The Third Reich: The Return of the King
On 12 October, Austria's German army finally routed the last foreign forces in the territory—an 80,000-strong combined army from Slovenia and Croatia.
Originally, these two armies were separated, but previous German operations had frightened them. To protect themselves and avoid being defeated individually, they quickly joined forces.
This union, however, created a problem for Colonel Mainz. After the earlier fierce battles, Mainz's forces had been reduced to just over 45,000 men, with nearly 5,000 casualties, most of which had occurred during the fight against the Jieke army, whose combat effectiveness had been far superior. Thankfully, the Germans had avoided a positional battle with them, or casualties would have been far higher.
Mainz had originally planned to take advantage of the two armies' separation, but their quick unification foiled that strategy. Now their combined strength was 80,000, while Mainz had only 45,000, of which 10,000 were under Walter Model, leaving just 35,000 directly under his command. A direct attack would have meant heavy losses.
Instead, Mainz ordered his army to rest. Meanwhile, the Austrian government directed surrounding towns to isolate the foreign armies, cutting off all supplies and communication.
Though outnumbered, Mainz had the home advantage. After all, this was Austria; the enemy were foreign troops with no local support.
Soon, the plan bore fruit. Starved of supplies, the enemy commanders grew restless, and rumors began to spread among their ranks. Fearing entrapment, the two armies decided to act.
On 7 October, while the main German forces were resting, the serbian and Croatian armies sent small units to nearby villages and towns to loot supplies. Local militias resisted, but they were no match for the well-trained soldiers. Eventually, the foreign troops went on a rampage, looting and committing atrocities against civilians.
Enraged, the victims appealed to Vienna and the German army for help. Mainz promptly mobilized his forces to eliminate the bandits.
Direct attacks on the fortified barracks would have been costly, so Mainz adopted a different approach. He exploited the armies' greatest weakness: they were in foreign territory, reliant on looting for survival.
The German army blocked potential escape routes to the south and began training local militias, not to fight directly, but to monitor enemy movements and report immediately.
The tactic worked brilliantly. Militias constantly harassed the Slovenian and Croatian forces. Though their attacks caused only minor casualties—one or two hundred per day—the psychological effect was severe. The foreign troops could neither rest nor fully exercise their strength. Any attempt to engage the militias directly was futile; the militiamen simply disappeared when confronted.
The foreign commanders felt increasingly frustrated.
"No, if we continue like this, we will be consumed gradually!" one said.
"That's right. The main German forces are in the Simmering area to the south. If we can eliminate these circling pests, then we can act freely," said Maxim, the Croatian commander.
"But how many troops are actually in the German army?" he asked cautiously, recalling their previous encounters.
"Hmph. Only 50,000 at the beginning. Now they must handle us, the Italians, and the allies simultaneously. Even if the Simmering forces number only 20,000–30,000, can 80,000 really lose? If we lose, I'll write my name upside down!"
The Serbian commander Maljas sneered at Maxim's caution.
"All right, then. We move out tonight!"