As Charles unveiled his two diagrams, the atmosphere in the conference room shifted dramatically. The officers, who had initially opposed landing at Bolayir, now brimmed with newfound confidence.
General Winter, studying the documents in his hands, couldn't help but exclaim, "My God, it's as if these were designed precisely for this battle." He turned to Charles and asked, "Colonel, you didn't plan to land at Bolayir from the start, did you?"
Tijani smirked and replied, "What do you think, General?"
The room fell silent momentarily, only to erupt in laughter as the officers realized the answer was obvious—Charles must have planned this back in France, designing these landing boats specifically for their purpose here. Yet the laughter died abruptly as the officers noticed General Hamilton sitting silently, his face expressionless as he studied the diagrams before him. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn ɴoᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt
"Do you have any objections, General Hamilton?" Winter asked.
Hamilton hummed thoughtfully, tossing the diagrams onto the table before looking up at Charles. His tone was sharp. "I admire your ingenuity, Colonel, but let's talk practicalities. Even if you manage to land…"
Hamilton paused, his gaze sweeping across the room as he emphasized his words: "Remember, Charles intends to land just before dawn."
"This means his window for landing is brief. Those twenty landing boats, along with the twenty transport ships, will need three to four trips each to put three thousand troops ashore."
Hamilton drummed his fingers rhythmically on the table, adding, "So, how do you expect these three thousand men to defeat a full Ottoman division of over ten thousand troops? Not to mention the endless reinforcements the Ottomans will bring in. Meanwhile, as dawn breaks, our ability to reinforce will be severely hindered due to likely artillery bombardment on the landing zone."
The officers sat in stunned silence, realizing that Hamilton was right. The Ottomans had a fortified position at Bolayir, and even if Charles managed to land his troops, it seemed unlikely that three thousand men could achieve the goal of severing the enemy's supply lines.
But Charles remained calm, responding in a steady tone, "We don't need to defeat the entire division, nor do we need to overcome their reinforcements."
Hamilton stared at Charles in confusion. "If you don't plan to defeat the enemy, how do you intend to secure Bolayir?"
Charles added with a sly smile, "We need the enemy to defeat us."
The room was puzzled, though Hamilton's expression shifted as he began to understand. He looked at Charles with a mixture of shock and admiration.
Winter, however, remained uncertain. "You're saying we need the enemy to defeat us? How is that any different from us defeating them?"
"There's a big difference, General," Charles replied. "If we intend to defeat the enemy, we would have to assault their fortifications directly. In that case, three thousand men would be far from sufficient to capture an entire division's fortified position, especially if reinforcements arrive."
Winter nodded thoughtfully. "So you're suggesting we dig in and let them attack us instead?"
It was starting to make sense. In trench warfare, especially since the Ottomans had no tanks, three thousand well-equipped men with ample machine gun support could defend against a division-sized assault. However, Winter frowned again. "But what reason would the Ottomans have to leave their defenses and attack us? Why wouldn't they just hold their lines?"
Many officers, particularly the navy men, had similar questions, accustomed as they were to seeing blockades in terms of occupation rather than strategic positioning.
It was Hamilton who provided the answer. "Artillery suppression."
The officers fell silent, suddenly grasping Charles's strategy.
Hamilton's expression showed a mix of resignation and reluctant admiration as he pointed at the map to explain. "The neck at Bolayir is only six kilometers wide. The central road is less than three kilometers from the coast, yet our 75mm artillery has a range of eight kilometers."
"In other words, as soon as we establish a beachhead, we can effectively cut off the road with artillery fire, forcing the Ottomans to attack us to reopen their supply lines."
This was the perfect example of using defense as offense.
Winter and the other officers finally saw the full picture. The Ottoman forces would have no choice but to attack since only by defeating Charles's three thousand troops could they reopen the supply lines to the Gallipoli Peninsula.
Charles nodded. "Exactly."
Hamilton, however, looked unconvinced. "Exactly?"
Charles elaborated, "You're overlooking one detail, General. The terrain surrounding Bolayir is flat, but there are elevated areas on both sides. The Ottomans have already deployed the German 105mm howitzers there, which have a range of twelve kilometers."
Hamilton's face fell. "So their artillery could hit us, but we'd be out of range to hit them."
"Correct," Charles confirmed. "If we were to rely solely on our 75mm guns to block the road, we'd be a sitting target. No matter how many of those guns we bring ashore, the Ottomans would simply rain down shells from the high ground until our positions are obliterated."
"So you're saying…" Hamilton trailed off.
Charles pointed to a defensive line just ahead of Bolayir. "Bolayir is too critical for the Ottomans to ignore. The moment we land, they'll send reinforcements in a bid to push us back into the sea. That gives us little time to establish fortifications."
"Our only option is to seize that line and repurpose it as our own trench."
The officers followed Charles's finger, noting the line he had indicated on the map. It was a trench that the Ottomans had established to protect against an Allied landing. The defensive line was shaped in an arc, facing the coastline.
If Charles's forces could capture this line, it would serve as an immediate defensive position for their beachhead.
(Map: The red line marks the defensive line Charles aims to capture)
Charles continued, "Seizing that line serves two purposes. First, it provides enough cover to allow us to gradually reinforce our position with fresh troops and supplies each night, solidifying our control over Bolayir."
"Second, it's only six hundred meters from the road, yet our mortars have a range of seven hundred meters."
The room suddenly understood—Charles planned to use mortars to control the road.
Winter smiled and nodded approvingly.
It was a clever solution. In an area where they were at an artillery disadvantage, mortars had a higher survival rate than 75mm guns and were far easier to transport.
Hamilton fell into deep thought, remaining silent for several moments before finally sighing. The confidence in his expression had waned, replaced by a subtle sense of resignation.
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