Outside the port of Saint-Nazaire, the Brestany slowly moved out of the harbor with the help of a guide ship, the second time the battleship had come out of the shipyard. Hopefully that number doesn't turn out to be the third time! "The ancestors of the French Navy may never have imagined that the great and proud French Navy would not be able to enter the Mediterranean Sea by the Italians, right?" Captain Charles said with some self-deprecation. The French Navy has always been a very powerful fleet on paper, and even in the sail period, a group of outstanding French naval generals led by Jean-Barr have repeatedly defeated the British Royal Navy, although in modern times, the gap between the French and the British is getting wider and wider, but for a long time, it is still the British boss and the second in France.

But all this changed after entering the era of dreadnought, a large number of countries that wanted to obtain blue territories relied on strong national strength to emerge from the army, while the French navy was oppressed by the double pressure of the domestic industrial level and the pressure of a strong continent, and finally had to withdraw from the expensive naval arms race, and eventually became second-rate, and now? After two major wars, the French Navy was not even second-rate! The strength of all the main warships is equivalent to a detachment of the Anglo-German Navy! Even the huge number of former dreadnoughts was depleted in the Battle of Malta. If it weren't for the help of the British, I'm afraid the French Navy would have been completely reduced to an existing fleet.

Unfortunately, the British did not bargain in the Mediterranean, and the Italians seemed to have suddenly become wiser, allowing generals like Thomas to repeatedly win the battle when they had superior forces. After a terrible Armageddon in the Western Mediterranean, the Allied fleet was seriously depleted. But the improvised Anglo-French fleet was also broken, and even more tragic was the refocus on the North Sea after the Germans had cleared out the Russians. The Germans, having acquired 4 Bismarck-class super-battleships and 2 Izmail-class battleships, regained the ability and courage to fight the Grand Fleet. The British were so frightened that they quickly pulled the Mediterranean detachment back, and then led to the fact that only the French fleet was left in the Mediterranean, and the French Navy now had only 3 super dreadnoughts.

"Now that the British are gone, it makes no sense for us to stay here." The French Admiralty immediately ordered the remaining French fleet to leave the military port of Toulon for Saint-Nazaire. On the one hand, it is necessary to repair the warship, and on the other hand, it is impossible to stay in the Mediterranean Sea and wait for death, right? Once the Allied Mediterranean Fleet has regained its strength, it will have no problem storming the port of Toulon. Look at the Essen fleet in Tallinn, didn't the Germans eat it at the end? Just when the French were in a difficult situation both internally and externally. The country, which was once founded with the support of French naval guns and funds, finally remembered to "give back" to France!

At the internal meeting of the Entente, the Americans decisively supported the proposal of the French Navy to "first the south and then the north". It was agreed to transfer the formidable American fleet to the Mediterranean, although the command would eventually fall to the Americans. However, it gave the French hope of re-establishing ties with North Africa, and it is important to know that during the war phase, the French were short of human resources. The most economical and effective way to do this is to mobilize the manpower of the North African colonies to compensate for it. And now because of the powerful Allied Mediterranean Fleet, this manpower transport line has been cut off, but because of the Americans, this line has a chance to be restored, can the French not be happy?

With the support of the Americans, the French Navy finally had the courage to fight a decisive battle in the Mediterranean, and the Admiralty ordered the three capital ships in the port of Saint-Nazaire to prepare to join the southbound American fleet and return to the Mediterranean. The last of the remaining warships was finally ready to set foot on the road north, but not yet. The battleship and the officers and men on it needed to undergo some recovery training, the huge battleship was sailing at a speed of about 10 knots at sea, and the technicians were paying attention to the various data of the battleship, the boiler pressure was normal, the engine was running normally, the motors were running normally, the artillery servos were normal, and the rangefinder and fire control system were also recalibrated. Everything was so perfect.

But what the French did not expect was that under the water not far from the Brestany, a killer was about to move, and the slender periscope was slightly exposed to the water, and after judging the speed and navigation of the other party, he began to slowly approach the giant ship. The opponent's speed is not high, and he is not alert, which is the best target. It is no wonder that this is the base of the French Navy, and at the same time it is located in the north, in the Mediterranean and North Seas. Moreover, the water depth of the sea near the port is not hit, and in the case of lack of hydrological data, it is not suitable for submarine operations at all, maybe the submarine has not been discovered by the French, and it first hit the reef and sank, and the French are very relieved about their port, and this gives some people a chance.

"The speed is 8 knots, the course is 215, the distance is 20 chains, everyone is ready, we only have one chance!" An Italian captain covered in oil and wearing a crooked hat said cautiously. The small submarine, called Glauco, was specially prepared by the Italian Navy for inshore operations, with a displacement of only 157 tons on the surface and 240 tons underwater. The length is only 36.8 meters. Equipped with three 17.7-inch torpedo tubes in the front 2 and 1 in the rear. Originally, it was difficult for this kind of thing to run to the west coast of France, but for some special reasons, this submarine successfully appeared outside the French port.

The Mediterranean Sea was already under the control of the Italians, and these submarines that were originally used to fight in the Mediterranean Sea immediately became decorations, and for the sake of waste utilization, and at the same time, in order to stop the Germans from asking the Italian Navy to act, Tycho and others specially planned one thing, that is, to send miniature submarines into the Mediterranean. Although the Strait of Gibraltar was still controlled by the British, because the Italians had mastered the hydrology of the nearby seas, and according to the division of the Hoplite, the submarine still managed to enter the Atlantic. It was handed over to the camouflaged supply ship that was active at sea, and finally the submarine made it to the Atlantic Ocean and found a suitable target today!

The Brestany slowly passed by the front of the submarine, and less than 1KM away from the giant ship, Glauco finally found a suitable attack position! Two torpedoes quickly came out of the torpedo tubes under the action of compressed air, and then the submarine immediately dived to defend against possible retaliation! It all came so suddenly that almost all the French did not expect to be ambushed by a submarine on their doorstep! The lookout at the top of the mast suddenly noticed two long tracks in the sea very close to his ship!

"Port torpedo, pay attention to evade!" The lookout shouted loudly, but it was too late, too close, and in less than 50 seconds from the time the torpedo was fired, the two torpedoes hit the sidestring of the Brestany! With two loud bangs, two huge water masses slammed into the thick deck of the battleship. The powerful energy generated by the explosion of hundreds of kilograms of explosives could not be released in the water, and instantly turned into a mass of high-temperature and high-pressure bubbles, which carried a large amount of seawater and successfully tore apart the hull plate of the Brestani, and blew it into pieces, countless metal fragments were further impacted into the hull under the impetus of seawater and bubbles, and several layers of 15MM thick high-elastic steel plates on the outside were shattered, and a large amount of seawater poured into the compartment.

The entire battleship tilted to the side as if a running military horse had been suddenly hit in the leg by a heavy hammer. This time the wound was somewhat severe, and one of the torpedoes hit the amidships, an old wound. The place that had just been wounded by an Italian shell was hit hard again. Some hidden diseases were completely revealed in the explosion of the torpedo, and the last layer of armored partition was destroyed, and a large amount of seawater poured into the power room. The whole battleship lost its general momentum at once. Another torpedo hit the bottom of turret No. 2. In order to avoid torpedoes detonating the ammunition bay, Charles was forced to order the battleship to fill the ammunition depot of the second turret with water.

A few French Navy ships rushed to find the damn submarine, but they weren't specialized anti-submarine destroyers, and they didn't even carry much depth charge. The sea can only be swept over and over again with small-caliber artillery, and if such anti-submarine can be used, sows can go up trees! Just when the Italian submarine was about to turn its stern and use the torpedo tube in the tail to send away the battleship that made the Italians gnash their teeth, the last torpedo could not be launched because of a problem with the torpedo tube, and the Italians had to give up looking at the battleship in the distance that was almost like a dead fish struggling on the sea.

From the launch of the attack to the retreat, the whole battle lasted less than an hour or so, but it was because of these two deadly torpedoes that the flagship of the French Navy was forced to run aground in the shallows, along with the French Navy's ambitious battle plan. What is even more unexpected is that because of these two torpedoes, the naval combat plan of the entire Entente countries is facing another major adjustment! And the result is even more unexpected! When this information was sent to the French Admiralty, the first feeling of the French was that the Italians were going to move! They intend to launch a new offensive before the Entente!

And what else was there in the Mediterranean at this time that was worthy of the Italians sending their main fleet? This location could only be Gibraltar, the choke point of the sea that directly locks the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean! And if the Italians really take this fortress, it will be too difficult for the Entente fleet to take it back! Do Italians have this level? At least for now, there is a possibility, after all, more than a dozen capital ships and hundreds of large-caliber naval guns are enough to destroy Gibraltar's defensive line. More importantly, Spain's attitude is very unclear now, and we must not forget that the United States has always coveted Cuba, and the Americans are now on the side of the Entente!

Thanks to the book friends athlon9527, zhouyu1976, hukaikaka for their tips, as well as the book friends Wangyun Mountain people and the tsunami wind for their monthly pass support ~~~~. (To be continued......)