Battle of the Third Reich

Throughout the afternoon, the fleet was busy mobilizing the berth of the ship, gathering and arranging the soldiers to go ashore. The captains were ordered to pour the keyholes of the ammunition depot with tin and remove the bolts of the deck artillery.

All high-ranking officers were gathered at the headquarters for a meeting, and the generals persuaded them to perform their duties with envy, hoping that these subordinates would understand the current situation and be able to distinguish right from wrong and stand on the side of justice.

Mussolini was destined to be finished. In order to protect the royal navy, he had to stand beside the victors. The generals believed that the situation would soon be clear and everything would return to normal track. The Kingdom of Italy will negotiate a truce with Germany, and Marshal Badoglio will give a plan to satisfy the Germans, and then Italy will also have a truce with Britain and France, so that the Kingdom will completely get rid of this foolish war. .

Italy may be suppressed by foreign countries for a period of time, but this is only a temporary difficulty. When the giant bear in the East exposed its fangs, the Germans will certainly remember the importance of Italy, and then the kingdom will rise again. And become a hero to save European countries.

This is an opportunity and a challenge. Italy hopes that every citizen can face the difficulties bravely and regard humiliation as the price that must be paid for the rise of a country, because Germany is the best example. After so many years of hardship , But finally stood on top of Europe.

If you want to blame anyone, you can only blame the Italians for choosing an arrogant leader, attracting a group of rivals to the kingdom.

How many people really listened to the words of the generals and bluntly said that they could not be sure of themselves, anyway, these captains could only stay on the shore temporarily, waiting for further instructions from the Roman Command.

As a result, until the evening, there was no response from the Roman side, which made the generals of the navy coups began to be uneasy.

As a matter of fact, the coup in Rome should be over, and the overall situation of Badoglio has been determined, but Rome has disappeared from the earth. No matter how many inquiries are sent, there is no news.

This is really abnormal, and according to the original agreement, after the success of the cabinet formation, Badoglio should announce the news of Mussolini's resignation to the whole country through the radio station in Rome. But no matter how it is debugged, only the noise is received on the frequency of the Radio Roma.

The commander-in-chief of the Navy did not want to wait like this. He dispatched a contact group and flew to Rome on a navy transport plane. Their task was to contact the Marines in Rome to understand the current situation in Rome.

Cavriani was a little irritated. He didn't know what was wrong, what Badoglio was doing, and why there was no response.

But at this time, the former chief of the navy chief of staff still did not think that the coup would be defeated. Before that, he and Badogrio conducted several deductions, and each step was considered in great detail. Moreover, Mussolini Has been transferred from Rome, and the prime minister has no ability to resist.

Cavriani believes that the coup must have succeeded. The current situation may be that something unexpected happened in the operation. For example, Mussolini has noticed some clues, has not entered the preset traps, and has even fled from the city of Rome.

If this is the case, Badogrio should try his best to hunt down the leader, so it is too late to publish the news of the government reshuffle. It should be the case. The former chief of staff of the Navy thought his inference was logical.

In this way, until midnight, the liaison personnel sent to Rome returned an amazing news. The German African Army landed in Anzio and now has completely occupied the whole city of Rome. It is said that Badogrio and members of the headquarters were arrested on the way to escape. His Majesty the King temporarily disappeared, and it is the "former Prime Minister" Mussolini who is now standing to control the situation in Italy.

This is really one of the worst jokes God has given them. The rebels have completely lost their squares. The generals refuse to believe the authenticity of the information. They think that the contact person may have fallen into the hands of Mussolini’s party. This fake news was sent out.

At three o'clock in the morning, a radio message sent by the subordinates of the Roman Command sent a secret message, which finally completely shattered the coup dreams.

Mussolini declared the state of emergency in the name of the Prime Minister in the telegraph. All naval ships must stay in the port to stand by. Before his next order arrives, it is strictly forbidden to dispatch any warship. In the end, Mussolini also told Admiral Iyakino in the message that the coup in Rome had failed and all the masterminds of the rebel gang had been arrested. These treason thieves would be tried by the people, hoping that the navy could recognize the facts and eventually Get lost.

Perhaps the stimulus was too strong. Cavliani was out of control on the spot. The admiral pulled out his pistol and smashed the radio station. He also wanted to shoot at the navy commander who blocked him. The guards were uniformed and tied their hands and feet into the ward of the headquarters hospital.

The generals of the Italian navy were in a rather embarrassing situation. They had just vowed to tell their officers and men that Rome had changed their boss, but in the end these words were not spoken for a long time, and the reality hit them in the face. .

At this time, they did not know how to explain their previous actions. The Navy’s previous resistance orders could be regarded as rebellion, not to mention what happened at noon, and the crime was implemented. They proved their actions. Involved in the Roman conspiracy, Mussolini had no reason to let these people go.

The generals panicked into a quarrel, and some of the hardliners claimed to resist in the end, using force to force Mussolini to pardon all crimes, while at the same time others have begun to consider how to betray their associates. Take action to gain the leader’s trust.

The latter are all officers who are not deeply involved in the matter, and they are usually not treated and trusted by the commanders. They think that they should be regarded as a mass of people who are under threat. These people have no interest in staying with the masterminds, so They strongly opposed the proposal of the hardliners to use force.

They reminded the militants that they should not forget the battleship fleet of the coalition forces of the three countries outside Hong Kong. The other party rejected the Italian fleet’s departure request three times and turned a blind eye to the goodwill released by the fleet. Even if the Germans are willing to open the net, the French will never give the Italian navy a chance, and the British cruiser and destroyer fleet is a huge threat.

At the same time, they also reminded the hardliners, don't forget that the coalition also has a very powerful air force. Although no German bomber has appeared above the port so far, intelligence shows that both Sicily and Tirana of Albania have entered the German bomber wing. If Germany is willing, they can launch a devastating attack on this military port from the east and the west, and with the current air defense firepower on the ports and warships, they can't cope with air raids above the scale.

In the middle of the night, the quarrel of the generals in the headquarters of the port district rang throughout the building. When it was almost dawn, there were several gunshots suddenly and intermittently in the headquarters. Then, in the hazy morning mist, someone saw the headquarters guard carrying some objects wrapped in curtains and sent them to the warehouse in the backyard. Witnesses swear that it looks like the body is wrapped in it, and it seems to see blood.

At eight o'clock the next morning, Admiral Iyakino, commander-in-chief of the Navy, gave orders and gathered all the officers and men in the square of the base. Then the admiral led all the generals to the scene and published an article to the sailors. Touching speech.

He first apologized to all officers and soldiers for the order he issued yesterday afternoon, and claimed that this was an order issued only by military coercion. As the commander-in-chief of the Navy, he was also one of the victims of the conspiracy.

Iyakino declared that the former navy chief of staff Cavallian led the conspiracy and colluded with the Roman traitors to try to hijack the kingdom navy and launch an armed coup aimed at overthrowing Prime Minister Mussolini.

Fortunately, some generals of the base were not bought by the conspirators. They resolutely launched a resistance in the early morning, completely smashing the conspiracy of the treason thieves, and at the same time rescued the captured command staff.

Now the conspiracy of these traitors has completely failed, some people were captured on the spot, and the rest have been frightened. Among them are several core members of the treasonous gang, such as Admiral Arturo Cardi, Lieutenant General Ricardo Palatini and Lieutenant General Carlo Catania, who have fled with the remaining partisans As soon as the base was reached, the headquarters had ordered the Marine Corps to dispatch immediately to hunt down these traitors.

The commander's speech was just halfway through, and the scene was already in an uproar. The sailors were excited. They chanted the slogan of the leader and demanded the arrest of the traitor lurking among them.

Some officers who tried to suppress the sailors yesterday were pulled out by the crowd on the spot. They were regarded as the traitors of the traitors, and they were brutally beaten by their subordinates. The orderly military police spent a lot of effort to put a few poor officers. The crowd was lifted, and two of the majors stopped breathing because they were injured.

This was a terrible riot, but the generals wanted to see it. When the junior officers were under siege, they easily got rid of the suspicion.

The attitude of the generals with their arms folded made the soldiers think that the officers were on their side. They felt that their actions were acquiesced, so they became even more unscrupulous.

The aristocracy within the Italian navy was comparable to that of the British navy. The treatment between officers and soldiers was far from the same.

Because of the special nature of the service, the navy officer has absolute authority. The officer, like a parent, can even punish soldiers for no reason. The abuse of soldiers in the Italian navy is more serious than that of the army, but based on the superior treatment of the navy and the fear of brutal military law, the Italian sailors can only tolerate bullying by superior officers silently.

Suddenly there was a chance to report a private enmity. How could the sailors give up in vain? Many officers who usually deal with sailors harshly were finally retaliated.

In the Italian navy, officers and sailors have a serious gap, usually relying on some non-commissioned officers to maintain the relationship between the two sides, at this time those officers who like to please officers are also under siege by the sailors, these weekdays are brutal like non-commissioned officers At this time, they were so frightened that they were soft and muddy, only knowing to hold their heads and let the surrounding soldiers punch and kick.

Feeling that the goal had basically been reached, the commander-in-chief of the navy finally ordered the cessation of the atrocities to continue. Several of these poor guys can survive the night.

At this time, the dissatisfaction of the soldiers was vented, justice was extended, the traitors got their due end, and the generals got rid of the suspicion. It was a happy ending.

However, the sailors were still not allowed to return to the ship. Admiral Iyakino stated that this was Mussolini’s order, and no ship could leave the port without the permission of the Prime Minister.

The sailors at this time expressed firm obedience to this same command. In fact, they were more willing to live in spacious dormitories than those shaking hammocks.

The Admiral subsequently announced that all the sailors would be on holiday for a day, and they could enter the city of Taranto to play, only to return to camp before midnight. The generals need to spare a day to find a way to clean up the current bad situation.

The commander-in-chief of the navy sent a telegram to Mussolini, first congratulating the prime minister on thwarting the coup plot and declaring that the kingdom navy remains a solid backing for the other side. Those traitors who were skeptical about the Prime Minister have now been cleared. The admiral swears to Mussolini that the Italian navy officers and soldiers are still full of loyalty to the leaders and the kingdom. He also described the scene in the square in detail, which is the best proof.

Mussolini did not reply quickly, and there was no response for a whole day, which made the commander-in-chief nervous. This was somewhat unreasonable, unlike the usual reaction of this leader. It stands to reason that with the personality of this prime minister, whether or not he believes his own words, he will react immediately.

Finally, the next day, on the morning of November 1, Mussolini finally sent a reply. He said that he would send a processing team to thoroughly investigate the Navy's problems. At the same time he comforted the commander-in-chief of the navy. He still trusted the admiral and never doubted the loyalty of the other party. Believe that the navy’s previous disobedience was all the responsibility of Cavliani. He had long dismissed the post of chief of staff. The prime minister ordered the admiral to immediately arrest the offender and **** the handling team back to Rome. He wanted Personally sent the traitor to the military court.

At the same time, he praised that the commander-in-chief of the Navy was very decisive, but it was not complete enough. All the sailors should be evacuated from the ship, and no one was allowed on board. It is necessary to prevent the traitors who are still lurking in the sailors, or those who sympathize with the traitors, to prevent these people from taking risks in the face of desperation and destroying the warship. Mussolini specially reminded that these warships are Italian treasures and cannot be hurt at all. No one can board the warship until the investigation team has completed the screening of personnel.

At noon on November 2nd, the anticipating admiral ushered in the investigation team at the train station. The team arrived at Taranto at the same time, and there was also an Italian Army Infantry Regiment. What surprised Iyakino even more was that he saw Mussolini at a glance among the people who got off the bus.

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