Muscat is located at the gateway from the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean. It borders the Arabian Sea to the southeast and the Gulf of Oman to the northeast. It is surrounded by mountains and rivers. It has beautiful scenery and an important strategic position.
Milani Castle, Japanese Navy and Army Joint Headquarters.
*** Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Aircraft Carrier Task Force, and Army Admiral Kotaro Nakamura, Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Army Indian Ocean Front, sat across from each other at two ends of a long European style table, with navy and army generals sitting on both sides.
Chuichi Nagumo annihilated the British Eastern Fleet in the Battle of Maldives in the Indian Ocean, creating a myth for his naval career. Emperor Hirohito was so excited that he asked the headquarters, the Military Command and the Navy Ministry to promote his rank in an exceptional manner. The promotion ceremony was held on May 5
In mid-month, Nagumo Chuichi became the only squadron commander within the combined fleet who could rival Commander Yamamoto Isoroku.
Although Kotaro Nakamura turned the tide in the Battle of Western Siberia and allowed all ministries to retreat safely, and made great achievements, the headquarters has decided to take a defensive position in Northeast Asia and bring the Far East and North Korea under the management of the Kwantung Army.
After the commander of the Kwantung Army, Terauchi Juichi, was transferred to the south as the commander of the Southern Army, with the support of Sugiyama Gen, Nishio Hisao, Oiso Kuniaki, Tojo Hideki and others, and Umezu Yoshijiro's contribution to the suppression of the army after the February 26th Incident
, and the "Ho-Mei Agreement" created conditions for Japan to invade North China, and he was appointed commander of the Kwantung Army by the Japanese Emperor Hirohito.
The Kwantung Army was immediately organized into three front armies. Among them, Yamashita Tomobumi, who had made great achievements in attacking Malaysia, was transferred to serve as the commander of the first front army. The commander of the first army, Kozuki Kiyoshi, served as the commander of the second front army, and the commander of the fifth army, Yamada Otsuzo.
Served as commander of the Third Front.
The former commander of the Third Army of the Siberian Front, Shunroku Hata, was promoted to the commander of the China Expeditionary Force. The former commander-in-chief, Hisao Nishio, was transferred back to Tokyo to serve as the military counselor.
Nakamura Kotaro was unwilling to serve under his junior, Umezu Yoshijiro (Umezu Yoshijiro had succeeded Nakamura Koutaro as the commander of the Chinese garrison), so he took the initiative to apply for transfer to the Southern Army. Terauchi Juichi was worried that he could not find a respected general to lead the army to attack the west.
Indian Ocean, immediately appointed him as the commander of the Indian Ocean Front, and the chief of staff was Lieutenant General Adachi Twenty-three, the adjutant of Juichi Terauchi.
The front army has jurisdiction over the 2nd, 45th, 67th, and 100th divisions, as well as the 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th divisions of the Lanyin Army.
Since the German army achieved a decisive victory in Europe in June, conquering the Persian Gulf and occupying the oil producing areas held by the British, it has become the next target of conquest for the Japanese base camp.
Originally, the aircraft carrier task force was supposed to be dispatched in late June, but Nan Yunzhong and his party were always cautious, so the fleet was postponed until mid-July. When all the ships in the fleet had arrived and ammunition and supplies were sufficient, the carrier task force was dispatched from Xingzhou, Malaya and
As a result, the delay did not matter, and important ports on the west coast of India such as Bombay and Karachi that were supposed to be under control fell into the hands of the Shengshicai Ministry.
At this stage, the Japanese government was unwilling to have too much of a stalemate with the Soviets, so it asked Nanyun Zhong to move the task force to Muscat in the southeastern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, preparing to occupy the oil fields in southwestern Persia.
After opening up the Eurasian railway bridge that runs through Iraq and Syria, we will successively attack the very southeastern region to build a solid and absolute defense circle for Japan.
In the future, these defense circles will be guarded by the Indian Army, the Malayan Army, the Burmese Army and the Indian Army, supplemented by a small number of Japanese troops. Britain and France will even attack India, Burma, Malaya and the Indian Army in the future.
We must first remove these nails on the road ahead, which will give the Japanese army enough warning and preparation time.
On the night of August 2, after three regiments of the 45th Division occupied Trusil, the Bahrain Islands, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other places on the western coast of the Persian Gulf and carried out brutal massacres, the 2nd Division's
The Fourth Regiment also landed at the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab and occupied the port of Fao on the west bank of the river mouth.
On August 3, the Fourth Regiment advanced northward at full speed, and successively captured Mai Amir, Kut Epudura, Shumai and Sibai to ensure the safety of waterway traffic along the way. Two light cruisers and eight destroyers were quickly escorted.
The troop transports drove straight in from the Shatt al-Arab River, and the 16th, 29th, and 30th Regiments of the Second Division successfully defeated a regiment of British troops defending the city and occupied Abadan, the most important oil port city in southwest Persia.
On August 4, the Japanese troops divided into two groups and continued to move upstream along the Shatt al-Arab River. On August 6, they captured Basra and once again carried out crazy looting and massacre. Next, they will follow the railway to the U.S.
The city of Siriya advanced until it reached Baghdad.
The other route went north along the Persian Railway and captured Ahvaz yesterday.
As early as the moment the Japanese army captured Muscat, the British army began to destroy oil field facilities in Persia, exploded refineries and oil wells, and demolished oil pipelines. The entire Khuzestan region was in chaos.
In this way, the Japanese army has established a foothold in the Persian Gulf. Just when Nakamura Kotaro is ambitious and ready to show off his power, this morning the headquarters, staff, military command department, Army Ministry, Navy Ministry, Combined Fleet Headquarters and Southern
The army headquarters sent urgent telegrams to the radio station controlled by Nanyun Zhongyi. The telegram informed Anjiajun that a large number of troops had been dispatched to fully invade Persia and India.
The base camp asked Nagumo Chuichi to contact Nakamura Kotaro as soon as possible and quickly start consultations to ensure the safety of troops and ships, and to withdraw from the Persian Gulf if necessary.
Nakamura Kotaro and Ichigan Army General were originally discussing the war situation at Jalali Castle, which serves as the army headquarters. Suddenly they were met by comrades from the navy. They didn't know what had happened. After sitting down, they looked at Nagumo Chuichi in confusion. They didn't know.
At this juncture, why did he call the army officers to this world-famous castle? Did he want to get a share of the army's rich profits?
Nagumo Chuichi saw the provocative looks in the eyes of these army generals, and waved his hand a little irritably, signaling the chief of staff, Major General Ryunosuke Kusaka, to explain the situation.
Ryunosuke Kusaka stood up with a copy of the manuscript he had summarized before the meeting. He looked around at the rebellious army generals. He saw many smiling faces and did not care. He deliberately raised his voice and said in an extremely serious tone:
"Gentlemen, in the morning I received more than ten urgent telegrams from the base camp, the General Staff Department, the Military Command Department, the Army Ministry, the Navy Ministry, the Combined Fleet Headquarters and the Southern Army Headquarters. These telegrams illustrate only one thing - our old man
The rival Anjia army is launching attacks on Persia and India!
"Although they are still far away from us now, if we don't prepare early, they are very likely to fall into the trap carefully designed by the other party! You all know that due to limited transportation capacity, our army in the Persian Gulf now only has two divisions.
, plus the Lanyin 8th Division used as an occupying force, the total strength is only 60,000!
"According to intelligence, the total number of troops dispatched by the opponent is about forty divisions, and the strength of each division is equivalent to our second-class division. In other words, the number of enemy troops will exceed 600,000, which is ten times that of ours.
.....The base camp and the army and navy headquarters have required us to come up with a response plan as soon as possible. Whether to fight or retreat must be decided at today's meeting and submitted to the base camp for approval!"
"Yes, we must form a unified opinion immediately!"
Nagumo Chuichi stood up, nodded to Ryunosuke Kusaka, motioned for him to sit down, and then said in a calm tone:
"The Persian Gulf starts from the mouth of the Shatt al-Arab River in the northwest and reaches the Strait of Hormuz in the southeast. It is about 990 kilometers long, about 50 kilometers to 338 kilometers wide, and covers an area of about 240,000 square kilometers. It seems that
It seems very vast, but as long as the enemy penetrates the Strait of Hormuz and builds military airports in the northern part of the Persian Gulf, our ships in the Gulf will be completely under the threat of enemy bombers.
"The entire Persian Gulf is like a bottle placed sideways, and the mouth of the bottle is the Strait of Hormuz. This strait is about 150 kilometers long from east to west, 97 kilometers at its widest point, and only
Forty-eight kilometers, 56 to 125 kilometers wide from north to south, with an average water depth of 70 meters, the shallowest point is 11 meters, and the deepest point is 210 meters. Such a width is not suitable for most Chinese ships in our fleet.
For me, it is very uncomfortable. Once controlled by the enemy, it will be like an iron chain across the river, unable to advance or retreat!
"All the intelligence today was provided free of charge by Germany at the strong request of our diplomats! According to the rigorous Germans, our opponents dispatched at least more than 3,000 fighter planes today, including two bombers.
The direct consequence of more than a thousand battles was that the Soviet army in Persia and India was completely destroyed.
They were all stunned and could not prevent effective resistance at all! Moreover, the Germans predicted that so many fighters were only a small part of the opponent's huge fighter hangar. If necessary, the opponent could organize two or even three times the number of fighters.
Such bombers would undoubtedly be an unprecedented disaster for our task force!
"The previous naval battles of Malacca and Maldives have fully demonstrated how weak ships are in the face of aircraft bombing. Therefore, I have ordered the 'Flying Dragon', 'Qilong', 'Yulong', and 'Sang' to enter the Persian Gulf.
Dragon aircraft carrier,'than
The high-speed battleship Rui, the heavy cruiser Myoko and sixteen destroyers are covering the transport fleet and are ready to withdraw from the Persian Gulf at any time and arrive at Muscat to join the main force of our fleet! If the army wants to fight with our
If the ships are to retreat together, they must move quickly!"
"No, without the reconnaissance and protection of carrier-based aircraft, it will be very difficult for the Army to advance!"
Major General Anda Twenty-three, chief of staff of the Southern Army's Indian Ocean Front, frowned and said: "I don't know what the gentlemen at the base camp are thinking. The enemy is still thousands of kilometers away from us. Is it too impatient to retreat at this time?"
The Soviet military strength quickly recovered after a wave of attacks, and the possibility of a stalemate between the two sides in central Persia is very high!
"Taking a step back, even if the Chinese gain an advantage, it will take at least one to two months to advance from the eastern border of Persia to the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf. In this time, our army's landing force can complete the handover of the Southern Army Command.
It's my mission! Now, the right wing of the Second Division has just occupied the oil field area in southwestern Persia. The Eighth Division of Lanyin is organizing local people to clean up the bombed mines and refineries in order to resume production as soon as possible and prepare for the great revolution.
*The empire has provided abundant fuel. If we retreat now, won’t our previous efforts be in vain?”
Kotaro Nakamura was also very dissatisfied:
"The main purpose of the Imperial Base Camp is actually to open up the Eurasian railway bridge. Once the German army moves south, we can join forces with it at any time, and then advance to North Africa together to completely expel the British and French forces from Africa! We will start from the Southern Army Commander
Orders received from the Department
, the first is to occupy the oil fields in the Persian Gulf, the second is to completely eliminate the puppet government supported by the British in the Persian Gulf coast, the third is to open up the Eurasian railway bridge, and the fourth is to occupy the Suez Canal after joining forces with the German troops moving south, allowing
The Empire holds the key to free access to Europe!
"So far, the governments of Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait have been completely eradicated by our heroic royal army, and the decaying bodies of their royal families and government members have been thrown into the Persian Gulf by the heroic and invincible royal army for fish to eat. Part 1
The King of Iraq supported by the British after the Second European War
In the country, since the death of the young King Ghazi who mysteriously crashed his car into a telephone pole in April this year, the regime has completely fallen into the hands of the pro-British Sharif faction. This dim government actually dared to brazenly defy the empire and the
Declaring war between Germany and Italy is a complete act of seeking death!
"In front of our absolute strength, these chickens and dogs are not worth mentioning! Mr. Nanyun, believe me, in less than half a month, we will be at the gates of Baghdad and treat those daring Arabs like cockroaches and bugs
Eliminate them all! As long as the Iraqi royal family and government are destroyed, most of our mission for this trip will be completed. Nagumo-kun, are you just sitting back and watching this great opportunity to make great achievements slip away before your eyes?"
"sorry!"
Nagumo Tadashi bowed deeply to Nakamura Kotaro and said apologetically:
"Nakamura-kun, please forgive Nagumo for being unable to obey! Nagumo cannot pin the fate of the Imperial Navy on the illusory pursuit of military achievements! Today, we can delay the capture of Baghdad for half a month. Who knows whether the army will be able to capture Baghdad in half a month?
For a new goal, let's give up again
Where are the navy's precious ships waiting? These ships were slowly accumulated by the empire over time. Today, the Imperial Navy has finally surpassed the aging British Navy and become the second largest navy in the world. I will never allow our warships to be used
Put in a dangerous situation!
"Nakamura-kun, if the China people were so easy to deal with, the Army would not have made any inroads in northern China, and would not have tolerated it in Malaya and Burma! Even if it is as Nakamura-kun said, the Navy would not have left Xingzhou, Lanyin,
and Malaya’s
The Sixty-seventh, 100th Division and Lanyin's 9th, 10th, and 11th Divisions were transported, and they were far from being a match for the Nanhua Army with forty divisions! Instead of wasting time, it was better to find another way and go far away
Get away from the threat of the South China Army!"
Nakamura Kotaro's face turned red with anger. After a while, he suppressed his anger and said in a sincere tone: "It is really difficult to make the Japanese Imperial Army give up its mission... Nagumo-kun, you
What do you think of this? The navy will leave two reconnaissance squadrons in the northern Persian Gulf and the west coast. The ships will first withdraw to the Gulf of Oman. When we need it, we can send some supply ships to transport ammunition and supplies to us!
"At this time, our 45th Division is advancing towards Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government is as short-sighted as the Government of the Kingdom of Iraq. It dares to declare war on the empire and does not teach them a painful lesson. How can it teach His Majesty the Emperor
of brilliance?
"The entire country of Saudi Arabia has less than 10,000 troops. The weapons and equipment are extremely backward and scattered across Saudi Arabia. They are no match for the royal army. After Riyadh is wiped off the face of the earth, the 45th Division will
Return to the seaside fully loaded with gold and jewels captured by King Ibn Saud during the war to unify Hijaz, Najd and the areas under his control, and then decide the whereabouts of the army based on changes in the situation!"
Nagumo Chuichi saw the greedy look in Nakamura Kotaro's eyes, and his heart moved, and he suddenly understood why Nakamura Kotaro was so insistent.
You must know that none of the people in the army are fuel-efficient. It is said that during the attack on British Malaya, Yamashita Fengfumi ransacked and even forced more than a dozen people to death in order to get the exact location of several legendary gold caches.
The indigenous chief only donated 200,000 taels of gold to the royal family at the beginning of the year. I don’t know how much more gold he concealed in private!
There is also a rumor that the reason why General Ishikawa Koichi was promoted so quickly is because he secretly transported gold to the royal family four times during his expedition to the Lanyin Islands and Borneo. The total amount exceeded 500,000 taels. Emperor Hirohito made an exception and transferred gold to the royal family.
His name was included in the royal genealogy, and he was given the title Sunrise Palace Haoren, Prince Jinjue, his seal was Orchid, and his rank was the fourth level of the Great Honor.
Ishikawa Koichi was once a taboo existence in the royal family. He was the product of Taisho Emperor Yoshihito's marriage to a maid from the Liaodong Peninsula of China before he succeeded to the throne. He has half Chinese blood in his bones and has been prepared since he was born.
Suffering discrimination, his mother died amid ridicule and ridicule when he was one year old. Later, Ishikawa Koichi was sent out of the Zichen Palace and handed over to a samurai to raise him.
In late November of 2006, one month before his death, Yoshihiro suddenly thought of Mr. Ishikawa. Koichi Ishikawa, who had graduated from the University of China and had been serving as a lieutenant in the army for five years, suddenly awakened the compassion in his heart.
Someone was sent to summon Ishikawa Koichi from his station in Shenyang to the Tokyo Imperial Palace to ask the emperor to
Prince Hirohito, Chichibu Miya Yoshihito, Takamatsu Nobuhito, and Mikasa Miya Takahito treated the exiled brother kindly, and called their confidants in the army to give Ishikawa Koichi a bright future. At this time, Ishikawa Koichi knew that he
His life experience began to search for the truth...
Thinking of the news circulating among the top military officials, Nagumo Chuichi couldn't help but feel jealous, and deliberately asked: "Nakamura-kun, why don't you mention the Second Division? After all, the Second Division goes deep into the interior areas of Iraq and Persia, and it is dangerous.
Bigger!”
Kotaro Nakamura said proudly: "The Second Division is the Army's first-class division, with nearly 30,000 people in one division. The two divisions of the Royal Government of Iraq, coupled with its internal and external troubles, are no match for our Second Division.
!After occupying the oil field area of Khuzestan, the right-wing army of the Second Division has handed over the defense to the two regiments of the 8th Lanyin Division. The right-wing army of Khuzestan will move northward via the railways and roads in Persia and attack from the flanks.
Baghdad!
"According to the plan made before the war, we are not interested in occupying Iraq, so during the march, we will adopt a three-way policy of looting, burning, and killing all to deal with those inferior races. These people are the same as the people in Bangladesh and other places, they are tough
It is simply impossible to win over the pro-British elements! Our goal is to clear as many obstacles as possible and obtain enough strategic supplies. Anyway, there are railways and ports along the way, so we don’t have to worry about the supplies not being delivered!"
Nan Yunzhong nodded and suddenly said:
"Let's do this, Mr. Nakamura, our Navy will try its best to be vigilant in the Arabian Sea. We will not leave until we receive new tasks from the Military Command, the Navy Ministry and the Combined Fleet Command to give the Army the strongest support! However,
I hope the Army can use one-third of this operation to be put at the disposal of our Navy! After all, we are all in the same boat, we can’t just watch you get rich, we can’t even drink the soup, right?”
Nakamura Kotaro looked at Nagumo Chuichi with some surprise, and suddenly smiled: "Okay, after all, we have to turn over part to His Majesty the Emperor, and dividing it into three points is just right! There is gold everywhere in the Middle East and Africa, and there will be more opportunities for everyone to make a fortune in the future.
, please take good care of me, Mr. Nanyun!"
When a group of people from the army and navy heard the conversation between the two big guys, they burst into smiles. The original barriers suddenly disappeared, and each seemed to find the other much more pleasing to the eye.
Just when the conference room was peaceful, the communications officer hurried into the room and handed Nagumo a telegram.
Nagumo Chuichi frowned after reading it, and Nakamura Kotaro asked nervously: "Nagumo-kun, does the base camp insist that we evacuate?"
"Yes and no!"
Nagumo Chuichi handed the telegram to Nakamura Kotaro, and then said to a room of navy and army officers: "The base camp requires the army to stay in Muscat and protect this naval base with an absolutely superior force. The main force of the fleet will move south as soon as possible to Madagascar.
Advance to Staida Island and force the French navy's main fleet to surrender there!
"After the British Navy's Eastern Fleet was destroyed by us, the French Navy, at the strong request of the British, had to mobilize its two Mediterranean fleets and the South Atlantic Fleet to merge into the Indian Ocean Fleet, using the port of Madagascar as a naval base to defend the western Indian Ocean and
East coast region of Africa.
"However, with the surrender of France, the status of this fleet suddenly became embarrassing. The French Vichy government wanted the fleet to obey its orders, but de Gaulle, the leader of the French independence movement who invaded Britain, demanded that the fleet obey its orders.
The British were worried that the French would rebel, and had already sent the main force south to the Atlantic Ocean for strategic maneuvers, and if necessary, to sink it in South African waters.
"The base camp, the Military Command, the Navy Ministry and the Combined Fleet Command require us to move south quickly and make an emergency landing on the French. If we can accept the French ships, our Imperial Navy can catch up with the gap with the U.S. Navy and become
The world’s largest naval power!”
There was enthusiasm in everyone's eyes, and everyone knew what this meant, but thinking about the benefits that were about to be obtained, they realized that such a transfer was really not the right time!
Nakamura Kotaro thought for a while and said: "Well, Nagumo-kun, you can lead the main force of the fleet south and leave behind two small aircraft carriers, a few destroyers, all the submarines and transport fleets! Anyway, the main force of the fleet will stay here, and for the time being only
I can just watch, but if we can make an emergency landing of the French naval fleet, it will be extremely important to the empire, to Nagumo-kun, and even to our Indian Ocean Front! We should still focus on the overall situation!"
"That--"
Nagumo Chuichi looked at Nakamura Kotaro with some hesitation.
Kotaro Nakamura couldn't help but smile and said with certainty:
"Don't worry, Nanyun-kun, we will never swallow up the share that belongs to your navy. After all, we have to rely on your navy to transport so many things back to the country, right? We are outside the territory, and we are destined to live alone for a long time.
Only when everyone gets rich is the right way."
"good!"
Nagumo Chuichi finally felt relieved and stood up and said: "Navy gentlemen, let us wish our army colleagues a complete success in their march! I will make the following arrangements..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
***: Although it’s a little late, I still wish my brothers a new year, good health, and all the best!
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