Battle of the Third Reich
v5 Chapter 252: French Colony (Part 2)
At this time, the governor of the Federation of French Indochina was George Katrou, as mentioned earlier. The full name is George Albert Julian Katrou. At the age of sixty-four, the general of the French Army The military rank, holding the military and political power of the French Far East colony, is a local role as the emperor. ⊙If it is a peaceful age, the governor's day is absolutely comfortable and moist.
Speaking of this, this first-level general’s career was quite smooth. He was already a lieutenant colonel battalion during World War I. Although the battalion under command was surrounded and wiped out by the Germans, he himself was taken into the prison camp by the captives. He allegedly met De Gaulle, who was still a company commander, in the prisoner of war camp, but think about it and know that Lieutenant Colonel Catru apparently would not regard the little captain as important.
After the war, the French army began to reorganize, because the loss of personnel was too serious, and there was an urgent need for officers with combat experience. These captured personnel became the first candidates, because they all went to the battlefield to taste human blood, and experienced meat grinders. In the eyes of the public, these people must be strong, wise and reliable officers.
Although Colonel Catruh’s military command was mediocre, he proved in his work that he was a very good administrative officer. In the two decades after the war, he actually served most of the time in overseas colonies, that is, These qualifications for overseas service earned him a rapid promotion, because French officers serving overseas had priority in promotion, and at the age of sixty, Catru became a rare first-class general in the French army. A member.
The French army executives are well aware that if nothing unexpected happens, this will be the highest rank this general can get, because only by gaining outstanding military achievements can one go one step further and be promoted to marshal of the French army, but with Catru Military capabilities and the world environment at the time, these can only be empty talk.
This general showed excellent administrative ability during his service in overseas colonies, especially in the Arab region of North Africa. It was loved by the then President of the French Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Daraday, because some of the general’s political views were very in line with Daraday. At this time, some territorial and territorial disputes occurred between the French Indochina colony and Cambodia, and the then French Governor Brevier was a moderate humanist. The attitude is a little weak, and because of the problems of the colonial navy’s strategy and command and the French navy, some of the governor’s performance made most members of the Daladi cabinet feel dissatisfied. They asked the prime minister to change one. The harder and more brave people take that position. Then Catru became the most suitable candidate for the prime minister at the time, in July 1939. Just before declaring war on Germany, the first-level general came to French Indochina to take over as governor.
Regarding this general’s appointment, many people regarded it as a symbol of France’s tough attitude, suggesting that France, the enemy of Europe, was still extremely powerful and would never bow to any threat. But Daraday and even Renault, who took over, did not expect that the prestigious general was not as tough as they thought. When the Japanese protest book was placed on his desk, he did not hesitate. I chose to compromise with the other party, and I promised to be so refreshing that I could hardly see a little restraint from General France.
In fact, even the Japanese did not expect that things would go so smoothly. If I had known this already, I shouldn't have been talking to the French ambassador to Japan.
Speaking of the compromise of the French Indochina authorities, in addition to some pro-Japanese thoughts of Catruh, it was mainly forced by the specific conditions in French Indochina at that time. Although France has a local army with a total of 15,000 people, it is scattered throughout the territory of the colonial federation. The only real guards on the Sino-Vietnamese border are five infantry battalions, of which a large Pile up locally recruited soldiers. The former governor was a romantic liberal who strongly advocated humane care for the local people. During the term of Governor Brevier. Continuous construction of irrigation systems, maintenance of roads and bridges, construction of school hospitals, and recruitment of a large number of locals into the government. And Amnesty ******, just did not think of building a strong armed force that can effectively protect these construction results.
The entire army of the French Indochina colony cannot add up to the number of a Japanese division. The weapons and equipment are mostly outdated. The important armor and artillery are seriously lacking in editing and the technical weapons are seriously inadequate. Although they have tanks and planes, most of them have been eliminated in Europe. It can be used as a deterrent to the more primitive surrounding small states. If they are used to fight against the Japanese army, they are just kidding.
Catru knew that the armed forces in his hands could not stop the invasion of the Japanese army. It was better to simply respond to the request of the party and avoid the occurrence of armed conflict. Catru believed that he was doing this to protect the rights and interests of France, because once a conflict occurred, France ultimately lost more than just a border, but more likely the entire French Indo-China Federation.
At that time, the situation on both sides of Japan and France was a bit like a wolf. As long as one of the two parties noticed the other party's flaws, they would definitely launch a series of blows and try to overthrow the other party on the ground. However, the Japanese did not have time to notice Catru’s flaws. The general was dismissed and put in custody on the spot. The executor was then the commander of the French Indochina Fleet, Colonel Bregen, and the general was detained. On an inland gunboat.
The Japanese did not notice this mutation at all. Although Japan paid great attention to the collection of intelligence in Southeast Asia, it was difficult to carry out in French Indochina. One is the number of Japanese immigrants in Vietnam. Too few, the second is that there is really not much valuable information in this place. In the eyes of the Japanese, Annan's only valuable location is their important geographic location. They never thought of what resources they could plunder from there.
If it were not close to China, the French would not even consider occupying this primitive agricultural country. In addition to agricultural products, Vietnam only produced a part of the original metal mines and coal mines. Most of the modern development resources were not discovered at the beginning of the twentieth century. France has occupied Vietnam for fifty-five years at this time, but it is only regarded as a barren and primitive overseas province, an important stronghold for trade in the Far East. The French believe that Vietnam's resources are scattered, energy is scarce, it does not have the conditions for industrial development, and the low purchasing power of locals cannot make it a market for commodity dumping. Although the local produce is very high. But it does not meet the tastes of Europeans, and those fruits and vegetables, transported by long sea routes, have long since reached a beach in France.
Especially after the outbreak of the international financial crisis and the war of aggression against China. The trade in the Far East has shrunk sharply. The French government’s investment in French Indochina has been higher than local output for several consecutive years. If it is possible to levy a little tax on Yunnan-Vietnam roads and railways after the outbreak of war, the fiscal deficit in the past two years is even more Can't read it anymore. At this time, in the eyes of some French domestic politicians, this land is like chicken ribs. It is a pity that food is tasteless and abandoned. But even if it is tasteless, it belongs to France. Before France disposes of itself, no one is allowed to reach out to it, which is related to the honor of France, although there are few left.
At this time, Petain had completed a secret transaction with the German head of state, and he had full confidence in the confrontation between the Far East and Japan. When he learned that Catru had actually succumbed to the Japanese coercion, he shot decisively and decisively. Ordered in the name of the President and the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. Catru was dismissed from his post and arrested in order to avoid extracurricular activities.
The Japanese army was posed by the French and felt humiliated. When was the majestic Japanese army fooled like a child, did the French still have a little bit of credit from European countries? Torn the agreement that has been signed.
The Japanese Army was determined to follow the routine they were used to under the anger. Since French ghosts and animals are not loyal and toast and not to eat, then eat punishment bars. The Japanese Army Staff Headquarters began to get busy, and this was not a simple ground battle. The French army is not a simple role, so it is necessary to build up an absolutely superior force and launch a thunder blow before the other party is aware of it.
Just using troops at the border, the Japanese army felt that it was not too safe, and the local geographical environment was too complicated. Once it is not possible to break through the mountains quickly, it is easy to be intercepted by the rapidly assembled enemy forces. Especially in the generation of the border line, the French army built a strong fort, which is not an obstacle that can be overcome in a short time. Therefore, the staff believes that if you want to quickly win the northern border of French Indochina, you must take a two-pronged approach. A force will land from the side of the enemy’s side and then detour to the side of the border guard. Once the enemy’s logistics supplies are Severance, even as strong as the French Army, will certainly not be able to withstand such a blow. This has been proven on the European battlefield more than once by the German Army.
However, to complete this tactic, it is necessary to obtain the cooperation of the Japanese navy, and the air force of the French garrison is not weak. It is very necessary to seize the air control of the battlefield. The Army fighter’s range is limited. The task of providing battlefield air cover also needs Please help from the Japanese Navy Air Force.
Now that the Japanese navy is involved, it is necessary for the two parties to conduct consultations, one or two visits, and after all the negotiations are over, a week has passed. The navy had prepared a frigate fleet, and the army began to rub their hands. The Japanese set the date of the attack on August 12. The third brigade of Morimoto Nakasa received an order from the team headquarters. His brigade will serve as a vanguard of the entire division and first break through the French defense line of Zhennan.
The long-awaited news of Morimoto Nakasa finally arrived. The captain almost sang loudly on the spot. The whole brigade began to mobilize. The weapons were all recuperated. The ammunition was distributed to every soldier, even to inspire the soldiers. For morale, the soldiers also received a piece of sweets and snacks that had been carefully kept in the file cabinet of the brigade headquarters.
The superior of the division also knew that the following troops had already suffered enough. Anyway, after the battle was over, everything would become better. The division held the strength of the days, and the logistics forces opened the heavily guarded military supplies warehouse. The participating units supplemented supplies in accordance with battlefield standards. As a starter unit, Morimoto Brigade not only obtained a lot of cans, but even distributed a few boxes of large bottles of Japanese liquor.
The night before the battle began, the Morimoto brigade lit a bonfire with wormwood, and the whole group had a lively dinner. The tragic soldiers swallowed the long-lost canned beef and plum rice **** while playing mosquitoes. Each class was also given a bottle of Japanese liquor. After drinking enough, the soldiers talked about how they would kill those French guys. The passion for fighting filled the hearts of every soldier. In the end, the dinner was called in threes. Tiannao black card ended on board.
In the early morning of the next day, the third brigade had hurriedly finished breakfast and began to move towards the south of the town. After converging with the other two brother units in the scheduled assembly area, the third brigade, as a vanguard, began to move quietly towards the border line. A jungle edge lurked near the mountain pass. The soldiers endured the bites of mosquitoes in the heat, waiting for the command of the commander of the army.
But what puzzled everyone was that the time set in the order had passed for a long time, but they had not waited for the offensive order issued by the division command. As time slowly passed, the soldiers lurking in the sultry and humid grass began to become irritable. Finally, the officer calmed down in time, and no accident happened.
At this time, Morimoto Miyake Nakasa had some ominous premonitions in his heart. This long-awaited offensive may have changed. Just when he decided to send a herald to the rear for questioning, the captain of the 21st Wing rushed to the front line personally. He conveyed the command of the headquarters to Morimoto, the whole army stopped fighting, and the troops returned to the station to stand by.
I have something to do today. I just finished writing this chapter and it was a little late. I hope everyone can understand it.
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