The British Matilda II tank is called an infantry tank. Its mission is to accompany infantry operations, provide mobile fire support, and also undertake the task of breaking through enemy positions and anti-tanks. Under this combat demand, the indicators set for this tank are not high. The speed is enough to keep up with the infantry's charge speed. The key is that the armor must be thick enough to withstand the attacks of the opponent's conventional infantry anti-tank weapons and tanks. The firepower requirement is also very simple. As long as it can penetrate the conventional tank armor of countries around the world at that time, it is enough...

In the early days of the war, Matilda did meet the indicators needed by the British Army and her performance on the battlefield was considered qualified. Basically, as long as she appeared, she could usually complete the tasks assigned to it by the Army.

Overall, the British Army is quite satisfied with its performance in the French battlefield. Compared with the other tanks brought by the Expeditionary Force, the Matilda II brought the most trouble to the Germans and the losses were also minimal. Most of the damage was not caused by frontal combat, but was usually caused by close-range raids by infantry or anti-tank mines. There was also the inability to continue fighting and was destroyed by the tanks after the war was unable to continue. The reasons include ammunition exhaust, fuel exhaustion, mechanical failure, etc., which accounted for a large part of the total loss.

In the end, the British Expeditionary Force was destroyed in Dunkirk, and more than 90% of the tanks in the army were thrown on the beach, including all the Matilda tanks, which became the trophy of the Germans. However, in the eyes of the British Army, it was a strategic mistake. The Germans were too cunning and fierce, and they could only say that the crime of non-war had nothing to do with Matilda's performance.

So until now, Britain still put this inappropriate tank into production as its main equipment. It even deliberately expanded the production scale of this infantry tank due to the threat of the German new medium-sized tanks, and reduced the share of a large number of cruise tanks with weak armor.

The latter is considered a big and useless and flashy thing by some senior executives in the army. It can be said to be ugly in the French battlefield, a kind of waste can that can even be smashed through by the German 37 door knocker. Because of this, the cruise tank theory is criticized for being useless. If it were not for the interests of arms dealers, the British Army even wanted to completely abolish the cruise tanks and specialize in infantry tanks. They believed that the tanks needed by the British Army in the future must be larger, heavier, and stronger firepower. The work of the cruise tank can be completely handed over to light tanks to complete. The latter is faster and has smaller targets, but it can also be equipped with the same level of firepower of the cruise tank. What is more important is that the price is cheaper and the material consumption is less. When the materials and funds are both short of these two conditions, meeting these two conditions is the most important.

It can also be seen from this that the British Army's strategic direction changes. They have clearly realized the fragility of the British Army and have begun to change from focusing on offense to specializing in defense. Armored weapons are regarded as an important part of the defense strategy. In defensive warfare, maneuverability is secondary, and defense and firepower are the most important indicators. Therefore, the British Army's ordnance department is working hard to develop a new generation of heavy infantry tanks. The information obtained from the Eye of Odin shows that it should be the famous A22 heavy infantry tank in later generations.

When Xu Jun saw the sketches and indicators obtained by the intelligence personnel, he immediately sighed, "It turned out to be Churchill." The people present were confused by this inexplicable emotion. As a result, when the follow-up information obtained by the Eye of Odin was sent to the commander-in-chief, he found that the British had determined to name this type of tank "Churchill" infantry tank. When he recalled the feelings Xu Jun had made at that time, the commander-in-chief was shocked. In those days, the halo of the God Apostle was similar to the searchlight, and he was full of fanatical worship eyes along the way.

The Matilda Tank Battalion of the 1st Armored Division was a reorganized force, replaced by the 7th Battalion of the Royal Armored Regiment of the First Army Tank Brigade, which surrendered in Dunkirk.

These tanks are stock equipment from the UK. In some places, the British will manifest the habit of rodents. They like to hide things very much. They always use a little to reserve each batch of equipment. Just like squirrels storing winter food. In peacetime, this is obviously an unnecessary waste, allowing those precious equipment to accumulate dust in the warehouse. However, this habit of the British finally came in handy at this time.

The Army drew out two battalions of tanks and supporting vehicles from the warehouse at one time. Although this number was far from enough to solve the problem at that time, it slightly alleviated the army's equipment crisis. The First Armored Division was formed based on these reserve equipment and training and reserve vehicles collected from various places.

In fact, as a simple armored division, the first armored division should be equipped with cruiser tanks, and infantry tanks like Matilda should be organized by the Army Tank Division. Although the two are only two different, their connotations are very different. However, it has reached this point. The British Army is not as picky as it is. As long as it is a tank, it will be marshaled together and then kicked to the most important key area. At this time, how to withstand the German attack is the primary event.

This is how the 7th Battalion of the Royal Tank Regiment was incorporated into the First Armored Division, and then followed the large army to the Dover battlefield in a confused manner.

The battalion really dragged down the hind legs of the entire armored division along the way. The 12-kilometer off-road speed made people hate it. If they hadn't slowed down the overall marching speed of the large army, the First Armored Division might have arrived in Dover that afternoon. As a result, it was dragged until the second midnight. While the troops were busy arranging the garrison, they collided with the German artillery bombardment. The entire division was caught off guard and suffered serious losses of equipment and materials. Because of this reason, the whole division was not very popular now.

The officers and soldiers of the 7th Battalion did not see this way. They believed that it was because of their speed that saved many people in the armored division. If they had not slowed down the marching speed, when the German artillery bombardment came, the people in the division might have fallen asleep. Instead of that night, many tanks were still busy looking for and transferring their garrisons. The tankers did not leave their tanks, and they could finally escape from the German artillery bombardment.

Major Philip, the company commander of the 7th Battalion's first company, was one of the people who held this view. He scoffed at the accusations against the 7th Battalion, and believed that this was the slander and slander that the defeated dogs were jealous.

Because the 7th Battalion was too slow, it was not arranged to enter the central city, so only a small part of the damage was suffered from the German shelling.

The Matilda I-type tank of the second company suffered some losses in the shelling because the armor of the thing was only 25 mm, and was judged by Philip as an unqualified infantry tank. This model suffered serious losses on the French battlefield. German infantry could solve it with cluster grenades. If it weren't for the lack of equipment, Philip believed that the Army should not have re-activated this model at all.

The second company's station was bombarded by a large-bore flow bullet, and two platoons of tanks turned into scattered parts, broken tank parts, armor plates, load-bearing wheels and personnel bodies were spread around the crater.

At that time, the first company was parked less than two blocks from the second company, and finally escaped the disaster. Until the end of the shelling, no German shells fell in the area. The company was kept unscathed, but was hostile to the brothers.

Those troops suffered heavy casualties. When they saw someone intact, they compared it with their own miserable situation, this obvious gap would immediately turn into jealousy. All kinds of strange words came toward the 7th Battalion, such as cowards hiding in the corner, the first company with curses, the bastards who let comrades die, the demon who sucked away the luck of friendly troops, etc. Major Philip did not take those words seriously at all, and he even felt a little secretly happy, such as demons... Isn't it a cool and fashionable title?

After nightfall, the First Company was ordered to rush to the Cox Hill Army defensive position between Minnesota Trail and Ackham Road to report that they would hold on this position until the reinforcements described above arrived.

In Major Philip's opinion, this was all nonsense to deceive soldiers. Others were not clear about the situation behind him, but Philip was completely aware of it. This was attributed to his uncle who worked in the War Department, who had been in contact with him in letters and occasionally made several calls. He was able to learn that many ordinary people could find it difficult for them to know the secrets.

Now from Dover to London, there are only the First Armored Division and the two infantry divisions. This is the only mobile force that the British Army can mobilize at present, so where can we get reinforcements?

Unless London is willing to mobilize its garrison forces, there is an infantry division and a tank brigade, but how could London drive these troops to Dover at the risk of losing its final support?

Philip believed that he had made sufficient psychological preparations for the war with the Germans, and that he came here to kill the Germans. As a viscount of the Empire, the Philip family has gone through twelve generations. In the long family history, there are many heroes who sacrificed their lives and sang their lives for the country. From Waterloo to Verdun, the blood of the Philip family members has been left behind in every battlefield. Now it is his turn to add another glory to the family's emblem.

"We should go around here, Major."

The voice of Deputy Captain Blanche awakened him from his thoughts. The major was stunned for a moment, then turned his head and looked around.

"Sir, we may be late, the position is on the top of that slope and behind the woods." The captain continued to shout in his headphones.

"Ah?! Ah... you can try it with a row. Can you find a way up the mountain?" Philip picked up the bakery microphone hanging on his chest and answered loudly.
Chapter completed!