Chapter 430: A Trade of Interests
Charles had to admit he had underestimated King Albert I.
Until now, Charles had only known about the guerrilla fighters. He had established contact with them through the "White Lady" network and made tactical plans accordingly. Some guerrilla units had already been working with the French to maintain order or even engage in combat directly.
But Charles hadn't known how many guerrillas there were, where they were located, or how to coordinate them in battle.
With King Albert's arrival, however, all that changed. Albert quickly organized the scattered guerrilla units under a unified command.
…
Early the next morning, Charles was in the fortress command room with Tijani, meticulously calculating their fuel supply. They were trying to figure out how to keep the tanks patrolling within the city while still saving some reserves.
Charles even had the urge to ask King Albert to mobilize the guerrillas to gather civilian fuel from Antwerp and its surrounding areas. If they could collect all available fuel within a few dozen kilometers, it might relieve the urgent needs of the armored units.
But he knew this wasn't a good idea.
Doing so would clearly signal to the Germans that Charles's forces were low on fuel, encouraging them to escape through any gaps in the encirclement.
Reluctantly, Charles dismissed the idea.
At that moment, King Albert entered, carrying a briefcase. Though fatigue had drained some color from his face, his expression was bright with excitement.
Albert was followed by a Belgian officer in uniform.
Charles was slightly surprised, but Albert stepped aside and introduced the man. "This is Colonel Eden, Brigadier General. I've decided to put him in charge of the Antwerp guerrillas. You can give him orders directly."
Charles glanced at Colonel Eden—a soldier in his forties with a neatly groomed mustache. Oddly enough, his uniform bore the insignia of a major.
But then Charles realized that Eden must have been field-promoted to colonel without time or resources to change his uniform.
Colonel Eden, visibly nervous, approached Charles and saluted awkwardly. He hesitated before extending his hand, unsure if it would be appropriate, so Charles took the initiative and shook it.
"Good morning, Colonel."
"Good morning, General," Colonel Eden replied quickly. "It's an honor to serve under your command. We are prepared for your orders—whatever you need us to do."
"Just keep doing what you're doing," Charles replied. "Maintain order, and continue to hunt down any remaining enemies."
"Yes, General," Eden responded, straightening with excitement and looking at Charles with admiration.
This was the general who had fought his way from Cambrai to Antwerp in a single day—a young man with such astounding achievements.
Albert I took a document from his briefcase and handed it to Charles. "This is the Antwerp guerrilla unit. We've temporarily organized it as the 21st Division, with Colonel Eden as its commander."
Charles took the document, somewhat puzzled.
Another odd point: wasn't a division commander supposed to hold the rank of major general?
It wasn't until later that Charles realized that since he himself held the rank of brigadier general, Eden, as his subordinate, was therefore designated a colonel.
Flipping through the document, Charles was astonished. "You managed to organize over ten thousand men in Antwerp?"
He had only distributed a little over six thousand rifles—the entirety of the captured German weapons stockpiled in Antwerp, which included some defective ones.
Albert nodded. "Some of them are women. They're eager to join the fight, and I felt it was important to encourage their enthusiasm."
Charles acknowledged with a slight nod.
Having women in the military was unusual for the time, with the exception of a female battalion in Tsarist Russia, though it was becoming more common in modern armies.
So Charles didn't find it strange or unacceptable.
Everything seemed to be progressing in a positive direction, Charles thought. With the guerrilla forces stationed here, once the British supply ships arrived tomorrow, the armored units could immediately move back toward Thuin and close the gap.
In fact, it would be best to send the mechanized division ahead since they were faster.
But just then, a radio operator handed Charles a telegram. "General, a message from General Winter. He says the fuel shipment has been delayed due to German submarines. Also, he's asking if you can provide reinforcements at the Dardanelles."
Charles was taken aback. Hadn't he clearly refused that request already?
The next second, he understood.
"Delayed due to German submarines" was an excuse. By pairing it with "whether you can reinforce the Dardanelles," General Winter was clearly hinting at something.
…
This wasn't Winter's idea; it was the "First Lord of the Admiralty's" doing.
Initially, the First Lord hadn't known about Charles's fuel shortage.
General Winter had been tight-lipped about it, aware that such information was a military secret, and any leak would directly affect the Belgian campaign.
But Winter made one fatal mistake: he listed the requisition reason as "for military needs at the Dardanelles."
After the First Lord's unceremonious exit from the center of power, he now served as a member of the Dardanelles Commission.
He noticed Winter's request for gasoline from Britain and found it puzzling.
At the time, Britain was under a naval blockade by German submarines and had to import oil from the Middle East for itself. Why would supplies for the Dardanelles be shipped from Britain rather than the Middle East?
Upon inquiry, General Winter had no choice but to explain the real situation.
The First Lord was thrilled and wired Winter: "This is an opportunity, Winter—a chance for a trade of interests with Charles."
Winter didn't understand what "trade of interests" could mean until he remembered the First Lord's recent attempts to get Charles to fix the Dardanelles debacle.
Winter, appalled, wired back, "You're suggesting we send Charles to Gallipoli? This isn't a trade of interests; a victory for Charles benefits Britain as well. We need this victory!"
"I know that," the First Lord replied, "but priorities matter, and Charles is clearly more pressed for time."
He implied that if Charles didn't receive the fuel, he risked being encircled by the Germans—a matter of life and death for Charles.
Winter was dumbfounded by the First Lord's shamelessness, scarcely able to believe it.
Yet Winter knew all too well that this was exactly the sort of thing the First Lord would do, just as he had done three years ago when he ordered artillery to break up a worker's strike.
(Note: This refers to the 1911 Sidney Street Siege, where the First Lord personally oversaw the use of heavy artillery against armed anarchists.)
Winter considered arguing further but knew it would be futile. In the end, he had no choice but to send Charles a cryptic telegram hinting at the situation.
…
Once Charles grasped the message's implications, he couldn't help but laugh bitterly.
The Dardanelles campaign had originally been launched as an alternative front because the main force couldn't break through directly.
Now, Charles was making decisive gains on the main front, and yet they were willing to sabotage that effort for personal political gain!
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