85 – Episode 85 The End of the Italian Campaign
There are many politicians in the world, but there are few who have their own stories. Among them, the number of people with dramatic and interesting stories could be counted on one’s fingers.
A man who suffered all sorts of humiliation after falling from the rank of Navy Minister to Regimental Commander returned again as a member of the House of Representatives and entered the cabinet.
It was a story that would make anyone’s mouth drop.
The protagonist of that mythical story entered the Prime Minister’s office and took the chair. Count Balfour explained to the man why his claim could not be heard.
“Lord Churchill. It is impossible to take out the Italian army and attack the Ottomans. “Right now, the blood shed in Italy is in vain.”
“Aren’t you saying this because we can no longer advance in Italy? “If Italy is having a hard time, you have to kick the rotten door that will collapse if you kick it.”
Also, Mr. Gallipoli’s illness has improved.
The Prime Minister could not help but click his tongue.
“Your Excellency. Ottoman is an opportunity.”
It was obvious that it was nonsense, but Churchill’s words still had the power to captivate people. Balfour asked as if he were being fooled.
“What do you mean by opportunity?”
“If we turn the Ottomans into a ring, how will the Germans get supplies?”
“Well, why don’t you bring it by rail and camel?”
“That’s it. We supply them by ship, but they have no choice but to rely on poor railways and camels. This difference is truly profound. For example, even if they wanted to use trams, would they be able to transport such heavy items on the railroad and maintain them?”
What Churchill said was right. No matter what they did to the Balkan Peninsula, it was difficult for Germany’s power to reach beyond.
Of course, Germany was sending a certain amount of contingent troops even under these adverse conditions.
“So if you move the ring to the Middle East, Germany will lose strength just by maintaining its military.”
“Is this a good battlefield to weaken Germany?”
“There are more benefits. “As we strengthen our forces in the Middle East, we can guarantee the safety of the Abadan oil field and the Suez Canal, where the Navy’s life and death depend.”
Abadan oil field and Suez Canal.
These are the two major axes necessary for the British Empire Navy to maintain its hegemony.
I didn’t think they were dangerous, but if the safety of the two strategic points could be guaranteed, it wasn’t a bad thing.
Before the conversation, the Prime Minister thought he would not be swayed by Churchill’s tricks.
But I couldn’t help but be moved by Churchill’s clever speaking skills.
“If we withdraw from Italy, there is a burden that the regime must bear. “We need to produce results in Ottoman that can offset that, but is that possible?”
“It is possible.”
Standing in Italy anyway will only lead to more sacrifices, and it is difficult to expect results.
It became clear when France collapsed that the Italian government was impossible to collapse.
“Specifically, what can we do if we move the army to the Ottomans?”
Churchill, who noticed that the Prime Minister’s mind was shaken, decided to drive a wedge.
“First, it is west of Arabia. “Starting from the Sinai Peninsula, we are putting pressure on Medina, the holy city of Islam.”
If this place was lost, it would inevitably have been a fatal political blow to the Ottoman sultan, who called himself the Islamic caliph, or pope.
“They will invest maximum effort to protect their sacred site, and we can seize the opportunity to destroy the enemy under favorable conditions. With Saud on our side, things will be easy.
Once we change our main force, we can move north along the Levant in the west, and move up from Iraq in the east to take Syria from the left and right.”
Churchill’s sketch was indeed grand and plausible. Balfour momentarily forgot that many people had been deceived by Churchill’s briefing during Gallipoli.
“Take over Arabia and take Syria. Then, we could attack Anatolia, the Ottoman homeland, directly.”
“Exactly, that’s it. Dismissal. “If we can dislodge the Ottomans from the line, we can dilute the French defeat and gain access to southern Russia to support anti-German forces.”
How plausible is this?
Belfour thought that Churchill’s vision was surprisingly good.
The Prime Minister’s mind was already crossing the 7th ridge towards Churchill’s proposal.
“You can do that just by moving troops from Italy. “Are you sure, Minister?”
“How could I have said that without such certainty?”
I was confident during Gallipoli, but it wasn’t important.
It is important to defeat our archenemy, the Ottomans, and lead the British Empire to victory.
Hearing Mr. Gallipoli’s repeated whispers, Balfour ended up nodding.
*
Marshal Douglas Haig was taken aback by London’s order to withdraw from Italy.
The Prime Minister, who only a few days ago had told us to secure the beachhead, has changed his attitude 180 degrees.
“Your Excellency. This doesn’t make sense. “This is territory we gained through shedding blood, so are you giving it up for nothing?”
The generals protested, but an order was an order.
“Retreat as quickly as possible.”
The British army left behind a rearguard unit and withdrew its troops from the front line under cover of darkness.
In order to hide that fact, the number of bombardments was deliberately increased.
“You’re just foolishly wasting shells. “If you have that kind of money, aren’t you sure you can buy us out?”
Allied soldiers laughed at the British army’s artillery fire.
Meanwhile, the British army steadily withdrew from the front. The British army chose Salerno and Bari as withdrawal locations instead of Naples, which the Germans could easily observe from the high ground.
“Isn’t the front line a little quiet?”
“It’s always like that this time of year.”
The Italian army had no idea that the British army was withdrawing.
“No matter how you look at it, it looks like the British are withdrawing.”
The Germans flew aircraft over British positions to gain confidence. The British military camp itself had many scarecrows for camouflage, but they could not hide the British military procession heading to Salerno.
“This is the result of reading aerial photos.”
“As expected, they were withdrawing.”
Mckensen immediately went on the offensive. The Germans poured poison gas and then charged the infantry. As expected, there were not many enemies guarding the trenches. The German army easily broke through the defense line.
“The British are running away. You too, move quickly.”
As Germany urged an offensive, the Italian army also moved.
“Huh?”
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But the trench was almost empty.
“The British really ran away.”
The Italian military was shocked when they belatedly confirmed the facts.
“It is unacceptable that they are withdrawing.”
“Then what should I do?”
“It’s a wave of attacks!”
Even so, we couldn’t watch the enemy safely pack up his belongings and run away in the midst of such disgrace.
According to Marshal Cadorna’s orders, the Italian army launched an all-out offensive.
In order to break through the empty trench line in a short time, the unit was rushed into the minefield. That was the only way to increase the results faster than the German army.
“Isn’t this a bit much? “Charge into a minefield?”
“It’s just a matter of killing more enemies equal to the losses from landmines.”
Italian generals urged their soldiers. With the news that the German army had occupied Naples, the urging of the Italian generals became more intense.
“If you don’t take over Bari Port in time, I won’t leave you alone.”
While the Allies were tightening the noose, the British army retreated in an orderly manner to the transport ships floating on the sea.
The Italian army launched waves of offensives to somehow increase the results, but the enemy’s resistance at the port seemed stubborn. It survived even when poisonous gas was poured on it, and it survived even when artillery fire was poured on it.
The Italian army could not easily crush the resistance of the British army, which was holding out against the backdrop of naval guns.
“These idiots. “What on earth were you doing to fall asleep?”
Mackensen’s army swept through the rearguard of the British troops remaining in Salerno and attacked and defeated the British troops in Bari.
Only then did the remnants of the British army abandon their weapons and raise the white flag.
The losses inflicted on the Commonwealth by the Allied forces, including prisoners and casualties, amounted to 50,000. It was not a small loss, but considering the difficulty of the withdrawal operation, the British Commonwealth forces did not suffer a fatal blow.
Rather, I was shocked because the Italian army’s losses were beyond imagination. The Italians suffered over 30,000 casualties from mines and British troops during offensive operations. Considering that most of the British army suffered losses at the hands of the Germans, even calling it a sloppy battle was not enough. Italians were outraged by this result.
“It’s a disgrace. “How can something like this happen?”
After repeated hesitations, the Italian Parliament summoned Marshal Cadorna. They held the Chief of Staff responsible in a sharp tone.
“Marshal, don’t you feel responsible for our military’s reckless actions?”
Marshal Cadorna, who attended the hearing, answered the lawmakers’ answers in a confident tone.
“Our army was victorious, and the enemy was defeated. The country is now safe. “I have done my duty.”
“Germany probably won. “You shameless bastard.”
Angry lawmakers did not hesitate to shout and point their fingers at the hearing.
“I can’t just leave that bastard alone. Cut him off right now.”
The Italian government, which guarantees the term of office of diplomats as much as possible, also accepted pressure from the National Assembly.
“Marshal Cadorna. Now go home and take care of your grandchildren.”
“I am victorious. “Why should I, the commander, let go of the baton?”
Cadorna argued that it was wrong for the state to treat him unfairly.
“That’s your idea.”
Of course, the plea was not accepted.
The Italian army appointed Captain Armando Diaz as Cadorna’s successor.
Captain Diaz was a more capable man than Cadorna, but he was not enough to restore his already broken trust.
Italians no longer trusted their own army. I went from disdain to disillusionment. There has been a sharp increase in the number of people who sarcastically claim that they will be able to collect loot with such an army.
The end of the Italian campaign was covered with anger and distrust.