Chapter 184: I Can Defeat the Enemy, but I Can’t Defeat My Own People

(The picture below shows German Chief of General Staff Falkenhayn)

Wilhelmstrasse in Berlin, Germany. After decades of development, this street has become a concentrated government office area. The German General Staff is located in an office building in the middle section.

Falkenhayn, the German Chief of General Staff, walked to the window sill with his hands behind his back. It was drizzling outside. On the street, a group of soldiers carrying rifles and singing military songs were heading to the front line amidst the cheers of the crowd.

They were obviously newly recruited soldiers, with childish faces, blazing eyes, and longing for the beauty of war.

Do these soldiers know what they are about to face? Falkenhayn asked himself in his mind.

No, they don't know, otherwise their faces would be full of fear!

But now it seems that this is the only way. The Western Front needs more troops, more! It's not enough yet!

"General!" Colonel Moritz, the staff officer, came forward to report: "General Kluck called. He wants to know whether the news that we are developing tanks is true!"

"Developing tanks?" Falkenhayn was confused: "Where did he hear this news?"

"I'm not sure, General!" Moritz replied hesitantly: "Maybe, a certain department leaked the news..."

Then Moritz came to his senses and stood up: "I'll check right away!"

"No, Moritz!" Falkenhayn stopped the staff from thinking they were smart. He said with a hint of helplessness: "We don't have any tank plan at all. It's just something imagined by the frontline soldiers. They were manipulated by the enemy. Tanks freak out, so I wish I had a tank.”

Falkenhayn slowly walked back to his seat, sat back in the chair with difficulty like an old man in his dying years, and rubbed his aching forehead in distress.

It had only been more than a month since he took office, but what happened on the front line made him feel that the German army was about to completely collapse and fail:

The fact that the three-door "Big Bertha" was blown up in Antwerp can only be regarded as a minor incident, but the airship was actually destroyed there.

That was an airship that the Germans spent a lot of manpower and material resources to produce at the cost of building a battlecruiser, but it was easily shot down by an aircraft that was less than one percent of its size and carried several Congreve rockets.

Not long ago, Falkenhayn had high hopes for airships and even had a plan to use them to bomb London.

But everything came to nothing with a roar and a dazzling fire.

Then came the Battle of Ypres. The French showed up with planes carrying machine guns. As a result, the sky was full of French planes, and the German planes were helpless.

Then came the Battle of La Forks, where the "Mark I" tank emerged. It easily broke through the German defense lines and surrounded an elite force plus eight artillery battalions and forced them to surrender.

At that moment, Falkenhayn even felt like the sky was falling: "God, we were still dreaming about occupying Paris, and we didn't realize that the French could easily wipe us out, just like strangling an ant!"

Of course, he did not say these words. As the chief of general staff, he could only bury this fear in his heart.

Falkenhayn was not a coward, but he was still shocked by the new equipment that emerged one after another in France. They easily took full advantage in the sky and on the ground.

How to fight this battle?

"Tank?" Falkenhayn shook his head: "No, it will be too late by the time we develop a tank. We need something that can stop the French in a short time, right away!"

Moritz nodded, he knew what Falkenhayn was referring to, the 13mm T-type anti-tank rifle, which had been produced and could penetrate 25MM vertical steel plates at a distance of 200 meters, which should be able to stop tanks.

But a piece of information changed Falkenhayn's mind.

A staff officer handed over a telegram: "General, according to intelligence, Shire's 'Mark I' seems to have a defect in its travel. They need to replace their tracks every thirty kilometers forward!"

"Is this true?" Falkenhayn looked at the staff officer in shock, his hand trembling with excitement as he took the telegram.

"It should be true!" the staff officer replied: "It has been confirmed by a certain party in France."

Falkenhayn read the telegram several times, beaming with joy.

He had been wondering these days that the French could clearly break through the German defenses but did nothing.

He originally thought that the French were preparing more tanks, and then they could launch a thunderous blow to collapse the German army in one fell swoop.

Now it seems that it is because of the problem of the tank itself.

After thinking about it for a while, Falkenhayn felt more and more reasonable: If the tank traveled thirty kilometers, it would need major repairs, and the French army would not dare to go deep into the hinterland after breaking through the defense line.

Otherwise, they will be alone and waiting to be surrounded by the Germans.

Falkenhayn breathed a long sigh of relief, as if a sword hanging over his head suddenly disappeared, the battle situation was no longer as urgent as before.

After hesitating for a moment, Falkenhayn turned to his staff and ordered: "Pick up the 7th Traffic Division!"

"Yes, General!" Moritz responded.

The full name of the 7th Transportation Division is the "Seventh United Front Work Department Transportation Division". It is the department responsible for the management and research and development of military vehicles.

…

The next morning, Gallieni got up at eight o'clock on time.

The staff usually prepare more than ten minutes before Gallieni. This is to save Gallieni as much valuable time as possible, so that when he goes to work, the staff will not know the situation and be unable to report to him.

As soon as Gallieni sat on the chair, Charles handed over the prepared documents: "These need your signature, General!"

Gallieni said "hmm", holding a pen and signing the document quickly, saying: "I received news that Schneider and Francis Tractor Factory has submitted an application to the government for the "Wartime Procurement Regulations", still "Saint-Chamond" and "CA-1", but it is an improved version. Your "Mark I" is still not going to participate as before, right?"

"Yes, General!" Charles answered very straightforwardly.

Gallieni looked up at Charles: "Or, do you have a new tank?"

"Yes!" Charles did not avoid it.

"Are you not going to participate in the new tank?" Gallieni asked again.

"No!" Charles had a hint of helplessness in his eyes: "The new tank also has the same problems as before!"

Gallieni's eyes flashed with disappointment, but he finally nodded and said nothing more.

Gallieni always hoped that Charles could defeat his opponent in the bidding for the "Wartime Procurement Regulations", so that there would be fewer unnecessary casualties and failures on the battlefield.

But the irony is that Charles' tanks won on the battlefield and won the public's recognition, but he would still fail in the military's bidding.

Even the hope of winning is getting smaller and smaller.

Last time, the right wing and Schneider were competitors, and "CA-1" and "Saint-Chamond" were enemies.

Now they have become allies. They have a majority of seats in parliament, and they are supported by Joffre and the Automobile Technical Service Department, as well as the right-wing forces...

Galieni sighed softly:

Charles' tanks can easily defeat the enemy, and can scare the Germans into frantically sending troops to the front line to build fortifications day and night, but they can't defeat their own people, and there is no hope at all!

(The picture above is a German 13mm T-type anti-tank rifle, which has a huge recoil. It is rumored that the shooter will go to the hospital after firing three shots: one shot in the right shoulder, one shot in the left shoulder, and one shot in the right shoulder, and then a replacement)