While the German offensive in France was frustrated, the Egyptian army's offensive in Italy was smooth.
They occupied Sicily with devastating speed and used it as a springboard to launch a naval attack on the entire Italy, not just on land along the coastline of the Apennine Peninsula.
It is often said that the terrain of Italy is like a kicking leg. Now the attack of the Egyptian army and the British navy is to attack from the toes, knees and the entire calf of this leg at the same time, and then advance towards the thigh, rather than starting from the toes.
Push up little by little.
This was also due to the large-scale air raid organized by Chen Mo. Although landing on the aircraft carrier was indeed a bit difficult for the army pilots and did cause some non-combat losses, overall the air raid was still very successful.
Results.
The air defense force in southern Italy was almost completely destroyed, all major cities were attacked by air raids, the air force was also wiped out, and the airport was bombed, losing its ability to take off and land.
It can be said that after this air raid, the Italian skies were no longer defenseless for the Egyptian army.
After the Egyptian army quickly captured Sicily, the huge fleet of aircraft that was mobilized transferred to the airport in Sicily and continued to take off from here to maintain air suppression over Italy.
The British navy was not idle at this time. On the one hand, it was looking for the main force of the Italian navy to seek a decisive battle. On the other hand, it cooperated with the Egyptian army to continue the landing operations and launched attacks in many port cities in southern Italy. The Italians were exhausted.
What the Egyptian army adopted was not a step-by-step traditional offensive method, but a leap-frog operation using the advantages of the sea and sky.
The air force conducts reconnaissance and selects attack locations, directly skipping the heavily defended areas, and using its own powerful maneuverability to attack weakly defended areas of the enemy. The descending troops of the Krieg Death Corps directly parachute in for a surprise attack, and do not wait for the results after the victory is achieved.
After the battle, we retreated to the beach and were picked up by a British warship.
Although this did not capture many places, the trouble it caused to the Italian army was far greater than the few cities they captured.
Because they were being attacked everywhere, the Italian army's defense was almost completely mobilized. Many troops were exhausted, and their command was also in chaos.
Under this circumstance, when the real main force of the Egyptian army began to attack, the Italian defense line almost collapsed at the first touch.
The Egyptian offensive forces were about 60 divisions, including 20 mechanized infantry divisions, 15 infantry divisions, and the rest were all second-line reserve divisions.
The main force advances and does not stop after occupying a city or strategic point. They will only reorganize and rest for a while, directly replenish troops from the reserve division behind them and then continue the attack. As for the occupation and maintenance of public security, all the work is left to them.
A preparatory division was assigned to take charge.
With this method of attack, southern Italy fell even faster than Poland. In just twenty days, the Egyptian army had almost reached the city of Rome, and all the cities along the eastern coast had also fallen.
"Rome, speaking of which, I have never been to Rome!" Standing at a place where he could overlook the city of Rome, Littorio looked at the city of seven hills in the distance, his tone full of emotion.
Gu Diao
"Rome is not a city by the sea. A warship cannot enter." Next to Littorio, a necromancer with a silver mask was speaking in Chen Mo's voice. It was obvious that at this moment Chen Mo would His will is coming to this body.
Littorio naturally knew that he was with Chen Mo, and was not surprised by this. He just asked Chen Mo: "Mussolini has fled Rome. It is only a matter of time before we capture this place. The original Italian government will not give us How much trouble it has caused, but as for that Holy See...Commander, have you decided how to deal with him?"
The Holy See that Littorio refers to is, of course, the pope of the Christian sect. After all, the so-called holy city, the Vatican, is within the city of Rome. Since Pepin dedicated his soil, it has always been the holy place of the Christian sect and the holy land of all Europe. Religious center for Christian believers.
Before the Renaissance, all of Europe could be said to be under the religious rule of the church.
The king must be crowned by a pope or a bishop, and weddings and funerals must be presided over by priests. Although these seem to be just some customs, they can very intuitively reflect the rule of religion over people, and the status of divine authority over royal authority.
Although religious theology gradually declined with the rise of ideological emancipation and science after the Renaissance, the Pope, as the recognized leader of Christian denominations around the world, still has considerable influence.
Although this influence is no longer as outrageous as it was in the Middle Ages, when one could arbitrarily declare a king or even an entire country to be the enemy of God and call on the entire Christian world to crusade together, but if the Pope's support can be obtained, at least it will be helpful for Chen Mo to control Italy. Very helpful.
Among other things, asking the church to send pastors to appease the people and reduce opposition and unrest, although the effect is not immediate, is quite effective.
As for gaining religious support, it is also very good news for the current European war.
Although countries around the world are weakening and combating the influence of religion on state power, the Christian Church's ruling beliefs in Europe for thousands of years have long been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. If influence and propaganda can be carried out in the name of religion, especially with the endorsement of the Pope, this will Undoubtedly, it is a great call and encouragement to the people at the bottom.
After all, the many Crusades launched by Europe in the Middle Ages were largely related to the call of the Pope at that time.
Although the current Pope's influence is not that great, if the war against Germany can be described as a new holy war and a new Crusade, this will undoubtedly be a great encouragement to the people's hearts and morale.
Therefore, the first thing Littorio considered after arriving in Rome was what to do with the Pope.
After all, she also clearly knew that Chen Mo was a necromancer, which was inherently in conflict with the sect's beliefs. Not to mention that Chen Mo's propaganda in Egypt promoted himself as a god and revived the beliefs of the ancient Egyptian gods. .
These things are in conflict with the beliefs of the Church of Kyrgyzstan. In this case, it is not impossible for Chen Mo to say that he wants to kill the Pope.
Of course, Littorio also knew that Chen Mo sent her and the mage group to Rome largely to prevent the church from causing trouble.
In the land of Egypt, the gods who have been away for thousands of years have left many miracles. Who can guarantee that the church that has ruled the entire Europe for thousands of years has no foundation?
