You've got some very nice toys lined up for the next round in this war. I guess capturing workable airfields will be a prime priority for you!
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1st January 1947 - Paris.
Sir Charles climbed out of the air attaches car and pulled his greatcoat tight. An icy wind was blowing from the east making this morning in Paris less agreeable than usual. Still, it was nothing like what the men on the Eastern front were presently enduring. He bounded up the steps of the French Defence Ministry, acknowledged the salutes of the sentries and entered the foyer. This month's Joint Chiefs of Staff Meeting was being hosted by the French, next month they would be in Warsaw. The rotational schedule had initially met resistance from all involved, but it was now universally acknowledged as having been a shrewd move. Co-operation and trust had certainly improved amongst the allies since it's inception, but Sir Charles felt every ounce of that goodwill would be required to deal with some of the item's on today's agenda.
The British Army was not happy, and as Sir Charles entered the conference room plastered on one wall of the room was an enormous map reminding him why:
The campaign into the Ukraine and Southern Russia had been an outstanding success by any measure. Leading British mechanised units were now only 350km south of Moscow, while to the East they were 360km from Stalingrad. With French forces having captured Riga, they were now only 280km from Leningrad. MI6 was confident that capturing all three of these major centres would cause the collapse of the communist regime, so the politicians had tasked the soldiers with occupying these key cities. The British General's were concerned, however, with a perceived lack of support and progress from the other members of the alliance. Glancing at the map again, Sir Charles could understand the point. No allied forces had been sent to reinforce the British in their advance, and the Generals were nervous about being so deep in Russia and covering such a large front with so few forces at their disposal. 31 Divisions of the British Army had been committed to the campaign, consisting of 8 mechanised infantry, 9 marching infantry, 3 divisions of Royal Marines, 2 airborne divisions, 3 mountain divisions of Scottish Highlanders and 6 garrison units providing rear area security. Excluding the garrison troops, 25 first line divisions were presently spread over a front of 37 provinces.
Noticing the multitude of uniforms in the room, Sir Charles was once again struck at the diversity of nationalities this war on communism had brought together. In the French led Northern sector, there were units from Bhutan, France, Greece, Iraq, Nepal, the Netherlands, Poland, Siam, Spain, Turkey and the USA. Perhaps, thought Sir Charles, the British General's would not be so keen to accept help on their front if they knew the day to day reality of trying to manage such a bizarre coalition, all with their own doctrinal and logistical approaches to waging war. Over dinner with his French counterpart the night before, Sir Charles had heard some stories which had made his hair stand on end, one involving the accidental delivery of 10 tonnes of pork chops to an Iraqi corps. Only the timely intervention of French Military Gendarmes prevented the transport drivers from being lynched.
Perhaps the most challenging addition to the alliance was Nationalist Spain. Many of the European armies contained veterans of the Spanish Civil War, most of whom had fought with the Republicans. The arrival of Franco's troops in later summer initially caused significant disquiet in the Allied ranks. The Spanish willingness, however, to deploy nearly their entire army to Northern Russia, and the ferocity with which their ideologically driven troops engaged the communists, earned them a grudging respect. Indeed within a few months the Spanish had taken on the spearhead of the advance from the tired French troops.
As Sir Charles had feared, the effectiveness of the Royal Air Force was decreasing the further the army advanced into Russia, and the British Army, which contained not a single tank, was having to fight with less of the air support than they had been used to. This was not the style of warfare envisaged when the strategic airpower doctrine was adopted in 1936, but they were doing the best they could with the cards they had been dealt.
Indeed, the Royal Air Force could be proud of it's efforts in the last six months. The service had earned the undying gratitude of the Turkish people when a few short months ago all had seemed lost:
Soviet forces had finally pushed the Allies from their mountain defences, and strong mechanised and armoured forces raced across central Turkey and into Northern Persia. Following a direct appeal from the Turkish President to the Prime Minister, the RAF established a logistical blockade stretching from Baku on the Caspian to Batumi on the Black Sea. Flying from Cyrpus and Palestine, escorted Vulcans systematically smashed roads, railways, ports and supply dumps, and by the end of the year the starving remnants of the invaders had been expelled:
But the success in Turkey had been overshadowed by the triumphs along the Black Sea. The early phase of the invasion of Ukraine and Southern Russia opened with amphibious and airborne operations designed to seize the airfields at Odessa and Sevastopol, with RAF playing a leading role.
British mechanised units then encircled and destroyed a large army in Northern Romania. Upon the relief of Odessa, the Royal Marines and airborne divisions were then used to trap and ultimately destroy the communist army that had been sent to besiege the Highlanders holding Sevestapol:
With these two key victories, the door to the Ukraine was open. With marching infantry maintaining contact with Polish forces on the left flank, the mechanised units sped north and east, overrunning and encircling the desperate defence thrown together by STAVKA. By the end of the year Kiev, Kursk, Kharkov and Rostov were all in British hands. Now the French were urging the British to continue their drive North, to seize Moscow while the defence was still off balance. Privately, the British generals held the same view and were keen to continue, but they were determined to extract a commitment from their Allies that the burden of defeating Stalinism would be fairly shared.
As Lord Gort, Chief of the General Staff, rose to his feet and prepared to address the meeting, Sir Charles sank back into his chair and waited for the fireworks to start.
Sir Charles climbed out of the air attaches car and pulled his greatcoat tight. An icy wind was blowing from the east making this morning in Paris less agreeable than usual. Still, it was nothing like what the men on the Eastern front were presently enduring. He bounded up the steps of the French Defence Ministry, acknowledged the salutes of the sentries and entered the foyer. This month's Joint Chiefs of Staff Meeting was being hosted by the French, next month they would be in Warsaw. The rotational schedule had initially met resistance from all involved, but it was now universally acknowledged as having been a shrewd move. Co-operation and trust had certainly improved amongst the allies since it's inception, but Sir Charles felt every ounce of that goodwill would be required to deal with some of the item's on today's agenda.
The British Army was not happy, and as Sir Charles entered the conference room plastered on one wall of the room was an enormous map reminding him why:
The campaign into the Ukraine and Southern Russia had been an outstanding success by any measure. Leading British mechanised units were now only 350km south of Moscow, while to the East they were 360km from Stalingrad. With French forces having captured Riga, they were now only 280km from Leningrad. MI6 was confident that capturing all three of these major centres would cause the collapse of the communist regime, so the politicians had tasked the soldiers with occupying these key cities. The British General's were concerned, however, with a perceived lack of support and progress from the other members of the alliance. Glancing at the map again, Sir Charles could understand the point. No allied forces had been sent to reinforce the British in their advance, and the Generals were nervous about being so deep in Russia and covering such a large front with so few forces at their disposal. 31 Divisions of the British Army had been committed to the campaign, consisting of 8 mechanised infantry, 9 marching infantry, 3 divisions of Royal Marines, 2 airborne divisions, 3 mountain divisions of Scottish Highlanders and 6 garrison units providing rear area security. Excluding the garrison troops, 25 first line divisions were presently spread over a front of 37 provinces.
Noticing the multitude of uniforms in the room, Sir Charles was once again struck at the diversity of nationalities this war on communism had brought together. In the French led Northern sector, there were units from Bhutan, France, Greece, Iraq, Nepal, the Netherlands, Poland, Siam, Spain, Turkey and the USA. Perhaps, thought Sir Charles, the British General's would not be so keen to accept help on their front if they knew the day to day reality of trying to manage such a bizarre coalition, all with their own doctrinal and logistical approaches to waging war. Over dinner with his French counterpart the night before, Sir Charles had heard some stories which had made his hair stand on end, one involving the accidental delivery of 10 tonnes of pork chops to an Iraqi corps. Only the timely intervention of French Military Gendarmes prevented the transport drivers from being lynched.
Perhaps the most challenging addition to the alliance was Nationalist Spain. Many of the European armies contained veterans of the Spanish Civil War, most of whom had fought with the Republicans. The arrival of Franco's troops in later summer initially caused significant disquiet in the Allied ranks. The Spanish willingness, however, to deploy nearly their entire army to Northern Russia, and the ferocity with which their ideologically driven troops engaged the communists, earned them a grudging respect. Indeed within a few months the Spanish had taken on the spearhead of the advance from the tired French troops.
As Sir Charles had feared, the effectiveness of the Royal Air Force was decreasing the further the army advanced into Russia, and the British Army, which contained not a single tank, was having to fight with less of the air support than they had been used to. This was not the style of warfare envisaged when the strategic airpower doctrine was adopted in 1936, but they were doing the best they could with the cards they had been dealt.
Indeed, the Royal Air Force could be proud of it's efforts in the last six months. The service had earned the undying gratitude of the Turkish people when a few short months ago all had seemed lost:
Soviet forces had finally pushed the Allies from their mountain defences, and strong mechanised and armoured forces raced across central Turkey and into Northern Persia. Following a direct appeal from the Turkish President to the Prime Minister, the RAF established a logistical blockade stretching from Baku on the Caspian to Batumi on the Black Sea. Flying from Cyrpus and Palestine, escorted Vulcans systematically smashed roads, railways, ports and supply dumps, and by the end of the year the starving remnants of the invaders had been expelled:
But the success in Turkey had been overshadowed by the triumphs along the Black Sea. The early phase of the invasion of Ukraine and Southern Russia opened with amphibious and airborne operations designed to seize the airfields at Odessa and Sevastopol, with RAF playing a leading role.
British mechanised units then encircled and destroyed a large army in Northern Romania. Upon the relief of Odessa, the Royal Marines and airborne divisions were then used to trap and ultimately destroy the communist army that had been sent to besiege the Highlanders holding Sevestapol:
With these two key victories, the door to the Ukraine was open. With marching infantry maintaining contact with Polish forces on the left flank, the mechanised units sped north and east, overrunning and encircling the desperate defence thrown together by STAVKA. By the end of the year Kiev, Kursk, Kharkov and Rostov were all in British hands. Now the French were urging the British to continue their drive North, to seize Moscow while the defence was still off balance. Privately, the British generals held the same view and were keen to continue, but they were determined to extract a commitment from their Allies that the burden of defeating Stalinism would be fairly shared.
As Lord Gort, Chief of the General Staff, rose to his feet and prepared to address the meeting, Sir Charles sank back into his chair and waited for the fireworks to start.
Lord Gort's fiery speech has made an impact. Italian troops entering the British Army's sector in Feb'47:
Meanwhile Vulcan crews bombing Moscow have reported the desperate state of the Soviet Military machine:
Meanwhile Vulcan crews bombing Moscow have reported the desperate state of the Soviet Military machine:
- 2
20th March 1947.
This is the BBC with a special broadcast announcement.
At 1000hrs GMT on the 19th March, British soldiers of the 43rd Wessex Division, under the command of Major General Montgomery, forced their way through the last lines of resistance and occupied the Kremlin in Moscow. Fighting ceased in the capital shortly thereafter, and Lieut General Horrocks accepted the surrender of the remainder of the garrison at approximately 2.00pm, local time. Key members of the Politburo of the USSR Communist Party have reportedly fled the capital, including Stalin, who's location is presently unknown.
Shortly thereafter General Horrocks' HQ was approached by a deputation of military and political figures who wished to discuss terms for the cessation of hostilities. General Horrocks' replied he had no authority to negotiate such terms, and demanded that only unconditional surrender would bring an immediate end to the fighting.
Shortly before midnight, local time, General Horrocks was advised that such terms were acceptable and consequently a cease fire has been declared throughout the Soviet Union and it's occupied territories. As of the time of this bulletin the ceasefire appears to be holding on all fronts.
Mongolia has also accepted surrender terms. The reclusive state of Sianking, however, has vowed to continue to wage class war against the Western Imperialist powers under the leadership of their Dear Leader, Sheng Shicai.
We will provide further updates as the situation develops.
This is the BBC with a special broadcast announcement.
At 1000hrs GMT on the 19th March, British soldiers of the 43rd Wessex Division, under the command of Major General Montgomery, forced their way through the last lines of resistance and occupied the Kremlin in Moscow. Fighting ceased in the capital shortly thereafter, and Lieut General Horrocks accepted the surrender of the remainder of the garrison at approximately 2.00pm, local time. Key members of the Politburo of the USSR Communist Party have reportedly fled the capital, including Stalin, who's location is presently unknown.
Shortly thereafter General Horrocks' HQ was approached by a deputation of military and political figures who wished to discuss terms for the cessation of hostilities. General Horrocks' replied he had no authority to negotiate such terms, and demanded that only unconditional surrender would bring an immediate end to the fighting.
Shortly before midnight, local time, General Horrocks was advised that such terms were acceptable and consequently a cease fire has been declared throughout the Soviet Union and it's occupied territories. As of the time of this bulletin the ceasefire appears to be holding on all fronts.
Mongolia has also accepted surrender terms. The reclusive state of Sianking, however, has vowed to continue to wage class war against the Western Imperialist powers under the leadership of their Dear Leader, Sheng Shicai.
We will provide further updates as the situation develops.
- 2
Congrats! Took a few boots on the ground, but the RAF seems to have done the heavy lifting. Great experiment.
What a novel campaign, and quite succesful I must say. I was quite surprised that France and co. had the manpower to face the Russian army, even with your massive airforce's aid. But it worked out, well done.
When I saw the screenshot of the British position in Ukraine, I still didn't think you could do it - I was certain that the sheer mass of (admittedly disorganized) Soviet units would clog up your offensive. But I was wrong (and quite spectacularly so, given the speed of events). Congratulations. With a mass of bombing and a sprinkling of an army, you've brought both Germany and the USSR to its knees.
Donald Rumsfeld would be so jealous of your shock and awe/small army victory.
Donald Rumsfeld would be so jealous of your shock and awe/small army victory.
The last 8 weeks or so was a gamble, but what made me decide to go for it was the mass of shattered units sitting in Moscow, and the fact my spies were telling me the Soviets had 0 Manpower left.
In the end the USSR was finished off by a spearhead of just 5 mechanised infantry divisions, plus marching infantry lagging behind keeping the breach open, the image below shows the situation about 2 weeks before the end:
The mech spearhead, supported by the RAF striking ahead of it - just kept up the pressure and pushed a disorganised rabble all the way to Moscow. Both flanks were very open - you can just see the infantry in the bottom left holding back a counter attack. Moscow itself did have some fresh units defending it, but there were so many shattered units sitting there the stacking penalty was huge, and I made sure I encircled Moscow before launching the attack:
Further down south at Rostov the Soviets had launched a major counter attack with units which I think they brought from Turkey - I wasn't going to hold and was just starting to pull back when Moscow fell.
It helped that the AI controlled Allies in the north finally reacted to the British offensive and launched one of their own.
All in all the campaign was great fun, and injected some nail biting interest into a game which can get a bit repetitive at times. I must admit I did not think we were going to beat the USSR - a fresh 1945 army versus an exhausted French and small British force. But although at times I didn't think the logistics bombing was working as well as it did against the Germans, the final collapse of the USSR in the Balkans, Turkey and North Asia was largely down to units not being able to react to encircling moves due to no fuel or being out of supply.
I'll write a final "Sir Charles" chapter tomorrow to close out the AAR and talk about some of the stats etc.
- 2
This is just all kinds of awesome! Congratulations on face stomping the bolsheviks!
1 September 1947 - Whitehall.
Sir Charles entered his office and handed his ceremonial sword and cap to his batman. The newly appointed Viscount Portal of Hungerford had just returned from his final audience with the King, and was relieved to start shedding the ceremonial uniform and accoutrements that one was required to wear on such occasions. Retirement can't come soon enough, he thought, there is such a thing as receiving too much gratitude from the Monarch and his peoples. After months of parades, presentations, memorial services and celebratory dinners Sir Charles had but two final official duties to perform, on this his last day in the Service.
Sliding into his chair he turned his attention to the first, the granting of a pardon to a ground crew Sergeant who was convicted of assault after striking, several times, an English businessman in a bar at Sevastopol. At first glance the man was guilty as sin and should have deserved his punishment of six months imprisonment and being dishonourably discharged from the service. But upon reviewing the case Sir Charles had decided the man was deserving of clemency. During the liberation of Ukraine and Southern Russia, where advanced the British army, so went English law. Following close behind the advancing troops was a swarm of loathsome and seedy characters clutching orders from English courts demanding the reinstatement of property which had been seized by the Bolsheviks between 1918 and 1922. In this case, the assaulted blackguard had picked the wrong bar to try and muscle in on, this one having being adopted by ground crew from a locally based ground attack squadron. The proprietor was a lady with three young children, whose husband was missing believed killed in Romania. On the day of the assault the accused had arrived at the bar to find the businessman in the process of evicting the lady and her children onto the street, waving his court order at anyone who would listen. Needless to say, the sergeant took the only honourable course of action in the circumstances. He signed the pardon with a flourish and turned his attention to the large stack of papers to his left.
The official report by the Air Staff on the Totalitarian War was nearly complete, with Sir Charles needing to review the final chapter before it could be issued. The chapter, written by Sir Charles himself, discussed the learnings of the war for future Imperial Defence Policy.
It was clear that in fighting an air power centric war Great Britain had ushered in a fundamental change in the way the world defined and measured military power. Prior to the Totalitarian War, military men used to discuss numbers of tanks, calibre of weapons, size of battalions, and displacement of tonnage as being the arbiters of military power. Now they discuss payload, range, climb rate, altitude and speed as the most important variables. An entire genre of military thinking had been rendered obsolete even before it had a chance to prove itself. In the lead up to the war new theories regarding the use of armoured vehicles were touted across the continent by Moscow, Berlin and Paris (well perhaps from a small minority there) as being the future of land warfare. Britain, alone in it's determination to find another way, appeared to be the odd man out. The German blitzkrieg in Poland appeared to prove the theorists correct, but then in the summer of 1940 the RAF went straight for the jugular of the mechanised army. For an army of tanks with no fuel or ammunition is little but a speed bump on the road to victory. Britain had rendered the Blitzkrieg era obsolete even before it had begun.
Through early identification of the rise of militarism in the totalitarian states, and a willingness to act in the pre-war years, Britain's politicians and the Air Staff had crafted a force and theory of warfare that was shown to be capable of defeating the mass armies of the continental powers, without requiring Britain to field a mass conscripted field army such as had been required in the Great War. Increasingly historians were looking upon that period as a profound failure of British foreign and military policy. For centuries the UK had managed to wield influence on the continent without having to raise, equip and maintain the mass land armies of the continental powers, through use of her Navy, economic power, and as the situation arose occasional deployment of small expeditionary forces. The Great War found the UK without an answer other than to engage in warfare in a continental fashion - the result being 931,000 Commonwealth war dead. Now the Royal Air Force had restored to Britain her ability to influence military outcomes across the globe, much as the Royal Navy was able to during the 19th Century. From a network of upgraded airbases across the world nuclear armed Vulcan bombers are able to defend Imperial interests, the new gunboats of the 20th century.
During the mid 1930's the Royal Navy had enthusiastically embraced the new air power doctrine and had been the first of the great naval powers to recognise the coming obsolescence of big gun capital ships. In 1936 the research and procurement of battleships and battlecruisers was quietly halted while resources were poured into naval aviation, anti submarine forces and radar. The record of the RN during the Totalitarian War speaks for itself, suffering total losses in the 10 years of war of just 2 heavy cruisers, 3 flotillas of submarines, 1 flotilla of destroyers and 1 flotilla of transports. On the other side, the military forces of Great Britain (excluding the Commonwealth) inflicted 272 sinkings on the Totalitarian Powers, which represented 85% of their total naval losses. The Royal Navy and RAF alone inflicted 79% of the naval losses suffered by the Empire of Japan. Similarly to land warfare, the face of naval warfare has changed forever, with the location and distribution of airbases and aircraft carriers being the key to controlling the sea.
The British Army had returned to it's traditional role of being a highly professional, all volunteer service that operated under the support and patronage of a guardian angel, now in the form of the RAF. The British Army, which had consisted of 103 brigades in September 1939, finished the war with an establishment of 175 brigades. The increase came from 9 brigades of paratroopers, 9 of marines, 9 mountain, 36 garrison and 9 of self propelled artillery. Additionally, 25 of the pre-war infantry brigades were upgraded to mechanised status during 1945 (in fact half were undergoing this when the Soviet Union declared war, and were unavailable for the first four months of that conflict). Although the army was larger than had been called for under the air power doctrine, the communist war would not have been concluded as swiftly as it was if it were not for the Army's advance in the winter of 46/47.
The economic benefits of Britain avoiding fielding a large land army during the war have been significant. By the end of 1947 every British province across the globe has been upgraded to 100% infrastructure, with the people's of the empire now enjoying unprecedented standards of living and economic prosperity. Long silent are the voices calling for an end to colonial imperialism and independence for colonial possessions. The people of the empire are wearing the cloak of this new era of Pax Britannica comfortably, and Britain is seen to have restored it's place in the world that was so evidently in decline after the strain of the Great War.
Sir Charles made his final comments and switched off his desk lamp. He rose from his desk for the last time, donned his cap, and retrieved the simple leather brief case that had been his loyal companion since joining the air staff all those years ago. He farewelled his personal staff, many in tears, and quietly exited the building. The late summer sun was bright and warm, so he elected to walk beside the Thames to Waterloo station before catching his train. After strolling a short distance he came abreast of the Royal Air Force memorial, and habitually stopped for a few moments to pay his respects. The memorial had recently been modified to remember the casualties of the Totalitarian War, and as Sir Charles turned to make his way to the station, he was struck by the hope that future generations would equate this memorial not just with the sadness of loss, but equally as a symbol of celebration for the thousands of lives that had been preserved by the innovative application of air power.
Sir Charles entered his office and handed his ceremonial sword and cap to his batman. The newly appointed Viscount Portal of Hungerford had just returned from his final audience with the King, and was relieved to start shedding the ceremonial uniform and accoutrements that one was required to wear on such occasions. Retirement can't come soon enough, he thought, there is such a thing as receiving too much gratitude from the Monarch and his peoples. After months of parades, presentations, memorial services and celebratory dinners Sir Charles had but two final official duties to perform, on this his last day in the Service.
Sliding into his chair he turned his attention to the first, the granting of a pardon to a ground crew Sergeant who was convicted of assault after striking, several times, an English businessman in a bar at Sevastopol. At first glance the man was guilty as sin and should have deserved his punishment of six months imprisonment and being dishonourably discharged from the service. But upon reviewing the case Sir Charles had decided the man was deserving of clemency. During the liberation of Ukraine and Southern Russia, where advanced the British army, so went English law. Following close behind the advancing troops was a swarm of loathsome and seedy characters clutching orders from English courts demanding the reinstatement of property which had been seized by the Bolsheviks between 1918 and 1922. In this case, the assaulted blackguard had picked the wrong bar to try and muscle in on, this one having being adopted by ground crew from a locally based ground attack squadron. The proprietor was a lady with three young children, whose husband was missing believed killed in Romania. On the day of the assault the accused had arrived at the bar to find the businessman in the process of evicting the lady and her children onto the street, waving his court order at anyone who would listen. Needless to say, the sergeant took the only honourable course of action in the circumstances. He signed the pardon with a flourish and turned his attention to the large stack of papers to his left.
The official report by the Air Staff on the Totalitarian War was nearly complete, with Sir Charles needing to review the final chapter before it could be issued. The chapter, written by Sir Charles himself, discussed the learnings of the war for future Imperial Defence Policy.
It was clear that in fighting an air power centric war Great Britain had ushered in a fundamental change in the way the world defined and measured military power. Prior to the Totalitarian War, military men used to discuss numbers of tanks, calibre of weapons, size of battalions, and displacement of tonnage as being the arbiters of military power. Now they discuss payload, range, climb rate, altitude and speed as the most important variables. An entire genre of military thinking had been rendered obsolete even before it had a chance to prove itself. In the lead up to the war new theories regarding the use of armoured vehicles were touted across the continent by Moscow, Berlin and Paris (well perhaps from a small minority there) as being the future of land warfare. Britain, alone in it's determination to find another way, appeared to be the odd man out. The German blitzkrieg in Poland appeared to prove the theorists correct, but then in the summer of 1940 the RAF went straight for the jugular of the mechanised army. For an army of tanks with no fuel or ammunition is little but a speed bump on the road to victory. Britain had rendered the Blitzkrieg era obsolete even before it had begun.
Through early identification of the rise of militarism in the totalitarian states, and a willingness to act in the pre-war years, Britain's politicians and the Air Staff had crafted a force and theory of warfare that was shown to be capable of defeating the mass armies of the continental powers, without requiring Britain to field a mass conscripted field army such as had been required in the Great War. Increasingly historians were looking upon that period as a profound failure of British foreign and military policy. For centuries the UK had managed to wield influence on the continent without having to raise, equip and maintain the mass land armies of the continental powers, through use of her Navy, economic power, and as the situation arose occasional deployment of small expeditionary forces. The Great War found the UK without an answer other than to engage in warfare in a continental fashion - the result being 931,000 Commonwealth war dead. Now the Royal Air Force had restored to Britain her ability to influence military outcomes across the globe, much as the Royal Navy was able to during the 19th Century. From a network of upgraded airbases across the world nuclear armed Vulcan bombers are able to defend Imperial interests, the new gunboats of the 20th century.
During the mid 1930's the Royal Navy had enthusiastically embraced the new air power doctrine and had been the first of the great naval powers to recognise the coming obsolescence of big gun capital ships. In 1936 the research and procurement of battleships and battlecruisers was quietly halted while resources were poured into naval aviation, anti submarine forces and radar. The record of the RN during the Totalitarian War speaks for itself, suffering total losses in the 10 years of war of just 2 heavy cruisers, 3 flotillas of submarines, 1 flotilla of destroyers and 1 flotilla of transports. On the other side, the military forces of Great Britain (excluding the Commonwealth) inflicted 272 sinkings on the Totalitarian Powers, which represented 85% of their total naval losses. The Royal Navy and RAF alone inflicted 79% of the naval losses suffered by the Empire of Japan. Similarly to land warfare, the face of naval warfare has changed forever, with the location and distribution of airbases and aircraft carriers being the key to controlling the sea.
The British Army had returned to it's traditional role of being a highly professional, all volunteer service that operated under the support and patronage of a guardian angel, now in the form of the RAF. The British Army, which had consisted of 103 brigades in September 1939, finished the war with an establishment of 175 brigades. The increase came from 9 brigades of paratroopers, 9 of marines, 9 mountain, 36 garrison and 9 of self propelled artillery. Additionally, 25 of the pre-war infantry brigades were upgraded to mechanised status during 1945 (in fact half were undergoing this when the Soviet Union declared war, and were unavailable for the first four months of that conflict). Although the army was larger than had been called for under the air power doctrine, the communist war would not have been concluded as swiftly as it was if it were not for the Army's advance in the winter of 46/47.
The economic benefits of Britain avoiding fielding a large land army during the war have been significant. By the end of 1947 every British province across the globe has been upgraded to 100% infrastructure, with the people's of the empire now enjoying unprecedented standards of living and economic prosperity. Long silent are the voices calling for an end to colonial imperialism and independence for colonial possessions. The people of the empire are wearing the cloak of this new era of Pax Britannica comfortably, and Britain is seen to have restored it's place in the world that was so evidently in decline after the strain of the Great War.
Sir Charles made his final comments and switched off his desk lamp. He rose from his desk for the last time, donned his cap, and retrieved the simple leather brief case that had been his loyal companion since joining the air staff all those years ago. He farewelled his personal staff, many in tears, and quietly exited the building. The late summer sun was bright and warm, so he elected to walk beside the Thames to Waterloo station before catching his train. After strolling a short distance he came abreast of the Royal Air Force memorial, and habitually stopped for a few moments to pay his respects. The memorial had recently been modified to remember the casualties of the Totalitarian War, and as Sir Charles turned to make his way to the station, he was struck by the hope that future generations would equate this memorial not just with the sadness of loss, but equally as a symbol of celebration for the thousands of lives that had been preserved by the innovative application of air power.
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- 2
Wonderful wrap-up to a great story. From the bomb line in Germany to the destruction of the Soviet Union, we've come a long, long way.
Great job! I had no idea the airforce could be so valuable. I tend to neglect it in favor of land forces. Do you think it would have been as successful if you weren't Britain - a nation completely surrounded by water?
Thank you for this enjoyable romp of an alt-history
Long Live the RAF, Long Live Britannia
Long Live the RAF, Long Live Britannia
That was excellent, a cunning strategy I've not seen before and some well written narrative tying it all together.
All in all I enjoyed it immensely.
All in all I enjoyed it immensely.