"It seems that the 'Tiger Shark' class battleship is still not suitable for a decisive battle with battleships!" On the flagship of the Channel Fleet, Hercules said with lingering fear. The 'Tiger Shark' level armor is because he is weak. It is no problem to deal with warships of the "South Carolina" class and below in the United States. But for the "North Carolina" class, which is already very close to the "Giant Whale" class, it is very insufficient.
In this battle, the Strait Fleet paid a full price. Three 'Tiger Shark' class battleships were sunk, and two 'Giant Whale' class battleships were severely damaged. It would take at least a year and a half to return to the berth. The other cruisers, the destroyers, also lost more than forty. It can be said that in this battle, 40% of the combat power of the entire fleet was lost.
Among them, the destroyer formation was very heroic. They braved the enemy's artillery fire and carried out lightning strikes, successfully sinking many of the enemy's main warships. Otherwise, the loss of the Strait Fleet may be even greater. [bsp; As for the U.S. and Canadian navies, the losses seem to be even greater. Of the sixteen 'North Carolina'-class warships, a total of ten were lost. Among them, the Canadian 3rd Fleet and four 'William'-class warships were all sunk. It can be said that this time, the biggest calligrapher. A lot of other warships were also lost. When they came, there were more than 160 warships in the four fleets. When they returned, half of them were gone, and many of them were injured.
Godfrey's retreat order was issued quite timely. Almost when the US-Canadian coalition forces had just withdrawn from the English Channel, the main force of the Mediterranean Fleet also rushed to a place less than 20 kilometers away from the Channel. If Godfrey hesitated for a moment, he might be intercepted by the Mediterranean Fleet. By that time, I am afraid that the remaining warships will have to stay here forever.
The results of the naval battle spread across Europe and America almost immediately in the form of telegrams.
Boult and Sucrete, who personally sat in Le Havre, breathed a sigh of relief after receiving the telegram. Although the Straits Fleet suffered heavy losses, fortunately, the losses of the US-Canadian coalition forces were not small, which is reasonable in comparison.
After Xiao Jie received the telegram at the Tuileries Palace, he only said one sentence: "The performance of the Channel Fleet is still passing!" Yes, passing, just passing. They fought at home. It is really not worthy of praise to fight like this with the opponent. It can only be considered just passing.
In Portsmouth, Davis paled after receiving Godfrey's telegram. Immediately ordered to cancel the plan to land on Wight Island, so the troops withdrew from the coast as quickly as possible.
Siméng and Forfar came after hearing the news.
"General Davis, what happened? Why did you retreat?" Forfar asked suspiciously.
"General? Could it be the fleet?" Ximeng's face turned pale. You know, one of the joint fleets formed this time is a fleet sent by Canada. Canada does not need the United States. It only has 6 fleets. If it loses one, it will be a traumatic injury.
"The naval battle is over. General Godfrey has led the fleet to retreat." Davis tried to calm himself down. In general, the U.S. and Canadian Navy not only suffered heavy losses this time, but also failed to achieve the expected combat results. He has to pay a lot of responsibility.
"What about the loss?"
"What about the casualties of the French fleet?"
Siméng and Forfar asked at the same time. The two concerns are different. Siméng is concerned about the casualties of his own fleet. Forfar was concerned about whether the French fleet suffered heavy losses. If the loss of the French fleet is not large, then Britain will be miserable.
Glancing at the two of them sympathetically, Davis said: "Our fleet has lost a lot, about 55% of its warships. The Canadian 3rd Fleet suffered heavy losses. Four 'William'-class warships, All battles sink!"
Siméng was startled, as expected, the Canadian fleet must have been used as cannon fodder by the American fleet again.
"What? Your Excellency Davis, you are simply pushing us into the pit of fire!" Forfar roared, and then rushed out quickly. Report to Prime Minister and King. Since the US and Canadian fleets failed to defeat the French fleet, it is conceivable that France's revenge will come soon. I am afraid that the entire coastal areas of Britain will be in ruins.
Forfur was so angry that he wished he could draw his gun and kill Davis on the spot. It was this man who made England have to bear the wrath of France.
After receiving Forfar's report, the British King George IV and Prime Minister Williams were shocked and immediately discussed how to deal with it in Buckingham Palace. Both sides agreed to immediately send Foreign Minister Palmerston to Paris to explain to the French government and emperor and prevent Britain from becoming France's punching bag. At the same time, immediately order the people in the coastal areas to move immediately.
However, time is running out. After learning that the Straits Fleet still had a lot of combat power, Xiao Jie immediately ordered the intact warships in the Straits Fleet to go to the Isle of Wight, first to alleviate the crisis on the Isle of Wight, and then to start revenge against Britain. The content of the retaliation is simple, destroy everything that can be destroyed on the British coast, including people and buildings.
In the evening of the same day, the remaining combat power of the Straits Fleet, led by three 'Giant Whale'-class warships and two 'Tiger Shark'-class warships, arrived at White Island. They first supplemented the strategic materials on the Isle of Wight, and then rested for a night. After all, the soldiers were already very exhausted during the intense naval battles during the day.
The next morning, Hercules set out with his fleet to take revenge on Britain. Portsmouth, closest to the Isle of Wight, was the first to be hit.
Davis saw the opportunity quickly, and withdrew overnight last night. The Canadian army also withdrew, and the British army was a little slower because they wanted to mobilize ordinary people to evacuate. They never expected that France's revenge would come so fast and so violently. The first was the attack on the coastal defenses of Portsmouth. Under the bombardment of the powerful 305mm naval guns of the "Giant Whale" and "Tiger Shark" classes, Portsmouth's weak coastal defense position was completely destroyed in less than half an hour.
Next, the French fleet launched a heavy bombardment of Portsmouth City. By the time the bombardment of the French fleet began, Forfar had ordered the entire army to retreat. However, because a large number of troops were too scattered, it was too late to convey the order. Therefore, when Portsmouth was bombed into ruins, Forfell's 10 divisions lost more than 30,000 troops in addition to the troops lost during the landing on the Isle of Wight. As for civilian casualties, it was even greater. According to the statistics of the British government after the war, more than 100,000 people were killed in this shelling.
Portsmouth was just the beginning. After that, cities in southern England such as Havant, Southampton, Bournemouth, Poole, Torquay, and Plymouth all fell into ruins. Fortunately, these cities have been warned for a long time. Although ordinary people were reluctant to leave their homes, they chose to leave in the end.
While the French fleet retaliated, the French army also began to assemble. The 4th Army and the 7th Army of the French Army were all assembled in the Calais area. Moreover, a large number of merchant ships have also begun to gather in this area. In addition, the 12th Corps of the French Army also left the station and moved to the Calais area. At the same time, other countries in the European continent did not dare to disobey after receiving the order from France, and also sent elite troops to gather in northern France. Among them, Bo Lan was the most active, sending a full 100,000 troops.
At this time, the British Foreign Minister Palmerston also rushed to Paris. But Xiao Jie didn't see him at all. The French Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Compigny, received him, but it was obviously perfunctory. At the same time, the frequent mobilization of the French army also spread to Palmerston's ears. He knew that France was determined to solve Britain by force.
After receiving Palmerston's warning, the British also made deployments. Near London, they assembled a force of forty divisions. Of these, ten divisions were deployed to the Dover area. Dover is the closest area to France~www.mtlnovel.com~ If France wants to land in the UK, this is the first choice. Another ten divisions were deployed from Maidstone behind Dover, forming a second line of defense out of range of the French fleet's guns.
In late June, the French Channel Fleet returned to Le Havre for a short three-day rest. After that, he left the port here and sailed into the strait, aiming at the Strait of Dover, which is just north.
On June 28, the French Channel Fleet bombarded the British positions at Dover. The British artillery fired back, but were then pinned down by the French fleet. The artillery of the army has always been unable to compete with the naval guns of the navy. A large number of destroyers in the French fleet even drove very close to the shore, shelling various fortifications of the British army.
Under the powerful artillery fire of the French fleet, the British army suffered heavy losses.
On June 29, the 4th Corps of the French Army, two divisions and one marine division of the Navy, began boarding. Three divisions with more than 40,000 troops will serve as the first wave of counter-offensive troops and land in Britain. Then, with the help of the fleet, establish a solid beachhead. Waiting for the arrival of this follow-up force.
For this landing operation, France has assembled thousands of merchant ships. At 9 o'clock in the morning, the French landing force appeared off the coast of Dover. The login will start immediately.