klisemfg Chapter 243: Surrender is like waving a white flag
Chapter 243: Surrender is like waving a white flag
The soldiers were about to charge forward when suddenly, a German soldier emerged from a corner with a 98K rifle. A piece of white cloth, obtained from nowhere, was hanging from it and waving it vigorously. Several people shouted in English and broken Chinese: "We surrender!"
The Chinese troops also intensively studied English and some simple German words during their time in India. At the regimental commander's instruction, several of the more experienced soldiers immediately responded: "Hand over your weapons, raise your hands, and get out!"
Led by their leader, a dozen or so German soldiers, having received the response, dropped their weapons, raised their hands high, and slowly emerged from their hiding place. After the leader negotiated with the Chinese army, several more soldiers emerged, supporting several wounded soldiers. Several soldiers immediately rushed over and took these German soldiers away. Then, more soldiers rushed over and began to search the surrounding area.
Surrender now? Looking at these twenty-odd soldiers, led by a captain, the regimental commander was a bit confused. He looked at these German soldiers who surrendered without a care in the world, bewildered and still unable to recover. A slightly educated major, who seemed to be a translator and liaison officer, hurriedly explained, "Europeans have always fought like this. They are as brave as tigers and very fierce in battle, but they also know how to judge the situation. For them, resistance without hope is meaningless, and surrender is not a shameful thing."
The regimental commander seemed to understand, but remembering the international prisoner of war conventions repeatedly emphasized by his superiors, he ordered the surrendered German soldiers to be taken away, and those who needed medical treatment to be given medical care, and strictly prohibited from abuse. The regimental chief of staff arrived soon after and gave him a brief report on the battle losses.
Wow! In the battle against this German grenadier battalion, the regiment suffered 327 killed and 115 wounded, for a total of 417 killed and 53 captured—roughly equal losses. The regimental commander did the math and felt something was off. According to the American and British instructors, a German grenadier battalion must have had at least 700 men, and some even had over a thousand.
Facing the regimental commander's doubts, the chief of staff replied: "I just asked the captured German captain. A considerable number of the German grenadiers were anti-tank artillery. They did not participate in the ground offensive. The personnel of a German ground offensive battalion are not much different from one of our infantry battalions."
The regimental commander nodded, but inwardly he was deeply shocked. "What do you mean 'not much different'? Back when I was battalion commander of the 19th Route Army, a whole battalion, including all its personnel, only had about 300 men, and a regiment barely a thousand. Look at them! A battalion has everything from infantry, artillery, and tanks, and even a medium-sized unit has 3200 to 19 men." The regimental commander finally came to his senses. The motorized regiment he now commanded had about men per battalion, and a total of men. Compared to the th Route Army back then, his regiment could easily crush an entire division. A surge of pride washed over him, and he looked forward to having his entire regiment fully equipped with weapons and personnel.
With the arrival of German heavy tanks, the British anti-aircraft battalion defending the port area immediately came under tremendous pressure. The German artillery fire caused heavy losses to the British army, and half of the 12 anti-aircraft guns were destroyed in just a few minutes. Fortunately, some bunker-like positions on the coast stopped the German attack. The German grenadiers were forced to abandon armored vehicles and, under the cover of tank guns and machine guns, launched an assault on the British positions in a skirmish formation.
"Boom boom boom!", another burst of fire from an anti-aircraft gun, suppressing the attacking German army about 300 meters in front of the position. A Tiger tank immediately locked onto the position of the anti-aircraft gun and fired a high-explosive bomb at the position.
"Boom!" The shell exploded in the anti-aircraft gun position, splashing countless debris, but it did not cause much damage to the gun or the soldiers. The anti-aircraft gun was hidden in a large bunker surrounded by thick defensive walls. Its only drawback was that its firing position was narrow and its coverage area was limited.
"Boom boom boom--" the anti-aircraft guns sounded again after a brief pause, repelling the attacking German troops and destroying a German armored vehicle.
The German commander also discovered the flaw of this anti-aircraft gun and immediately ordered the tanks to make a detour on both wings to cover the grenadiers' charge.
"Boom-boom-boom!" The Tiger 88mm armor-piercing rounds destroyed the bunkers on both sides of the anti-aircraft gun. The German grenadiers quickly rushed up and occupied the position. After occupying the position, the German army used two sides to form a crossfire. The MG43 bullets rained down like hail at the firing port of the anti-aircraft gun, suppressing the anti-aircraft gun inside the bunker. The German Tigers filed up and pointed coldly at the bunker.
"Boom!" an armor-piercing round pierced the thick concrete wall, sending a stream of metal blasting into the bunker. The splattering metal immediately killed and injured a large number of anti-aircraft artillery soldiers and ignited the ammunition. "Boom!" a sympathetic explosion occurred in the bunker, and flames burst out from the firing holes.
The company lost most of its anti-aircraft guns, and the surrounding bunkers were destroyed one by one. Seeing that he was surrounded, the British battalion commander had to give the order to surrender.
"What? The British troops at the harbor defense position surrendered?"
The 6th Army's Chief of Operations, who was organizing a counterattack alongside Kuang Zhengqi, was completely bewildered. What was going on? With such a strong position and weapons, they surrendered just like that? What kind of war were they fighting?
Kuang Zhengqi was not surprised at all. He smiled calmly, patted the colonel, and said with a smile, "Don't be surprised. You will get used to it in the future."
Immediately, he ordered a British liaison officer beside him, "Have Colonel Musk concentrate his forces on the west side of the port and hold a few fortresses. Our counterattack armor will be there immediately!"
Kuang Zhengqi pulled the colonel aside and pointed at the map of the Gabès port area. He said, "Lead a tank battalion to bypass this area and attack the rear of the German troops entering the port area. Have the 34st Regiment of the th Division press forward from the front. Don't let this crippled German grenadier regiment escape!"
Kuang Zhengqi added, "To deal with a Tiger, you must get as close as possible and attack its rear engine and fuel tank."
18 British tanks formed a column, passed through the defense line of the 34th Division's urban defense troops along a block, and suddenly appeared behind the German army. Among these tanks were sergeants from the US 7th Division's repair shop. Their proficiency in operating tanks and their perception of the battlefield were completely different from those of the rookies of the Chinese army.
In the lead Matilda II, an American sergeant shouted in broken Chinese, "Armor-piercing rounds, 3 o'clock, quick!" The gunner immediately turned to his position and calmly aimed the muzzle at the exposed rear of the German Tiger II. A quick reply came, "Yes, sir!"
"Boom——", the shell hit the target accurately, and the Tiger fighter caught fire.
The battle lasted less than 10 minutes. After several German tanks were destroyed, the German commander also ordered the white flag to be raised.