Chapter 125: deputy

  East Prussia is a piece of land located in the southern part of the Baltic Sea. This is the birthplace of the Hohenzollern family and the bridgehead of the German Empire against Russia. In the German Empire, it has a very important position.

  According to the Schlieffen plan, once the war breaks out, the German Army will be divided into eight corps from the 1st to the 8th. Among them, the first 7 corps will be deployed on the Western Front, striving to defeat France in the shortest possible time. The task of the 8th Army is to cooperate with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and contain the Russians.

  According to Schlieffen's estimate, it will take 6 to 8 weeks for Russia to complete its mobilization. So, Germany has a month to beat France. Prior to this, the 8th Army had only to defend East Prussia.

   It's just that after Little Maoqi succeeded, he began to modify the Schlieffen plan. It not only reduced the troops on the western front, but also weakened the right-wing troops on the western front. When the German army attacked France, it eventually led to insufficient attack power, and had to stop tens of kilometers away from Paris. Qin Tian wanted to change this, so he volunteered to be the commander of the 8th Army. At that time, once the little Moltke wants to strengthen the East Prussian army, he can clearly express his rejection, and minimize the damage of the little Moltke to the Schlieffen plan.

   "Oscar, have you really decided to serve as the commander of the 8th Army? If you want to go back on your word, I can re-issue the order and appoint you as the commander of other armies." William II said.

  William II certainly knew the Schlieffen plan well. He knew how much pressure the 8th Army would face once war broke out. The mobilization of Russia will take 6 to 8 weeks to complete. However, don't forget that Russia's standing army is as high as 1.4 million. After the outbreak of the war, these standing armies may launch an attack on East Prussia as soon as possible. Even if the transportation facilities in Russia are very bad, the Russian army will definitely attack before the German army defeats France. Relying on the troops of the 8th Army alone, it will be very difficult to resist the attack of hundreds of thousands or more of the Russian Army.

  According to Schlieffen's plan, the 8th Army will only have 10 infantry divisions, with a total strength of about 160,000 people. This is the situation before the war broke out and after mobilization was full. In the case of insufficient personnel, the 8th Army has only more than 100,000 people.

   "Father, I have already decided to serve as the commander of the 8th Army." Qin Tian said.

"Once the war breaks out, are you sure you can resist the Russian attack? Don't expect the Austrians to provide you with much support. The combat effectiveness of the Austro-Hungarian army is very bad. If they can withstand personal attacks, they will not If we need our support, then it is God’s blessing.” William II also had great distrust of the fighting power of the Austro-Hungarian army.

   "I know. Father, I am sure that once the war breaks out, I will be able to withstand the Russian attack." Qin Tian said confidently.

  He has already decided that after becoming the commander of the 8th Army, he will immediately arm this army according to his plan, even if it costs a lot of money, he must arm this army to the teeth. In this case, it is simply delusional for the poorly equipped Russians to take advantage of the outbreak of the war and invade East Prussia. Even, it can make the Russians fall hard in East Prussia.

"Okay, Oscar, since you have already made up your mind, I won't say anything more. I believe that with your intelligence, you won't do stupid things. I also believe that you will succeed." William II Said.

   "Yes, father." Qin Tian nodded.

   "After the New Year, you go to Königsberg! Come back after sorting out the affairs of the 8th Army." William II said.

   "Yes, Father." Qin Tian hesitated for a moment, and then continued: "Father, this time I am going to Königsberg, I hope Father can send two people to me!"

   "Oh? Which two people?" William II asked.

   "General Paul von Hindenburg and Colonel Erich von Ludendorff." Qin Tian said two names.

   These two people are famous in another time and space. It is also the commander and chief of staff of the German 8th Army in another time and space. It was with their cooperation that the German 8th Army was able to fight on the Eastern Front and suffered heavy losses from the Russian army. Now, Qin Tian appeared and was appointed as the commander of the 8th Army. But he hopes that the 8th Army can achieve greater glory under the leadership of the two of them. After all, as the crown prince, Qin Tian couldn't stay in the 8th Army forever. He still had other things to do. The daily training can only be done by Hindenburg and Ludendorff.

  William II's face was a bit ugly, he knew the two people Qin Tian mentioned. Paul? von? Hindenburg is the famous general. Although Erich von Ludendorff was only a colonel, he had outstanding talents and was well-known in the Army General Staff.

It's just that Paul von Hindenburg just made a big mistake, that is, in the army exercise that just passed, the command troops defeated the exercise troops led by William II, which made William II face dull.

  William II was originally a headstrong and conceited person. This is naturally unacceptable. It also made him dislike Paul von Hindenburg.

   "Colonel Ludendorff can be dispatched to you, but Hindenburg is a competitive person, are you sure he is suitable to assist you?" William II asked.

"Father, although General Hindenburg's personality is a bit bad, his personal talent is beyond doubt. I believe that this time he will definitely regret it very much. If he is given another chance, he will definitely not It will disappoint us." Qin Tian looked determined.

  King William II thought about it, but in the end he still didn't reject Qin Tian's request. Although he doesn't like Hindenburg, he has to admit that Hindenburg's ability is still very strong.

   "Alright, Oscar. This time, I will make an exception to help you once." William II said.

   "Thank you, father!" Qin Tian was very happy.

At Qin Tian's request, William II will then appoint Paul von Hindenburg as the deputy commander of the 8th Army, and Erich von Ludendorff will be promoted from colonel to brigadier general and serve as the acting staff officer of the 8th Army long. Generally speaking, the chief of staff of a legion is at least a major general. Even if Erich von Ludendorff was promoted, he was still not qualified to become the chief of staff of a legion. He could only act as an agent first, and then find a way to get promoted after a period of time.