Chapter 787 Attack on Natal

Shao Kui.

Bougival said gloomily: "East Africa has surrounded Shaokui. It is basically certain that all the troops in other directions have been annihilated by East Africa. Now we are completely trapped in the isolated city."

Of course, Bougival is still too pessimistic. It is not easy to eliminate the British army, especially the main force of the British army in the west. So far, the coalition forces of São Jorge and Mapai have not surrendered voluntarily.

However, they were unable to break through the blockade in East Africa and join Shaokui's coalition forces in the east.

In this case, it is actually similar to what Bougival said, except that the details are different, and the outcome is already doomed.

"There are currently about eight or nine divisions in East Africa, tightly surrounding Shaokui. There is basically no possibility of us breaking through." Count Roberts said with a gloomy expression.

After fighting a lifetime of wars, the South African War can be said to be the one that Earl Roberts regrets the most. He should not have participated in this war, so that he would still be a respected hero.

However, if defeated by East Africa, Earl Roberts' past achievements will be overturned. After all, Earl Roberts' former opponents were the Abyssinian Empire, Afghanistan, India, Myanmar, etc.

In most cases, it actually relies on the British army's superiority in weapons and equipment. Once it is defeated by East Africa, its past results will be regarded as "bullying the weak and unable to attack the strong". This is unacceptable to Earl Roberts. .

"Javier, how many of us are left now?" Count Roberts asked,

"Reporting to the Commander-in-Chief, there are still about 70,000 people in the entire Chaukwe area, including nearly 10,000 British troops, more than 20,000 Portuguese troops, and the rest are Indians and blacks."

After hearing the situation of the army, Roberts frowned. It seemed that the strength of the army was similar to that of East Africa, but it is estimated that there are actually less than 30,000 people who can fight in East Africa.

However, when he thought about his "tragic" future, Earl Roberts decided to fight East Africa once and for all. Tomorrow is Christmas, and if nothing else goes wrong, both sides will have a one-day truce. However, Earl Roberts decided to break this traditional agreement and try on Christmas Eve. Breakout to the northwest.

…

Christmas Eve on the 23rd.

Facts have proved that Christmas Eve was not peaceful at all. East Africa, which also had no moral ethics, directly launched a surprise attack on the British army at night.

"Boom boom boom..."

On the Tugela River, East Africa has begun to organize artillery to bombard the British positions on the opposite bank. At the same time, the East African Defense Forces have begun to lay pontoon bridges under the cover of machine guns and artillery.

Since the British army had previously withdrawn from the Natal colony, they destroyed all the bridges and ships on the Tugela River. As a result, East Africa could only cut wood directly from the surrounding areas to cross the river.

It is worth mentioning that the Central Railway has now been reopened to traffic, so logistical supplies are continuously transported to the new port city of Hamburg via the railway. This is also the confidence for this campaign in East Africa.

Artillery shells and bullets covered the enemy positions as if they were free of charge. Under the cover of artillery fire, East Africa successfully laid a number of pontoon bridges, and then East Africa began to clear the British troops on the south coast.

The British army and the Indian servant army in the Natal colony were almost powerless to fight back. With only more than 3,000 British troops, it was difficult to mobilize more than 30,000 Indians. Instead, the Indian servant army escaped before the battle, leaving the British defense line open.

"These damn Indian bastards!" Commissioner Marshall, who was watching the battle from a high place, directly broke through the defense, while Bedes beside him was as motionless as a piece of wood, but his eyes were full of gloating, as if he had expected it.

"Major General Bedes, what should we do now?" Marshall asked awkwardly.

Biedes suppressed his laughter and said seriously: "There is no other way now. We can only retreat towards East London. I think Commissioner, you have seen the virtue of Indian soldiers and count on them to fight against East Africa." , is a completely impossible task. At the same time, the comparison of firepower between our two sides just now is also very obvious. Now the East Africans completely surpass us in firepower. Therefore, the fundamental reason for the failure of the South African War is that the strength of the East Africans was misjudged before the war. It is no exaggeration to say that their military strength has reached the standards of the great powers."

Seeing Marshall's stinky face, although Biedes gloated about his misfortune, he still analyzed some details of the war to Marshall.

Marshall seemed to suddenly realize: "I just asked why the East Africans are so difficult to fight. Their firepower is indeed a bit beyond normal. Is it possible that countries outside the region are secretly supporting them?"

No wonder Marshall thought so. The British army has always been the party with superior firepower, but the South African War was obviously different. The "colonial country" in East Africa had stronger firepower than the British Empire, which naturally made Marshall difficult to accept for a while.

Biedes ruthlessly exposed the facts and said: "East Africa has a complete defense industry. This was especially obvious during the war. As the war progressed, their firepower became more powerful than in the early stages of the war. Therefore, the war inspired the war in East Africa. potential.

At the same time, we cannot let other countries support East Africa on a large scale. Although we are at a disadvantage in the South African battlefield, it has not affected our global military layout. The most important thing is that Suez and British Somaliland are in our hands, like Germany and Austria. It is impossible for the Hungarian Empire to provide support to East Africa. "

Marshall: "Does it mean that the East Africans did not import weapons from Europe or other regions?"

Biedes: "East Africa has obviously been premeditated for a long time. They have long expected that war will also occur on the African continent, so they began to build their own defense industry in the 1970s, and it was consolidated in the 1980s. So far, the defense industrial system in East Africa has obviously supported East Africa's war needs, so it was wrong for us to launch a war from the beginning.

Many people follow conventional thinking and understand East Africa as a country like other colonies. However, under the rule of the Hechingen royal family, East Africa accepted advanced European technology and knowledge, and inherited the bellicose militarism tradition of various countries in the German region. Therefore, From the beginning we were at war with a weakened version of the German Empire. "

According to Biedes, East Africa has even become a country that can be compared with Germany, but there are still great differences between the two. It can be said that each has its own advantages and disadvantages, but now the overall strength of East Africa is still far weaker than Germany, and even more so. Not as good as Germany, the only thing that can be praised is the vast land area of ​​East Africa.

But now is not the time for Marshall and Biedes to chat. The East African Defense Forces have landed on the south bank of the Tugela River, and the Natal colony is also in danger.

So Biedes said: "Your Majesty Commissioner, I'm afraid we have to retreat, otherwise it will not look good if we really become prisoners of East Africa. Now go back to Durban, and then take a boat to East London Port. We can continue to communicate with East Africa." People versus people.”

Marshall looked ugly. He had just arrived here less than a week before he had to leave by boat. This was simply a humiliation for himself. However, the situation was stronger than others, and it was more important to save his life.

On the same day that the Southern Military District launched the landing operation in Natal, the Southern Military District also launched a cross-river operation in the Orange area and had a fierce exchange of fire with the British troops in Cape Town.

However, the British army in Cape Town is not as easy to fight as the British army in Natal. The remaining forces of the Boer Republic have provided Cape Town with a relatively sufficient supply of troops, so they can continue to rely on the Orange River to fight against East Africa.