From Sandevich to Kvalba, you must cross a ridge that runs across the island by land. Its middle section is high and the mountain is steep, with a height at the east and west ends low and a gentle slope. For infantry carrying full combat equipment, a hill below 40 degrees is not too difficult, but for armored vehicles that are rushing around the flat ground and are invincible, the climbing is a very professional technical data. After theoretical calculations and repeated actual vehicle tests, the maximum climbing slope of the German-made Hubert-14 light tank under combat load is 33 degrees. Considering that the real hill does not have a uniform slope like the test site, the driver of the chariot was told to try to avoid long slopes with a visual slope of more than 20 degrees...

Accompanied by dull, monotonous, and roaring engines, a team of crawlers slowly crawled on the north side of the ridge. The ridge that separates Sandevich and Kvalba is the second natural barrier from north to south on Soud Island. Similar undulating terrain still exists in the middle and south of the island. If placed on a continental battlefield, this is an ideal terrain to resist enemy field forces. However, on an isolated island like Sud Island, the German team can mobilize naval guns as they please, and naval artillery that often exceeds 200 mm has a much lethality than the field guns of the army. It is no exaggeration to say that a German main battleship's accurate main gun volley is enough to destroy the main defensive position laid on the ridge. Coupled with the rapid-fire ability of 100 to 150 mm secondary guns, soldiers cannot gain a foothold in the highlands at all.

This German chariot unit, which set off from the coast of Sandevich, walked to the west of the middle section of the ridge. The ridge here has a 200-meter-wide gap, which is several dozen meters lower than both sides. The slope on the north side of the gap does not exceed 25 degrees, and the slope on the south side is about 40 degrees. The steep downhill road can not collapse tracks with extremely strong grip capabilities.

"My legs are about to cramp!"

On the driver's seat of the chariot with the hatch open, the driver wearing an anti-collision leather hat looked grinning, which may be a bit ridiculous in the eyes of others, but in the eyes of those who are familiar with this kind of chariot, his expression does not have much exaggeration. Just like the cars on the market, the Hubert-14 uses a gasoline engine that advances in three gears and retreats in one gear. When the slope continues to climb and the slope exceeds 20 degrees, the driver must keep stepping on the accelerator deeply. After a long time, it is inevitable that his legs will be sore and numb.

"I'll reach the top of the mountain in a few more minutes!"

The entire ridge has been occupied by the German army, and there is no need to worry about British attacks when operating on the north side of the hillside, so the commanders are sitting on the turrets, and from time to time their drivers are encouraged to grit their teeth and persevere.

On the south side of the ridge, below the steep slope is Kvalba. This e-shaped low-lying coast is embedded between the ridge and the highland. The terrain is much more complex than Sandevich, and British artillery has more places to cover up. German naval infantry were bombarded several times when attacking Kvalba. Fighting ships with the Black Hawk Cross Flag rushed into the fjord again and again to suppress the British artillery positions. During this period, they were also counterattacked by British artillery. The thin hull of the 1898-class large torpedo boat T-92 was blown through by artillery shells and ran aground near the German-controlled shoreline. The crew wanted it to act as a fixed turret, but the British field artillery deployed behind the highlands did not miss the opportunity to avenge their dead companions. After several artillery bombardments, the t-92 was completely defeated, and the surviving crew had to travel to the shore of the Shanghai shore and join the land war.

The battle started from the beginning of night to the late night, and the combat troops of both sides launched a continuous tug-of-war around Kvalba. Every trench, every house, every gully and even the crater left by artillery shells became positions that both sides fought repeatedly. Not long ago, similar tragic battle situations appeared in Paris and Rouen. The bloody and tragic scenes shocked the world, but no one expected that such a fight would also occur on remote northern islands.

In Kvalba, the fronts of both sides were stalemate and constantly changed. German ships could only bombard the British rear targets to achieve the goal of suppressing and weakening the opponents. The battle for villages and coastlines became a showdown between the two Royal Marines.

The Royal Marines in Britain have a long history and glorious traditions. They have created countless glory and left many failures. But there is no doubt that they followed the British Empire to the top of the world step by step. At the peak of prestige, they can control the situation in other countries and even determine the fate of other nations.

Like the German Royal Marines, if they trace the roots to the roots, they can barely make up a hundred years of history. Strictly speaking, they were born very late, without traditional glory or traditional bonds, and relying on the industrial strength and military system of the German Empire to come from behind. The European war in 1914 was an ideal touchstone for distinguishing good and bad. The German Royal Navy won the awe of the world through one thrilling and soul-stirring naval battle after another. The German Royal Marines also sharpened sharp swords on the cruel continental battlefield.

The huge Kvalba coast has less than a thousand permanent residents and their popularity is declining on weekdays. On this night, it is an absolute meat grinder, with people sprinkling their blood and sacrificing their lives at every moment. The soldiers in front fell one by one, and the soldiers in the back rushed up one by one. If there is really Valhalla in this world, then most of the dead souls who went to the Temple of Heroes that night were probably from here.

German officers and soldiers believe in honor and ignore death. British Marines performed no less in this regard. They knew that German machine guns were fierce and grenades were thrown far and accurate. Whenever the attack whistle sounded, they still crawled up and rushed towards the other side without hesitation. However, more often, British officers and soldiers were fighting against the German elite equipment with good combat qualities. Whenever the German army carried out rapid assault or infiltration step by step, the British army did not resist it, but waited for the German soldiers to get closer to the position and then fired a fierce shot with Enfield rifle.

If the German offensive cannot be stopped, the remaining soldiers will pick up bayonets and rush up bravely to stalk with the German soldiers until they repel the opponent or are annihilated by the opponent. The tactics of both sides have their own characteristics, but from a specific perspective, the offensive and defensive transformation of the two armies is just a competition of perseverance. Whether it is the German attack or the British counterattack, harvesting a trench or a stronghold, the price of dozens, hundreds or even hundreds of soldiers is paid. What is puzzling is that the commanders of both sides have no intention of stopping and turning the repeated tug-of-war into a static confrontation.

It was not until more than ten German chariots crossed the ridge, followed the trend, and rushed into Kvalba with great momentum that the situation of the battle changed decisively.

The British military's machine guns deployed in Kvalba were either discarded to the Germans or exhausted ammunition. The rapid-fire guns hidden in nearby highlands have been "unveiled" one after another, and were then bombarded by German ships into waste, or they withdraw from their preset positions on their own and moved to a safer but less ideal area. At this moment, the British army did not have weapons to withstand the impact of German tanks. According to the British command's expectations, the German Navy's landing ships would not approach the coast of Kvalba before dawn. If they did so recklessly, the artillery groups hidden in central and southern Soud Island would cost them a heavy price for this night landing operation.

The British commander and his staff obviously underestimated the ability of the German tanks to operate.

The guns and cannons from Kvalba reached an unprecedented level of density. The British Royal Marines, who were engaged in the battle, tried their last efforts to defend their positions. Soon, the rumbling cannons behind them made them vaguely see hope. The fierce shelling effectively delayed the German attack and divided some of their tanks and infantry. However, this shelling that made the British officers and soldiers happy lasted for less than five minutes. The artillery fire and the earth-shaking explosion came from behind them. The flash of naval guns fired suddenly appeared on the sea south of Sud Island, and the night sky was dyed with a layer of blood. The southern end and central part of Sud Island then turned into a flame hell. The fireballs produced by the explosion of heavy shells rushed tens of meters high, and the thick smoke appeared in a strange shape under the reflection of the firelight.

Under the strong firepower of German warships, the British artillery group fell completely silent.

Kvalba's battle returned to the German rhythm...

At 8 a.m. Greenwich time, it was lightly dawn on Soud Island. Kvalba's change of hands allowed the German landing troops to occupy about a quarter of the island. The British army seemed to have a lot of room for defense, but the two coasts of Sandwich and Kvalba were controlled by the Germans. The German marine forces would continue to land on Soud Island. The British army's replenishment speed from the outside was like a drop in the bucket, one was rising and the other was getting worse. As long as the person with a slightly clear mind could see the British defeat. It was possible to avoid the entire situation.

The end of the army's annihilation The combat report of the front-line command was presented to London. Marshal Kitchener, who had not yet been in the position of Prime Minister, offered to withdraw troops at the imperial military meeting. King George V of England expressed his acquiescence to this. Under the pressure of the situation, the Navy agreed to withdraw the combat troops from Soud Island. However, due to the blockade of the German Navy, Churchill proposed two conditions: one was to only use submarines and destroyers to transport the retreating troops at night, and the other was to send a large number of troops to the French battlefield in exchange for the French fleet to go to the northern waters to restrain the German fleet.

For both military and political considerations, most members of the British war cabinet did not agree with the second condition proposed by Churchill, but the focus of their refutation had shifted from the French naval power returning to the North Sea to the British sending additional troops to France. Army generals were particularly worried that the French front would soon collapse. If hundreds of thousands of British soldiers and their weapons and equipment were lost in France, Britain would lose its ability to protect itself, and the Irish war also urgently needed more military investment.
Chapter completed!