Chapter 28 Gustav Krupp
The solemn appearance of the Schugel is very solemn, like an office building with a large garden. It is located on the banks of the Ruhr River in Essen. It takes about an hour to get here by car from the Essen Railway Station. It is surrounded by the residences of industrialists in the Ruhr area, and the environment is very elegant.
Since June 1918, Ludwig von Hirschmann has become a frequent visitor here. He now frequently travels between the Ruhr area, Berlin and Riga. He uses two identities at the same time. His public identity is a member of the Industrial Promotion Committee and the adjutant of the Chief of the General Staff (that is, Hindenburg's adjutant). His secret identity is the director of the Stasi and the deputy director of the Eastern Department of the Military Intelligence Bureau. He needs to use his public identity to meet with the leaders of the Industrial Promotion Committee to discuss ways to use the Kurland Autonomous State and the Russian-German trade to preserve the military industrial strength. At the same time, he also needs to use his secret identity to command the Stasi to escort the various plans formulated by the Industrial Promotion Committee. Today, he and Karl Haushofer came to Essen together to meet and talk with one of the most important members of the Industrial Promotion Committee.
In this era, when anyone mentions the war machine of the German Empire, the first thing that comes to mind is definitely Krupp, followed by the General Staff! Therefore, anyone with a little bit of brains can imagine that after the defeat of the German Empire, Krupp will definitely not have a good life. Germany's enemies will not let it go (in fact, they didn't do anything to Krupp), and the German army, which is limited in strength, can no longer be Krupp's largest customer as before.
So when the Industrial Promotion Committee was established, Gustav Krupp was a natural member, and he was also the vice chairman of the Industrial Promotion Committee.
On the way to the Schugel Manor, Hersmann carefully observed the appearance of Essen. This is a city with chimneys everywhere, because there are large coal mines nearby, and water and rail transportation are very convenient. Since the Second Industrial Revolution, this place has become the industrial center of Europe and the most concentrated place for the working class in the whole of Europe. However, in contrast to the situation in St. Petersburg, Hersmann did not feel much revolutionary atmosphere in Essen. The train station square and the streets were in order, and workers were rushing to work everywhere. There were also "political activists" who distributed leaflets and gave speeches. They were all members of the German Fatherland Party, and they also advocated militarism of fighting to the end.
"It seems that Lieutenant Colonel Schleicher's work is still somewhat effective." Karl Haushofer said to Hersmann. Lieutenant Colonel Schleicher is now the director of the Security Department of the Military Intelligence Bureau, responsible for dealing with various troublemakers in Germany. However, he has few people under his command, and he must cooperate with the police department to achieve satisfactory results. However, this kind of cooperation must have many uncertainties and constraints, and only people like Schleicher who are good at smoothing things over can barely cope with it.
However, no matter how capable Lieutenant Colonel Schleicher is, he can't control the increasingly disintegrating Austro-Hungarian Empire, let alone help Ludendorff, who is already a little overwhelmed. Even though it started nearly two months earlier than in history, the Ludendorff Offensive was still in trouble. The infiltration tactics he adopted did not change the overall pattern of the war, and the defense was still advantageous. Even if the attacking side achieves a breakthrough, the situation will fall into a stalemate again because the subsequent attack cannot keep up quickly - this is determined by the mobility brought by the dense railway network. The defending side can use the railway to quickly mobilize troops, while the attacking side will be slowed down and miss the opportunity because it is far away from its own railway network.
"It's a pity that the place where victory or defeat is decided is not the Ruhr area!" Hersmann sighed and followed Karl Haushofer into the Schugel Manor. They have been here several times, and the guards at the door - Krupp is too important, so the military has assigned him guards - already know them, but they still meticulously checked the two people's documents before notifying Gustav Krupp's secretary by phone.
"Mr. Krupp, please go directly to his office. Please follow me." A middle-aged man in a neat suit, slender, and with a bun came out of the building that looked a bit like an office building (the main building of the manor). He is Gustav Krupp's secretary. After bowing politely to Hessmann and Haushofer, he led them into the manor.
The main building of the Hugel Manor consists of two connected square buildings, one three stories high and the other four stories high. It is connected to the manor gate by a wide asphalt road, and there are bronze street lamps on both sides of the asphalt road. It doesn't look like a private residence, but rather a bit like being on the street outside.
Gustav Krupp has an entire floor of offices in a four-story building, which can also be regarded as half of the headquarters of Krupp Company. Hessmann saw many models of cannons in the corridor of this floor, and two tanks that looked like lunch boxes were covered with glass covers and lined up at the end of the corridor - they were German A7V tanks and K-type super-heavy tanks. Hessmann had also seen the same model outside the office of the Transportation Department of the General Staff. The former is Germany's first tank and has been put into actual combat, while the latter weighs 150 tons and is a monster with a big brain hole. There is no possibility of it going to the battlefield. Although the value of these two tanks in actual combat is relatively low, they are the forerunners of the future German steel torrent.
"Please come in, both of you." Krupp pushed open a heavy carved wooden door.
Hessmann withdrew his eyes from the tank model and walked into a luxuriously furnished office with Colonel Haushofer.
A couple stood side by side inside the office door. The man in his forties with regular features, a huge Lenin-style forehead, and a Hitler-style mustache must be Gustav Krupp. Next to him stood a tall and strong woman - even taller than him - with a long face and thick features. She should be Gustav's wife Beta Krupp (Big Beta? It seems that Gustav It makes sense for a husband to name a super cannon after his wife).
…
"Hello, Lieutenant Colonel Hersmann, General Haushofer, this is my wife Beta. Today, she will also attend the meeting." Gustav Krupp said to Hersch in a low and melancholy tone. Siman said.
In Chinese parlance, he is a son-in-law. Big Beta is the real Krupp. Gustav's original surname was Halbach and he was a diplomat. Because Big Beta's father, Friedrich Krupp, committed suicide after being exposed as a gay, and Big Beta was Friedrich's only child. And William II thought it was too shameful for a woman to lead Krupp, so he personally selected Gustav to be his son-in-law and at the same time responsible for managing the Krupp company. From this incident, we can see the attitude of German capitalists. status.
Gustav asked his wife to participate in the conversation today, which shows that Big Beta still has the final say on some major issues. What we want to discuss today is such a major issue!
"The current situation is very difficult..." Karl Haushofer's face was very ugly when he spoke, as if a disaster was imminent. "Americans have already arrived in large numbers. According to intelligence, starting from June, more than 300,000 US troops will arrive in Europe every month!"
"300,000 every month?" Big Beta exclaimed. "Major General, how long will this process last?"
"It will last a long time," Hersman replied in a sombre tone that sounded like a eulogy was being delivered at a memorial service. "The United States is an industrialized country with a population of 100 million. During the Civil War more than 50 years ago, the North and South sides of the United States mobilized 3.26 million people to join the army, with more than 1.03 million military casualties... At that time, the United States only had more than 31 million people."
Although official German propaganda describes the United States as a country with no fighting capacity, people at the level of the Krupps would not believe such nonsense. Trench warfare does not have high requirements for cannon fodder. In trench warfare on the Western Front, even Indians can become qualified cannon fodder, let alone Americans?
"How long can the empire last?" Gustav Krupp asked in a tone as if he was asking how long a terminal cancer patient could live.
"I don't know..." Karl Haushofer shook his head. "After a while, when the French shed more blood, they will try to sue for peace."
"What if they don't agree?" Big Beta asked, looking very nervous.
Hessmann grabbed the armrest of the seat and spoke in an extremely low tone, "A defeat will not scare the heroic German nation, so there will inevitably be another struggle! And what we have to do now is to preserve it to the greatest extent possible. The vitality of the country, especially the vitality of the military industry, gives Germany’s military industry the motivation to continue moving forward in the most difficult moments. In this way, we can let Germany take up arms immediately when needed!”
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