Chapter 49 Beating You to Incapacity

Distinguishing between howitzers and cannons lies in the former having shorter barrels and curved trajectories, suitable for targeting obstacles from behind and primarily used for area bombardment, while the latter have longer barrels, longer range, and straight trajectories, primarily used for pinpoint accuracy.

Using cannons to counter surface vessels may seem like the ideal choice, but considering the characteristic of naval vessels having strong sides and weak decks, howitzers also serve as a surprising tactic.

The British Home Fleet's 11th Flotilla, traveling along the eastern coast of White Island, became the first victims of the German's new tactics. Typically, even with the normal hit rate of howitzers, hitting objects the size of light cruisers or destroyers with twenty-eight guns firing together would be difficult. However, this time, the British fleet was too close to the coast, and every vessel was blatantly exposed under illumination flares. Only three percent of the shells hit their targets, indicating the Germans were not lacking in luck!

The shells that directly hit British warships were relatively concentrated: the lead ship, HMS "Band", swallowed three shells, followed by the J-class destroyer "Two-Faced God" (F53) and the Tribal-class destroyer "Punjab" (F21), each taking one hit. The other warships barely suffered any near misses. It was evident that the German coastal artillery targeted the leading light cruiser!

Although HMS "Band" was hit the most times, it was the most defensively strong in the fleet. Besides causing casualties among the crew, the shells hitting the bridge and stern had almost no effect on the ship's structure. However, a shell hitting near the base of the main funnel damaged two barges and the ship's only seaplane (Dido-class had more aircraft catapults and forward gun turrets), injuring several gunners and damaging range finders, which is why the flagship remained motionless despite the other destroyers firing back according to the free-fire command.

In the command room, Acting Captain Anthony paced anxiously. Unlike battleships, each main gun turret of a light cruiser had independent large range finders. Relying solely on optical sights attached to the gun mount, determining the precise position of enemy positions in such adverse conditions was impossible.

Before the new round of explosions subsided, the second mate grabbed the phone and shouted, "Louder, louder!" After a moment of anguish, he turned to the naval lieutenant commander, who was dressed entirely in white: "Sir, the 'Two-Faced God' has transmitted firing parameters. The German positions are approximately 4,200 yards to the right front of our ship!"

"Good! Very good! Have all main guns commence firing according to these parameters!"

Anthony clearly enjoyed the feeling of giving orders. Despite several personnel missing in the command room, on a cruiser like this, every position had a deputy or substitute to ensure that casualties during intense combat wouldn't affect the ship's operation.

The cruiser's six 6-inch main guns were arranged singly in six semi-enclosed turrets, two each on the foredeck, amidships, and aft deck, capable of pouring firepower onto the same side rapidly. Before the firing parameters arrived, most of the gunners felt bewildered and uneasy in the face of this sudden onslaught.

The internal communication phone rang, and the burly gunnery officer almost snatched the handset as if electrocuted. Within seconds, he turned and shouted, "Quick, starboard 42 degrees, elevation 19 degrees, ready to fire!"

In a life-and-death situation, the gunners swiftly performed their technical actions, although each disassembly action might not meet the standard, the speed certainly exceeded any exercise.

"Ready!" shouted the sailor in charge of adjusting the gun's elevation, raising his right hand high as he gave the command.

"Gun number one ready!" shouted the gunnery officer into the microphone.

Between one breath and the next, the order to fire came. He put down the handset, plugged his ears quickly with his fingers while shouting "Fire" — listening to cannon fire at close range was something ordinary people could not bear, to the extent that many retired artillerymen still had difficulty restoring their hearing to normal levels!

Having endured several rounds of firing in vain, the British officers and men vented their anxiety and anger with the roar of the ship's guns. The booming of cannons echoed near and far, shells whistling away, and in a flash, bursts of fire erupted on the shore, as if telling the opponent: the Royal Navy's dignity is not to be challenged!

The British warships stubbornly counterattacked, and the 8th wave of shells from the coast whistled down. Although not as neat as the first batch, the shells were mostly scattered around the turning flagship, with two almost exploding against the ship's side. To avoid unnecessary casualties, sailors on unprotected gun positions (machine guns and machine guns) retreated to the compartments under the officers' orders.

In the face of enemy gunfire, turning did reduce the probability of being hit, but the negative effect was that the gunnery officer had to constantly adjust the firing parameters and transmit them to the gun positions. By the time the gunners completed the adjustments and fired again, the time difference would cause the shells to deviate from their intended targets. Various small factors combined, making it impossible to accurately estimate the lead!

The frequent bombardment from the coast proved that the British fleet did not cause any damage to the enemy during the turn. Three rounds of coastal artillery followed in succession. "Band" was hit again at the stern, and the "Two-Faced God", which was in the second position in the fleet, unfortunately became the new target!

"Report the damage!" Anthony tried to make his voice sound calm and steady, but his brow was already furrowed.

The shells hit the stern, and when the warship was sailing fast, the smoke did not spread to the bridge, but the violent shock still made people's hearts tighten: don't mess up at a critical moment!

The officers' worst fears came true. After the fleet completed its collective turn, Anthony neither issued a new turning order nor did the helmsman turn the wheel on his own, but the warship suddenly veered to the left - not fast, but with the sea as a reference, the signs of turning were still obvious!

A moment later, the second mate, holding the phone and shouting amidst the gunfire, said in panic, "Sir, bad news, enemy shells pierced two decks and landed in the engine room, the left shaft is jammed, three engine room crew killed, one seriously injured, the rest are repairing!"

"Damn it!" Anthony cursed angrily. Although somewhat aloof on ordinary days, his behavior was indeed very gentlemanly. The last time he cursed was four months ago when he failed to win the position of captain of another newly commissioned light cruiser because the victor was a retired senior colonel who returned to service — one year older than Botha!

Whether he broke his vow or not, it wouldn't change what had happened. If he let the warship continue to wander on the sea, the disastrous consequences could be imagined. Fortunately, Anthony was a "veteran" who had served in the navy for 16 years. After a moment of thought, he ordered, "Five degrees right rudder!"

The helmsman turned the wheel slightly. At this moment, the gunners on board seemed unaware of the predicament their warship was facing. Two main guns on the foredeck remained facing starboard. From the ship's perspective, one could still see the gunners covering their ears at the moment of firing (although they typically used earplugs, the noise of firing was still too loud, so covering their ears and opening their mouths somewhat would alleviate the discomfort of their eardrums).

In an instant, an officer exclaimed with joy, "They're turning back!"

The tense atmosphere in the command room finally eased, but Anthony remained expressionless, his deep green eyes filled with confusion.

However, the engine room was located below two decks...

Just minutes ago, Anthony had been ridiculing the Germans who attempted to challenge the British fleet with mortar fire, but upon further reflection, he realized he had fallen into an invisible trap himself!

The battle between the fleet and the coastal artillery continued. None of the eight British warships withdrew, and the German artillery fire showed no signs of abating. It seemed both sides were in a stalemate, but with the repeated hits on the "Bend" and its accompanying ships by relatively small-caliber shells, the situation was quietly changing.

"Sir! The 'Punjab' has been hit in the boiler room and can't maintain speed!" the second officer shouted in panic once again, but his trembling voice irritated Anthony, who furrowed his brow tightly. Hindered by the fragments flying past the bridge, the newly commissioned naval lieutenant dared not venture out of the command room and could only imagine the dire situation of the British destroyer - thick smoke billowing from the chimneys, leaking heavy oil turning the boiler room into a burning hell, sailors on the deck still fighting but some already jumping into the sea wearing life jackets to escape!

"Damn it, they've switched to armor-piercing shells!" Anthony realized with frustration - evidently, the Germans hadn't foolishly placed their artillery on the open coastline; although pre-built artillery positions couldn't fully withstand naval bombardment, they could at least provide substantial protection for the guns and gunners!

In comparison, the lightly armored cruisers and virtually unarmored destroyers had very limited resistance to enemy fire (after all, their purposes were different)!

Anthony was on the verge of ordering the fleet to retreat towards the open sea, but the thought of the "Punjab" already losing most of its propulsion made him swallow back his words: in the esteemed tradition of the Royal Navy, abandoning companions and retreating was considered cowardice; if he were to do so, the stigma of betrayal would follow him for life!

Anthony gritted his teeth, "Let the 'Hound' tow the 'Punjab' for evacuation, and the rest of the ships maintain formation and bombard the German coastal artillery positions with full force!"

This was perhaps the best course of action he could think of.

On the intermittently lit artillery positions, a Waffen-SS lieutenant with an Iron Cross medal grinned widely as he used his artillery telescope to observe the British fleet, which was exposed under the illumination flares. When the destroyer trailing thick smoke appeared in the queue, he smiled, revealing his sharp teeth: calibrating the impact points with high-explosive shells and launching a strong attack with armor-piercing shells had originally been a measure to conserve ammunition, but unexpectedly, it had confused the enemy. With just a couple more hours, the armor-piercing and armor-breaking shells delivered by naval aircraft could be in position, and he might have the chance to create a miracle for the field artillery!

Regular artillery didn't have the ability to summon rain, but amid the rumbling of gunfire, the downpour intensified. The last remnants of summer heat dissipated in this torrential rain...