Capítulo 193: 193
Episode 193: Toward Victory (6)
September 12, 1942
New Fuhrer's Residence in Berlin, Germany
"Those Roske guys, you learn quickly. "I can't just pass this up."
I was roughly aware of the appearance of the T-34/85 as I was informed about it two weeks ago.
In actual history, the T-34/85 appeared on the front line in the winter of 1943, so it appeared a year earlier than in history.
The overall performance of the T-34/85 was inferior to that of the Panther and Tiger, but it was superior to the Panzer IV, the main force of the German armored forces, so it was an issue that could not be ignored.
However, the good news is that production of the 4th Panzer has already stopped, and there are far more Panthers and Tigers than T-34/85s, which have only been deployed to the front for a few days.
As shocking as the T-34/85 was the appearance of an assault gun, or self-propelled gun, called the SU-203 by the Soviet military.
As the name suggests, the SU-203 is a fully loaded 203mm howitzer.
"It's not SU-152, it's SU-203. "Do you know what happened to these guys' heads?"
The SU-152 is also equipped with a gun that is too large for the size of the car body, so it can only fire 20 rounds of idle ammunition, and the recoil of the gun is so severe that its accuracy is low, making the German nickname 'Zverafoy (Зверобой, big game hunter)' not befitting. I heard that there were more cases of being hit by tanks.
However, since the 203mm cannon was installed, which is larger and heavier than the 152mm cannon, the accuracy rate, which was already poor, would further decrease.
The same goes for reloading speed and idle ammunition issues.
Even considering the cancer alone, it seems like a worse guy than the SU-152.
I don't know what kind of wind blew to create this strange variant instead of the SU-152, but I didn't think it was a good choice.
Still, it was by no means something to be looked at lightly as it had the most firepower among existing armored vehicles.
Just what is written in the report is enough to cause the Tiger to overturn and the crew to be injured by a shell falling at close range, so special caution must be taken. Not to mention the infantry.
"It's an interesting item, but I think it's doing more harm than good at this point."
Armored General Guderian also evaluated the T-34/85 favorably, but criticized the SU-203.
"If the Soviet Union had been in the position of aggressor, this SU-203 would have been quite useful. The firepower from the 203mm main gun is enough to puncture infantry defenses and blow out entire bunkers.
But now the Soviet Union is in the position of defender, not attacker. You will have more encounters with attacking enemy tanks than against bunkers, and it is difficult to effectively fight enemy tanks with something this large, heavy, and slow. Even if you fire a single shell, there is a high chance of being hit by the enemy while reloading. If it were me, I would have gone for a gun that was a little smaller and had a higher rate of fire, even if it meant giving up firepower. "This is based on the premise that an assault gun must be built."
That's a sharp point from a godfather of the industry.
Still, they added a comment at the end that firepower cannot be ignored, so if it was made with the purpose of making our soldiers nervous, it cannot be said to be a complete failure.
Anyway, since the T-34/85, which would have been released in the winter of 1943, came out in the summer of 1942, I thought that the IS-2 heavy tank would also appear soon.
Just as the Soviets released the SU-203 instead of the SU-152, something similar to the IS-2 but different may come out, but on the other hand, I'm a little worried about what might happen if a monster like the IS-3 or T-44 comes out.
We need to expedite the deployment of Tiger II and Yacht Panther.
Development of the '5 Tank Type B Panther II', which was previously ordered by Guderian, is also in progress.
If the Panther II, which has upgraded armor, engines, and main guns from the existing Panther, comes out on time, there will be no major concerns even if the Allies develop the Pershing and Centurion.
"Mr. President! "This is good news!"
"What's going on, Marshal Keitel?"
Keitel, who ran into the office with a grin on his face, talked about the good news he had told without even taking a breath.
"This is a telegram from Marshal Lev, Commander of Army Group North. "Soviet forces in Leningrad have announced their surrender!"
"Oooh?!"
"Congratulations, Mr. President!"
Today, Leningrad fell.
In history, Leningrad never fell despite being attacked for 871 days!
The telegram sent by Lev contained detailed information about the fall of Leningrad.
Leonid Govorov, commander of the Leningrad Defense Command, was killed by a bullet while fighting with friendly forces at St. Isaac's Cathedral, where the headquarters of the Soviet Army was located.
Even after the commander's death, the Soviet troops were divided into individual units and resisted, but perhaps judging that further resistance was meaningless, Deputy Commander Ivan Peduninsky, who took over as commander in place of the fallen Govorov, officially declared surrender today.
As the surrender broadcast reached the Leningrad area, the Soviet soldiers who had been hiding in every corner of the building also laid down their weapons and surrendered.
It is said that there are still Soviet troops who have not surrendered and are still resisting, but since they are only a small number, it is estimated that they will be cleared within a week.
The number of prisoners taken by the Northern Army Group was as many as 600,000. It is truly a jaw-dropping number.
"Building camps to accommodate these people would also be work."
"First of all, 200,000 of the 600,000 people will be housed in nearby Estonia and Latvia, and the remaining 400,000 will be housed in Lithuania and Poland. We have also sent requests for cooperation to Sweden and Finland."
Now that Leningrad had fallen, Army Group North had to set a new goal.
Brauchitsch advocated advancing to Volkhov and Takhvin and then joining the Finnish army to completely surround Lake Ladoga, but my thoughts were different.
"no. I think it would be a good idea to solidify the front line here and concentrate our efforts on the assault on Murmansk and Moscow. If Moscow falls anyway, these areas will fall into the hands of the Wehrmacht. And let's send the 4th Armored Group and its reserve units, the 23rd and 50th Corps, to the Central Army Group to support the Moscow offensive."
"But Mr. President, the 4th Panzer Group is fighting at the vanguard of the Northern Army Group, so its troops are very tired. "It seems unreasonable to deploy them to other fronts right away."
Keitel's point made sense. Even if it is a powerful unit, it cannot show its full potential if it does not rest properly.
"You forgot that. Then, I will give the 4th Armored Group two weeks of rest. Send the reserve 23rd and 50th corps to the Central Army Group first. And I heard that the 18th Army suffered little damage. What do you think about the idea of drawing troops from the 18th Army and sending them to the Central Group Army?"
"It's not a bad plan, but we need to separately bring in troops to attack Murmansk, in which case there is a risk that the strength of the Northern Group Army will be seriously reduced."
"So, how about sending in the Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian troops to make up for the strength of Army Group North?"
The Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian armies were relatively poorly armed, but their morale was very high just because they were fighting against the Soviet army, so they were expected to be able to play a one-man role.
However, there are many uncertainties in deploying these people, whose only practical experience is guerilla warfare, to the front line, so rather than assigning them to the Central Army Group and sending them into the raid on Moscow, they are assigned to the Northern Army Group and have them fill the vacancies left by the Central Army Group and our troops who were drafted to attack Murmansk. I thought it might be more effective.
"It's a Baltic army... so it's not bad."
"It seems like a good solution."
"Then let's do it."
***
September 13, 1942
USSR Moscow Kremlin Palace
Leningrad has fallen.
The news that Leningrad, the former capital of Russia and the city of revolution named after Lenin, the father of the Soviet Union, had been brutally trampled by the German fascist invaders sent an enormous shock throughout the Soviet Union.
While the whole of Germany was excited about the news of the fall of Leningrad, there was an endless procession of Moscow citizens escaping from the city in Moscow, the capital of the Soviet Union.
The authorities advertised that the Germans could never come near Moscow, but few people believed it.
Even when Leningrad was under siege, the authorities advertised that Leningrad would never fall, but it eventually fell.
If they went further than that, didn't the authorities shout loudly that the Red Army would soon 'liberate' Königsberg and Warsaw one after another and advance all the way to the Oder River?
But look at what it looks like now.
People no longer believed the Communist Party's empty propaganda.
"As everyone knows, Leningrad fell yesterday."
The atmosphere in the conference room was heavier and more serious than ever. This was something I had already anticipated since the news that German troops had landed in Leningrad arrived, but when it actually became a reality, the shock was beyond compare.
"The morale of the military and people is sinking. "As time goes by, the number of people leaving Moscow continues to increase."
Voroshilov and Zhukov, who were in charge of Moscow's defense, did not particularly consider the evacuation of Moscow citizens a problem.
Declining people's morale was a problem, but if there were many civilians in the city, there were many difficulties in military operations.
From their point of view, it was much better for the city to have fewer people than to have many.
But Stalin did not think so. He was convinced that the very existence of the people leaving Moscow and taking refuge in the rear was the main cause of the people's morale decline.
Of course, even if we prevented evacuation, the people's morale would not increase, but it seemed like we could at least prevent the spread of fear and confusion.
So when he brought up the idea of banning people's evacuation, the two couldn't help but be embarrassed.
"What do you mean, banning people's evacuation?"
"To prevent fear, confusion, and defeatism from spreading. Think about it. What will the people remaining in the city think as they see the procession of refugees leaving the city? Do you think you should stay in Moscow, or do you think you should hurry to leave the city before it is too late?
The Soviet Union is now in crisis. It is time for all the people to work together to stop the Nazis. "At this point, I think the distinction between the military and the people is meaningless, so I plan to declare all citizens of Moscow combatants."
Not only Zhukov but also his close friend Voroshilov was taken aback by Stalin's unexpected bombshell remarks.
Other close associates, including Khrushchev, Malenkov, Kaganovich, and Mikoyan, also seemed quite embarrassed, but none of them expressed opposition.
Rather, it was the opposite.
"That is a reasonable statement, Comrade Secretary."
"In the face of a national crisis, all people must join forces."
"There is no need to say things that will save my life when my country is in danger!"
Seeing Stalin's associates erasing the look of embarrassment from their faces and eagerly disagreeing with his words, Zhukov swallowed back in his throat the words that this would only have a negative impact on the people's morale.
"Comrade Zhukov, you have something to say. If you have something to say, say it now."
"yes? Ah, that's it…"
Voroshilov also looked reluctant, but Stalin bypassed Voroshilov and pointed to Zhukov.
For an instant, everyone's attention was focused on Zhukov.
"I am not against Comrade Secretary General's will, but I am worried that it may have a negative impact on the morale of the people."
"Of course, there will be reactionaries who are dissatisfied with the decision. However, if we allow defeatism to spread throughout Moscow like this, the future will only become more bleak. Even if you hear complaints about being harsh, you have to do what you have to do. Do you understand?"
***
September 15, 1942
Washington DC White House, USA
On Guadalcanal, a small island in the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific, the U.S. and Japanese troops were engaged in a fierce battle.
Japan, intoxicated with pride due to the great success of the Southern Operation, was defeated by the U.S. Navy, which it had previously regarded with contempt, in the Battle of Midway, and then turned its attention to the islands of the Solomon Islands, southern New Guinea.
Japan, which wanted to block the line of communication between Australia and the United States and isolate Australia by seizing strategic points in the South Pacific, began building an airfield on Guadalcanal Island in the Solomon Islands to achieve this goal.
After receiving information that the Japanese army had landed on Guadalcanal and was building an airfield, the United States attacked Guadalcanal in early August and took over the airfield that the Japanese army was constructing.
Japan, having lost the airfield, launched a counterattack to destroy the American forces and recapture the airfield, thus beginning the full-scale Guadalcanal campaign.
The struggles of the U.S. military at Guadalcanal and the movements of the Japanese military in the Pacific theater were reported to Roosevelt in the White House every day. A map of the European battlefield.
As Marshall's briefing on the Guadalcanal campaign ended, Roosevelt lifted his glass, smelled the scent of lukewarm peppermint tea, and suddenly spoke of Europe.
"I heard that Leningrad fell three days ago."
"That's right."
Marshall was not taken aback when Leningrad, which had no particular connection to the Pacific War, came out of the president's mouth.
It only took a day or two for the president to be very interested in Europe.
"I'm sorry for suddenly talking about Europe, George-"
"This is Marshall, sir."
"······What do you think, General? "Do you think Hitler can take Moscow before Christmas?"
I wanted to say that the way to repay the taxes paid by the people was to share at least a few words about the Pacific theater in which the United States was participating rather than whether Hitler would win Moscow or not, but Marshall was a man who ranked among the top in the entire U.S. military with patience alone.
He answered the President's questions sincerely.
"The German army is showing its astonishing speed of advance every day. "If we can maintain this pace, I think it is possible."
"hmm."
Roosevelt did not drink his tea, but put his cup down on the stand.
The rattling sound echoed through the quiet Oval Office and rippled across the car's smooth surface.
"You must have been wondering why we are talking about Germany when our main enemy is Japan."
"Not really."
That's correct.
"Of course, considering my current position, it makes sense to focus on the Pacific and Far East. The people will also be hoping for that. But, General, the war with Japan is already decided. "It's just a matter of how long it takes to get to victory."
Roosevelt was already confident of his country's victory in the Pacific War.
Although the cowardly surprise attack at Pearl Harbor put them in disgrace, and even now the Japanese military, especially the Japanese Navy, is fighting on equal footing with the U.S. Navy and proving that it is not an easy opponent, it was clear that the war would ultimately end in American victory. .
How can Japan, which has less than half of the entire industrial capacity of the United States, win against the United States, the world's most industrialized country?
Considering that the decisive reason why Japan started the war in the first place was the US embargo, Japan, with its overall national capabilities, could not defeat the US even if it died or woken up.
Roosevelt, confident in his country's capabilities, had no doubts about victory in the war. However, the European war was an exception.
Despite being simultaneously at war with two giants, Britain in the west and the Soviet Union in the east, Germany was racing toward victory.
If the Soviet Union, which lost Moscow, strengthens with Germany, Britain will be the only country fighting Germany in Europe, or indeed the world.
What are the chances that Britain, now alone, will survive against Germany, which dominated Europe and even brought the Soviet Union to its knees?
What is the probability that Germany, which has reached the max level of pride by defeating Britain, will remain satisfied and remain quiet in Europe?
"At most it will be less than 5%."
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