KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
More or less this.
(Alternate History) The Second Sino-Japanese War
- Thread starter KlinkerKing
- Start date
- Alt. History
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
Yes. You've got a different set of field marshals, who appointed different governors-general who in turn were a little more willing to not ignore local religious and cultural traditions and circumstances after seeing the Boxer Uprising unfold.
Basically, it was butterflied. I've been asked in the discord about the Northern Strategy of Japanese nationalists following the Russo-Japanese War as well, and I'll say that it's pretty much dead. The nationalists still want Sakhalin (and maybe Kamchatka, they'll take what they can get) for prestige reasons, but the overarching plan is dead.
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May 2, 1915 - Successful counteroffensive, Aeroplanes?, XIXth reinforced
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
13:00, Pyongyang HQ, May 2, 1915
Map changes April 20 - May 2, 1915
"Finally, some good bloody news!" Kawasaki is overjoyed with the latest reports, and it's not hard for you to see why. A successful counteroffensive is the best of news, and perhaps finally something to shut the nationalists up in the newspapers back home. A solid 3 months of as close to negative coverage as a censored press could get, had finally given way to headlines like "Hirano's tigers drive back the Chinese!" and "Chinese strategy undone: Japanese Third Army Corps advancing!".
Map changes April 20 - May 2, 1915
Kawasaki's victorious crowing lifts the serious mood that's been hanging over the headquarters for the past month, and even you can't help but be swept along by the charismatic general's infectious mood.
"A toast, then, to the Third Army Corps," you say suggest, amused, and Kawasaki pounces.
"Aye! To good fighting, and to good fighters!"
"Kampai!"
After a couple of drinks, you decide to read the report in full to the men. "...and at 13:00, Yin Chang's advance down the coast is thrown back by the 1st Infantry Division and the 3rd Korean Infantry Division, supported by off-shore artillery. Casualties of the Chinese army are estimated to exceed two thousand."
Cheers break out, and Kawasaki shouts "those navy boys are good for something, after all!" over the dozen or so cheering officers, leading to more laughter and cheers.
"At 17:00, a concerted effort by 6 divisions of both the Third and First Army Corps, as well as an air squadron based in Kusong-si, pushed Chinese forces out of Pungsan, dislodging both entrenched Chinese infantry divisions previously entrenched on the mountainside."
More cheering breaks out, and Kawasaki actually gives a standing ovation at the excellent performance. Offensives further north are halted by the fact that half a dozen or so Chinese divisions commit to attempting to cross the Tumen on the western side, which the First Army Corps valiantly fends off. Your forces need to wait for ammunition and supplies, and find themselves unable to perform their own offensive, but to a degree, you've depleted Chinese munitions and organisation. Now might be the time for a large-scale counter offensive, but on the the other hand, you had already practiced overextending into Chinese traps in the salient…
It is at exactly this moment of contemplation, and for the rest of the room, moment of celebration, that a new messenger runs in. The man wears the uniform of the Korean Imperial Army, but speaks quickly in fluent Japanese. "Sir, our contacts in occupied territory report that Chinese trains loaded with aeroplane parts have passed through Manchuria, towards Peking!"
"Aeroplane parts? Any markings or hints?"
"Yes sir, our contact, after being given sketches and photos of current Russian aeroplanes estimates that the parts match those of the Sikorsky Ilya Muromets."
"...shit! How are those bastards getting their hands on all this Russian equipment!?" Kawasaki speaks his mind, and Suzuki, standing in the doorway after having let the Korean messenger in, looks mortified.
"They must have purchased them before the whole Ottoman mess. It can't be more than a squadron, Russia doesn't have the production capabilities for more, and according to our intelligence, nor does China have the money," you say, idly gesturing to Suzuki to take notes. "As for how, well, it's no secret that Russia's still nursing a grudge from ten years ago. They're probably selling this equipment at-cost, or something close to it. Still, depending on where those planes are deployed, that could be very troublesome."
"We need planes dedicated to taking them down, and guns on the ground dedicated to taking them down as well." The room murmurs agreement to Kawasaki's point.
"...Quite probably."
You read further reports, and find something extremely concerning. The Fifth Army Corps is reporting an additional 120,000 men arriving on the frontline at the mouth of the Liaotung peninsula. The XIXth army now numbers nearly half a million, and even the Imperial Guard is balking at the sheer numbers opposite them. On the other hand, the new reinforcements appear to be militia, with no additional artillery or cavalry support. An offensive from their side could be problematic, both for you and for them. You're fully aware that the railway hub in Mukden must at this point be nearing a breaking point. You frankly can't believe the sheer number of units that the Chinese are supplying... can that really be right?
Another messenger soon rushes in through the wide-open door, waving a letter from the Field Marshal. "Sir, priority message!" You quickly take the letter from the man and tear through the top of it using your letter opener.
To: General Hirano Saburou
Hirano, this message is sent on behalf of both myself and Dr. Nakamura's associate, Li Xiehe. We are expecting to have republican Chinese divisions and Japanese Marines landing in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, via Formosa, at the end of this month. One of Li's associates will be mobilizing forces in southern China as well, and we are expecting only light resistance initially. I am informing you of this so you can plan accordingly.
Signed,
Field Marshal Hiiragi
VOTE BY PLAN
Deploy Reinforcements ordered last turn:
(Planes will proceed to the airfield closest to their area of operations)
[X] Infantry Division 1 (with Artillery and Heavy Artillery)
-[X] First Army Corps
-[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Fifth Army Corps
Redistribution from last turn:
1st and 4th Cavalry from Second Army Corps to Fifth Army Corps
Order new units:
For next week, you have an acquisitional budget of ¥700k (you didn't get more funding from the British, but you did get a PR coup, so the government and the IJA is diverting more funds your way)
Each infantry must have 2 supporting brigades. Non-committed votes will lead to extra infantry and MGs by default. Vote twice on one option to double down on it.
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with supporting artillery ¥50k
-[X] with supporting heavy artillery ¥90k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
Armour:
[X] Armoured Cars ¥220k
Air:
[X] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Kyu" Tactical Bomber (Squadron) ¥180k (comes with 4 25kg bombs and 2 MGs per plane)
[X] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Hachi" Scout Aeroplane (Squadron) ¥81k (comes with a single 25kg bomb & 2 MGs per plane)
Mitsubishi is working their hardest to get proper interceptor fighters into production, but they need at least a two weeks to get production started since no one expected Chinese planes. (Will be available next turn)
Manoeuvres
[X] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should attempt to assault the XXIInd's flank, in an attempt to drive a wedge between the IXth and the XXIInd. (again)
-[X] The First shouldn't concern themselves with the Third, and should instead support the Fourth, attempting to roll up the flank of the IVth.
-[X] The First should hold position, no movement.
[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Previous offensives across this river hasn't worked, but you plan to strike again! Beat them until they buckle!
-[X] It's too heavily fortified. Hold position!
[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] We've had a successful counteroffensive against the XXIInd, push the advantage!
-[X] The Third's position as a whole is good. Don't overextend and play the safe game. Hold!
[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hammer the flank of the IVth!
-[X] Push into the IXth!
-[X] Hold, no movement is in your favour.
[X] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] Charge and attack! You need to regain your momentum, even against a numerically overwhelming force!
-[X] Hold position, there's no way you can break through, even with reinforcements.
[X] IJAAS
-[X] Raids against IVth across Yalu has worked well in the past. Hop to it!
-[X] With the new airfield, reaching the Fourth and First is now possible so we should support the Fourth.
-[X] With the new airfield, reaching the Fourth and First is now possible so we should support the First.
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Fifth is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Third is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
[X] Write-in
Want to redistribute divisions?
[X] Write-in
QM Notice: I will be away from my computer for the Christmas holidays, and probably won't be able to post an update until some time in early January after this.
Random Member
Gardener of Human Happiness
- Location
- Behind You
Bold of you to assume they are feeding them.
HanEmpire
Delicious
Our armies have carried out a major offensive and need time to rest. Chinese logistics is redlined and overworked compared to ours, so time is in our favour. Let them funnel more forces into Manchuria to leave them open to the revolutionaries. In the meantime we can reinforce and reorganize our forces, and pay the Koreans to improve their northern railroad network.
[X] Plan Hold and Consolidate
Order new units:
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
[X] Expand Korean Railroads to the front ¥290k
Manoeuvres
[X] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should hold position, no movement.
[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] It's too heavily fortified. Hold position!
[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] The Third's position as a whole is good. Don't overextend and play the safe game. Hold!
[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hold, no movement is in your favour.
[X] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] Hold position, there's no way you can break through, even with reinforcements.
[X] IJAAS
-[X] Raids against IVth across Yalu has worked well in the past. Hop to it!
[X] Plan Hold and Consolidate
Order new units:
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
[X] Expand Korean Railroads to the front ¥290k
Manoeuvres
[X] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should hold position, no movement.
[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] It's too heavily fortified. Hold position!
[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] The Third's position as a whole is good. Don't overextend and play the safe game. Hold!
[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hold, no movement is in your favour.
[X] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] Hold position, there's no way you can break through, even with reinforcements.
[X] IJAAS
-[X] Raids against IVth across Yalu has worked well in the past. Hop to it!
- Location
- Tarn-Vedra
[X] Plan Hold and Consolidate
Red Interlude: Russia and the Ottoman Empire
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
Red Interlude:
Tbilisi, Russian Empire, May 4th, 1915
Tbilisi, Russian Empire, May 4th, 1915
"Сер Paşa, there is simply no way His Imperial Majesty can agree to these terms. We must insist on articles 3 and 7 remaining as written."
"With all due respect, Ambassador von Giers, my Sultan and Emperor cannot agree to such terms, they would inhibit his right to rule over his subjects!"
The two men, İsmail Enver Paşa and Mikhail Nikolayevich von Giers, were in firm disagreement. Neither could agree with the other, İsmail because he wanted a German alliance against Russia, and Mikhail because folding to the Ottomans would be seen as an unacceptable sign of weakness. They were alone in the room, apart from two rifle-armed guards for each of them.
Unfortunately for the both of them, their disagreement would soon be taken out of their hands by revolutionaries. Gun shots were heard by both men, who turned on one another in accusation. "Is this your doing? Are Russians such cowards that they will not face the armies of the Sultan on the field of battle?"
"I was about to ask the same of you, but if neither of us are behind this..."
Their argument was cut short as smoke started coming in through the thick oak door of the local government building.
"Assassins! Godless anarchists, no doubt!" Both Enver and Mikhail headed for the side door, intended for servants, but were stopped as bricks rained in through the first floor windows, spraying glass over the two men and their four guards.
"Get down!"
Neither of the two representatives managed to hit the floor before the sticks of dynamite attached to the bricks went off.
That evening, two men met in a pub in Tbilisi.
"You know Stalin, I didn't think your men were up for this clean of an operation when I asked for your cooperation. Thank you for coming back down here from Siberia, by the way."
"Any time, Dro. Getting the gang back together to stop the oppression of the working class in the most direct way was hardly counter to my own organisation's goals. Besides, you'll surely pay me back in Gilan, yes?"
"Of course, we in Dashnak know the struggle of oppressed people, and especially of those under the boots of the Tsar and the Turk."
In St. Petersburg, on the other hand, Tsar Nicholas was furious. One of his best men, killed by some heathens from Anatolia, and that quack Rasputin still adviced caution? Even Maurice, the French ambassador cautioned against hasty action initially, but after a hushed conversation with Sergei Sazonov, the foreign minister, had also agreed that a strong response was necessary. The Tsar was in no mood to play games, and ordered the Black Sea Fleet to sail and "position aggressively at the Bosphorus", and a full mobilisation of the armed forces.
Those damned un-Christian Heathens were thwarting him at every level, in Manchuria, in Persia, and now in the Caucasus as well? He had damned well had it with these fools.
"Sukhomlinov! You're supposed to be the minister of war, fix this! The Persians and the Turks are in league, there's no doubt! Renew the offensive on the Persian front! Force them to back down!"
Sukhomlinov tried to offer platitudes and advice of caution, but Nicholas was far from interested. "Vladimir, you will do as I command, or you will tender your resignation!"
"...as your Imperial Majesty commands."
The next morning, Russian ships opened fire without orders on the Ottoman fleet, which was conducting exercises with the newly arrived dreadnought Reşadiye, outside of Constantinople.
AN: Some xenophobic language occurs in this interlude but I toned it down as much as I could without it feeling entirely dishonest.
On a happier note, I wish everyone a pleasant Yuletide!
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KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
I've been asked some questions in the Discord of Many Quests and I've decided to compile most of the answers for the thread here:
Q: What do the events of the interlude mean for us?
A: Communists (mostly Russian) and Dashnak, the Armenian Revolutionary Independence movement have allied to free themselves from primarily Ottoman oppression, but also Russian oppression as the Persians are being blamed because the Tsar has already had a shit load of trouble in Persia from communist supported revolutionaries from Gilan (in Persia)...which in turn means Russia is piling into Persia even harder than IRL, which means the British are starting to get twitchy about the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company's possessions.
Q: the Entente's looking shaky?
A: Yup. France is all-in on Russia because they need her as a counterweight to Germany. Britain, on the other hand, is less than pleased because Russia is stomping all over many of her goals and interests in the middle east.
Q: so long as the ottomans don't like... do what they did in real life and throw their most modern and well equipped army into georgia to freeze to death with barely opposition they should be ok?
A: the mastermind behind that particular operation, Enver Paşa, just got blown to pieces so there's a good chance that ends up differently, one way or another
Q: never underestimate the power to b i g b r a i n
A: This is especially true for Generals of WW1, several of whom would probably be considered the greatest failures of military command of the 20th century, if it wasn't for the fact that the other morons of the same period existed. Shout outs to Luigi Cadorna and Conrad von Hötzendorf
Further: Of course, there's an additional meme to all this in that the Tsar isn't actually intending a full out war against the Ottomans just yet, but the Russian navy being... the Russian navy, of course manages to kick it off by firing without orders
Q: What do the events of the interlude mean for us?
A: Communists (mostly Russian) and Dashnak, the Armenian Revolutionary Independence movement have allied to free themselves from primarily Ottoman oppression, but also Russian oppression as the Persians are being blamed because the Tsar has already had a shit load of trouble in Persia from communist supported revolutionaries from Gilan (in Persia)...which in turn means Russia is piling into Persia even harder than IRL, which means the British are starting to get twitchy about the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company's possessions.
Q: the Entente's looking shaky?
A: Yup. France is all-in on Russia because they need her as a counterweight to Germany. Britain, on the other hand, is less than pleased because Russia is stomping all over many of her goals and interests in the middle east.
Q: so long as the ottomans don't like... do what they did in real life and throw their most modern and well equipped army into georgia to freeze to death with barely opposition they should be ok?
A: the mastermind behind that particular operation, Enver Paşa, just got blown to pieces so there's a good chance that ends up differently, one way or another
Q: never underestimate the power to b i g b r a i n
A: This is especially true for Generals of WW1, several of whom would probably be considered the greatest failures of military command of the 20th century, if it wasn't for the fact that the other morons of the same period existed. Shout outs to Luigi Cadorna and Conrad von Hötzendorf
Further: Of course, there's an additional meme to all this in that the Tsar isn't actually intending a full out war against the Ottomans just yet, but the Russian navy being... the Russian navy, of course manages to kick it off by firing without orders
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Random Member
Gardener of Human Happiness
- Location
- Behind You
"Morire, non ripiegare."/"Die, do not fall back."
-Luigi Cadorna
White Interlude: The Bosphorus Incident, Britain and Germany
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
16:20, London, United Kingdom, May 5th, 1915
Punch Magazine Cartoon depicting Russia
Punch Magazine Cartoon depicting Russia
"Those sneaky, treacherous bastards!" Lloyd George was furious, even though as Chancellor of the Exchequer and as a private person, he often came into conflict with the man before him.
"Damn it all, Crewe, the Russians have played us, and themselves! They're going to launch the whole continent into a blazing inferno of a war, and they've killed British seamen again! The Japanese had the right of it, the Russians can't be trusted."
He breathed a heavy sigh and continued, "I don't envy you in the slightest. Do you have a plan?"
Robert Crewe-Milnes, Secretary of State for India and Leader of the House of Lords, did not, in fact, have a plan. He was rapidly forming one as he tried to get all the details to fit together, but he didn't have a prepared plan for this situation. "No, but I assure you I will have one by tomorrow. Edward, can I expect your help in this?"
"Of course. The damn Russians have fooled me as well as they fooled you. Had I known were they never going to honour the agreement…" Edward Grey, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, trailed off in thought, before collecting himself once more.
"The Germans will have to be kept in check via diplomacy, the Russians have gone rogue. The public will hold us accountable if we don't hold the Russians accountable, and they'd be right to do it too. The North Sea Incident is too fresh to ignore another British death at Russian hands. I will have to arrange another meeting with the Kaiser, it would seem."
"No use lamenting what could have been now, I suppose. Any word from the Germans on the Bosphorus Incident?"
"I assume the Kaiser is as mad as a hare," Churchill said dryly, referencing the Kaiser's Telegraph scandal, "but I expect that as a man loyal to his colours, he will soon declare war on the Russians. Where Germany goes, Austria must follow, or face isolation…"
"An excellent point, Winston. Expectations for Italy, then?" Prime Minister Asquith entered the room in a stormy mood, but remained polite, even to a political opponent like Churchill.
"They need to keep our interests in mind by virtue of our coal exports to them. If we align against Russia, they will likely pounce on France for Nice and Savoy." Walter Runciford was not a diplomatic expert, but as the son of a shipping magnate and the current President of the Board of Trade, he was not one to ignore the importance of coal.
"Likewise," Grey noted, "they will do the same to Austria should we side with Russia, for Trieste and Dalmatia."
"And if we keep out, let the continent sort itself out and try to mediate the peace so as to keep a relative balance?" Asquith asked.
Grey took a sip of his whisky before responding, "It's a toss up. They might even stay out, if the socialists get their way. The bigger problem is France. They know they'll have to back Russia to the hilt or face Germany on their own."
"What if we assured them we would stand by them if the Germans were to attack?" Asquith it would seem, was determined to seek every possible solution before he resorted to war.
"We have done as much already, but they need Russian land armies more than they need the Royal Navy."
"...Providence willing, Russia will be alone in this," the Exchequer said, "or, reasonable enough to do an about-face. We need the time to let the Irish calm down. Home Rule just passed, and we mustn't have an experimental government in the middle of a bloody war..."
"France must realise that Germany will eat her navy alive? The Russians have just proven themselves incompetent at sea for the third time in a decade, and they themselves have less than half the Dreadnoughts the Germans have…" Churchill muttered, as exasperated by the situation as the rest of the room.
16:40, Berlin, Germany, May 5th, 1915
Commander of the German 8th Army, Paul von Hindenburg, defending East Prussia.
Text: "Only over my dead body shall you pass, 'Colossus'"
"...they've shot German sailors! They didn't even declare war on the Turks, the damn hypocrites!" Kaiser Wilhelm II, emperor of Germany, was, to put it mildly, outraged. "I'm sending a telegram to cousin George, Nicholas is completely out of line!"
Commander of the German 8th Army, Paul von Hindenburg, defending East Prussia.
Text: "Only over my dead body shall you pass, 'Colossus'"
The Kaiser stormed out of the staff room, an adjutant following behind in what could best be described as mild panic. Von Moltke and von Falkenhayn exchanged a worried glance.
"Mobilize the Army, and deploy in accordance with Aufmarsch II Ost. Message von Tirpitz to ready the Hochseeflotte, we are going to war." Helmuth von Moltke the younger, was nothing except grim faced and determined. He much favoured Aufmarsch I West, a single front war against France, but he supposed this was better than having to go through the Netherlands, as per Aufmarsch II West, for a war focused on knocking the French out early.
"Are the Austrians preparing to move on Poland? If we could manage an encirclement of such magnitude…" General Paul von Hindenburg seized at the obvious manoeuvre of cutting off Russian forces.
"Yes, almost certainly. I expect Hötzendorf to be prepared in less than a week." Von Moltke was confident that the Austrian army would move north and meet them in the middle.
"Very good."
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- Location
- United States
Hah! The only thing more incompetent than the Russian Navy is Austria-Hungary's army. Prepare yourselves for a goddamn farce.
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
Asquith is a lot more representative of the average Briton than either Churchill or Lloyd George. Lloyd George was a firebrand, and Churchill more than a little bit of a War Hawk. Oh, and Grey is kinda pissed that the Russians broke an agreement that he personally was responsible for. They don't want a war per say, but the Liberals and the Conservatives are equally furious at Russia, and in particular their navy, as they can't seem to stop from getting into shoot outs with innocent Britons.
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Ebanu8
Emperor of the Downtrodden
- Location
- Singapore
And it seems this time, the Japanese shall fight Russia proper, perhaps for control of the Northern Half of Sakhalin and Vladivostok.
Green Interlude: Italy and the USA
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
18:00, Rome, Italy, May 6, 1915
Italian nationalist cartoon depicting King Vittorio Emmanuel III leading Italy to victory
Italian nationalist cartoon depicting King Vittorio Emmanuel III leading Italy to victory
Vittorio Emmanuel III, King of Italy, stood next to General and Marshal Luigi Cadorna and Prime Minister Antonio Salandra, all three of them bent over a table of maps detailing the Austrian and French borders of Italy.
"Has Britain declared for either side yet?" Sidney Constantino, former prime minister and current Minister of Foreign Affairs, closed the big wooden doors and stepped into the room properly.
"No, we haven't heard from them yet." Cadorna tapped the map as he continued, "though, with the way this is unfolding, they might declare neutrality."
"That would be our best case scenario, no?" Vittorio was not the most practiced of statesmen, but it seemed to make sense that being free to back either side would be most useful.
"It has its downsides, Your Majesty. This war will no doubt be over in a year and a half at most, maybe even before Christmas, so we may have to act decisively early on if we wish to gain anything. Britain on the other hand, brings enough to any table that she can wait a month or two before entering." Cadorna carefully tempered his king's expectations, aware that promising too much may come to bite him later.
"Ah, it leaves us in a most precarious situation then, should we pick the wrong side."
"Indeed, Your Majesty."
"Germany and Austria have been pressuring us to declare war on Russia, per articles six and seven of the Triple Alliance," Constantino said, lighting a cigar and blowing out a puff of smoke before continuing, "I can stall them for a little while, tell them we need some time to mobilise. It's mostly true, too."
"If we need to, can we get out of it?" Vittorio asked, wanting to have their options laid clear before any decisions were made.
"Yes, we could claim that only the Black Sea coast is threatened, and thus negate articles six and seven, who only stipulate our support in case the Balkan, Mediterranean coast, or Aegean islands are threatened."
"You're a right old snake, Sydney!" Salandra guffawed, "but I don't know if that's the course of action we want to take yet. We should wait until things begin to unfold."
"A waiting game, then, gentlemen?" The king paused, waiting for the murmur of assent, before he continued. "Most excellent. I shall take my leave then, Elena expects me for dinner tonight."
18:30, Washington D.C., The United States of America, May 6, 1915
Isolationist political cartoon of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson trying to sway voters for the upcoming 1916 election
Isolationist political cartoon of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson trying to sway voters for the upcoming 1916 election
William Bryan folded his extra edition of the New York Times and placed it underneath his arm, before he picked up the phone and rang the White House switchboard. As Secretary of State, he had the unenviable task of navigating the United States through the diplomatic waters of what was clearly looking to be a global conflict.
"Mr. President, have you seen today's extra edition?"
WAR IN EUROPE: GERMANY AND AUSTRIA DECLARE WAR ON RUSSIA - FRANCE RESPONDS IN KIND!
"Yes, I was just reading it as you called. It looks like the Europeans are up to their old tricks again." President Woodrow Wilson was not eager to fight another war and, while the Ottoman treatment of Armenians was worthy of condemnation, the Russians attacking and killing foreign sailors without a declaration of war was hardly praise-worthy. Besides, Wilson reasoned, many of America's finest businessmen were firmly against supporting the Russians, as they had been hugely problematic towards the large Jewish minorities in their country.
"And the British, sir?"
"They're too smart to get dragged into a squabble like this, I'm sure. They, like us, are aware that they'll be top dog once the continent has burned itself to the ground over two miles of land in Asia, or some such nonsense."
"Am I to declare neutrality tomorrow morning, then?"
"Of course, Bryan, we can't delay on that. Now, onto more important things, will this cause trouble, trade-wise, with Britain? I understand the French will likely be unavailable…"
"I shouldn't think so, Mr. President. Unless someone starts throwing torpedoes at everything in sight, British trade should continue uninterrupted. They'd be fools to anger the Royal Navy now."
"Well, see if you can get them along on some kind of mediation, perhaps? We don't need the Russians and Germans running roughshod over half the continent, it's bad for business."
"I can see if they're amenable in the morning. The British are still sleeping, but I would caution you against putting too much faith in this particular endeavor. They have really gotten bent out of shape on the other side of the pond."
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Canon Omake: Anton Haus & the K.u.K.
- Location
- USA
23:41, Pola, May 6th, 1915
Flottenkommandant Anton Haus typically did not stay at his work so late into the night. On his desk there were countless folders with various amounts of their contents splayed outwards, a dozen maps, and a half empty bottle of lovely 1866 vintage red wine. Haus was not quick to be inebriated and found that it helped him through this very stressful time.
War it seemed, more vast than any in living memory, was to rock the Earth once more. Even just a few days ago it had seemed like peace would prevail as it had a dozen times in the past few decades, the Russians seemingly cowed by the array of powers before them as they had acquiesced in 1908 when Bosnia was joined to the Empire. Yet everywhere it seemed the lights were going out in Europe. Coal rationing had already been implemented in what would probably be one of the last acts of the Imperial Council for quite some time, and Pola's streets lay deathly still. A part of him said that he should be glad. After all, is this not what soldiers are for? To fight for their country in every way that they are able to? Had his predecessor, Count Montecuccoli not wrangled the fickle and parsimonious parliaments into paying for the modernization of the Kriegsmarine with every last trick in the book? The Imperial and Royal Navy, long disrespected by every power that lay claim to the sea had clawed its way up from almost nothing. From the pitiful piles of wood that stood in the Adriatic in the service of Trieste and Venice, to Lissa, where Admiral Tegetthoff bested an Italian fleet twice the size of his own through audacity and bravery in a war that as a whole brought only shame and despair, to a navy that finally dared to sail the seas of the world with any other power joining in the Eight Nation Alliance that had put down the Chinese Boxers. Due in no small part to the grace of the heir apparent Franz Ferdinand, the prestige of the service had finally grown to the extent that its needs were finally being met by Viennese pencil pushers. Even as he spoke, four yards, one apiece in Fiume and Pola with another two in Trieste, were producing a new generation of Super-Dreadnoughts. Still, even this filled him with a degree of melancholy. Husks that cannot even float could not help him as he stood. The estimates were damning for his odds in the Mediterranean. He and many others had always suspected and occasionally even openly spoke of Italian disloyalty to the Triple Alliance and their dallying all but cemented these beliefs. Without the Regia Marina, his odds of success against the Marine Nationale were poor.
The French matched him pound for pound in Dreadnoughts and both outnumbered and outclassed him in terms of other capital warships with a single exception. In accordance with pre-war planning, Admiral Wilhelm Souchon of the Kaiserliche Marine's Mittelmeerdivision had arrived in Cattaro some days prior, bringing with him the Battlecruiser SMS Goeben. The only belligerent ship of her type in the entire Mediterranean, she had the potential to be an invaluable asset if Haus were to seek battle, a full 3 knots faster than any French capital ship even on a bad day. Anton took another large swig of his bottle, the little smile that had developed on his face fading away. He knew that wouldn't even come close to closing the gap. The fact was that he could never face down the combined French battle line. The Gauls had him on the ropes in every other category, they had twice the Semi-Dreadnoughts all of which were superior to his own, over twice as many Pre-Dreadnoughts again of much greater quality, and thrice his own force in terms of Cruisers and Destroyers. His own antiquated Pre-Dreadnoughts were barely worthy of the term Battleship at this point with any single member of the Courbet-class Dreadnought Battleships having the firepower to sink them all simultaneously with barely a scratch.
His instincts told him it wasn't worth going out to fight while Italy lay uncommitted. The Regia Marina held the balance and thus would sit back as they always had and wait for who could come to buy their services for the highest price in territory like vultures. What more did they yet seek to take? Already they had claimed and taken some of the Empire's richest provinces at the hands of a French pauper and the Prussian puppeteer. Would Austria be denied even the shores of the Adriatic if the perfidious Italians chose to side with the bloody French?
Haus took the wine glass that had laid unused and toyed with it. He felt a welling of pure rage overtake him before throwing it at the wall, shattering it. God damn that ignorant brute Hötzendorf. The filthy pig had spent what felt like decades of his life asking for war, to stomp the Serbs into the ground and be done with it. Not by his hand alone, but disproportionately so would the blood of many hundreds of thousands be spilled. Anton only hoped it would not be so in vain. The fool wanted glory more than he cared for his people. He would vacuum up funds once more on his frivolities and dress uniforms, and the Kriegsmarine would starve, forever under the strength of even Italy, let alone France. He looked out the window to a wine dark sea. In the distance he could see his flagship, SMS Viribus Unitis and its naval ensign fluttering in the light of the moon. With United Forces, he pondered, a noble motto for a worthy monarch. Very well. If he were to strike now, while the French Mediterranean fleet lay disassembled at its various ports, victory would not be out of reach. If Conrad was so certain the glory that awaited him out in the field, Flottenkommandant Anton Haus too was willing to gamble with fate.
The Imperial and Royal War Navy, hereafter abbreviated as the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine, had produced an impressive force in the immediate lead up to the Great War considering the secondary nature of the navy in general to Austria-Hungary but this feat is only made more remarkable by the poorly funded nature of the armed forces in general within the Habsburg Empire. From the time of the occupation of Bosnia in 1878 following the Treaty of Berlin to the opening stages of the Great War in 1915 the overall funding of the Austro-Hungarian military had yet to even double its annual funding while its fellow Great Powers frequently tripled, quadrupled, or even quintupled their budgets.
Vice Admiral Anton Haus, a typically shrewd and cautious naval strategist, was deeply alarmed when the Kingdom of Italy did not immediately follow up on the declarations of the war of the other two Central powers, and with the knowledge that the newly formed Third Balkan League were all but certain to throw their lot in with Russian Empire, the prospect of Italy repudiating the Triple Alliance altogether and attacking the Habsburg monarchy demanded action of some sort. Prewar contingency plans that had been in place for if a general European war were to break out necessitated Italian participation for the combined navies of the Central Powers to contest the Mediterranean Sea. While the Italians were vacillating however Admiral Wilhelm Souchon of the German Mediterranean Division had arrived in the port of Cattaro having successfully evaded French pursuit. While it remains somewhat disputed among historians, the testimonies of the immediate subordinates of Anton Haus as well as his own memoirs suggest that without consulting Vienna, he sallied the majority of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine at 0500 on the Morning of May 7th, passing the Strait of Otranto in the dead of night the same day and the Strait of Messina early next morning before slowing greatly to pass the Corsican coast from the east and north upon nightfall, and being detected only on the morning of May 9th within 80 kilometers of Toulon. Vice Admiral Lapeyrere was caught by total surprise with the entire 2nd Squadron of the French Mediterranean Fleet hundreds of kilometers away, escorting convoys of French colonial troops which were being mobilized for action in the oncoming Lorraine offensive. Worse yet, Lapeyrere could not simply refuse to give battle as the 2nd Marching Regiment of the 2nd Foreign Regiment (2eR.M. 2eR.E) had embarked for Marseille from Oran the previous night and would likely be destroyed if he did not drive off Haus's Squadron. If such a sizeable Foreign Legion formation were to be destroyed as such it was likely that foreign volunteers for French military formations would dry up unwilling to die in such an inane fashion, as well as being a sizeable blow to the honor of the Marine Nationale.
Haus's bold, some would say foolhardy, first strike on the French Mediterranean fleet had achieved complete strategic surprise, and his uncharacteristic audacity was rewarded handsomely. With the time sensitive nature of the attack speed was of the essence and no coalers were on hand to be sent with the fleet leading to only the 6 Tátra-class destroyers being sent with the fleet. Despite this weakness, not only were a sizeable number of French Destroyers away escorting convoys, due to Haus's fleet being detected so late into the morning, Lapeyrere was unable to bring his Destroyers to bear simultaneously, instead having his still overwhelming advantage in Destroyers diluted as they steamed piecemeal from Toulon as their crews swiftly returned to their ships and built up steam. The Marine Nationale, which had for so long neglected its Protected Cruiser force would find itself sorely lacking, with only the antiquated Jurien de la Gravière to face the admittedly equally antiquated 3 ship Zenta-class as well as the much more modern SMS Breslau and 3 ship Novara-class of Scout Cruisers. This disparity was neatly mirrored in terms of Armored Cruisers of which Haus had available to him only the Kaiser Karl VI and Sankt Georg, whereas Lapeyrere possessed 7 Armored Cruiser:, the 2 ship Edgar Quinet-class, the one offs Ernest Renan and Jules Michelet, and the 3 ship Lèon Gambetta-class.
This as of yet overwhelming superiority in lighter ships may have yet given victory for Vice Admiral Lapeyrere were it not for Admiral Souchon and his flagship Goeben. Goeben was far and away the fastest single capital ship available to either fleet, and much in the way that a single Dreadnought was a match for perhaps 3 or 4 Pre-Dreadnought Battleships, the Battlecruiser Goeben could sweep the seas of nearly any number of Armored Cruisers. Haus would make great use of her in the coming battle, allowing the Goeben to function mostly independent of the battle line, as well as coordinating exceptionally well having been able to partially abandon the use of signal flags with the early introduction of basic radio and telegraph in k.u.k. Kriegsmarine warships, with prewar exercises and planning allowing Souchon to more or less seamlessly integrate into the Austro-Hungarian battle squadron. In terms of Battleships, the two fleets were all but evenly matched in terms of Dreadnoughts. Fearing weakness in the English Channel could invite the German Hochseeflotte into sallying and bombarding Calais and Dunkirk, President Raymond Poincarè pressured for the Bretagne-class Dreadnoughts to be deployed in the Atlantic rather than the Mediterranean. The 4 ship Tegetthoff-class, was faced with an equal number of Courbet-class Battleships. Despite the Courbet-class displacing an additional 5,000 tons, due to an inefficient layout they could only bring about ten of their twelve 12-inch guns to either side as well as having an inch less of belt armor with only a single additional knot of speed to show for it. Nonetheless in a strategic sense they were more or less equivalent. However in all other respects, Vice Admiral Haus's squadron remained at a distinct disadvantage with the 6 Danton-class Semi-Dreadnoughts, despite lagging behind the Courbet-class by a solid 3 knots, against his own 3 ship Radetzky-class. In hopes of diluting the fire of the French battle line, Haus had brought with him every Pre-Dreadnought Battleship the Dual Monarchy had ever built. By themselves any one of these warships was now totally outclassed and effectively obsolete, but together they still were durable ships and could collectively offer significant amounts of firepower. With the presence of the 3 ship Erzherzog Karl-class and the 3 ship Habsburg class, Anton Haus had committed every capital ship to the name of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine to this battle.
Victory would mean glory for his country and the hope of a quick victorious war could be kept alive at least for a while longer. Defeat would mean the likely disintegration of the Habsburg Monarchy as the jackals pounced.
- Prologue to Chapter 4, Parshall, Jonathan, The Great War at Sea (2018) Newport, United States, Naval War College Press
The morning of May 9th was cold for the Mediterranean. A light fog still covered most of the horizon and from the bridge of Viribus Unitis it seemed that peace still reigned upon the oceans, sovereign and unshakeable. Anton Haus couldn't help but feel like he was violating something sacred. The seas were unkind to those who disrespected her and what greater offense could there be than to disturb this realm with shot and shell as he had come here to do. Toulon was so close and he had hoped to catch the French completely off guard and bombard the port to uselessness, but an hour ago the Saida had spotted smoke on the horizon which no doubt returned the favor to his own much larger fleet. So close to France the worst had to be assumed. It was more likely not that the French Mediterranean fleet would sortie to do battle with him. He had ordered Rear Admiral Souchon aboard the Goeben to detach from the line and scout to the northwest in the direction of Toulon along with Breslau. Suddenly he could hear the telegraph springing to life and he patiently awaited its message.
MADE CONTACT WITH FRENCH SQUADRON STOP THIRTY KILOMETERS FROM YOU STOP AM MOVING SOUTH STOP GOTT MIT UNS STOP
Haus put the coffee down that he had been nursing for most of the morning. His eyes were filled with a tired sort of conviction as he decided on his orders. Just a few days ago he was so certain on his course of action but now he just felt burdened by his choice. This was the right decision to make. It had to be.
He ordered the fleet to make for west southwest and began walking to the conning tower.
They could hear the battle before they could see it. Souchon had been goading the French to the greatest extent he could, with the Goeben forcing the French Armored Cruisers to either trail back behind the battle line or stick within a few kilometers of them to stay within the protection of the 12-inch guns of the Dreadnoughts as Breslau shadowed them from the southeast to prevent any Destroyers from spotting the Austro-Hungarian Battle Squadron until it was too late. When Lapeyrere saw the plume of Breslau's smoke multiply twentyfold his heart sank. Souchon had baited his force into a deeply suboptimal position. His flagship, Courbet, had already been hit twice by 11-inch shells and the Destroyers Dague and Dehorter had both been crippled by secondary fire. Worse yet, the 2nd and 3rd Battleship Divisions had fallen behind in the pursuit of the Boche Battlecruiser, and if he continued on his current heading there was a good chance they would cross his T. Yet if he turned to the northwest to present the Habsburgs a stern chase they would almost certainly destroy the convoy carrying the Foreign Legion regiment. Cursing his situation, at 1021 Lapeyrere ordered a head on charge to the southeast, in desperate hopes of forcing battle before he was outmaneuvered even further.
The lines spotted each other soon thereafter at roughly 1050. It was something completely anachronous, as if a joust was occurring between the two as they raced forward, closing at 40 knots and more or less parallel to one another with the French being harried all the while as Souchon turned to the northeast, ravaging the Armored Cruisers that had been kept to the back of the battle line. Haus blinked first, not wanting to be pinned against the Italian coast if this devolved into a stern chase with him fleeing. Being the line further east, in order to escape out into more open water if it came to it, at 1103 he ordered a 90 degree turn, heading southwest and as Lapeyrere had feared, crossing the French T in the process at roughly 14 kilometers and bringing him ever closer to the French convoy. For a crucial 10 minutes as Lapeyrere coordinated his own turn to the southwest, at 1114 sixty 12-inch guns and thirty-three 9.4 inch guns began pounding the French line. A dozen and a half French Destroyers surged forward in an attempt to disrupt Haus's battle line but they were turned back with heavy losses by the Zenta and Aspern at the cost of the latter, with the Jean Bart finding the range and holing her with three 12-inch shells. Just as the French were about to turn parallel with the Austro-Hungarian battle line, a brilliant flash of light consumed the battlefield for just a moment as the Dreadnought Paris snapped in half and sank in minutes. A 12-inch shell from Viribus Unitus which was aimed at the Courbet and went long is thought to have penetrated the barbette of her foremost port turret and annihilated her in a titanic explosion. Paris was lost with all hands. Her flaming wreck caused further chaos amongst the French, disrupting all of the trailing 2nd and 3rd Battleship Divisions.
Nevertheless, in a stunning display of professionalism and cohesion, the Lapeyrere stopped his fleet from disintegrating into total chaos. Goeben which had been harassing the rear of the line for the better part of an hour however was finally driven off for a time by a flotilla of French Destroyers, costing them the Chasseur and Fantassin, by which time Souchon had already destroyed the Armored Cruiser Waldeck-Rousseau. At a range of just short of 9 kilometers the battle lines once again became parallel as they began to slug it out. The titanic secondary batteries of the French Semi-Dreadnoughts began to make themselves known, sending shell after shell into the aft portions of the Austro-Hungarian battle line. Due to a miscommunication Zrinyi was the focus of Condorcet, Danton, and Diderot simultaneously and over the course of the next hour she was hit by nine 12-inch shells and at minimum thirty-six 9.4 inch shells with most of her upper works being blown off, including the aft starboard 9.4 inch gun turret. While the return fire of Radetzky and Ezherzog Franz Ferdinand was not completely without effect, it was inadequate to prevent similar scenes from repeating against the older ships in the line. Erzherzog Friedrich, ninth ship in the order of the line was subjected to a similar pummeling by the Vergniaud. At approximately the same time Zrinyi's 9.4 inch gun turret was blown off, Erzherzog Friedrich, began to fall out of the line, two 12-inch shells having penetrated her belt armor, destroying a row of 5 boilers in the ship causing a devastating loss of pressure and reducing her speed to just 13 knots. Minutes later at roughly 1147 a 9.4 inch shell entered the water directly in front of her screws and burst closely enough to knock the shaft out of alignment, necessitating its shutdown lest it irreparably damage the ship. As both lines passed her by it seemed for a time her damage control teams may have been able to prevent the ship from sinking, but French Destroyers arriving from Toulon torpedoed her and she sank over the course of the next few hours with 530 survivors being rescued by Breslau later in the day.
Babenberg, the last ship in the line suffered similarly. With Goeben having disengaged some time earlier, the French Armored Cruisers in various states of damage began to hound the back of the Austro-Hungarian formation, badly damaging the Scout Cruiser Helgoland before turning their attentions to Babenberg. At 1131 the Jules Michelet, Victor Hugo, and Jules Ferry opened fire on the Babenberg as the only two Austro-Hungarian Armored Cruisers, Sankt George and Kaiser Karl VI attempted to intervene. Like Zrinyi the majority of the superstructure, where not destroyed, was effectively reduced to a flaming pile of warped metal as had been the case for many Russian Battleships at the Battle of Tsushima a decade earlier. As the French Armored Cruisers continued to lay accurate and devastating fire into the Babenberg, at 1224 fires spread to the ammunition lockers of her secondary 15 cm guns on the port side which exploded and triggered multiple simultaneous sympathetic detonations, with many eyewitnesses aboard the Saida, which was within 10 kilometers of the ship on the port side of the battle line to avoid fire until needed, stating that an entire section of the belt armor on the side of the ship was blown off by the detonations from which water quickly began to flood in. Babenberg sank with only 87 survivors some minutes later.
Similar scenes of devastation played out to lesser extents throughout the latter part of the Austro-Hungarian line though not without recompense to the French. With the loss of Paris, Lapeyrere's Dreadnoughts could only offer broadsides of thirty 12-inch guns in comparison to Haus's forty-eight. Szent István, with no ships firing on her was able to bracket Jean Bart without interruption in the favorable weather, with all of the morning fog having burned off by 1130. The concentrated firepower of both Szent István and Prinz Eugen was able to force Jean Bart out of the line by 1214, having jammed her X and Y turrets as well as killing her Captain, Bastien Couture, with a shell splinter when a 12-inch shell from Prinz Eugen impacted the conning tower.
The decisive turning point in the engagement would come when the Novara spotted smoke to the south at 1237. Haus initially despaired that the 2nd French Battle Squadron had sortied from a base in French North Africa and that all had been lost but as details from Novara's report flowed in it became clear that it was a convoy of merchantmen flying the French naval ensign. While Haus did not know it at the time this was the Foreign Legion regiment that Lapeyrere had sortied to protect. Even more fortunately for Haus, only Destroyers had been available to escort the convoy and the merchantmen had been quickly armed for protection making them auxiliary cruisers under the rules of war. As a target of opportunity, Breslau, Helgoland, Saida, and Novara were dispatched to deal with the escorts and sink the convoy. As the Cruisers were detached, it became clear to Lapeyrere that the battle had more likely than not stumbled into the convoy and in a move of desperation, at 1254 ordered his fleet to make a 30 degree turn to the south, hoping to pressure Haus into doubling back and withdrawing.
Courbet and France were now being hammered by twice their number in Dreadnoughts. Despite this, his ships suffered no catastrophic damage and at 1311, he ordered the Destroyers that his fleet had slowly been accumulating for the past few hours forward in a do or die attack against the Austro-Hungarian Dreadnoughts. With Zenta and Szigetvár having been badly damaged by secondary fire throughout the battle, the Austro-Hungarian Armored Cruisers still at the back of the line fighting off their damaged French counterparts, and the Scout Cruisers along with Breslau moving to sink the convoy, only the secondary batteries of Viribus Unitis, Tegetthoff, Prinz Eugen, and Szent István were able to face the massed destroyer attack. In an incredibly bold and spirited attack by the French Destroyers, Szent István and Tegetthoff, were hit by a torpedo apiece, both developing severe lists of 6 and 8 degrees respectively as well as completely disrupting the Austro-Hungarian line. The cost of the attack was severe, many commanders having pushed their destroyers to within 2000 meters of the Dreadnoughts, forcing them to wildly maneuver in order to evade the torpedoes. In total, this attack would cost the French 12 Destroyers sunk, 4 damaged beyond economical repair, and 7 in various states of damage.
The Austro-Hungarian Destroyers proved no less audacious. Haus, upon seeing the entirety of the French screen being thrown forward in a Hail Mary attack ordered his 6 Tátra-class destroyers to strike the trailing 2nd and 3rd French Battle Divisions at 1324. Rear Admiral Souchon, who in the previous hour had managed to catch the Léon Gambetta and sink her as she lagged behind her fellows as they destroyed Babenberg, was waiting for an oppurtunity. Having exited visual range of the French line once again, she maneuvered to once again become parallel with the French Battle Line but from the north, opening fire from approximately 15000 meters at 1304, shocking the French captains. Taking fire from both sides and lacking any screens, the French Semi-Dreadnoughts were unable to maneuver as Tátra, Balaton, Csepel, Lika, Triglav, and Orjen steamed forward at 33 knots, having been held in reserve the entire battle. Closing to 3000 meters, they launched their torpedoes with comparatively little harassment, losing only Triglav as their Whitehead torpedoes surged forward. At 1345, Condorcet was hit in quick succession by 3 torpedoes and capsized within minutes leaving only 24 survivors. Danton and Diderot were hit by a single torpedo each and they fell out of line. Soon after at 1348 Voltaire was hit by 2 torpedoes and began developing a fatal list, having reached 23 degrees by 1357. By 1421 she fully keeled over and sank with 238 survivors.
The Destroyer attack disorganized Haus's fleet to the point that even by 1405 they had yet to reform a coherent line. In spite of that, Lapeyrere realized that his mauled fleet could do no more and broke off the engagement which Haus refused to contest. Upon finishing the sinking of the convoy and driving off its escorts, the Austro-Hungarian Battle Squadron retired for Cattaro.
The battle was vicious and close run. Anton Haus returned victorious midday on May 11th, thankful that the Italians had not contested his passing the Strait of Messina or Otranto. The French had lost 3 Battleships, a Dreadnought and 2 Semi-Dreadnoughts with almost all others having been badly mauled. They had lost over a dozen destroyers and 2 Armored Cruisers. Yet in the last stages the battle truly was on a knife's edge. The crews of the French Destroyers had went above and beyond their duty with only sheer luck having prevented them from sinking much of the Austro-Hungarian battle line. The Pre-Dreadnoughts Erzherzog Friedrich and Babenberg had been lost with Zrinyi, Árpád, and Habsburg having been so badly damaged it would be questionable if they were worth repairing if the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine wasn't already chronically short of ships.
Regardless of the long term results, at the very least Anton Haus had his victory. His grand clash with the Marine Nationale had paid off, and to an extent it would serve as a cushion to events later in the week.
Last edited:
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
May 15th, 1915 - Chinese Militia Offensive, Preparation for Operation Vermilion
KlinkerKing
Man bites dog?
- Location
- The Lion's Den
19:00, Pyongyang HQ, May 15th, 1915
Soldiers of unknown regiment in the Second Army Corps waiting in a trench to receive a Chinese attack.
May 15th map, no changes
Soldiers of unknown regiment in the Second Army Corps waiting in a trench to receive a Chinese attack.
May 15th map, no changes
Keeping on the defensive had not been a popular plan, initially. The Nationalists had been fraying at the mouth when they heard, claiming you were squandering the victorious counteroffensive in the east. You had shut them up fairly substantially when China launched its own counteroffensive on all fronts and your forces had emerged essentially unscathed despite painting the ground red with the blood of your enemies. Few things were as effective in boosting a man's reputation as a flawless victory, and they didn't get much better than this.
Kawasaki was smirking smugly at every turn when the de facto leader of the Nationalist faction in your HQ, one Captain Hideki Tojo, showed his face. The man was not the highest ranked of the nationalists, but he was charismatic, young and well-liked by the soldiers, and in your own personal opinion, a fierce pain in the rear. The Captain himself was of course fairly solidly outranked by both yourself and Kawasaki, but he had an interesting tendency to confer complaints via higher ranked officer "friends". The man was a hassle and a half, but he was competent at leading troops at least.
The lack of militia-based frontal offensives so far was something you had considered fairly surprising. Not only was it typical of China to launch large scale offensives with militia, it was also dangerous for your more vulnerable units, as they would lack supplies when the next wave came. This time, however, it seemed your entrenched divisions had effortlessly crushed every Chinese offensive, even when the Sikorsky Ilya Muromets planes in Chinese colours had started to bomb the Fifth Army Corps. On that note, you had reports from Governor-General Fukushima in Dalian, that his troops had mounted heavy machine guns on the rooftops of the harbour buildings and successfully driven off bombing runs aimed at the supply ships in the harbour.
Your men counted 8000 Chinese casualties to your own 281. It was a monumental success, but charging entrenched positions with militia was never going to end well. You suspect this is an attempt to overload your supply lines, but something in the back of your mind says that that answer may be too simplistic. They had probed first, trying to find any weakness in your lines, but when that failed they had resorted to trying to overload your supply, you think, as they had grouped four or five divisions of militia to attack vulnerable positions.
The three main points of interests seemed to be across the Yalu river, across the Tumen river, in a two pronged offensive from the mountains in the east and across the river itself in the north, and against the Fifth Army Corps. The Militia attacks against the Fifth Army Corps and the Imperial Guard therein had been supported by air assaults performed by a dozen Sikorsky Ilya Muromets bombers painted in Chinese colours, and had thus inflicted more casualties than the other assaults, being responsible for about a third of your own losses, but still not to a degree where even China's massive manpower reserves could sustain the loses.
On the bright side, the newly arrived cavalry and artillery had successfully shored up the weaker points in the lines of the Fifth, and the Prince Kan'in had sent a personal letter of thanks for the reinforcements, assuring you that he was now able to go on the offensive, confident that he could keep his supply lines protected all the way to Yalu, even if he wouldn't say no to more troops to use as the hammer to your Second Army Corps' anvil.
On the topic of letters, you had also received another letter, this one from Field Marshal Hiiragi. A cryptic letter, as usual, but one detailing the planned events of the upcoming weeks; Operation "Vermilion" was to commence on the 23rd of May, with the Rikusentai landing in Shantou, on the eastern part of Guangdong, and the Chinese forces landing in the city of Guangzhou itself. From there, Dr. Nakamura and Li Xiehe's associates would declare for their cause and march north and east from Kunming in Yunnan, towards Chunking where the Chinese VIth Army was stationed. Meanwhile, Japanese forces would move north, towards Nanking, which would force Yuan Shikai to sue for peace, or so it was believed.
The Field Marshal also had news of the world in general. War in Europe had broken out, and Russia was now firmly distracted by Paul von Hindenburg's 8th Army marching out of East Prussia and striking at Bialystock and Grodno. It seemed you had a more or less free hand by the Russian border now, as they were unlikely to try and pick another fight while so firmly engaged.
The Austrians, attempting to commit an offensive in support of von Hindenburg, had been crushed by the Russian South Western Army Group. Reported losses exceeded 100,000 on the Austrian side. The Army of the Danube had advanced into Bukovina virtually unopposed, and the South Western Army Group's counter offensive had quickly overrun Northern Galicia and encircled the city of Lemberg, which was now under siege.
The Ottomans had performed admirably for a nation whose military command had been decapitated at the start of the war, and repulsed Russian offensives in the Caucasus after the military advisor from Germany, one Otto Liman von Sanders, had taken command. The repulsed offensive had soon turned into a bloody and savage brawl, as artillery fire had started to cause landslides and avalanches in the Caucasian mountains, which had killed large numbers indiscriminately.
In Western Europe, things were not much better. German defences had proven far to strong for the French army initially, but had faltered slightly on the fourth day. A French Army Corps had broken through east of Metz, but had then been surrounded and eliminated by the 11th, and the German counteroffensive had been equally unsuccessful, though only half a Corps had been lost outside Nancy.
Now, your plans for the upcoming period…
VOTE BY PLAN
NOTE: OPERATION VERMILION, THE AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT ON SOUTHERN CHINA, WILL BEGIN NEXT TURN.
Deploy Reinforcements ordered last turn:
(Planes will proceed to the airfield closest to their area of operations)
[X] Infantry Division 1 (with Artillery and Heavy Artillery)
-[X] First Army Corps
-[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Fifth Army Corps
[X] Infantry Division 2 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] First Army Corps
-[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Fifth Army Corps
[X] Infantry Division 3 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] First Army Corps
-[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Fifth Army Corps
Order new units:
For next week, you have an acquisitional budget of ¥700k (You received no additional funds this turn despite a victory, due to the commencement of Operation Vermilion next turn)
Each infantry must have 2 supporting brigades. Non-committed votes will lead to extra infantry and MGs by default. Vote twice on one option to double down on it.
[X] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with supporting artillery ¥50k
-[X] with supporting heavy artillery ¥90k
-[X] with extra infantry and MGs ¥60k
Armour:
[X] Armoured Cars ¥220k
Air:
[X] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Kyu" Tactical Bomber (Squadron) ¥180k (comes with 4 25kg bombs and 2 MGs per plane)
[X] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Hachi" Scout Aeroplane (Squadron) ¥81k (comes with a single 25kg bomb & 2 MGs per plane)
Mitsubishi is working their hardest to get proper interceptor fighters into production, but they need at least a two weeks to get production started since no one expected Chinese planes. (Will be available next turn)
Manoeuvres
[X] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should attempt to assault the XXIInd's flank, in an attempt to drive a wedge between the IXth and the XXIInd. (again)
-[X] The First shouldn't concern themselves with the Third, and should instead support the Fourth, attempting to roll up the flank of the IVth.
-[X] The First should hold position, no movement.
[X] Second Army Corps
-[X] Previous offensives across this river hasn't worked, but you plan to strike again! Beat them until they buckle!
-[X] Act in support of an offensive launched by the Fifth!
-[X] It's too heavily fortified. Hold position!
[X] Third Army Corps
-[X] We should recommence our attack on the XXIInd!
-[X] The Third's position as a whole is good. Don't overextend and play the safe game. Hold!
[X] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hammer the flank of the IVth!
-[X] Push into the IXth!
-[X] Hold, no movement is in your favour.
[X] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] New reinforcements have arrived, you should attack in concert with the Second to link up across Yalu!
-[X] Attack solo, the Second mustn't attempt to cross Yalu until you are in position!
-[X] Hold position, there's no way you can break through, even with reinforcements.
[X] IJAAS
-[X] Raids against IVth across Yalu has worked well in the past. Hop to it!
-[X] With the new airfield, reaching the Fourth and First is now possible so we should support the Fourth.
-[X] With the new airfield, reaching the Fourth and First is now possible so we should support the First.
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Fifth is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Third is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
[X] Write-in
Want to redistribute divisions?
[X] Write-in
Since Han isn't here:
[X] Plan Vermilion Distraction(Alt. Title:
Deploy Reinforcements:
[·] Infantry Division 1 (with Artillery and Heavy Artillery)
-[X] Second Army Corps
[·] Infantry Division 2 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] First Army Corps
[·] Infantry Division 3 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
Order New Units:
[·] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
[·] Armoured Cars ¥220k
[·] Armoured Cars ¥220k
[·] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Hachi" Scout Aeroplane (Squadron) ¥81k
Budgeting: ¥700K - (¥112K - ¥60K) - ¥440K - ¥81K = ¥7K
Manoeuvres:
[·] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should attempt to assault the XXIInd's flank, in an attempt to drive a wedge between the IXth and the XXIInd. (again)
[·] Second Army Corps
-[X] Act in support of an offensive launched by the Fifth!
[·] Third Army Corps
-[X] We should recommence our attack on the XXIInd!
[·] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hammer the flank of the IVth!
[·] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] New reinforcements have arrived, you should attack in concert with the Second to link up across Yalu!
[·] IJAAS
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Fifth is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
The general gist is that unless we bleed, any failure on part of Vermilion can and is likely to be pointed to us for not doing enough. We know that the Operation represents a major timer on the Chinese on trying to fulfil the mandate and thus any short-term loss to our manpower here would, at the worst, distract from the amphibious assault for no other gain from us. But seeing as we're not in the business of being 'at worst', the two main gambits that we're going to focus on is dealing with the 19th and the the 22nd. Of the two, the second is more crucial. With Prince Kan'in's confidence, we will redirect the planes we have in order to ensure that the Muromets do not have a free time of day up in the skies. On the ground, the 2nd will assist with its newly given arty firepower while the 4th nip at the buds, making good use of the fresh batch of recruits.
The 19th is more laidback, comparatively speaking, of course, but it still mean to cut any hope of reprieve and safe possibility of sending reinforcements down to Shantou and Guangzhou without risk.
The requisition vote is a bit heavy on armoured cars, yes. Yes, they in total represented 3.5 Divisions but they go fast and they are hard. They can go anywhere though admittedly, the thought of double stacking the two into IG's lap and have them barrel on through till they reach Port Arthur is appealing in its own, if slightly memey, way
[X] Plan Vermilion Distraction
b a n z a i z o o m)Deploy Reinforcements:
[·] Infantry Division 1 (with Artillery and Heavy Artillery)
-[X] Second Army Corps
[·] Infantry Division 2 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] First Army Corps
[·] Infantry Division 3 (with Engineers and MGs)
-[X] Fourth Army Corps
Order New Units:
[·] Infantry ¥112k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
-[X] with supporting engineers ¥30k
[·] Armoured Cars ¥220k
[·] Armoured Cars ¥220k
[·] Mitsubishi IJAAS-4 "Hachi" Scout Aeroplane (Squadron) ¥81k
Budgeting: ¥700K - (¥112K - ¥60K) - ¥440K - ¥81K = ¥7K
Manoeuvres:
[·] First Army Corps
-[X] The First should attempt to assault the XXIInd's flank, in an attempt to drive a wedge between the IXth and the XXIInd. (again)
[·] Second Army Corps
-[X] Act in support of an offensive launched by the Fifth!
[·] Third Army Corps
-[X] We should recommence our attack on the XXIInd!
[·] Fourth Army Corps
-[X] Hammer the flank of the IVth!
[·] Fifth Army Corps
-[X] New reinforcements have arrived, you should attack in concert with the Second to link up across Yalu!
[·] IJAAS
-[X] With the new aeroplanes, supporting the Fifth is now possible, so we should send them on that mission.
The general gist is that unless we bleed, any failure on part of Vermilion can and is likely to be pointed to us for not doing enough. We know that the Operation represents a major timer on the Chinese on trying to fulfil the mandate and thus any short-term loss to our manpower here would, at the worst, distract from the amphibious assault for no other gain from us. But seeing as we're not in the business of being 'at worst', the two main gambits that we're going to focus on is dealing with the 19th and the the 22nd. Of the two, the second is more crucial. With Prince Kan'in's confidence, we will redirect the planes we have in order to ensure that the Muromets do not have a free time of day up in the skies. On the ground, the 2nd will assist with its newly given arty firepower while the 4th nip at the buds, making good use of the fresh batch of recruits.
The 19th is more laidback, comparatively speaking, of course, but it still mean to cut any hope of reprieve and safe possibility of sending reinforcements down to Shantou and Guangzhou without risk.
The requisition vote is a bit heavy on armoured cars, yes. Yes, they in total represented 3.5 Divisions but they go fast and they are hard. They can go anywhere though admittedly, the thought of double stacking the two into IG's lap and have them barrel on through till they reach Port Arthur is appealing in its own, if slightly memey, way