Chapter 579: Heavy Losses (Asking for a Monthly Pass)
Almighty Cultivation Supreme
"Whew! Shout! β
A sharp and piercing whistling sound sounded above the heads of the German troops. As veterans of the baptism of war, these soldiers naturally know what this means. However, the whistling sound is very high-pitched, as if it is about to puncture a person's eardrums. This made many soldiers change their faces one by one.
"Oh God! What's going on? How could the British have such a cannon of such a large caliber? A German officer said with a look of horror.
"Boom!"
A violent explosion rang out, and the entire ground seemed to shake. Bricks, rubble, and dust, under the influence of the shock wave, flew in all directions.
A shell landed on a broken street. When the explosion was over, half of the street was blown up. Many German soldiers who were on this street were all killed.
"No, this is definitely not an army artillery, it is a naval gun. Only the large-caliber main guns of the Navy have such great power! β
"Damn, did the British use the navy? How can they be so shameless? β
The field artillery of the German army, although it was very powerful. But the caliber is only 150 mm. This is already the largest caliber cannon capable of accompanying infantry in combat. Although during the attack on the fortress of Liège, the Germans used siege artillery of a larger caliber. But that kind of artillery is too heavy to accompany the infantry in battle.
Now, the British actually threw large-caliber naval guns directly into the battle of Le Havre, and you can imagine how powerful this will be.
"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! β
On the sea, 21 former dreadnoughts and 13 armored cruisers of the British Navy were firing fiercely. Of those ex-dreadnoughts, except for two 'fast-class' battleships armed with 254mm guns, the remaining 19 ex-dreadnoughts were armed with twin 305mm guns. In addition, these former dreadnoughts were armed with a large number of secondary guns. Although the caliber of the secondary guns varied, most of them were 152 mm, 190 mm or 233 mm. For the infantry, these secondary guns alone are not something that the army's artillery can fight against.
The 13 armored cruisers of the British Navy, the 'Minotaur class' and 'Warrior class' were equipped with 233 mm main guns. Among them, the 'Minotaur class' is equipped with two twin 233 mm main guns and 10 190 mm secondary guns. The 'Warrior' is armed with three twin 233mm main guns and four 190mm secondary guns. The Devon-class armored cruisers were armed with two twin 190mm main guns and six 152mm secondary guns.
Now, these former dreadnoughts and armored cruisers of the British Navy are frantically pouring shells on the German positions on the coast according to the coordinates provided by the British Expeditionary Force. Each shell is a large-caliber heavy artillery relative to the army. This naturally put the attacking German army in the midst of the devastating heavy artillery bombardment of the British Navy.
"Boom! Rumble! β
Two 305-mm shells in a row, hitting a street corner. The entire street corner was razed to the ground. A German infantry platoon hiding in this corner was blown to pieces on the spot. On the ground, only huge craters remained. After that, there was nothing.
The Germans attacking Le Havre suffered heavy losses under heavy naval artillery fire from the British navy. Even if they are the bravest soldiers. However, looking at their own troops, under the heavy shelling of the enemy, they were torn to shreds at once. Such a feeling is enough to completely collapse people's will.
"Damn it, retreat! Retreat now! Despicable British, they actually used naval guns! A German officer commanded loudly.
Although, now there is no order from the command. However, there is no other care. If they continue to persevere, they will only pay more losses.
As soon as the order was given, a 233-mm shell fell from the sky, directly blowing up the German officer and several German soldiers around him. The stump and broken arm were gone, and all that was left was pieces of flesh.
When the violent explosion sounded, even the German command, which was far from the front line, could hear it clearly. Admiral Crook and Lieutenant General Ludendorff suddenly changed their faces.
"What's going on? What is this sound? Admiral Crook frowned.
"Large-caliber cannons! Cannons of very large caliber. It is very willing to be the naval main gun of the British! Lieutenant General Ludendorff was even more pale.
Lieutenant General Ludendorff heard it on the spot. However, it made him feel a shiver from the depths of his heart. In front of the large-caliber main guns of the Navy, anyone will probably behave like this.
"Damn, did the British use the navy? Didn't their fleet almost be beaten by our navy? How can it still be here? Admiral Crook also became anxious.
Now, the German infantry is still under the ravages of the British's large-caliber naval guns!
"General, we can't wait any longer. Order the troops on the front line to retreat immediately! Now, there is no longer any need to continue the offensive. There is as much as it can be withdrawn. Lieutenant General Ludendorff ordered.
"Well, order the troops to retreat at once. Also, contact the air force and let them take off reconnaissance planes and see what the hell is going on! Admiral Crook ordered.
"Yes, General." Lieutenant General Ludendorff nodded.
When the order to retreat was given, the German soldiers who attacked Le Havre and were ravaged by the terrible naval guns of the British Navy retreated in a hurry. But even so, they had already lost too many troops under the heavy shelling of the British Navy. Many people's faces were even full of frightened expressions. Obviously, what happened to them just now was like being in hell. This is a serious devastation to their spirit and will.
These soldiers, without a good recovery, I am afraid that they will not be able to go to the battlefield again.
The shelling of the British Navy did not stop because of the retreat of the German infantry. Guided by the artillery officerdom of the British Expeditionary Force, they also shelled the artillery positions of the German troops.
Large-caliber naval guns, not only powerful. At the same time, the range is very long. Even the artillery positions of the Germans, far from the coast. But it was also within the range of the main guns of the British Navy.
Under the main artillery fire of the British Navy, the artillery positions of the German Army suffered heavy losses in the shelling. So much so that these artillerymen had to all evacuate the front line. It was safe to retreat until it was out of range of the British Navy's main guns.