Chapter 217: Leave all (1100 votes plus update)
On the night of August 23, the temporary headquarters of the Russian 1st Army.
Although, they have been on the run for two days. However, it was still not possible to escape from the Masurian Lake area. The German 17th Army was in hot pursuit of them. And they don't know when the pursuers will arrive. This made the officers and soldiers of the Russian 12th Army panic when they fled.
"General, the 14th Infantry Division was defeated by the Germans. Most of the soldiers have been captured by the Germans, and only a very few escaped back. Now, the Germans' pursuit is no more than 30 kilometers away from us." A staff officer reported to Admiral Leiningkamp.
"Bastard! Is this the real fighting power of the Germans? No wonder the 2nd Army was defeated so badly. It turns out that the fighting power of the Germans is so strong. We are like fools, easily deceived by the Germans. They The trap was carefully laid out, but we jumped in foolishly." Admiral Leiningkamp looked remorseful.
It's a pity that it's too late to say these things now. Who let them be dazzled by the victory before? Thinking about it carefully, the German army's poor combat effectiveness at the beginning is undoubtedly very suspicious. But it is a pity that these Russian generals thought this was a good opportunity to capture East Prussia and capture the German Crown Prince alive. The result was good, and he trapped himself in it. If not done well, the entire army will be wiped out here. If there is any medicine for regret, Admiral Leiningkamp believes that he and Admiral Ivan Jilinsky will definitely run out of reasons to buy one. But alas, not at all.
"Order the 15th Infantry Division to stay and stop the Germans. No matter what, we must resist the German attack and buy us more time to retreat." Admiral Leiningkamp ordered.
In the face of the frenzied pursuit of the German army, he can only keep the troops behind to stop the German army, so as to buy time. In this case, they will continue to weaken their strength, which is tantamount to quenching thirst with poison. But there is no way around it. If troops are not sent to break the rear, they will soon be caught up by the German army. At that time, no one can escape.
"Yes, General." The staff officer replied.
"In addition, General, Warsaw received a call. The main force of the Germans is withdrawing from Tannenburg on a large scale. Judging their intentions, they are here to deal with us. Your Excellency Commander, request us to evacuate as soon as possible to avoid falling into the hands of the Germans. In the encirclement." The staff officer continued to report.
"Bastard! After the Germans solved the Second Army, they really targeted us." Admiral Leiningkamp cursed secretly.
"Tell Your Excellency, Commander, we are already doing our best to retreat. However, affected by the pursuit of the Germans, our retreat speed is very slow. If we cannot retreat, we will fight the Germans to the death." Leiningkamp said. What he said undoubtedly meant that their 1st Army had prepared for the worst.
"Yes, General." The staff officer immediately went to convey the order.
Königsberg, Qin Tian, Admiral Hindenburg and others returned here after winning the Battle of Tannenberg. In Qin Tian's view, after the 2nd Russian Army was killed, the 1st Army was also unable to fly. In this battle, the German army will win.
"Your Highness, the 8th Armored Division, the 11th Army, the 20th Army, and the 17th Army have arrived at the front line. The Russian 1st Army still has not been able to retreat successfully. Tomorrow morning, the 8th Armored Division, the 17th Army, The 11th Army and the 20th Army will divide into three groups to attack the Russian Army, and strive to wipe out the Russian 1st Army in one fell swoop. It can be foreseen that the annihilation of this Russian army is already a certainty." Admiral Hindenburg said.
All the generals of the German army were almost beaming. It is a great honor for everyone to be able to kill all the invading Russian army, a front army with 500,000 people, in this battle. Although, before the war broke out, everyone still had some doubts about winning. But now, everyone has become extremely determined. Because they believe that a huge victory is already in front of them, and they only need to reach out to get it.
"Your Highness, after the 1st Russian Army has been annihilated, the Russian Northwest Front has no troops left. Can we launch an attack on Warsaw next? If it is too late, the Russian Army may mobilize more troops to Warsaw. ” Major General Ludendorff suggested.
East Prussia is a huge protrusion for Germany and an important base for Germany to threaten Russia. Similarly, the Kingdom of Poland is also a huge salient to Russia. It is only a few tens of kilometers from the western border of the Kingdom of Poland to Berlin, the capital of Germany. Of course, this has always been the focus of the German army's defense. Unless Russia mobilizes an absolute main force to launch an attack, otherwise it will not be able to pose a threat to Berlin. But such a favorable salient is still something Russia is unwilling to give up. If the Kingdom of Poland was occupied by Germany, this salient would be smoothed out by Germany. At that time, it will undoubtedly be very difficult for Germany to threaten Berlin.
Therefore, the German 8th Army Staff Department believes that it is impossible for the Russian army to watch the Kingdom of Poland being occupied by Germany. Even after the Northwest Front was defeated by the Germans, Russia would send more troops to the Kingdom of Poland to continue fighting the Germans. Therefore, the Eighth Army still has battles to fight.
No way, although the Russians have sufficient troops? They have plenty of troops to die.
"After the Battle of Tannenburg and the Battle of Masurian Lake, let the troops rest for a week. Wait for the soldiers to take a good rest, and at the same time replenish the losses of the various troops. After that, we will attack the Kingdom of Poland. I believe that we Since we can defeat the Russian Northwest Front Army, we can defeat more Russian troops. Even if they send reinforcements to defend the Kingdom of Poland, the final victory still belongs to us." Qin Tian said firmly.
"Yes, Your Highness." Admirals Hindenburg and Ludendorff had no objection to Qin Tian's decision. After days of fighting, the troops really need to rest. Otherwise, the combat effectiveness of the troops will be greatly affected.
"However, the first thing we have to do is to eat up the German 1st Army. Send a telegram to the generals on the front line, and strive to keep all the officers and soldiers of the Russian 1st Army. This is hundreds of thousands of people! All resolved If it falls, it will be enough to teach the Russians a profound lesson," Qin Tian said.
"Yes, Your Highness."
