Chapter 230: The Reich High Command

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The sinking of a single destroyer was enough to make the Germans realize that the British Royal Navy was playing for keeps this time. So, however reluctant, the German High Seas Fleet had no choice but to brace itself for a fight. Stuka dive bombers, carrying bombs, charged directly at the British destroyers that were attempting to block the German fleet’s southward path. The German carriers’ first offensive operation had begun under such unfavorable circumstances.

Subsequently, the attack by the German naval air arm did not achieve any impressive results. Most of their bombs were dropped into the sea. Only one bomb managed to damage a British cruiser, but it was not enough to sink the British warship. On the contrary, one German Stuka dive bomber was shot down by the British ships’ anti-aircraft fire, and its two pilots were killed.

To be perfectly honest, the performance of the Stuka dive bomber on land was commendable, but its effectiveness in attacking targets at sea was somewhat disappointing. This must be explained from the operational principles of the Stuka dive bomber.

As everyone knows, in the early stages of World War II, there was no such newfangled thing as a precision-guided bomb. Therefore, to ensure bombing accuracy, the dive bomber, a weapon with obvious limitations of its era, was born. The dive bomber used a high-speed dive to get as close as possible to the target and aim before dropping its bombs to ensure accuracy. It was very effective against roads, railways, bridges, and even moving tanks and armored vehicles.

However, when used against warships with dense anti-aircraft fire, it was somewhat out of its depth. The reason is very simple: would you be willing to fly a fragile aircraft straight toward one or even several anti-aircraft guns that are constantly firing?

This was also the main reason why the hit rate of Japanese suicide planes in World War II sounded super high, but their actual combat results were mediocre. Because charging at a prepared ship with an aircraft was a rather unwise move, you would most likely be shot down and plunge into the sea. If you had a do-or-die mentality like the Japanese army, it wouldn’t matter. But if you still wanted to return to base alive, then you had to seriously consider how to improve your tactics.

The German naval air arm’s improved method was to install a small device on the Stuka dive bomber that could predict the impact point of the bomb, similar to a simple bombsight. This device allowed the Stuka to pull up and release its bomb at a higher altitude without having to dive too close. Of course, the price was also very high: it reduced the Stuka’s bombing accuracy.

In addition, this was the first time the German carrier air arm had carried out an attack mission under near-combat conditions. In their panic, the ground crew had not selected the appropriate type of bomb for these bombers according to the mission. The Stukas that took off were all carrying large bombs for attacking battleships. Using them to attack destroyers would naturally not achieve the desired results.

On the other hand, the German navy’s determination for the campaign was not firm. Lütjens’s operational objective was defined as “driving away the British destroyers and cruisers on the route and ensuring the fleet’s smooth rendezvous.” Therefore, the German navy did not frequently launch planes to attack these warships. They only scared them off and forced them to retreat before hastily heading south.

The German fleet, at full throttle, fled south in a posture of escape. Not long after, it rendezvoused with Raeder’s First Fleet, which had come to reinforce them. The two fleets did not linger in battle. After reorganizing their formation, they sailed majestically into the naval port of Wilhelmshaven. Dozens of land-based fighters and bombers arrived in time, which also prevented the British navy from pursuing them too deeply. A naval battle that should have shaken the world had thus ended with a whimper.

And after the naval battle was over, both sides were surprisingly dissatisfied with the results they had achieved. On the one hand, because of the desperate battle of the German destroyer, the British Royal Navy had failed to achieve its established goal of heavily damaging the German navy and was very angry. On the other hand, the German Navy had suffered the actual loss of a destroyer, which made the German high command very furious. Raeder and Lütjens were both summoned to the Führer’s Residence and were ordered to conduct an in-depth analysis and summary of this operation.

Of course, this failure made Akado realize the flaws in the German military command system. As a result, a great many people were in for a bad time. At the summary meeting that day, Army Field Marshal von Brauchitsch, Navy Submarine Commander Dönitz, Air Force Commanders Kesselring and Dick, Head of Intelligence Gascoigne, SS Commander-in-Chief Heydrich, and even the newly appointed Reich Prime Minister, August, were all required by Akado to attend.

The Führer couldn’t be blamed for being so angry. Because recently, hidden under the halo of glorious victories was a serious lack of command coordination. Due to coordination problems, the air force had launched its attack on Poland an hour early in the Polish campaign, and mutual buck-passing had even led to the sinking of a German destroyer off the coast of Poland. Subsequently, the disgusting incident of a Wehrmacht commander discriminating against the SS had occurred within the military. On the other hand, the airborne forces had also suffered losses due to disagreements over their use, and then the submarine force, for the sake of its own plans, had once again caused the surface fleet to suffer a loss.

If these problems were not resolved, then in the foreseeable future, the coordination problems between the various branches of the military would eventually lead to the paralysis and collapse of this seemingly incomparably powerful German war machine.

Placing his hands on the conference table, Akado looked at the German command team he had built up bit by bit. Everyone had their heads bowed, as if no one was willing to be the first to speak. The conference room was unusually quiet, as if even the drop of a pin could be heard. The atmosphere was really not good. Everyone was thinking the same thing.

“Let’s all speak,” Akado said, breaking the silent atmosphere in the conference room. It seemed unrealistic to expect his subordinates to muster the courage, so he took the lead. “We are all old acquaintances here. There’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

Silence. Still an uncomfortable silence.

“In ancient times, it was a matter of shame for a minister to be unable to share the worries of his king. Now we can be considered confidants personally promoted by the Führer. Are we going to do something as tasteless as shirking responsibility?” August said with a sigh. “We all know it’s disgraceful, so we should find a way to prevent such embarrassing problems from happening again in the future.”

“The intelligence department will strengthen its communication and cooperation with all other departments,” Gascoigne was one of Akado’s staunchest loyalists, so at this time, he naturally had to be the first to step up and state his position. “I haven’t thought through the other aspects yet, but I will submit a relevant report to the Führer as quickly as possible.”

Heydrich also nodded in agreement. “The SS has always been the force most loyal to the Führer. We obey all of the Führer’s arrangements. So there is nothing more to say. If the Führer needs us to go to the battlefield with empty stomachs, we will set out without bringing any food.”

“As the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, I must personally review my actions. Both operations failed to achieve their intended objectives, and in the second one, the fleet suffered unnecessary losses. I am willing to take responsibility for this,” Raeder said heavily with a sigh. “If the Führer approves, I am willing to resign from my position as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy.”

Dönitz’s expression was not good either. After all, he also bore a certain responsibility for the failure of this operation and the loss of the warship. “My Führer, the premature movement of the submarine force was my order. I also have a share of the responsibility for the failure of this operation…”

“Alright! Don’t go on one by one,” Akado said, interrupting Dönitz with a wave of his hand. “First you divide the blame, then you surrender your power and leave the mess to others… Is that the solution you’ve come up with?”

Akado stood up, his gaze sweeping over his generals, filled with majesty and fierceness. “You were all single-handedly promoted by me. I very much hope that you can all follow in my footsteps and advance without hesitation toward the bright future of Germany. And now? For the sake of such petty interests, you have actually forgotten your oath to me?”

“There’s no need to shift the blame to each other, nor to take it all upon yourselves! August and I have already worked out a solution,” Akado said, thumping the table twice with his hand, making a thud-thud sound. “From this moment on, the Supreme High Command of the Third German Reich is established, with myself as the Supreme Military Commander of the Nation. All branch commanders will report directly to me.”

“This…” Brauchitsch clearly did not want his position as Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht to become an empty title and hesitated, wanting to argue.

But Akado did not give him this opportunity. Akado stopped Brauchitsch’s attempt to speak with his hand and stared at him. “I am still very satisfied with Field Marshal von Brauchitsch’s work. But in terms of the military coordination between the army, navy, and air force, your experience and ideas are too conservative. And you do not pay much attention to or restrain the air force and navy. I believe you yourself would admit this.”

Brauchitsch had nothing to say. These problems did indeed exist. Because he was a general from the old army, he was more concerned with the construction and development of the army and had operated the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Wehrmacht as if he were the Commander-in-Chief of the Army (of course, on the other hand, it was also because he had strongly supported the independent development of the air force and navy).

“Gentlemen, don’t be too worried,” Akado then reassured them. “This Reich High Command is only for supervising and formulating the large-scale operational plans of the Reich that require the cooperation of all branches. It will not interfere in the formulation of specific campaign plans. There will be no problem of laymen interfering in military plans, as you are worried about. Please rest assured.”

“I agree to the establishment of this Supreme High Command. It can coordinate the problems between the various branches,” August, as Akado’s shadow, was the first to state his position. “In addition, with this Supreme High Command, your allegiance to the Führer will be more direct.”

“The army’s loyalty to the Führer is beyond doubt,” Brauchitsch said, standing up and saluting. “I agree with the Führer’s arrangement.”

“As you command, my Führer!” everyone stood up and saluted.