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Part One Twenty Years Chapter 10 The King of the North Atlantic!  (five)

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    (The naval battle has finally begun, and the situation is not bad!)

    ¡°(Section 2 of "King of the North Atlantic", the first shot of the battle)

    Harris, the former mainmast lookout of the battlecruiser New Zealand, sounded the alarm desperately, and tens of thousands of naval officers and soldiers of the British Grand Fleet, including David Beatty, were stunned. They had never imagined Germany for a moment.  People will appear in the southeast direction.

    We have no way of guessing the mood of Admiral David Beatty, Commander-in-Chief of the British Grand Fleet, who insisted before the war that the Germans' strategic target was General Lampard's fast fleet, whether it was the British Admiralty, David Beatty himself or the Grand Fleet Command  The naval officers and soldiers on duty were tight-lipped about the situation at that time, but Betty's mood would never escape from the key words of panic, anger, shame and despair.

    As the New Zealand battle patrol lookout Harris, who was the first to discover traces of the Germans, recalled:

    'On the eve of the naval battle, a rumor spread like crazy in Scapa Flow. The Germans sent a raiding fleet composed of old battleships and some light ships to prepare for a sneak attack on the eastern coast of Britain. To this end, the Admiralty secretly dispatched a garrison.  The ten battlecruisers of the fast fleet in the Firth of Forth went south to encircle and suppress the Germans.

    During the war years, the Royal Navy had been firmly suppressed by the Germans. We were so looking forward to victory, even if it was just the victory of annihilating a second-rate German fleet.  The news that the fast fleet was heading south made me overjoyed and plunged the entire grand fleet into unreasonable madness. Until the grand fleet secretly left the port (early morning on the 21st), my immediate boss, Lieutenant Chris, came over and told me about the great Royal Navy.  The navy is in trouble. General Lampard's fast fleet is being pursued by eight elite battlecruisers of the German battle patrol.

    I didn¡¯t realize the seriousness of the situation.  I trust in the strength of the steel giant "Chapter" built by our British hearts at my feet, just as I trust in the loyalty of my wife Camilla to me.  Around 7 a.m., when I was not on duty, I was queuing up to eat in the sailor¡¯s restaurant of the New Zealand and heard a piece of news from a sailor working in the cockpit that made me more confident in my judgment.

    Colleagues told me that the situation was far from as bad as we imagined. The Grand Fleet's trip to the North Atlantic was not just a maritime maneuver. The most important purpose was to rendezvous with the battle fleet sent by the Americans.  The Royal Navy already had a comprehensive plan to deal with the German battle patrols, and the Royal Navy was still on the road to victory.

    I am optimistic and hopeful, but around 8 a.m., the situation changed.  The flagship Revenge suddenly ordered the large fleet to return and quickly passed through the Pentland Strait and entered the North Sea.

    I don¡¯t understand what exactly happened during this period. The sudden steering order caused all kinds of rumors to spread and spread in every cabin and deck of the New Zealand, and then merged into a storm that shook the morale of the military.  The veteran captains who had participated in the Battle of Helgoland Firth, the Battle of Dogger Sands, the Battle of the Falkland Islands and the Battle of Skagerrak were powerless to do this. They could only ask the boatswain in vain to warn us to do our jobs.

    At 11 a.m., the situation gradually became clear.  We pieced together a frightening fact from the few words transmitted from the New Zealand's command tower: the Germans dispatched their entire army in the last dark night, and the Grand Fleet headquarters judged that they were hiding somewhere in the North Sea, trying to deal with the fast fleet on its way back.

    I think this is all the facts. The British people are somewhat dismissive of the fact that General Beatty is as famous as the undefeated naval war god Heidi Sillem on the other side of the North Sea. But it is undeniable that David Beatty is the best in the Royal Navy at this stage.  maritime commander.  He is also the guy who best understands Heidi Sealem¡¯s thoughts.  But when I was staring intently at the southwest from the main mast observation tower of the battle cruiser New Zealand, I inadvertently caught a glimpse of a few plumes of smoke rising from the southeast.  My ""confidence collapsed instantly!

    The Germans were in the last place they should be.  My head exploded. Apart from sounding the alarm, I felt unspeakable fear, boundless fear and anger after being fooled!  ¡¯

    On June 21, 1937, the 20th anniversary of the Battle of the Orkney Islands, Europe was once again at war. The British Isles were full of revenge against the Germans and vowed to regain the maritime supremacy that Japan had not lost to the Empire. The Times of London  ¡± untimely published Harris¡¯s memoirs of Orkney in full.  Let the irrational British people recall the glorious war history of the defense navy on the other side of the North Sea.

    At the time, the Royal Navy had reason to fear the Germans appearing on the southeast side.  If that is the German main fleet and the first reconnaissance group, then the course maintained by the Germans at this moment can be just right to kill the Royal Navy. Regardless of the next actions taken by the large fleet, the German course is just across the  The large fleet is heading south.  Forming a terrifying T-shaped crosshead, what is even more terrifying than the T-shaped crosshead is that the grand fleet has an almost idiotic seven-row cruising formation. Its battle patrol??At the southern edge of the Firth of Forth, there are at least two hours away from the battlefield.

    In the era of dreadnoughts, when a fleet sailed in warring waters, the commander always tended to place the most powerful battleships in the direction where the enemy was most likely to appear, while the relatively weak battleships were placed in another direction.  direction, which is not only conducive to preserving one's own strength, but also conducive to the formation of the battle line.

    Considering that the southern peninsula of Cromarty Firth in eastern Scotland goes deep into the North Sea, David Beatty, who judged that the Germans might be in the southwest, brazenly arranged the four Revenge-class battleships of the Seventh Squadron on the far right, and the relatively weak Fourth Battle Cruiser  The fleet's three old battlecruisers were placed on the left wing.

    The actual situation is that the Germans appeared in a direction they should not have appeared.  You must know that neither the Fourth Battle Cruiser Fleet on the far left of the British fleet nor the First Battle Fleet on the left are any match for the wolf-like Germans.  , which puts the large fleet into a difficult situation.

    The Grand Fleet wants to get rid of the entanglement of the Ocean Fleet as soon as possible. It is undoubtedly the best way to turn left against the German T-shaped head and use the smoke cover released by the destroyer and the speed of the two fleets to move towards each other to escape from the battlefield. However, it is weak.  The Fourth Battle Cruiser Fleet and the First Battle Fleet were obviously unable to play the role of the main force of the British battle line.

    If it turns to the right, there is no doubt that it will be a protracted chase. Without the ten battlecruisers of the fast fleet and the four American battleships, the Royal Navy does not have much to face the German navy that is dispatched.  Advantage.

    Although the future was uncertain, the alarm sounded by the New Zealand did not wake up the British immediately.  There were only a few plumes of smoke in the southeast direction, and the Royal Navy confirmed that no British warships would appear in that direction.  But at least they can still look forward to the fact that the light ship is just the vanguard and leader of the Germans, and they still have time to react.

    Betty didn¡¯t take any chances. It was just the report from the seaplane sent to the southwest that interfered with his judgment.  Betty was not sure whether the southeast was a German light reconnaissance fleet or any one of the First Reconnaissance Group and the Ocean Fleet, or the entire German fleet of nineteen battleships and eight battlecruisers.

    With a trace of hesitation, David Beattie issued orders continuously: the Grand Fleet and the Fourth Battle Cruiser should turn to the right, and the fast fleet should move north at full speed and get as close as possible to the Grand Fleet.  The 3rd Destroyer Detachment, which followed the actions of the British Grand Fleet, detached two ocean-going destroyers and approached to investigate the reality in the southeast.

    The two British ocean-going destroyers flying the Union Jack quickly left the fleet and rushed towards the Ocean Fleet at high speed like arrows. The British Grand Fleet and the Fourth Battlecruiser Fleet followed the plan.  The difficult process of transformation began.

    Unlike the Germans¡¯ only four-row cruising formation, the British Grand Fleet, which has a large family and business, has six squadrons alone.  How to arrange these six fleets to turn to the left at different speeds and angles was originally a time-consuming and labor-intensive matter, but now the commanders of the grand fleet have to consider the "Mediterranean-style" fleet that has been reduced from a battle cruiser to a heavy firepower and light protection.  The fourth battlecruiser squadron of the battleship.

    Faced with pressure, the large fleet's steering and formation changes, which were neglected in training but eager for success, quickly deformed on the desolate North Sea.  The rigorous formation of the Grand Fleet was instantly shattered, and close encounters between squadrons were common, as thrilling as dancing on eggs.  The two squadrons of the Second Battle Fleet did not have enough tacit understanding.  There was a serious disconnect in the formation, so before the second fleet could catch up with the first fleet, the first battle fleet had to cancel the steering brake and wait patiently for the second battle fleet's battle line to take shape.

    The only good thing is that the Grand Fleet does not have a super-staffed battleship squadron like the Germans, and the adjustment movements of the four-ship formation are relatively flexible.

    But this does not appease the anxious British, because the identity of the fleet rushing towards the southeast at high speed has been revealed.

    ¡®Bavaria, King, Caesar¡­oh my God.  The Germans sent out all the ships they could and formed a battle line, openly occupying the T-shaped crosshead and the south where the sight was favorable!  ¡¯

    Commander Perry of the Fourth Battle Cruiser Fleet could not help but murmur in extreme fear.  Three minutes later, the distance between the two fleets was reduced to 18 kilometers.  The British noticed that the luminous main gun muzzle of the battleship Bayern continuously erupted with dazzling light.

    It¡¯s the Germans testing artillery!

    "" Perry suddenly felt that the air around him had solidified. It was not until the whizzing 380mm hardened capped armor-piercing bullet broke through the air, making a shrill sound that made the hair stand on end, that Perry came out of the long-term dizziness and stood in the air.  A chill set in at noon on the warm North Sea summer day.

    German armor-piercing projectilesHowling, it strangely passed over the Fourth Battle Cruiser Fleet and plunged diagonally into the gap vacated by the two squadrons of the Second Battleship due to command errors.

    A deafening explosion came over, damaging the eardrums of the New Zealand battle patrol officers and soldiers.  The air under the strong wind was a bit anxious. The officers and soldiers covered their aching ears and violently beating hearts, and stood on tiptoes to look nervously at the direction of the explosion.

    There is no doubt that it was a near-miss, but there was no dull sound like the expected bomb hit on the ship's hull. This allowed Rear Admiral Perry, who had been worried about water bombs, to relax his tense nerves a little.  But even so, across the two squadrons of the First Battle Fleet and the second squadron of the Second Battle Fleet, Perry could still see the spectacular scene:

    On the right side of the Fourth Battle Cruiser Fleet, a huge water column rose into the sky, with the top almost level with the towering main mast of the battleship.

    This water column soon lost its rising kinetic energy, roared and fell, disappearing behind the shadow of the ship.  There is no doubt that it is violently sweeping away all the superstructures of the battleships of the two squadrons of the Second Battle Fleet, including wireless antennas, hinges, fireproof sandbags, cranes, lifeboats, secondary main guns, trestles

    ¡®The war has begun, wish good luck to Britain!  ¡¯

    Major General Perry closed his eyes.  (To be continued.).
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