Suddenly, under the fierce bombardment of the French naval guns, the position of the British army became a sea of flames, and a large number of fortifications were also destroyed. Even quite a few anti-gun holes were not spared. According to the construction standards, these anti-gun holes may be able to withstand the bombardment of the French army artillery, but in the face of more powerful naval guns, they can only be destroyed. dead. Numerous British soldiers who hid in the bomb defense holes were buried alive. Seeing the continuous plundering of the French navy, the British artillery couldn't sit still and began to fight back one after another. However, they could not cause a devastating blow to the French Navy. The 'Bonaparte' class warships and the 'Iberia' class warships may also be damaged, but for the 'Dreadnought' class and the 'Pre-Dreadnought' class , Such an attack is not much different from "tickling". A lot of shells hit the thick steel plate and were bounced off without leaving a mark.
The behavior of the British artillery brought them disaster. Their coordinates were quickly learned by the reconnaissance airship above, and they were quickly reported to the warships. As a result, the French navy's retaliation began. They temporarily gave up the attack on the British positions and shifted the target of the attack to the British artillery. The artillery battle started immediately, and the two sides fought back and forth. The artillery positions of the British army were constantly destroyed, and the cannons and artillery were destroyed. At the same time, some French naval warships had to withdraw from the battlefield after being injured. Of course, these warships are basically 'Iberian' class warships, and the number is very small.
The artillery battle between the two sides lasted less than half an hour, and it ended in a complete victory for the French navy. More than 80% of the artillery of the British army was destroyed, and the French navy only paid for one 'Bonaparte' class battleship and Three 'Iberia' class warships were damaged, and no one was killed, at most a few people were seriously injured.
After the British artillery was destroyed, the French naval guns began to fire, and at the same time, the French army also began to land. At 3 p.m., two regiments of the French 3rd Marine Division landed at Silverton. Although the British army also launched a tenacious counterattack, under the strong attack of the French navy and army, their counterattack was quickly shattered. The French army firmly grasped a beachhead and launched an attack on the British army in depth.
Under the bombardment of the French navy, the British army had already suffered heavy losses, and could not resist the French attack at all. As more and more French troops landed, the British army gradually began to be defeated. At 5 o'clock in the afternoon, 3 divisions of the French army had landed, and the Silverton area was also occupied by the French army. Subsequently, the French army launched an attack on Canning Town, and the British army was defeated and had to be defeated.
In order to be able to withstand the French attack, Hammurabi and Wellington frantically mobilized troops from other lines of defense and sent them to the areas of Westham and Tower Hamlets. But now the total number of British troops they can mobilize is less than 200,000. In the beginning, the British army could rely on its strength to contain the French army in the area around Canning Town, and even launch counterattacks from time to time. . However, as more and more French troops landed, this advantage was gradually offset.
On the afternoon of July 30th ~ www.mtlnovel.com ~ Through round-the-clock transportation, the main force of the French army has all landed in north London, and an army of more than 140,000 troops launched a large-scale counterattack against the British army. After two hours of fierce fighting, the British army was defeated.
"Your Excellency, Marshal, let's retreat. The situation is over now." Wellington suggested to Hammurabi very frustrated.
"Retreat? Where can we retreat? The army is finished, so are we." Hammurabi said with blank eyes.
"Your Excellency Marshal, we are not finished yet. We still have more than 100,000 troops in the north, and we can still fight the French army." Wellington persuaded.
Hammurabi shook his head. This defeat has completely knocked him down. He is no longer the high-spirited Minister of War of the British Empire. Now he is just a dying old man.
Helpless, Wellington could only order someone to forcibly take Hammurabi away from London, while he gave the order to retreat. Tens of thousands of British troops began a major rout, and they desperately fled to the north, hoping to escape as far as possible. However, under the vigorous pursuit of the French army, only the first part of the British army fled London, about 30,000 people, and the rest were either killed or captured. London, too, was completely in the hands of the French from this moment on.