In contrast to the extravagant Royal Navy, the Southern African Expeditionary Force was efficient and economically focused.

Modern warfare is fought with comprehensive national strength, and the performance of the army on the battlefield is a comprehensive embodiment of national strength, the Russian Empire's kind of recruits enlisted in the army and put on military uniforms and sent to the battlefield is one way, and this kind of strict training in southern Africa is another way to take the route of elite soldiers, these two ways have their own advantages and disadvantages, if southern Africa also has a population of 100 million, Roque will not be so meticulous.

While serving as Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Forces in the Mediterranean, Roque was also Minister of Defense and Minister of War for Southern Africa, and a member of the War Council established earlier this year.

The "War Council" here is the War Council established by the Federal Government of Southern Africa, which is not the same thing as the British War Council, and after the reorganization of the British War Council, the Minister of War Kitchener was excluded, and this kind of thing is estimated to be something that only the British can do.

This year's winter is particularly cold, since the beginning of winter, all fronts have entered a state of truce, the Entente and the Central Powers are accumulating strength, preparing for next year's decisive battle, southern Africa is also accumulating strength, Britain has just implemented compulsory military service this year, southern Africa has begun to implement compulsory military service five years ago, at the end of 1914, 200,000 recruits in southern Africa are being trained in recruit training camps.

This 200,000 does not include Africans.

"A telegram from the Prime Minister, he doesn't want to send recruits to the battlefield." Sidney Milner sent a telegram to Roque from Ade, and now the recruits in the training camp are young people no more than 20 years old, they are the hope of southern Africa and cannot be consumed on the European battlefield.

Nor will Roque, who values the future of southern Africa as much as Ade.

"This is the list of retirements for this year, and if there is no problem, they will return to Southern Africa before Christmas." Sidney Milner's expression is hard to put into words.

Roque took the list, and the top two names were Angel and Barton.

Oh, I don't know which idiot drew up the list, one is the governor's son, the other is the son of a congressman, it's quite thoughtful.

There are some unspoken rules for the so-called compulsory military service, for example, in southern Africa, if a father does not want to send his son to war, then he only needs to pay a special donation equivalent to about R10,000, and the Ministry of Defense can put his child in a relatively less dangerous position.

Of course, there are hidden dangers in doing this, and when it is transmitted to society, it can easily become a proof of the collusion between officials and businessmen in the darkness of society, but this is the reality, and it is equally easy for a family that can easily take out 10,000 rands to obtain a certificate of physical unfitness for military service through other means, and it will not cost 10,000 rand, maybe not even 1,000.

Many people don't want to admit it, but the reality is that less dangerous positions have very different values for different families, and people who sit at home and criticize vested interests are unscrupulous, and once they become vested interests, I'm afraid they won't even want to give out 10,000 rand.

Why spend 10,000 when there is a way to solve a problem by spending a thousand?

It is this kind of thinking that prevents them from becoming a class of vested interests.

For Anton and Barker, it was very simple to keep their children in southern Africa, and it was not even difficult to evade military service, but Anton and Barco still handed Angel and Barton to Roque and let Roque take them to the front, and Roque believed that even if Angel and Barton were killed in battle, Anton and Barco would not blame Roque.

Just as the direct heirs of the British aristocracy died in France, their elders did not place the blame on the War Ministry.

While enjoying rights, we must also assume our due obligations.

Roque directly crossed the names of Angel and Barton off the list, and if there were no accidents, Angel and Barton would never leave the army for the rest of their lives.

"Count the names of the war-dead members of officials and aristocratic families, and publish them in The Times, so that their deaths are more worthwhile." Instead of squeezing the last vestige of surplus value, Roque was trying to win more honor for the dead, who actually had the opportunity not to die on the battlefield.

"Locke, you will reap the gratitude of all the officials and noble family members—" Sidney Milner was convinced, and Roark was unsurpassed in his use of the media.

Roque smiled and didn't speak, daring to sacrifice for the country is a noble sentiment for both the Entente and the Allied Powers, which has nothing to do with whether it is righteous and evil, to put it bluntly, the Entente and the Allied Powers are not just enough, and only the ultimate winner is just.

History is a little girl who dresses up at will.

Unlike Roque, who had assumed that there would be no large-scale war before Christmas, Haig, who had just become commander-in-chief of the British Expeditionary Force, organized an attack in the snow, this time with the main forces of the attack coming from southern Africa.

Strategically, Haig's attack was completely unnecessary, and without informing the French side or Roque, on December 10 he suddenly ordered six African divisions rotated to the front line to attack the German positions in the front.

Haig's attack was premeditated, and he began to mobilize his troops at the end of November, first transferring six African divisions from southern Africa to the second line to rest, and a week later sending all six African divisions to the front line, and then ordering his troops to attack, providing fire cover for the troops were two artillery divisions remaining on the Western Front, and one French artillery division.

The battle began at six o'clock in the morning, three artillery divisions shelled German positions for four hours, and then the ground forces began to advance.

The Germans had adapted to the Anglo-French way of fighting, and during the shelling, the German units hid in safe bunkers and waited until the shelling was over before entering the combat position.

As in previous attacks, the attacking forces suffered heavy casualties under heavy machine-gun fire, with 15,000 casualties within three hours of the battle breaking out.

Haig ordered his troops to continue the attack, which he launched very suddenly, and wanted to take the Germans by surprise.

But the Germans reacted very quickly, the barbed wire in front of the position was 50 meters wide, mines were planted under the barbed wire, the attacking troops only carried pliers, but there was no demining equipment, they could only withstand the German frantic strafing and demining, in front of a section of the fiercest fighting trenches, 4,000 African soldiers were killed, and the attack lasted only six hours, ending with the reserve troops refusing to attack.

Hague then ordered the dismissal of Richard Brown, commander of the 103rd Division, and Ford Lew, commander of the 105th Division, and claimed that Richard Brown and Ford Lew would be court-martialed.

It was also after the order to attack was given that Roque learned that Haig had planned the attack.

Haig chose a good time this time, and everyone didn't expect that Haig would attack in such bad weather.

However, Haig's ability is really indescribable, Roque estimated that Haig wanted to replicate the Southern African Expeditionary Force's victory in Operation Victory Horn, but it was a mess when the troops executed, and in just six hours, the attacking force suffered more than 25,000 casualties, and all four divisions involved in the attack were disabled.

Haig finally learned his lesson and kept the 103rd and 105th Divisions in reserve, but when Haig was about to commit the 103rd and 105th Divisions to attack, Richard Brown and Ford Lew decided that the attack was meaningless and could not break through the German lines, so the attack had to be stopped.

The refusal of Richard Brown and Ford Lew to attack also became an excuse for Haig's defeat, which he believed was on the verge of collapse and that if the 103rd and 105th Divisions could attack resolutely, then they would be able to break through the German defenses.

The day after the offensive ended, Roque traveled to France aboard a warship of the Mediterranean Fleet to participate in the alleged trial of Richard Brown and Ford Lew by the Anglo-French forces.

The trial was held at the headquarters of the British Expeditionary Force in Paris, and the trial team included Haig, Roque, Kitchener, General William Robertson, Chief of Staff of the British Army, as well as the Commander-in-Chief of the French Army, Chauffel, and the French Minister of War, Joseph Gallieni.

When he met Roque, William Robertson took the initiative to shake Roque's hand and conveyed to Roque the gratitude of Justice Viscount Haldon.

Viscount Halden is the leader of the British House of Lords, which has no speaker and is headed by a justice, and the Times published in the newspaper a few days ago the list of members of the nobility who have died since the outbreak of the world war, which is in stark contrast to the attack on the House of Lords composed of nobles by civilian politicians after the outbreak of the war.

During the World War, a total of 20 nobles of the House of Lords and 49 heirs of the nobles of the House of Lords were killed in battle, and the heirs of the three nobles were all killed in battle, which means that the titles of these three families will be inherited by no one, and the titles will be directly canceled after the death of the head of the family.

"You're welcome, this is what I'm supposed to do." Roque is not proud, this is where to go.

"What do you think of Douglas's decision?" William Robertson asks Roque for his opinion, and the two generals on trial are Roque's men.

"Ridiculous!" Roque is simple and straightforward, if no one gives Haig some restrictions, then today's Southern African Expeditionary Force is tomorrow's British Expeditionary Force.

Hearing Roque's evaluation, William Robertson's expression was solemn.

An official of Roque's level would not easily express an opinion on a certain matter, let alone such a clear attitude.

When Haig saw Roque, he greeted Roque warmly.

Roque's gesture of salute was very perfunctory, he nodded and did not speak, for the general who is good at making small reports behind his back and commanding troops to fight only crowd tactics, Roque has never been angry.

Haig was unimpressed, blaming the failure of the offensive on the disobedience of the two southern African generals, and he himself was not responsible.

The level of this pot can be called the king of the United Kingdom!

The whole book