Chapter 246

< World War II - The Decisive Battle (2) >

March 29, 1942

Central Belarus, Mogilev – Polish Army Garrison

The first to move, according to the Allied Command Headquarters' plan, was neither the Kursk Front nor the German Army.

As the fully prepared Polish Army stood in orderly formation—

“The time for the decisive battle has finally come, gentlemen.”

Inspector General of the Polish Armed Forces, Władysław Sikorski, once again stood before them.

Although he was the one who had planned the resistance against the Soviet Union, he had never expected to be standing in this place himself.

He had even been prepared to be recorded in history under the disgrace of a traitor who had sold his fatherland's territory by surrendering to Germany.

But all the Poles had responded to his cry for resistance, enduring countless sacrifices.

Dietrich Schacht and Germany had treated him and Poland not as a discarded pawn, but as an ally.

Thanks to that, he was standing here now.

“It has been a long war. Our fatherland, Poland, has shed no small amount of blood.”

The price Poland had paid, fighting against the Soviet Union alongside Finland since the beginning of World War II, was high.

Even after scraping together their maximum military force and accepting volunteers from Belarus, the number of troops they could commit to this offensive was only one million.

“Thanks to your struggles, we have driven the Soviet invaders from our fatherland's soil. The blood you shed and the sacrifices you made have allowed us to stand together with our brothers in Belarus, who were once members of the United Kingdom.”

From the desperate struggle to defend Warsaw to the battle to hold Minsk.

“The enemy will not expect us to launch an offensive despite our countless sacrifices.

Some may even call us reckless.”

Despite those immense sacrifices, not a single face among them looked as if they had been dragged here against their will.

“Gentlemen. Poland's history is a history of resistance alongside allies.

We triumphed against the Teutonic Order with our Lithuanian comrades. We defeated the Ottoman Sultan with the Holy Roman Empire.

We etched Poland’s name through the great resistance alongside Napoleon. And finally, we achieved victory against the Soviet Union.”

That was the pride of Poland.

“Now, we stand with Germany and the Allied Forces.

The allies who joined our resistance have changed with the times, but there is one thing that has never changed.”

Sikorski shouted, filled with pride.

“Remember the immutable fact that in the history of Poland, our resistance has never once achieved victory by relying on our allies! All our resistance was won solely with our own hands, with Polish blood!”

For the sake of the ally who had not turned a blind eye to their struggle.

To protect the long history of resistance and pride.

“Our ally has upheld its faith in us, despite old grudges! Now, the moment has come for us to repay them! Let us make this battle the most glorious moment in the history of Polish resistance! For our Fatherland! For the honor of all who have fallen! Wiwat Polska!”

“Wiwat Polska! (Long live Poland!)”

As Sikorski gave a two-fingered salute, the Polish Army responded in unison and began their advance.

Engraving their fatherland and honor, just as their salute signified.

Due to the limits of the NKVD’s capabilities, which were focused on Germany, they hadn't been able to grasp the detailed operational plans of the other Allied nations. Still, Georgy Zhukov was not flustered by the start of the Polish offensive.

On the Western Front, in the direction of Belarus and Smolensk, there was a massive force of two million soldiers under the command of Voroshilov and Marshal Budyonny.

The attack was unexpected, but he judged that they could sufficiently defend against an assault from the Polish Army, which was already in tatters.

However—

The Soviet soldiers could not hide their bewilderment at the sight of shells fired from T-34s ricocheting right off the frontal armor of Tigers and Panthers.

“W-What are those tanks!”

“They’re monster tanks!”

Tanks that could charge head-on while shrugging off hits from T-34 main guns and Soviet anti-tank guns were, in themselves, shock and terror.

The T-34s, which had been on roughly equal footing against the new model Panzer IV, were now being unilaterally wiped out.

Fifty Tigers and one hundred Panthers were provided to the Polish armored units.

The number of the latest model tanks that Dietrich had provided, after hushing up the backlash from the German Army, particularly Manstein, was not that large.

But it was enough to give the moved Polish forces the motivation to willingly join the battle, and more than enough to perfectly strike the unprepared Soviet Army, which had expected a secondary offensive, and throw them into confusion.

The T-34 and KV-1 shock that Poland and Germany had experienced was now being returned to the Soviet Army in full.

And on top of that—

“Attack! For the freedom of Russia!”

“Death to the commies! Long live the Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia!”

From the direction of Smolensk, a thousand Shermans, covering the horizon, began their charge.

“Advance, advance, advance, advaaaaance! Faster, even faster! It’s not enough to just take the heads of those commie bastards! Rip out their guts and spill them on the ground! They’ll make good lubricant for our tank treads!”

Patton, too, began to smash the Soviet Army, madly driving his US Army forward.

With the Polish Army already a handful, the Soviet Western Front began to scream as the Free Russian Army, led by Vlasov and Kaminski, and Patton's US Army began their onslaught.

For the Western Front, which had lost most of its first-rate troops in the last battle, an offensive that was clearly a main thrust was a disaster in itself.

In the end, Zhukov, scowling, had to issue an order for Enrique Líster, the reserve for the Western Front, to set out from the very beginning of the battle.

One million on the Northern Front, two million on the Western Front, two million at Kursk, and one and a half million on the Dnieper Riverbank.

Because of the Soviet Army's situation of having to handle all fronts alone, Zhukov had only 500,000 reserves left.

He knew it was a difficult offensive for the Western Front to block on its own, but for Zhukov, who had to worry about the German elite concentrated at Kursk, he could only hope they would somehow hold on.

But the Allied offensive did not end there.

---

The Northern Front.

In the area that had maintained a long stalemate, the Allied Forces' advance had also begun.

[Finns, united as one, you greatest warriors of the resistance! Today, we shall open a new chapter in Finnish history!]

Simo Häyhä, the legendary sniper who had killed over a thousand enemies, silently listened to Mannerheim’s speech while inspecting his M28 rifle and Suomi submachine gun.

[It has been only 25 years since Finland won its independence! We have endured against that great threat to the very end!]

Juutilainen, Wind, and Katayainen, who had survived against overwhelming odds to finally drive the Soviet Air Force from the Finnish sky, also listened to Mannerheim's voice from inside their cockpits.

[It is a great feat achieved by every Finn, from children to the elderly, who did not spare their lives and fulfilled their roles. It is a victory obtained thanks to the help of the Allied Forces and France!]

The President of Finland, Risto Heikki Ryti, listened to the sound flowing from the radio in his office and stroked the chair where Kallio once sat.

[Proud Finns, now is the time for us to advance! Let us show those who once considered us slaves! That we will never, ever be slaves again! Remember the spirit of sisu—of effort beyond all limits! Remember Kallio! Long live Finland! Long live the Allied Powers!]

An advance, though small in number, began with more resolve than that of any other nation in the world.

And hearing it, the French commander, Charles de Gaulle, turned his back and ascended the podium where his subordinates were waiting.

His men were waiting with their new SOMUA (S-40) tanks lined up. The armored unit of France that de Gaulle had so desperately wanted.

The tank, whose outdated design could not be fixed in the rush against time, was ironically only completed after France was defeated by the Allied Powers, its navy disbanded, and its army reduced in scale, allowing France to pour all its capabilities into it.

De Gaulle slowly closed his eyes, then opened them.

“Gentlemen. France is wounded.

Our pride has been shattered, the glory of the Grand Army has been tarnished, and our proud fatherland bears the yoke of a defeated nation.”

Even as he spoke such bleak words, de Gaulle's eyes were blazing.

“But gentlemen, remember that your great fatherland has always risen most powerfully from the ashes. Napoleon rose from the chaos of the Revolution.

Even after Napoleon’s empire fell, France stood tall as the center of Europe, and after the defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the victory of the last Great War bloomed. This time will be no exception.”

Though they had been defeated once, France's pride had not disappeared.

“Know that back in our home country, even at this very moment, people are working, shedding blood and sweat to pay the reparations and to feed and supply you.

All of them are fulfilling the proud duty of a French citizen. Ponder why they willingly bear such a burden for you.”

They had seen the desperate resistance waged by a small nation on the periphery of Europe.

“It is because you are not simple soldiers.

You who are in this place today are the great heroes who will ensure the survival of the Grand Army, and the place of each and every one of you represents the history of the countless future Grand Armies that will follow in your footsteps to protect the fatherland!”

They knew that the victory achieved through their struggle would reduce the massive reparations, and that their fatherland would cheer for their victory.

Their pride would not allow them to ignore the resolve of a small nation or turn a blind eye to their fatherland's sacrifice and simply waste their time.

“Engrave in your hearts that every one of you has the responsibility to carry on the history of our great fatherland. Be grateful that you all have the opportunity to reclaim the glory of your fatherland.

From this day forward, France will be reborn as a stronger and prouder nation! Vive la France!”

“Vive la France!”

“Grand Army, advance!”

A combined force of one million from Finland and the French Army commenced their offensive from the north.

The advance of the Polish and Free Russian armies had shown a fiercer-than-expected offensive, but it was not as if the Soviets had not anticipated their attack at all.

But even with a million-strong Northern Front, the idea that the defeated nation of France and the near-dead state of Finland, who had only maintained a standoff until now, would join the Allied Forces in an offensive was a prediction even Georgy Zhukov found difficult to make.

“W-What is that sound?”

“What, so loud—Ugh, arghhh!”

Dozens of rockets suddenly flew from the sky, exploding and rampaging through the defenseless defense line of the Soviet Northern Front.

The rocket base in Viipuri, which had only been striking the munitions factories of Leningrad until now, announced the start of the offensive by slamming rockets into the defense line.

The Finnish Air Force and Werner Mölders's Luftwaffe descended upon the Soviet forces, who were in disarray from the surprise rocket bombardment.

The only fate left for the Soviet troops, who belatedly came to their senses on the ruined defense line, was to be trampled by de Gaulle's armored units.

“What do you mean? The defense line is collapsing!”

For Georgy Zhukov, it was a maddening situation.

The Western Front was already screaming for help, and now the Northern Front was collapsing too?

—The French tanks appear to be on par with the T-34s! The number of tanks, their vigor—they can't be considered a second-rate force!

The Soviet Northern Front Commander, Rodion Malinovsky, was by no means an incompetent officer.

But Charles de Gaulle’s French Army was not just a group of defeated soldiers.

Under the condition of leaving 100,000 men after their defeat, France had hand-picked the very best from the Grand Army, the super elite. It was a truly strong army that the French homeland, whose pride was the only thing it had left, had supplied with the best equipment, gritting its teeth.

The S-40, which had been nothing more than a SOMUA tank with a bigger gun slapped on when it first appeared, had undergone proper improvements and had even been imported with radios.

Thanks to that, the S-40s deployed this time were more than a match for the new model Panzer IV or the T-34.

Under such circumstances, falling into confusion from a sudden rocket bombardment and losing air superiority, it was only natural that they would lose.

Zhukov vented his pent-up anger at the battle map.

The Free Russians, the US Army, the Poles, the French, the Finns. If he let them be and they broke through, the line between Moscow and Leningrad would be cut.

No, before that, Moscow itself would be in danger!

In the end, Zhukov had to commit his 500,000 strategic reserves immediately.

The main German force at Kursk had not even moved yet, but his strategic reserves were already completely exhausted.

As another piece of tragic news flew in, Zhukov let out a hollow laugh.

---

To prepare for the decisive battle at Kursk, the Soviet Army, which had to cover the long and wide Dnieper River with 1.

5 million troops, was being relentlessly attacked.

It began with a salvo, followed by a fierce bombing from the Luftwaffe that covered the sky.

“They burn so well! Hahaha!”

Led by the cackling Wolfram von Richthofen, the German Air Force was mobilizing every kind of bomber—Stuka dive bombers, HeB-177 strategic bombers, Ju 88 bombers, and Hs 123s—to annihilate the Soviet forces across the river.

“Advance, comrades, for the freedom of Ukraine!”

“No more exploitation!”

And with the other side of the river completely paralyzed, the Free Ukrainian Army began a rapid river crossing.

“S-Stop them! They must not be allowed to cross the river, no matter what!”

The Soviet troops naturally tried to block them, but they had to fall, spewing blood from the sound of automatic gunfire from above.

It was the Fallschirmjäger (paratroopers), wearing improved parachutes and holding the first-ever standard-issue assault rifle, the STG42, as they landed.

“Attack the machine gun nests from behind and wipe them all out!”

“Yes, sir!”

Under the command of Otto Skorzeny, they cleared the opposite bank and secured a river crossing route for the Free Ukrainian Army.

The Soviet Army urgently tried to send reinforcements from nearby units to stop the crossing, but even that was not easy.

“Fire, fire! Don't let the enemy move!”

Under the command of Army Group South's Marshal Johannes Blaskowitz, the German artillery units unleashed a hail of shells, blocking the movement of the Soviet forces across the river.

The full-fledged support of the Luftwaffe to help the Free Ukrainian Army, the commitment of the Fallschirmjäger, and the trust built by Marshal Blaskowitz, a man of gentle character who, rare for the German Army, abhorred discrimination against other ethnicities.

All of this gave the Free Ukrainian Army the courage to jump into the perilous operation of a river crossing.

In the end, the Soviet Army could not prevent the Ukrainian flag from being hung on the east bank of the Dnieper.

---

April 1, 1942

East Belarus, Gomel – Allied Command Headquarters

“Things are going ve~ry smoothly, Minister! Hahaha! It’s so refreshing to see the Soviets running around in confusion! Reconnaissance aircraft have spotted some units from Kursk breaking away from the front to support other fronts!”

“…Excellent.”

Hearing Manstein's words, I, too, let the corners of my lips twist into a smirk.

I know this makes me look like I have a bad personality, but honestly, in moments like this, I can't help but revel in the thrill.

It wasn't that I had tricked Zhukov into thinking Kursk was the main thrust.

Kursk was definitely the main thrust.

It was just that everything was the main thrust.

The west, the north, the Dnieper, and Kursk.

The Soviet Union was already stretched to its limit, but the forces they had managed to scrape together and deploy at Kursk still outnumbered the main German force, at least in sheer numbers.

We could have just charged in, trusting in the elite quality of the German Army and the ability of our generals, but that would have meant accepting immense sacrifices.

So, I brought all the fruits of the diplomacy we had conducted to bear here.

Sikorski's trust, earned by treating Poland with relative leniency and supporting them so they wouldn't collapse, even though they had invaded us.

The full-fledged support from Finland, earned by being the first to extend a hand when the entire international community turned a blind eye, and by unsparingly providing equipment and even sending the French Army to save them.

De Gaulle's will to fight, earned by offering the defeated nation of France a chance and a reward, and by respecting their pride instead of trampling on it.

And the cooperation of the Free Ukrainians, earned by seeking their utmost understanding and explaining our support, and by appointing Blaskowitz to their front, even though we had to temporarily postpone the recapture of the east bank of the Dnieper so they wouldn't think we had abandoned them.

This was the fruition of our efforts, achieved after enduring and hushing up the countless backlashes from belligerent Junkers and their sarcastic remarks about "benevolent moral diplomacy."

The grand strategic inferiority that Germany had to endure in the original history had now become the Soviet Union's burden.

No matter how capable Georgy Zhukov was, even if he had predicted all our actions, it was impossible for him to stop all of this.

I turned to Manstein and smiled.

Ah, why am I starting to adopt my father's rotten smile?

“Well, this battle is already won. Now that I've set the stage for you this grandly, it's time you showed me your ability, Mr.

Chief of the General Staff.”