Immediately after the arrival of the Eighth Army from Crown Prince Vittorio, its offensive began.

After taking Gabbes, the forward 15th Division set out immediately after a two-day rest, by which time the follow-up troops had followed, while their 15th Division headed for Shahal, eighty kilometers away.

Here, in addition to the Algerian 14th Division, which they defeated, there was also the Tunisian 3rd Division. According to intelligence, the Tunisian 4th Division, stationed in Sfax, also sent a regiment to Shahal, which now has 21,000 troops.

However, for the forward 15th Division, even two colonial divisions he did not pay attention to, and in terms of various weapons and equipment, these two colonial divisions stationed in Sha'al could not catch up with him by more than one division. In the most critical artillery, the three divisions are incomparable.

In that case, what was there to fear about the 15th Division, it was better to be more concerned about the tribal cavalry that loomed on the march, and these natives were apparently on the orders of the French to monitor and harass his supply lines.

The 15th Division was the vanguard, and the 2nd and 4th Cavalry Divisions on the left flank were also clearing the flanks. As for the right flank, there is the Italian Navy, which is absolutely safe on this sea with the protection of the Italian Navy.

At this time, the 2nd Cavalry Division had just crossed the Federje Salt Marsh, an offshoot of the famous Jerred Salt Marsh, which was only thirty kilometres from the nearest of the Bay of Gabbès. At this time, the 2nd Cavalry Division was advancing in the middle of the salt marsh, and their destination was Sidi Mansour. Earlier airship reconnaissance reported that five or six thousand tribal cavalry had gathered there, and it was obvious that this was preparing to pin down the attack of the Eighth Army from the flank.

Some people may ask why these tribal cavalry did not leave since they were detected by Italian airships. People who say this are obviously not familiar with life in the desert Gobi.

Because you need water to survive in the desert, and the water used to gather five or six thousand cavalry is very staggering, and only a few desert water sources can provide it. It's like exterminating the Libyan rebel tribes before, you can run into the desert, but I have repeatedly swept the oasis that can live in people, how are you going to live?

Of course, this requires familiarity with the oasis wells in the desert, and in Libya Italy at that time attracted Berbers who lived in the desert, as for Tunisia, this is simpler, Italy's nearly 30 years of infiltration, plus the same attraction of Berbers, where there is an oasis well, how many people can support their lives, can be marked for you.

So if you want to come out of the desert and carry out an attack, it's not as easy as you think. One or two hundred people may ignore (and it will not serve the purpose of attacking), but hundreds, thousands, thousands, and thousands of such people simply cannot do without the oasis as a camp.

"Report to the division commander, the guide said that we are still forty kilometers away from Sidi Mansour."

"Okay, you go down."

At this time, Timothy looked at the tired team behind him at this time, and ordered. "Herald, order the team to stop and rest for an hour. Tell them they're going to be on their way overnight tonight. ”

Timothy's order brought the 2nd Cavalry Division to a halt, and the officers and men took pea cakes from their pockets and fed them to the horses they were leading behind them. You can wait and rest, but you have to let your beloved horse eat first.

That's right, you read that right, at this time the horses of the 2nd Cavalry Division were led and not ridden as in the movies or pictures. In fact, when marching in the desert, the horses are generally led, and as for the sight of galloping horses in the desert, it is basically impossible unless there is an imminent battle.

Because the horses are delicate and tired, what should I do when I go to the battlefield? Some people may say that in this case, it is better to have more horses for daily riding, but has this considered the issue of supplies?

Horses not only eat more, but also eat well. This would put a burden on the cavalry troops. Moreover, transportation in the desert is difficult, and increasing the volume of transportation is simply a disaster, so there is no need for cavalry to carry too many horses in the desert.

At this time, the officers and men of the 2nd Cavalry Division, feeding the horses, resting and resting, and at this time the moon had hung on the branches, and the hour's rest time had arrived.

"Let's go!"

At this time, the herald shouted the order to go, and the officers and men of the 2nd Cavalry Division embarked on the journey again.

At this time, a gentle breeze blew in the cool desert, making the officers and men of the 2nd Cavalry Division who were preparing to march let out a comfortable hum.

The heat that had previously arrived in the scorching heat during the day also dissipated in this gust of wind. The moonlight fell on the officers and soldiers, which was particularly conspicuous. And the 2nd Cavalry Division, guided by the bright moonlight, advanced towards Sidi Mansour.

……

Sidi Mansour is an oasis named after the Sidi Mansour Salt Flats, which is located in a low-lying area east of the Sidi Mansour Salt Flats, and the abundant groundwater provides the local population with daily irrigation.

That's why the inhabitants of Sidi Mansour grow dates, olives and sheep for a living. However, due to the topography and water source, planting and breeding can only be carried out within two kilometers of Sidi Mansour, so the permanent population of the place is only more than 200 people, belonging to a small tribe, and the life is considered worry-free. Now, however, the inhabitants of Sidi Mansour are in a state of tears, as they have been evicted from their houses for the use of the tribal leaders, and even their farms and pastures have been occupied. It was full of warriors who set up tents to rest, and they were told that they would use this place as a base to fight the Italians who invaded their territory.

It was dawn, and Sidi Mansour was still in a peaceful atmosphere, and it was the time when people fell asleep the deepest.

At this time, in the desert outside the oasis, a group of people were constantly observing the situation in the oasis.

"Natives are natives, and they don't even let go of a sentry, so you can't blame others for being so careless."

Major General Timothy, who had put down his binoculars, muttered to himself. The 2nd Cavalry Division arrived at 3 a.m., and after a short rest, it waited for dawn to attack. As long as they can defeat the enemies here, they will be able to rest in the Oasis, which is much better than in the desert.

"Report, all regiments are ready to launch, just wait for the division commander to give your order."

Listening to the news brought by the signal soldiers, Timothy, as the division commander, immediately ordered.

"Okay, immediately order the artillery regiment to fire a base ammunition in a rapid fire, and then the regiments will immediately attack, and I will have dinner at noon in Isdi Mansour."

"Yes!"

Three minutes later, the rumbling of artillery rang out from behind, and 36 75-mm cavalry guns roared, followed by a continuous explosion in Sidi Mansour.

"What's going on?"

Major Bekas, awakened by the sound of shelling, jumped out of bed at once. From this you can see his military qualities. However, at this time, Major Becas was not proud of his military qualities, for he knew from the constant explosions that it was the sound of a 75-mm cavalry gun, and the continuous explosions told him that there were at least thirty or more of them. It's obvious that there is a divisional cavalry, which is really a big deal. So he didn't bother to get dressed, and immediately ran out of the house.

And his decision was wise, for as soon as he left the door with his front feet, he heard an explosion from his back feet, followed by the sound of the house collapsing, and the screams of the servants.

However, coming out did not make Bekas feel better, only to see a tribal chief pull him and shout. "Mr. Bekas, you say we won't be attacked by the Italians?"

"Chief Maliki, anything is possible on the battlefield, but I will try to keep the lads of your tribe alive. Your Excellency, now that the enemy is about to attack, we need to repel the enemy's attack first, okay? ”

After trying to persuade the chieftain away, Becas went to a no-man's land, mounted a horse, and ran north. What are you thinking about relying on these natives to resist the attack of a cavalry division of the Italians?

Just as there was a shout behind him, and he saw a group of Italian cavalry rushing towards Sidi Mansour with rifles held high, which made Becas run even faster.

The battle for Sidi Mansour was over at noon, as Division Commander Timothy had said.

The well-equipped 2nd Division sneaked up on the native troops, which would have been delayed until the afternoon. Not to mention, the first shelling wiped out those high-ranking tribesmen, and these unorganized tribal warriors can still resist bravely, then it must be Allah coming.

At the cost of losing more than 400 people, the 2nd Cavalry Division annihilated more than 5,000 tribal cavalry, of which more than 3,800 were captured, and only nearly 1,000 escaped.

And the battle of Sidi Mansour was nothing more than an ordinary battle for the 2nd Cavalry Division, but for the Tunisian clans, it was an earthquake. After this war, the pro-French tribes slowly began to alienate the French, and the neutral tribes began to move closer to Italy.

Although they can clearly see what Italy is doing in Libya, if they do not move closer to Italy at this time, then their fate will be sealed. For the slightest chance of staying, the various tribes can only play a hand.

Although the tribes of Tunisia were moving closer to Italy, for the Italian army, the proximity of the natives was dispensable, and everything needed to be done on their own to take Tunisia. So the fighting still had to go on, but it might be a little more convenient to find a guide, and this help determined the future attitude of Italy towards the Tunisian tribes.

I have seen that many readers feel unreasonable about Greece's accession to the Entente, and I will give you a real example. World War II, when Germany was in full swing when Germany defeated France, Yugoslavia tore up the agreement with Germany and announced its accession to Great Britain, and the result is known to everyone.

This was when Britain and France had begun to decline in World War II, and there were countries that could not see the form clearly, let alone World War I. These countries don't have God's perspective, how can they know who wins?

As for Greece's accession to the Entente, I have already said that, on the one hand, the interests are large enough, on the other hand, Greece is pro-British, and at the same time there is a large enough cognitive inertia.

In addition, we cannot benchmark the First World War against Britain with the current British perception, and it is not too much to call it the shame of the P5 now, because the First World War is in full swing, just as we look at the United States now.

Well, that's all for explaining, I hope you can continue to enjoy the next content, and it will be more exciting later.

(End of chapter)