Shadow Spy

Chapter 438 Taking office as deputy commander of land and sea

From August 8th to 14th, the "Quarter" conference was held in Quebec to study the Allied European strategy and issues related to the Pacific battlefield. Attending the meeting were U.S. President Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Churchill, and Canadian Prime Minister William Leon Mackenzie King. Song Ziwen, a representative of the Kuomintang government, participated in the discussion of the war against Japan.

At Roosevelt's insistence, the meeting made it clear that the "Overlord" operational plan should take precedence over any new Mediterranean plan, and approved the "Anvil" operational plan (later renamed "Dragoon") to cooperate with the "Overlord" plan, that is, from the Mediterranean to southern France. Landed in support of the major Allied landings in northern France.

In terms of the war against Japan, the meeting highly praised the success of the three Allied Burma campaigns, believing that it ensured the smooth flow of the China-Burma land transportation line (i.e., the Burma Road) and laid the foundation for the Chinese theater to hold back 200 to 300 million Japanese troops!

The meeting decided that the Allies would attack the Japanese army with all their strength after the collapse of Germany and strive to defeat Japan within 12 months.

The meeting also discussed and resolved the issue of the division of command between the U.S. and British Allied Forces. U.S. generals would command the "Overlord" campaign, while the highest command of the Mediterranean Theater would be transferred to British generals; a secret agreement on the joint manufacture and use of atomic bombs was signed; and The status of the French Council of National Liberation and the draft declaration on universal security by the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union, and China; the conditions for Italy's surrender were agreed upon.
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On August 8, Roosevelt, who returned to Washington, signed an order to transfer Ognyan Lee Panson, the former commander of the Allied Indo-Burmese Theater, to join the Marine Corps and serve as the first deputy commander, removing him from his original position;

Appointed former theater chief of staff Raymond Wheeler as the new India-Burma theater commander and was promoted to lieutenant general;

Yang Shixiong, former deputy chief of staff of the theater, was appointed Army (wartime) Major General as chief of staff and made official major general.

Originally, Li Junhao was going to return to Myanmar for the handover, but the Navy Department and the Maritime and Land Command required him to take office as soon as possible in the name of heavy workload, so he could only use remote control to hand over to Wheeler.
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For the Allied India-Burma Theater, this change of commander is very sudden.

Raymond Wheeler was promoted to lieutenant general and took over as theater commander. This speed surprised even him. You must know that he had only been here seven months and only participated in one major battle! For this, he can only attribute it to the fact that he came to the right place and followed the right leader.

Yang Shixiong was a little speechless. He finally came back to the command of the commander. Unexpectedly, the commander was promoted and transferred again! Of course it's a good thing for the boss to keep getting promoted, but the speed is too fast and I can't keep up!

Ridgway, who also serves as deputy commander, is not dissatisfied with Wheeler's appointment. Currently, all his thoughts are on the 82nd Airborne Division. The application of new airborne tactics, the use of new equipment, and the training of new combat modes are enough. I am busy and have no time to manage administrative matters.

The New First Army, known as the 103rd Group Army within the theater, Sun Liren, commander and commander of the New 38th Division, Yu Shao, commander of the 96th Division, and Chen Mianwu, temporary commander of the 55th Division, regretted the departure of Commander Pan Sen.

In previous cooperation, they had a very good impression of this commander who was proficient in Chinese language and culture. He even advocated the modification of their own troops to fully mechanized weapons. The victory of three consecutive Myanmar campaigns gave them confidence in the combat effectiveness of the troops. Suddenly, Commander Panson was transferred away, which left them at a loss.

Sun Liren, who had studied at the Virginia Military Academy, knew the status of the Marine Corps in the US military. He was very puzzled that General Panson left the Allied India-Burma Theater to serve as deputy commander of the sea and land. He even guessed: General Panson was Wasn't it suppressed by someone within the US military?

Although the commander of the 121st Group Army, Peng Xuefeng, and a group of underground party generals controlled the troops very well, they were very worried when they gathered for a meeting. Commander Pan Sen, who had accepted them before, had left the war zone and did not know. Will the Allies' attitude towards their troops change?

For this reason, they specifically asked Yan'an for instructions, and the reply they received was: lead the troops with peace of mind and wait and see what happens. For the units of the 101st Group Army, they felt that they could not find their backbone. Fortunately, the new army commander was Chinese General Yang Shixiong, an old subordinate of General Pan Sen, which made everyone feel at ease.
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On Monday, the 30th, Li Junhao officially took up his post at the Admiralty Building.

Commander Holcomb, commander of the navy and land, led everyone in the headquarters to express a warm welcome to his arrival, and personally presided over the award of the rank of major to his assistant Xiaoyu and guard captain Nick...

In his previous life, Li Junhao and many military fans believed that the uniforms of the Marine Corps were the most beautiful among all branches of the U.S. military. But this time it was not the case. It was obvious that the time had not come yet, but it didn't matter. When he came, he would do it first. Design this uniform!

After the welcome ceremony, Lieutenant General Holcomb presided over a meeting at the middle level and above of the headquarters department, introduced him as the first deputy commander to everyone, and clearly emphasized that Deputy Commander Panson has the right to intervene in all future headquarters affairs. Make a decision! Everyone was surprised and immediately realized that General Panson's appointment at sea and land was definitely not simple!

Sitting in a newly decorated large office, Li Junhao began to think about what he had to do now. The first was to transfer his New England Battalion back to him from Burma, and if possible, the 104th Gurkha Division as well.

In addition, except for the two British brigades 101 and 105, the 106st Army is composed of Chinese soldiers. What way out should be arranged for them? If that doesn't work, then it will be incorporated into the U.S. military's land and sea forces.

The 103rd Group Army is a Kuomintang unit, and its key task is to protect the Burma Highway, so let them stay there!

The 121st Group Army is composed of recruits from northern Shaanxi. The original plan was to equip, train, and conduct actual operations in Southeast Asia, and then return to China to strengthen the military strength of northern Shaanxi. It is not suitable to take them out and must stay in Myanmar.

Based on this calculation, we only need to let the transport ship sending military aid bring the New England Battalion and the 104th Division back, which is not too troublesome.

So, on the second day after taking office, he asked his assistant Xiaoyu to write to the Ministry of Army: "In view of the relative calm in the India-Burma battlefield, the Naval and Land Command plans to redeploy the 102nd Special Operations Regiment and the 104th Gurkha Light Infantry Division in the India-Burma Theater. Upon returning home, the necessary replacement troops will be coordinated by the Department of the Army..."

After seeing the report, General Marshall immediately signed and agreed. Because these two troops were of special nature, they could be said to be General Panson's private army. He had no reason to stop them! Subsequently, he ordered the newly formed 255th Infantry Division of the US Army to sail to Myanmar to take over the defense of these two forces.

(End of this chapter)