Chapter 41: Butterfly Effect (1)

In the current era, If you ask someone, who commands Germany, 9 out of 10 people would answer that it’s the Nazis and their bonkers ideology.However, is the Nazy also in control of the Wehrmacht1?

Unfortunately for the Nazis, the master of the Wehrmacht were the traditional aristocrats who descended from the Imperial Era, jealousy safeguarding their privileges.

These crazy bastards with ‘Von’ in their names, had built their own kingdom within the Reich.

This was well demonstrated when the Weimar Republic2 reprimanded the military for not responding to the suppression of a coup attempt.

"Whose side is the Wehrmacht on in this matter?"

"The Wehrmacht is on my side and no one else's."

This was the answer given by General Hans von Seeckt3, the Chief of the German Reichswehr4.

Not on the side of the nation, but on 'my' side alone.

Literally, the Reichswehr was an independent kingdom within the Empire, not belonging to the state but to themselves.

Hitler was also aware of this situation and its dangers.

In order to shake the Junkers' strong dominance of the officer corps, the Führer would personally support and push forward any capable officers from common backgrounds who caught his eye and earned his favor.

Officers like Rommel5 were typical examples of this policy.

Also, he tried to create cracks in the Junkers' dominance by establishing the Wehrmacht High Command, OKW6, above the traditional German Army High Command, OKH7, and played them off each other.

Despite these efforts, as of 1940, the initiative of the German Wehrmacht was still in the hands of the Junkers and their rigid ways.

Even when the German military openly engaged in a slowdown over the invasion operation on the Western Front against France, Hitler was helpless to speed them up.

In this situation, a man appeared from the shadows.

"Your Excellency, the Führer! I would like to tell you about Unternehmen Sichelschnitt8 which will end this war in one bold stroke."

That man was Erich von Manstein9.

He was someone who had been advocating for an operation close to a reckless gamble through the Ardennes10 and had been transferred to a minor post after being marked by the mainstream faction of the Army for his trouble.

Manstein, who had the opportunity to approach the Führer using Colonel Schmundt11, Hitler's chief adjutant, completely captivated the head of state with his unique eloquence and daring vision.

"Sounds plausible and brilliant!"

Hitler slapped his knee in excitement.

Nevertheless, it was such a reckless operation that Hitler hesitated to change the plan at first, but due to the accidental leak of the existing operational plan to the Allies, he had no choice but to change it and roll the dice.

With this, the German military completely escaped from the shadow of Schlieffen12, who had been the Chief of the General Staff during the Imperial era and authored the failed Schlieffen Plan of World War 113.

The existing plan, which was nothing more than a revised version of the Schlieffen Plan and doomed to fail, was discarded, and Operation Sickle, which passed through the Ardennes and pushed the Allies to the Atlantic in a lightning strike, was adopted as the operational plan going forward. Sёarch* The Nôvel(F)ire.nёt website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

While the German military completely overhauled the plan in secrecy, the Allies adopted the Dyle Plan14 to defend up to the Dyle River15 in central northern Belgium based on the leaked German plan they thought was genuine.

And they were confident of victory and complacent.

"Even if the Krauts16 come at us head-on, they'll only look more like cripples after we're done with them."

The German attack routes were obvious to the Allies, and there were enough troops to deploy for defense along the border.

On top of that, the British Expeditionary Force was steadily coming over the Channel, so it felt like the bus of 'victory' that Hitler could have taken had already departed the station.

"Hitler missed the bus this time. If he wanted to win, he should have pushed forward last year when we were weaker."

Of course, that was also nonsense and wishful thinking, but the Allies thought so in their arrogance.

Amid the tense atmosphere and impending clash of arms, the German military made the first move and marched to war.

It started in Norway with a surprise.

"Huh? Not in Western Europe as expected?"

On April 9, 1940, the German military simultaneously invaded Norway and Denmark17 in a daring move.

With a three-dimensional invasion through sea, air, and land, Denmark fell to its knees in just 6 hours of warfare.

"I'll give you both the dairy cows and the little mermaid statue18. Just spare us, no wait, you came to help us instead?"

Surprisingly, Germany attacked this country with the logic of 'protecting' Denmark from the Allies.

Of course, it was a lie that even a dog wouldn't believe without laughing, but they were just grateful that they even told such a lie to save face.

While Denmark immediately waved the white flag of surrender, Norway held out a bit longer.

It was for no other reason than that Britain's support was very prompt and forceful.

It was as if they had prepared to send an invasion force to Norway 'in advance' for some reason.

"I feel a little weight in my conscience, but in the end, we helped Norway, so isn't it a good deed overall?"

Due to Britain's swift intervention in Norway, the German forces invading had to fight hard for every inch of ground.

Of course, Britain and France also struggled more than expected against the tenacious Germans.

"No, why are the Krauts fighting so well in this frozen tundra?"

Britain won the naval battles off Norway's coast, and Germany won the land battles in its rugged interior.

As both sides fiercely traded victories and defeats in the far north, war clouds also rose in Western Europe to the south.

On the eve of the fateful May 10, 1940, the Allies judged that it was unlikely for the German military to launch an offensive in the forested Ardennes Plateau of Belgium19.

There were intelligence reports that Sedan in France20 would be the main attack point, but it was not easy to imagine that they would push through the forest and launch an offensive while exposing both flanks to Allied counterattack.

Amid the Allies' misjudgment and complacency, the German offensive began with a roar.

"Gentlemen, it's time to advance and seize destiny."

The German forces launched attacks across a wide front, from the Netherlands in the north to the Franco-German border in the south in a massive onslaught.

In this chaotic situation, the Allies judged that the main German attack direction was not the Ardennes Plateau after all, but northern Belgium as originally thought.

"The Krauts are, even if they die trying, Schlieffen fanatics. They can't escape the Schlieffen Plan mentality."

Gamelin21, the Allied Supreme Commander, pointed to the north and the plains of Belgium.

Then there was no need for the Allied strategic reserves to remain in the south or guarding the Ardennes.

"Move them north to meet the German thrust head-on."

This became a decisive misjudgment that led to the defeat of Belgium and France's downfall.

"No, the main attack is coming through Sedan as feared! Where the hell are you going with our reserves?"

With the reserves moving north away from Sedan, there were no units left to block the breakthrough of the German main force, advancing through the Ardennes and the Meuse valley.

Clearly, the Allies were in an advantageous position when they started the game against Germany.

With superior forces compared to Germany, powerful tanks, favorable defensive lines and terrain, and a well-prepared operational plan to stop any invasion, there was not a single corner lacking in the Allied defenses.

However, after just 72 hours of German assault, the situation was ruined beyond repair.

Belatedly, the Allies also grasped the situation they were now in.

"We're doomed this time."

First, the Allies hurriedly mobilized all available aircraft to strike the bridges occupied by the German forces over the Meuse River22, trying to block the enemy's advance into the heart of France.

"Sigh, anti-aircraft guns will stop them."

The German military laid down dense anti-aircraft gun positions and easily repelled the Allied bombers with murderous flak.

They tried to counterattack with ground forces, but that didn't work either as planned.

"Ah, don't we have to receive the orders to attack before we can move?"

It wasn't the 21st century, but in an era with radios still in their infancy, messengers had to go and directly deliver and receive orders for operations to be carried out at all.

"By any chance, are you French generals in the middle of World War I mentality?"

In terms of a turn-based RPG game, it was like the German army was moving 4 spaces in a single turn while the French army was fighting with their hands and feet tied to move only 1 space on their own per turn.

Even when orders were given, they couldn't move in unison like the Germans.

Some French units charged upon receiving orders, while the rest just watched in confusion.

The continued blunders and failures depleted the French army's capabilities and morale.

Immediately after the most decisive defense of the 55th Infantry Division ended in failure at Sedan, the French army prepared for another large-scale counterattack to plug the gap.

But.

"Why are you so slow to react? What if you break the appointment time by half a day or more?"

The French army failed to start the attack on time yet again.

"I saw everything coming from a mile away."

The German forces solidified their defensive posture and easily blocked the counterattack when it finally materialized.

While the French counterattack was dilly-dallying and sputtering, the German forces began tearing the French army to shreds and dashing toward the Atlantic with gleeful abandon.

It was the completion of the Sickle Cut operation and the doom of France.

Up to this point, there was no significant difference from the original history as it played out.

If fate had not changed, the German forces should have received orders to halt once they reached the Atlantic coast and the Channel ports.

However, a variable emerged here to alter the course of events.

The one who caused the variable was Adolf Hitler himself.

Hitler learned a lesson from Lee Sung Joon's action of abandoning the occupation of Nanjing prematurely.

Even if negotiating with the British after defeating France, you should do it after making the enemy surrender for sure and completely.

The generals of OKH expressed concern over Hitler's bold advance order to drive on.

"If we continue to advance in a situation where our flanks are excessively exposed like this, we will allow the enemy to counterattack us from the sides. If that happens, all the achievements we have made so far may be in vain and wasted."

"Your Excellency, the Führer please reconsider. Overambition is forbidden at this critical juncture. Now is the time to preserve the strength of the armored units that led the victory thus far."

Although the generals strongly argued for a halt to the advance and consolidation, Hitler didn't even pretend to listen to their pleas.

Hitler had not the slightest intention of achieving an incomplete victory like Lee Sung Joon had in China.

"I have already given the order and it stands. There can be no halt for the Kleist Panzer Group23. Advance until the enemies are all trapped in the encirclement and annihilated."

Hitler decisively ordered to cut off the Allies' lifeline to the sea.

On May 19, 1940, Maxime Weygand24 took over as the Allied Supreme Commander in place of the incompetent Gamelin, but the situation was already over and lost.

The Netherlands had collapsed under the German onslaught, and the 1 million Allied troops trapped between northern Belgium and France were on the verge of being caught in the German encirclement that was narrowing the distance every moment like a noose.

"What the hell happened in just 9 days to bring us to this point?!"

Weygand couldn't hide his bewilderment and shock.

So, he tried to counterattack in a hurry but to no avail against the rampant Germans.

On May 24, 1940, the port of Dunkirk, the last hope of the Allied forces isolated in northern France, fell to Hitler's advancing armies.

The Allies were at a loss for words in this worst imaginable situation.

Nearly 1 million troops, including Belgian, French, and British forces, were trapped in the German encirclement, waiting for the day to become prisoners of war or worse.

"We have lost this war and there is no way out."

The French completely lost their will to fight on the Western Front as despair set in.

The British were equally flustered and facing catastrophe.

Winston Churchill25, who had just taken office as Prime Minister on May 10, cried out loudly in his office in anguish.

"You Gallic thieves26, give me back my Expeditionary Force before it's too late!"

Contrary to Sung Joon's expectations, the fate of the Allies was rushing to the brink of annihilation at Hitler's hands.

1. German's armed forces2. The Weimar Republic, officially known as the German Reich, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also referred to, and unofficially proclaimed itself, as the German Republic.3. Johannes "Hans" Friedrich Leopold von Seeckt was a German military officer who served as Chief of Staff to August von Mackensen and was a central figure in planning the victories Mackensen achieved for Germany in the east during the First World War.4. Reichswehr was the official name of the German armed forces during the Weimar Republic and the first years of the Third Reich. After Germany was defeated in World War I, the Imperial German Army was dissolved in order to be reshaped into a peacetime army. From it a provisional Reichswehr was formed in March 1919.5. Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel was a German Generalfeldmarschall during World War II. Popularly known as the Desert Fox, he served in the Wehrmacht of Nazi Germany, as well as in the Reichswehr of the Weimar Republic, and the army of Imperial Germany.6. The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht was the supreme military command and control office of Nazi Germany during World War II. Created in 1938, the OKW replaced the Reich Ministry of War and had oversight over the individual high commands of the country's armed forces: the army, navy, and air force.7. The Oberkommando des Heeres was the high command of the Army of Nazi Germany. It was founded in 1935 as part of Adolf Hitler's rearmament of Germany. OKH was de facto the most important unit within the German war planning until the defeat at Moscow in December 1941.8. The Manstein plan or Case Yellow (German: Fall Gelb; also known after the war as Unternehmen Sichelschnitt a transliteration of the English Operation Sickle Cut), was the war plan of the German armed forces (Wehrmacht) for the Battle of France in 1940.9. Fritz Erich Georg Eduard von Manstein was a German Generalfeldmarschall in the Heer of Nazi Germany during World War II. He was subsequently convicted of war crimes and sentenced to 18 years imprisonment.10. Ardennes is a department in the Grand Est region of northeastern France named after the broader Ardennes. Its prefecture is the town Charleville-Mézières. The department has 270,582 inhabitants. The inhabitants of the department are known as Ardennais or Ardennaises.11. Rudolf Schmundt (13 August 1896 – 1 October 1944) was a German officer and adjutant to Adolf Hitler. Between 1942 and 1944, he was chief of the German Army Personnel Office. Schmundt was injured during the 20 July 1944 assassination attempt on Hitler and died a few months later from his wounds.12. Alfred Graf von Schlieffen was a German field marshal and strategist who served as chief of the Imperial German General Staff from 1891 to 1906.13. The Schlieffen Plan is a name given after the First World War to German war plans, due to the influence of Field Marshal Alfred von Schlieffen and his thinking on an invasion of France and Belgium, which began on 4 August 1914. Schlieffen was Chief of the General Staff of the German Army from 1891 to 1906.14. The Dyle plan or Plan D was the plan of the commander-in-chief of the French Army, Général d'armée Maurice Gamelin, to defeat a German attempt to invade France through Belgium.15. The Dyle is a river in central Belgium, left tributary of the Rupel. It is 86 kilometres long. It flows through the Belgian provinces of Walloon Brabant, Flemish Brabant and Antwerp. Its source is in Houtain-le-Val, near Nivelles in Walloon Brabant.16. Kraut is a German word recorded in English from 1918 onwards as an ethnic slur for a German, particularly a German soldier during World War I and World War II. Its earlier meaning in English was as a synonym for sauerkraut, a traditional Central and Eastern European food.17. Under the code name 'Operation Weserübung', Nazi Germany attacked Denmark and Norway on 9 April 1940. On that same day, Denmark surrendered and was occupied. The country was a useful base of operations for the fight against Norway. The Norwegians resisted for two months but surrendered on 9 June 1940.18. The Little Mermaid (Danish: Den lille Havfrue) is a bronze statue by Edvard Eriksen, depicting a mermaid becoming human. The sculpture is displayed on a rock by the waterside at the Langelinie promenade in Copenhagen, Denmark.[a] It is 1.25 metres (4.1 ft) tall[2] and weighs 175 kilograms (385 lb).[3]

Based on the 1837 fairy tale of the same name by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, the small and unimposing statue is a Copenhagen icon and has been a major tourist attraction since its unveiling in 1913. In recent decades it has become a popular target for defacement by vandals and political activists.19. also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, extending into Germany and France.20. Sedan is a commune in the Ardennes department and Grand Est region of north-eastern France. It is also the chef-lieu of the arrondissement of the same name. Sedan is notable as the site of two major battles between the armed forces of France and Germany, both of which were won by Germany.21. Maurice Gustave Gamelin was a French general. He is remembered for his disastrous command (until 17 May 1940) of the French military during the Battle of France in World War II and his steadfast defence of republican values.22. The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of 925 km.23. Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist Recalled to active duty at the beginning of World War II, Kleist commanded a motorised corps in the Invasion of Poland. He then became the commander of Panzer Group Kleist (later 1st Panzer Army), the first operational formation of several Panzer corps in the Wehrmacht during the Battle of France, the Battle of Belgium, the Invasion of Yugoslavia and Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union.24. Maxime Weygand was a French military commander in World War I and World War II, as well as a high ranking member of the Vichy regime. Born in Belgium, Weygand was raised in France and educated at the Saint-Cyr military academy in Paris.25. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who was twice prime minister of the United Kingdom, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and 1951 to 1955.26. (referencing the French)