Chapter 35: Slaughter

For the British troops, whose morale was low due to heavy casualties, the roar of the naval artillery was a highly effective stimulant. After the final pre-battle mobilization by the officers, the infantry were excited and ready to face death with determination.

At 4:46 in the early morning, 24 infantry battalions belonging to 11 different infantry divisions, along with the main force of the British 1st Armored Division, launched the sixth attack on the German defenses at Le Pétel beachhead. This was not only the largest anti-landing operation by the British Army in the past two days but also the final rallying cry of the entire British military.

The night sky was pierced by flares rising from behind the German defenses, and the long-awaited Matilda tanks and various types of cruiser tanks finally appeared in front of the German positions. Due to the firm control of the southern skies by the German Luftwaffe during the day, these tanks only arrived after dark from their respective camps. The continuous journey not only caused the tank crews to suffer from body aches but also led to constant wear and tear on these not-so-reliable war machines. Although 167 tanks were assembled as ordered, only 104 of them were able to participate in the attack by dawn, with 57 of them being slightly inferior Matilda I and IIs, leaving only 47 Matilda IIs and newer cruiser tanks capable of directly engaging the German tanks. Nevertheless, this was still the first time that the British Army had concentrated tanks on such a large scale. It's worth noting that whether in France or on the Isle of Wight, the British Army's use of tanks was not much different from their fallen French allies—the role of the infantry in warfare had been overestimated.

With the thunderous roar of over 230 artillery pieces, the massive attacking force advanced towards the German positions at the speed of the Matilda tanks. This time, 24 relatively intact British infantry battalions, totaling over 20,000 men, were finally arranged behind the tank formations. However, with such a massive attacking force concentrated on a defensive front less than 5 kilometers wide, the density of troops can be imagined.

In the darkness of the night, the Stukas were unable to operate, but the German artillery deployed in the northern part of the Isle of Wight continued to provide dense and powerful firepower support to their beachhead defenses. Not only that, but the 16 88mm heavy guns transported and landed overnight were already in position. Even after deducting those damaged by British naval gunfire, the remaining "tank can openers" were enough to make the British tank crews regret!

The German tanks deployed on the front line had fired a large number of shells in the past 24 hours. After replenishment, they were once again fully armed. As for the wear and tear on the gun barrels caused by the massive firing, it was insignificant compared to the huge gains.

The dark tide of people surged forward again towards the solid dam composed of over ten thousand German soldiers. In the intense firepower, the outcome soon became clear: the battle lasted nearly an hour, and the machine gunners on the German positions had changed barrels three times as long as they were not killed by enemy fire. As for the number of bullets expended, looking at the piles of spent cartridges on the ground, no one had the mood to count them carefully!

The stubborn assault by the British finally forced the German infantrymen to use their MP38 submachine guns and Panzerfaust anti-tank rocket launchers, indicating that the British infantry had pushed forward to within 50 meters of the German frontline positions at one point. As the intense smoke mixed with the heavy smell of blood filled the air, the battlefield became a scene of hell!

In accordance with the recognized rankings:

In World War II, Germany ranks first in the Army, second in the Air Force, and third in the Navy.

In World War II, Britain ranks first in the Navy, second in the Air Force, and third in the Army.

When the British use their weaknesses to challenge the strengths of their opponents, and they are also the ones initiating the attack, the outcome is already predetermined from the start (if it were the German landing forces attacking, at least the British infantry in the trenches would not suffer such heavy losses).

Is it over?

As the surging crowd gradually receded, and the gunfire on the battlefield gradually subsided, some people's ears were still buzzing due to the huge disparity. Thanks to the abundant ammunition reserves before the battle, the firepower points on the German positions hardly ceased firing due to ammunition exhaustion during the battle. The riflemen had almost emptied their ammunition boxes, although each of them was equipped with six extra magazines. Nevertheless, the submachine gunners were still busy loading bullets into their magazines during the final stages of the battle.

Is it over?

The officers and soldiers poked their heads out of the trenches. By the light of the flares, they looked at the tragic scene in front of the positions with various complex expressions: over seventy destroyed or damaged British tanks scattered across the battlefield, some still emitting smoke, and the bodies of tank crew members posed in various strange postures. In the wilderness, the dense bodies made people unable to help but doubt the era they were in: it seemed that only in the era of cold weapons would such a bloody scene of casualties appear on a battlefield. Unfortunately, upon closer inspection, these people all seemed to be wearing the same uniforms, using the same weapons, and the bodies were particularly dense at a distance of 500 to 200 meters from the positions!

Looking at this scene, even the experienced German officers and soldiers were astonished. The British were repelled, but faced with such a bloody casualty, did they still have the courage to continue the attack?

Almost at the same time, hundreds of kilometers away at the mouth of the Bristol Bay, the Germans were also fighting against their weaknesses against the strengths of their enemies. When paths crossed, courage and wisdom were still the decisive factors!

A flare slowly descended, and after the final flicker, it went out.

The sea returned to darkness, but the dark-red shells shuttled back and forth, disrupting the peace of the world. After a moment, a new flare blossomed in the air, illuminating the almost boiling sea.

Four warships coming from south to north, without exception, flew the flag of the German Navy. Whether it was the High Seas Fleet of more than 20 years ago or the Third Reich Fleet of 40 years ago, surface vessels had never ventured into the Celtic Sea during wartime, let alone the Bristol Bay located at the heart of the Celtic Sea. Regardless of victory or defeat, the German Navy had taken a big step forward in history!

Seven warships coming from north to south formed a single oblique column, reminiscent of the fleet battles of the sailing era. Due to the limitations of the gun range, naval officers and sailors at that time took pride in close-range naval battles, but as the times changed, once the ships on both sides closed the distance, they would do everything possible to use torpedoes for attack.

"Attention! Full speed left turn, evade enemy torpedoes! Gunners, return fire with all guns!"

On the German cruiser "Emden," young Captain Holt von Reinspusch, accustomed to wearing his cap askew, commanded his subordinates with a loud order. This light cruiser, with a standard displacement of 5,500 tons, was the first surface vessel built by the German Navy after the war. Its overall design was moderate, but some details reflected the wisdom and ambition of German naval engineers at the time: full oil power allowed the ship to reach a top speed of 29.4 knots, which was quite impressive in the early 1920s, and its range reached 5,300 nautical miles, allowing it to operate freely in the North Sea or the Baltic Sea and, when necessary, to enter the Atlantic Ocean for combat missions. Its configuration of eight single 150mm guns and two twin 533mm torpedo launchers had fallen behind the mainstream by the late 1930s, but its ability to carry 120 mines at once made it a decent minelayer at the beginning of World War II.

The alarm bells for rapid turning rang throughout the ship, reminding the crew to maintain balance. At the same time, the eight main guns and high-angle guns on the ship's sides fired at the enemy vessels not far away. Dark-red shells streaked across the night sky, creating splashes of water on the dark sea surface one after another.

Following the "Emden" were the only surviving German destroyer, the Z20 "Karl Galster," of the 1936 class, all of its five sister ships having been sunk in the fierce Battle of Narvik. In order to improve seaworthiness, the Z20 was the first German destroyer to use a sharp, large-raked bow, allowing it to achieve an astonishing speed of 38.5 knots at full throttle!

At the rear of the German fleet were two German 1935-class fleet torpedo boats, which could be considered as small destroyers. With a displacement of over 800 tons, they were equipped with a 105mm caliber naval gun and powerful triple 533mm torpedo launchers. They were more agile and had much better endurance than ordinary torpedo boats.

These four warships, together with the torpedo boats providing cover for the landing fleet still in the rear, had quietly entered the Atlantic Ocean from the North Sea before the end of August: the "Emden" sneaked past the Danish Straits alone, circled around Britain, and finally arrived in Brest, France; Z20 and the torpedo boats passed directly through the English Channel along the French coast under the cover of the German Luftwaffe, with only one torpedo boat sunk by a mine—ironically, the British had also laid a large number of mines in the English Channel, making it a graveyard for their main fleet!

After the formation completed its turn, the "Emden" issued a radio command: concentrate fire on the leading enemy ship!

Under the flare, experienced German officers easily distinguished the identity of the attackers: one old destroyer and six small torpedo boats. From the course of their encounter, they should have come as emergency reinforcements from other areas to support the Bristol Bay—if they hadn't encountered the German fleet, they would have been attacked by German torpedo bombers at the bay entrance.

After adjusting, the four German warships soon sank the leading British destroyer with precise firepower. This seemingly lightweight naval battle was highly valued by the German officers and soldiers because it involved the safety of more than two hundred German landing ships.

The injured British destroyer did not turn back but continued to return fire with its guns while sailing south at full speed, seemingly trying to escape the attacks of the German fleet and find the German landing fleet hidden in the darkness.

Colonel von Reinspusch, who had already exhausted his torpedoes to prepare for the upcoming battle, had no choice but to order the Z20 to pursue the enemy with the fleet torpedo boat T9. With the powerful propulsion of 70,000 horsepower, the elite German destroyer quickly accelerated to 38 knots, its gray-white hull cutting through the waves like a sharp knife on the sea surface. A shell hit its bow, causing heavy casualties among the gunners on the No. 1 gun position, but this did not stop the shark from chasing its prey at full speed. When the chase reached a distance of 700 meters, the commander decisively ordered the release of torpedoes. Four torpedoes shot out from the port-side launchers, and in an instant, the aging British destroyer turned into a burning wreckage on the surface of the water.

Seeing the danger, the British torpedo boats that had already run out of torpedoes turned northeast and sailed away. The "Emden," along with two fleet torpedo boats, continued to bombard them fiercely, causing two of the torpedo boats to emit smoke. But as they were about to pass through the mouth of the Bristol Bay, they turned back to protect the huge landing fleet!

For these young, brave, and skilled German naval officers and sailors, the journey of battle was far from over, but the ideals that their predecessors had not fulfilled were gradually being realized in their hands...