The Germans are expanding their occupation zone at a breakneck pace. From the beginning www.biquge.info of the capture of Canterbury, the German offensive reached a smooth stage.

The frontal assault was handed over to the 1st Paratrooper Division and the 1st and 2nd SS Divisions, three extremely formidable combat units, flanking the 2nd Paratrooper Division, the 3rd SS Division and the 9th Mechanized Infantry Division, which were coming ashore.

In the Dover direction, the German 112th Mechanized Infantry Division, with the 3rd Division of the Paratroopers, was attacking towards Cape Norteauer.

To the despair of the British high-brass, at about 1 p.m., about 20,000 British soldiers, who had almost been cut off from retreat, laid down their arms on the German soldiers.

Originally, the two areas of Cape North Forland and Margate were both stubbornly defended areas that the British defenders had pinned their hopes on, but the troops here were so new that they would not fight when they saw German soldiers.

The British soldiers, who were supposed to hold their positions, immediately withdrew from their defensive area and retreated in the direction of Chatham as soon as they found that their retreat was about to be cut off by the German paratroopers.

As a result, they ran into the German paratroopers who intercepted them on the way, as well as the armored units. Then the 20,000 men were blocked in the wilderness, and they had to lay down their weapons and surrender.

In fact, I don't blame these soldiers, they don't have much food in their hands, and they don't have a bottom if they want to stick to the place and support them. After being surrounded, it broke through twice before giving up resistance.

What no one expected was that at about 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the same day, Germany would take a large amount of coastline, and draw out a reserve of 1 division, and start along the railway to Chatham.

The situation of the British defenders was much more passive now, after all, Herman's 112th Division now had time to join the offensive in other directions.

At half past two in the afternoon, it may be the unluckiest time of the day in Britain. As Sir Dill reclined in his chair, four officers approached him almost simultaneously.

There is an old Chinese saying that blessing is incomparable, and disaster is not a single line. From the time the Germans began to land, the bad news of the British continued one after another.

"Sir, the Germans have taken control of Cape North Forland, and the defenders of more than 2,000 people have lost contact." An officer who approached spoke first, causing Diel's face to twist.

However, he still suppressed the anger in his heart, waved his hand to the officer, told him to stand back a little, and let others come up and continue to report on the battle.

"Sir! The commander of the 3rd Division of the Shore Defense failed to break through and had already surrendered to the Germans. The troops of the 3rd Division of Shore Defense have now ceased to resist...... "another officer gave another piece of bad news.

Dill couldn't hold back his anger this time, he immediately jumped up from his chair, glared at his eyes and shouted loudly, "He should be shot!" Cancel the number of this division! Immediately! Right away! ”

The officer who reported on the battle hurriedly stood up and saluted, and left with Diel's angry order. The 3rd Division of Coastal Defense is finished, completely finished...... There will never be another such number.

Watching the officer leave in a panic, Sir Deere stopped his eyes on the third officer: "What's the bad news for you!" Hurry up! ”

The officer swallowed a mouthful of saliva before he stammered and reported, "Long...... Sir. Just, just now, just now...... Ashford just now, lost, lost......"

Hearing the news of Ashford's loss, Sir Dill shook a little, barely standing firm, and his eyes were already revealing a cold chill.

"Sir! News of the 1st Army, because the German attack was so fierce, just a few minutes earlier, Folkestone had been completely occupied by the Germans. It didn't take Dill any further questioning before the last officer told him the news.

In three directions, a whole 4 towns were lost in a row. The German landing ground more than doubled in size in an instant, and even Maidstone became a front-line city.

If they continue to fight like this, Dill doesn't know where the Germans will be able to fight before dark! If the British troops retreated another 100 kilometers, they could fight street battles in the city of London.

"Damn, those front-line commanders, don't you even want a basic sense of honor?" Dill hammered the back of his chair and yelled at his three men.

And Churchill, Charles and others, who heard the voice, were speechless in shock after hearing the news.

The 9th Panzer Division, which was responsible for the flank attack, had not yet arrived at Hayes, and as a result, Hayes was now surrounded by Germans on both sides.

If the 9th Panzer Division is allowed to assemble towards Hayes at this time, it is not clear that the flanks will really be pressed and beaten by the Germans.

"What is the Army doing? Within an hour! The Germans captured 4 of our towns, captured large stretches of beaches, and routed at least 30,000 of our soldiers! "Churchill was furious, and it was probably his most unlucky hour of the day.

Just two hours or hours earlier, British soldiers had been able to hold on to the main towns, leaving the Germans to expand their positions in the wilderness.

But within two hours, the Germans had captured Canterbury, Dover, Cape North Forland, Margate, and the important Ashford, as well as Folkestone.

"The 1st Army was forced to retreat to the north, abandoning part of its positions, and they had to think about guaranteeing absolute security in the direction of London." A general pointed at a huge map with his whip and drew an approximate location of the 1st Army.

The main defensive focus of the current 1st Army is in Maidstone and Chatham. Both places are now the front line, the front line that cannot be lost.

Once these places were occupied, the Germans could press forward and bombard the outskirts of London with artillery...... This is definitely not good news, or rather an issue that the UK absolutely cannot tolerate.

Of course, the British 2nd Panzer Division, which was supposed to counterattack the German paratroopers in the area near Ashford, now also had to abandon the offensive and began to retreat north.

The 1st Panzer Division, which had suffered heavy losses, or this unit, which was now almost an armoured regiment, was transferred to the flanks to garrison Chatham.

And the defense of the SS Adolf commanded by the German Dietrich? The task of the Panzer Division of Hitler's Guard Banner had to be given to the 2nd Panzer Division, which had suffered relatively small losses and had been withdrawn from Ashford.

Such an adjustment was made in order to strengthen the defense of the London side. and shorten the defense line of the 1st Army and shrink the forces that were too scattered.

However, it does not come without its downside. The 1st Army contracted its own defenses, and of course gave up a large area that needed other troops to fill the defense.

The problem now was that in these areas, the British defenders did not have many troops to stabilize the defenses and stop the offensive of the elite German units.

The German 2nd Paratrooper Division and the Army's 9th Mechanized Infantry Division landed a beautiful right hook and moved south from Ashford in a gesture to encircle Hayes.

The British 9th Panzer Division, which was massing towards the Hayes area, had to stop halfway and wait for the decision of its superiors whether or not to really enter the German encirclement.

The result was a distracting brawl within the London Command. Some of Churchill's generals believed that the 9th Panzer Division would have to counterattack as originally planned in order to achieve the desired results.

Sir Cordier believed that such an adventure would cost the precious 9th Panzer Division, so he refused to give the order to let the 9th Panzer Division enter Hayes.

Things were tangled until 3 o'clock in the afternoon, and there was still no result that could convince the public. However, at 3:40, the Germans surrounded Hayes and ended the quarrel at the British top.

Now that everyone's fears are gone, the remaining question is whether the flank counterattack will continue.

On this point, there seemed to be a surprising unanimity - everyone agreed that the counterattack should be carried out immediately, and that attacking the German flank would effectively relieve the defensive pressure on the 1st Army, or rather, in the direction of London.

It was probably the longest day in British history, and by 4 p.m., the British armoured forces were finally ready on the flanks and had gathered enough artillery to begin an attack of their own.

The German paratroopers also realized that it would be unwise to attack Hayes and occupy the town while the British were gathering closer.

So, before the British army moved, the Germans removed the weak encirclement around Hayes.

The British defenders in the town, as well as the residents of the town, wept with excitement when they saw the Germans retreat and give way to their positions.

They didn't know that it was the Germans who retreated on their own initiative and gave up their positions. What they saw was that they were holding their positions and waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

"Good news! Good news! "When the atmosphere in the whole headquarters was depressed and gloomy, an officer brandished a telegram and ran in and shouted.

He shouted and waved his arms, and at first glance he had the charm of a London newsboy. Now he couldn't care so much, and kept shouting: "The Germans have retreated!" The siege of Hayes is lifted! ”

Churchill was relieved to hear that the 9th Panzer Division had just begun to move and had lifted the encirclement of the Germans outside Hayes.

Since the morning, almost all he has heard is bad news. Now that there is finally good news, and it is so exciting good news, how can it not make him happy?

Sir Dill was also relieved at this time: it seems that not every unit of the Germans is a pervert with explosive combat effectiveness. Obviously, the troops on the flanks of the German army are much worse than those on the front!

It was almost dark, and as long as the Germans were forced to go on the defensive, then the night would belong to the British.