Mantis
04 Jul 05, 17:37
Generals, it has begun. The invasion of England - Operation Seelowe - is underway!
To begin our briefing, I'll show you the situation our Supreme Commander was presented with when he began the initial moves that would open the operation. The following map was compiled with the aid of Luftwaffe aerial recon photos, as well as images presented by the Kriegsmarine, and various intelligence received from our operatives.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54uk(axis).jpg
The Allied unit dispositions as we know them. Please note: areas devoid of units are not necessarily empty - we simply have limited or incomplete recon on certain locations on the isle. There is the possibility of additional forces available to the British that we are not currently aware of.
Our Supreme Commander was faced with some very difficult decisions as to where to begin the landings. The British are not fooled even for a moment - they know we are coming, and the most obvious avenues of approach (eg: the beachheads we could most easily supply) are heavily garrisoned. We have the ability to maintain a limited level of supply with the Luftwaffe, once initial airdrops are completed. This by no means should be thought of as a replacement for a properly supplied port on the island, but it should be enough to maintain the initial forces for a brief period of time, as they struggle to secure such a port for our forces.
To refresh your memory, Generals, I will also present you with our own troops dispositions immediately prior to the first wave, to give you an idea of how our forces are arrayed, and what the Supreme Commander had to work with.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54land.jpg
German ground forces.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54air.jpg
Luftwaffe dispositions.
Intelligence from an operative in England assured us that no units were garrisoned in Shrewsbury; being a major rail junction, a regiment of Fallschirmjager were dropped here, and were able to blow the bridges and destroy the rail lines, thereby disrupting the British response. A second regiment of FJ were dropped in Oxford, with the hopes of being able to sever the main rail line running from London north to Birmingham. This drop met with limited success - they were able to blow several bridges along the way, but didn't have quite enough time to reform and make it to the rail line proper.
The area chosen for the amphibious portion of the invasion was a port slightly south of Norwich, on the southeastern portion of the island. The Brandenburg Regiment was split into three battalions, and charged with capturing the many local airfields leading west, to within 50 kilometers of London itself. As these areas were being secured, and the path of retreat cut for any units defending the beaches surrounding Norwich and vicinity, the final phase of the airdrops were completed. Two full divisions of FJ were successfully dropped right on target; the LZ being an area some 25 km southwest of Norwich.
Just as word was reaching us that minimum resitance had easily been overcome by our airborne units, the invasion of the beaches began. A heavy preperatory bombardment from the Kriegsmarine and Regia Marina softened up the two Brit coastal divisions and their batteries holding the ports, and we were actually able to overrun the southermost division with little difficulty, which allowed us to get ashore virtually unmolested.
Within 24 hours, a coordinated attack was launched on the surrounded division holding Norwich itself, and it was handily destroyed. The British fought virtually to the last man, so prisoners were very few. What intel we could gather from the few men we were able to capture indicates a fierce, grim resolve on the part of our adversaries...
Reports show significant enemy troop movement towards our position, and the battle is already raging in the seas surrounding the landing zone. The vast majority of the Royal Navy is engaging our combined fleets, and losses have been heavy on both sides. We have strong local air superiority, as we have successfully rebased many squadrons of fighters to the island proper, to provide an air umbrella over our naval forces. The British, however, are attempting to interdict our air and bomb the bases we have taken, and our resources are being stretched very thin, although this must be true for our adversary as well.
The following map details our positions as we begin to prepare for the second wave of the invasion. We have been able to land, via the ports, 3 full korps of infantry, and a brigade of howitzers. For the moment, we dig in and await the much needed supplies and equipment due to arrive as round two of Operation Seelowe presses ahead.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54landing.jpg
Current German positions as we await the second wave of Operation Seelowe to commence. Please note the units highlighted in gold - the composition of this group is detailed above the ports.
To begin our briefing, I'll show you the situation our Supreme Commander was presented with when he began the initial moves that would open the operation. The following map was compiled with the aid of Luftwaffe aerial recon photos, as well as images presented by the Kriegsmarine, and various intelligence received from our operatives.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54uk(axis).jpg
The Allied unit dispositions as we know them. Please note: areas devoid of units are not necessarily empty - we simply have limited or incomplete recon on certain locations on the isle. There is the possibility of additional forces available to the British that we are not currently aware of.
Our Supreme Commander was faced with some very difficult decisions as to where to begin the landings. The British are not fooled even for a moment - they know we are coming, and the most obvious avenues of approach (eg: the beachheads we could most easily supply) are heavily garrisoned. We have the ability to maintain a limited level of supply with the Luftwaffe, once initial airdrops are completed. This by no means should be thought of as a replacement for a properly supplied port on the island, but it should be enough to maintain the initial forces for a brief period of time, as they struggle to secure such a port for our forces.
To refresh your memory, Generals, I will also present you with our own troops dispositions immediately prior to the first wave, to give you an idea of how our forces are arrayed, and what the Supreme Commander had to work with.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54land.jpg
German ground forces.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54air.jpg
Luftwaffe dispositions.
Intelligence from an operative in England assured us that no units were garrisoned in Shrewsbury; being a major rail junction, a regiment of Fallschirmjager were dropped here, and were able to blow the bridges and destroy the rail lines, thereby disrupting the British response. A second regiment of FJ were dropped in Oxford, with the hopes of being able to sever the main rail line running from London north to Birmingham. This drop met with limited success - they were able to blow several bridges along the way, but didn't have quite enough time to reform and make it to the rail line proper.
The area chosen for the amphibious portion of the invasion was a port slightly south of Norwich, on the southeastern portion of the island. The Brandenburg Regiment was split into three battalions, and charged with capturing the many local airfields leading west, to within 50 kilometers of London itself. As these areas were being secured, and the path of retreat cut for any units defending the beaches surrounding Norwich and vicinity, the final phase of the airdrops were completed. Two full divisions of FJ were successfully dropped right on target; the LZ being an area some 25 km southwest of Norwich.
Just as word was reaching us that minimum resitance had easily been overcome by our airborne units, the invasion of the beaches began. A heavy preperatory bombardment from the Kriegsmarine and Regia Marina softened up the two Brit coastal divisions and their batteries holding the ports, and we were actually able to overrun the southermost division with little difficulty, which allowed us to get ashore virtually unmolested.
Within 24 hours, a coordinated attack was launched on the surrounded division holding Norwich itself, and it was handily destroyed. The British fought virtually to the last man, so prisoners were very few. What intel we could gather from the few men we were able to capture indicates a fierce, grim resolve on the part of our adversaries...
Reports show significant enemy troop movement towards our position, and the battle is already raging in the seas surrounding the landing zone. The vast majority of the Royal Navy is engaging our combined fleets, and losses have been heavy on both sides. We have strong local air superiority, as we have successfully rebased many squadrons of fighters to the island proper, to provide an air umbrella over our naval forces. The British, however, are attempting to interdict our air and bomb the bases we have taken, and our resources are being stretched very thin, although this must be true for our adversary as well.
The following map details our positions as we begin to prepare for the second wave of the invasion. We have been able to land, via the ports, 3 full korps of infantry, and a brigade of howitzers. For the moment, we dig in and await the much needed supplies and equipment due to arrive as round two of Operation Seelowe presses ahead.
http://www.armchairgeneral.com/wordpress/wp-content/features/ea_ics/54landing.jpg
Current German positions as we await the second wave of Operation Seelowe to commence. Please note the units highlighted in gold - the composition of this group is detailed above the ports.