Chapter 2363

During the French campaign, the Italians took advantage of the fire and took advantage of Germany.

Now that the Kingdom of Italy is withdrawing from the war and trying to write off the previous account, how is that possible.

The government-in-exile of the Kingdom of Italy is not the same as Free France.

Free France is not a government-in-exile, but a new one with its own territory. French North Africa is the capital of Free France.

The Italian government-in-exile has only one mouth left, and nothing else. Victor Emmanuel III fled in a hurry, without a small treasury. Italian North Africa has been occupied by the Allied forces. Victor Emmanuel III If you want to leave with a word, let alone De Gaulle, Winston and Roosevelt will not agree.

Rock wouldn't even agree.

In the last world war, when Italy joined the Allied Powers, the mainland of Italy was still controlled by the Italian government, so the Allied Powers pinched their noses and recognized it.

This time, Italy’s surrender was completely forced. The Italian mainland was already under the control of Germany, and even the daily expenses of the royal family had to be supplied by the Allies. What qualifications did they have to pick and choose?
In Algiers, North Africa, Victor Emmanuel III and Prime Minister Marshal Badoglio lived in a hotel in the suburbs.

The conditions of the hotel were not very good, with outdated facilities, backward service, and no hot water in the bathroom, which made Victor Emmanuel III very angry.

"It's normal to have no hot water. Algiers is like spring all year round, and the climate is mild. It doesn't matter if there is hot water or not." Marshal Badoglio comforted Victor Emmanuel III. Algiers is not Rome, and neither is the hotel. The palace, almost got it.

"Your Majesty is the king of the Kingdom of Italy. Even in Algiers, you should enjoy the treatment that a king deserves. If the king of England or the prime minister of southern Africa come to Algiers, will there be no hot water in their rooms?" Victor Emmanuel III's son, Field Marshal Umberto II, was restless. The lack of hot water was just an appearance, and the hidden problem was the most fatal.

After the outbreak of World War II, Umberto II served as the commander of the Italian Western Front Army Group, with 30 people under his command.

During the French campaign, Mustache hoped that Italy would cooperate with the German army to attack France.

In Umberto II’s view, the French campaign might turn into a protracted war like World War I. In order to avoid heavy losses, Umberto II refused to take small steps on the grounds that the Italian army had not yet completed its preparations. Beard's request, deliberately delaying time.

The development of the war was unexpected, and the French army was completely defeated.

Umberto II hurriedly mobilized his troops at this time, but the French raised their hands and surrendered before the battle preparations were completed.

Although Italy did nothing in the process of conquering France, when France was divided up, the fat bald lion opened his mouth and demanded that Nice, Corsica, Tunisia, Djibouti and southern France be assigned to Italy.

In order to win over Italy, Mustache agreed to Fat Bald's request.

The fat and bald head probably felt that he didn't contribute much, and he was quite embarrassed to take such a big benefit, so he ordered the Western Front Army Group led by Umberto II to attack the remnants of the French army stationed in the Alps.

Just because the French can't beat the Germans doesn't mean they can't beat the Italians.

The French army stationed in the Alps occupied a favorable terrain and beat the Italians severely. This was one of the few highlights of the French army during the French campaign.

What really worries Umberto II is not that there is no hot water, but that the Allied forces no longer recognize the status of the Italian royal family, which is the most terrible thing.

In the previous contacts between Italy and the Allied forces, including southern Africa, all Allied countries recognized the status of the Italian royal family and promised to help the Italian royal family maintain their rule over Italy after the war.

Now this promise is no longer mentioned. It is obvious that the Italian royal family has lost its value to the Allied forces.

"Your Highness, it's different now, we have to face the reality." Marshal Badoglio was also speechless, for what time was it, and he still refused to let go of the airs of the royal family.

"Marshal, what we want to fight for is not whether there is hot water, but the interests of the Kingdom of Italy." Umberto II equated the Italian royal family with Italy.

Badoglio was silent.

After the war is over, it is hard to say whether there will be a royal family.

"Marshal, what do the southern Africans say?" Victor Emmanuel III is good at focusing on key points. As long as he gets the support of southern Africa, the interests of the Italian royal family can be safeguarded to the greatest extent.

"The southern Africans haven't responded yet. I called Marshal Patton's office yesterday. Marshal Patton is busy with business—" Badoglio's face was ugly. The so-called busy business must be an excuse. If Badoglio is still the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Italy , then Barton still has time no matter how busy he is.

"Call the Allied Forces Command. I need a plane to fly to Pretoria." Victor Emmanuel III hoped to meet Roque, and the king took the initiative to visit him. Roque must save face.

"Marshal Alexander—" Badoglio hesitated.

"No, call General Eisenhower." Victor Emmanuel III is old and cunning, and the support of the Americans is also very important to Italy.

Americans are well aware of their ambitions for the Mediterranean, and Italy is one of the most important countries around the Mediterranean. With the support of the United States, the interests of the Italian royal family can also be safeguarded to a certain extent.

After the Battle of Sicily, the Americans and the Italians were in frequent contact. One of the main conditions for the United States to agree to Italy's surrender was that Italy lease the island of Pantelleria to the United States in the same way that Britain leased Malta to southern Africa.

Pantelleria and Malta are also located in the center of the Mediterranean Sea. In terms of location, Pantelleria has more advantages than Malta. It is 100 kilometers away from Sicily to the north, 80 kilometers away from North Africa to the south, and 200 kilometers away from North Africa to the west. Malta is [-] km away.

This request was strongly opposed by the United Kingdom and France. Southern Africa has already made a strong presence in the Mediterranean Sea. If the Americans also come to make a move, it is hard to say who will have the final say in the future of the Mediterranean Sea.

"Your Majesty, a call from Marshal Patton." The adjutant rushed to report, and Victor Emmanuel III was overjoyed.

Victor Emmanuel III is now nominally Commander-in-Chief of the Italian Army.

Patton refused to meet Marshal Badoglio and took the initiative to call Victor Emmanuel III, who readily attended the appointment.

Patton's office is still in the barracks on the outskirts of Algiers, which was originally the garrison of the French Foreign Legion. After the Free French Army recaptured Algiers, the Southern African Army transformed it into Patton's headquarters in North Africa.

Although it is a military camp in name, the conditions are actually very good, the environment is beautiful, and the trees are shady. Algiers is known as the "Garden City", and there must be hot water.

"Your Majesty, welcome to Algiers—" Barton greeted Victor Emmanuel III at the door of the office, which was not impolite, because the office was too far from the door of the barracks.

This also fully proves that the area of ​​the camp is very large.

In fact, Patton's office was built on a hill, and the entire hill was a barracks.

"Marshal, nice to meet you, thank you for your invitation, you made me feel the enthusiasm of Algiers—" Victor Emmanuel III's smile was just right, neither too enthusiastic nor too enthusiastic There is a sense of distance.

Barton was not polite, and got straight to the point while sitting down with tea.

"I'm looking for Your Majesty to discuss the issue of the Italian Navy with Your Majesty."

The Italian Navy and the French Navy are brothers and sisters.

The French navy declared its neutrality after France stopped resisting. It did not accept the command of Vichy France, nor did it accept the wooing of Free France, and formed its own faction.

The Italian Navy suffered from a serious lack of presence after the war broke out due to lack of fuel.

However, the Italian Navy is not mediocre. It attacked Alexandria and sank two British battleships. Its performance is still amazing.

After the Italian royal family fled, the Italian navy also stopped at its home port due to lack of fuel. When the German army occupied Italy, they did not send anyone to take over the Italian navy.

The Germans are very clear that in the current situation in the Mediterranean Sea, even if the German Navy takes over the warships of the Italian Navy, it will not be able to counter the Allied forces' superiority in the Mediterranean Sea.

However, the strength of the Italian navy is still very strong, especially the three powerful "Vittorio Veneto" class battleships.

The "Vittorio Veneto" class battleship originally planned to build four ships, but now three ships have been built, namely the first ship "Vittorio Veneto", the "Littorio" and the "Vittorio Veneto". "Rome", the last "Empire" is still not completed on the berth, and it is estimated that it will be completed in no time.

When the "Vittorio Veneto" class battleship was designed, the main opponent was the French "Richelieu" class battleship. This class of battleship has a full load displacement of 4.5 tons, and the main gun is three triple-mounted 381mm naval guns. , the fastest speed is 30 knots, and when the speed is 20 knots, the endurance is 3900 nautical miles.

The battery life seems to be short.

However, considering that the "Vittorio Veneto" class battleships are mainly used in the Mediterranean Sea, a battery life of 3900 nautical miles is enough.

In addition to the "Empire" which is still on the berth, the three "Vittorio Veneto" class battleships in active service are all in the home port of La Spezia. Last year, in order to meet the French Navy, the British Mediterranean Fleet and the Southern African Combined operation of the Cyprus Squadron, "Littorio" and "Roma" were both damaged and have now been repaired.

Patton's meaning is very clear. If the Italian royal family wants to continue to maintain its rule over Italy after the war, it must cooperate with the Allied forces to bring the Italian navy to North Africa, especially the three "Venetos", which must not fall into the hands of the Germans. hand.

"Marshal, the Italian navy is not without strength. We can only stay in the home port because of lack of fuel. As long as the Italian navy is provided with sufficient logistics, our fleet will definitely make important contributions to defeating the enemy." Victor Emmanuel Earl III was in high spirits, and it was rare that there were things in Italy that Barton liked, all of which were capital.

Of course, relying only on the Italian Navy, there is definitely no way to send warships to North Africa.

Even with the support of the Allied fleet, the Italian Navy would have to face the bombing of the Luftwaffe on the way.

The Germans definitely don't want to see the Italian navy join the Allied camp like the French navy, then the disadvantages of the Axis powers around the Mediterranean will be completely irreparable.

"Your Majesty, doesn't the Italian Navy even have enough fuel to reach North Africa?" Patton didn't quite believe it. Some time ago, the Italian Navy was still capable of replenishing Rommel's North African Army, but now they don't even have enough fuel to leave the port. This is obviously unlikely. .

The situation of the Italian navy is not as miserable as the Italians said. The so-called lack of fuel is just to reduce the frequency of dispatches and fool the Germans. The real lack of fuel is the French navy. It is not enough to choose only tragic self-destruction.

As for the Italian Navy, there is still some fuel to go to sea together, the key depends on whether you have the courage to leave the port.

"Marshal Patton, as you know, Italy loves peace, and we were forced to join the Axis powers, so we didn't do our best in many things." Victor Emmanuel III blushed without heartbeat, and was confident.

If Barton is British, I don't know if Victor Emmanuel III can still be so confident.

When the Italian Navy frogmen raided Alexandria, they did not save face for the British Navy. The bombs were installed on the largest British warships, and they were all in fatal positions. Not that big.

So what are "forced" and "not going all out" are all talking about people and talking nonsense.

Of course, by the way, there is also a little boasting.

You see, our Italian navy did not go all out, and caused you so much damage.

If we go all out, wouldn't your losses be even greater——

"Hehe, I understand, I understand—" Barton smiled and nodded repeatedly. Everyone is old Versailles, so it is understandable.

"If the Allied forces can provide cover along the way, then I believe the Italian navy will be able to reach North Africa smoothly." Victor Emmanuel III still laid an ambush.

The meaning of this is very clear. If the Allied forces cover the force enough, then the Italian Navy will have no problem.

If the Italian navy fails to reach North Africa smoothly, then it is the problem of the Allies.

"Okay, then let's talk about cooperation issues." Patton's attitude is also very clear. After the Italian Navy arrives in North Africa, whether it will accept the command of the Allied Forces or the Cyprus Squadron, this must be done in advance. say clearly.

Anyway, Patton will not make wedding dresses for others. If the Italian navy arrives in North Africa and accepts the command of the British or Americans, then it is better to stay in the home port and not come to North Africa to add trouble to Patton.

(End of this chapter)

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