Germany: The Thousand Year Empire

Meanwhile, two days later, in Canada.

Churchill arrived in Ottawa by plane and met with Canadian Prime Minister Mackenzie King.

Canada's territory was vastly larger than the British Isles, yet Churchill showed no joy upon arriving. Only exhaustion could be seen in the eyes of those who had followed him across the Atlantic.

As soon as the meeting ended, Churchill hurried to the Military Command Center without even pausing to rest.

There, he found Montgomery, who had already begun reorganizing and rearming the remaining British forces.

"How many tank production lines do we currently have?"

Churchill's voice was low and urgent.

"Have construction begun on the aircraft factories and shipyards?"

Montgomery shook his head.

He understood Churchill's urgency, but Canada was not Britain. Nearly everything had to begin from the ground up, including conscription, industrial conversion, weapons production, and military training.

"Mr. Prime Minister, we expect the first tank production line to begin operating in three weeks."

"Although we managed to preserve part of the Air Force, we are suffering from a severe shortage of spare parts and ground crews."

"Both training and production must be restarted."

Realizing that he had been too impatient, Churchill nodded.

He poured himself a glass of whiskey and lowered his voice.

"What is the situation in North Africa?"

"The German Army took advantage of the collapse in morale caused by Britain's surrender and broke through the western defensive line of the French forces in Algeria."

Montgomery's expression was grave.

"De Gaulle has lost approximately one division and is currently retreating eastward."

"The situation is not optimistic. His government has contacted Egypt three times, requesting that preparations begin for a defensive war there."

The continuous stream of bad news darkened Churchill's expression.

"What about Libya?"

"Did they not gain control of it before Italy surrendered?"

"The local population possesses a strong will to resist," Montgomery replied. "However, Italy did not govern the colony effectively, and many defensive facilities were never completed."

"If Algeria falls, Libya cannot become a true fortress."

"It can only serve as the next battlefield, delaying the German advance through North Africa."

"De Gaulle has also suggested that we dispatch troops from Egypt."

"He hopes we can wear down part of Germany's North African forces in Libya and reduce the pressure on Egypt before the expected offensive begins."

Only then did Churchill realize that the situation was far worse than he had imagined.

The pressure on Egypt was immense.

Although the Mediterranean Fleet remained available for naval defense, the situation on land was grim. De Gaulle could lose Algeria, one of the most important strategic defensive regions in North Africa, at any moment.

"General Montgomery, you must go to Egypt immediately and organize the defenses."

Churchill looked directly at him.

"How many troops do we still have there?"

Montgomery picked up a telegram that had arrived two days earlier.

"Fewer than one hundred thousand men."

"Some are locally organized auxiliary troops with limited combat effectiveness."

"However, reinforcements from India and Australia are already traveling by sea."

"If they arrive safely, we will have approximately two hundred thousand combat troops."

He paused before continuing.

"Still, Mr. Prime Minister, you should not be overly pessimistic."

"Germany and the European Union are currently shifting their attention toward Soviet Russia."

"The North African campaign is unlikely to become their primary military focus."

"There remains a strong possibility that Egypt can be held."

Churchill took a deep breath, lit a cigarette, and murmured, "I hope so."

"I simply do not know whether Soviet Russia will continue with its offensive against Finland now that the British Isles have fallen."

Moscow.

At General Staff Headquarters, discussions over whether to continue preparing for war against Finland proceeded in an orderly fashion.

The debate had divided the officers into two broad factions.

The first was the moderate faction led by Boris.

They believed the best opportunity had already been lost, and that there was no longer any reason to pursue aggressive military action. Finland should be given a way to de-escalate the situation and return the conflict from the battlefield to the negotiating table.

The opposing faction supported an immediate offensive and was nominally led by Officer Kirill Meretskov.

In truth, Kirill had largely been dragged into that position.

He personally held little confidence in an attack on Finland.

Those truly promoting the offensive were Stalin's trusted subordinates, men determined to preserve his intimidating authority within the military.

"Comrade Boris, your repeated emphasis on the German and European threats raises a question."

A young officer struck the table as he spoke.

"Is this cowardice, or are you attempting to compromise with the Western powers?"

He used the accusation as an opportunity to flatter Stalin and attack Boris.

But Boris did not accept the premise.

Instead, he immediately redirected the discussion toward practical military concerns.

"I simply believe the present situation is unfavorable."

"If we attack Finland now, we will inevitably become trapped in a prolonged conflict."

"The war cannot possibly end within one month or a few weeks, as you claim."

"That is a military fact."

"No amount of political interference or intelligence subversion can change it."

Boris's gaze moved across the table.

"Do not forget that all of Europe is currently assisting Finland."

The young officer sneered.

"Since you admit that all of Europe is assisting Finland, does that not mean the longer we wait, the more completely we lose this hard won opportunity?"

"We know very well that Europe is supplying Finland with weapons and materials."

"Should we wait until they have armed a force we can no longer defeat?"

"Should we wait until they complete their encirclement and blockade of Soviet Russia and genuinely threaten the security of our three major cities before launching the offensive?"

He leaned forward.

"Comrade Boris, forgive my frankness, but your heart has been conquered by fear."

"You can no longer be considered a qualified general."

Boris shook his head.

Seeing that the other man continued to argue entirely from a political perspective, he immediately counterattacked.

"If a temporary concession is called fear, and if considering risks disqualifies someone from being a competent general, then was Comrade Lenin also an unqualified leader?"

The room immediately quieted.

"After all, he once compromised with the Germans."

"He also compromised with the Finns."

"In your eyes, was he also derelict in his duty?"

The young officer began to stammer.

Seizing the initiative, Boris continued.

"I am not trying to turn this into a political accusation, nor am I blaming anyone."

"I simply believe that current conditions are unsuitable for the conquest of Finland."

"If, as you claim, we must launch a rapid offensive, then the attack should begin this month."

"After all, the longer we delay, the more weapons and supplies Europe will deliver to Finland, and the more difficult the situation will become."

He placed one hand on the documents before him.

"Yet we have not even completed our logistical preparations."

"The excessive size of the mobilized forces has already caused confusion among middle-ranking officers."

"Commands are overlapping."

"Responsibilities are unclear."

"Supply arrangements remain incomplete."

"These are not imaginary problems. They are already happening."

The balance of the discussion was beginning to shift toward Boris.

Then the door opened.

Stalin entered the room.

His sharp gaze lingered on the face of every officer as they rose and saluted.

"Comrade Boris is absolutely correct."

The first half of the sentence made Boris believe that his opinion had finally been accepted.

The words that followed immediately shattered that hope.

"We should indeed launch the offensive this month."

Stalin walked toward the head of the table.

"We must break through Finland's defensive lines as quickly as possible and force the Finns back to the negotiating table before European aid arrives."

"Only then can we secure everything we want."

....

[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]

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