The other general was Admiral Reinhard Scheer, commander of the German High Seas Fleet. His voice was filled with frustration:
"Your Majesty, our warships are largely blockaded in port by the Royal Navy. It's difficult to achieve anything substantial."
"Furthermore, Charles seems to have developed so kind of equipnt. The French Navy appears capable of detecting underwater submarines, which has undermined our strategy of using U-boats to cut off the enemy's supply lines."
(Above: Admiral Reinhard Scheer of the German Navy)
Wilhelm II shifted in his seat to face Admiral Scheer more comfortably. "Admiral, it is precisely because of the failure of our submarine campaign that I am now thinking of the navy."
Scheer understood what Wilhelm ant.
If there had been any hope left in the land war or with the submarine campaign, Wilhelm wouldn't have considered deploying the navy.
The problem was, the German Navy was vastly outmatched by the British Royal Navy—so much so that victory seed nearly impossible.
But now, the empire was at its most perilous mont. Both land operations and submarine warfare had been crushed by Charles.
Worse yet, there was no longer any visible hope of victory.
Falkenhayn was out of solutions—he was simply praying not to lose. He and his soldiers had lost faith in victory.
As for the submarine campaign, they didn't even know how Charles had discovered their submarines. There was no way to fight back—only a complete withdrawal of the offensive lines.
So what were they waiting for with the navy?
Should they just sit idly in port because the enemy was too powerful and wait for the empire's downfall?
If that was the case, what had been the point of pouring so much money into building a navy?
"It's ti for the navy to prove itself," Wilhelm said in a tone that brooked no argunt. "By whatever ans necessary."
"But, Your Majesty," Scheer protested with a troubled expression, "we only have 18 battleships, while the British Royal Fleet has 33. Additionally, due to the Allied blockade, we lack the steel and funding to build more ships. anwhile, the British are still adding to their fleet…"
"Which is why," Wilhelm interrupted, "we must act now."
The longer they waited, the greater the Royal Navy's advantage would grow. The issue had to be dealt with imdiately.
Another long silence followed, so still that even the sound of the fire crackling could be heard.
Wilhelm waited patiently—he knew Scheer needed ti. The gap in naval power was not trivial, and asking Scheer to co up with a viable solution on the spot was a tall order.
Just as Wilhelm was about to end the eting and let Scheer return to consider his options, Falkenhayn suddenly broke the silence.
"I've been thinking about Charles's army," he said out of nowhere.
"What?" Wilhelm looked at him with confusion and frowned. Why bring up Charles's army now? You think you can beat him?
Scheer didn't react. He was still lost in thought, staring at the wine glass on the table. It glowed crimson in the firelight, like it was portraying the German navy's destruction in a sea of blood and fire.
"What I an is…" Falkenhayn clarified, "Charles's forces always manage to win with fewer troops. And our navy, compared to the Royal Navy, is also the smaller side. So perhaps we can draw inspiration from Charles's tactics."
Scheer responded in a low voice, "I've already thought about it, General. Including Charles's tactics."
After a pause, Scheer analyzed further:
"Charles wins despite being outnumbered because he leverages superior equipnt and mobility to penetrate the enemy's weak points."
"But our fleet, facing the Royal Navy, has neither of those advantages. In fact, we're the ones at a disadvantage."
"So I don't believe we can apply Charles's tactics."
These words made it clear: Admiral Scheer had considered this issue not just recently, but likely since before the war began—how to defeat the Royal Navy while being the weaker force.
"You're right, Admiral," Falkenhayn admitted. "We can't copy Charles's tactics in that sense."
It was a fact: the German fleet was weaker than the British in terms of numbers, quality, and even sailors' combat experience.
However…
Falkenhayn looked straight at Admiral Scheer:
"But have you considered this: Charles's breakthroughs often rely on forming local superiority in numbers."
"What I an is, although Charles's 1st Armored Corps only has around 20,000 troops, he always uses their mobility to ensure that, wherever they appear, they greatly outnumber the enemy."
"In the end, we were never able to concentrate enough troops to fight him effectively."
Admiral Scheer suddenly looked up at Falkenhayn. "You an…"
Wilhelm II still didn't quite follow, but wisely chose not to interrupt. He didn't want to cut off the exchange between the two generals.
Falkenhayn nodded:
"I don't know if it's feasible, Admiral, because naval warfare is very different from land warfare."
"But I believe there's a common tactical principle at play, and if we can apply it correctly…"
"Even though the British have many more ships than we do, they're spread out to maintain the blockade. Why don't we do as Charles does—concentrate our forces to create local superiority, then pick off the enemy one by one?"
Admiral Scheer was dumbfounded. It took him a long mont before he finally nodded. "You… you're right, General. It may be difficult, but this could be the only tactic that gives us a chance to win."
"So," Wilhelm asked, "is this plan feasible?"
He seed to understand—though not entirely.
"I believe so, Your Majesty," Scheer answered. "If even this tactic doesn't work, then perhaps nothing will."
Then he excitedly pulled a chart from his coat pocket and spread it across the table. After studying it in the firelight for a mont, he looked up at Falkenhayn and gave a grateful nod. Finally, he turned his gaze to Wilhelm.
"I believe we have so room to maneuver, Your Majesty," Scheer said with renewed energy. His voice was firm, and his speech picked up speed:
"The British fleet is relatively dispersed. We can use small squadrons to lure out British sub-fleets, then ambush them with concentrated force."
"Although we can't win everything in a single battle, if the British don't co up with better tactics…"
"I an, if they continue to maintain a constant blockade, their ships will gradually diminish through repeated defeats."
Wilhelm understood. He shouted in excitent, "Eventually, their numbers will drop to match ours!"
"Yes!" Admiral Scheer clenched his fist, energized. "And if they concentrate their forces, it ans there will be holes in their blockade—our fleet might break through!"
"Excellent!" Wilhelm stood up. "Brilliant strategy."
He grabbed the wine glass from the table. "Gentlen, to our victory!"
Admiral Scheer and Falkenhayn quickly stood and raised their glasses as well.
"To our victory!" they echoed.
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