Almost at the same time as the turret of the "Rodney" exploded, next to the battleship "Rodney", the heavy cruiser "Devonshire", which had just successfully escorted the Norwegian royal family back to Britain a few days ago, was also penetrated by the battleship Bismarck. Hit by an armor-piercing shell, the armor-piercing shell of the 380MM main gun was obviously not something that the weak hull of the heavy cruiser "Devonshire" could withstand. In an instant, amid a thick cloud of black smoke and yellow flames, " The Devonshire sank quickly, and all the sailors on board were wiped out.
The German Navy's preemptive strike kicked off this naval battle. The British, who were hit first, immediately retaliated in kind. The powerful British Royal Navy Home Fleet immediately used its overwhelming numbers to launch a fierce counterattack. The Queen Elizabeth and the Malay The main guns on the six battleships Asia, Revenge, Sovereign, Resolve and Ramillies roared loudly. Each heavy cruiser was also using its own strength to contribute its own strength to this naval battle. Only The battleship Rodney, which was still smoking, did not join the attack for the time being.
Large-caliber armor-piercing bullets continued to fly between the two sides, setting off a metal storm. Compared with the German Navy's strategy of concentrated firepower attack, the British Royal Navy, which had lost the initiative, initially attacked in a messy manner. Although the Bismarck, Tirpitz, Scharnhorst, and Gneisenau all withstood heavy losses, Small blow. However, because the target of the British attack was unclear and the firepower was greatly dispersed, it did not suffer a serious blow.
This situation is temporary. The reason for this situation is just some instinctive reactions of the British Royal Navy after the battleship Rodney was attacked. However, as the naval battle progresses, the test of the German Navy has just begun. . Therefore, we must achieve the greatest possible results now in order to remain invincible in the following test. Vice Admiral Lütjens certainly understood this truth, so he immediately ordered, "Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, continue to attack the battleship Rodney, inform General Ernst Lindemann to have Bismarck and Tirpitz attack together, the flagship of the British Royal Navy - Queen Elisabeth!"
Although the 283MM main guns on the Scharnhorst and the Gneisenau are slightly less powerful than the battleships, the German artillery technology is much better than the British, so the power comparison is not very different. Moreover, the German Navy The range technology greatly exceeds that of the British Navy. However, they also have their own advantages, that is, their rate of fire far exceeds that of British battleships. And by taking advantage of the huge advantage in speed, facing a large group of British battleships with a speed of only 22 to 23 knots and whose age can be the father of German warships, they can ensure their own safety in a short period of time.
The Bismarck and Tirpitz battleships used their powerful performance to ignore the attacks of other British battleships and strive to first eliminate Sir House's Queen Elizabeth battleship, leaving the British fleet without command. Facing the battleship Rodney, which suddenly lost one-third of its firepower, Scharnhorst and Gneisenau immediately launched a fierce pursuit. Although the battleship Rodney, which had been seriously injured, was not Scharn The battlecruisers Horst and Gneisenau were rivals, but they still resisted tenaciously. The British heavy cruisers around the battleship Rodney also kept heading towards Scharnhorst and Gneisen. The battlecruiser Nau opened fire.
However, the Scharnhorst-class battlecruisers, which are not inferior to these old battleships, are obviously not within the reach of these heavy cruisers. Although the heavy cruisers of the British Navy are brave, they immediately paid the price for their actions. A few minutes later, the heavy cruiser "Kent" was also hit by a shell from the battlecruiser Gneisenau. With a deafening explosion, the entire crew was buried at the bottom of the sea.
Sir House, who was sitting on the battleship Queen Elizabeth, after the battleship Rodney was hit, after a moment's thought, he saw the already obvious tactical arrangement of Vice Admiral Lütjens, and he immediately realized The next target of the German Navy is the battleship HMS Queen Elizabeth. As long as the battleship HMS Queen Elizabeth is sunk, the British Navy can fall into temporary chaos. On the other hand, the German Navy continues to fish in troubled waters. So Sir House immediately issued an order, "Don't worry about the German tactics, hit the Bismarck and Tirpitz with firepower. As long as they are finished, the remaining German warships are no match for us!"
The battle continued. Vice Admiral Lütjens ordered the German Navy to fight and retreat. The battlefield slowly began to leave the English Channel. This tactical arrangement could obviously lure the enemy deeper. It didn't matter. It was just that Lieutenant Commander Lütjens They will be prepared to take advantage of the speed of the German navy warships to conduct operations, hoping to successfully destroy the formation of the British fleet.
"Is the Air Force still taking action?" Vice Admiral Lütjens asked with a frown, "If this continues, we can use the advantage of speed to escape, but it will be even more difficult to win!" Lütjens The Vice Admiral said this because he took care of everyone's emotions. There was simply no hope of victory in a naval battle with the British Navy based solely on the strength of the German Navy.
"Report, General! The Air Force just called, and the first wave of bombers has taken off!" a staff officer reported.
"Very good!" Von Lohenkramm smiled at Vice Admiral Lütjens, "General, I can guarantee that we will win this naval battle!"
"Okay, then let's fight bravely!" Vice Admiral Lütjens ordered, "Germany's honor is above all else, no matter who the opponent is, we will not retreat even one step!" Germany has been fighting and retreating. The navy finally stopped. This made Sir House wish for it. Although he didn't know why, it was always a good thing in his opinion.
The ratio of large battleships on both sides is now four to six. The battleship Rodney was seriously injured and has been ordered to withdraw from the battlefield by Sir House. But even so, the British Navy still had a clear advantage. At this time, the battleships on both sides had suffered obvious damage. The quality advantage of the Bismarck-class battleships had slowly disappeared as the battle progressed. The main armor belt on the right side of the battleship Tirpitz was hit by the battleship Revenge in the previous battle. Although it successfully defended against the 380MM main gun of the battleship Revenge, the cracked scars on it were obvious. He could no longer withstand a second blow of the same intensity.
In the command room on the Revenge battleship, Clark Bowerman, captain of the British Royal Navy and captain of the Revenge battleship, was staring at the German Bismarck-class battleship in front of him with burning eyes. Although the battle just now was only a short dozen Minutes, but the Bismarck-class battleship of the German Navy still made Clark Bowerman panic for a while. The battleship Rodney was seriously injured and withdrawn from the battle. In addition to the heavy cruiser York that had just been sunk, three heavy cruisers had sunk. More than two thousand naval soldiers lay forever on the cold seabed before his eyes. All battleships, including his own battleship Revenge, suffered injuries of varying severity. Although the two German battleships in front of him had been hit many times, their good defense still allowed them to appear in front of him. This especially made Colonel Clark Bowerman angry, because the strength far exceeded the German Navy. The British Navy fought like this in a confrontation with the disadvantaged German Navy, which itself was a failure.
Colonel Clark Bowerman is not the only British commander who has this sentiment. Even the British naval commander Sir Lord House has to admire the strength of German engineers and workers for using only mature technology to build it. Such a fine product comes out. But in an instant, Sir House was relieved again. The matter could only end here. Although the German Navy had exerted its full strength, the comparison of strength was too great after all. The main armor belts of the two German battleships in front of him had already I can't withstand a few shellings. Although the battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau used their ultra-high speed to avoid more strikes, their defensive capabilities were not outstanding, and their situation was not much better than that of the two Bismarck-class battleships. , it can be said that the balance of victory has tipped to the British.
Just as Sir House secretly breathed a sigh of relief and prepared for the final blow, some strange noises in the sky made Sir House feel strange. At the same time, some British sailors also heard the noises and looked up to the sky. .
The commander of the first wave of bombers, Colonel Schwartz, looked down through the glass. At this time, there were no intact battleships on the battlefield. Whether it was the British Navy or the German Navy, the battleships of both sides were more or less risking their lives. From the thick smoke, you can imagine how fierce the battle just now was. When Captain Schwartz saw the British warships on the sea, he was like a man who had been hungry for several days before he saw a table of sumptuous food in front of him, salivating. He almost stayed. Although Colonel Schwartz had participated in the bombing of the Dunkirk area some time ago, the battleship in front of him was obviously more attractive to Colonel Schwartz than those people. If a battleship could become his record, Colonel Schwartz would start drooling just thinking about it.
Wiping away the non-existent saliva, Colonel Schwartz said with dry lips, "Being able to bomb the most powerful navy in the world will definitely make you brats think it's a worthwhile trip, but don't blame me for reminding you, if If you blow up the wrong thing, you won't be able to eat it! Okay, let's start the hunt!" Then, Colonel Schwartz suddenly pulled the joystick and began to prepare for the bombing. Colonel Schwartz's movements were like lighting a fuse, like Like dark clouds, another black aircraft group covered the sky and swarmed in.
"Oh my god" screamed a British second lieutenant holding a telescope, "Sound the alarm! Sound the alarm! It's a German Stuka dive bomber." But it was too late. The bomber formation suddenly dived downwards to carry out low-altitude bombing; suddenly it dropped powerful high-explosive bombs and then quickly climbed up - this thrilling vertical dive had an aggressive and terrifying effect. Many inexperienced British sailors It seemed that every dive was like firing at his own chest, so that he stood on the deck of the battleship in a daze, forgetting to lie down.
15 Stuka dive bombers took the lead in flying over the battleship Revenge. Then the unique dive sound of Stuka dive bombers sounded, and 15 Stukas began to attack the battleship Revenge. The bombs from the plane were thrown at the battleship Revenge, stirring up water jets. One of the bombs accurately hit the bow of the battleship Revenge. The bomb penetrated the front deck and exploded inside the ship. The entire Revenge battleship swayed in the huge explosion.
While the battleship Revenge was being attacked, a dozen nearby British heavy cruisers were attacked by Stuka dive bombers, and one of the heavy cruisers was hit in the ammunition depot. There was a deafening explosion throughout the heavy cruiser. After the explosion, the heavy cruiser also sank in a thick smoke package, and all the officers and soldiers on board were killed.
After the bomb attack, the Stuka dive bombers began to dive again, using the machine guns on the aircraft to fire violently at the British battleships to suppress the anti-aircraft fire on the battleships from firing on themselves. Under the sudden attack of the Stuka, the British were blinded and hardly organized any effective resistance, with only a handful of anti-aircraft fire counterattacking.
The first wave of bombers immediately attracted the arrogant British naval officers and soldiers, who knew how powerful the German Air Force was. Two hundred and forty Stuka dive bombers used precise and powerful dive bombing to make the naval officers and soldiers of the British Empire experience the fear that the British and French forces had just experienced at Dunkirk. The strange roar followed the loudspeaker on the plane and pierced the ears of the British naval officers like a thorn, challenging the limit of what humans can bear.
Some heavy cruisers immediately caught fire during the bombing and slowly sank. Although the huge battleships had outstanding defenses, facing hundreds of dive bombers, all resistance became so futile under the sheer number. Although they reacted The sailors continued to fire into the sky with anti-aircraft weapons, but a large number of dive bombers were still able to frequently pass through the fire net and accurately drop bombs on the battleships.
In order to avoid the bombing, the warships that had already reached the sea adopted a "zigzag" sailing from left to right, sailing at high speed through the sea with rain of bullets and rough waves. The cannons on the warships fired non-stop, fiercely returning fire.
No matter how terrifying the defensive power of the battleship is, it is impossible to remain unharmed in the face of such intensive attacks. Every battleship is on fire. Of course, Vice Admiral Lütjens will not let go of such a good opportunity and immediately orders The Bismarck, Tirpitz, Scharnhorst, and Gneisenau attacked the British fleet that was in a hurry. Although it was hit from two sides, the British Royal Navy, as the world's largest navy, was in such a situation. Despite the situation, they still insisted on not panicking and counterattacked despite the bombing of the Luftwaffe.
"Can the air force actually influence the fate of battleships?" Sir House said with a bitter smile, "It seems that we are in danger this time!" Sir House knew that whether it was the German Navy in front of him or the German Empire in the sky, The Air Force will not let itself escape. No matter how fast the Navy runs, it cannot outgun the Air Force. Moreover, the German Navy on one side is still watching eagerly. The German Navy's warships also have a huge advantage over the British Navy in terms of speed.
"Sir, the Revenge is sinking!" Faced with such a powerful blow, even the stone man could not remain calm. His gentlemanly demeanor was gone, and all he had was endless panic.
Sir House took a look at the position of the battleship Revenge, and sure enough he saw that the Revenge was sinking, and Sir House could tell at a glance that there was no hope of the Revenge continuing to float. The crude oil leaked from the warship floated and burned on the beach, and many sailors shouted in despair on the water. Once upon a time, the British just watched their opponents go through this with cold eyes, but they didn't expect that this would happen to them today.
At this time, in the direction of the southern mainland, a dark cloud came from far away. It was the second wave of dive bomber wings that had arrived, followed by a fighter wing. It seemed that their mission was specifically to escort. The first wave of planes seemed to have received an order and immediately flew towards the mainland. Their mission had been completed and there was no need to stay here anymore. Colonel Schwartz got his wish and saw the Air Force sink a British battleship. Although It was impossible to confirm exactly who it was in the chaotic situation, but after returning to the base, the matter could always be investigated.
Without any nonsense, the incoming dive bomber wing once again repeated what those bombers had just done. The Royal Navy, which had been hit and greatly lost its combat capability, once again withstood the double-sided attack of the German Navy and the German Imperial Air Force. The warships caught fire and sank one after another. The losses this time have far exceeded the Battle of Jutland more than 20 years ago. The battleships Determination and Ramillies have begun to capsize, which is a precursor to sinking. It seems that they will soon follow in the footsteps of the battleship Revenge. The German navy had already turned from defense to offense, with the Bismarck and Tirpitz at the backbone. The German warships were rampaging on the already messy battlefield. The bombed British warships, which had lost their attack power, had no room to fight back.
Goering, who was still being cared for by Linwei's SS in Berlin and recovering from drug addiction, kept calling Major General Jeshunek and showed extraordinary concern for this operation. Just when Major General Jeshunek almost When Goering was about to drive him crazy, he finally got the results of the first attack wave, so he immediately reported it to Goering, hoping that his ears would suffer less!