Chapter 445: Divergence

With this, German fighter planes could fly over Liverpool, strafing and attacking with impunity. The overall collapse of the British defensi

With this, German fighter planes could fly over Liverpool, strafing and attacking with impunity. The overall collapse of the British defensive line had led to a very serious consequence: a severe imbalance between the northern and southern defensive forces.

Just when everyone was waiting for the German army to march south and occupy London, the German army turned north instead. Rundstedt had accurately seized the opportunity, seeing a more convenient path to victory. The fragile British northern defensive line was like a naked woman, completely exposed before the brawny German, his for the taking.

There, they had a relatively intact industrial system. There, they had important ports and canals. The key was that there were no dense concentrations of British defenders. There were no forests of anti-aircraft guns, nor were there civilians who had been issued hand grenades.

To counter the bombing by the German air force, almost 90% of Britain’s anti-aircraft guns had been deployed to the southern regions. And to defend London, Britain’s most elite infantry had also been deployed near the capital. The British were prepared for the Germans to attack London, ready to fight them to the last moment. As long as they could hold out in the ruins of London for a few months, Britain might be able to turn the tables with American help.

Of course, in the end, things did not develop according to their expectations. The Germans left the nearby London and instead pushed north in one go. This completely disrupted the British operational plans and shattered their intention of concentrating their main forces for a decisive battle in the south of England.

Just how weak were the forces in the north? The surrender of the remnants of the VII Corps had left a gap in the British defensive line that had caused the loss of a dozen cities. The unit that replaced the VII Corps was a British reserve corps, the XII Corps. The fact that its commander had managed to barely hold Birmingham was already enough to satisfy Churchill.

In fact, it wasn’t that this British XII Reserve Corps was so valiant that it had withstood the “tide-like German offensive”—as the XII Corps’ report claimed. Rather, the Germans themselves had voluntarily halted their attack. This large-scale offensive had also consumed a considerable amount of the German army’s reserve ammunition and fuel. Before they could consolidate the captured materials and receive new supplies, Rundstedt was worried that the British forces in the south would, in a fit of desperation, counter-attack to the north.

But it seemed the British’s disasters were just beginning. On March 8th, the British defenders, fearing their flank would be broken by the Germans, abandoned The Wash against orders. The city of Boston (Britain also has one) fell. Subsequently, the British forces in the Lincoln and Louth areas voluntarily withdrew, ceding the entire plain.

This was, in fact, a “goodwill gesture” to their German “allies” from several powerful figures in Scotland and from Chamberlain. These Scottish leaders felt it was necessary to preserve their strength to maintain a superior position in the future “German-Scottish-Irish” tripartite alliance. So they withdrew their forces into the mountains to preserve their strength and await developments.

In fact, the Germans, especially those with a clearer perspective like August, were unwilling to let these British forces escape. The German generals would have preferred their panzer forces to annihilate these effective British forces on the plains of England to lay a good foundation for better control of Scotland in the future. Unfortunately, these efforts were all thwarted by Chamberlain’s “self-preservation” plan.

The secret behind the rout of the Scottish defenders in the north was that the British defensive line in the northern mountains would become even more solid in the future. The German high command all knew that the frontline situation, which seemed to be improving, was actually becoming worse and worse for the subsequent peace negotiations. Akado had reminded Merkel several times that, if necessary, they would even have to acknowledge the continued existence of Britain to stabilize this powerful and troublesome “ally” in the north.

There were some benefits, of course. For example, these routing British forces left behind tens of thousands of tons of fuel and supplies. After a brief tally, the Germans found that the quality of this fuel was far better than their domestic gasoline and diesel, and there was enough to last the German army for half a year. Although the amount of food was relatively small, it was enough to feed the 350,000-strong German army for more than a week.

“Chamberlain! Is this the final knife you stab in my back? Is this the future of Britain that you see? To eke out a wretched existence under the Germans’ boot? To be the Germans’ running dog?” Churchill roared into the phone. “The VII Corps was the old core of the Scottish forces! The XIII Corps, which retreated into the northern mountains, is also mostly Scottish! This is your plan, isn’t it? To sell out England?”

“Churchill! You’re mad! You and those members of Parliament are all mad! Britain cannot rely on America! Aren’t you also selling out Britain’s interests and colonies in exchange for American supplies? I said long ago that we should make peace with the Germans, but none of you would listen. You even called me a traitor. Now, I am the only one who can save Britain, do you understand?” on the other end of the line, Chamberlain’s voice was calm and detached.

“Giving England to the Germans, abandoning Northern Ireland—this is what you call saving Britain? This is destroying Britain! You fool!” Churchill cursed. “I am the Prime Minister of Britain, and His Majesty the King has ordered me to fight to the death!”

“Forget it, Mr. Churchill,” Chamberlain snorted. “Your time as Prime Minister is almost up… The King is trying to find a way to make peace with the Germans. Now, whether we continue the war or negotiate for peace, your fate is sealed. Also, I can responsibly tell you, have you guessed why the amount of aid from the Americans is gradually decreasing?”

“This is your doing?” Churchill was on the verge of frenzy.

“No! No, no!” Chamberlain denied. “How could I have that much influence? I didn’t do anything. It is His Majesty the King who is doing it… Do you think the Americans don’t know what the British Royal Family has been secretly up to in Canada? They are reducing your supplies as a warning to the Royal Family not to attempt to establish a British government-in-exile in Canada. They would much rather the King go to America than to British Canada. Understand?”

“…” Churchill fell silent. He knew that under the current circumstances, it was impossible to unite everyone’s hearts and minds to work in one direction. The Royal Family and some ministers wanted Britain to regroup in Canada. He, Churchill, and some others intended to defend London to the death in exchange for American intervention to turn the tide. Now, the Scots were putting Chamberlain forward to negotiate with the Germans as another so-called way out. It wasn’t surprising that these people had their own ideas; it would be strange if they didn’t.

But the problem was whether these ideas were really good ones. If the British Royal Family were to “airdrop” a large group of officials into Canada, how would the local Canadian officials feel? This was not like a Chinese emperor’s “southern hunt” (a euphemism for fleeing south when the north could not be held), because Canada was not British territory, but a colony. Although it was superficially part of Britain, it was, in fact, a semi-independent country with a very high degree of autonomy.

Moreover, the Americans were unwilling to see a powerful Canada appear to their north. Even a pro-British figure like President Roosevelt was very dissatisfied with the British move to flee to Canada. He had contacted the British Royal Family more than once, hoping they would come to America to establish a government-in-exile, rather than go to Canada.

The second path also seemed to be one full of thorns, and Churchill himself was the one leading the way. He knew that this path had no real benefits either; it was just the one he had chosen from the beginning and could not change now.

This path was to rely on American aid to resist the German invasion. It sounded good, but American supplies were not given to Britain for free. They were exchanged for the interests of countless British overseas colonies. Some islands in the Pacific had already been ceded to the United States, and Churchill had turned a blind eye to the Australian issue. These were all the price of relying on the United States.

However, the matter was far from over. Even Churchill himself knew that after the war, Britain’s century-long status as the world’s hegemon would be buried along with Germany. By that time, Britain would be nothing more than a pet dog kept by the United States, no longer the world’s number one power that commanded the winds and clouds.

Of course, the deal that Chamberlain and the Scots were making was not much better. They were merely choosing another master, still being a dog, but a dog to the Germans. The advantage was that they wouldn’t have to fight the Germans, saving a lot of energy and blood. The disadvantage was that they would be neighbors with Germany, which was not as comfortable as being a dog to the Americans after the war.

“It’s too late to say anything now! In the end, I have lost! I have lost to you bastards!” Churchill said with a cold laugh, having understood the key points. “But don’t think you’ve necessarily won! History will remember the London that resisted to the end, and it will remember me, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill! As for you, you will only be a pitiful Scottish lapdog!”

“See! You’re wrong again,” Chamberlain said with a smile. “I have saved countless British lives, just as Pétain is doing in France. I don’t know how history will judge you and me. But at least I will be alive to see the end, while you are destined to exit the stage halfway through.”

“Don’t get too complacent, Chamberlain!” Churchill shouted. “It’s not certain who will have the last laugh! I am personally holding the line in London. Let that damned German Führer come and attack. All I will leave for him is a pile of ruins!”

“Well then, we shall wait and see,” Chamberlain’s voice came from the other end of the line. “If you really hope that a million citizens of London will be buried with you, then it proves I was not mistaken about you.”

Published: 2025-08-25T04:15:38.000+00:00
Last Edited: 2025-11-12T11:25:59.000+00:00
URL: https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair/posts/mtr-c445-137276378

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