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And now a comment from Rasa Urs, too: Don't stop researching Blitzkrieg, but delay it through putting the whole bunch of the most useful doctrines in the research queue in front of Blitzkrieg. This way the LS-points already invested in this tech are not fully wasted.
And now a comment from Rasa Urs, too: Don't stop researching Blitzkrieg, but delay it through putting the whole bunch of the most useful doctrines in the research queue in front of Blitzkrieg. This way the LS-points already invested in this tech are not fully wasted.
Thats a good rule in general: Never stop research or production short, if you don't think it's needed right now, delay it indefinitely, if you want or need it in the future, you'll be happy not to have to start over... waste not, want not.
Morale is for sure more important than OLCS, but I was assuming since we are not able to have more divisions (or let's say leaded divisions) even with 5 bde divisions, after a time (after we research the rest) we'll have not much to do but upgrade our inf divs to mot and mec anyway. Otherwise, the Mass Assault (inf morale + assaults) / Delay Doctrine (AA/AT/Art/RArt morale + delays) / Integrated Support (commando types morale + encirclement) trio has priority over OLCS. So in my list, 7 is now 3,5.
And now a comment from Rasa Urs, too: Don't stop researching Blitzkrieg, but delay it through putting the whole bunch of the most useful doctrines in the research queue in front of Blitzkrieg. This way the LS-points already invested in this tech are not fully wasted.
Cavalry is currently being researched to enable locally trained motorised infantry units to be trained or upgraded to – and perhaps eventually mechanised infantry in the further future
Maybe the easy light tank techs we can research since some of the bonuses of motorised and mechanised infantry also comes from there. At least the engine and maybe the gun if not the whole thing?
One thing about general Yamut. He was a lieutenant in the defense of Gallipoli. Later in his career, in 1943, he was appointed as the corps commander to Gallipoli. He saw that many bones of the fallen were just lying there unattended. He sold his house and built a monument with that money, storing all the bones he can find underneath it. He went on with his military career later as the 2nd army commander, then 1st, then commander of land forces and finally head of general staff although those times coincide with the dictatorial rule of Menderes and he may taken place in his atrocities or at least kept silent as the most senior military man. After retiring he became an MP from the ruling right wing government, was arrested during the 1961 coup (rumored that the military police taking him in beat him when he resisted) when he was 71 and died of cancer in prison. With all his rights and wrongs may his soul rest in peace.
1938, when he was a division commander
some time between 1950 and 54 when he was head of general staff
And now a comment from Rasa Urs, too: Don't stop researching Blitzkrieg, but delay it through putting the whole bunch of the most useful doctrines in the research queue in front of Blitzkrieg. This way the LS-points already invested in this tech are not fully wasted.
Thats a good rule in general: Never stop research or production short, if you don't think it's needed right now, delay it indefinitely, if you want or need it in the future, you'll be happy not to have to start over... waste not, want not.
Morale is for sure more important than OLCS, but I was assuming since we are not able to have more divisions (or let's say leaded divisions) even with 5 bde divisions, after a time (after we research the rest) we'll have not much to do but upgrade our inf divs to mot and mec anyway. Otherwise, the Mass Assault (inf morale + assaults) / Delay Doctrine (AA/AT/Art/RArt morale + delays) / Integrated Support (commando types morale + encirclement) trio has priority over OLCS. So in my list, 7 is now 3,5.
Maybe the easy light tank techs we can research since some of the bonuses of motorised and mechanised infantry also comes from there. At least the engine and maybe the gun if not the whole thing?
One thing about general Yamut. He was a lieutenant in the defense of Gallipoli. Later in his career, in 1943, he was appointed as the corps commander to Gallipoli. He saw that many bones of the fallen were just lying there unattended. He sold his house and built a monument with that money, storing all the bones he can find underneath it. He went on with his military career later as the 2nd army commander, then 1st, then commander of land forces and finally head of general staff although those times coincide with the dictatorial rule of Menderes and he may taken place in his atrocities or at least kept silent as the most senior military man. After retiring he became an MP from the ruling right wing government, was arrested during the 1961 coup (rumored that the military police taking him in beat him when he resisted) when he was 71 and died of cancer in prison. With all his rights and wrongs may his soul rest in peace.
1938, when he was a division commander
some time between 1950 and 54 when he was head of general staff
Many thanks for the extra info and taking the trouble to provide the pics! Poor old Yamut - not an unusual fate for that period. But in this alt world, he is in the think of it.
All: First, a separate prologue for the next session, with the main event to follow shortly thereafter. This will be epic, so strap yourselves in for a wild ride ...
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Chapter 126: A Band of Brothers – Prologue (1 May 1941)
Chapter 126: A Band of Brothers – Prologue (1 May 1941)
[With many apologies to Shakespeare! ]
Prologue – Senta, Around Midnight, 1 May 1941
Deputy Fuhrer Rudolf Hess has visited the front to examine preparations for the next phase of the crucial attack on Timisoara. He confers with Italian MAGJEN Arena, commander of the Italian 132nd ‘Ariete’ Armoured Division; MAJGEN Geitner, commander 11 Panzer Division and the infamous MAJGEN Geyr von Schweppenburg, commander of the SS-Verfügungstruppe.
Arena: “Tut! I have the best armour of the world. Would it were day!”
Geitner: “You have excellent armour Arena, but let my Panzer IVs have their due.”
Arena: “Granted, you Germans do have the best tanks in Europe.”
Geitner: “Will it never be morning?”
Hess: “Geitner and Arena, you talk of tanks?”
Geitner: “The Reich is as well provided armour as any country in the world.”
Hess: “What a long night is this! I will not change our panzers for any in the world!”
Arena: “Indeed, My Deputy Fuhrer, it is most absolute and excellent armour.”
Hess: “The Panzer IV is the prince of tanks; its engine is like the bidding of a monarch and its gun enforces homage.”
Geitner (laughing and putting his hands up in mock-surrender): “No more, Herr Hess!”
Hess: “Nay, the man has no wit that cannot, from the rising of the lark to the lodging of the lamb, vary deserved praise on my panzers: it is a theme as fluent as the sea: turn the sands into eloquent tongues, and my panzers are argument for them all: 'tis a subject for a Fuhrer to reason on, and for a Fuhrer’s Fuhrer to ride on; and for the world, familiar to us and unknown to lay apart their particular functions and wonder at them. I once wrote a sonnet in their praise and began it thus: 'Wonder of industry…,'
Geitner: “I have heard a sonnet begin so to one's factory foreman.”
Hess: “Then did they imitate that which I composed to my panzers, for they are my foremen.”
Geitner: “Your foremen bear well.”
Arena: “You have good judgment in armoured warfare, Deputy Fuhrer.”
Hess: “Be warned by me, then: they that advance so and not warily, fall into foul bogs. I had rather have my panzer to my foreman.”
von Schweppenburg: “Arena, the armour that I saw with your division tonight, are those crosses or Fasces upon them?”
Arena: “Fasces, von Schweppenburg.”
Hess: “Some of them will fall tomorrow”.
Arena: “Even as your panzers bear your praises; who would advance as well, were some of your brags dismounted.”
Hess: “Would I were able to see them in action! Will it never be day? I will run tomorrow a mile, and my way shall be paved with Turkish faces.”
Arena: “I will not say so, for fear I should be faced out of my way: but I would it were morning; for I would fain be about the ears of the Turks.”
von Schweppenburg: “Who will go to hazard with me for 200 prisoners?”
Arena: “You must first go yourself to hazard, ere you have them.”
Hess: “Tis midnight; I'll go arm myself.” He leaves the command tent.
---xxx---
Geitner: “Hess longs for morning.”
von Schweppenburg: “He longs to eat the Turks.”
Arena: “I think he will eat all he kills.”
Geitner: “By the white hand of my lady, he's a gallant Deputy Fuhrer.”
Arena: “Swear by her foot, that she may tread out the oath.”
Geitner: “He is simply the most active gentleman of Germany.”
Arena: “Doing is activity; and he will still be doing.”
Geitner: “He never did harm, that I heard of.”
Arena: “Nor will do none tomorrow: he will keep that good name still.”
Geitner: “I know him to be valiant.”
Arena: “I was told that by one that knows him better than you.”
Geitner: “Who?”
Arena: “Why, he told me so himself; and he said he cared not who knew it.”
Geitner: “He needs not; it is no hidden virtue in him.”
Arena: “By my faith, sir, but it is; never anybody saw it but his lackey: 'tis a hooded valour; and when it appears, it will bate.”
Geitner: “Ill will never said well.”
Arena: “I will cap that proverb with 'There is flattery in friendship.'”
Geitner: “And I will take up that with 'Give the devil his due.'”
Arena: “Well placed: there stands your friend for the devil: have at the very eye of that proverb with 'A pox of the devil.'”
Geitner: “You are the better at proverbs, by how much 'A fool's bolt is soon shot.'”
Arena: “You have shot over.”
Geitner: “It’s not the first time you were overshot.”
A messenger enters the tent: “Generals, the Turks lie within fifteen hundred paces of your command tents.”
Arena: “Alas, poor Inönü of Turkey! He longs not for the dawning as we do.”
Geitner: “What a wretched and peevish fellow is this President of Turkey, to mope with his fat-brained followers so far out of his knowledge!”
Arena: “If the Turks had any apprehension, they would run away.”
Geitner: “That they lack; for if their heads had any intellectual armour, they could never wear such heavy head-pieces.”
von Schweppenburg (who has tangled with the Turks many a time these last months): “That land of Turkey breeds very valiant creatures; their mastiffs are of unmatchable courage.”
Geitner: “Foolish curs, that run winking into the mouth of a Russian bear and have their heads crushed like rotten apples! You may as well say, that's a valiant flea that dare eat his breakfast on the lip of a lion.”
Arena: “Just, just; and the men do sympathize with the mastiffs in robustious and rough coming on, leaving their wits with their wives: and then give them great meals of beef and iron and steel, they will eat like wolves and fight like devils.”
Geitner: “Ay, but these Turks are shrewdly out of beef.”
Arena: “Then shall we find tomorrow they have only stomachs to eat and none to fight. Now is it time to arm: come, shall we about it?”
Geitner: “It is now two o'clock: but, let me see, by ten we shall have each a thousand Turkishmen!”
Arena has the right of it: Hess will not be seen on the battlefield tomorrow. But will the two braggart tank commanders have their way, or has the SS man more aptly summarised the situation? Meanwhile, in Timisoara, Inönü pays a visit to the front, to gauge the mettle of his troops ...
---xxx---
Prologue – Timisoara, After Midnight, 1 May 1941
Now entertain conjecture of a time when creeping murmur and the poring dark fills the wide vessel of the universe. From camp to camp through the foul womb of night, the hum of either army stilly sounds, that the fixed sentinels almost receive the secret whispers of each other's watch: Fire answers fire, and through their paly flames each battle sees the other's umber'd face; steed threatens steed, in high and boastful neighs piercing the night's dull ear, and from the tents the armourers, accomplishing the tanks, with busy hammers closing rivets up, give dreadful note of preparation.
The country cocks do crow, the clocks do toll, and the third hour of drowsy morning name. Proud of their numbers and secure in soul, the confident and over-lusty Axis do the low-rated Turks play at dice; and chide the cripple tardy-gaited night who, like a foul and ugly witch, doth limp so tediously away. The poor condemned Turks, like sacrifices, by their watchful fires sit patiently and inly ruminate the morning's danger, and their gesture sad investing lank-lean; cheeks and war-worn coats presenteth them unto the gazing moon so many horrid ghosts.
O now, who will behold the Presidential captain of this ruin'd band, walking from watch to watch, from tent to tent, let him cry 'Praise and glory on his head!' For forth he goes and visits all his host. Bids them good morrow with a modest smile and calls them brothers, friends and countrymen. Upon his stately face there is no note how dread an army hath enrounded him; nor doth he dedicate one jot of colour unto the weary and all-watched night, but freshly looks and over-bears attaint with cheerful semblance and sweet majesty; that every wretch, pining and pale before, beholding him, plucks comfort from his looks.
A largess universal like the sun his liberal eye doth give to every one,
Thawing cold fear, that mean and gentle all,
Behold, as may unworthiness define,
A little touch of Ismet in the night.
And so our scene must to the battle fly;
Where - O for pity! - we shall much disgrace
With four or five most vile and ragged foils,
Right ill-disposed in brawl ridiculous,
The name of Timisoara. Yet sit and see,
Minding true things by what their mockeries be.
---xxx---
Flash Forward - A Coffee Shop, Ankara, 9am, May Day 1941
Our two intrepid (and anonymous) Foreign Office officials are meeting for a quick morning coffee and breakfast. Their May Day started at 3am, composing a message for Foreign Minister Aras to provide to the Milli Şef, for him to send to General Secretary Stalin to mark the day. Their adrenalin is still surging – but not from the composition of their platitudinous telegram to the Soviet leader. No, their excitement is due to just having read President Inönü's Special Order of the Day for May Day 1941, sent to the troops at the front fighting in and around Timisoara.
The battle had commenced in the early hours of 26 April and, as at this morning, still raged. There was no telling how much longer it might continue. The situation was grim – and the classified reports of the battle’s progress they had seen so far suggested it remained in the balance. Some (very carefully expressed) views at the Ministry held that the situation was becoming desperate, the Turkish defenders outnumbered, up against German and Italian tanks, SS fanatics, panzer grenadiers, Axis air superiority and a seemingly endless series of Axis infantry divisions ready to cycle through.
It seemed Inönü had travelled the lines in the previous night, talking to soldiers and generals alike, sensing the fear and desperation of the position. He had used his May Day message to the Turkish First Army troops defending Timisoara - and the whole Yeniçeri Line - to attempt to boost their spirits against these daunting odds. To those who wished for more men that day, for reinforcements to arrive from the Motherland, Inönü had impressed upon them it was their duty, and none other, to defend it and that he had no wish for more men than already present as part of his mighty First Army.
---xxx---
From: Commander First Army Order of the Day – 1 May 1941
‘A Band of Brothers’
If we are marked to die in this great battle, then it is enough to do our country proud. If we live, the fewer men, the greater the share of honour. God's will! I pray you, wish for not one man more. By Atatürk, I am not covetous for gold, nor care I who does sustain themselves upon the nation’s treasury. Such outward things dwell not in my heart’s desires: but if it be a sin to covet honour, I am the most offending soul alive.
No, wish not another man from the Motherland: God's peace! I would not lose so great an honour as one man more would share from me for the best hope I have. Oh, do not wish one more! Rather proclaim it, Brave Turkish Soldiers, throughout my glorious First Army, that he who has no stomach for this fight, let him depart; his papers shall be issued and lira for travel put into his wallet: we would not die in that man's company that fears his fellowship to die with us.
Today is May Day: he that outlives this day and these coming days of glorious battle, and comes safe home, will stand tall when the day is named, and rouse himself at every May Day. He that shall live this day, and see old age, will yearly on the day before it feast his neighbours, and say 'Tomorrow is May Day!’ Then will he strip his sleeve and show his scars and say 'These wounds I had on May Day.' Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot, but he'll remember with pride what feats he did that day: then shall our names, familiar in his mouth as household words, Inönü the President; General Yamut the Corps Commander, Generals Orbay, Namut, Kanatli and other gallant Turks be in their flowing cups freshly remembered.
This story shall the good man teach his son; and May Day in Turkey shall never go by, from this day to the ending of the world, but we in it shall be remembered. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he today that sheds his blood with me shall be my brother; be he never so vile, this day shall gentle his condition. And gentlemen in Turkey now a-bed shall think themselves accursed they were not here and hold their manhoods cheap when any speaks that fought with us in Timisoara upon May Day 1941!
Ismet Inönü
General
Commander 1st Army
President of Turkey
Milli Şef of the Union of Glorious National Republics
Timisoara, 1 May 1941
---xxx---
The two officials look at each other, eyes misting as they reread the order, holding their manhoods cheap and wishing they themselves were there with their countrymen at Timisoara. Well, theoretically, anyway, as much good a pair of pinstriped diplomats would verily hold back the massed panzers of the Nazi devils.
“Even if Timisoara is lost, it will have been dearly bought and surely count as a great and glorious feat of Turkish arms,” says one huskily to the other.
“Oh, so very true my dear friend,” his companion replies – for once not even having to fake his enthusiasm for the possible secret police informers lurking behind the pot plants. “I hope our gallant President and soldiers can hold back these vicious hordes and see the Motherland and the Union safely through to the end of our Glorious Path!”
They had no idea then, on the morning of May Day 1941, how long, harrowing and costly the fight for Timisoara would be. Let alone what this Great Liberation War would hold for them and the nation.
---xxx---
Part 2 of Band of Brothers will be continued shortly …
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Chapter 127: A Band of Brothers – Timisoara Part 2 (1 to 7 May 1941)
Chapter 127: A Band of Brothers – Timisoara Part 2 (1 to 7 May 1941)
… the time for rumination and speeches is over. The fight for Timisoara continues.
[Author's Note: My aim here is to give you as authentic a story on the battle, as it unfolded, as I can. It was tense to play, so I hope I can communicate some of that to you here. Here goes ...]
---xxx---
1 May 1941
Earlier that day, the early hours of the morning saw Namut’s 5 Inf Div reinforce the front line from the reserve in Timisoara, while Hungarian TAC once again struck Turkish defensive positions in the battered town. Orbay’s counter-attack continues to cause heavy casualties to the Axis assault.
Despite this, Inönü remains concerned that continued air strikes will sap the defence fatally, if unchallenged.
“Örlungat, this is the Milli Şef,” says Inönü over a crackling land line connection. “I said earlier we may risk our precious fighter force when the situation demands it and the battle is at a tipping point. That time is now. There are unescorted Hungarian bombers hitting Timisoara as we speak. I want you to try to intercept them.”
“Yes, My President. Our fighter wings are not yet at 100% operational capacity, but we will go with what we’ve got - and gladly!”
“I realise we may be sending them to their deaths, as that Axis ‘super group’ is no doubt lurking nearby. But let us see if we can discourage those Axis swine, at the least!”
“Roger, wilco, out!”
The fighters are ordered up at 2am.
By 3am they are over Timisoara, where they find three wings of Italian and Hungarian bombers. But by 4am, the Hungarian Air Force has scrambled its own interceptors: five wings of enemy fighters soon add to the mayhem – and Turkish fighters begin to fall like flies.
“Get them out of there, now, for God’s sake!” orders Inönü as soon as the reports come in. But it takes until after 5am to extract them from the fight. By the time they return to Beograd at 6am, 1 Avci Filo’s old Hawk IIIs have suffered 12% casualties, 2 Avci Filo’s newer I-16s 6%. It could have been far worse and would have been had they maintained the mission. Have they done enough to discourage the Axis bombing program? The enemy raid finished at 5am, killing 96 Turkish defenders on the ground in Timisoara.
At 6am, 14 Inf Div (which does not yet have a permanent commander) arrives in the vicinity of Timisoara, going into the reserve. How long will it take to get them into the front line? The Turks once again lament their poor land doctrine that can make this such a cumbersome process.
Air Raids. There is only one more Axis air raid on Timisoara that day, finishing at 4pm and killing another 138 troops, making a total of 234 for the day. Did the short fighter intervention work after all? Only time will tell.
The fighting continues savagely throughout the rest of the day. By that night, Orbay’s 1 Inf Div is nearing exhaustion but hangs in, fighting ferociously. The night fighting favours the defenders considerably, as does the city terrain, which encumbers the enemy armour in particular. By dawn (4am at the moment, it would appear) the next day, the enemy’s attack picks up again with the light of day [full modifiers for the attackers shown on the right – note how severe an effect the city terrain is on the attack of the German and Italian armour. Good!]
Entertainment News: New York, US.The Orson Welles-directed drama film Citizen Kane has its world premiere at the Palace Theatre in New York City.
(41 sec) Citizen Kane: ‘Rosebud’.
---xxx---
2 May 1941
1 Inf Div is still in the fight that morning, but only just. And the German 4th Liechte Division has arrived in reserve – far more likely to reinforce than their Turkish counterparts. This deteriorating situation prompts the Turkish command to look for something else to try, to swing momentum back in their favour, as Inönü feels it slipping away.
“The 10th and the 15th in Kikinda are still in no fit state for offensive operations and may come under heavy pressure if Timisoara falls. But the three divisions in Ada are all now refreshed and fully dug in. Leave the 7th in place, but order Edelhun and Gürman to launch a spoiling attack Senta with everything they have. I’m afraid it will be a very tough fight and we can expect heavy casualties, but we must see if we can stop this relentless build up of forces concentrating on Timisoara.”
This is a calculated gamble, but seen as necessary if Timisoara is not to be quickly abandoned to its fate, risking that whole sector of the line. But with seven uncommitted Axis divisions sitting next to Ada in Srboban and Novi Sad, it will be a nervous time.
At the same time, as 2 and 12 Inf Divs march up to the line of departure for their fateful attack [I had images of Pickett’s Charge here as they prepared to go in] the famed 1 Cav Div was ordered to execute a strategic redeployment from Ruma up to Lugoj, to act as a reserve for that whole northern sector (none of which is strongly held) and provide a fall-back defensive position if Timisoara does indeed fall. In addition, the depth positions of Faget and Lugoj are submitted as supplementary Soviet defensive objectives: not that they seem to have been taking much notice of any of those!
At 8am, the command net crackles into life in the HQ 1st Army CP. It is Edelhun’s 12 Inf Div HQ, reporting to 1st Corps:
“One this is One One-Two, we have made contact. Three enemy divisions – panzers, panzer-grenadiers and SS – all hit in the flank as they attack Timisoara! But one infantry division (the Hungarian 7th) is holding ground. We are causing mayhem! Out.”
It is a good start, but they are heavily outnumbered: what will the enemy do? Will they take the bait?
An hour later, it is Orbay talking on the land line from Timisoara:
“Milli Şef – great news! The spoiling attack has worked. The three enemy divisions attacking from Senta have all broken off and have turned to face the attack from Ada. Only the weakened Italian 132a Ariete Division remains in their front line. If we can finish them off quickly, before the enemy can reinforce again, we will carry the day! This time, at least.”
“Very good Orbay but spare a thought for Edelhun: he is now attacking four enemy divisions and has lost the advantage of a flank attack. I’m not sure how long we can keep it up. We need to preserve them for a possible enemy counter-attack on Ada. Do your best to end it as quickly as you can!”
By 10am, despite 1 Inf Div being forced to retreat (MAJGEN Kanatli of 1 Mot Div assumes command) the odds in the battle for Timisoara have swung back modestly in Turkey’s favour – but 14 Inf Div (who it will be recalled don’t have an assigned commander) has not yet reinforced. And now the enemy has sent in fresh troops from Sânnicolau Mare and Arad to attempt to reinforce the attack! In Senta, the Turkish spoiling attack continues, but the consolidation of the enemy’s position will soon begin to tell on the gallant attackers, who continue to buy time for their sorely beset comrades in Timisoara.
To make things worse, the German 52nd Inf Division reinforces that afternoon, which will even up the ledger again.
And shortly afterwards, 8 Inf Div (withdrawn from Timisoara earlier) makes it to Lugoj and desperately begins to dig in. They remain badly disorganised: they need time to recover and entrench. The defenders of Timisoara are buying them that time with their blood.
By that night, the attack on Senta is beginning to tell on the Turks, especially 2 Inf Div [the odds ‘turn red’, having quickly fallen below 33%]. But they keep at it.
Air Report. The skies are clear over Timisoara the whole day: it seems the air attacks have been disrupted, at least for the time being!
OTL Event: Iraq. The Anglo-Iraqi War began, starting with airstrikes centred around RAF Habbaniya. The Anglo–Iraqi War (2–31 May 1941) was a British-led Allied military campaign against the Kingdom of Iraq led by the Axis aligned government of Rashid Ali, which had seized power during the Second World War. The campaign resulted in the downfall of Ali's government, the re-occupation of Iraq by the British Empire. [Not something that happens in HOI3, by the looks of it!]
---xxx---
3 May 41
An Allied spy from Oman is apprehended at midnight (traditional spy-catching time), snooping around the Foreign Ministry building. Knowing by now the fate of captured spies in Turkey (word of interrogations by Darth Kelebek having filtered out), the operative takes a cyanide capsule before he can be immobilised. He utters just a single word in Turkish before he dies: “Diken!”
In Timisoara, the fight drags on, with the Axis (commanded by the now more experienced Italian General Arena) switching back to assault tactics, with the 52nd in combat and two fresh divisions waiting in reserve, while the Turkish 14 Inf Div is still unable to reinforce.
As Inönü contemplates the map, he concludes that Timisoara will be doomed if he cannot continue to relieve the pressure on it.
“Get me Gürler on the phone,” he instructs the duty officer.
“Yes, sir?” answers the commander of 6 Inf Div in Lipova soon after.
“I know your men are not fully recovered from their earlier defence of Lipova and that this will cause you to break the entrenchments you have worked so hard to construct these last days, but these renewed attacks out of Arad are killing us slowly in Timisoara.”
“We will do whatever is asked, Milli Şef. We are strong enough.”
“Good man. It is now 0500 hours. I want a quick spoiling attack mounted on Arad straight away. If that means sacrificing Lipova to a counter-attack later, then so be it. Timisoara must hold!”
“We can be ready in an hour, sir. Leave it with me.”
The attack duly goes in just after dawn, initially catching the Axis divisions in Arad in the flank and in daylight as they attack Timisoara.
“Sunray [code for Inönü as Commander 1st Army in this case] and Four, this is Four-Six, contact front. We have surprised 30a and 52nd Divisions and are hitting them hard. Vur Ha! Out”
While the Turks wait to see whether this latest spoiling attack on Arad will be enough to force the enemy divisions there to peel off from their attack on Timisoara, the other spoiling attack on Senta, its job largely done, is halted - before casualties become catastrophic and jeopardise the security of Ada itself. A heavy price has already been paid.
Back in Timisoara, not only are the enemy forces in Arad maintaining the attack, but the Hungarian 7th Division, now freed from the attack on Senta, has quickly joined the fight, going into reserve! Though at least this means the enemy in Arad should take heavy casualties from the spoiling attack.
The fighting continues this way all day.
Air Report. Again, the skies are clear of enemy bombers – a great relief to the desperate defenders of Timisoara.
---xxx---
4 May 1941
In a nondescript neighbourhood of Ankara, the time approaches midnight. With a silent signal, a door is suddenly burst down in a small apartment.
“Police, don’t move!”
Kaya’s men are met with a startled yell in a language they cannot understand, followed by the sharp report of a small handgun. One of the secret policemen takes an unlucky bullet in the throat and gurgles out his last, unable to scream.
The rest open up on the shooter, quickly riddling him with bullets. Another spy – this one an Axis agent from Manchuria – has been ‘neutralised’.
---xxx---
MAJGEN Kanatli, now entrusted with coordinating the defence of Timisoara, cleverly employs delaying tactics to slow the enemy and decrease his own casualties, hoping against hope that his Milli Şef will be able to somehow save them as they slowly weaken in the face of relentless enemy attacks. If only 14 Inf Div could reinforce the line! At least the enemy’s Ariete armoured division is finally almost spent. The attack on Arad now seems to have hived off the enemy’s 30a Division. Though this will make the attack on Arad a harder grind for Gürler, it is what it was designed to do. But the German 52nd still leads the attack and remains in good condition. And things will get worse again soon when dawn breaks and the Axis have daylight in which to do their dirty work.
The brave LTGEN Yamut’s HQ 3rd Corps finally arrives in Faget, to join the thin screen forming there for the possible withdrawal from Timisoara. But they – like the others who have passed through the vicious meat-grinder of Timisoara – need more time to recover and dig some defences in this open country.
As first light brightens the battlefield, another blow to the defenders of Timisoara is reported: the Hungarian 14th Division has reinforced the battle, while their Turkish namesakes still languish behind the front lines. The tide continues to turn again Kanatli, whose ebbing hopes reside in his delaying tactics. And the chance that the raw 14 Inf Div might actually reinforce his line at some point.
“Milli Şef, my apologies, but there is more bad news from Timisoara,” says the duty officer in the Kraljevo CP, turning to his commander and President. “The German 4th Liechte Division has apparently recovered enough from the attack on Senta to rejoin the attack on Timisoara.”
“Curse them to hell! Perhaps they will not make it to the front line too quickly.”
But this is a forlorn hope: superior German doctrine and training once again prevails, with them joining the front-line assault just four hours later.
There is a small consolation a few hours later, with 132a ‘Ariete’ finally withdrawing. Though this means a superior Axis commander has now taken over their attack.
Air Report. Again, no Axis air attacks are reported that day.
News Report, Berlin, Germany. Adolf Hitler makes an address to the Reichstag reviewing the Balkan campaign and declaring that the German Reich and its allies were superior to any conceivable coalition in the world.[Actual OTL event on this day. We aim to prove him wrong!]
---xxx---
5 May 41
By dawn on 5 May, the battered 1 Inf Div reports its arrival in Faget, where it will add its efforts to the preparation of a desperate second line of defence against the likely Axis breakthrough – which may also come through a weakened Lipova or the vacant Dezna, to the north.
By the afternoon, Gürler’s attack on Arad is running out of steam as his troops are losing organisation – but the toll on the German 52nd Division, which has simultaneously maintained its attack on Timisoara, has been very heavy. Further south, 1 Cav Div is now approaching Lugoj, giving Inönü another option: should they been thrown into Timisoara, or wait and secure Lugoj for an orderly withdrawal and stabilisation of the line?
Heavy fighting continues throughout the rest of the day, with no further decisive events.
Air Report. No Axis air activity for the day.
---xxx---
6 May 41
The field telephone rings in the early hours of the morning – the call is for the President himself.
“My President, this is Wehib Pasha – we have arrived in Lugoj. Where to next? My men are itching for a fight. Let us have at the Fascist swine!”
Inönü’s answer is swift: “Hit the bastards as hard as you can in Timisoara. If you can arrive in time to aid the defence, do so. If it has fallen, counter-attack the enemy to give more time for our men to retreat and firm up the second line. Go with God’s speed!”
“Huzzah! For Atatürk, Inönü and the Motherland!”
Very soon after, reports come through that Italian TAC have recommenced ground attacks in Timisoara – it seems every time there is a ray of hope, it is countered by more bad news! At 7am, this trend continues:
“Sunray, this is Four-One Mike. The German 52nd have broken off the attack on Timisoara!”
Simultaneously, another report comes through from Gürler:
“I can confirm that the 52nd have broken and are retreating from Arad to the north-east!”
Kanatli continues his report when he is interrupted by one of his staff officers:
“Wait – what is that … are you sure? Sunray, the enemy have gone crazy – they are now assaulting recklessly. It is all we can do to defend against it. They are taking heavy casualties, but so are we. Both us and the 5th are running on vapour now. We can’t hold out against this much longer. Without reinforcement, we will ultimately fail.”
“Can you continue to resist for now?”
“Yes, but I don’t know for how long.”
“Do so – until the last. Do you understand, Kanatli? There will be no permission issued to withdraw voluntarily. Both of you must fight to the end. 1 Cav is coming and you must keep trying to get 14 Inf Div inserted into the battle. Our second line is not yet ready – we need to buy them more time to prepare, or I fear the dam will break.”
“Understood, Milli Şef. We will prevail or die in the attempt. Out.”
“Now get me Gürler back on the phone.”
“Gürler here, sir.”
“You have done enough in Arad. All the units that had been attacking Timisoara from there have stopped or been routed. Break off the attack now, while you still have a functioning division to command. Start digging in again in Lipova and be prepared for an Axis counter-attack. The defence of Faget is not yet ready. Do not let the enemy through without another hard fight.”
“Will do, Sir.”
6 Inf Div are in no better state now than the defenders of Timisoara – they have virtually nothing left. But their spoiling attack has exacted heavy casualties on the enemy and helped drive off the German 52nd: that will have to be enough for now.
But what else can be done to save the situation in Timisoara? Despite the hint of desperation it betrays, Inönü orders the one fresh division left in Ada – 7 Inf Div – to abandon its trenches and renew the assault on Senta. Those extra divisions must be drawn off! 2 and 12 Inf Divs will just have to do their best to recover, entrench and be ready to repel an Axis attack on Ada itself. The order is given at 8am and the attack goes in an hour later.
“This is Gürzlin. The enemy must have seen us coming – we have been ambushed! Panzers, SS, panzer-grenadiers and infantry … we are outnumbered almost three to one, over!”
“This is Sunray. I understand your position fully. Maintain the attack! Keep pressing! Out.”
He knows he is condemning many more men to their deaths but will not relent or abandon the fight easily.
As the fighting continues in Timisoara, with no basic change in the dispositions there, ten harrowing hours later, the latest attack on Senta is in big trouble. But they fight on.
Until, just an hour later, Kanatli – his 1 Mot Div still hanging on in Timisoara for grim life, along with 5 Inf Div – reports a significant development:
“We’ve managed to get 14 Inf Div inserted into the front line. With nightfall, we are beginning to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy’s reckless assault.”
Has the tide of battle turned back with the setting of the sun? It can also be seen the intense battle experience has improved Kanatli’s skill level, even if his Hungarian opponent Mérey still maintains an edge over him.
Air Raids. Three Italian air raids throughout the day have caused a total of 354 casualties in Timisoara.
---xxx---
7 May 41
Shortly after midnight, and with 14 Inf Div now helping to hold the line in Timisoara, Inönü finally gives permission for 7 Inf Div to break off their spoiling attack on Senta. It has been an expensive exercise but will have hopefully also distracted the Axis and blunted their attack on Timisoara – a little. Hungarian TAC start hitting Ada soon after – is it preparation for an attack on the weakened defences there?
Soon after, the Hungarian 7th Division successfully reinforces the continuing reckless attack on Timisoara – as 1 Mot and 5 Inf Divs approach breaking point. The battle has now been going for twelve days straight!
In Kraljevo, Inönü must face up to the facts: staff at 1st Army HQ begin drawing up contingency plans for the withdrawal from Timisoara and the reinforcement of the hasty new defensive line in Lugoj and Faget.
At 6am, as he grabs a strong coffee and a quick breakfast, the doleful presence of his adjutant, bearing a sealed message from the CP, looms in the doorway of Inönü’s office.
He opens the envelope …
It is victory! Against all the odds and, at the end, his own expectations. The enemy has finally cracked and a mighty victory has been won by Turkish arms. A 'Band of Brothers' indeed! After more than twelve days of non-stop fighting over a three-province front, Timisoara has held. The Yeniçeri Line remains intact – for now, anyway. I hope Hess chokes on his bratwurst and sauerkraut!
Inönü reads on. By the end, 1 Mot Div [1.0 org] and 5 Inf Div [2.7 org] had held on by the skin of their teeth, enduring a reckless assault with minimal organisation for days. The reinforcement demand for the Turkish Army [4.26 IC] has gone to its highest rate outside mobilisation. For now, manpower reserves were holding [149] as were officer levels [111%], though the impact of recent days may begin to tell on both.
As Inönü walks back into the CP, the staff erupt in cheers and applause. Another desperate situation has been averted and the greatest test of Turkish resolve so far in the Great Liberation War passed. Another will surely follow – but not that day, the rest of which passes with no further ground combat on the Turkish front.
Air Raids. The only dampener for this relief comes from the air: a series of four Italian air raids in Timisoara that continue after the Axis attack is halted, killing another 443 soldiers. And in Ada, Hungarian TAC raid three times, killing another 329 there.
---xxx---
Weekly Summaries - as at 11pm, 7 May 1941
As all Turkish eyes have been fixed on Timisoara for the entire week, on the wider Patriotic FrontRiga has fallen in the north and the Axis has made further inroads in Romania. The Northern and Central Sectors have conceded ground to the Germans, but the Southern Sector has continued to hold well, with a couple of limited Soviet counter-offensives contesting Axis momentum there.
In the Far East, gains on either side have been minimal. Uliastay remains in Mongolian hands, but a closer look indicates this is because of the large distances that must be covered in this theatre. One Japanese division still advances on the town, while the Soviet mountain division thought to be coming from the north has stopped. A Mongolian corps HQ headed towards Uliastay will do nothing to stop Japanese infantry from occupying it.
There have been no changes in the last week in Libya or Sardinia.
---xxx---
Coming Up:Has the broader Axis attack on the Yeniçeri Line been blunted for now – or will the hammer fall again soon? Can Romania hold, or is it being slowly reduced to defeat, as France was in 1940? What will the summer bring for the wider Patriotic Front? If Mongolia falls, will the consequences be noticed in Europe and will it weaken the Soviet defence of the west? When will the Secret War erupt again? And who is The Thorn!?
By the time they return to Beograd at 6am, 1 Avci Filo’s old Hawk IIIs have suffered 12% casualties, 2 Avci Filo’s newer I-16s 6%. It could have been far worse and would have been had they maintained the mission.
At 6am, 14 Inf Div (which does not yet have a permanent commander) arrives in the vicinity of Timisoara, going into the reserve. How long will it take to get them into the front line? The Turks once again lament their poor land doctrine that can make this such a cumbersome process.
How nice would it be to make our glorious nation contiguous again, alas we have bigger fish to fry at the moment. On the edge of my seat! (wrote contagious in the first place, noticed something was odd and checked a dictionary. It would've been a funny mistake)
Inönü’s answer is swift: “Hit the bastards as hard as you can in Timisoara. If you can arrive in time to aid the defence, do so. If it has fallen, counter-attack the enemy to give more time for our men to retreat and firm up the second line. Go with God’s speed!”
“Can you continue to resist for now?”
“Yes, but I don’t know for how long.”
“Do so – until the last. Do you understand, Kanatli? There will be no permission issued to withdraw voluntarily. Both of you must fight to the end. 1 Cav is coming and you must keep trying to get 14 Inf Div inserted into the battle. Our second line is not yet ready – we need to buy them more time to prepare, or I fear the dam will break.”
“Understood, Milli Şef. We will prevail or die in the attempt. Out.”
But what else can be done to save the situation in Timisoara? Despite the hint of desperation it betrays, Inönü orders the one fresh division left in Ada – 7 Inf Div – to abandon its trenches and renew the assault on Senta. Those extra divisions must be drawn off! 2 and 12 Inf Divs will just have to do their best to recover, entrench and be ready to repel an Axis attack on Ada itself. The order is given at 8am and the attack goes in an hour later.
Whenever I think there's nothing else to do but to wait for the dice to be rolled, I discover we have just a little more gas in the tank to pull something else off. Even if we lose, we'll make it the hardest for the fascist swine!
“We’ve managed to get 14 Inf Div inserted into the front line. With nightfall, we are beginning to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy’s reckless assault.”
It is victory! Against all the odds and, at the end, his own expectations. The enemy has finally cracked and a mighty victory has been won by Turkish arms. A 'Band of Brothers' indeed! After more than twelve days of non-stop fighting over a three-province front, Timisoara has held. The Yeniçeri Line remains intact – for now, anyway. I hope Hess chokes on his bratwurst and sauerkraut!
Inönü reads on. By the end, 1 Mot Div [1.0 org] and 5 Inf Div [2.7 org] had held on by the skin of their teeth, enduring a reckless assault with minimal organisation for days. The reinforcement demand for the Turkish Army [4.26 IC] has gone to its highest rate outside mobilisation. For now, manpower reserves were holding [149] as were officer levels [111%], though the impact of recent days may begin to tell on both.
As Inönü walks back into the CP, the staff erupt in cheers and applause. Another desperate situation has been averted and the greatest test of Turkish resolve so far in the Great Liberation War passed. Another will surely follow – but not that day, the rest of which passes with no further ground combat on the Turkish front.
This is a sad celebration with the mourning of thousands of lives lost heavy on our shoulders. This is a joyful mourning knowing the departed did not lose their lives for nothing, but for defending the motherland against the worst. This is a bitter victory, but after all, a victory. So celebrate we will.
Quick comment before I turn in: Thanks mate! Do remember though, most of that Prologue is paraphrased Shakespeare, Henry V. I don’t want to take too much credit. But the main chapter is all mine.
Quick comment before I turn in: Thanks mate! Do remember though, most of that Prologue is paraphrased Shakespeare, Henry V. I don’t want to take too much credit. But the main chapter is all mine.
I know, and also the speech, but makes no matter it's no easy task to blend that in a WW2 alternate history AAR with a comintern Turkey Great writing regardless.
I know, and also the speech, but makes no matter it's no easy task to blend that in a WW2 alternate history AAR with a comintern Turkey Great writing regardless.
Part 1 was a very impressive, if slightly ridiculous, transcription... as you said, may Shakespeare forgive you. With that kind of writing this AAR could really be transformed into a dramatic theatre piece, inspired entirely by various modified excerpts from Shakespeare, and 'The Godfather' in many parts... I'd buy a ticket to watch that in theatre...
The struggles around Timsoara reached epic proportions, that General was right, this is one for the history books. Pravda has dedicated an entire special issue to the heroes of Timsoara, underlining the expert use of Soviet-designed, Turkish-built tanks, lorries, and aeroplanes in the defence of that great Romanian city. The world's proletariat will surely rejoice at such a significant but hard won victory on the fascist invader.
The loss of Riga wasn't even mentioned in Pravda, save for the phrase "Heavy fighting continues in and around Riga" (Soviet Propaganda had a habit of using various levels of fighting to cover for lost territory, as most people understood it, when the paper said that Heavy fighting was going on somewhere, it had already been lost to the Germans days, if not weeks, ago... When they mentioned a German probe into a city, the place was probably facing an all-out attack, the defences holding a large German attack at bay meant that the Germans had broken through Soviet lines and the loss of the city or strategic location was imminent... I'm not entirely sure the translations of the phrases is entirely accurate, but that's the gist of it... The pravda was endlessly optimistic during those days...)
They might also print the phrase: "Valiant Mongolian and Soviet defenders are holding back Japanese forces in Uliastay, with minimal losses, as ferocious fighting continues in Ulaanbaatar. Mongolia remains firmly in the fight against the evil Fascists"...
The situation in Mongolia is now alarming, the terrain and infrastructure are atrocious, so it's very much of a slow-motion crash, but Mongolia is going down... I suppose the Mountaineers had to stop their advance due to the terrible Mongolian supply system, and/or a Japanese Attack on their position.
Except for the loss of Riga, the Patriotic front remains solid, especially in the vulnerable south. I'm convinced operation against Turkish lines have significantly reduced German punching power on the Soviet front, providing some welcome respite for the battered, but not beaten, Red Army.
Overall, not a bad week, though the impending fall of Mongolia is a serious dark mark, the bright light shining from Timsoara has made the entire Comintern rejoice.
In a nondescript neighbourhood of Ankara, the time approaches midnight. With a silent signal, a door is suddenly burst down in a small apartment.
“Police, don’t move!”
Kaya’s men are met with a startled yell in a language they cannot understand, followed by the sharp report of a small handgun. One of the secret policemen takes an unlucky bullet in the throat and gurgles out his last, unable to scream.
The rest open up on the shooter, quickly riddling him with bullets. Another spy – this one an Axis agent from Manchuria – has been ‘neutralised’.
Amidst the rest of the thrilling action, an amusing aside and one of the more amusing espionage reports I've read.
As for the main battle - a thrilling triumph! Vur ha! Indeed! This is one not only for the history books but a story that shall circulate through the entire Patriotic Front, inspiring our Comintern brethren of all stripes to stand fast against the Bratwurst Menace!
What a battle. I wonder how damaging that was to the Germans?
As for the fall of Mongolia I think it will depend on how the USSR reacts or over-reacts. If it pulls units from other fronts that is going to be a problem.
A very good set of updates to return to after a week away (once again unexpectedly in Wales, not hospital for once) so very interesting.
Interestinglt, I was inspired by the contonuing bit about the Thorn and Monte Carlo to start writing a skit with K and Cennet coming to the realisation thst the Britisb had managed to play everypne, including them, for chumps and had been running absurd missions from the casino just to distract everyone from thrir actual work of co-opting the Corsican Mafia into helping them invade Sardinia. It wpuld be at this ppint that they'd realise that the Thorn and whoever his bpss is are priper players in this war and bear seripus attention, plus thst all of their turkish operations and agents are pitentially blown at least to GB intelligence. And then they realise the German agents have all vanished as well and that THEY were alsp runming a massive false flag intelligent scheme to distract from theor spy network kn the balkans that was trying to find weak ppints in the turkish line. But I thought that was reaching a bit too far so didnt post.
And then it happened anyway! So I guess the canon is that the Axis and the Brits weren't completly wasting their time and aren't completly made up of idiot spies. Means K and co actually have some advesaries to fight!
OTL Event: Iraq. The Anglo-Iraqi War began, starting with airstrikes centred around RAF Habbaniya. The Anglo–Iraqi War (2–31 May 1941) was a British-led Allied military campaign against the Kingdom of Iraq led by the Axis aligned government of Rashid Ali, which had seized power during the Second World War. The campaign resulted in the downfall of Ali's government, the re-occupation of Iraq by the British Empire. [Not something that happens in HOI3, by the looks of it!]
I agree with the others. Had this been in the game it wuld have been a very interesting and potentially difficult decision. Do we take the plunge and get more land to secure the Persian connection? Or is the risk with Britian (either war or weakening it too much in the african campaign) too great? It would also make the intelligence game a bit more balanced for the UK (since having massive vassal agencies everywhere means they can just send loads of grunts to brute force all their spy work) and would mean we'd stand a chance against them in the Middle East.
An Allied spy from Oman is apprehended at midnight (traditional spy-catching time), snooping around the Foreign Ministry building. Knowing by now the fate of captured spies in Turkey (word of interrogations by Darth Kelebek having filtered out), the operative takes a cyanide capsule before he can be immobilised. He utters just a single word in Turkish before he dies: “Diken!”
Well someone clearly wants a meeting with the S.I.T.H. lord. Unfortunately, it's this guys boss and they figure throwing bodies at me is the best way to announce themsevles.
Sunray, the enemy have gone crazy – they are now assaulting recklessly. It is all we can do to defend against it. They are taking heavy casualties, but so are we. Both us and the 5th are running on vapour now. We can’t hold out against this much longer. Without reinforcement, we will ultimately fail.”
The tactic we all feared, Germany just smashing us with better, more numerous units in many places at once. We have no real answer to it aside from prepared defnece and luck. It has to be enough. If we go like francd, it should be enough for a good long while (if they fully xommit) but we cant win that kind of war. Lets hope this is a small incursion they decided to do with a hammer rather than the tip of a spear.
The wirst order an officer can give (that idnt a war crime I guess). The stuff of nightmares for everyone in the forces. 'Everything has gone wrong and you are being sacrificed to buy time for everyone else. Please do what you can.'
Nasty stuff. Medals and memorials don't quite cover it up.
After more than twelve days of non-stop fighting over a three-province front, Timisoara has held. The Yeniçeri Line remains intact – for now, anyway. I hope Hess chokes on his bratwurst and sauerkraut!
I hope so too. That was a nasty engagement and the worst fighting we've had in the war. And it's only going to get worse. I think we can safely take this to be the end of the begining in regards to the patriotic war. Now things are genuinely going to be hard for Turkey, not just her allies.
It's a turning point for them too. The last bits of border and frontier are slipping away and the middle part of their war begins, the nasty ground war in the mountains for every inch, followed (probably) by the inevitable push backwards towards turkish lands. Still...despite the idea originally going totally wrong (Hungary being kicked out quick!) Romania have done alright for a land unprepared for war with no defences on it's border. But we are going to need that turkish line of defence, i think.
Posssibly quite soon too, unless the Axis decide to go for us again or make a big breakthrough elsewhere...
No coincidence at all, as you probably suspected. Unashamedly borrowing elements of Australian military ‘ratel procedure’ for the little radio excerpts.
This is getting ridiculous, I'm fairly sure my limited reading time means I'm reading these slower than you write them. I'm 28 chapters behind and don't seem to be getting any closer. You will have to just stop writing for a while, it's the only way this is going to work.
Recovery takes on many forms apparently. However, being given a pile of cash and told to enjoy it probably helps. Being underweight and skinny is something of a novel experience but it wears thin fast.
No coincidence at all, as you probably suspected. Unashamedly borrowing elements of Australian military ‘ratel procedure’ for the little radio excerpts.
If you can squeeze in a 'crumpets for tea,' or 'clear moon tonight' I'll be impressed. Alas, the former has been used too many times in British codes to be obscure anymore.
This is getting ridiculous, I'm fairly sure my limited reading time means I'm reading these slower than you write them. I'm 28 chapters behind and don't seem to be getting any closer. You will have to just stop writing for a while, it's the only way this is going to work.
Haha! I’m generally updating a little more slowly than I was (usually no more than once a week, sometimes less), due to doing the other two AARs in rotation. I’m at about real time progress at the moment.
Really glad to have you back: if you have any comments etc on previous chapters as you work through them, please feel free to fire away!
This is getting ridiculous, I'm fairly sure my limited reading time means I'm reading these slower than you write them. I'm 28 chapters behind and don't seem to be getting any closer. You will have to just stop writing for a while, it's the only way this is going to work.
Poor old Yamut - not an unusual fate for that period. 
