Chapter 300: Disagreements between Chinese and American Armies

The U.S. military's artillery preparations can be described as extravagant. It not only pulled up all the U.S. artillery, but also asked the French artillery to bring ten regiments of 210-caliber cannons. The French army's most powerful 400-caliber cannon.

, was also brought in by the US military. Anyway, this consumption was paid for by the US military, and the French army was happy to cooperate.

How can I put it, the nouveau riche is the nouveau riche. The U.S. Army and Navy are really not comparable. There were not even a few 105 howitzers before. If history had not been messed up, the 155 howitzers of the American Empire would have to be imported from France's Schneider m1917.

With the support of the French artillery, the artillery preparations were carried out for two full days. During the preparation of the US artillery fire, the Chinese Expeditionary Force Staff raised some doubts and believed that such a long artillery preparation was not necessary. Moreover, there are many water systems in eastern France.

It rained a little when the attack was launched, and the shelling caused the ground to become soft, and hundreds of tanks equipped by the US military had to be blinded.

This suggestion was rejected by the US military staff during the preparations for the war. Even though the top US military officials attached great importance to the combat experience of the Chinese Expeditionary Force, the US military below was very unconvinced.

Compared with the defeat of Britain and France in the Battle of the Somme, the US military is relatively trivial. In short, the US military learns from any experience, as long as it is considered useful. The French attach great importance to artillery fire, and the US military follows suit. The Chinese attach great importance to the tactics of small group assaults.

, the US military also learned from the coordinated operations of infantry and tanks, and finally came up with a strange combination.

As everyone knows, the Chinese Expeditionary Force attaches great importance to infantry-tank coordination. This is because the country is poor and cannot afford large-scale mechanization. It often uses limited armored forces and has to use infantry to open gaps before carrying out armored assaults.

After two days of artillery preparations, the US military began to attack, with more than 500 tanks in front. The barrage was a French trick, and the infantry accompanying the tanks was also a French trick. However, the US military made a slight improvement, so it would not be so

It’s easy to get out of touch.

The U.S. military's attack went smoothly and encountered little resistance. It took two days to capture Baldik. Once the German prisoners were captured and interrogated, they found out that the German troops did not have many troops on this line of defense, only three in total.

Infantry division. The German army stationed in Baledik only had one infantry brigade.

After the victory in the first battle, the US military's confidence greatly increased. It was learned that the main force of the German army had withdrawn from the eastern Baredik line half a month ago. The entire Allied Powers became nervous. Especially the British and French armies. They were even more nervous. The two countries'

The army was frightened by the Germans, a bit frightened.

Britain and France agreed that the German army was preparing a large-scale offensive against Britain and France. Otherwise, there would be no way to explain why the main force of the German army was no longer on the eastern battlefield. It is very likely that the main force of the German army had already arrived on the west side of Paris and was preparing to launch an attack.

Britain and France required the U.S. military to continue its offensive to threaten the German right wing and reduce the possibility of large-scale attacks by Britain and France. At the same time, the British and French armies stepped up preparations for war and reorganized their defense lines. Among them, the French army was the most screwed up, and grassroots officers and soldiers were unwilling to take the initiative to attack.

.Only accept defensive warfare.

In Europe in early June, the temperature at noon was close to 30 degrees. The U.S. military continued to advance in accordance with the requirements of its allies. On the march, the U.S. military team in the middle was very long. Pershing was still very serious. When formulating the battle plan, the U.S. military in the middle

The main force of the US military, fifteen divisions with 300 tanks, slowly pressed towards Verdun. Pershing did not seek victory, but wanted to be invincible and put enough pressure on the Germans. The road to the right was

The five US divisions moved eastward through Nancy, and the ten US divisions on the left were more cautious. Their mission was to cross the Aube River and press the Champagne Beach.

Such a deployment can be said to be smooth and stable, without any major problems. After winning the first battle, the U.S. military had approximately wiped out two German divisions. Their morale was high and they were advancing very fast. They did not notice the retreat of the German army and did not panic.

France is located on a large plain, and there are many water systems around Paris. When the French army retreated, the expeditionary force covering the retreat destroyed the bridges and roads. It seems that the German army has not been very effective in restoring these aspects. This current situation is the advancement of the US military.

A lot of trouble has come.

What needs to be emphasized is that the US military's previous artillery fire preparations were so fierce that they once again destroyed the road. Some flat ground was loosened countless times. A damn rain that was not too heavy turned the road into a mess.

It is extremely muddy, and the US tanks advance at a snail's pace. It is not that the tanks have difficulty marching on the existing road conditions. The key is that the US military is equipped with a large number of artillery, which requires cars for towing and logistics. The road conditions are terrible.

.

As a result, the US infantry marches faster than the tanks and artillery. The US military, which has never suffered losses, is completely unaware that their current formation is very bad. The infantry is in front, and the tanks and artillery are far behind.

Ten kilometers.

There was a difference in the speed of the US military's advance. The US military in the middle formed a protrusion after three days of marching. At the same time, in the jungle on the other side of the Meuse River, more than 500 German tanks were waiting quietly.

On June 5, when the U.S. troops on the left approached the outskirts of Champagne Beach, they encountered strong resistance from the Germans. The Germans built a solid line of defense during this period. When the U.S. troops came head-on, they were violently hit by German artillery. The leading troops were about

One battalion was severely damaged.

Soon the results of the aerial reconnaissance were obtained. The German army built a frontal defense line of about 20 kilometers here and deployed at least ten divisions of troops. This time the Allies were relieved, and it was once again verified that the German army's main attack direction should be the western battlefield.

Champagne Beach is a very important place. It can cut off the connection between Reims and Verdun to the north, and reach Epernay to the west. There is no problem at all for the German army to set up defenses here. After reaching this conclusion, both Britain and France believed that the German army

A fierce attack on the western battlefield will inevitably be launched in the near future. At the critical moment, an aerial reconnaissance by the French army was "lucky" to photograph a large number of German "tanks" hidden in a forest in the western battlefield, as well as a large number of German "artillery" units.

French Commander-in-Chief Pétain judged that the German army was preparing a large-scale attack to cut off the sea lanes between Britain and France, and was on the verge of launching an attack. Pétain was deeply grateful that he had not accepted Pershing's offensive proposal before, because

On the western battlefield at this moment, the British and French armies totaled one million, and had sufficient depth. At the same time, they believed that this was the best opportunity for a defensive counterattack.

Pétain immediately made a decision and transferred the French Second Army from Orleans to the western battlefield. At the same time, he asked the US military to continue attacking, creating the illusion that the Allied forces were mainly attacking in the east, giving the Germans an illusion that their tactics were deceiving.

It succeeded. As long as the German army launches an attack on the western battlefield, the British and French allied forces can rely on strong fortifications to consume the German army and launch a comprehensive counterattack. By then, with one million troops from the US military in the east and the Chinese Expeditionary Force, they can completely cut off the connection between the German army from the east to the west.

Even if many German troops cannot be eliminated, they can force the entire German army to retreat, and it is easy to recapture Paris.

Pershing was relatively inclined to attack in tactics. Although he was a little dissatisfied with Petain's instructions, he still decided to cooperate. However, before that, Pershing had to deal with the Chinese Expeditionary Force, and the chance of being responsible for this attack was not high.

Pershing personally rushed from Bar-le-Duc to Troyes, where a defense change was taking place. The main force of the Chinese Expeditionary Force was changing defenses with the French army. The temptation to regain Paris was too great, and Pétain did not hesitate to choose to invest the main force of the Chinese Expeditionary Force.

For the eastern battlefield, the French troops in the east will be transferred to the western battlefield.

Of course, Pétain's small thoughts could not be hidden from the commanders of Pershing and the Chinese Expeditionary Force. So after the meeting, Pershing said to Cai E and others unceremoniously: "General Pétain seems to have seen the recapture of Paris."

This requires that the Chinese and American armies will invest huge forces to launch an attack and cut off the connection between the German army from the east to the west. In order to complete this strategic concept, the Chinese and American armies must at least recapture Saint-Meneuld."

Pershing was obviously trying to sow discord between China and France, but this intention obviously failed. Because these three people in the Chinese Expeditionary Force Command were not optimistic about the offensive campaign in the east.

"General Pershing, we believe that the first priority of the Chinese and American coalition forces is to level the front. The US military in the middle is too advanced. Before a breakthrough is made in the German defense line on Champagne Beach, I suggest that the US military stop advancing." Cai E put forward straightforwardly.

Pershing looked calm and disapproved of China's views. The British and French armies have always looked down on the US military, especially the US Army. In the eyes of the British and French armies, they are just a group of rookie troops. If it were not for the Chinese Expeditionary Force in the eastern battlefield

existence, Britain and France simply did not trust the U.S. military to support the overall situation.

Pershing has a strong desire to prove that the combat effectiveness of the US military is not bad at all, and that the US military can also fight. But now it seems that the offensive power of the Chinese ** team is not strong, and it is not as good as their performance on the battlefield.

The kind of strength that comes out.

"General Cai, I think your army is too cautious. Britain and France have received accurate intelligence on the Western Front, and the German army is preparing to launch a fierce attack. The French Air Force has discovered at least 300 German tanks and 600 to 700 large-caliber artillery pieces.

"Although Pershing did not directly say that the Chinese Expeditionary Force was afraid of fighting the German army, in fact this meaning was already revealed.

In response to this, Zhang Xiaohuai sneered unhappily: "General Pershing, our opponent is the German army who has experienced hundreds of battles. On the Eastern Front battlefield, they once killed nearly two million Russian troops in one go. It depends on
Chapter completed!