African Entrepreneurship Records 2

Chapter 1140 Serbia Battlefield
"salute!"

The East African officers and soldiers in charge of defense expressed their respect to the Germans.

Although Xavier and his soldiers were brutal colonists, at this moment, they were about to return to Germany to fight for their homeland, and Xavier and the German soldiers stood on the boat and said goodbye to them.

Amid the sound of the ship's whistle, Xavier and his party moved farther and farther away from the African coast until they disappeared from everyone's sight. On the shore, the East African officials continued their discussion.

Commissioner Andel turned to the first Governor of Gabon in East Africa, Hled, and said, "The quality of the German army is still good. Even the colonial army has shown a high level of military literacy. I hope they can survive the war."

Helaid also agreed and said: "Our army was established according to German standards from the beginning. From a global perspective, the comprehensive capabilities of the German army are absolutely first-class. It is estimated that only the French army can be compared with it."

Hled was from the Wehrmacht, had studied in Germany, and participated in the South African War. At that time, Hled was only in his thirties, so Andel was quite convinced by what Hled said.

Andel asked out of curiosity: "Senior Helaid, where do you think our East African National Defense Force ranks among the world's armies? How about if we compare it with the German and French armies?"

Helide had just said that the German army was first-rate, and only the French Army could compete with it, but the Imperial Wehrmacht Army was not mentioned here, so Andel asked this question.

Andel doesn't think that the East African Defense Force will be bad. Of course, this mainly refers to the army. As for the navy, Britain is definitely the world's number one. Not to mention the quality of the Royal Navy, no country can compete with the Royal Navy in terms of scale alone.

In response to Andel's question, Heleid shook his head and sighed, "Well, if you had asked me this question more than 20 years ago, I would have told you clearly that the Imperial Army is definitely a world-class and powerful army."

"After all, the Imperial Army initially learned from Germany. In the early days, it was limited by conditions and certainly could not reach the level of Germany. However, after its industrial and economic capabilities improved, it was no different from the European military powers. Even compared with the top land powers such as Germany, we were not much behind. At that time, we only had some gaps with Germany in artillery."

"As for the current National Defense Force, to be honest, an old man like me can no longer understand it. Over the past decade or so, all kinds of new weapons and equipment have emerged one after another, both mechanized and motorized. The quality and variety of machine guns and artillery have increased a lot. In the past few years, an army aviation unit was established. I have been away from the army for too long, and I can no longer understand the current tactical concepts and true level of the National Defense Force."

"It can be said that the Imperial Army has now differentiated itself from other armies in the world. Of course, this change is definitely moving in a good direction. After all, the weapons and equipment, as well as the military construction, have improved."

"But it is precisely because I am unfamiliar with the current imperial army that I dare not jump to conclusions. In addition, the armies of European and American countries are also changing. Although not as big as our East African movement, it was still quite incredible when I was in the army."

The combat effectiveness of an army, in the final analysis, still depends on the process and results, that is, the actual combat effect. Now, except for a little fuss in the Beibu Gulf territory in the Persian Gulf, the East African army has basically not made any major moves, so Hlaide dare not guarantee the combat effectiveness of the National Defense Forces.

Moreover, the most important thing is that the performance of East Africa’s military operations in the Persian Gulf region is actually not satisfactory. Although it is restricted for various reasons, there is no doubt that the East African Defense Force’s paper strength is much stronger than that of the Arabs, and yet they fought for more than half a year.

Of course, the troops dispatched by the East African Defense Force belong to the category of current traditional armies, and are not given enough attention in East Africa. For example, the new-style armies equipped with cars, airplanes and tanks have never had a single actual combat case in the world.

"All in all, our army is developing in a good direction. If we have to compare it with other countries, I believe the National Defense Force is definitely better than other countries' armies," said Helaid.

……

While the two were discussing the combat effectiveness of the imperial army, on the Balkan Peninsula, an observation group of the East African Defense Force was observing and learning in the Austro-Hungarian military camp.

Governor-General Potiorek was the main person in charge of the Austro-Hungarian battlefield against Serbia. He was also the general who accompanied Archduke Ferdinand when he was assassinated. The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand had an extremely bad impact, but Potiorek, who was favored by Franz, was not implicated in the incident. Instead, he became the commander-in-chief of the Austro-Hungarian army with nearly 300,000 troops on the front line.

At this time, Potiorek was receiving a group of "uninvited guests" from East Africa, namely the military observation group organized by the East African Defense Force.

"General Potiorek, we'll be in trouble for the next period of time! We have heard of your great name for a long time." Wang Lade, head of the East African Military Observer Group, said to Potiorek.

In fact, Potiorek was not very interested in this group of East African youngsters. This so-called East African Military Observer Group was actually composed of East African students studying at the Imperial Military Academy in Vienna.

In Potiorek's view, the battlefield is not a game of house, and these East Africans are just a bunch of burdens. However, they came to the front line in the name of exchange and study, and they have the endorsement of the royal family and East Africa, so it is not easy to be disrespectful.

If they were some famous generals in East Africa, Potiorek would not have such thoughts. It was mainly because he underestimated these young people in his heart.

Yes, East Africa also has its own famous generals, and they are recognized by various countries. After all, East Africa has fought in tough battles such as the South African War and has a record of success. Although Britain is not famous for its army, as a world hegemon, the British Army is still quite strong. East Africa can become famous by stepping on Britain, so the generals during the South African War will naturally receive a lot of attention.

As the saying goes, don't hit a smiling person. Since Wang Lade was relatively humble to him and complimented him, Potiorek's attitude towards them became a little better.

But Potiorek still warned: "There is no problem with visiting and learning, but the battlefield is not as simple as playing house in the military academy, so you must stay in the command center and not run around on the battlefield. This is the safest place."

Wang Lade agreed readily. Although staying in the Austro-Hungarian army's headquarters could not experience the tense atmosphere of war up close, it also had great benefits.

This was the command center of the Austro-Hungarian Empire's war against Serbia. Here you can experience firsthand how the Austro-Hungarian military high-ranking officials mobilized and commanded the front-line troops.

This kind of opportunity can be said to be very rare. After all, it involves the command and coordination of a large force of nearly 300,000 people, and there is a lot of knowledge involved.

Moreover, only in this kind of large-scale war can we have this opportunity to feel the difference between the battlefield environment and the usual sand table exercises.

After all, apart from the South African War, almost no one in the East African military had ever been involved in the command of such a large-scale battle, let alone the military cadets in East Africa.

Potiorek went on to say, "You must follow our instructions in all actions. You can learn and discuss while we are operating, but you must not interfere in our work. After all, you young people are just starting out and have a long way to go."

Facing this group of East African young people, Potiorek naturally had a sense of superiority, so he kept chattering about his "rules" with the members of the East African Military Observer Group.

Although the young students from East Africa were full of youth and vigor, they did not dare to refute an experienced person like Potiorek.

According to Potiorek's arrangement, the East African Military Observer Group was basically confined to the rear of the battlefield, observing and learning how Potiorek and his subordinates commanded and dispatched front-line combat troops.

(End of this chapter)