Sudden Carnage
Chaper XXI – The Act of a Genius
Countries played by humans: UK, France, Soviet Union, Germany, Italy, Japan
Recap: Operation Hammer Sickle is over and was quite successful. What will Germany do next? Well, the world is not waiting quietly for them to decide. All over the globe, the war is raging. Soon though, a new brave German Operation will be named…
February 5th, 1940
The Red Army had grown bold after their recapture of Shepetivka and attacked Równe. It was hardly unexpected. The German leadership had expected the Russian forces to attack them viciously already during “Hammer”, but it did not happen. The hardly did anything during “Sickle” either – and the attack on Równe was far from worrying. Instead, the Germans were surprised the attack was so light. It made them suspect a secondary target. Still, an attack on the Third Reich could not go unpunished…
February 6th, 1940
To take some pressure off the troops in Równe, the German forces in Dobno attacked into Shepetivka… for the second time in this war. Several of the Red Army units in Shepetivka were involved in the attack of Równe and the German attack in their flank must have been quite unsettling – if hardly unexpected.
Also – several brigades of self propelled artillery (Hummel) had been deployed on the east front. Both panzer divisions were due to get a unit incorporated. Rommel’s 1st had already gotten theirs and Model’s 3rd was on his way to rendezvous with his. 1st Panzer had to release the brigade of armor cars who had served them so well and many good friends had to say their goodbyes. The armor cars were instead transferred to a division of motorized infantry (visible North West of the Russian fighters).
Visible is also the Italian troops guarding the southernmost part of the East Front. Except a minor Russian attack, they had had a very peaceful winter… so far.
February 8th, 1940
When 1st Panzer linked up with the infantry who attacked into Shepetivka, they had already made good advance into the province. The Red Army’s attack on Równe had been cancelled and thus, the whole reason for the attack on Shepetivka was fulfilled. Still, as the Russian defense of the province already seemed to buckle, the charge continued.
::It was all good that the infantry already had cleared the westernmost part of the province and the panzers could charge right ahead. When they linked up with the frontline, the Soviet infantry was in some disarray and under heavy pressure already. With the intel from the infantry at hand, the 1st Panzer could blitz right into a weakness in the Red Army’s defensive line. As Heinrich carefully steered his armored beast past the last line of friendly infantry, he gazed out from the small opening in front of his face. It was a narrow tunnel-view which had stressed him out in the beginning, but now he was used to it. He knew that Bobby and especially Michael had a better view and trusted them to check the flanks. As long as they were fired at from affront, he was not too scared but it was important that no Rus got a shot at them from the side. Now, he missed their armor cars. They were outstanding at keeping a close watch on the perimeter and spying ambushed before then launched.::
::They opened up with a spearhead attack on a rather narrow front line. The received some AT-fire and Heinrich saw a fast light Panzer explode and a medium Panzer get its right tracks blown off. One or two other Panzers got stuck in the icy mud and after several failed attempts to break free of the earth’s grip they simple stopped and provided covering barrage as best possible. Heinrich maneuvered skillfully around the muddiest areas and when Bobby managed to hit a quite skillfully camouflaged AT-gun they breached the Soviet first line. Several panzers followed the lead of Michael Wittmann’s cunning planning and Heinrich’s supreme eye for the best ground. It was actually a knowledge he had brought with him from the autumn harvest in Southern Germany. Sometimes it got very muddy and it was very embarrassing to ask a neighbor to pull your tractor out of the mud. Things like that was the talk of the town for weeks. After a while he learnt to tell the properties of the mud by just looking at it very carefully. The way a deer’s tracks looked in the mud was a good help too. Here, he saw no deer-tracks but well the tracks of Soviet boots.::
::They were about eight panzers who got behind the first Soviet line and the fell into their backs and tore up their lines at the same time as the German Infantry attacked from the other side. It was a strategy they have used before, but it worked almost every time. The Red Army retreated to the second line but just as they reached it, Michael Wittmann used their new support brigade and called in artillery from the Hummels. It was a mighty barrage and the panzer crews shouted with joy and they saw the hellfire surge over the terrified defenders. A problem, though, was at least of fourth of their Panzers was stuck in the mud. It would take some time, and some hard work, to get ready for another push. Heinrich muttered to himself. Working with the Panzers in this freezing temperature made his fingers ace. Oh, how he longed for warmer weather. But he couldn’t complain too much. They’d actually been passive for most of the winter, and that was good indeed.::
February 8th, 1940
In Ed, beside the Red Sea, an army corps of Italian troops had been outmaneuvered. They were cornered along the coast and attacked by Brits who were inferior in numbers but superior in skill. The Italians here would last a while and delay the British advance – but they could not hope to win.
A few weeks later, some 25 000 Italians surrendered.
February 9th, 1940
In Tarabulus, however, the British siege was just a bad memory. Regia Aeronatica had made a massive effort to win the air superiority and then bomb both Brits and their supply depots to oblivion. Now, the Brits gave up dislodging the Italians from North Africa and retreated to Benghazi.
Strategically, this was important as the Brits could not create a secure front here and even if the Italians in Tarabulus were far from really dangerous, they were still a nuisance… and something that pulled at the British attention now and again. Very good!
February 12th, 1940
::It was a great moment for Johann Keller when their project was finalized at last. They had been at it for quite some time and several theories were well ahead of common practice (it’s a 1941 technology). The Führer himself had a personal interest in the project and invited the armament minister, Hjalmar Schacht, and some of his closes officers to a ceremony. Hjalmar asked Johann join in.::
::It was a great moment for a farmer and cheese producer from southern Germany to suddenly be presented to the ruling elite of the Großdeutsches Reich. The reception was in a fairly cozy hall in central Berlin. The Führer was there and several of his closes men of which Johann recognized most of them. He felt both honored and dwarfed by their presence. Hjalmar and his men held a short briefing of the project, the building stones of a mechanized division and of course - a more through description of the various brand new vehicles. Johann had his five minutes of fame when he went through the specifics of the multipurpose vehicle – the Sonderkraftfahrzeug 251 (the half track). He was nervous like hell, but kept cool during the presentation and even made some anecdotes from his experiences from his earlier days as a farmer. He heard several appreciating murmurs – regarding both the specifics and the anecdotes.::
Some of the pictures Johann used in his presentation
::After the presentation, the Führer himself came up to the project staff, shook their hands and said a few appreciating words. It was a magic moment for Johann. Being so close to the man behind the German greatness was truly stunning. The man was nothing like the furious man he had seen a television or heard on the radio. Instead, he was calm, focused and with a demi-God aura that left Johann deeply affected. He had been very critical about the lack of a decent stockpile of goods before the war, and he had been all over critical about the war as such. Now, he felt wide open to the man – and liking the feeling.::
::Hitler then held a speech to the research staff and the other guests – both Goebbles and Göring included. He started by praising the researchers in several sentences which Johann came to remember the last one best.::
“In this world, is not the act of a genius always a protest against the inertia of the mass?” (Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf)
::Johann liked to believe that ‘protest’ to be the reason for him not being satisfied by the simple life as a farmer. It was like Hitler was talking only to him. Then Hitler increased the temperature in the room by cursing Marxism and to promise to have them kneel before the German superiority. He was also annoyed by the Allies and the way they interfered with his plans. Later, Johann remembered a stark verbal attack.::
“Democracy, as practiced in Western Europe today, is the fore-runner of Marxism. In fact, the latter would not be conceivable without the former. Democracy is the breeding-ground in which the bacilli of the Marxism world pest can grow and spread.” (Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf)
….
::Johann Keller walked in a haze the next few days. The meeting with Hitler had pushed his earlier thoughts over the top. He just couldn’t stand staying behind in Berlin and attending various parties, happenings and civilized meetings while his friends and the majority of the German youth where out there in the mud fighting and bleeding for the future greatness of Germany. For the sake of his own sanity – he had to get out there too. And he had a plan for it too. Hjalmar wouldn’t be very happy though…::
February 15th, 1940
::The winter was over on the East Front. Instead came the worst part of the spring. It was still cold, freezing during night time, but damp and wet during day-time. And now a thunderstorm had blown in from the west. 1st Panzer have had the luxury of not manning the immediate front-line. They had infantry for that, and moreover, their brigade of Hummels hadn’t had the chance to really integrate with the division yet.::
::After the last victorious battle of Shepetivka, 1st Panzer and most of the army corps was order to stay in Dubno while a lone mountain division moved into Shepetivka. It did not take long until STAVKA realized this and sent the Red Army too take it back. The poor bastard mountaineers had to retreat immediately. Heinrich Hahn was so happy that he got to stay put and take care of his panzer instead of driving back and forth over a mud-filled Shepetivka. It was enough the first time. He wondered how many times the battle would rush to and fro. But alas, they had no reserves so he knew it was impossible with a break-through any time soon. The question was, and the rumor was wide spread, when would the Red Army come big time? The soldiers were quite nervous about this. Especially the infantry. Heinrich didn’t bother too much. He knew the Russian AT was far too weak to pose any real threat.::
::Heinrich used these rainy days to huddle with his mates but also to take of the tracks, go through them and put them back on. It was time taking indeed. When it cleared up for a few moments, Heinrich and Bobby borrowed a jeep from head quarters and went to the new self propelled artillery brigade and inspected them. They were marvelous pieces of warfare. The soldiers manning them, however, were all fresh but eager enough. It was great honor for them to serve with the 1st Panzer.::
Some rookies trying to camouflage their Hummel in Dubno. The last snow still visible on the ground.
February 17, 1940
On the West Front, things had settled down. The Netherlands did not struggle but rather welcomed the new order. Wehrmacht was in a quite good order after the orderly attack on the Netherlands, but still needed a few days to reorganize. Even though the German leadership had been worried about the attack itself and the outcome of it, they still had a plan for the next phase - Operation Vice.
As all diplomatic intel calculated that Belgium would join Allies within short, it had been the German leaderships hope, all before Hammer Sickle, to be able to launch a preemptive strike at Belgium before they actually joined the Allies. All through Sickle, and the diplomatic chaos that followed, the Germans worried about Belgium. They had worried about Belgium since the summer. Belgium had actually been a pain in the butt and one of the drivers behind Operation Hammer Sickle. Now, they would get an operation for themselves. Operation Vice. The German leadership looked forwards to launch it, to punish the Belgian upstarts and to close in on the damn French who have had the nerves to trample German heartland and kill its populace. They had hell coming their way.
Author’s note: Honestly, I was surprised over how smooth Sickle had gone. It had actually gone exactly according to plan (thanks again to well organized Japanese amphibious attacks in the East Indies) – and that is bloody unique. So, when everything had gone my way I just let the snow ball tumble further ahead down the hill. Now, when I was attacking Belgium, my greatest fear was the Allies quickly linking up in the easy defendable Belgian countryside. So, I planned to use paradrops to cut them off. But it all depended on how Belgium (AI) had positioned their troops and how much "on their toes" the Allies were.
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