Operation Felix

This is a simulation of a hypothetical German assault on Gibraltar, as outlined in the proposed Operation Felix.  The game assumes that Spain decides to allow German forces to move through its territory in early 1941, making Spain a combatant in the Second World War.  You play the British, and you must stop the Germans from capturing Gibraltar and closing the Western Mediterranean to Allied forces.  Your best bet is to cooperate with the Republican forces that are still waging a guerrilla war against Franco's regime.  The Spanish Civil War ended less than two years ago, and there are lots of Spaniards inside and outside of Spain willing to fight for the allies.  There are also lots of Spanish generals who are perfectly happy to take a bribe from MI6 and keep their troops in their barracks. 

There are two key assumptions in this game.  The first is that the Spanish and the Germans could effectively cut off Gibraltar from resupply by sea, and eventually starve the British out.  In 1941, this would probably have been possible.  The Germans could have mined the waters around Gibraltar with submarines and nighttime bombing runs.  Artillery batteries on the Spanish mainland could have destroyed any British minesweepers that tried to clear the mine fields.  The British airstrip between the rock and the mainland would also be out of commission, cutting the Gibraltar garrison off from aerial resupply.  The Germans and the Spanish would simply need to wait. 

The second assumption is that there were lots of people inside and outside of Spain who willing to take up arms against Spain’s Fascist government.  With British support, the Spanish Republican government in exile could probably scrape together a few hundred thousand troops inside and outside the country.  In fact, anti-fascist guerrillas continued to fight the Spanish government long after the official end to the Spanish Civil War in 1939.  A few Sten guns and some air support would turn these Republican veterans into a formidable fighting force.  At the same time, there would be lots of Fascist officers with little stomach for a fight.  If Spain did enter the War on the side of the Axis, the British would be sure to blockade Spanish ports, cutting Spain of from oil and other critical imports.  This is why the (x) Spanish divisions in the game cannot move.  The British would also almost certainly occupy Spanish Morocco and the Canary Islands.  With no money to feed, arm or pay one’s troops, a Spanish general might be willing to take a bribe from the British to stay out of the fight.  As it happens, many Spanish generals did take bribes from MI6.  This is why you have cards that make Spanish army units disappear.  

 You have all the tools you need in your card deck to restart the Spanish Civil War.  Your challenge is sparking a big enough rebellion to lift the siege of Gibraltar before it is too late.