Book Four: The Great Liberation War (Part 2 - The Battle of the Balkans)
Chapter 115: Balkanları Savun! Defend the Balkans! (8 to 14 March 1941)
Prologue – Beograd, Serbian GNR
A courier plane has just brought in a proof for the new poster to be mass-produced in
Beograd for distribution throughout the Balkans. The presses are running hot by the end of the day. Turkish language copies are also distributed as leaflets to all units in the field.
“Balkanları Savun! Defend the Balkans!” has become the new catchcry for this period of the
Great Liberation War.
A proof of the poster as distributed to regional publishers - principally in Beograd - for local editing into the many languages of the Balkan GNRs and mass distribution.
At 15 Inf Div, currently stationed in
Ada, Corporal Metin Sadik receives a sheaf of these leaflets. They are printed on cheap, relatively coarse paper – not the shiny poster variety.
“Oh, what an excellent piece of work!” he exclaims, happily. “Soft, absorbent paper – just what is needed here in the trenches.” His squad laughs along with him. They have no choice but to defend the Balkans, although that has been a very quiet affair of late on the
Yeniçeri Line. But when ‘the system’ sees fit to provide them with a supply of fresh toilet paper, they cannot help but have a laugh.
“Patriotic! Soft! Absorbent! These new leaflets are the best yet!” Metin Sadik’s squad admires the latest motivational material to emerge from Ankara. It has indeed boosted their morale, but perhaps not in the way Perse and the Propaganda Department had imagined!
At least they don’t have political commissars at company level, like those poor Soviet 'comrades' they have met along the front. Yet, anyway.
Kemalism-Inönüism has become the governing CHP credo. The regime may be repressive, but it will never become a true totalitarian state
[in game mechanics terms, anyway]. That can only happen if the ultra-extremists of the left or right take over, and the Government won’t be allowing
that to happen. Not with their hybrid Comintern-aligned right-wing autocratic system where there are none of those frivolous elections in either Turkey or the rest of the Union of Glorious National Republics!
---xxx---
8 Mar 41: London – A Changing of the Guard
The world woke to momentous news that morning: Neville Chamberlain had resigned the night before as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, citing ill health as the reason. The Embassy in London reports rumours that Chamberlain is dying of cancer and also that his party room had become impatient, not only after the debacle in France (which by no means alienated
all in the Cabinet – some thought it a trap well-avoided) but more recently the stunning reverse in Libya, where many perceived a lack of energy and resolve at the top had been the cause. In any case, Chamberlain is gone, replaced by the firebrand ‘outsider’ Winston Churchill.
The Turkish Government is very happy with this turn of events, given the time and effort they had expended in trying to gain his good opinion. But the happiest of all in
Ankara is his long-time supporter and booster Persephonee Fotheringay-Phipps. It seems her family are old friends with ‘Uncle Winnie’! Perhaps that might be used in Turkey’s favour at some point? At least, that is what Şükrü Ögel thinks as he considers the news.
Perse is now ecstatic. “The war is as good as won now!” she gushes excitedly, as she displays the latest material from London, provided by their Embassy that very morning. They must have already been preparing for the changeover in advance. Though Tom Rosencrantz is far from pleased “Old imperialist buffoon!”, he fumes to any who will listen. “He will crash and burn and take Britain down with him.”
---xxx---
8 Mar 41 - HQ 1st Army, Kraljevo
Overnight, Inönü has been working with his operations staff on the new plan for a Turkish counter-offensive on the
Yeniçeri Line. It will be a relatively modest effort, in ambition if not in scale. The main purpose is to test the enemy’s defences (and Turkey's attacking credentials against Axis opponents) and if possible disrupt or at least distract the current Hungarian-led Axis offensive in nearby Romania.
The first order of the day is to reorganise the three corps: 1st Corps, led by LTGEN Fevzi Cakmak (Turkey's leading general at the time), will be entrusted with the attack, with forces drawn from both his own corps, 3rd Corps and the 1st Army reserve. The whole of 1st Corps will be devoted to the offensive, with the rest of the army maintaining a continuous entrenched line, a little thinner and with smaller reserve components behind the lines. This attacking group is nicknamed after the title of the operation: KURT SÜRÜSÜ ('WOLFPACK').
The operation is named for Turkey’s national animal – the grey wolf. The Wolfpack will be out to hunt fascists!
The plan itself is fairly simple. The whole corps will assemble in
Ruma. 7 Inf Div will remain there, assisting with the initial breakthrough attack but then digging in again, while 1st Corps continues with the subsequent advance – if all proceeds according to the plan. HQ 1st Corps itself will remain in nearby
Ada – a central command point and where they can contribute to the defence, as 15 Inf Div will be moving to
Ruma to join the Wolfpack. The attack will go in against a single Hungarian division stationed in the plains of
Semska Mitrovica. From there, if they can gain that open ground, the intention is to swing north to
Kula then north-east to
Srbobran (the unbroken blue arrow below). Additional Soviet attack objectives will be set as the operation starts, in the hope they may join in or at least eventually reinforce the advance.
The elements of the Wolfpack are currently spread over five different provinces. It will take almost a week to fully assemble.
Other forces are to be prepared to attack either
Semska Mitrovica at the start or
Srbobran at the end, if necessary, though the ground for doing so is not as favourable (over river crossings). While cutting off any enemy remaining in
Novi Sad would be a bonus, it is not a wide sweeping move and it is unlikely a pocket will be formed, as the main outflanking attack is coming from one direction. If a large enough section of the line can be disrupted to either divert Axis forces from elsewhere or even to allow for a larger advance north-east, all well and good.
The operation would serve as a test of Turkish offensive capacity against Axis defences and of the ability of the recently reinforced interceptor force to limit Axis air attacks and protect the lone Turkish TAC wing. Their airbase in
Beograd is very close to both
Semska Mitrovica and the forming-up place for the attack in
Ruma, which should aid in providing air support and interdiction. This test may work against Axis minor air forces – but Ali Örlungat hopes the Germans don’t send modern fighters south. Those would shred the Turkish fighters quick-smart.
While the Wolfpack assembled in
Ruma, the 1st Army reserve in
Beograd and the defence of
Timisoara needed to be reconstituted, as troops from both locations would be diverted for the attack. First, the new 1 Mot Div was given a commander (the untried MAJGEN Kanatli was taken from 4 Inf Div in
Istanbul) and sent to
Timisoara to replace 1 Cav Div. It would take some while to regain its organisation, but a strong defence had been left in the city in the interim.
And the recently added 2 Inf Div, currently acting as a spare reserve in for 2nd Corps in the south, would be sent to become the new 1st Army reserve formation, but based further forward – in
Beograd.
“Sir, the weather reports you required.” Inönü’s Chief Meteorologist salutes smartly (and gives a snappy click of the heels) as he hands over the report. He is new to the HQ and of course in awe of the Army Commander and nation’s leader.
“Relax, Major, here in the field we don’t stand on such ceremony,” says the great man. After a short pause to regard the reports – which cover both the Soviet front line in the Ukraine and the provinces earmarked for OP KURT SÜRÜSÜ - he looks back at the Meteorologist. “So, all clear in front of us, which is good. But not much of the famed spring mud yet for the Soviets, which is
not so good. Let us hope the weather holds for us and breaks for them. Keep me updated.”
"Yessir!" is the reply, with another salute and heel-click.
"But without the heel-clicking," says the President, smiling gently.
"Yes sir! Uh, no sir! Er ..." The poor meteorologist is quite obviously flustered by now. Inönü mercifully waves him away and the young major steps out of the office. He would soon get used to the HQ and its battle rhythm.
The rest of the day passes with the issuing of orders and the movement of troops.
OTL Event: Washington DC, US. The United States Senate passed the Lend-Lease bill by a vote of 60–31.
Gains and Losses. Inönü’s end of day report indicates that
Mariampolè (Northern Sector, near
Kaunas) and
Dywin (Central Sector, east of
Brest-Litovsk) have been occupied by the Germans.
9 Mar 41
Interior Minister Kaya is working late in his office when there is a knock on the door, just after midnight.
“What is it?” he snapped. At this time of the night, it wasn’t going to be good.
“The Air Ministry has just reported that our blueprints for single engine aircraft have been stolen, Minister,” says his Principal Private Secretary.
For a moment Kaya is stunned. Not just that their Ministry has been raided of ‘secrets’. He was more astounded that anyone would want their WW1-vintage aircraft so-called ‘designs’! This was hardly going to be the work of one of the Axis major powers!!
“We must catch these vermin and liquidate them. What an affront!” His Secretary knows the warning signs and has Kaya’s medication ready.
After calming down, Kaya instructs a report be sent to the President. He also orders a change in domestic intelligence priorities, increasing counterespionage to the maximum and putting national unity on the back-burner for now. The cheek of these ‘backwoods’ spies, whoever they may be.
They wouldn't be 'unknown' for long, Kaya swore to himself.
They would be both known and 'neutralised'.
Gains and Losses. That evening, a worrying report is received from the Romanians:
Zalau has been captured, on the outskirts of the key city of
Cluj.
In the Northern Sector the Soviets have retaken
Taurage; they have also retaken
Kowel but lost
Domonovo in the Central Sector. In the Southern Sector, the Germans have reoccupied
Shodorow (which the Soviets had taken the week before) and the Hungarians have taken
Svalava. They may be losing a few more than they gain, but Soviets are certainly not giving up yet!
OTL Event: Tirane, Albania. The Italian Spring Offensive began in the Greco-Italian War. Benito Mussolini, in a radio address from Albania, announced that he was personally commanding the offensive.
10 Mar 41
The upgraded counterespionage efforts show early results: a Thai (Siam) spy is captured. This must have been the culprit who stole the aircraft plans - though he admits nothing under interrogation. But no other Axis country would have bothered! No other major events, gains or losses are reported that day. The Wolfpack remains in motion, reorganising for the proposed offensive.
OTL Event: Tokyo, Japan. Japanese rear admiral Takijirō Ōnishi gives Isoroku Yamamoto a draft of the Pearl Harbor attack plan.
11 Mar 41
Another Thai spy is apprehended: Kaya is feeling calmer now – these are rapid and effective results, but he knows more foreign spies are out there. And they have yet to get any leads on ‘The Thorn’. His eye rests suspiciously on the Foreign Ministry. There is a significant pro-Western lobby there, even if Aras himself favours the Soviets. But no evidence has emerged. He bides his time.
And at the Foreign Ministry, an early morning meeting has been arranged with the British Military Attaché in
Ankara. The fleet had just arrived in Bushehr and has been ordered to conduct its surprise naval landing on
Ad Dammam in Saudi Arabia. Operation KROKODIL had begun: the largest Turkish naval landing undertaken in modern times.
The British are asked for any intelligence they can provide on Saudi troop dispositions.
“We’re aware of just one Saudi division, of unknown strength, off to the south-east of Riyadh,” says that worthy. “You’re welcome to the Saudis: we have our hands full in Libya for now. With Churchill now in charge, there is a lot of pressure on to halt the Italian advance. And we’re still tied up stamping out bushfires in Ethiopia.”
Comment: It is worth noting at this point [something I knew but then forgot about until I rechecked] that the Saudis are not at war with the Allies – only with the Comintern. The Axis war on the Allies is a limited war and the Saudis did not join and clearly haven’t been called to arms by the Germans since joining the Axis, or having been asked have refused.
“So, that British guarantee of independence for the Saudis made before they joined the Axis – you have no objection to us attacking them now?” asked the Turkish official conducting the call (one of our two anonymous coffee-drinking friends from the Foreign Ministry).
“No, no, quite all right. They declared war on you, so they are free game to you as far as we’re concerned. I don’t think Winston will be honouring
that pledge of Chamberlain’s in this case!”
“Very good, just needed to check.”
[And I gave it a quick test just to make sure – didn’t want an accidental war over something so trivial and illogical.]
And we added a new war goal to conquest, just for the hell of it. Shouldn’t actually make any practical difference, but in-universe it should keep Stalin happy and convinced Turkey is a good team player.
At 8am, 1 Cav Div arrived by rail in
Ruma. It would take another 133 hours (until 9pm on 16 March) to reorganise for offensive operations, but it was not required until the exploitation phase. At 3pm, 12 Inf Div arrived. The Wolfpack was starting to take shape. At this stage, 5 Inf Div was still in
Ada, due to arrive in
Ruma on the morning of 14 March.
Gains and Losses. The Germans retook
Taurage in the Northern Sector, which had been occupied by the Soviets two days before.
12 Mar 41
Corporal Metin Sadik marched into 15 Inf Div’s marshalling location in the hills of
Ruma at 4am, tired but not yet able to sleep: before they could rest they would need to dig foxholes for protection in case of air raid or long-range artillery shelling. With this latest arrival, the Wolfpack was almost complete. No other reports of major events along the Patriotic Front were received at HQ 1st Army that day, though in the Soviet and Romanian sectors several battles continued, including news of a couple more Soviet attacks. There was fight in the Russian Bear yet, even if the weight of gains still remained with the Axis.
13 Mar 41
In
Ad Dammam, 156 SD was first ashore at 5am, with no opposition found. 3 Cav Div and 1 Mil Div had both landed by 6am. As planned, 1 Mil Div would remain, entrench and guard the port and supply route while the other two units moved inland in a quick strike towards
Riyadh – a classic Turkish R.A.W. manouevre aimed at securing a quick end to hostilities with a minimum of fuss and casualties. While there had been some discussion previously about providing air support, the staff consensus was that it would likely not be needed and certainly would be needed for OP KURT SÜRÜSÜ - or to help defend against any enemy breakthrough in Romania. There was also a shortage or decent air bases and supply in range of Riyadh. This would be another ’shoestring operation’.
The Saudi port of Ad Dammam was taken by Turkish and Soviet troops without a fight early on 13 March 1941.
At D Day-1 for OP KURT SÜRÜSÜ, new attack objectives for the Soviets were set. 1 Mot Div had arrived in
Timisoara, still not fully reorganised after the change of command but available as a ready reaction force as necessary, especially if there was any enemy breakthrough in Romania.
And early that same afternoon, 2 Inf Div, the new reserve force, had arrived in
Beograd. Once 5 Inf Div arrived, all the pieces would be in place and any change of enemy stance due to the thinning of the line (or the assembly of forces in
Ruma) should be apparent.
Gains and Losses. Ariogala (Northern Sector, due west of
Kaunas) was retaken from the Germans, but in Romania
Baia Mare, due north of
Cluj, was occupied by the Hungarians: they now have two provinces adjoining that key
[VP] city.
14 Mar 41 – D-Day for OP KURT SÜRÜSÜ
As he rose that morning, Inönü knew this was going to be a long day. While Op KROKODIL continued in Saudi Arabia, he relied on Field Marshal Fuad Calistar to look after the detailed management. But the largest Turkish attack since the beginning of the
Great Liberation War would involve the coordination of land and air power and he would also need to keep an eye on the bigger picture, in case that impacted on his more local plans – especially in Romania, where the signs were worrying, though not yet catastrophic. But the situation there did remind him of the ‘creeping death’ of the
Battle for France the year before – where they suffered the thousand cuts before bleeding out.
---xxx---
5 Inf Div arrived in
Ruma at 10am: with that, the Wolfpack was finally assembled.
First, an air attack was launched by the TAC wing (personally commanded by Turkish CoS and Air Force Chief Ali Örlungat) on
Semska Mitrovica. It aimed both to soften the enemy up, but also to more accurately gauge their strength. And this was the first combat mission of the I-16 Polykarpov fighters of 2 Avci Filo (commanded by the twin brother of 5 Inf Div's MAJGEN Namut
). Along with the Hawk IIIs of Hitay's 1 Avci Filo , they would fly air intercept cover for the bombers. Time for the enemy to get a taste of their own medicine. Huzzah! Yaşasın!
The bombing run commenced at 11am and revealed the Hungarian division consisted only of two INF brigades. Good news.
In a hushed HQ 1st Army CP, the staff have a radio tuned to the aviation net. 1 and 2 Avci Filo had scrambled to intercept enemy aircraft over
Semska Mitrovica. They were expected to make contact any minute now. Clicks and bursts of static intersperse the transmissions.
[Note, we don’t have radar, so there will be no vectoring in using that, unfortunately. It’s Great War-style seat of the pants, but with observation posts (OPs) and radios (which at least Turkey researched a little while back)!]
“Yeşil Leader to Güçlü Control. Do you read me? Over.”
A pause, then the same voice (aircraft noise clearly audible in the background): “For God’s sake, Güçlü, wake up, will you? Yeşil Squadron airborne.”
A different voice, from another aircraft: “Close up, Kırmızı-2! Stick to me like glue, Mehmet.
“Yeşil Leader, sorry about that. This is Güçlü.”
“About time, too. Where are they?”
“Ground sightings indicate bandits now about thirty kilometres north-east of you heading southeast. Sector 1-2-0 and make Angels 2-0.”
“We'll go, Güçlü. Yeşil’s turning starboard - now.”
“Come in, Kırmızı-2. Where the hell are you? Where the hell are you, Mehmet?”
“Contact, 2 o’clock low, fighters and bombers! At least two wings of each!”
In the key air combat factors, the Turkish Hawk IIIs are slower (450kmh vs 500kmh) than the Freccias; they have slightly better air defence (5.5 vs 5.0) but significantly lower air attack (4.0 vs 6.0). Base organisation and morale are the same. [NB: Yes, I did do a quick tag on an earlier save just to check these aircraft details, given they had been in contact.] But the veteran Turkish pilots are more experienced (21.5% vs10.1% after the first contact report, see below). The Polykarpov I-16s have the same speed as the Freccias and the same air attack and defence factors and morale. But their organisation (40%) and starting experience (25%) are higher (through better training and doctrine). It should be a fair fight for now – unless the Luftwaffe turns up!
“You, men, pull yourselves together! I'm breaking right to attack.”
“My God! Fighters coming up now! Fire speed. Break. Break!”
“On your tail, Ali!”
“Mavi Leader turning port now.”
“Watch out for Freccias about.”
“Roger, Sari Leader. Going in now. Take the left-hand pair, Mavi Leader.”
“Roger. Everybody else, keep tight.”
“Swarms of them, sir!”
“This is Yeşil Leader, cut that out. Everyone keep quiet.”
“Fighters behind and above!”
“Öküz, will you pipe down?”
“I’m on fire - son of a gun!”
“Öküz! Behind you! Behind!”
“I am on fire! I'm bailing out!”
“I’m on fire! I’m bailing out!” An I-16 is downed, 14 March 1941. The pilot (Öküz or ‘Ox’) bailed out over enemy lines: his fate is unknown.
“Got him, got him. He’s trailing smoke and oil. That Freccia that got Öküz is going down!”
“This is Mavi Leader. More of them to the front. Saldır! Saldır! (Attack! Attack!)”
Turkish I-16s fly into the fight over Semska Mitrovica, 14 March 1941. “Yaşasın!”
This went on for some time more, but Inönü retired to his office. There was nothing he could do in this fight – he would await the reports and hope the brave pilots did their duty and survived.
---xxx---
Three Turkish infantry divisions had begun moving forward to at the same time (midday) as the air battle raged and were soon in contact with the enemy. The attack was led by MAJGEN Namut – after his Corps Commander, LTGEN Cakmak, the most accomplished commander in the Turkish Army. The infantry makes its way through the barbed wire and light artillery fire to press the attack, as Turkish bombers hit the enemy’s positions.
The first air report is to hand: the Turkish fighters have come through well against the Hungarian fighters, which were accompanying two wings of Italian TAC. The initial analysis of comparative effectiveness came out in favour of the Turkish flyers, while the Turkish TAC estimated they killed 56 Hungarian soldiers in their initial ground attack.
By 6pm on D-Day, the ground attack was progressing well, with estimates that the enemy were already down to around 50% effectiveness. Another Turkish air raid was in progress on
Semska Mitrovica, where the same two Hungarian fighter wings (III and IV) intercepted them, leading to another dogfight. The Hungarians took some more damage, but so too did the Turkish fighters (the Polykarpovs of 2 Avci Filo in particular) and the Blenheims of the TAC wing. Simultaneously, reports come in that the Italians were bombing Turkish positions in
Ruma. There were more of them and they were clearly more effective than their Turkish counterparts. By 7pm, the TAC had taken more damage: given the enemy ground troops were few in number and failing fast, the decision was taken to withdraw the TAC and let them regroup. The bomb damage assessment from both the Turkish and Italian raids were also in.
Turkish AA gunners from 12 Inf Div observe a dogfight between Turkish and Hungarian fighters over Semska Mitrovica on the evening of 14 March 1941.
Late that night, MAJGEN Namut reported the enemy were failing and that his own casualties had been light. The Hungarians should not stand for much longer. However, he also reported the Hungarian 27th Div to the north-east in
Novi Sad had been spotted heading towards
Semska Mitrovica. He was not sure whether his troops could defeat the 7th Div in front of him and occupy the field before those enemy reinforcements arrived. This would delay any breakthrough – but it did show they had attracted the enemy’s notice!
Gains and Losses. The Northern Sector again proved to be well-contested, where the Soviets once more retook
Plunge but were unable to hold onto their earlier gains (from the day before) in
Ariogala against a German counter-attack. In the forests of the Central Sector, the Germans retook
Kowel from the Soviets (reversing the result of 9 March) and occupied
Bereza (north-east of
Brest-Litovsk).
---xxx---
So ended the first day of Operation KURT SÜRÜSÜ. The results on the ground and in the air had been promising. It at least showed that in the attack, the Turks could hold their own at least against the Axis minor powers. And in Saudi Arabia, the Operation KROKODIL landings had gone off like clockwork, with no enemy yet sighted to contest the desert road to
Riyadh. How all this would turn out over the next few days was, of course, unknowable.
Author’s Note: there was way too much material available from my last session, with two active operations in progress, to put it all in one chapter, so the second will follow reasonably shortly. It will include the usual front progress summaries, to put pictures to the words describing the ebb and flow of battle on the rest of the Patriotic Front and around the world. For now, the focus will remain largely on combat matters. The rebuilding of the spy and S.I.T.H. network in Western Europe continues, so things are a bit quieter there – on the surface, anyway. But we may see a postcard from B.J. Guildenstern soon, as he suns himself in Hawaii.
---xxx---
Coming Up: The assault is pressed home in
Semska Mitrovica – can Turkey break through, or will the Axis be able to scramble a defence? Is the road to
Riyadh clear or do the desert sands conceal a nasty surprise for the Turkish-Soviet task force? Will
Riyadh be garrisoned by the time they reach it? And will their supplies hold up? Can the air force sustain its rate of effort and protect the troops of the Wolfpack from the previous heavy casualties they have suffered from Axis TAC bombers? Initial signs are encouraging, with Axis air raids not yet causing the same devastation as in previous defensive battles. And will Churchill’s takeover of Britain make any material difference to their war effort? Can he turn the tables in North Africa? Perse thinks so - and he certainly fits the ‘flamboyant tough guy’ image Ögel’s profilers have branded him with!
