by Geoff Fabron
"Are you sure that all the elements of this operation can be executed exactly as planned?"
"Yes sir," said Franz firmly, "the advance teams will go into action at the same time as Sea Lance, with the ground attack following at first light."
Godisger looked down at his hands which he had clasped before him, and Franz thought that he was praying. After a few moments he looked up.
"All right then," he said. "We go."
"Yes sir!" said Franz, "but what about the King's signature?" he added, slightly worried. Saxon troops could not leave Saxon soil without the King's express approval.
"I'll worry about his Majesty," answered Godisger. "You worry about getting the army ready to attack - and make sure that the Roman spy doesn't warn them."
28th July 1920
Saxony, near the frontier
Cornelius turned off the main route to Colonia Agrippina, onto the smaller road marked on the map. According to the map the first dirt track through the forest towards the Rhine was some fifteen miles further on. From there it was about thirty to thirty five miles of track to the frontier. Cornelius estimated that he would be on the banks of the Rhine in about two or three hours. There he would either have to pay someone to ferry him across, steal a boat or hail one of the river patrol craft of the Rhine flotilla. He should be on his way to Augusta Treverorum by nightfall and then Manual Dikouros would have to believe him.
After about twelve miles Cornelius started looking for the junction with the dirt track, when he saw a small column of soldiers in the distance. They were followed by a small horse drawn wagon and to his horror, Cornelius saw them turn into the woods. As he drove past them he saw that they had taken the dirt track that he was looking for and that they were busy setting up a road block.
Driving on until a bend in the road sheltered him from the soldiers; Cornelius stopped and pulled out his map. There was another dirt track leading to the Rhine about ten miles further on. After that the road bore sharply to the east and away from the frontier. However, if that track was blocked as well, which Cornelius thought was highly likely, he would have to find another way out of Saxony, probably on foot. That would take him two or three days at least, even longer if they had patrols out looking for him.
28th July 1920
Saxon Army General Head Quarters
Franz had not slept at all since the discovery of the open safe and only the adrenaline kept him going. As soon as Godisger had signed the order authorising him to begin the secret mobilisation, he had driven over to army head quarters. He began by summoning all the other staff officers by telephone if they were connected or by sending an orderly if they were not. By mid morning they were all in one of the briefing rooms and Franz informed them that the war plan was to be put into action immediately. He did not tell them about the theft of the plans.
Their initial reactions ranged from exhilaration from the more belligerent to silent reflection by the more thoughtful. Then the questions began, most of which were variations on those which general Godisger had posed earlier. This time Franz was more honest with his answers because he already had what he wanted and the audience before him were better acquainted with the current status of the preparations.
"We're taking a big risk by attacking now," said one of the officers, "another two weeks and everything will be ready. Why the sudden urgency?"
There were murmurs of agreement, especially from those involved with the detailed planning.
"Circumstances are such that General Godisger has decided to strike now," replied Franz. "An opportunity has arisen and we must seize it!"
"What about the co-operation with the Arabs and Turks?" asked the tribune responsible for liaison with the diplomatic service. "Negotiations are still in progress to obtain their support."
"I'm sure that we can speed up the negotiation process," replied Franz with aplomb. "If not, they'll want to join in when they see the legions being smashed by our armies. They won't miss an opportunity to have a go at the Empire."
There were other questions but Franz fielded them with ease and confidence. Over the past twelve hours he had travelled from the depths of abject despair when he had discovered the open safe to the heights of exhilaration as he ordered the Saxon army staff to implement his invasion plan. In a few days Saxon troops would storm across the Rhine and within a month the cream of the western Roman army would be scattered across Gaul or isolated in Britannia.
And all because of his plan. For the first time Franz saw himself as a latter day Arminius, freeing the German people from Roman domination. Until tonight Franz had always cast Godisger in that role but the meeting that he had had with him earlier had changed that. The general had been his hero, his determination and single minded pursuit of revenge had always been an inspiration to Franz and scores of other officers. But his hesitation and vacillation when confronted by the theft of the plans had shattered his picture of Godisger as the avenging leader of Saxony. He no longer believed that the general was up to the task ahead and that Franz Maleric would be the one to lead the Germanic people to victory.
28th July 1920
Saxony, near the frontier
Cornelius finished hiding the motor carriage and stood back to check his work. Not a particularly professional job of camouflage he had to admit, but it should buy him some time. He did not think that Katherine would approve of the way that he had treated her prized vehicle but he was sure that she would understand. He only wished that he knew how she was and if she was safe.
As he had expected, the other track through the forest had been sealed off. If he stayed with the vehicle he would eventually be caught. He had to abandon it and make his way on foot.
He had spotted an area of the forest where the vegetation was not as dense and had turned off the road, driving into the woods for about a hundred and fifty yards. Finding a slight depression which would help to shield the vehicle from the road, he had stopped and cut branches from nearby trees to add to the natural cover.
Despite feeling tired and hungry Cornelius picked up the rucksack and set off at once, keen to put as much distance between him and the motor carriage as possible. He stopped at the roadside to check for movement or the sound of approaching vehicles and when he was certain that it was all clear he walked across briskly. He checked his compass and then headed deep into the forest towards the Rhine.
Cornelius maintained a steady pace, keeping to parts of the forest where he could hide quickly if necessary but where he also had a good view of the immediate area. Every fifteen minutes he would stop and check that he was still heading in the right direction. He was all too aware of how easy it would be for him to walk in circles in this type of terrain.
After a couple of hours of relatively easy progress, his pace slowed as he began to encounter steep sided hills and dense undergrowth. He estimated that he was covering half a mile an hour at the most. So far he had not seen anybody, but he knew from the map that as he neared the river the number of settlements and the possibility of being seen would increase.
It was about midday when Cornelius got to the crest of a hill that had been particularly difficult to climb. He sat down for a rest and checked his compass. He took out his binoculars and searched for any sign of the Rhine, but the hills to the west were higher than his present location and all that he could see was a canopy of trees. Feeling mildly despondent, he removed his rucksack and took out some bread, cheese and sausage. While he ate his lunch, he started reading the copy of the Saxon war plans that he had taken.
28th July 1920
Saxony
At about the same time that Cornelius was digesting his lunch and the first few pages of the stolen documents, the officers of the Saxon General Staff were busy preparing to implement those same plans. Operational orders that had been drawn up weeks earlier were retrieved from their files and hastily updated.
Telephone calls were made to senior commanders, but most instructions and orders went by motor cycle couriers. Regimental
commanders along the Rhine were visited in person by a staff officer who explained their orders to them and emphasised the importance of timing and secrecy.
From the main base of the Royal Saxon Navy, a short coded message was sent from the most powerful radio transmitter in the country across the sea to Caledonia. The message was repeated every fifteen minutes until an acknowledgement was received.
That night there was an increase in the level of activity at the airfields along the Saxon border with the Ottoman Empire that got the attention of the various Turkish agents – merchants, mixed blood residents or simply mercenary Saxons – near the bases. They reported to their contacts in Turkish Intelligence that throughout the night a continuous stream of aircraft had taken off and headed west. By the morning most of the airfields were empty.
In cities and towns across Saxony, the colonels of selected reserve regiments were visited by senior officers and informed that hostilities with the Empire were imminent. The colonels in turn went to see their regimental tribunes who in turn contacted the centurions who then called upon their men, warning them to be ready to move in twenty-four hours. Again the need for secrecy was made clear. The regiments chosen for the first wave of mobilisation had been selected according to the sentiments of their senior officers. Colonels considered 'suspect' in the fervour of their hatred of the Empire were scheduled to be called up once hostilities had begun.
The Saxon army depots and barracks were curiously quiet, but at secret locations near the border, ammunition and supplies that had been painstakingly accumulated over the past few months were loaded onto wagons, trucks and trains before being moved to designated mobilisation points. In scores of forest clearings along the Rhine, technicians checked the landships, armoured motor carriages and artillery pieces that had been transferred in ones and twos from units in the east over the past months. Units on manoeuvres were contacted and ordered to converge on specific map locations where they would find stocks of ammunition and other supplies.
Throughout the night, steam engines arrived at the railway yard that served the naval gun foundry at Setuanaa. Each left a few hours later pulling a single, long flatbed truck and several wagons.
Franz had overseen issuing of the mobilisation orders and had then retired to a camp cot that had been set up in his office. He had been awake for over thirty six hours and could not stay awake any longer. He kicked off his boots, hung his tunic over a chair and lay down on the thin lumpy mattress. Within minutes he was in a deep sleep.
28th July 1920
Saxony, near the frontier
In the late afternoon Cornelius halted at the top of another hill and made a camp for the night. He dug two shallow holes in the ground, a rectangular one for himself to sleep in and another, small round one in which to build a fire. As dusk began to fall he lit the pile of twigs, dry leaves and branches which he had gathered. The twilight hid the smoke and light that rose from the flames before the fire settled down to a warm glow. Cornelius took one of the tins of soup that he had bought, opened it and placed it amongst the red hot embers. As the liquid warmed he would stir it, taking the occasional spoonful. When he was happy with the temperature Cornelius removed the tin from the fire with a cloth.
As he ate, he listened to the noises of night animals as they went about their nocturnal business, and would occasionally catch the sound of a barge blowing its horn on the Rhine. He was settling into his sleeping bag when a sound attracted his attention. The noise was distant but not part of the natural background sounds of the forest. He could hear voices, the metallic thud of tools being used and large objects being moved. Every now and then he could make out the deep roar of an engine being started, run for a few moments and then switched off. Looking in the direction of these unexpected sounds, Cornelius could make out the flickering of light through the trees. He was both worried and intrigued by what was going on, but was too exhausted to even consider investigating. He mentally marked the spot where he could see the lights and then snuggled down beneath the leaves to sleep.
28th July 1920
Royal Palace, Minden
Before going to see the King, Godisger summoned all the senior members of the Royal Council whom he knew to be in favour of a war with the Empire. He informed them that the time had come to strike.
"We can't afford to wait any longer," he told the Counts who had assembled in his Minden townhouse. "The theft of the war plans has forced our hand. When Constantinople receives them they'll use it as an excuse to launch an attack on us to regain the Duchies. At the moment they are weak and unprepared but if we wait then they'll have time to transfer troops to the Rhine from other areas."
Godisger knew he was preaching to the converted and his 'hit them before they hit us' argument suited the facts and played to the audiences prejudice. By the end of the meeting he had persuaded them to come with him to the palace and demand that the King sign a declaration of war.
Otto received them in the audience chamber. Normally he preferred to see members of the council in his private office, but Godisger's delegation was too large to fit everybody in.
He listened patiently, but with growing alarm as Godisger described the theft of the plans, which he again represented as a pretext for an attack on Saxony by the Empire. By the time that the general had concluded with his request that the King sign a declaration of war, Otto was thoroughly agitated.
"Are you trying to tell me general Godisger," the King said, his voice a mixture of anger and panic, "that the plans that you persuaded me were 'necessary for the protection of the Kingdom' will now be the cause of a war?"
Godisger bowed his head in a token apology. "Unfortunately, your Majesty," he replied "it would appear that the Empire is looking for an excuse to attack Saxony and to regain its position of influence over the Duchies. Our plans, which depended on surprise, could easily be presented to the Imperial Assembly as evidence of aggression on our part, and used to justify a 'preventative' attack on us."
Godisger, and the King, knew that the revolts in the Duchies were extremely popular amongst the Saxon people but were resented by Constantinople. Likewise the spectre of an invasion by the legions was a strong and emotive card to play. For two millennium the Germanic peoples to the east of the Rhine had suffered at the hands of imperial armies. The legions had regularly crossed the river to punish them or simply to keep them weak. A King who sat back and allowed it to happen would not be very popular and quite possibly not remain King for much longer.
The rest of the Counts joined in to demand the King's signature. It was a question of 'self defence' they said. Saxony had to strike first or wait in fear of the inevitable imperial attack which would ravage the country.
Reluctantly and with great misgivings Otto signed the declaration of war, the order to mobilise and the authority for Saxon troops to cross the border with the Empire.
28th July 1920
Saxony, near the frontier
Shortly after dawn, Cornelius woke, left his campsite and headed towards the location of the mysterious noises that he had heard during the night. When he was about a half a mile away he made a detour towards a hill that promised a good view of the area in question.
Cornelius moved slowly, stopping regularly to listen and to watch. He was more alert than he had been on the previous day because he now knew that he was not alone. He had just reached the summit of the hill when he heard voices faintly in the distance below him. Remaining still he slowly scanned the woodland below his position, scared to blink in case he missed something. Every now and then he could hear the voices again but it was several minutes before their owners came into view. They were a pair of soldiers walking casually through the forest, their rifles slung over their shoulders. As he watched them skirt around the base of his position, Cornelius could make out the path that they were following. It was not one of the many, well worn tracks through the woods that had existed for countless generations. It had been made quite recently as evidenced by the branches which had
been cutback and bushes which had been uprooted.
The soldiers moved with the bored, disinterested movement of men on guard duty in any army, anywhere at any time in history. At least they were not looking for him, thought Cornelius with a sigh of relief.
Once the patrol was out of sight, Cornelius took out his binoculars and systematically scanned the woods ahead of him. At first everything looked normal but after a while he began to detect abnormal patterns in the local scenery. About eight hundred yards away was a clearing with camouflaged vehicles and tents. Once his eyes had registered this group he soon identified other sites. Cornelius estimated that there were at least one hundred vehicles and pieces of artillery in the area below him. He recognised about a third of the vehicles as landships from their turrets and tracks, which even the camouflage could not completely disguise.
Cornelius was about to leave his position and continue on toward the frontier when he heard the sound of many vehicles approaching from the north. He remained where he was to observe this new development and soon trucks were arriving all over the secret encampment and disgorging troops. He watched as they set to work on the vehicles, loading them with ammunition and fuel. Cornelius experienced a feeling of despair as he realised that the arrival of the vehicle crews meant that Saxony had begun to mobilise.
Cornelius moved off the hill, taking care to avoid the perimeter path used by the guards. He moved more quickly than he had yesterday, deciding to trade off the risk of being caught against not reaching imperial territory in time to warn them. Based on what he had read in the plans, Cornelius estimated that he had two or three days at the most before the Saxons launched their attack.
