The Great Tragedy

[Prince Hunter of Bavaria]

The Great Tragedy 

The newly-created nation of Germany got control of the province of Alsace-Lorraine, which was culturally mostly (though not totally) French. The loss of this province, rich in industry, agriculture and wine as well as human and cultural capital, was a deep humiliation to 19th century French people. They regarded it as a terrible injustice. Years later; in the 1921 Norman-Nostrum the Southern Provinces were lost. The massive upheaval in France over the lose of her southern provinces rich in culture and agriculture sent shockwaves to the House of Commons and Senat in London. Within the French communities; the uproar was massive. Streets were packed with hundreds demanding change. While the British Conservative Party would maintain political control even after the major upheavals, the French Democratic Party would sweep the 1944 elections ushering a new doctrine and a new plan forward to reclaim the lost territories of France and ensuring the Norman Commonwealth would respect French individualism.

Edited May 22, 2018 by Prince Hunter of Bavaria

[Prince Hunter of Bavaria]

[War Objectives]

 

[Tac-Map] 

 

 

 

French Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Regiment Launching an attack 

 

It is with such, we the people of France reclaim our homeland and rid it of the plague of the Imperium… February 4th, 1944/ French Parliament authorizes war against The Imperium of Nostrum 

 

French Soldiers of the 1st Infantry Regiment were given orders directly from Paris. They huggled around their vehicles as General Jean Lanne of Operation Poseidon spoke to the 1st Armee, 2nd Armee, and 82nd Airborne Division. Their missions were read, and they headed east on their armored vehicles.They travelled unopposed for 12 hours before gun-fire could be hear in the distance. The 22nd Armored Division was under fire from the town of Rigoza. The 1st Infantry were detached to handle the enemy there. 

French 3rd Marine Division 

 

French Marines stormed through the south, their main objectives to form break points on Imperium Defenses as the Air Force and Paratroopers hit the North to quickly and effectively overrun smaller detachments of enemies before a larger force could be assembled. 

 

French 82nd Airborne Division

French Airborne Units took off from French Airports near Lyon and launched an airborne operation into occupied-Imperium territory. Their objectives were to capture the towns of Lyes, Ypres, Asloia, and Romiao. 

[Rimski]

The Imperiums rensponse was to secure a defensive line with the incoing reinforcments from all west of Milan. Armed with Carcano rifles. They set up many 'movable' hard positions with LMGs. The Defensive Line is made on major urban areas of Montpellier and Nimes while including the aeriarrly besieged city of Valence. The French starting operation has resulted in 3540 Italian Causailties while 6000 personel have surrendered. The rest of the armies have got the order to retreat to the soon to be made defensive line. They have destroyed what they could and carried what they could to keep their mobility. The large surrender of Italian armies in France was a slap in the face for the Imperium. The reinforcments that came were motorized units with engineers. Howitzers were sparse on the front for now. Anti-air guns were focused more on the North now and at Montpellier. Howitzers were used only used on 'Code Orange' when the chance of loss of the west of the city was over 50%. The Navy has been commanded on the move with 2 Destroyers being moved into the defensive of Montpellier. The only planes present in southern France were  Fighters with only 20 Bombers and 10 Transport Planes with 100 Fighters with 67 outdated. The reinforments priority goes by Aircraft then Howitzers then heavier equiptment for the infantry. 

[Prince Hunter of Bavaria]

As the Imperium began shifting supplies from other fronts towards Southern France; The French Strategic Command decided to destroy important infrastructure in Southern France. Railroads were severed, Radio-Lines cut, and Supply-Lines laced with soldiers to ambush enemy supplies. 

 

French Bombers landed in recently captured Lyon where the 82nd Airborne Division held the city; maintaining their strategic vantage point on surrounding hills and mountains. The 82nd was detaching units From their airborne attack on Valance to support the 3rd Marine Division and 22nd Foreign Legion Detachment in their assault into Montpellier. The French Navy would begin re-tasking the Carrier Group Foch and six-submarines to begin tracking the Italian Navy while bombers and Naval Scouts surveilled the waters for enemy naval convoys. 

 

French AMX-30s from the 1st Tank Division linked up with the 10th Mechanized and 32nd Motorized Infantry Brigades to spearhead a pincer movement on both flanks of the retreating Imperium. As the Imperium would continue to retreat, the French 1st Tank Division and 2nd Tank Division would engulf them. 

 

[Rimski]

Forces from Montpellier will be retreated towards north, Nimes and Avigon where a major defensive perimiter will be set as Montpellier is undefendable. A giant air force has finally come to the French Frontier where they could prevent further Paratrooping missions by France and they forced them to start a major battle for the control of the southern French skies. Motorized units from Gap will be hodling the southern road as well as the home-city of Gap. Light Tanks alongside infantry and AA guns on trucks will be holding the back-bone of the defensive at Nimes and Avigon. The small navy at Montpellier has made small actions to hurt the city and units approaching it and fleeing to regroup with a major fleet aka a Carrier Group West of Corsica being moved to the battlefield to provide additional air support to the 'back-bone army' and to serve as a launch platform for scouting missions. 

- Defensive Plans for Nimes

High-Command has ordrered for Flak guns to be put at Nimes since the battle for Montpellier. They are positioned in buildings alongside smaller battalion artillery hidden behind bricks of buildings supported by sandbags. Infantry was positioned in fox holes upon artillery barrages but at the ending of the barrage they would hug to windows or quickly reinforce hardpoints. 

The Artillery had orders to blast the link between Nimes and Avignon if there was anyone there as the Italian commands were to hold the city to the last man and bullet until a large mobile force was assambeled to peform a counter-attack on the French. The same command was set for any bombers whom would be sent as support to the defensive [Note - The Defence of the cities was not left without air support,  there was constantly fighters preventing French Operations on the city. 

Aignon defense was focused on preventing airplanes going towards the main-offense by the French but they would have some heavier infantry equiptment there as a defensive against infantry and anti-tank in the forms of a renamed Panzerfaust. 

[Prince Hunter of Bavaria]

Montpellier would fall quickly, the french paratroopers and infantry cut off the retreating forces and taken control of the major roads before moving into the city. The French Tanks had moved quickly and already enveloped the Italian Armies retreating from Montpellier. 

The town of Gap was surrounded, with the main road now blockaded by the French 2nd Paratrooper Brigade & First Light Infantry Regiment. French Forces after taking a minor loss in the air ended all airborne operations for the time being. French Airplanes would take to the skies to defeat the Italian Air Force

In the south, the French navy had caught the minimal force off guard and destroyed it. The French Carrier Group no formed a solid defense wall around Montipellier and the French artillery had begun to counter-fire using elite Para Commandos to relay coordinates in Names. 

[Rimski]

The main-roman army has finally come to stabiize the front. Operation Sabre is a go. The 1st Alps army is spli into three. Two thirds being sent on the northern supply dirt-road which is being built. to establish a second defensive pointe at the northern Aix-en Provence perimiter. The last third is going north to support the defence of the gap road. The Defence of the road has resulted in some parts of the defensive line at the road to be retreated into the more defendable but colder position in the mountains wih many hidden machine-gun posts preventing French advance into the mountains but also preventing total control of the road. The two other armies are the so called "bulle eaters" which consume a lot of bullets with their quick shooting weaponery massly put into the army. They would be sent to support the back-bone of the Nimes-Avigon defence triangle. Their means of transportation are light-armoured vehicles with the infantry being driven to the Aix-en Provence battleground and then continouing in foot. Their defensive operation will relive the outnumbered army already presen there. They alone will continoue the defensive focus on the back-bone area after a small offensive/cut off operations on the marching french soldiers on the road there. The outnumbered army will be sent to Avignon (not put on the map, nor is the additional defence of the two armies) alongside some heavier equiptment to add on to the defence of the city. And alas a Sicilian Unit is put on he defence of both Aix-en Provence and Marseille supported by the Navy and Airforce (not on the map either.)

Commanders 

Gap Defence - Umberto Liberoscosi

Alps Army - Pierto Badogilo

Southern Back-bone defensive - Giovanni Messe 

Northern Back-bone defensive - Rodolfo Graziani 

Nimes-Avignon - Luigi Cadorna

Sicilian Army - Francesco Sinater von Azzip