On April 5th, Italy swallowed the small nation of Albania, but thanks to Nazi Germany drawing all of Europe's aggro, the event passed by unnoticed.
Britain and France used every ans at their disposal, such as trade sanctions and warnings, to pressure Germany, cautioning that they would no longer tolerate any further territorial ambitions, but Hitler's response was extrely concise.
On April 28th, Hitler tore up the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact, which had been signed to resolve a trade war with Poland, and scrapped the Anglo-German Naval Agreent, a concession Britain had made to Germany despite criticism from France and Italy.
Hitler's ssage was clear: he would secure Danzig no matter what Britain and France did.
Around the sa ti, in the Soviet Union, Maxim Litvinov was dismissed from his post as People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs (Foreign Minister) and replaced by Vyacheslav Molotov.
As sumr began, Hitler started pressuring Poland to either hand over Danzig or choose war.
However, Poland, a nation that had participated in the dismbernt of its strategic ally Czechoslovakia just to snatch a small piece of territory like Cieszyn, had no intention of giving up its only access to the sea.
-
July 10, 1939
An apartnt owned by the resistance, Berlin, Northern Germany The Black Orchestra, led by forr Army Chief of Staff Ludwig Beck and the conservative monarchist heavyweight Dr.
Goerdeler, had gathered once again.
In the original history, they would have reassembled too late, missing their chance as the invasions of Poland and France unfolded before they could prepare anything, only to attempt and fail with Operation Valkyrie in 1944.
“It is true that Hitler's adventurism is bringing great danger to Germany, but he has succeeded in all his adventures. It might be possible that he could pull off taking Danzig this ti as well, so is it worth us taking the risk to act…”
At a gathering he had worked so hard to convene, Ludwig Beck once again made an indecisive remark.
This guy, really…
“With all due respect, the situation is different this ti, Colonel General. They already sold the Sudetenland to buy peace, but when Hitler annexed Czechoslovakia, Germany's diplomatic credibility hit rock bottom.”
Now, even when I said such things, no one stopped
or got angry. Having acted as a key operative for the resistance while the higher-ups stepped back, I was no longer a re captain.
The contributions of the funds provided by my father, Hjalmar Schacht, Count Moltke, whom I had brought in, and the Silesian magnates to the Abwehr's operations had been substantial.
Admiral Canaris did not forget this favor, and the protection of the admiral, the only one among the resistance leaders who remained to offer support, guaranteed
a firm right to speak.
“But reclaiming Danzig and the Polish Corridor is a desire of all of Germany, not just Hitler, Captain. With the opportunity to reclaim it right before our eyes, there is a risk of a backlash if we stage a coup.”
The point made by Infantry General Erwin von Witzleben was perfectly valid. Right now, whether they were fascists, democrats, social democrats, or even communists in Germany, they all wanted to reclaim Danzig and the Polish Corridor.
“Of course, that is true, General. But are we prepared to go to war with Britain and France to reclaim Danzig? The Siegfried Line will not hold for long against the French army and will collapse.”
Hitler's order in January to formulate a plan for the invasion of Poland had been sowhat delayed by the military's desperate opposition, but ultimately, the drafting of a concrete offensive plan began in April.
The Siegfried Line was a defensive line built on the Western Front to defend against a potential French invasion.
Ironically, Colonel General Wilhelm Ritter von Lepp, who was to command Army Group C on the Siegfried Line, had warned Hitler that it would collapse in three days if the French invaded, only to clutch the back of his neck when Hitler boasted it would hold for three years.
In the original history, the Polish campaign is famous for the Phoney War, where France did not fight Germany and just sat behind the Maginot Line, but in reality, the French army did advance into the Saarland and engage Army Group C on the Siegfried Line.
At that ti, Army Group C, overwhelmingly outnumbered, couldn't even put up a proper fight and was pushed back in a one-sided defeat. Although Hitler had ordered them not to engage the French, it was a disparity in strength that they couldn't have stopped anyway.
If the French High Command, frightened by the rapid collapse of the Polish front, hadn't ordered a retreat to defend only the Maginot Line, it would not have been strange for the Ruhr industrial region to have been occupied right then.
“If Hitler truly wanted to reclaim the Danzig Corridor without going to war with Britain and France, he should have prioritized Danzig, not coveted the Sudetenland and Czechoslovakia first.”
If he had, there's a small chance that when Nazi Germany demanded only the cession of Danzig and extraterritorial rights for a railway, Poland might have yielded under pressure from Britain and France.
Although, it's unlikely that Poland, being so ridiculously prideful and having shown its territorial ambitions by invading one country after another throughout the interwar period, would have accepted such a treaty.
Hitler's demands were, in reality, not sothing that could be accepted, however nicely they were packaged, but it's not like Czechoslovakia got the Munich Agreent because it was an acceptable deal for them.
Even at this stage, Poland is a country that would never join hands with the Soviet Union, to the point of having a fit at the proposal of a joint front against Germany offered by Britain, France, and the Soviets.
Before Germany's credibility hit rock bottom with the Munich Agreent and the annexation of Czechoslovakia, Britain and France might have sold Danzig to buy peace, just as they did with the Sudetenland.
“Now, Britain and France have no room to retreat.
It has already been proven that peace cannot be bought by selling out a perfectly good ally, and their elections are just around the corner. If they can no longer preserve their positions by simply protecting their own country's peace, they will gladly send their young n to the front lines.”
The British general election was in November 1939.
The reason even Neville Chamberlain, who had tried to prevent war at all costs, even to the point of being accused of betraying the West, eventually chose war was because he realized that continuing to be dragged along by Germany would cause the Conservative Party's position itself to collapse.
At this point, no one expects that France, with its Maginot Line, will engage in a phoney war and be defeated in six weeks.
That is why Britain and France can boldly declare war, and the German military is afraid of the situation where they will have to go to war with them.
The high-ranking mbers of the Black Orchestra are still indecisive, but now they know that we are not solely dependent on them.
After all, the practical planning of the operation was mostly handled by , Lieutenant Colonel Oster, and Lieutenant Colonel Tresckow, and the support ca from the factions I brought in and the Abwehr.
“Do you have a plan?”
Finally, Beck's question ca. Getting this far was half the battle.
I stepped back, yielding the floor to Lieutenant Colonel Oster, who spread an operational map on the table.
“This is the operational plan for the invasion of Poland.
It is not yet complete, but since it is already in the stage of drafting the details, it should not matter. Hitler has placed generals who are loyal to him, or at least do not express clear opposition to him, in the Polish invasion force, and those who are not on the Siegfried Line… the Western Front.”
As Beck and the generals nodded, Oster continued his explanation, pointing at the map.
“The commander of Army Group C, stationed on the Western Front at the Siegfried Line, is Colonel General Wilhelm Ritter von Lepp.
He has many complaints about Hitler and the Nazis, and as a monarchist, he can likely be won over. If we win him over, we can also secure Frankfurt, the headquarters of Army Group C.”
He was a staunch monarchist who didn't suit the Nazi Party's taste and was retired during the Blomberg-Fritsch Affair. He was called back for the Sudetenland crisis, but was retired again when the Munich Agreent was signed.
And now, they've promoted him to Colonel General and brought him back, only to openly place him in command of Army Group C, a sacrificial pawn to buy ti against the French.
It's not hard to guess how much dissatisfaction he, who had bluntly told Hitler that the Siegfried Line would hold for three days at most, must be feeling right now.
Furthermore, Frankfurt is a major city and a railway hub located in central Germany, and it is also ho to the headquarters of the Frankfurter Zeitung, the newspaper that will carry out my plan. It is a perfect choice for the temporary capital of a new governnt during a civil war.
“The 1st Army, under Army Group C, is General Witzleben's unit. I believe you can secure the Saarland, General.”
“I can control my troops. The problem is Walter Kunze, the commander of the XXIV Army Corps, a Nazi party mber.
He will have to be dealt with appropriately.”
Witzleben, who had been the most active among the high-ranking generals during the last attempt, once again gave us his firm support.
“Friedrich Dollmann of the 7th Army stationed in Stuttgart is a fervent Nazi and cannot be persuaded. We plan to arrest him on the day of the coup and appoint Colonel General Kurt von Hamrstein-Equord, who was dismissed for opposing Hitler, as the commander.”
The high-ranking generals let out a murmur.
“Does that an… you're proposing a civil war, Lieutenant Colonel Oster? Your plan sounds like you intend to secure the whole of western Germany.”
“We will attempt to assassinate Hitler. Count von Blunthal will handle this, as planned during the Sudetenland crisis.
But…”
At Oster's signal, I stepped forward.
“Unfortunately, since the coup failed during the Munich Agreent, public support for Hitler and the Nazis is higher than ever.
Even if the assassination succeeds, as long as public support for the Nazis remains strong, Himmler, G??ring, or anyone else could crush us, as we have no base of support.”
At the word "unfortunately," the higher-ups coughed and showed their discomfort, but for , this was the most watered-down expression I could manage.
That damn Halder…
“Therefore, we cannot bet everything on a gamble like assassinating Hitler. We need ti to win back the public's support, and securing a base of operations for that is unavoidable.”
The high-ranking generals were whispering among themselves, exchanging opinions, but I was confident.
This was a plan prepared over several months with Lieutenant Colonel Oster and Lieutenant Colonel Tresckow, ticulously checking the front-line deploynts and corps organization of the Polish invasion plan, and even the possibility of winning over their commanders.
There was no way those who had kept their distance while Hitler was successful and only now rushed back would have a more plausible plan in their heads.
“…But the forces deployed on the Siegfried Line are ridiculously small compared to the Eastern Front.
To wage a civil war with just that seems like a very reckless idea…”
“Colonel General Fedor von Bock of Army Group North, and Colonel General Gerd von Rundstedt of Army Group South. Both commanders are monarchists.
If we do this right, not all the Eastern Front forces will side with Hitler. And we have additional troops.”
Beck fell silent for the ti being at Lieutenant Colonel Oster's words, but Dr. Goerdeler expressed his doubt.
“Additional troops?”
That was the part I had prepared.
“In addition to the regular army, we will form an army of anti-Nazi civilian volunteers.
Most of them have completed their military service, so while the front line might be too much, they should be capable of second-line deploynt.”
“A citizen army… What about their armant?”
Their reluctance was palpable, but… it's not like they had the ability to definitively win over the regular army right now, is it?
“We plan to purchase their weapons from Spain, which is selling off a surplus of weapons at a low price after the end of the civil war, and bring them in through the Netherlands.
The budget is already secured.”
It was the Abwehr that first made contact with Franco in the Spanish Civil War.
It was also the staunch anti-communist Admiral Canaris who persuaded Hitler to send the Condor Legion to the Spanish Civil War.
Franco, even in the original history, preferred Canaris, with whom he had built a long-term cooperative relationship, over Hitler, who made a big show of everything and took whatever he could.
The Abwehr's Spanish branch was often used for purposes such as contacting the British or secretly cooperating to prevent Spain from joining the Axis.
When the surplus of guns after the civil war only worsened Spain's public security, the Abwehr's Spanish branch contacted Franco, who was struggling with the problem, and finished negotiations to purchase them at a low price.
Of course, even if it was cheap, the quantity was so large that the Abwehr's budget was nowhere near enough, and it was supported by my father, Count Moltke, and other wealthy individuals.
“The problem is the justification.
Only with a proper justification can the Eastern Front army side with us. Is it possible to avoid being branded as traitors and win over public opinion when we start a civil war?”
Beck finally asked the most important question.
“…That is the most crucial part. For that reason, the date of the coup will be decided not by us, but by the Nazis.”
-
In the end, the leadership's approval was granted. The problem was that we desperately needed soone who could turn a roughly stitched-together coup outline into a plausible military operational plan in a short amount of ti.
And, I was eting the perfect man for the job.
Lieutenant General Erich von Manstein, famous as the best brain in the Wehrmacht, lit a cigar that looked potent at a glance, then blew out a cloud of smoke.
First Lieutenant Colonel Tresckow, and now this guy. He was also famous for being quite the chain-smoker…
“So… Captain Schacht.
What business does a promising young protégé, backed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Army and the Luftwaffe, have with a washed-up has-been like ?”
Manstein asked with sophisticated sarcasm, implying, ‘I may have been sidelined, but should I really be eting a re captain?’
Ah, to be honest, I don't really like this man. His ability is beyond question, but as a person, he's not soone you can easily like.
“To call yourself a has-been, General, is an excessive joke. Everyone acknowledges that there is no staff officer in the German army who can match you.
I, too, have long admired you, General.”
The more I spouted these empty complints, the more they flowed as if oiled.
Lieutenant General Manstein scoffed, took another drag on his cigar, and then opened his mouth.
“I heard you were a friend recomnded by that inflexible blockhead, Model.
I thought you'd be the sa type, but you're quite good with the words of a political soldier, aren't you?”
“A political soldier is criticized for neglecting his primary duties to get ahead through politics alone, but for soone of your unparalleled ability, General, being skilled in diplomacy is an excellent quality.”
At this point, Manstein let out a smirk.
“Well, your way with words isn't half bad. So… what is your business, Captain?”
Now cos the important part.
In the original history, Manstein refused the Black Orchestra's request to join with the reply, ‘A Prussian Field Marshal does not mutiny,’ but on the day of the coup, he only created an alibi for himself and did not report them.
“General, you are being unjustly prevented from spreading your wings, caught in the political struggle between the military and the Nazis.
The position currently held by General Franz Halder rightfully belongs to you, General Manstein.”
Manstein, who had the Chief of Staff position that should have been his snatched away, despises Franz Halder who took his place.
And he despises him fiercely.
Franz Halder tried to sidle up to the Black Orchestra again as the Polish invasion approached, but he was rejected by Admiral Canaris after strong protests from
and Lieutenant Colonel Oster.
Manstein didn't give a clear answer one way or another, just kept puffing on his cigar.
“Germany is falling into chaos due to Hitler and the Nazi regi's taming of the military and their excessively risky war provocations, General.
We intend to correct this before Hitler puts Germany in even greater danger.”
“Ha.
Are you aware that on the Führer's birthday this year, I gave a speech calling him a leader sent by God to save Germany?”
“I am aware. But that wasn't what you truly felt, was it, General?”
He was an extrely career-oriented person, and thinking that looking good to Hitler would help his career, he praised Hitler on the surface.
However, being a fundantally traditional Prussian Junker in style, he disliked Hitler and the Nazis, and Hitler, knowing this, openly disliked Manstein back. He only employed him reluctantly because of his ability.
He was a man with no political or strategic insight or interest in why Germany was fighting, with whom, or for what. He simply desired a path where he could achieve glory and advance his career.
The reason he gave for refusing the Black Orchestra's request in the original history—"A Prussian Field Marshal does not mutiny"—suggested the possibility that it might work in the current situation, where his frustration and hatred for Halder were at their peak.
“The Nazi regi has been wary of those from the Prussian Junker class like you, General, and will continue to be.
n far inferior to you will beco your superiors simply because they are more to the Nazis' liking, and they will further suppress you and the traditional Prussian soldiers.”
In the French invasion, Manstein would devise the brilliant idea of the Sickle Cut plan, bring about the fall of France in six weeks, and instantly rise to the rank of Field Marshal, but at this point in ti, no one could predict such a thing.
In the first place, even the introduction and execution of that plan happened through a series of dramatic coincidences, so even I couldn't guarantee if it would be possible in this situation where various factors had been changed by my intervention.
Manstein kept puffing away at his cigar, but he did not particularly deny my words.
When Ludwig Beck was Chief of Staff, he was the top prospect for the next Chief of Staff, but due to his discord with Halder who beca Chief of Staff instead, he was assigned to positions far below his ability and achievents until he drafted the Sickle Cut plan.
“As traditional Prussian soldiers, there are many who share this sentint.
If you join us, General, the position of the new Army Chief of Staff will be yours.”
Take the bait.
Please, take the bait. After a mont of silent prayer, Manstein finally opened his mouth.
“…Halder, that bastard. I've desperately wanted a chance to get one over on him.
I'll hear the details.”
Ah, on that, I completely agree, General Manstein.
Reviews
All reviews (0)