John Jericho and his staff were not in the least surprised to receive information about the departure of the German fleet from Wilhelmshaven, but everyone's face was as gloomy as the stormy sea. Pen × fun × Pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

In the Battle of Jutland, the British saw the fury of their new rivals, and their hearts were pounding and panicked; After the Battle of the Orkney Islands, the British Navy was again fiercely struck by the Germans with mines and submarines. Less than a month later, the fleet once again set out with a remnant formation, and even though the officers and men had a sacred and glorious sense of mission as their spiritual support, it was difficult for them to shake off the pessimism and loss brought about by anxiety and fear.

Furthering the failures of Vice Admiral Sir Lévis-Bailey's experience as Acting Fleet Commander, Jellicoe was reinstated by the British Crown and the Admiralty. In fact, the British generals who were qualified to be commanders of the Grand Fleet were either too old to be up to the post or were in high positions that were not suitable for appointment. At this moment when the fate of the country is at stake, I am afraid that only Jellico can be calm and steady in the face of unprecedented pressure.

The Grand Fleet's flagship "Iron Duke" is still in the dockyard for overhauls, and this time, Jericho chose "St. Vincent" as his temporary flagship. This is an ordinary dreadnought completed in 1909, the experience of the Battle of Jutland shows that the comprehensive performance of British dreadnoughts meets the standards of modern naval warfare, and the combat effectiveness is basically the same as that of German dreadnoughts built in the same period and more expensive, but taking into account the fire control observation equipment and artillery fuse technology, the same number of British dreadnoughts have a great chance of losing to the German dreadnought group, and the super dreadnoughts of the British Navy surpass the German dreadnoughts with powerful large-caliber naval guns. Therefore, instead of occupying a super dreadnought ship with a new age, large tonnage, and complete facilities, and looking ahead and backward in battle, it is better to choose a dreadnought that does not have an advantage in firepower and speed, but has a decent protection capability.

It was a month since Britain declared war on Germany, and among the active capital ships of the British Navy, the battleships "Iron Duke", "George V", "Emperor" and battle cruisers "Royal Princess" and "Australia" were all in a state of serious damage and repair, while "Collingwood", "Daring" and "Ajax" had just been repaired back to the battle sequence. That is, there are three super dreadnoughts that can fight, namely "Daring", "Ajax", "Ireland"; Five ordinary dreadnoughts, namely "Collingwood", "St. Vincent", "Conquistador", "Thunderbolt", "Aginkut". In addition, three battlecruisers secretly drawn by the British Navy from the Mediterranean Fleet, HMS Indomitable, HMS Indomitable and HMS Indomitable have returned home.

Judging from the number of capital ships alone, the British Grand Fleet not only did not fall behind, but on the contrary formed a relatively obvious advantage over the German High Seas Fleet, but the spy reports obtained by the British Navy were somewhat different from the actual situation of the German Navy, and it was impossible for either Churchill or Jericho to recklessly tie the fate of the country to a piece of information that was difficult to verify. Moreover, the tragic experience of the British fleet in the Jutland Sea and the Orkney Islands clearly revealed a fact: the German Navy had both a powerful dreadnought fleet and a killer weapon such as aircraft carriers, as well as the cunning use of submarines and mines.

Although he could not find a way to defeat the enemy, the British Army's cross-sea force was of great significance, and Jericho knew that this move was at stake and that the main fleet was duty-bound, so he sent out the strongest team at the moment. The "Daring", "Ajax", "Ireland", "Collingwood", "St. Vincent", "Conqueror", and "Thunderbolt" attacked in formation, supported by "Indomitable", "Indomitable" and "Indomitable", except for the "Agincourt", originally designed and built for the Brazilian Navy, which remained in Scapa Bay due to a mechanical failure that could not be ruled out.

In order to avoid the surveillance of German airships and submarines, the mighty British fleet set sail at night and chose to sail away from the main shipping lanes. After daybreak, every lookout in Jericho's fleet watched the sky and sea around them nervously and apprehensively, but fortunately, they made it to the southwestern part of the North Sea, where they were to guard against the German fleet from breaking into the English Channel and threatening the British Expeditionary Force forces that could transport across the sea.

Jellico was given a chance to prove himself again, as was another "victim" of the Battle of Jutland, David Beatty. At the outbreak of war, he was the commander of the battle cruiser detachment appointed by the top management, commanding the most important mobile force of the home fleet, but at Jutland he lost four of the six battle cruisers, and the remaining two were also dismal. Although David Beatty's name is associated with bravery and tenacity in Britain's official war reports, within the Navy there has been an unprecedented level of suspicion and criticism against him, with some calling for an investigation and accountability for his military responsibility, and the need for appropriate punishment.

Therefore, Betty is no less under psychological pressure than Jellico. Today, Jellico's admiral's flag still flies on the mast of the flagship of the Grand Fleet, but Betty can only serve as the commander of a detachment of two supernumerary ships, the "Ireland" and the "Agincoot", and now the mechanical failure of the "Agincoot" is even worse, and the only thing under his command is the lone "Ireland". This though is a ship displacement 2. 50,000 tons, equipment 10 doors 13. A 5-inch super-dreadnought, but the British Navy hastily took it over before the outbreak of war, and just over a month was not enough for the officers and crew to skillfully navigate it and use it to full combat effectiveness.

Betty would have felt better if she could command the three battlecruisers secretly transferred back from the Mediterranean, but they were placed under the command of Rear Admiral William Christopher Parkenham. In terms of rank and ability, this General Parkenham was no match for Betty, and he had only previous experience commanding armoured cruiser detachments. In the past, armored cruisers played a similar role in naval warfare as today's battle cruisers, but that was a matter of the previous era.

At the same time, the main force of the German High Seas Fleet from Wilhelmshaven was sailing from west to east over the West Frisian Islands, north of the Netherlands, and further on to the site where the battleship "Regent Louitold" had been attacked by British submarines during the last combat operation.

Now, if the Jellico and Scheer fleets were to travel in opposite directions at their respective maximum speeds, it would only take an hour and a half to meet.

But neither side knows the exact whereabouts of their opponents.

In the absence of Frederick the Great, the German High Seas Fleet still had the King as its temporary flagship. Over the past half a month or so, the officers and crew have been practicing diligently, striving to ensure that the combat team's shooting, maneuvering, and damage management levels can reach an ideal level.

In the operations room, Admiral Reinhardt-Scher, Vice Admiral Wilhelm von Reims, Vice Admiral Franz von Hipper, Rear Admiral Prince Joachim, and a number of colonels sat around a long square table to discuss a bold and significant plan -- if the British main fleet could be successfully defeated this time, the German fleet would break through the English Channel in one fell swoop, attack the British troop carriers, and cover the two sister ships "Moltke" and "Goeben" through the Channel into the Atlantic. Wantonly intercept and kill the ships of the Entente and choke the British sea shipping lines!

Because of the power design of coal-fired boilers and oil-fired boilers, Moltke-class battlecruisers have significant advantages over dreadnoughts that use coal-fired boilers alone. At a cruising speed of 14 knots, they can sail up to 5,200 nautical miles, enough to sail across the Atlantic, and their triple 11-inch guns overshadow the non-core capital ships of old battleships, armored cruisers, etc., and can quickly slip away with full power in the face of a strong enemy.

As the German Navy inflicted heavy damage on the British main fleet at the Battle of Jutland at the beginning of the war, the British Navy urgently withdrew a large number of ships from outside the mainland, and the German auxiliary cruisers and military supply ships deployed overseas benefited from this, and only a few were discovered and sunk by the British Navy. In this way, the two Moltke-class cruisers can easily obtain fuel supplies, thereby increasing the time and space for activities in the Atlantic, and finally return to the North Sea from the North Atlantic under the support of the main fleet.

In fact, during the Second Reich, the German Navy Staff began to study and formulate a similar combat strategy, but the mainstream idea at that time was still to seize sea supremacy from the British in the form of a decisive battle of the fleet.

By comparison, the British Navy in 1914 was at its peak, with more ships and total tonnage than any other great power. New dreadnoughts, super-dreadnoughts, and battlecruisers were used to defend the homeland, and a large number of old battleships and cruisers of all kinds guarded the vast colonies and sea routes around the world, and their dominance over the seas was not comparable to that of 1939. However, in order to keep a firm eye on the two extremely fast German battle cruisers in the vast Atlantic, it is not enough to rely on ships and ships, but must be supplemented by a considerable number of airships and planes, and try to decipher each other's radio communications.

Because the British Navy in 1914 was seriously short of aviation equipment, and the protection of radio communications was controllable, Natsuki saw an opportunity to use the capital ships to carry out a broken engagement, and this move could shake the foundation of Britain to the greatest extent, and deal the heaviest blow to the British military and civilians from the strategic and spiritual level, forcing them to withdraw from the war early. If the British are still stubborn, then Natsuki will have to sacrifice the ultimate terrifying move of landing in England, so that the British people will tremble and be as cold as ice before they see the German soldiers.

(End of chapter)