Incident at the Schwarz Canal
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| Incident at the Schwarz Canal | |||||||
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| Part of the Middle East Campaign of the Second Europan War | |||||||
 Estharian Naval Port near Schwarz Canal following the Archadian-Quenminese surprise attack. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Strength | |||||||
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12 battleships 3 aircraft carrier 20 cruisers 50 destroyers 17 submarines 250 aircraft |
5 aircraft carriers 7 heavy cruisers 14 midget submarines 3 destroyers 347 aircraft 15 troop transports | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
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3 battleships sunk 4 battleships damaged 7 cruisers damaged 9 destroyers damaged 74 aircraft destroyed 2,001 killed 1,479 wounded |
6 midget submarines sunk 39 aircraft destroyed 137 killed 7 aircrew captured | ||||||
The Incident at the Schwarz Canal was one of the two surprise attacks committed by the Imperial Quenminese Navy against Allied ships operating in the Mediterranean. The attack was simultaneously carried out with the Attack on Diamond Harbour by the elements of the IQN against the Royal Concordian Navy. The simultaneous attacks on the two areas eventually forced the remainder of the allies to declare war against the Imperial nations.
The head planner of the attack on the Schwarz Canal was none other than Quenminese Count Thạch Hung Sõn Chiến, who wanted to disable and destroy the Allies foothold on the Schwarz Canal. As part of his plan, Chien intended to cut-off the Allies path to the Indiaen Ocean. Apart from this, he also intended for Quenmin to create a link with the East Europan forces to resupply them and to hasten his advance throughout the Middle East. Once the raid was done, he would land in Quenminese forces to capture the canal. The attack took place at 8:00am on 7 December 1936. Taken by surprise, the Estharian and other Allied forces near the canal attempted to counter the attack. The IQN and the RA destroyed every military installation on the Schwarz Canal. By 12nn, Estharian Rear Admiral Antonio Adelante managed to escape the raid unharmed and immediately warned a Lucian output just a few miles away from the canal about the attack taking place. Immediately, Adelante radioed to the nearby Lucian Mediterranean Fleet that the Schwarz Canal was under attack by Imperial elements. Hence Admiral Robert Adamson dispatched 3 aircraft carriers, 7 cruisers, 14 destroyers, and 6 submarines to immediately go to the Schwarz Canal. By 3pm, the Estharian, Dalmascan, and Galbadian defenders on the canal were nearly wiped out until the Royal Navy arrived in time to reinforce the defenders. The intervention of the Royal Navy caused Quenminese Admiral Võ Tùng Lâm to call off his attack, seeing that the arrival of the Lucian Fleet had costed the Imperials control over the Schwarz Canal. By 5pm, the last of the Quenminese and Archadian ships and planes left the area. The Allies took heavy casualties. It nearly destroyed the Estharian Mediterranean Fleet and would be unable to participate further in the war until it was repurposed the following year. The Imperials took light casualties with the loss of 6 midget submarines, 39 aircraft, and 137 personnel. 7 were captured and were taken into custody to Balamb.
Following the raid, Estharian leader, Generalissimo A.C.G. Lindholm made a speech the following day, saying that Quenmin had deliberately and suddenly attacked Allied forces and other neutral interests at the Schwarz Canal. Several neutral nations declared war on the Autocratic East Europan Imperial Alliance, Archadia-Archedes, and the Empire of Quenmin. On 21 December, the Neutral nations formally joined the Allied forces led by the United Kingdom, along with the rest of the Lucis Commonwealth. Consequently, the three major Imperial nations declared war in response. The raid on the Schwarz Canal was considered by many historians as the primary reason of why the Imperials would go on to lose the war. With nearly the entirety of Eordis against them, they were unable to counter the numbers that the Allies threw later on in the war. The Attacks on Diamond Harbour and on the Schwarz Canal were deemed to be a war crime, having no declaration of war prior to the attack.