So, Shire almost holds the fate of the Royal Navy, and even the entire Allies.
This is far more significant than just the Dardanelles Strait.
No matter how obstinate the Minister of the Navy may be, he still wouldn’t dare gamble with the safety of the entire Royal Navy.
Admiral Robek didn’t know this. After ending the meeting in haste, he called the Minister of the Navy, suppressing his displeasure, and asked, "What does it mean to cooperate with Shire? Shouldn’t Shire cooperate with me? I thought I was the fleet commander!"
The Minister of the Navy received the telegraph with unspeakable bitterness.
The fewer people who know about the German naval codes, the better.
Once the intel leaks, and the Germans change their codes, all previous efforts will be in vain.
Therefore, the Minister of the Navy decided that not even Admiral Robek could know about it.
The Minister of the Navy had considered another possibility: informing Admiral Robek and having him retrieve the codebook.
But that seems unrealistic, as it was the French Navy that sank the submarine and knows the exact location, while the Royal Navy does not.
This might not be difficult, given that it’s in that sea area.
But what would Shire think if he found out? Skipping over him to retrieve it?
If Shire gets offended and starts randomly dropping deep-water bombs at the submarine’s location, blowing it to pieces that the ocean currents carry away, the British would have a hard time finding the codebook!
The Minister of the Navy was convinced Shire would do such a thing.
Because the codebook is dispensable to France, but it is critical to the survival of the Royal Navy, Shire would have ample reason to do it.
Thus, the Royal Navy holds a leverage in Shire’s hands, only to give in.
To Admiral Robek, the Minister of the Navy could only respond in a noncommittal way: "Given the current situation, Shire’s command is beneficial to Dardanelles Strait. We all believe the fleet should fully consider Shire’s suggestions."
Originally, the Minister of the Navy intended this statement to convey his helplessness and the seriousness of the situation for Admiral Robek to get the hint.
But Admiral Robek was deeply stung by seeing "Shire’s command."
What does this mean? Does the commander have to accept Shire’s command?
No, that’s impossible!
Angered and losing his mind, Admiral Robek immediately sent a telegraph: "In that case, I believe I am no longer suitable to be the fleet commander. Please appoint someone else!"
Anyway, without command authority, it’s not worth being the commander, Admiral Robek thought.
Admiral Robek’s words carried some spite, thinking this would soften the Minister of the Navy’s tone, and he could then find a way out.
However, Admiral Robek was mistaken; he didn’t catch the unspoken tones in the Minister of the Navy’s telegraph.
Hearing Admiral Robek’s words, the Minister of the Navy truly considered replacing him:
Admiral Robek and Shire were not getting along, perhaps even in burning conflict, which could potentially threaten the safety of retrieving the codebook.
Additionally, the fewer people who knew about this, the better, and General Winter was one of the informed and maintained a good relationship with Shire.
Why not appoint General Winter as the commander?
As for General Winter being a Major General, that’s easy, just need to promote him to Vice Admiral. After all, Admiral Robek was also promoted from Major General to Vice Admiral to become the fleet commander!
On the other side, Admiral Robek was feeling complacent, waiting for a response, thinking his "palace coup" had succeeded.
Admiral Robek thought, they surely hadn’t anticipated his resignation. A sudden change of generals during wartime had happened once, doing it again would surely affect morale.
Moreover, during this period, he had been carrying out the Minister of the Navy’s will in launching attacks. They’d said that any losses would be their responsibility...
Who could have thought, at this moment, a staff officer approached Admiral Robek with a shocked expression and handed him a telegraph.
Admiral Robek took the telegraph, reading: "Your resignation is approved, General. The new commander will arrive shortly! In the meantime, please prepare for the handover!"
Admiral Robek was stunned, reopening and rereading the telegraph, looking at the staff officer with a doubting gaze.
The staff officer looked helpless: "It’s true, General, sent from the Minister of the Navy. We’ve confirmed it!"
Admiral Robek paled, realizing he had done an incredibly foolish thing and couldn’t believe they would actually replace him for Shire!
General Winter felt grateful upon receiving the appointment, knowing it was because of Shire. Otherwise, someone like him, fiercely opposing the Minister of the Navy, had almost no chance of promotion.
However, compared to the codebook, these are insignificant.
General Winter quickly prepared and hurriedly set off, taking a plane to Egypt, then from Egypt to Malta Island, and finally a seaplane to the anchorage.
The next afternoon, General Winter arrived, and Admiral Robek was relieved of the commander’s position and transferred back home.
Admiral Robek left in solitude, with only a few officers seeing him off, while sailors looked at him with disdain, some even spat at his back.
They knew Admiral Robek had tried to punish Shire for "insubordination."
"This is not worth sympathy. We don’t need such a general!"
"I’ve never agreed with the Ministry of the Navy’s orders as much as now."
"Incompetent generals who only think of their power and face, not the lives of soldiers!"
The last point is core.
In principle, Admiral Robek’s actions were not wrong; the military must follow orders, not act independently.
But the key is, does this "acting independently" lead to beneficial or detrimental directions in the war).
If beneficial, then it’s "decisiveness" and "seizing opportunities," otherwise it is "disobeying orders" that should be punished.
As a commander, one must distinguish these.
And the soldiers wouldn’t consider so much, they only know whoever can win and keep them alive, they support.
After taking over the command headquarters, General Winter’s first task was to meet Shire on the "Henry" transport ship.
Smiling, he hugged Shire and courteously shook hands with Tijani: "I’m honored to meet you, General Tijani. I’ve heard about your feats. Brilliant work!"
Tijani exclaimed, "Wow, you seem much easier to get along with than that General Robek."
"Of course." General Winter laughed heartily: "Because we have one thing in common."
General Winter turned to Shire: "We’re both fans of Shire!"
(The above picture shows the "Royal Ark" seaplane carrier converted from a passenger ship by Britain, completed in December 1914 and immediately rushed to the Dardanelles Strait, mainly for reconnaissance missions)