บท 56: 56
war (2)
December 26, 1939
German naval port of Kiel
As we entered the military port, the Navy military band started playing.
The first song was the Badenweiler March, and the second song was Kameraden auf See.
It's a song that's perfect for a happy day like today.
Although there were dark clouds in the sky and the cold wind blowing from the Baltic Sea felt like it was biting, it was a warm spring day in my heart.
It will be an especially emotional day for Leather, who is a true battleship fanatic.
Look at that expression of excitement and joy, as if meeting again your long-lost first love.
"It seems like you are happier than me."
It was said as a joke, but Leather nodded with a serious expression.
His eyes were still facing straight ahead.
This guy looks really happy.
The battleship Bismarck, a symbol of the Kriegsmarine in World War II along with U-Boats and one of the most impressive and final battleships of the time, was finally officially commissioned.
Huge main guns and a bridge soaring high into the sky.
Look at that majestic figure reminiscent of a medieval fortress.
I'm not a battleship fanatic, but if you can't feel anything even after looking at that majestic figure, you should at least once wonder if he's a eunuch.
"It looks enormous, as its name suggests."
Even Göring could not close his mouth, perhaps overwhelmed by Bismarck's majesty.
As the Nazi dignitaries on board continued to burst out with exclamations, the naval generals, including Leder, were left speechless.
Regardless of whether it is useful or not, a battleship has a magical charm that attracts people's attention just by its appearance.
"To the President, Mr. President-"
"Ah, there's no need to hurt your neck, Admiral. "It's been a while since we last met."
"It is an honor, Mr. President."
I shook hands with Lieutenant General Günter Lütjens.
I first met Lütjens at the launching ceremony of the Bismarck in the spring of last year, and this was my second meeting.
In original history, he was a man who commanded a surface fleet and played an active role in the invasion of Denmark and Norway, was awarded the Knight's Cross, and shared the fate of a battleship in the chase for Bismarck.
At the time of the final battle, Lütjens said, "A further voyage is impossible. I will fight until the last shot. After sending a telegram saying "Heil Hitler" to Germany, he fought until the end and died heroically.
However, unlike his cool-headed end, his personality was so cruel that the entire Bismarck crew hated him, and it was immediately understandable when you looked at his face.
A face that looks dirty at first glance and a crooked expression that seems to say, 'I'm an old man.'
As soon as you see him, you get the feeling that he looks like a really good-looking guy, and he looks like he wouldn't look out of place at all even if he were dressed in a ROK military combat uniform instead of a Kryxmarine livery. I think her rank would be corporal or sergeant.
"And your name...?"
"My name is Ernst Lindemann, Mr. Führer. "It is an honor to serve you."
Colonel Ernst Lindemann.
He was the captain of the Bismarck and met a violent end together with Lütjens.
Unlike Lutjens, who had a dirty personality, he had a kind and generous personality and was respected by all the crew.
His relationship with Lütjens was not very good, so they often raised their voices and fought, but it is said that Lütjens often pressured him with his rank, which put Lindemann under a lot of stress. He seems like a pitiful nobleman.
After greeting key naval personnel, I turned my head toward Bismarck.
The appearance of Bismarck, which incorporated technology from the United States, Britain, and Japan, was slightly different from what I remember from history.
The biggest difference in appearance was that it was equipped with a triple 380mm main gun turret, which was obtained by giving up rapid fire ability.
In addition, it was not equipped with separate surface-mounted secondary guns and large-diameter anti-aircraft guns, but instead was equipped with a newly developed 128mm dual-purpose gun.
The turret armor and deck armor, which were pointed out as weak points, were strengthened, and in particular, instead of the SK C/30 37mm single-shot anti-aircraft gun, which was famous for its poor performance, the Mk103 30mm anti-aircraft gun and the FlaK 28 40mm anti-aircraft gun, a license produced by Swedish Bofors 40mm, were installed to increase anti-aircraft firepower. strengthened. That's 30 doors!
Lastly, detection capabilities were enhanced by installing the 'Uda Radar' developed for Germany by our Japanese friend Shintaro Uda.
In addition, there are many improvements, such as improving fire control capabilities by developing a fire defense team, but I do not have enough time to explain them, so I will omit them below.
It was safe to say that this was almost a complete transformation.
Besides Bismarck, there was one more protagonist of the day.
Unlike the Bismarck, which left a violent end that you only see in movies, it was the Graf Zeppelin aircraft carrier that was never completed until the end of the war, and after the war was turned into a target ship by the Soviet military, it died a lonely life in the Baltic Sea.
Unlike the original, this one has also seen improvements in many areas.
All naval guns installed for self-defense were removed from the design, and the same Mk103, FlaK 28, and Uda radar as Bismarck were installed.
There is nothing on the aircraft carrier yet, but in actual combat, it will carry a naval air force consisting of Bf109 T-type carrier aircraft, Ju87 Stuka, Ar196 seaplanes, and Fl 282 helicopters.
Unlike his original history when he had a very bad relationship with the Navy, the current Göring has changed not only his appearance but also his insides by 180 degrees.
Although his temperament may have been innate, he changed into a personality that knows how to compromise, and he silently agreed to the establishment of the Naval Air Corps and even showed himself passing on related know-how to the Navy.
"I think I should also say thank you to the Marshal of the Reich. "Without the cooperation of the Air Force, the Naval Air Corps would not have even been able to dream."
"It was nothing. "It's an exhibition, so shouldn't we help each other?"
Göring waved his hand at Raeder's thanks.
I wonder if this is the Goering I knew.
He only has the same name as Goering, but it makes you wonder if he is actually a different person.
It would be great if it was like this in real history too.
He suffered less criticism and may have enjoyed a heavenly life.
There is no change in the fact that the Kryx Marine is still inferior to the British Navy, but it will still be possible to burn the British Navy's shit more than its actual history.
As the Pacific War broke out in 1941, Britain would not be able to focus only on the Atlantic.
Of course, the best option would be to conclude a peace agreement with Britain before then and end the war.
If we destroy the British army at Dunkirk and win the air battle over the British mainland, the British will no longer be able to talk about continuing the war.
The problem is that damn Churchill...
Since he is a man with a thick face that few people can match in European history, there is a high possibility that he will chew up everything regardless of what public opinion says.
To be honest, Churchill would be the kind of guy who would forcibly suppress people while talking about them being German spies even if the crowd rose up.
It would be nice if the British could take him down on their own.
What if the British go crazy as a group and continue the war?
There is no other way than to launch Operation Sea Lion and occupy the British mainland or release U-boats and launch a second unrestricted submarine operation.
With the current Kryx Marine, sea lion operations are impossible.
What if Plan Z becomes a reality? However, carrying out Plan Z requires a huge budget.
The United States is the only country that can pour that much of a budget into the navy, let alone the entire military...
"Mr. President? Are you unwell? "You don't look good."
Leather was smiling just a moment ago, but his expression suddenly darkened and he asked as if he was worried. I guess I was too focused on my thoughts.
"It's nothing. "I just remembered something bad that happened in the past..."
"What on earth were you thinking that made your complexion look so bad?"
Lady, what excuse can I make?
If I told the truth that I did it because I was worried about war with England, I think the whole atmosphere would be ruined.
What a good excuse... Ah!
"I get choked up thinking about our navy that met a tragic end at Scapa Flow..."
"ah."
Scapa Flow Ocean Fleet scuttling incident.
This is an incident that not only the German Navy but Germans can never be unaware of.
As I mentioned before, before being defeated in World War I, the German Navy had a powerful military power, boasting the second largest force in the world.
However, as World War I ended with Germany's defeat, the various battleships, cruisers, and destroyers owned by the German Navy were in a position to be distributed to the victorious countries.
The German High Seas Fleet, commanded by Admiral Ludwig von Reuter, anchored at Scapa Flow, England, under orders from the Royal Navy.
While the victorious countries, including Britain, France, and the United States, discussed the distribution of warships, Reuter, who did not want to hand over his country's warships to the enemy, decided to scuttle all the ships.
On June 21, 1919, when the Royal Navy fleet departed for training at Scapa Flow, Reuter ordered his men to scuttle the ship.
The British fleet received word from land that the German fleet was attempting to scuttle it, and hurriedly returned to Scapa Flow, but it was already too late.
More than 400,000 tons of German warships were scuttled, and the German ocean fleet sank completely beneath the Atlantic Ocean.
Although the plan to confuse the Allies was successful, this incident remained a bitter sorrow to the German people.
"I was moved by His Excellency the President's sincerity. "I can't believe you think so seriously about the Navy."
It was just a loose remark made as an excuse, but Leather had tears in his eyes as if he was truly moved.
"No German, Navy or not, will ever forget that tragic event. Even though it is impossible to regain its former glory, the Navy is willing to risk death to repay the attention and grace of His Excellency the President-"
······Maybe I should have just told the truth.
***
After Leder's tirade, Bismarck's first demonstration bombardment took place.
The demonstration bombardment was completed without any problems.
Everything was perfect except that it took a long time between the first shot and the next shot because the sailors were not yet skilled enough.
After the demonstration bombardment was successfully completed, a banquet was held to celebrate the commissioning of Bismarck and Graf Zeppelin.
Leather seemed determined to drink as much as he could for today, so he drank cognac and champagne one after another.
When I advised him to drink slowly for his health, he was confident and said that he was a strong drinker. He ended up being unable to control himself properly during the banquet and left first.
"Wow. "It's only for an older man to drink like that."
"That's it. On a day like today, you should get drunk a lot. "He's already a man who can't use his own skills when it comes to battleships."
Himmler, who had been calm, soon left with the help of his lieutenant Joachim Pfeiffer.
After Himmler left, Goering also collapsed in a state of despair, and other dignitaries returned to their quarters in a similar state.
I don't really like alcohol, so I drank in moderation and was able to stay sober even after a long time had passed.
Among the Nazi dignitaries who came along, only a handful remained sane until the very end, and German Minister of Education Alfred Rosenberg was one of them.
"Hey, I guess you're a stronger drinker than I thought?"
"Hahaha, because I can't take everything like everyone else. "Shouldn't at least one person remain sane until the end?"
"You speak well. "Take a drink."
Rosenberg drank the cocktail I offered him in one gulp, then lowered his voice as if he had something important to say.
"By the way, Mr. President. "He gave me top secret news yesterday."
"that? "Who is he talking about?"
"This is Vidkun Quisling, whom I met before."
When I heard the word Quisling, I put down my glass.
Why is Quisling suddenly appearing here?
On December 14, Rosenberg brought Quisling to me and introduced him to me.
According to his explanation, he was a person who could be of great help to Germany's global strategy in the future, but to me, who already knew about Quisling, this was an absurd statement.
For those who don't know who Vidkun Quisling is, to put it simply, he can be thought of as the Norwegian version of Lee Wan-yong.
Quisling, Norway's former Minister of Defense and leader of the pro-German fascist National Union Party, staged a coup when Germany invaded Norway, established a pro-German regime, and cooperated diligently with the German army that invaded his country.
Naturally, after the war ended, he was arrested by the Norwegian government, put on trial, sentenced to death, and executed.
The perception of Quisling is at its worst even in the 21st century, so much so that in Norway the word Quisling is used as a byword for traitor.
"It is truly an honor to meet you, Honorable President!"
"Uh, um, nice to meet you..."
Quisling eagerly grabbed my hand and shook it, not even knowing what I thought of him.
Well, I can't tell the person who came to see me to go away.
They say you can't spit on a smiling face, and that's exactly what's happening now.
And so began an uncomfortable conversation between me and Quisling.
"I know about you because I've heard about you a few times before. "What brings you here?"
"I have come to have a frank conversation with you, Mr. President, regarding the recent series of events taking place in Northern Europe."
Quisling first expressed concern that Norwegian socialists were growing in power with the support of the Soviet Union and asked me if there was a good way to resolve this.
Why are you asking me that?
"Didn't you, Mr. Fuhrer, have a track record of eradicating the Communist Party in Germany? "What should Norway do to follow Germany's example and eradicate socialists and communists?"
"Hmm, it is definitely true that I stopped the communist party in Germany. But at the same time, I signed a non-aggression pact with the Soviet Union?"
"Isn't that an unavoidable choice based on necessity? "Joining hands with former enemies to exterminate a common enemy is a completely different matter than eliminating internal enemies."
Uh... I guess that's what I heard?
"Anyway, you don't need to worry too much. Because of the Soviet Union's invasion of Finland, Norwegians would have learned what kind of country the Soviet Union was and what communism it advocated. "It's best to wait until the public naturally stays away from them."
"Is that so?"
He then discussed with me the cooperation between Norway and Germany.
Even though he said it in a flashy way, it was ridiculous to me, who knew that his National Union Party was not very popular among Norwegians.
No matter how friendly the National Coalition is to Germany, how can a no-frills party with no seats and an approval rating of only around 2% represent all of Norway?
In the case of Korea, it is like a no-frills political party that has not even been able to elect a single member of the National Assembly and whose existence is not even known, let alone its approval rating, is proposing to China or Russia to scrap the ROK-US alliance and form a Korea-China and Korea-Russia alliance. How similar is it?
"I wasn't going to say this, but isn't the National Union Party a small party that doesn't receive much support from Norwegians? "But how can we cooperate with Germany on behalf of all of Norway?"
Even though it may have been a bit unpleasant for Quisling, he didn't even blink an eyebrow. Did he expect to be asked this question?
"You don't have to worry about that. If I gather my supporters and stage a coup and take over power, the Norwegian people will naturally support the National Union Party. "If I have the support of the people, His Majesty the King will listen to me."
"······Are you serious?"
Quisling was a much crazier person than I thought.
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