c_t; "The Germans were advancing so fast that they could barely keep up with the logistics, but the air force in charge of support was left behind, and thanks to our fairly good engineers, we destroyed almost all the airfields, the logistics center, and as many roads as we could before retreating. (Marshmallows) Their airfield layout could not keep up with the army's advance, although the German army could fight, but they were obviously not willing to brave the fire of attack aircraft to attack fortified cities. Or are they planning to use their precious heavy equipment for something else? Barton's idea was very close to that of de Gaulle, but he soon changed his mind and put forward the main topic of today's meeting!

"Or maybe someone in your government has already made contact with the Germans? The Germans thought they could get everything they wanted from the negotiating table, so they didn't want to fight it? "In fact, the Entente has determined that the capitulation faction in the French government has a connection with the Germans, and with the defeat of the Entente, the ties between them are getting closer and closer, and now it seems that even Prime Minister Reynolds cannot reverse this trend, France is about to collapse, but the "good assets" of the French must not fall into the hands of the Allies! Patton wasn't really good at these things, but who made him the supreme commander of the Allied armies in the entire northwestern part of France, and there were some things that he had to do with de Gaulle! So, following the opportunity of today's meeting, he tested what de Gaulle was going to do. Is it to continue to resist? Or do you follow the government's orders?

"Are you representing the U.S. government, or yourself?" De Gaulle looked at the other party intently, and then asked solemnly. "If it's the former, then I'll tell you my plan, and then you'll need to get in touch with the U.S. government and send a special team to coordinate our contacts with your army, and if you're only representing yourself, then I can tell you unequivocally that I'm going to fight the Germans to the end. Then you can convey this sentence to the top of your country. ”

It's not that de Gaulle couldn't believe Patton, but because the scope of this matter is too large, and it is definitely not something that can be solved by just two armies. The last isolated island in northwestern France is not just home to the army. There are also a large number of second-tier forces, the French air force and navy. The air force and navy are self-contained, and some of them must want to surrender, and it is difficult for de Gaulle's own troops and the American army to hold back the Germans and subdue the internal opposition one by one, after all, the forces in their hands are tight. How can it be so easy not to have a naval port and air base? Let's not talk about how bad the impact of the same room is, that is, the objective conditions allow, and the strength is not enough! As far as Barton's political braincase is concerned, in De Gaulle's view, it is absolutely insufficient.

"We can prepare first, and I suggest that we send out an elite rapid reaction force to deal with internal problems. And we need to control and direct public opinion and communication now. Paris must have decided to give up, and even Prime Minister Reynaud had compromised with the leader of the capitulation faction, Petain, and the only thing he could do in the next stage was to let the French government delay the surrender as long as possible, and at the same time facilitate our transfer. (Marshmallows are not enough to use our ports in the northwest of France, because some of them are naval ports, and Darlan is a repetitive man, and we cannot pin our washing on such people; Looking at the somewhat embarrassed Barton, de Gaulle first proposed a preliminary plan.

"That's fine, besides, I need you to contact the Air Force. Let France open its remaining air bases so that our personnel can be stationed at these key airfields. If we can't transport people by sea, the United States will not hesitate to open an air corridor. As for the navy, you must keep an eye on their movements, the British have already stated that they will never watch the French fleet fall into the hands of the Germans, and you should understand what the subtext of this sentence means. Since everyone is a fellow traveler, and the United States really needs De Gaulle's help, Barton also told De Gaulle something rather secretive.

"I will do my best to prevent this from happening, but I hope you will tell the British, even in the most unfavorable circumstances. As long as there is a glimmer of hope, Britain cannot do anything, otherwise we will lose more than we gain! "De Gaulle, of course, knew what the British thought. Although there is nothing wrong with it from a rational point of view, from the point of view of their own national feelings, such behavior of the British is difficult to accept. And if the British attacked the French fleet, it would bring a lot of uncertainty to his future plans!

While de Gaulle and Patton were preparing for the surrender of France, Churchill and Roosevelt were in contact by transatlantic telephone. And the core issue they discussed was how to support a provisional government after the collapse of the French government. And how can we better inherit the "heritage" of France! And on the latter question, Churchill did much more than what Barton told de Gaulle! He had even ordered the Royal Air Force to assemble a special bomber force to carry out air strikes against the French Navy, and in order to ensure that the air raids could be lethal in one hit, he even asked China and the United States for guided weapons and related accessories!

"This Churchill is still the same as in history!" When Xu Jie heard about it, he said something that made others a little confused. "Tell Wang Yue that guided weapons must be grasped in their own hands, and no one can move without an order from Beijing! The situation is far from being resolved by force. On the one hand, he ordered Wang Yue to take care of the guy in his hand and not let the British take it, on the other hand, Xu Jie also discussed the matter with Roosevelt. Xu Jie's meaning is very clear, it is still too early to discuss the attack on the French fleet, and the impact of this attack must be considered.

Historically, the British have attacked former friendly forces, which is the famous Ballista operation. In order to prevent the defeated French fleet from falling into the hands of the Germans, the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet, under the command of Vice Admiral Sir James Summerville, led the H Fleet to deal with the French fleet at the Mirsk Biel military port in the Mediterranean port city. When he first went, the lieutenant general did not intend to use force directly, but in order to avoid the use of force as much as possible. But then the order of the Admiralty was such that if the French did not obey, then resolutely dispose of it! Things have come to this point, and a big step has been taken in the direction of a military settlement.

And in the early hours of the next morning, Churchill finally decided that if the French did not agree, then open fire on the Y reads; In the end, the British came up with three ways to solve the problem, the first of which was to join the British fleet directly. The second option was to cut the crew, then take the battleship to the British mainland and hand over the fleet to the British. After the war, compensation would be given if there were losses, and the third option was to reduce the crew, then go to a port in the West Indies under the escort of the British fleet, and then disarm. Buckle the battleship! Repatriation of personnel. Of course, there is a fourth way, which is to scuttle all the battleships! The end result was that the French rejected these so-called proposals, and the two sides decisively opened the film! Under the attack of 3 capital ships and 1 aircraft carrier, the French fleet stationed here decisively tragic. Except for Strasbourg, which escaped from ascension due to its speed and good luck, the other battleships suffered heavy casualties!

Evaluation of this matter. Xu Jie is really hard to say. After all, this is a historical fact, it is something that has happened, and Xu Jie does not dare to guarantee that these warships will really not fall into the hands of the Germans, after all, when the Germans tried to seize the remaining warships of the French Navy later in history, after all, it eventually led to the self-sinking of the French fleet in the Toulon military port. But in this plane, it is not necessary to discuss the disposition of the French fleet too early, because the Entente has a stronger control over the French fleet than in history, and the strength of the French fleet is absolutely not negligible, especially when the British and American fleets are heavily damaged! If the French fleet can join. It was undoubtedly of great help to the Entente through this most difficult period.

Roosevelt also thought that Xu Jie's suggestion was very reasonable, so he made a similar point in a conference call with Churchill: "After all, the French Navy is our current friendly force, and we should not take any hostile actions until the situation is clear." This is not ethical, and it can easily cause bad effects. After all, no one can stand an ally stabbing themselves in the back. And for a longer period of time, we will also need to rely on the strength of the French, we need the French to help us withdraw our troops from the European mainland, we need as many French as possible to fight with us against the Germans and their puppets. ”

"But the French should have made some guarantees, they should at least allow our personnel to enter the outer area of the military port, and I suddenly found out. We're having a hard time getting in touch with Darlan. The Royal Admiralty sent at least five telegrams to the French side, but none of them were explicitly replied, and their answers were only vague. There isn't any actual content, and I suspect they've shaken. Maybe even start to get in touch with the Germans! Churchill voiced his concerns.

"In that case, we should indeed make some preparations, but these preparations can only be peripheral and non-military, and we can make contact with de Gaulle, whose army is stationed in Saint-Nazaire and in the northwest of France. Together with the garrisons of the United States and Britain, we account for more than 70% of the army strength in the region! We don't need to be so nervous. Roosevelt was also surprised by Churchill's words, the British would not lie, and if this was the case, the French naval top headed by Darlan might really have moved! This thing is very dangerous reads;

"I suggest that our two countries should set up a special team to deal with all possible scenarios for the French fleet, that the Royal Air Force can take on the task of the air, and that I hope that the US Navy can take on the task of blocking the sea. In addition, the US and British armies also need to send some rapid troops into the area around the port of France. In the event of an accident, we must ensure that we can disable the French fleet in a short time! Churchill decided to deal with the matter in a more secure way.

"To add Huaxia, without the air defense provided by the Huaxia Air Force, any of our actions in the French Bristani region would have been exposed to aerial reconnaissance and bombing by the Germans. Don't forget, there are more than 400 aircraft of various kinds on the French fleet, and the air bases and air bases of the French Navy also have nearly 1,000 aircraft. And such behavior would throw some centrists or the French who are inclined towards us into the arms of the Germans. We should consult with our allies on such critical matters and act more prudently! Roosevelt rejected Churchill's suggestion in a tactful tone, and to the latter's surprise, Roosevelt actually took the initiative to involve Huaxia in the matter. It's not that Roosevelt's personal character was high. The point is that this matter is too big, and there is a certain danger if the United States and Britain do it alone, and in the face of the risk, it is obviously the safest way to pull an ally together. Churchill saw only the navy, while Roosevelt thought about the big picture.

The Americans carefully calculated their forces in northwestern France, and it would have been quite a troublesome thing to blow up the French fleet under the protection of the port of France with the British, and the French Air Force deployed outside the port of Brest had 4 wings! Coupled with the French Navy's own carrier-based aircraft, this is nearly 800 deployable aircraft, and even if they have the advantage of sneak attack, it will probably be difficult for the US and British air forces to succeed without throwing away hundreds of aircraft. After all, although the warships in the harbor could not be evaded, they were also protected by lightning nets, anti-aircraft artillery and air bases, and no one could say what the losses would be in a real fight, and what if the French fleet was destroyed, resulting in a complete rupture in relations between the French army and the Entente? What about the US-British coalition forces that are in France? Hundreds of thousands of people, plus nearly one million American and British logistics ground crews, are probably about to be wiped out under the attack of France and Germany! So Roosevelt's bottom line was that as long as the French government had not announced its surrender and the French fleet remained in Brest honestly, the Entente should not stimulate the French fleet.

Subsequently, Churchill was further convinced of his decision by a telegram in which de Gaulle stated that he could assist the Allies in the work of the French fleet, and was even willing to draw a force from his command to provide a proper deterrent to the navy. But one thing is that the American and British fleets must not take any military action and friction before the French fleet makes a statement! Otherwise, everyone will break up!

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