Return to Glory: A Germania AAR

trekaddict said:

AMEN!







[nitpciker]although it says Blitzkrieg instead of blitzkreig[/nitpicker]

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Whoops, I before E after all o . I have fixed it, thanks

vladimirowich: Thanks. Glad you enjoyed the battle scene.

Commander-DK: I never heard that particular story. Pretty cold blooded if it did happen.

Hannibal Barca2 said:

Just like saying; "Go and sacrifice yourself for the fatherland or the fatherland will blast you head off"

Well... as long as it works

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Nicely put.

trekaddict said:

The russians did exactly that through the early days of the war in the east.

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Indeed, a sad waste of infantry. Not from the German perspective of course.

German machine gun crew watching the border after the conquest of Holland

The German attack on the Netherlands was swift and decisive. On the very first day of the offensive all Dutch military formations were defeated and the major city of Eindhoven was occupied by elements of the III. Panzerarmee before the sun had set. Two days later, and without a fight, Amsterdam fell into German hands. Although the fast moving German panzer units had been unable to prevent the flight of the Dutch government and royal family, they were able to secure the port area before two destroyer squadrons could escape or be scuttled. Even as the German naval ensign was raised above these ships, scattered resistance to the German forces in Holland was fading and all fighting ended by the fifth day of the campaign. The flight of the royal family and the totality of the German victory stunned and demoralized the Dutch people who offered no resistance as the new Reich Minister of Security, Reinhard Heydrich, set about transforming the country into a province of the Greater German Reich. To the Allies, the fall of the Netherlands was a severe psychological blow as it reinforced the perception of the invincible German war machine that Dr. Goebbels' propaganda was putting forward. The only spot of bright news for the Allies during this time came from an unlikely place.

As German forces were overwhelming the Dutch Army, the German Nordsee Flotte under the command of Grand Admiral Erich Raeder had sailed north with the intention of both demonstrating the power of Germany's new aircraft carrier the KMS Friedrich der Grobe, and of striking a blow at British pride by bombing the naval base at Scapa Flow. As the German fleet approached the base, it was confronted and engaged by the British Home Fleet which was not thought to be in the area and was also none too happy to find German warships in British waters. After a brief engagement in which several of his ships sustained heavy damage, Admiral Raeder realized that his fleet was outmatched and ordered a withdrawal. Although he was able to successfully disengage from the British fleet, a flight of land based naval bombers fell upon his forces the next day as they retreated back towards Germany. During the assault the KMS Deutschland received a mortal blow and sank beneath the waves with her crew of over one thousand men and officers. The loss of the proud vessel was a blow to a Kriegsmarine that already could not face the Royal Navy ship to ship, and the loss of a ship bearing the name Deutschland had a less than comforting effect on the German population.


The KMS Deutschland in better times.


After securing Holland, the Wehrmacht settled in for another period of rest. Days stretched into weeks as the Germans replaced lost men and equipment, and it began to seem as if they were settling in for the winter as October turned to November and snow began to fall on western Europe. The Allies breathed a sigh of relief at what would be, at least, a four to five month reprieve during which they could prepare to take the fight to the Germans with an offensive of their own.

This was not to be the case. On the morning of November 21, one month after German forces had begun their advance in Holland, the Belgian populace woke to the sound of bombs falling from the sky. Soon afterward, panicked reports of German troops swarming over the border began to reach Brussels and the stunned Belgian government. Hitler had won his argument with his generals that a winter campaign against France could be successful and Fall Gelb was underway.


German heavy artillery piece just before opening fire on Belgian positions.
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Just was to post a little something today as I'm not too sure when I'll be getting a chance again. I knew that I would be short on words so I made sure to include plenty of pictures.

trekaddict: Yeah, my surface fleet is actually pretty strong. Though not as strong as the Royal Navy apparently.

KLorberau: Sweden and Switzerland? Are you suggesting that the German people are land hungry warmongers? I am shocked sir, shocked.

Kurt Steiner: :rofl: Will Otto ever live that night down?

Jushu: Thanks and will do.