A British A34 Comet Cruiser Tank with infantry advancing toward Silvershirt positions, circa July 1944. Following the Superbombings of Norwich, London, and Brighton, Winston Churchill, Oswald Mosley, and other high-ranking Political and Military leaders would relocate to the city of Bedford which for the time being would serve as England's emergency capital. At the same time, a faction of British Army officers lead by Benard Montgomery along with a political faction led by Clement Atlee, who firmly saw that the war was lost and wanted to prevent more loss of British lives, would hatch a plot to overthrow Churchill and the Silvershirts. On July 11th, the plotters would put their plan into action with the elements of the Royal Liecester Motorized Regiment which had comprised 650 soldiers, six mortars, two 87mm field guns, 14 armored trucks, three scout cars, and seven barrels. Opposing them was the infamous Black Guard, which was the Silvershirt's paramilitary wing which served as the armed bodyguards to Churchill and other high profile leaders of the party. The local units of the Black Guard comprised of 370 men, eight heavy machine-guns, four 17 pounder anti-tank guns, and two 20mm AA guns backed up by a local Armored Training unit with 250 men, seven armored trucks, and four barrels. The plotters would quickly surround the city of Bedford and cut off all communications to prevent any potential Loyalist counter-attack, before moving into the manor house where Churchill and cronies were based out of. A battle would result which would last for two and a half hours, which saw on the plotter's side, the deaths of 32 soldiers, 126 wounded, 2 armored trucks destroyed, and one tank disabled. Their opposition would see 14 Silvershirts and 7 loyalists dead, 209 wounded, one anti-tank gun destroyed, and two barrels destroyed. Despite heavy losses, the plotters would successfully arrest Churchill and his inner circle and install Clement Atlee as temporary Prime Minister, who would immediately enter secret negotiations with the Central Powers for an end to the war which eventually be successfully brokered three days later on July 14th at Field Marshal Manstein's headquarters in Northern France.
