South Africa doesn't really have any large ports, but it can be stationed there for a while. Phillips, who had a large number of warships, was literally a king-like presence there.

Even if the South African regional administrators wanted to reject the fleet, they would have to weigh their own ability to stop a fleet.

After all, a huge fleet with several battleships is simply invincible in the South African region, where the armed forces are very limited.

If it's just a stopover, some fresh water and supplies, the South African government will only be very cooperative, and nothing else.

So, when Phillips began to head south with his fleet, he was full of thoughts about whether General Mountbatten in India and Burma would become Churchill in Asia.

Churchill died, and he was not able to reach Canada or continue his unfinished business. But there are still many people who are ready to take over the business from him and continue to fight for the future of Britain.

……

Far away in the rolling sands of the Middle East, in the Tigris Valley of Iraq, Montgomery is now considering whether to stand on its own.

"We can count on the independence of Saudi Arabia and other parts of Saudi Arabia as long as we recognize their independence......," he said, looking at the map and to Auchinleke behind him.

General Auchinleck didn't have a good idea at this time, after all, they had to choose their fate before Britain surrendered.

Handing over one's weapons to Rommel was clearly not a good option. They have their backs to India and have more resources and supplies.

Counting the vast desert between them and Rommel, they are almost invincible when they can attack and retreat.

Since you are invincible, surrendering is a less sensible choice. So Montgomery intends to take advantage of the current situation and portray himself as a savior of the British Empire.

He also thinks the same thing, including Auchinleck and Mountbatten, who are linked to Myanmar, India and the Middle East, and are strategically mutually reinforcing.

"Giving Saudi Arabia independence and several other Middle Eastern colonies is not good news for the British Empire." Auchinleck thought for a moment and reminded.

Resisting the Germans with the resources at hand, betting on both sides is not actually treason. But if you want to sell part of the country's interests, this nature is obviously bad.

Montgomery had no choice now, so he said depressedly: "If we support Saudi Arabia and several other chiefs, they can provide us with 5 infantry divisions for us." ”

"What we lack now is not soldiers, but weapons to arm them." Auchinleck squeezed out a smile and corrected Montgomery's statement.

"We are raising the banner of resistance against the Germans here, and then the help of the Americans will come soon...... Montgomery was confident in this matter.

After all, Churchill is dead, and his political legacy is not much, and the attitude of the United States is one of the few major events.

As long as Churchill's determination to resist Germany is inherited, then the United States will provide some support.

Regions such as Myanmar and Singapore are closer to areas such as the US-controlled Philippines, so they will only get supplies faster.

The only thing that made Montgomery hesitate was that most of these supplies would arrive in Burma first, in Mountbatten's hands. At that time, the cooperation between the two sides was more important than Mountbatten, which made Montgomery a little unhappy.

He didn't want to fight Rommel to the death, and in the end it turned out to be Mountbatten who saved Britain - not the way he wanted it to end.

"His Majesty the King has stayed on the mainland, and if we don't give some benefits to the natives in the colony at this time, they won't support us." Montgomery still hoped to liberate some of the colonies in exchange for support from those regions.

According to his plan, the first areas he liberated were between the German-occupied territories and the British colonies. It is in his interest now to turn these places into a quagmire of chaos.

Moreover, Montgomery also had a lesson to provide him with valuable experience. De Gaulle, a poor man, made very slow progress on the issue of French colonies such as North Africa.

Because he did not enjoy the support of the United States, de Gaulle's lobbying in the United States had little effect. He has only found a few partners, but has so far not been able to form a competent army.

Many of the French colonies, such as Vietnam, and Central Africa, had in fact been subordinated to the Vichy government.

So, Montgomery hoped that he could play the role of a liberator in the colonies, giving them hope first and then gaining their support.

In any case, Montgomery still has a certain strength, and he has the 7th and 10th Panzer Divisions in his hands, which can be said to be the most powerful road force outside of the British mainland.

"General Phillips has just sent a telegram at sea, and he claims that he and his officers and men will fight for the freedom of Britain......" An officer hurried in and pressed the telegram near the kerosene lamp next to the drawing.

"Great, now we even have a fleet." When Montgomery heard the news, he felt even more that he had been destined for it.

Now Britain's only maritime power in the Indian Ocean is the Indian Ocean Squadron. The only warship in this fleet that can handle it is the USS Athletic.

The fleet was still under Mountbatten's command, so Montgomery did not have any naval power.

But if he can unite Phillips, or gain the support of the other side, then he will have a clear advantage in terms of strength.

At that time, he only needs to hand over the front line to Auchinleck, and then he can go to India to take over the banner of "Free Britain" and become a figure comparable to Churchill.

"God willing, the more power we have, the less pressure there will be on home." Auchinleck didn't care, he knew his place and he knew what he was capable of.

Rather than fighting for the so-called title of saving Britain, Auchinleck pursued only the title of British Field Marshal.

Whether it is Mountbatten or Montgomery, who is the leader after the victory, Auchinleck asked himself about this marshal rank, which is well deserved.

So he's not in a hurry, all he has to do is just wait quietly. For him, that's wisdom.

"In any case, what we have to do now is to obtain General Mountbatten's consent as soon as possible to form a free government to resist German aggression." Auchinleck collected his thoughts and spoke to Montgomery.

Montgomery nodded and agreed with Auchinleck's point: "You're right, we want to make Saudi Arabia and Syria and Jordan independent as soon as possible!" ”

All three of these places are areas bordering the German Afrika Korps, where Britain still has some dominance.

In real history, it was also because of the withdrawal of Britain and the establishment of Israel that it became a war-torn area.

Montgomery would have been willing to give up even the Mesopotamian plains if it weren't for the fact that the Germans might establish a base of advance in Iraq and take advantage of the oil fields in Upper Iraq.

"Send a telegram and tell the world now! As a British general! Montgomery was determined to keep fighting and fight for British freedom until the last moment! Montgomery looked at Auchinleck and commanded.

Auchinleck nodded and walked to the telegraph room. On this very night, Britain's colonial system was overturned by a group of generals and became torn apart.

Montgomery telegraphed in the Middle East, declaring that he would continue to fight for the entire empire. At the same time, he recognized the independence of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria, turning them into chaotic hells.

At the same time, Mountbatten announced his support for Montgomery's decision in India and Burma that he would remain neutral in good faith until Britain regained its freedom.

To be honest, these two places are completely self-sufficient, with modest steel production on the one hand, rubber and oil on the other.

Although the weak modern industry is not comparable to that of Britain, there is no problem in producing bullets and firearms.

Britain was still very experienced in building colonies. In a fairly docile place like India, it's not uncommon to stock up on ammunition and some machinery.

The only thing that gave Montgomery and Mountbatten a headache was that the British royal family was still at home, and their de jure approach to establishing a government-in-exile was somewhat untenable.

But on the one hand, Montgomery and Mountbatten are both cattle men with guns, so they don't care too much about this level of legal pressure.

On the other hand, it was they who gave a lot of benefits to the colonies, so they also received some support from those colonies.

The most crucial point is that, in the eyes of the two of them, as long as the United States continues to support it, as long as the Soviet Union's attack on Germany comes as scheduled, who cares whether they have the legal advantage or not?

On the night of 6 March, shortly after Phillips and his fleet left the British anchorage of Scapa Bay, India, Burma, and the Middle East unequivocally declared the establishment of "Free Britain" to continue the confrontation with Germany.

After only seven hours, a government-in-exile that Churchill was about to set up in Canada was hastily established by a few generals in the far Middle East and India.

However, the interesting thing is that Canada and Australia, which still nominally belong to the British Empire, are subtly silent at this time, as if this matter has nothing to do with them.