The Sound of Drums: To the Last Man - A Company of Heroes AAR
Part Four
6th June - 20th July 1940
Their expedition to France had been a disaster. Following the defeat at Dunkirk, the 1st CFC Division began the long retreat south with the rest of the British Expeditionary Force. It was an embarrassing display of British strength, and it only got worse. Field Marshall Equuleus, commander of the B.E.F., was killed in action during the Battle of Lille, and just days later it was announced that Paris was to be abandoned. It was shortly after this that the orders to evacuate the B.E.F. was given. Despite these setbacks, Colonel Vertinari118 felt he had had a good time in France.
At Dunkirk the 1st CFC had been assisted in its defence by the 21st Field Artillery Brigade. Commanded by Verinari118 and attached to the 1st Infantry Division, it had provided the covering fire preceding the 1st CFCs actions, as well as covering fire as the entire VII Corps retreated. Immediately after, Vertinari118 successfully withdrew the 21st Field Artillery 130 miles south - hardly an easy task given the heavy equipment in his brigade, more so when being chased by German panzers!
Departing France
The evacuation of the B.E.F. was to be considered a remarkable feat of human ability. Despite the poor condition of the ports at Le Havre and Dieppe, virtually every soldier and their equipment were transported back to Britain between the 12th and 14th of June. It would not have been possible without either the French divisions - fighting only to help their allies, not themselves - or the VII Corps. Having been the only British group to engage the Germans previously, they became the last defenders of France, and the last British troops to leave.
Vertinari118 returned home with his forces to a Britain preparing for a German invasion. Only a week after the evacuation the French government would surrender, leaving Britain alone and awaiting the inevitable air attack. There were now 22 divisions in England awaiting orders, and for now the government couldnt do anything with them except, to the horror of Vertinari118, Home Guard duty.
A soldier of the 1st CFC Division watching for enemy aircraft
After the great battles of France, preparing coastal defences and watching the skies for bomber attacks was hardly a challenge for the 1st CFC and the other former B.E.F. divisions. Worse, for the remainder of June there was very little indication that the 1st CFC Division would be deployed elsewhere - training exercises continued as they had in France before the German invasion. Even the awarding of medals gave just a small morale boost to soldiers who, after months of wanting to leave France for the comfort of Britain, now wanted to leave it to escape the boredom.
In July that possibility began to look likely. Fresh troops began to arrive to replace the soldiers lost in action in France, and it was rumoured that many of these troops were being rushed in from other divisions to make up the lost numbers quickly. There was additional changes: Vertinari118 was given a promotion to Brigadier General and moved to the 1st CFC Division as its second in command. He only agreed to be transferred on the condition that his 21st Field Artillery Brigade be attached to the 1st CFC as well.
Vertinari118 only got his request on the quiet agreement that it shut him up, in the subtle wording of Nodikus, Chief of the Army. Since the B.E.F. returned to Britain Vertinari118 had been quite vocal in his desire to be redeployed to the front line. It became quite clear that he wished to be deployed
anywhere that there was the potential for fighting - Africa was a popular request, but the minute that the Japan threat returned he even put in a request that he be deployed to India!
Thankfully, the Cabinet were quite intent on getting the evacuated troops back into action as soon as possible, and the 1st CFCs reputation as the only division to have been in a major British engagement meant it would be the first to leave. There was very little question of where it would be deployed to - the Prime Minister wanted the Libyan campaign finished before the end of the year, and the suggestion of an amphibious assault at Tripoli was raised. Not only would it open a second front in Libya, but it would provide the British High Command with its first experience of an amphibious assault - vital if they ever hoped to return to France.
The proposed landings at Tripoli
Operation Hartnell was to be a joint naval/army affair. Germanicus First Armada would clear enemy shipping in the region, give cover for the landings and provide the only air cover available. PrinceScamp would be launching his own offensive in eastern Libya, partially as a deception, and had demanded he be given control of all RAF wings in the Mediterranean as part of that disguise. The landings themselves would be conducted by the VI Corps, now containing the 1st CFC Division as well as the 46th North Midlands Division. It was their job to capture the beaches and Tripoli itself to allow the rest of the army to land safely.
The future commanders of the operation were briefed in London on the 2nd July, and Vertinari118 could barely conceal his delight. Here, they learned that ten divisions were to take part in the second front as the First British Army. Overall command of the campaign fell to General Riptide_Monzarc II, son of the Imperial Defence Council founder. Until now he had essentially served as an observer during the French campaign, but was now determined to put what he had learned to practical use.
The troops of the First British Army were not briefed in the operation while in England, and as such the news that they were about to be redeployed gave rise to a great amount of speculation. Norway, with the recent German invasion there, was the most commonly suggested target, though that suggestion was shattered immediately after setting sail. The First British Army reached Malta on the 20th July, and by that time the general details of Hartnell was well known even before briefings and training exercises began. One week after landing in Malta, and the first British amphibious landings of the war would begin
