On 10 May-22 June 1940, the Battle of France was fought between the Germans under Adolf Hitler and Erich von Manstein and the Allies under Maurice Gamelin and Lord Gort during the Second World War.
Why did it happen & Who was involved?
On 3 September 1939, two days after Adolf Hitler invaded Poland, Britain and France declared war on Germany. Even though most of Germany’s armies were concentrated on the invasion of Poland, France had committed itself to a defensive strategy based on the Maginot Line constructed in the 1930s. After Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland between them on 28 September, Hitler immediately instructed his commanders to plan the invasion of France. However, for seven months, the planned offensive was twice postponed, resulting in a period of activity known as the “phony war.” During that time, Germany gained control of Denmark and Norway despite Allied efforts to intervene. The phony war ended in May 1940, when Germany assembled 3.3 million infantry, 2,600 tanks, 7,700 artillery and 3,000 aircraft along its border with France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
What happened?
On 10 May 1940, the Battle of France, or Fell Gelb, began with Germany invading Belgium and the Netherlands. Using a combination of aircraft, tanks and infantry, Germany forced both countries to surrender in four days. Most of the Allied forces, which consisted of 2.8 million infantry, 3,600 tanks, 11,200 artillery and 2,000 aircraft, were based along the Maginot Line to the south. Upon hearing of the German invasions to the north, Allied forces along the border with Belgium marched to confront the Germans. At the same time, German tanks and infantry crossed the Meuse River and advanced through the Ardennes Forest near Sedan before wheeling north towards the English Channel on 26 May, effectively cutting the Allied armies in two. The remaining Allied armies, consisting of 218,000 British and 120,000 French troops, fell back to Dunkirk, where they were all evacuated to Britain by 4 June. With their north flank secure, on 5 June, the Germans advanced south past the Somme River towards Paris, which fell despite some resistance, on 14 June. Two days later, the French government resigned, and on 22 June, France surrendered to the Germans.
What changed as a result?
The Battle of France was a decisive victory for Germany. While a new French government based in southern France was formed under Marshal Philippe Petain, two-thirds of France were placed under German occupation and would remain so until 1944. The rapid success of the Invasion of France was due to “superior tactical methods and leadership...Whereas the Allied dispositions were faulty, with their strength dispersed on a wide front with no reserves, the Germans struck in a column, fast and hard” (Montgomery, 1968, p.502). At that point, Hitler expected Britain, the last remaining Allied power, to surrender. However, under Prime Minister Winston Churchill, the British refused to give in, and Hitler subsequently began planning the invasion of Britain on 16 July. The German Luftwaffe’s subsequent defeat in the Battle of Britain in August and September 1940 would mean that the war shifted from a short one in which Germany could win to a long one in which it could lose.
Bibliography
Chandler, David. The Art of Warfare on Land. Harmondsworth, Penguin Books, 2000.
David, Saul. War: The Definitive Visual History. New York, Dorling Kindersley, 2009.
Grant, R.G. Battle: A Visual Journey Through 5,000 Years of Combat. London, Dorling Kindersley, 2005.
Montgomery, Bernard. A History of Warfare. London, Collins, 1968.
Shepperd, Alan. France 1940: Blitzkrieg in the West. Oxford, Osprey Publishing, 1990.
Sommerville, Donald. The Complete Illustrated History of World War II. Wigston, Hermes House, 2012.