In fact, before Rommel launched a counterattack, Zhang Cheng had personally intervened in the battle plan of the General Staff of the Ming Army. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 infoFrom a military point of view, as well as from a political and diplomatic point of view, it is impossible for Zhang Cheng to spit out Italy when he has already succeeded. That would be a huge blow to his prestige.

The Spanish and Balkan campaigns, which were originally to be carried out, were postponed by Zhang Cheng's order. The troops and supplies prepared for the new campaign were put into the Italian front battlefield. From the time the German General Staff approved Rommel's battle plan, Zhang Cheng, who got the news, stepped up the delivery of troops and materials to Italy. On average, the number of troops ashore each day is more than the size of a division, not to mention the massive amount of supplies.

It can be said that the main reason why Rommel led hundreds of thousands of troops to fight in the south but was always at a disadvantage, in addition to the terrain restrictions, could only fight hard and consume, a very important reason was that the German army was overwhelmed by the steel frenzy of the Ming army.

The Ming army, which had sufficient supplies, basically covered the road with artillery, both offensive and defensive. After the shelling, which ranged from tens of minutes to several hours, there was a torrent of steel sweeping and assaulting as far as the eye could see.

The German army did not have as many artillery as the Ming army, nor did the tanks as many as the Ming army, and the air power could not hit the ground forces of the Ming army. Coupled with the huge gap in the supply of the most important materials, the ration of shells for one artillery of the Ming army was at least more than double that of the German army, and they did not care about the wear and tear of the artillery barrel. Whether offensive or defensive, as long as the troops are discovered, it is a barrage of shelling. In this case, no matter how clever the tactics are, they can't withstand the Ming army's bullet rain offensive. One force will drop a hundred meetings, that's what I'm talking about.

Of course, Zhang Cheng's purpose of the battle was not to fight with the Germans. From the very beginning, he thought that he would take advantage of this good opportunity for the German army to take the initiative to take the initiative and pull out the gap to encircle and annihilate the German heavy army group again, so as to write the most important chapter for the entire Italian campaign.

At the beginning of Rommel's attack, Zhang Cheng ordered the front-line troops to put up a little resistance and then take the initiative to retreat, gradually attracting the Germans to them. After Rommel's troops arrived at Grosseto relatively smoothly, the fighting power of the Ming army instantly became stronger, not only blocking the German offensive but also constantly launching fierce counterattacks. Every torrent of armor that charged under heavy artillery fire had to be stopped by the Germans at a terrible cost. It was not easy for the German army, which had already been entangled, to leave. The trailing pursuit of the armored corps was too lethal.

After more than half a month of brutal attrition, Zhang Cheng began to try to meet the dagger.

Previously, the General Staff of the Ming Army had already formulated a counterattack plan. When the German army was exhausted, the Panzer Corps, which had already been prepared, a torrent of steel consisting of three Panzer Divisions and four Mechanized Infantry Divisions, set off from the vicinity of Rome and marched at unparalleled speed. In just a few days, it passed through Terni and captured the important towns of Perugia and Arezzo. The attack then turned to Florence.

Once this Ming armoured force moved south to Florence, it would inevitably be followed by a fight to the coast to capture Pisa and Livorno. Thus pocketing hundreds of thousands of German troops between Pisa and Siena, Grosseto.

Once the Ming army's battle plan was successful, the essence of the German army's deployment in Italy would be wiped out. In terms of transportation capacity at this time, when the Ming army went north, the Germans would not be able to recover their previous strength at all, and they would be even more unable to resist the attack of the Ming army.

It was only at this time that Germany, France and other countries, which had been a little hesitant before, felt the pain deeply.

Da Ming is a tiger that eats people and does not spit out bones. In the previous years, the Ming forces had been driven out of Europe, and the main battlefields were either on the other side of the Mediterranean or in Russia. When it comes to fighting in other people's homes, European countries have always looked at them with a joke mentality.

took a lot of benefits from the hands of the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty was driven away from afar. Under these circumstances, the European countries naturally felt that life was better. But when the Ming army gradually approached the mainland, they woke up from the beautiful fairy tale in amazement, and the fierce tiger returned, and the bloody mouth with the smell of blood was open next to their bed!

The Germans and the French began to do their best to provide support to Italy, but it was too late for the most important time. Under the flood of Ming armored forces, the German troops on this road were powerless to resist, and were soon killed near Florence by breaking through the defensive line.

The main forces and elite units of the German army were all firmly pinned down by the Ming army on the main battlefield. In the flank direction, there is basically no too strong combat power. In the face of the Ming army, the armored corps could only collapse at the touch of a button. But they couldn't really give up, and once they lost Florence and Pisa, the main forces of the German Army Group South would be in their pockets. And this consequence is unacceptable to none of the allies.

The Allies began to search everywhere for troops to be sent out to resist the attack of that armored corps, they did not need to defeat that force, as long as they could resist for a while, that is, three or five days, it was enough for Rommel to readjust his deployment and bring most of his troops out of the encirclement. But such troops are not easy to find.

The German forces attacking along the coastline on both sides of Italy were largely entangled, while there were a significant number of French troops in the north. But those French troops were basically infantry. Even if we don't mention the combat effectiveness between infantry and armored units, it would be a few days before they wanted to reach Florence from Milan, Turin, and other places under the heavy air raids of the Ming army's army bomber forces. And in a few days, what else do you want them to do? Collect the body?

Just when the Allies were in a hurry, another army soon came into their sight. American Expeditionary Force.

The U.S. Expeditionary Force had previously fought mainly against the Ming army in the North African theater. However, with the defeat of the North African campaign, a large number of Allied troops were lost on the North African battlefield. The U.S. Expeditionary Force also suffered heavy losses, with most of the troops either annihilated or taken prisoners of war. In the end, they had to retreat north to France for rest and replenishment.

However, because some time ago, the Ming Navy severely damaged the U.S. Navy in the Battle of Hawaii, which led to the opening of the Pacific Ocean. Coupled with the fanning of the Ming spy personnel, it caused a panic in the United States, and many people believed that the Ming army was about to land on the west coast. It not only triggered a large-scale wave of refugees, but also profoundly affected the decision-making of the top level of the United States.

In order to reassure the people, the Americans had to temporarily suspend the plan to send large-scale reinforcements to the European continent, and deployed a large number of troops on the west coast meaninglessly to reassure the people. In addition to the troops, a large amount of supplies were also left behind. This led directly to the temporary suspension of the original plan to place the battlefield in someone else's home.

The U.S. Expeditionary Force regained some strength after replenishment and recuperation, but their main force was still deployed in France. Because in the eyes of the Americans, even if the Ming landing operation in Italy can completely control Italy, but with the obstruction of the Alps, it is difficult for the army to attack and kill the core of the real allies. The German Army is extremely strong, and it does not need the help of the Americans for the time being, and only France is the real stronghold.

On the battlefield in Italy, the American Expeditionary Force sent several divisions to help in the battle, but like the French, they remained mainly in the rear to serve as garrisons. It was the German army that really fought on the front line. However, when the Ming army attacked in a big way to encircle the German army, the American troops closest to Florence became a lifesaver for the Allies.

Once hundreds of thousands of German elites really fell into the encirclement of the Ming army and were annihilated, the Italian battlefield would inevitably be completely eroded. Even for the sake of their own petty calculations, the allies will not allow this to happen. When the Ming Panzer Corps was rapidly approaching Florence, the American Expeditionary Force originally stationed in the area of Parma and Bologna had already arrived in the vicinity of Florence to resist the Ming army's offensive.

For the American Expeditionary Force, they did not need to defeat the Ming armored corps, as long as they could block the Ming army's offensive for a few days, it was enough. A few days was enough time for Rommel to redeploy and change the deployment and bring most of the German troops out of the encirclement. Although it is said that when the tail is broken, it is inevitable to suffer a certain loss, but it is better than the total annihilation, right?

On March 29, 1942, the Second Armored Division of the Forward Force of the Daming Armored Corps met the First Armored Division of the United States Army, the core and main force of the United States Expeditionary Force.

The 1st Armored Division of the U.S. Army is a new army that has only been in existence for a few years. It is a unit that came into being in the midst of a worldwide frenzy of tank armor tactics. It was also the first regularized armored unit in the U.S. Army. The strength of this unit and the meaning it represents can be understood by just looking at its name, the 1st Panzer Division!

As the main play of the national armored forces, the 1st Armored Division has 9 tank battalions and 3 armored infantry battalions. There are also three armored artillery battalions, a mechanized cavalry reconnaissance battalion, an armored engineer battalion, a combat defense battalion, a separate air defense battalion, and logistics support units. They are under the command of A, B, and R Combat Commands.

The division was supplied with a total of 381 tanks, including the M26 Pershing heavy tank, 156 armored vehicles, 115 artillery pieces of various types, and more than 2,000 military vehicles of various types. The total strength is more than 25,000 troops. Moreover, most of its soldiers are recruited and trained from various active duty units, and their combat effectiveness is second to none in the US Army.

The unit had previously been stationed at the Fort Hood military base in Texas, on the U.S. mainland. The first division commander was Bruce. Major General Magrud, but the division commander suddenly fell ill and could not make the trip before the troops left for the battle, so the deputy division commander Major General Zhou Heng was urgently changed to act as the division commander.

After the Allied forces lost North Africa, the Americans, who had already seen that they could no longer preserve their strength, planned to send a large number of troops to fight in Europe. The 1st Panzer Division was one of the first units to be sent to the European theater.

Later, the U.S. Navy was defeated in the Battle of Hawaii, and the troops originally destined for the European theater were forced to stay on their homeland temporarily. And the troops that had already arrived were directly integrated into the sequence of the American Expeditionary Force. This time he entered Italy to help the German army resist the Ming army's offensive, and General Patton directly brought this powerful armored force with him.

The 2nd Armored Division of the Ming Army and the 1st Armored Division of the United States Army are about to stage an ace duel in the ancient city of Florence! (To be continued.) )