Chapter 1575 Battle unfolds
The British and French coalition forces used two weeks to adjust and deploy the troops. Two weeks later, when the second wave of the British and French coalition landed troops, the Northern Line Corps commanded by Xia Fei personally concentrated the forces of 4 French infantry divisions and 2 and a half French armored divisions. At the same time, the British provided the forces of 4 heavy artillery regiments, 2 Anzac-New Zealand regiment divisions and 2 combat power regiments! The total force reached about 110,000! It was a little worse than the forces expected to concentrate by the French.
On the southern line, the Southern Line Corps, based on Izmir, was personally commanded by the British, concentrated 4 British divisions, 2 colonial divisions, 1 British armored division and the Japanese Fukuoka Armored Division after rest and recuperation! The total strength is about 8 divisions. The effect of the British concentration of troops is worse than expected. Although in terms of organization, the Southern Line is similar to the Northern Line Corps, in terms of combat effectiveness, the Southern Line Corps is far inferior to the Northern Line!
Although the six and a half French divisions on the Northern Line are relatively small, they are basically the main divisions on the front line. Two of the French armored divisions are the most elite in the French army, and the two Australian divisions that cooperate with them are also the elite among the elite, with their combat effectiveness much higher than ordinary British divisions! In particular, it should be noted that the troops on the Northern Line are equipped with about 800 various artillery pieces, of which 120mm and 152mm heavy artillery account for a large part. These are not comparable to ordinary army howitzers, and the two fighter companies have more than 240 fighter jets enough to ensure the safety of the French army above their heads.
What about the British? Four British divisions do exist, but the lack of units is quite serious. There is only one front-line main division, and two colonial divisions are from India. One of them is a cavalry division. The attack speed is very fast, but the ability to fight to the death is enough.
Although the British also had two armored divisions on paper in the Southern Line Legion, how to say it? Although the British Seventh Armored Division was an old army, the previous battles suffered heavy losses. Although they had supplemented, it was inevitable that there would be no organization. The same was true for the Japanese Fukuoka Division. In addition to lacking heavy equipment, it was also difficult to replenish personnel. Therefore, the combat effectiveness discount of these two divisions is a bit large...
As for the air force, the Southern Line troops were assigned a total of one gang of air forces, with about 140 aircraft. As for the remaining aircraft promised by the British, they were left near two ports to resist possible bombing by the Germans. Therefore, after the entire front was completely launched, the British and French forces concentrated about 200,000 front-line troops in the north and south. If the troops that can be mobilized in the future are included, this number still has increased potential. After all, in history, the Chinese and British and French forces in the Navy Battle of Neil were mobilized in a total of 480,000 troops! After the war, it took the Turks two years to clear up the entities and abandoned materials... (This description is from "Research on the History of War")
During this period, the German and Turkish armies were not idle... General von Sanders concentrated about 150,000 German-Turkish coalition forces and deployed them near the Bursa-Inegel line as the first line of defense. The number of German troops in this unit was about 10,000, mainly artillery and technical troops, and the remaining 140,000 were Turkish troops.
The troops of the Von Seckett army, which came from Ukraine, were deployed in Sakaria. As the general reserve team of the entire war zone, the entire force was equipped with more than 700 various artillery pieces and could obtain limited support from the Bavarian aviation troops. However, the biggest problem is the lack of armored units. To solve this problem, it must be solved until the prince's southward armored troops drawn from the Balkans are ready!
The southern line used to defend the southern line of the British and French coalition forces was pure Turkish troops. About 250,000 Turkish troops were deployed on the long front from Qutashia to Ankara. They formed lines of defense along important channels. Although the number was more than twice that of the British, the prince did not expect the Turks to truly block the opponent's attack. After all, except Kemal's troops, other Turkish troops were completely weak compared to the British army. If they were blocked in the Dardanelles, there were still some fighting. If they were fighting in the field, wash and sleep. The task given to them was to delay and consume the opponent, and they could retreat, as long as they did not lose Ankara. Everything was done until the Bavarian Legion came back from the Eastern Front!
After the deployment of the north and south lines, the prince was not sure whether these forces could block Britain and France. Logically speaking, the combined forces of these two lines had 450,000 troops, of which the German army had about 60,000. The British and French coalition forces on the opposite side were now more than 200,000. With the priority support from the Bavarian Air Force, the defense of the Allied Legion should not be a big problem, right?
However, if we consider the possible continued reinforcements from Britain and France, this force is not enough, and the prince cannot allow Britain and France to gain a foothold in the middle of Turkey. Otherwise, Turkey's national strength will definitely be severely damaged, and it will also restrain a large number of Bavarian legions. Therefore, the prince also needs to constantly draw elite troops from other fronts to join this war far away from Europe!
"The goals that the European ancestors of all generations have not been achieved will be realized through our hands! The Ottoman Turkish Empire, this sick man on the Eurasian continent will eventually pass away, and we will also use this battle to subvert the entire situation! We will fight a textbook-level battle on the Turkish battlefield! The French army of Napoleon's era will return at this moment! Quick, agile, changeable and deadly!" Looking at the French armored troops gathered outside the window, General Xiafei, who served as the commander-in-chief, wrote in his diary!
At the same time, the British army on the southern front also began to march towards their targets. Although compared with the French elite on the northern front, they lacked enough motor vehicles and armored units, they also had a large number of artillery. The enemies they faced were also Turks with low mobility, artillery, and combat effectiveness, so the British had sufficient confidence to kill their opponents with a dignified battle!
"It seems that Ruprecht and the Turks are in trouble." Looking at the newly sent information from the General Staff, the German Emperor said to the crown prince next to him with a profound meaning. According to the new information, the British and French coalition forces on the front of the Western Front moved into the defensive line and even gave up some unnecessary positions. This means that the British and French coalition forces can also mobilize some forces to organize the third or even the fourth wave of reinforcements.
"So what should we do?" asked the crown prince.
"Let's see the situation first." The German Emperor's answer was very vague.
Chapter completed!