Chapter 1035 We are the ones who were eliminated
The next day, the rising sun illuminated Lerwick, the largest port in the Shetland Islands. The British North Sea Fleet stationed there once again dispatched a group of patrol ships. The "swish" sound of the propellers hitting the water startled the seagulls, which screamed in the air.
Vice Admiral Freddy, commander of the British North Sea Fleet, did not sleep all night. He received a telegram from the War House in London last night:
"The German High Seas Fleet has concentrated all its forces and is heading towards your unit. Please be sure to prepare for defense!"
Lieutenant General Freddy was confused when he received the telegram.
The German High Seas Fleet?
They are already in a mess, but they still have the combat capability and dare to provoke the British Royal Navy?
It's a joke.
Soon, he received several telegrams in succession:
"Our Second Fleet has been blocked by the French army on the west side of the English Channel and cannot be reinforced."
"The Warspite was sunk. It may take three days for the Second Fleet to reinforce the North Sea."
"The German High Seas Fleet is likely stronger than yours, so please remain vigilant!"
…
Only then did Lieutenant General Freddy become nervous.
Vice Admiral Freddy was not afraid of the German High Seas Fleet, but of Charles.
He was actually able to sink the Warspite, which was a Queen Elizabeth class ship, and the North Sea Fleet only had one ship of the same class.
And anyone who is not stupid can see that it was Charles who designed to transfer the strength of the North Sea Fleet to the Atlantic Ocean and then blockade the English Channel so that they cannot return.
Charles would do this because he must have believed that the German High Seas Fleet could defeat the North Sea Fleet!
In panic, Vice Admiral Freddy quickly retrieved information on the two most recent naval battles, the Mediterranean and the English Channel.
He wanted to understand what he was facing.
After a night of research, he finally understood.
"The world has changed," Lieutenant General Freddy lamented to his staff, his eyes filled with helplessness. "And we are the ones being eliminated."
"What?" The staff officer was frightened by Vice Admiral Freddy's words. Was he saying that the British fleet would lose?
Lieutenant General Freddy didn't say anything further. As a commander, he couldn't "disrupt the morale of the troops."
However, he knew that the elimination of the Royal Navy was inevitable.
Even if we can defeat the German High Seas Fleet today, we will sooner or later be defeated by the French Navy.
This gap cannot be bridged by hard work.
While the French Navy already had bombers and torpedo aircraft, Britain was still working at full capacity to build battleships, and scientists and engineers were still working hard to increase the caliber of artillery and defensive armor, but these things were all useless on the battlefield.
Can you believe it?
The British Royal Navy has become a pile of scrap metal!
"General," the signalman reported, "We've spotted the main German fleet. They've concentrated all their warships, over 80 in total, and are heading towards our port!"
Lieutenant General Freddy immediately understood what the Germans meant. They wanted to decide the outcome in one battle.
The British fleet had to fight back.
This is the port of Lerwick, where the British fleet stores large quantities of fuel, supplies and ammunition.
Once Lerwick Harbour fell, even if the Second Fleet arrived to join the battle, the British fleet would face the dilemma of no fuel and no ammunition.
By attacking a place that the British had to defend, the Germans were forcing the British army to fight.
Vice Admiral Freddy gritted his teeth and said, "Leave the port and fight!"
…
On the German battleship "Bavaria", Admiral Scheer looked at the British fleet appearing in the sight of the telescope with satisfaction.
Port William is only 560 kilometers away from the Shetland Islands.
If they had moved at full speed, they could have arrived here last night and launched a night attack on Lerwick Harbor, but Admiral Scheer did not do so.
"It will be more advantageous for us to attack during the day," he explained to his staff:
"We have more advanced sighting and observation systems, thicker armor, and more importantly, we have more warships."
"Why should we fight a night battle when we have the upper hand in strength?"
This was a rare occasion when Germany had the upper hand in a naval battle, which made many people uncomfortable.
A staff member objected:
"But the British warships have greater speed, Captain, and they can always use this to seize a more advantageous 'T' formation."
"If it was a night battle, this wouldn't have happened."
In a sense, the armor and accuracy of the German warships were useless, because after being forced into the unfavorable position of the "T" formation, they would always be in the disadvantageous position of one warship facing several enemy ships at the same time.
This was true even though Germany had more warships than the British.
(Note: In naval battles, warships usually move in a long, straight line. Once they are arranged in a square formation, the speed of the left and right wings will be uneven when changing course, making the fleet's movement slow and orders unable to be transmitted in time, which is very clumsy. However, the disadvantages of this tactic are also obvious. If the speed is not as good as the enemy, there is a high probability that the enemy will occupy an advantageous position.)
"Then let them occupy the 'T' position." Admiral Scheer was confident.
…
Before the enemy and our fleets came into contact, seaplanes started fighting in the air.
But it was clear that the German seaplanes had the upper hand.
Admiral Scheer was inspired by Charles to attach importance to the navy's air superiority. He knew that aircraft on the battlefield were not only a matter of intelligence, but also a question of whether "torpedo planes" could be used.
Once the British seaplanes completely crushed the German army, it would likely mean that the German "torpedo planes" would be unable to drop torpedoes.
Therefore, Admiral Scheer used the most advanced aircraft engines on seaplanes in an effort to seize the initiative.
As one British seaplane after another was shot down, Admiral Scheer showed a relieved smile on his face.
However, the British fleet did not care about this. They seemed to still believe that "seaplanes are meaningless when enemy warships can be seen."
The British army remained the same, constantly changing direction and maneuvering by taking advantage of their speed.
The entire fleet moved around the High Seas Fleet like a long snake, sometimes approaching and sometimes moving away. Occasionally, a few high-speed battlecruisers were sent to approach the High Seas Fleet and fire a few shots to interfere with the German movement.
The British are very good at this.
The ultimate goal was to throw the German High Seas Fleet into disarray, or to allow the British fleet to seize the "T" position due to a single improper operation.
Admiral Scheer was very patient and commanded the fleet to deal with the situation carefully.
It was not until more than an hour later that a flaw was revealed, and the flagship led the fleet straight towards the British warships.
The British fleet opposite him immediately seized this rare opportunity.
"Half speed!" Vice Admiral Freddy, commanding the flagship "Barham", shouted the order: "Prepare for battle!"
If the German High Seas Fleet did not change its course, it would have run headlong into the encirclement of the British fleet.
Even if they changed course, they couldn't escape, Vice Admiral Freddy thought. As long as the British fleet adjusted its speed and course, it would always be in a favorable position to approach the enemy ships.
"You've already lost!" Lieutenant General Freddy felt relieved.
Even if the German High Seas Fleet had more warships, it would not change this outcome.
But at this moment, he noticed some discordant black spots appearing in the eastern sunlight.
(End of this chapter)
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