Chapter 331 Defense Line

Qin Chuan and Colonel Slain spent a day in Tunisia.

During this period, they mainly inspected the Tunisian defense line with Neumann.

The troops transferred from Italy are somewhat different from the troops transferred from France.

It should be said that the combat effectiveness of the troops stationed in France is not weak at first, but they are used to the kind of life of luxury and luxury in France... The troops are different from other units. It is very difficult for the troops to develop combat effectiveness. It requires unremitting and long-term training. But it is very easy to weaken the combat effectiveness, and the process is also very fast.

It had only been more than half a year since France surrendered, but just over half a year was enough to loosen the tight strings of the troops. Once loosened, it would be difficult to regain the same combat effectiveness as before. The 36th Infantry This is the case with teachers.

As a force stationed in Italy, the 200th Division is always training... Italy is an ally of Germany, and it does not need to be stationed. The German troops will be preparing to enter North Africa to fight in Italy, but because of the previous Couldn't come due to transportation reasons.

But because they knew they were about to go to war, they maintained their combat effectiveness while in Italy and even learned from veterans about fighting in North Africa.

Major General Neumann did this. He recruited some wounded soldiers who were transported from North Africa to Italy as instructors to conduct desert combat training for his troops. However, what Major General Neumann did not expect was that they Coming to North Africa was not for desert operations but for mountain operations and coastal defense operations.

However, this does not affect Major General Neumann's work in Tunisia.

"I think we should abandon the defense along the border between Tunisia and Libya!" Major General Neumann said: "Because southern Tunisia is still a desert, and this terrain is not suitable for our army's defense. In the mountainous areas in the central and northern parts, That should be the focus of our defense!”

Major General Neumann held a telescope and pointed at the soldiers who were repairing bunker fortifications on the high ground and said: "So, the focus of my defense is on Gabes. I plan to build a defense line along the high ground from there to Negrin."

Looking at the map, Qin Chuan couldn't help but nodded. To the west of Negrin was the Melegil Salt Lake. If the Allies wanted to avoid this line of defense, they would not only have to go deep into the desert hinterland, but also cross the salt lake and then cross several mountains. This is almost impossible for mechanized troops.

"But have you ever thought about how difficult it is to hold a line of defense?" Qin Chuan said.

Major General Neumann looked back at Qinchuan, and then replied confidently: "Lieutenant, as long as we are fully prepared, coupled with the heroic soldiers of the empire, as well as the wise command of the head of state and General Rommel, I believe that we It will thwart the British and American attacks."

After hearing this, Qin Chuan understood somewhat. Neumann was a fanatic, which meant that he at least partially believed in "spiritual victory."

There is a certain reason why "spiritual victory" is so popular in this era, especially in Germany...

The most typical ones are the German army and the Italian army. The German army has high morale and fighting will, so it can always exert strong combat effectiveness on the battlefield, while the Italian army's combat effectiveness is a piece of cake.

In addition, on the European battlefield, the German army overthrew neighboring countries and even France, the so-called largest army power, in more than a month, so some people started to think about why this happened.

Are there more troops than the enemy?

Of course not. The strength and number of troops and numbers of these European countries plus France are several times that of Germany.

Is the equipment better than the enemy?

What's more, Germany was restricted by the Treaty of Versailles, and many of its equipment were restricted in the early days and could not be further developed, especially when compared with France, there were many gaps.

After thinking about it, it is what Hitler said about the racial problem, and then it is the powerful fighting power that emerges when outstanding nations gather together to achieve a high degree of spiritual and ideological unity.

This idea has even been verified to some extent on the battlefield, because with the same equipment, troops with high morale can always have stronger combat effectiveness.

But the U.S. military is the best counterexample... The U.S. military's fighting will and quality are actually the worst. When the supply of troops was insufficient in the middle and later stages, they even recruited prisoners into the army to pay off their sentences, but they could use advanced equipment and a large amount of ammunition. Winning one war after another, many German or Japanese troops with high morale were bombed without even seeing the enemy.

Therefore, war has always been a combination of people and equipment, and both the spiritual theory and the equipment theory are biased.

"General!" Qin Chuan said: "How do you think the Tunisian defense line we built compares with the French Maginot Line?"

"There is no comparison, Lieutenant!" General Neumann replied: "The French defense line is indeed stronger than ours, but the soldiers stationed on the defense line are different, and the heads of state and generals commanding the operations are also different!"

"That's right!" Qin Chuan replied: "But I don't see any difference in the deployment. The defense line is still mines, bunkers, trenches and barbed wire, and the enemy can also use the same tactics to attack. They can even use warships Enter the Tunisian Strait and use naval guns to bomb the rear of the defense line..."

"Do you have any better suggestions, Lieutenant?" General Neumann asked: "Are there other defensive tactics besides this?"

"Of course!" Qin Chuan replied, and then pointed to the bunkers on the high ground and the trenches between the high ground and said: "These are actually meaningless. They will be blown up by the Allies in a few days. The only role they can play is to waste the Allied shells, and we know... After the Allies have the Suez Canal, Crete and Malta, their supplies can be transported continuously!"

Major General Neumann did not speak, because what Qin Chuan said did make sense. If the German army had sufficient supplies and more artillery in North Africa, then they could also use this method to blow through the British defense line, but the Allied side, especially the United States, had joined the war at this time, and the firepower was not comparable to the previous battle with Britain.

"So!" Qin Chuan said, "Our fortifications should be built underground rather than on the ground, and each high ground should be a point rather than a line of defense..."

"I don't understand!" Major General Neumann said, "If there is no line of defense, then how can we stop the enemy from attacking us in depth?"

Neumann said that the enemy can bypass the high ground and attack the German hinterland.

"To put it simply, it is to use points to cover the surface!" Qin Chuan replied, "It's okay to bypass one high ground, and it's okay to bypass two high grounds, but if you bypass ten or twenty high grounds and go deep, then their supply lines will have serious problems, and this is what the Allies need to worry about the most!"