"In this war, which lasted more than four years, the High Seas Fleet had a total of 28 dreadnought and super-dreadnought capital ships (including warships obtained from Russia. As well as 10 quasi-dreadnought battleships, and when the Norwegian naval battle was over, we were left with only 14 super-dreadnoughts (and the Gneisenau, Count Spee of the Mediterranean) and 1 quasi-dreadnought! Only about 4 percent of the original fleet number. And this figure is quite good in the entire high seas fleet, our light cruisers are almost completely lost, less than thirty percent remain, and only 20 destroyers can be used, and the only ones that can maintain the number are submarines. Although next year we will regain 2 Bismarck-class battleships, it is undeniable that with a large number of losses and casualties of battleships, the High Seas Fleet is already on the verge of collapse. I don't know if the Army can continue to fight, at least the Navy, it really can't do better. Scheer wrote in his report to Tirpitz.

"In other words, we've done the best we can, but we still can't completely knock down Britain and the United States?" Tirpitz asked calmly after glancing at Scheer's report.

"That's right, the British and Americans suffered greater losses than ours, but the industry of their two countries is too strong, and although the Colorado-class battleships and Admiral-class battleships will not be commissioned until the second half of 1919, we really can't do anything to each other now? It would be nice if the fleet could complete its rest as early as February 1919, and the ships could be repaired, but it was very difficult to replenish personnel. And when the Anglo-American 16-inch super-battleships are commissioned, we will be at a disadvantage even if we have 5 Bismarck-class battleships. At this point, Scher paused. The words were full of helplessness.

"You know. Austria-Hungary and the Kingdom of Italy did not have new warships in service for a long time. And we did not start the construction of any subsequent ships after the completion of 2 Bismarck-class battleships. The situation of the British is not clear, but the Americans started the construction of the South Dakota-class battleships after the Colorado-class battleships, and such attrition doomed us to failure. Now the only way out is peace talks. He did not dare to say this last sentence in his letter to Wilhelm II. But for his old boss, he didn't have the slightest reservation.

"Then now the question arises, can you see the prospects for the future, and Britain and the United States can also know, so will the British and Americans be willing to make peace with us? The British gave more, and in this case they had no reason to give up halfway. Tirpitz asked rhetorically.

"They don't know much about our situation, but even they know it very well. The British will also consider the possibility of an armistice, and if the war continues, the British fleet will completely lose control of the sea. The final winner can only be the United States on the other side of the ocean and China in the Far East. The former has just entered the war. It is far from exhaustion, and the latter is even more recuperated until now, if these two countries want to provoke a naval arms race, then the British have no ability to cope! They will be left far behind by these two great powers. And then stomp under your feet! Meantime. The economy of the British could not support them to fight any longer, on the one hand, the huge consumption of the war, on the other hand, the submarine breaking operation, and now these little guys have become the most powerful weapons in our hands! Scheer analyzed unhurriedly.

"The French can't fight anymore, and the current French Navy can be described as having no navy at all. The country's potential had also been exhausted by the long land war, and they might accept an armistice if we could guarantee a return to the original borders and return to France some of the North African territories that Italy had eaten. After all, now our army still has a great advantage. And if Britain and France do not intend to continue fighting, the Americans have no choice. I don't like the Army guys though. But I have to say that they did a good job, and Marshal Moltke Jr. agrees with me, that the time has come for a truce. Hipper, who was on the sidelines, added.

"We can't take care of the affairs of the Army, but I will work with Marshal Moltke the Younger to convince His Majesty William. It's time for this war to end. After saying that, Tirpitz looked at Hipper again and said, "Your idea is very good, but there is a problem, that is, do not sacrifice the interests of others for your own interests. Especially when we still need to rely on the Italian fleet in the Mediterranean. ”

And when the Norwegian naval battle ended, after the German high-level met again, Wilhelm II had to admit that it was no longer meaningful to fight the war, not only that the sea was still unable to break the situation, but also that the German army was rapidly consumed with the addition of more and more American GIs on land. Although the Germans could still guarantee that they would not retreat from maintaining the front, it was already a fact that they were unable to do so, and in the past they were unable to attack, and now their defenses are somewhat stretched. The entry of Spain did not fundamentally change the tide of the war, and the cowboys did not make it into France, except for the fact that the Allies were initially a little scrambling. After trying to find out the opponent's pounds, many troops that were originally used to deal with Spain were transferred back to the northern front.

Although the Germans want to talk, but obviously they can't open their own mouths, at this time they are holding their breath, whoever opens their mouths first will suffer, everyone can't do it, but at least they must pretend that they are not bad and can fight, only in this way can they deter their opponents and occupy an advantageous position in future negotiations. Now the question arises, the Germans think so, and the British certainly think so. So who's going to open the mouth? Death to save face and live to suffer is the best way to describe the two current military groups. The best option is to have a mediator, and the mediator must be strong enough to speak in such a way that both parties can hear him! And in the current world, the only country that can meet this requirement seems to be the only one!

Just as the Germans were thinking about how to end, the British wept, wept at the ruined Grand Fleet, and cried at the dying sea power. When you see the ruined Grand Fleet, even the most belligerent people have to think about it, is it meaningful to fight to the death with the Germans? Even if Germany can be defeated in the end, I'm afraid that the decisive blow of the German High Seas Fleet will destroy the Grand Fleet, right? Look at the rest of the British's background, in addition to 4 Queen-class battleships and 3 revenge-class battleships, there are only 3 original super dreadnoughts and 3 more ancient dreadnoughts left, the current British Grand Fleet combat effectiveness is probably weaker than the German high seas fleet, only from the hardware level, I am afraid the world can only be the fourth in the world! The current British fleet is at an unprecedented trough. From the beginning of the outstanding, one to two! So far, the top three have been excluded. The British estimated that at least 20 battleships of various types were sent to the bottom by the Germans, Italians and Austrians! Tens of thousands of British naval officers and sailors also perished at sea. This is the family of the British Empire for decades! That's it!

In addition to the loss of naval warships, a large number of transport ships and economic losses also made the sunset empire somewhat unbearable, so far, nearly 20 million tons of various merchant ships have been destroyed or damaged, and tens of billions of pounds of war expenses have exhausted almost all the British reserves, plus a large amount of foreign debt! But even so, the British still did not see the dawn of victory, and although the Americans helped Britain as much as possible, this help was also conditional, and at the same time not indefinite.

The war is for the sake of profit, if there is no benefit or feel that the gains outweigh the losses, then the war must be stopped, the British are still businessmen in their bones, when they find that the war is far away, and their position as the world's number one is also crumbling with the passage of the war, Britain must consider how to stop the war, and at the same time consider what they should do after the war is over. After the end of the Battle of the Norwegian Sea, Britain had already admitted that the British and American fleets could not match the high seas fleet without foreign aid without the support of naval aviation, and although the homeland could be safe and sound under the protection of aircraft, what if the high seas fleet entered the Atlantic? This huge threat is like a sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of the British, so that the British can panic all day, although the German High Seas Fleet needs to be corrected, but before Britain obtains the Admiral-class battleships, the German High Seas Fleet can completely attack in advance, when the time comes, what will Britain do?

Before the official decision on the armistice, the British also tested the tone of the French. Similarly, the French said they couldn't fight anymore. "France is willing to consider peace talks if the Germans are willing to push to the pre-war borders and guarantee the colonial interests of the French Republic in Africa." At another high-level meeting, British Prime Minister Lloyd George and French President Clemenceau were talking, and the latter had implicitly put forward France's demands.

Britain and France, the two biggest pillars of the Entente, said that it would be difficult to continue, and even they believed that if the war continued, even if they were victorious, I am afraid that the remaining national strength of the two countries would not be able to compete with China or the United States, and it would be very difficult to even suppress the colonies, right? Now India is fighting for independence, even if the British lose anything, they can't lose India, this is the most brilliant jewel in the crown of the British Emperor! Australia, New Zealand and Canada within the Commonwealth are quite independent, and their things are not equal to those of the British, but the things of India are almost equivalent to the things in the pockets of the British, and they can take them if they want!

The British and the French are already thinking about how to end the war, and it is certain that they will not be able to fight, but at the same time they must also think about it, if this is the case, then how to contain the four countries of Germany, Austria, Italy and Turkey, which have obtained a lot of benefits from Russia, cannot be defeated now, and when the Allied bloc becomes stronger in the future, won't Britain and France have no chance? You can still get a tie now, and when you wait until later, won't the other party directly crush you? How good is that?

Thanks to the book friends zhouyu1976, hukaikaka, and Mo Hong for their tips~~~, as well as the monthly ticket support of the book friend Impermanence Angel Sword~~~. (To be continued......)