The Fox of France - Chapter 432 (Patreon)

Chapter 432: Siege and Reinforcement

On the second day after the Irish Republican Army declared the ceasefire agreement null, a detachment of the British Navy appeared off the coast of an area controlled by the Irish Republican Army, named "Carroll Harbor".

This harbor was newly built after the ceasefire agreement and was now the largest port in the Irish anti-British stronghold. Because Carroll generously donated all his prize money to the cause of Irish independence after receiving the Prometheus Award, the port was named after him. Most French ships, especially those carrying various weapons and supplies, would dock here. Therefore, it became the first target for the British.

Due to suspicion that the Irish had preemptively laid mines near the harbor to obstruct the British fleet from shelling the port (after all, the French also had mines, right?), the British fleet did not directly approach to bombard the port. Additionally, there was a coastal battery near the harbor. Reconnaissance by hot air balloon revealed that there were over ten large cannons mounted on the battery.

Although the British estimated that most of these cannons were likely crafted by Irish carpenters, considering Ireland's financial situation, they wouldn't afford to mount over ten large cannons on a battery. But even if one or two were real, a fleet without reliable high-explosive shells would still suffer significant losses facing such a battery.

Therefore, the British fleet did not directly launch an attack on Carroll Harbor but anchored outside to prevent any possible ships from entering the port.

Ireland had a long coastline, and under the control of the "rebels," the coastline was not short either, making it not easy to completely cut off communication between the French and the Irish. However, blocking their largest port could significantly reduce the amount of supplies they received. After all, the presence of a port facility had a significant impact on transportation. At the very least, dangerous things like cannons couldn't be landed.

On the other hand, the Irish Republican Army was planning their first major operation—to seize Athlone and cut off the railway line between Dublin and Galway.

"Comrades, this is the intelligence our comrades obtained through secret channels about the British defenses in the Athlone area," Commander Joyce laid out a map on the table and said to the three battalion commanders gathered around, "Take a look, our division has fought hard to win the main attacking task this time. We must fight this battle well. Otherwise, if there's such a thing in the future, would we still have the nerve to compete with the Second Division?"

Everyone crowded around to examine the map.

"The British defense layout is very much like..." Battalion Commander Westwood said.

"It's very similar to what Advisor Velfor described to us, the defensive system the French used in Verdun," Battalion Commander Clarke also said.

"According to Advisor Velfor, the French themselves didn't have many good ways to deal with this defensive system. If they had to attack head-on, they could only rely on firepower superiority, bit by bit," Westwood said, "But that's the French way. The French have firepower superiority; we don't."

"The layout of these fortifications is quite reasonable. If we attack head-on, the losses will be so great that we can't afford it," Joyce said, "But, as Joseph Bonaparte once said, 'Most of the time, defense is a stronger way of fighting than offense, so a general skilled in offense will strive to create a situation where the defensive side has to leave their preset defensive positions and fight against him on a battlefield they didn't anticipate.' So, perhaps, we should try a different approach. Let's not rush to target Athlone. Our goal is only to cut off and destroy the entire railway line, not necessarily to capture Athlone."

Here, he stood up, pointing at the railway line that crossed the entire Ireland on the map. "Look, this is our real target, Railway Number 1. Along Railway Number 1, the enemy has set up a series of large and small strongholds. If we try to destroy the railway, we must first face the resistance of these small strongholds. These small strongholds are relatively sturdy. If we can't take them quickly, the enemy can use the railway to swiftly mobilize troops to counterattack us. However, if we can quickly take down these small strongholds, then they will have to fight us in less ideal conditions.

The British underestimate our ability to attack fortified positions. After all, they don't know that we have some weapons that have never appeared on the battlefield. We should be able to take these small strongholds much faster than they expect. And their reinforcements may not be able to arrive as quickly...

"We can feign a siege of Athlone and cut off the railway line from here and here," Second Battalion Commander Kane, who had been silent, spoke up, "This way, the enemies in Athlone won't dare to come out easily. The British should send troops from Dublin and Galway, attacking from both ends to relieve Athlone.

According to what we know, the British have eighty thousand troops in Dublin, but apart from the mostly unreliable 'Black and Tans,' there are only thirty thousand left, and some essential garrison troops—haha, with so many odds and ends in Dublin, they can't afford to leave too few people. You see, they not only have to guard against us but even against those 'Auxiliary Forces.' So, out of these eighty thousand troops, probably no more than twenty thousand can be mobilized. However, our strength is not enough to take on these twenty thousand, even if we call up all the county battalions and district platoons, it's still not enough.

But if we can block them with a smaller force, for example, if the Second Division can hold off the attacking enemy, then we have the opportunity to concentrate our forces to deal with the other enemy coming from Galway.

The British have over thirty thousand in Galway, but there aren't many 'Auxiliary Forces' here because it's close to the base. But among them, four thousand are naval troops, so the total number of troops they can mobilize shouldn't exceed ten thousand. If we concentrate our main forces and conduct a siege and reinforcement strategy, we might be able to take out these ten thousand. After we eliminate these ten thousand, I estimate that the British in Dublin will immediately retreat, and until they send a large number of reinforcements from the mainland, neither Dublin nor Galway, nor the British in Athlone, will have the ability to attack actively. At this time, we can destroy this railway line without interference. Not only this railway line, but others as well. Without these railways, even if the British increase their forces, the threat will be much smaller."

"Oh, well done, Kane!" Joyce patted him on the shoulder, "Well, let's quickly develop the whole plan and show it to President Russell. Hmm, I heard the Second Division also wants to stir things up."

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