stonecrandall Chapter 803
Chapter 803
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: 0.125s Scan: 0.150sModel finally agreed to Eisenhower’s request. The Southern Army was eager to fight. If he didn’t give the other party this opportunity, it would be a bit too contemptuous. That might damage the relationship between the German Army and the Southern Army!
And more importantly, the other party’s proposal was very good and tactically feasible.
Although the Southern Army’s combat capability was not good, their fighting will was still unquestionable. If the 500,000 Southern Army was placed behind the German Army, at least before they were defeated, the German Army would not have to worry about the safety behind them. In this way, the German Army could go all out on the front battlefield without any worries to win this battle!
……
On the 18th, the First Army of the US Army arrived in the north of the town of St. Marys, and General Marshall was among them.
Although they were harassed by the German reconnaissance troops along the way, because the German troops were not numerous, they did not pose much of a threat to them, and the US troops still arrived at the front line smoothly!
“General, look, the German position is opposite. The Germans have built a lot of fortifications here, and they are in a defensive posture. In the south, a large number of German and Southern Army troops are mobilizing, and it seems that they are preparing to launch a general attack on our troops in the encirclement. From their actions, we can see that they are planning to block our reinforcements and then concentrate their forces to annihilate the friendly forces in the encirclement!”
Major General Frank, the American general on the front line, reported the latest situation to Marshall. Marshall nodded slightly after reading it, but one thing surprised him.
“Why didn’t the Germans destroy the railway bridge outside the town of St. Marys?”
The reason why the location of the town of St. Marys is important is that there is the only railway bridge nearby. This railway bridge is an important bridge to ensure the transportation connection between Florida and the northern states!
If the Germans destroy this place, then the US military will have to find another way to cross the river.
In this era, railway transportation is the main means of transportation for the logistics of military supplies and personnel of various countries, so all countries attach great importance to railways.
If the Germans destroy the railway bridge here, then the US military will have great trouble attacking southward. Although they can use trucks to transfer supplies, the lack of railway transportation will greatly reduce the speed and quantity of their material transfer, which will have a great impact on the combat of their front-line troops.
Since the railway is so important, why didn’t the Germans destroy this bridge to cause trouble for the US military?
“I think, this is probably because they want to limit the battlefield here, right?”
Major General Frank also has his own understanding of this. He thinks that the German army is short of manpower. If the US army is allowed to attack from all sides, the German army will inevitably disperse its forces again. Their manpower is much smaller than that of the US army. The more dispersed they are, the weaker their strength will be, which will be very disadvantageous to them.
Therefore, by retaining this railway bridge and attracting the attack here, they can fight a defensive battle with the US army in a fixed position!
“Well, this speculation makes sense. It is said that Model deliberately chose this battlefield to compete with us!”
Marshall said with a smile, picked up the telescope, and carefully looked at the German positions opposite.
After watching it, Marshall was amazed:”It is worthy of being the strongest army in the world. The German positions are extremely solid and perfect. The machine gun positions, trenches, communication trenches and artillery positions are arranged very reasonably. It has only been a few days since we went south to now. It has been a short time to build such a perfect line of defense in such a short time. Model seems to be really capable!”
A person’s reputation is like the shadow of a tree. Model’s reputation for defense has long spread throughout the world. Seeing it today, it is indeed well-deserved!
“Everyone says that Model is the most defensive general in the Third Reich, but I think he will fall flat on his face this time under your command, General!”
Major General Frank, on the other hand, flattered Marshall. He felt that with the current strength and equipment of the US military, even if it was bombarded with artillery fire, it would be enough to turn the German positions into ruins.
What was the use of the German fortifications no matter how well they were built?
In the face of the US artillery fire, everything would be reduced to dust!
“Haha, you are optimistic!”
Marshall received the flattery from his subordinates, laughed, and then ordered:”Since Model is so confident that he will keep this railway bridge, let him pay the price for it. Pass the order and let the artillery bombard the German positions. The First Army is preparing to attack. Today I want to see whether the German defense line is solid or our offensive is sharp!”
Boom boom boom- dense artillery shells fell on the German positions like raindrops, and explosions sounded one after another. The entire German frontline position was like the end of the world, completely shrouded in smoke, and you couldn’t see your hand in front of you!
In the rear, about five kilometers away from the frontline, in the German headquarters, Model was also observing the results of the US artillery bombardment like Marshall on the opposite side.
“The firepower of the US military seems very fierce. Listening to the sound of the artillery shells exploding, they have deployed at least three different calibers of artillery, namely 75mm howitzers, 105mm howitzers and 155mm howitzers!”
A staff officer said to Model with a serious face:”The power of the 155mm howitzer seems to be greater than our 150mm howitzer. The anti-artillery holes in our front-line positions may not be able to withstand such artillery attacks. If the troops are on standby in the trenches, such artillery attacks may cause considerable casualties!”
The caliber of large-caliber howitzers of various countries’ armies is generally around 150 mm, such as the German Army’s 150 mm, the U.S. Army’s 155 mm, and the German Army’s 152 mm.
In terms of caliber, the German Army’s artillery is slightly smaller, and the U.S. Army’s is the largest.
Although the difference of a few millimeters in caliber is not very large, there is still a certain gap in power.
The anti-artillery holes of the German front-line positions were built according to the standards of resisting 105mm howitzers, so facing the bombardment of such large-caliber heavy artillery of the U.S. Army, they naturally could not withstand it!
But it was not a big problem. At least Model and most German generals still looked calm and did not seem to be worried at all!
“Although their heavy artillery is powerful, most of our soldiers have already entered the second-line positions and are protected by anti-artillery slopes, so their artillery fire cannot threaten us!”
“A 155mm cannon weighs 48 kilograms, and a train car can’t pull many rounds. Let them fire if they want, and we’ll just treat it as a fireworks show!”