Chapter 381 Taking over the German colonies

It was only after Division Commander Fritz officially took over the city of Herbertshohe that he realized that what Mayor Herbertshohe said was true.

At least within the city limits of Herbertschhe, the number of German garrison troops was pitiful, with a total of less than twenty people.

The reason why these twenty people remain in this area is to protect the Herbertshoe Municipal Government.

After all, this colony has an indigenous population of up to millions, and these indigenous populations hate European colonists very much.

If a certain number of soldiers are not left to protect the city hall, once these natives discover that the German garrison has been reduced, the Herbertshoe city hall and all German residents in the city may be in danger.

The transfer of the Germans was very straightforward. They not only transferred most of the colonial garrisons, but also transported part of the population.

According to the explanation of Mayor Herbert Scheher, most of the people who were transported back to Germany in advance were die-hard loyal to Germany and were unwilling to join the rule of Australasia.

Most of the remaining German immigrants and European immigrants basically owned their own property in German New Guinea.

Their property is here, their families are here, and they have roots here.

For these people, it does not matter who rules the area; what matters is whether their property and safety can be protected.

According to Arthur's instructions, after taking control of Herbertschhe, Division Commander Fritz ordered people to urgently post an announcement announcing the implementation of temporary military control in Herbertschhe.

However, with regard to the property and personal safety of all Herbertshoe citizens, the announcement also specifically mentioned that the Australasian government recognized the property of these people in New Guinea.

If these people are willing to take Australasian citizenship, their personal safety and property security will also be protected by the Australasian military.

For Australasia, Germany's early withdrawal of some immigrants in German New Guinea is equivalent to helping Australasia conduct immigration screening.

Those who left may not all be unwilling to join Australia, but most of the remaining ones should be willing to join Australasia.

With Australasia so close, there was simply no resistance to bringing German New Guinea under its own rule.

Therefore, if the citizens of Herbertshoe want to ensure the safety of their lives and property, it is a good choice to seek refuge in Australasia, the most powerful country in the region.

Precisely because those who remained were basically willing to submit to the rule of Australasia, the militarized management of Herbert Schöhe also progressed very smoothly.

The day after the Second Division arrived at Herbertshoe, that is, August 20, 1914, the first batch of supplies shipped from Australasia had arrived at the port of Herbertshoe and was picked up by the Philippines. Division Commander Ritz distributed it to the citizens of Herbertschhe.

The types of supplies in this batch are actually very simple. Most of them are food, weapons and ammunition, medical supplies and clothing.

Except for weapons and ammunition, which were supplied exclusively to the 1st and 2nd Divisions, all the remaining supplies were shared by the citizens of Herbertschhe.

When every Herbertshohe citizen queued up to receive these supplies, everyone's face could not help but smile.

At least their lives are guaranteed, and they don't have to worry about running out of supplies after their logistical supplies are cut off due to the war.

It is precisely because of the change in mood that the citizens of Herbertshoe have become very welcoming to the Australasian army.

Such an army that will not harm civilians will not arouse public hostility wherever it goes.

In fact, this is also because of Germany's previous good relationship with Australasia, and there are a considerable number of German immigrants in Australasia, so Arthur does not intend to make the relationship with Germany too rigid.

Even after the war, Australasia had to obtain more human equipment and scientific research talents from Germany, which required the Germans to at least have no ill intentions towards Australasia so that Australasia could better receive these talents.

On August 20, Division Commander Fritz successfully contacted Division Commander Silvio of the 1st Division and told him what had happened in Herbertschhe and the early withdrawal of the Germans.

Division Commander Silvio was wondering why the German garrison was not seen in the New Guinea area. Now he solved the mystery and ordered some troops to march to the border of German New Guinea and the Dutch East Indies, while the main force went to Heber Teshhehe and the 2nd Division assembled.

According to the information given by Mayor Herbert Schöhe, all Germany's Pacific colonies should be like German New Guinea. Some immigrants and most of the troops were transferred in advance, and most of the remaining ones were willing Join Australasia.

If this piece of information is true, Australasia will receive these colonies much faster and unnecessary casualties can be avoided.

Division Commander Silvio ordered the main force to move quickly to Herbert Schöhe, with the purpose of gathering as quickly as possible and heading to other German Pacific colonies, and smoothly taking over the local government.

On August 21, 1914, the 1st Division successfully arrived at Herbert Schöhe, and the news that the army successfully took over German New Guinea also spread back to Australasia.

For the Australasian government, one of the most important objectives of the war had been accomplished, and the next step was to take over Germany's remaining Pacific colonies and then sit back and watch the war in Europe.

For the civilians of Australasia, especially the immigrants who are mainly Germans, there is not much war between Australasia and Germany, which is good news.

After all, casualties represent hatred. If Germany and Australasia form hatred, the fate of these German immigrants living in Australasia can be imagined.

The current method of peacefully taking over the colonies is beneficial to both parties. Germany can gather more troops on the European battlefield and no longer has to waste energy on dividing the colonies in the Pacific.

At the same time, Australasia can also achieve its own strategic goals, which can be described as a win-win for this war.

On August 22, 1914, the Australasian army arrived in Apia, the capital of German Samoyed. Like German New Guinea, it quickly took over Apia and implemented militarized management.

The First and Second Divisions acted quickly. As of August 26, 1914, it took less than a week to successfully take over all of Germany's Pacific colonies.

Currently, all German colonies are under military control, and local residents are temporarily not allowed to come and go at will. Living and various supplies are uniformly distributed by the army.

Most immigrants accepted Australasia's military status. As for the immigrants who did not accept the management of Australasia, they were either forced to obey, or they received sufficient travel expenses from the army, then abandoned all their belongings and took a ship back to Germany.

But the problem is that because the war in Europe is currently raging, Australasian ships repatriating these immigrants will only send them to Germany's African colonies.

As for their life in Africa, that is not something the Australasian government can guarantee.

Fortunately, after going through the previous round of screening in Germany, most of those who stayed were relatively compliant.

Almost no one chooses the second option to be repatriated, because their lives in the African colonies may not be as good as they are now, at least the current living supplies can be guaranteed.

All of Germany's Pacific colonies combined have a population of more than 300,000, which makes Australasia's current population truly exceed 15 million.

However, population growth is still continuing, so if you want to know the specific population growth this year, you have to wait until the end of this year's report meeting.

After the combat mission in Australasia was successfully completed, Arthur's eyes also successfully returned to Europe.

Compared with Australasia's petty fighting in the Pacific battlefield, the Allies and the Entente were serious in the European battlefield.

According to intelligence from the Royal Security Intelligence Service, as of late August, the Allies and the Entente had invested more than 2 million troops in Europe, including 610,000 from Russia, 730,000 from Germany, 550,000 from France, 390,000 from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and 390,000 from Serbia. 150000.

At present, the number of people on the Western Front battlefield and the Eastern Front battlefield are about the same, both remaining at just over 1 million.

But this is only a short-term situation. With the progress of military mobilization in various European countries and the deployment of troops from other regions, the number of soldiers on the European battlefield will only increase, and there is even hope that it will exceed 3 million in a short period of time.

Speaking of the current war situation between the Allies and the Entente, we have to mention the strategic choices of Germany, the most important country in the European war.

Decades before the war broke out, Germany formulated a war plan for fighting France and Russia.

From 1871 to 1879, Germany's military power dominated the entire Europe. Marshal Moltke (Old Moltke), then the German Chief of Staff, believed that because of the approach of France and Russia, Germany would have to face the crisis of a two-front war. , such a war is difficult and long-lasting.

However, due to the development of railway transportation, Marshal Moltke was keenly aware that using main railway lines could quickly mobilize most of the troops, first to deal with enemies who were ready to attack at any time, and then to deal with enemies that were slow to mobilize.

For Germany, the enemy ready to attack at any time is naturally France. The enemy that was slow to mobilize was naturally the decaying Russian Empire.

Because of the increase in French military strength and the strong French fortresses on the German-French border, the Germans believe that France is the most dangerous enemy among France and Russia.

General Schlieffen, Germany's third chief of staff, formulated a more detailed battle plan against France and Russia.

General Schlieffen believed that fighting France and Russia at the same time must be avoided because the combined strength of these two countries already exceeded that of Germany.

"Germany must pounce with all its strength on the strongest, most powerful, and most dangerous enemy, and this enemy can only be France." This is the theory put forward by General Schlieffen in the "Memorandum on the War against France" in 1905, and it is also General Schlieffen's Strategic crystallization.

The first update of 3000 words, please vote for me and support!