Battle of the Third Reich Chapter 197: Mule
"You mean... the mule?" The head of Germany was taken aback when he heard the words, and then narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Yes, mule." Worried about the misunderstanding, Sir Fay still put **** on his head.
"I know the mule, Sir Faye, we use it to tow artillery and vehicles." Xu Jun said he understood what the other party was talking about.
In the current German Wehrmacht, at least 80% of the army still retains the mule and horse organization. As mentioned in the previous article of this book, the reasons are very complicated. In addition to the number of vehicles purchased cannot keep up with the speed of army expansion, there are mainly logistical problems. Germany's fuel is extremely limited, and large-scale motorization must be Will increase the burden in this regard. Now the fuel problem of the German army has been temporarily solved, and all troops have begun to increase the proportion of motorization, but it will take some time for the full replacement.
Mule and horse vehicles are mainly equipped for company-platoon-level infantry units. They are used as logistic transportation tools for grassroots units. In addition to the rations and ammunition carried by soldiers, almost two-thirds of a company’s supplies are loaded in these systems. On the logistic carriage.
In the German written organization, each infantry company will be equipped with three to four double-driving logistic carriages and a small mobile cooking wagon driven by a mule and horse, which is a company-level field kitchen. Like other European countries, the military carriages of the Wehrmacht are standard equipment. The design can be traced back to before World War I. Although they look old in style, they are quite durable.
In the early days, a conventional infantry division of the German army would be equipped with three thousand five hundred to five thousand mule horses. Almost every four soldiers can be allocated one horse. This ratio can be said to be quite amazing.
Of course, the distribution of horses in reality cannot be calculated like that, because in addition to towing heavy carriages, German artillery units occupy more than 80% of the horses. A heavy division-level artillery often requires six to twelve strong horses. The horse was dragged.
Before the war, the German army was equipped mostly with tall and strong horses or war horses, but the number of mules in the army was not very large. Because the German army has a long history of breeding and using horses, generals have a special liking for horses, and The mule can only be used as a backup supplement for some logistic horses. Another reason is that the German countryside did not raise donkeys, and the output of mules was certainly insufficient.
During the European War, the horses of the German army were at a loss, and even the first-line infantry divisions lost their mobility due to a large number of deaths. After the war, the Germans had to requisition horses in the occupied areas and at the same time supplemented a large number of mules. Finally, the number of mules and horses in the army was restored to the level before the war.
At present, the mules in the German army are mainly produced in Austria and Hungary. The Magyars have the habit of raising mules. The French army also provided a large number of mules for the German army. The French started breeding experiments with Egyptian donkeys very early. Developed a variety of mules unique to France. In contrast, the Italian Army prefers donkeys, because smaller donkeys are more suitable for maneuvering on narrow mountain roads in the Italian mountains. The German mountain troops are also equipped with some donkeys. This kind of livestock is indeed very adaptable to the mountain environment, and is more cold-resistant than ordinary horses, and can move for a long time on the snow line.
"Sir, I don't quite understand what you mean. Are you suggesting that we add a batch of mules?" Weierle couldn't help but interject.
"Yes, Lord General." Fay nodded and replied.
"This is indeed a way to replenish capacity, but the problem is that if horses and mules are transported here from Europe, it will be very expensive on the road, and we don't have so much time." Weierle wrinkled Brow said.
"You are right, Lord General, but you obviously didn't understand what I meant." Fay said to Weierle with a smile, and then he looked at the German head of state: "Honorable head of state, you don't actually need to By drawing livestock from Europe, I know that there is a place with many mules, and it only takes a few days to transport them to the front lines of the peninsula."
"It's funny, please go on, Sir Fay." The head of the Empire sat upright.
"The place I'm talking about is India." Sir Fay's tone was a little smug, and he finally found that the German head of state still had areas that he didn't know.
"Eric, map." Xu Jun raised his head and ordered. Soon a large-scale map was laid out on the low table in the middle of the carriage.
"You know, the British Empire has a large number of troops stationed in India, and bases are almost all over the subcontinent. You see, the major cities in India are very far apart, especially those close to the northeast. The local environment The conditions on the roads and roads are very bad, and the difficulties in logistical supplies are considerable.” Following the German head of state to the map, Fay pointed to the Indian peninsula on the map and began to explain.
"So the British Empire established a special cargo transportation unit in India. Because of its outstanding merits, it was given the title of "Royal" by the king five years ago." Faye said.
"Are you referring to the Royal Indian Army Heavy Regiment?" Xu Jun smiled and said with his palm. He should have thought of this long ago. The moment Faye mentioned India, he had a vague hunch.
The Royal Indian Army Heavy Regiment, the official name is the Royal Indian Army Service Corps. This unit is the predecessor of the Indian Army Logistics Corps in the future. This is a professional transport force, currently composed of six transport regiments, with a headquarters in Madras and Mumbai.
The Anglo-Indian Royal Yacht Regiment participated in the First World War. These Indian Yachts fought side by side with the British Army in the European battlefield. Because they had been active in the front of their positions, they were often attacked by German air and ground joint strikes, personnel and equipment. The losses were quite serious. In recognition of the achievements of the Indian squad, the British officers who led the team would often receive awards and medals from their superiors.
In the mid-1930s, because of the rise of nationalism in India, in order to win over the Anglo-Indian troops with Indian soldiers as the main force, King George VI gave some Anglo-Indian troops the honor of “Royal”. The loyal Anglo-Indian army corps, which has always performed hard work and resentment, is honored to be one of them.
This heavy-duty unit is a pure mule and horse-formed unit. It is not equipped with a transport truck. Of course, it will be equipped with some cars for the command department and officers, as well as two-wheeled motorcycles for the messengers.
Speaking of which, Indian soldiers had already begun to ride motorcycles before World War II. Under the harsh road conditions in the Indian countryside, all the soldiers had practiced good car skills. But the Indian motorcycle soldiers at that time didn't have the guts to play acrobatics. The commander was a British master, and no one could violate the military regulations under their noses.
The livestock equipped by the British-Indian Royal Yacht Regiment are all mules. The British army has cultivated a large number of mules in India, which are mainly provided to the colonial troops in South Asia to transport their equipment. Hard-working mules are more suitable for activities in tropical jungles than horses.
The Anglo-Indian Royal Serving Regiment mainly operates on the plains and low hills. They use the double-driving and single mule cart specially made by the Anglo-Indian army. These mule carts riveted with angle steel are very light and simple in structure. They are towed by one or two mules according to their size. Two-driving mule carts can usually carry one ton of cargo ~ IndoMTL.com~ The smaller ones can carry half a ton. The British army generally uses two types of mule carts together.
A transport team usually has three hundred mules and is equipped with one hundred Indian soldiers. Each soldier is responsible for the care of three mules. There are special personnel in the regiment who are responsible for handling and distributing grass. The heavy soldiers are only responsible for drinking, feeding, and cleaning. The body of livestock, this job is not very onerous.
Each mule will be assigned a set of British military-style workhorse harnesses, including leather saddle pads and straps with shiny metal buckles. This well-made harness may be the best in the hands of these heavy soldiers. The valuable equipment is gone, so you can only get it from the munitions warehouse after getting the official mission.
Xu Jun estimates that the current heavy corps has at least 15,000 to 20,000 mules, and about 5,000 to 7,000 mule carts. Even if only half of them are transferred, it is enough to make up for the current capacity gap of the African Army. Up.
"This matter involves the British and Indian army, and needs to communicate with London first." Xu Jun looked at Faye.
"If you believe me, Lord Führer, I am willing to do a meager effort in this matter." Faye lowered his head slightly and looked up at the young Führer.
"The Third Reich will not forget your friendship, Sir Fay." The head of state nodded slightly in thanks.
"Sir, if London agrees, how long do you estimate it will take to assemble the troops." Xu Jun turned around and looked down at the map on the DJ.
"Your Excellency, I need to contact the Anglo-Indian Army Headquarters first. Before that, I think I can prepare ships for transporting people and livestock." Faye quickly put away his smile and started discussing the implementation with the German head of state. The steps come.
PS: Thank you for your support, the author will continue to work hard.
Please ask for a monthly pass at the beginning of the month. Please vote for the guaranteed monthly pass for this month. The author would like to thank you in advance.