The most fatal thing was the last shell. This shell accurately hit the lower edge of the No. 1 chimney of the Motherland. As a device that must penetrate several decks, the chimney has certain damage to the structural strength of the ship's hull. Here it is.
The most vulnerable part of the entire warship.
The shell that hit this critical area exploded immediately, and the huge shock wave shattered the connection between the chimney and the deck. The huge chimney broke from the root. It tilted to the left and then fell down.
The collapsed chimney fell heavily on the deck, and then flipped into the sea. It was this heavy fall that caused a wide crack to be knocked out of the already damaged hull again.
When the warship is traveling at high speed, the hull is already subjected to considerable seawater resistance and the torque of the propeller. Under the action of these forces, the cracks are torn wider and wider, and finally the huge cracks have completely broken the warship.
, the battleship split in two rolled helplessly on the sea surface twice, and then slowly sank to the bottom of the sea.
With the first result, the sailors of the combined fleet became more and more excited. They quickly focused their firepower on the bombardment and sent the already injured Yanko to the bottom of the sea.
Seeing that his own warships were being sunk one after another, Lieutenant General Lowak knew very well that if this continued, none of his own battleships would be spared. For this reason, he decisively ordered the fleet to continue sailing south. He would risk entering the coastal areas of the southern subcontinent.
A group of reefs creates trouble for the combined fleet.
The experienced Marshal House was also aware of the existence of this reef group. When he saw the opponent risking his life and rushed into it, the United Fleet did not pursue it rashly. They just cruised in the outer sea and conducted long-range bombardments on the Mediterranean Fleet of the Nantes Empire that was getting farther and farther away.
Seeing that he could not take advantage, Lieutenant General Lowak made an immediate decision, and the Mediterranean fleet broke away from contact with the opponent. The entire army sailed towards the important military port of the Nantes Empire in the southern subcontinent colony, the Tunisian military port located in the Gulf of Hammamet. See
When the opponent left, Marshal House had to stop the pursuit.
In addition to the two ex-Chinese ships that were sunk, the Mediterranean fleet fled into Tunisia like a bereaved dog. The remaining two Breton-class battleships and one Fatherland-class ex-Chinese ship were all injured, and their
Opponent, only two of the seven Combined Forces-class battleships were injured.
As for the torpedo boats that Lovak had high hopes for, after encountering their natural nemesis, the destroyer, they were unable to use their advantages at all. After destroying seven of the opponent's destroyers, only four torpedo boats escaped pursuit with the help of the reef.
kill.
This joint maritime operation between the Kingdom of Habfsburg and the Grand Duchy of Sardinia temporarily defeated the Mediterranean Fleet of the Nantes Empire, thus gaining control of the sea in the Mediterranean. The two countries that gained control of the sea can calmly cover their own armies to launch attacks.
At the same time, naval guns were used to threaten the defense lines of the Toulon garrison.
The defeat of the Mediterranean Fleet caused mourning in the Port of Toulon. For coastal port cities, without the cooperation of the navy, it is very difficult to hold on here. Unlike the gloomy situation of the Nantes army, the morale of the two countries' coalition forces is high.
, they quickly designated a new attack plan.
For this attack on the two coalition forces, the Kingdom of Habfsburg even spent a lot of money to transport four 203mm heavy artillery imported from the Chinese Empire. These were their only possessions. The four heavy artillery lived up to their expectations.
Their hope was that under the bombardment of these four heavy artillery pieces, the steel cap forts of the Nantes Empire were overturned one by one, and the heavy firepower of the Nantes Army was greatly affected.
At this time, the navy also came to join in the fun. The huge 330mm main gun became a nightmare for the Nantes Army. The huge crater could send a platoon of Nantes Army into the sky with one shot, which would cause death without warning.
The threat seriously damaged their morale and caused the entire defense line to waver. Fortunately, with the efforts of commanders at all levels to suppress it, the Nantes Army did not collapse on the spot.
At this time, the artillery of the Nantes Army was unable to fight back. Once they fought back, they would be easily detected by the battleships of the combined fleet, which would lead to targeted destruction. In Habfsburg and Sardinia, the coalition forces came from land and sea.
Under the joint attack of the Nantes Army, the Nantes Army was forced to abandon the port of Toulon and move inland before even using air power.
The Nantes Army was forced to abandon the Toulon military port and the defensive forces moved inland. They wanted to avoid the bombardment of the two countries' combined fleets and compete with the land forces. Such a strategic retreat did allow the Nantes Army to avoid greater losses, but
After losing the Toulon military port, the Nantes Navy lost its own military port on the northern coast of the Mediterranean, which had a great impact on the activities of its Mediterranean fleet.
What's even worse is that the Nantes Empire can only station and supply supplies at the Tunis military port in the southern subcontinent. It is completely impossible to repair and maintain ships. There is neither equipment nor personnel there. It has been sitting in the sea doing nothing for a long time.
All types of warships in the Mediterranean Fleet will completely lose their combat effectiveness, and the Mediterranean Sea will also allow the combined fleets of the two Allied Powers to roam freely.
In order to regain control of the sea in the Mediterranean, the Sal Empire began to consider passing through the Strait of Gibraltar under its control to support part of the fleet. It also formed a joint fleet with the Nantes Empire. At the same time, it began to contact the Nantes Empire, intending to have their fleet retreat to the rest of the strait.
The port is undergoing renovations.
No matter how the two countries contact each other in terms of naval alliance, the current strategic situation of the Nantes Empire on land is already quite dangerous. No matter how dangerous the northern front is under the oppression of the Yaman Empire, the two southern coalition forces first reached the south of the Nantes Empire.
of Castres.
The terrain of Castres is not dangerous, but it is the southern transportation hub of the Nantes Empire and the barrier to Toulouse, the country's third largest city. Once this city fails, the southern transportation line of the Nantes Empire will be cut off.
If it is dangerous, then the entire southern front of the empire will face the danger of insufficient logistical supplies.
The Nantes army had a small number of people. Faced with the bombardment of the superior firepower of the two countries' coalition forces, the Nantes Empire took off its air force, hoping to rely on bombers to suppress the frontline artillery of the two countries.
This is the case for the military leaders of various countries in the Western Continent. Although they have understood the power of aircraft in land warfare, under their inertial thinking, they still selectively forget this superior weapon many times. Perhaps only when there is insufficient artillery fire.
Only then will military strategists from various countries in the Western Continent think of bombers, which can completely replace artillery.
It's not that the senior military officials of the Nantes Empire couldn't think of it. The senior officials of the Kingdom of Habfsburg and the Grand Duchy of Sardinia also didn't expect that when the bombers of the Nantes Air Force came into the sky, the senior officials of the two countries woke up from their dreams.
Only then did they realize that they had made a big mistake.
During the advancement process, the two countries never thought of building a frontline field airport. When they saw the other side's bombers flying in, they found that their own fighter jets were unable to fly to the frontline due to insufficient range.
They could only watch the other side dropping bombs wildly, and the two countries' coalition forces on the ground could only set up all the machine guns they could find and shoot in the air.
The anti-aircraft shooting had some effect. At least the two coalition forces shot down a dozen bombers and retained half of their artillery. However, the ensuing artillery bombardment and counterattack by the Nantes Army caught the two coalition forces off guard.
It has to be said that Marshal Pétain, the commander of the Nantes Army, thought of the courage. The Nantes Army saw the opportunity and launched a desperate counterattack across the board. The machine gun fire and the shining bayonets caught the two coalition forces by surprise, killing and injuring tens of thousands of people.
After that, the coalition forces of the two countries chose to retreat, while the Nantes Army, which also lost tens of thousands of people, did not dare to pursue it due to its weak strength.
This battle caused the coalition forces of the two countries to put away the idea of underestimating the enemy. They began to build fortifications on the spot to stabilize their front lines. At the same time, a large number of engineering teams chose locations to build field airports, preparing to transfer the domestic air force to the front line and take advantage of their numerical advantage.
Overwhelmed the Nantes air force.
With these few days of buffer, Marshal Pétain was able to get two more army reserve teams from the top of the Nantes Army, along with a reinforced artillery division equipped with 155mm howitzers, and
A tank regiment is all the top management can support the southern front. As for the air force, since the battle in the north is also quite tight, the top management cannot give it even one more plane.
Looking at the strength in his hands, Marshal Pétain sighed again and again. He knew very well that with such a small number of troops, it would be difficult to defend against the attacks of the Kingdom of Habfsburg and the Grand Duchy of Sardinia, which almost devoted all their national strength.
There are more than 700,000 troops in front of us, and there are more than 400 large-caliber artillery pieces, which is far beyond what the 200,000 troops in our hands can compete with.
Sure enough, as Marshal Pétain expected, the coalition forces of the two countries attacked again after resting. This time they came well prepared. They dispatched a hundred bombers in advance, and under the cover of 230 fighter jets, they attacked directly.
The Nantes Army position, and the Nantes Air Force also took off all one hundred and ten fighter jets to meet the enemy, and a fierce battle broke out between the two sides in the airspace near Castres.
The pilots of the Nantes Air Force are of higher quality. With their extremely high flying skills, they gave full play to the full performance of the Eagle 1 fighter jets and fought tenaciously in air battles. The joint air forces of the two countries have never fought any decent air battles.
Although they lacked experience, they were numerous and well-trained, so they did not suffer any disadvantages in air combat. For a while, the two sides were inextricably linked.
Seeing that their own fighter jets had successfully entangled each other, the bomber groups of the two coalition forces immediately flew towards the Nantes military position. The hatch in the belly of the aircraft opened, and a string of fifty kilogram bombs rushed out, hitting the ground directly.
The Nantes Army, dense explosions came one after another, and the soldiers of the Nantes Army who could not escape had to get into the shell-proof hole. While enduring the deafening explosions outside, they prayed that the gun-proof hole where they were located would not be directly hit.
hit.
The shell-proof holes covered with logs could not protect against the direct bombardment of aerial bombs or large-caliber artillery shells. Soon some of the gun-proof holes were directly bombed. Those bomb-proof holes were completely opened, carrying the contents inside.
A squad of Nantes soldiers turned into a wisp of smoke.