Chapter 16: Weeks 2 & 3 - Surrender of Poland and a Narrow Escape
The following two weeks saw several more positive developments for the Reich. First, the Heer had made great progress into Poland by July 1, having taken Krakow, assaulting the city of Lodz, and reaching the outskirts of Warsaw. In addition to the developments in the east, Armee 6 managed to exploit French weakness and took control of the Maginot Line's southern-most region.
The situation in Poland on July 1, 1940 (Author's note: those encirclements were done by the AI. As a reminder, the AI is controlling the Heer at the AG-level. Only the Kriegsmarine, interceptors, and paratroopers are under my control.)
Armee 6 manages to cross the Rhine and occupies part of the Maginot Line.
On July 2, Anthony Eden was removed from his position as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and was replaced by Winston Churchill. The Reich's leaders knew that at this moment, the UK was going to fight until the end. To Hitler, this meant that his plan to first eliminate the UK was the correct action to take.
Winston Churchill is appointed PM of the UK
On July 4, Hitler gave a speech discussing the Reich's great naval victory near Jutland. The German people were ecstatic, and were convinced there was no way they could lose the war.
Raeder's early success made great propaganda material
On July 6, 2 divisions of Goering's Fallschirmjaeger conducted an air assault on Warsaw. The attack prompted the Heer to also assault the city, which fell four days later.
The Fallschirmjaeger assault Warsaw
On July 11, Poland surrenders after 18 days of warfare and was annexed by the German Reich. On July 12, as per the terms of the M-R Pact, Eastern Poland was ceded to the Soviet Union. The Fourth Partition of Poland was an extremely important experience for the Reich. First, it affirmed that the Blitzkrieg concept was the future of warfare. Second, due to the USSR's extremely poor performance, the Reich gained much confidence in its ability to succeed in the planned Operation Barbarossa against the Soviet Union. This deduction was based on the fact that the USSR lose more territory than it took during the fight against Poland, while the Reich tore through the Polish lines like a knife through butter.
Poland surrenders to, and is annexed by, the German Reich
The Soviets demand Eastern Poland, which is ceded in order to allow the Reich to focus on the West
The redrawn borders of Eastern Europe
During this time period, the Kriegsmarine's commerce raiders sunk a total of 30 Allied merchant ships. The Scharnhorst scored the most kills, with a total of 10 merchant ships sunk near the Azores. Other raiders, notably the Gneisenau near Newfoundland, Admiral Hipper near the Canary Islands, and Paul Behncke near Gambia, also sunk large numbers of Allied merchant ships.
The KMS Admiral Hipper hunts convoys near the Canary Islands
The KMS Paul Behncke hunts convoys near Gambia
The KMS Gneisenau hunts convoys near Newfoundland
However, the Scharnhorst's success brought it close to near disaster. UK Admiral Cunningham was sent to the Azores with the carriers HMS Glorious and HMS Eagle, the battleships HMS Barham and HMS Queen Elizabeth, and 5 flotillas of destroyers to hunt the Scharnhorst and sink it. Cunningham first encountered the Scharnhorst, under the command of Admiral Doenitz, in the Western Azores. Doenitz successfully evaded Cunningham by fleeing north, but took several hits from the UK's CAGs. The HMS Barham took some shrapnel damage from the Scharnhorst before the skirmish was over.
The KMS Scharnhorst is hunted down, but manages to escape
Despite Doenitz's attempt to flee, the Scharnhorst was again spotted by Cunningham in the Northern Azores. Doenitz knew he was outmatched, and fled east. However, before he could escape, the Scharnhorst took heavy damage from Cunningham's CAGs and the rear magazine exploded. Luckily, that wasn't enough to sink the ship, and the Scharnhorst managed to flee east. From there, it evaded several French and British Cruisers until it docked safely in Wilhelmshaven for repairs.
The Scharnhorst barely manages to escape again
The Scharnhorst manages to evade Admiral Cunningham's fleet and limps back to Wilhelmshaven. (Author's note: Oh &%^$, I thought I was going to lose. The Scharnhorst is lucky, and managed to limp back to Wilhelmshaven *through* the English Channel. I'm pretty sure if I didn't have Doenitze, a skill 5 leader, in charge, I would've lost the ship.)
The engagement was a wake-up call to Raeder and Hitler. The near-loss of a major vessel after 2 battles raised an alarm. Hitler decided that the Gneisenau, operating near Canada, was to link up with the KMS Prinz Eugen, operating in the Carribean. The pair would then move back north and raid any convoys leaving Boston. The prevailing opinion at the time was, since the Scharnhorst lacked an effective screen, it was easily ambushed. The Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen was to be a test for paired battlecruiser/heavy cruiser convoy raiding operations. If the test were to be a success, then the 3 KW50 class battlecruisers currently in production were to be paired with the remaining Admiral Hipper heavy cruisers. The Scharnhorst was, after repairs, to be paired with the KMS Admiral Hipper near the Canary Islands.
The following two weeks saw several more positive developments for the Reich. First, the Heer had made great progress into Poland by July 1, having taken Krakow, assaulting the city of Lodz, and reaching the outskirts of Warsaw. In addition to the developments in the east, Armee 6 managed to exploit French weakness and took control of the Maginot Line's southern-most region.
The situation in Poland on July 1, 1940 (Author's note: those encirclements were done by the AI. As a reminder, the AI is controlling the Heer at the AG-level. Only the Kriegsmarine, interceptors, and paratroopers are under my control.)
Armee 6 manages to cross the Rhine and occupies part of the Maginot Line.
On July 2, Anthony Eden was removed from his position as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and was replaced by Winston Churchill. The Reich's leaders knew that at this moment, the UK was going to fight until the end. To Hitler, this meant that his plan to first eliminate the UK was the correct action to take.
Winston Churchill is appointed PM of the UK
On July 4, Hitler gave a speech discussing the Reich's great naval victory near Jutland. The German people were ecstatic, and were convinced there was no way they could lose the war.
Raeder's early success made great propaganda material
On July 6, 2 divisions of Goering's Fallschirmjaeger conducted an air assault on Warsaw. The attack prompted the Heer to also assault the city, which fell four days later.
The Fallschirmjaeger assault Warsaw
On July 11, Poland surrenders after 18 days of warfare and was annexed by the German Reich. On July 12, as per the terms of the M-R Pact, Eastern Poland was ceded to the Soviet Union. The Fourth Partition of Poland was an extremely important experience for the Reich. First, it affirmed that the Blitzkrieg concept was the future of warfare. Second, due to the USSR's extremely poor performance, the Reich gained much confidence in its ability to succeed in the planned Operation Barbarossa against the Soviet Union. This deduction was based on the fact that the USSR lose more territory than it took during the fight against Poland, while the Reich tore through the Polish lines like a knife through butter.
Poland surrenders to, and is annexed by, the German Reich
The Soviets demand Eastern Poland, which is ceded in order to allow the Reich to focus on the West
The redrawn borders of Eastern Europe
During this time period, the Kriegsmarine's commerce raiders sunk a total of 30 Allied merchant ships. The Scharnhorst scored the most kills, with a total of 10 merchant ships sunk near the Azores. Other raiders, notably the Gneisenau near Newfoundland, Admiral Hipper near the Canary Islands, and Paul Behncke near Gambia, also sunk large numbers of Allied merchant ships.
The KMS Admiral Hipper hunts convoys near the Canary Islands
The KMS Paul Behncke hunts convoys near Gambia
The KMS Gneisenau hunts convoys near Newfoundland
However, the Scharnhorst's success brought it close to near disaster. UK Admiral Cunningham was sent to the Azores with the carriers HMS Glorious and HMS Eagle, the battleships HMS Barham and HMS Queen Elizabeth, and 5 flotillas of destroyers to hunt the Scharnhorst and sink it. Cunningham first encountered the Scharnhorst, under the command of Admiral Doenitz, in the Western Azores. Doenitz successfully evaded Cunningham by fleeing north, but took several hits from the UK's CAGs. The HMS Barham took some shrapnel damage from the Scharnhorst before the skirmish was over.
The KMS Scharnhorst is hunted down, but manages to escape
Despite Doenitz's attempt to flee, the Scharnhorst was again spotted by Cunningham in the Northern Azores. Doenitz knew he was outmatched, and fled east. However, before he could escape, the Scharnhorst took heavy damage from Cunningham's CAGs and the rear magazine exploded. Luckily, that wasn't enough to sink the ship, and the Scharnhorst managed to flee east. From there, it evaded several French and British Cruisers until it docked safely in Wilhelmshaven for repairs.
The Scharnhorst barely manages to escape again
The Scharnhorst manages to evade Admiral Cunningham's fleet and limps back to Wilhelmshaven. (Author's note: Oh &%^$, I thought I was going to lose. The Scharnhorst is lucky, and managed to limp back to Wilhelmshaven *through* the English Channel. I'm pretty sure if I didn't have Doenitze, a skill 5 leader, in charge, I would've lost the ship.)
The engagement was a wake-up call to Raeder and Hitler. The near-loss of a major vessel after 2 battles raised an alarm. Hitler decided that the Gneisenau, operating near Canada, was to link up with the KMS Prinz Eugen, operating in the Carribean. The pair would then move back north and raid any convoys leaving Boston. The prevailing opinion at the time was, since the Scharnhorst lacked an effective screen, it was easily ambushed. The Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen was to be a test for paired battlecruiser/heavy cruiser convoy raiding operations. If the test were to be a success, then the 3 KW50 class battlecruisers currently in production were to be paired with the remaining Admiral Hipper heavy cruisers. The Scharnhorst was, after repairs, to be paired with the KMS Admiral Hipper near the Canary Islands.
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