The orders of battle listed here have been edited for wargame use, and thus only list the combat troops present in each unit. Within four days, german panzer formations emerged from the apparently passable ardennes and established bridgeheads across the meuse. German orders of battle for the campaign in the west, may 1940. As an example, a char b1 tank battalion had 30 combat tanks and these would be given in the oob. What is a good history book about france during world war ii. The bulk of the forces of the allies were french, although the united kingdom british expeditionary force, netherlands, and belgium had significant forces in the battle opposing germany.
Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The army is a rumourmill, so thanks to this well written book i now have a true picture of the. Order of battle for the battle of france wikipedia. On 10 may 1940, this force, which was really just the 51st division reinforced by various small units, was part of the colonial army corps of the french third army in front of the maginot line. I have collected many books on the subject, both old and new but i am having difficulty in finding accurate and detailed information about the german. In to lose a battle alistair horne tells the daybyday, momentbymoment story of the battle, sifted from the vast nazi archives and the. French b1bis tank hero of the battle of stonne in may 1940. Order of battle, 5th june 1940 mainland france only.
Trucks lorrys vans armour of bef used in battle of france, bef lost 80,000 motor vehicles during battle of france in 1940. From 9 april when german troops invaded denmark and norway to the armistice with france on 25 june, the german army confirmed the superiority of its organization and tactics. Orders of battle for wargaming the french army of 1940. France capitulated in 1940 because its armies were defeated in battle, mr. The stuka dive bomber and the panzer 2 tank won the battle of france. A sixweek battle with lightning blitzkrieg warfare and combined operations techniques, the offensive ended the phony war and sent the french forces reeling as their government fled from occupied paris. It is the story of eighty year old generals entrenched in power, and allied to weak political leaders who are constantly rotated into and out of power by a severely divided country. The battle for france, 1940 six weeks that changed the world. For its battle of britain campaign against great britain during world war ii, the german luftwaffe had the following order of battle in the west. Jun 28, 2007 in 1940, the german army fought and won an extraordinary battle with france in six weeks of lightning warfare.
This one fought at the battle of stonne in may 1940 during german invasion of france. The battle of france, also known as the fall of france, was the german invasion of france and. My current interest is the battle of france 1940 10th may 4th june. Any expectations that the war would be a repeat of the stalemate of the great war trenches were quickly dashed. British expeditionary force order of battle 1940 wikipedia. In 1940, the german army fought and won an extraordinary battle with france in six weeks of lightning warfare. At bailleul each driver was given a new destinationhazebrouck. Jul, 2011 here are several histories that cover both the immediate prewar period, phony war and defeat. The plan was to rely heavily on surprise blitzkrieg lightning war techniques. With the subtlety and compulsion of a novel, hornes narrative shifts from minor battlefield incidents to high military and political decisions, stepping far beyond the confines of military history to form a major contribution to our understanding of the crises of the francogerman.
The battle for france, 1940 by phillip warner overdrive. This detachement of the french army had existed by this name from 22 october to 16 november 1914. The battle of france, 1940 cassell military paperbacks. The regular air force had only half again as many units as during its peacetime nadir in 1932. Nov 18, 2019 german orders of battle for the battle of france of june 8, 1940. The book was originally issued by franz eher nachfolger, the central. Feb 15, 2008 buy the battle of france then and now by cornwell, peter d. Fought outside paris in september 1914, it turned the tide of the german invasion of france, and robbed kaiser wilhelm ii of his best chance of winning the first world war. The char b1 was certainly a nasty suprise against what the germans had at the time in a straight fight, its armour was clearly superior to the 2030 mm armour the germans had, however it stilll overall.
Dday and the battle for france by holland, james isbn. This is a list of world war ii battles, sorted by front location. I sought to simplify the battle and place it in the context of the francoprussian war and world war i as clashes between france and germany. Equipment which were sorely needed at home to stop. In 1940 hitler sent his troops to execute the fall of france. The tragic story of this unp on may 10, 1940, hitler launched his war in the west, and france reeled under the hammer of blitzkrieg. The battle of the lys, fought in april 1918, was critical for the allies and for germany.
French air force disposition on 10 may 1940 axis history forum. German orders of battle for the campaign in the west, 10 may 1940. Many lost at dunkirk but we also sent a second bef to western france after dunkirk in early june 1940 who also lost most of their tanks artillery vehicles in a hasty evacuation after a few weeks or days for some units. The fall of france the nazi invasion of 1940 julian jackson making of the modern world. During six weeks in 1940, hitlers blitzkrieg shattered the redoub. Meanwhile, british prime minister winston churchill offers words of encouragement. France 1940 by horne, alistair and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. His recent books include the cambridge guide to literature in english and occupation the ordeal of france 19401944, which won the 1997 edith mcleod literary prize, given annually to the british book which has contributed most to francobritish understanding, and the 1997 stern silver pen award for nonfiction.
The route lay through lille, armentieres, bailleul and caestre. Redirected from list of world war ii battles this list is incomplete. This exciting new book by julian jackson, a leading historian of twentiethcentury france, charts the breathtakingly rapid events that led to the defeat and surrender of one of the greatest bastions of the western allies. Finally, this orbat is for 10 may 1940 only, much reshuffling of units took place in the following days. British expeditionary force order of battle 1940 project. The b1bis was the french armys heavy tank during ww2.
With the subtlety and compulsion of a novel, hornes narrative shifts from minor battlefield incidents to high military and political decisions, stepping far beyond the confines of military history to form a major contribution. The fall of france julian jackson oxford university press. French 19391940 order of battle axis history forum. To lose a battle france 1940 by horne alistair abebooks. Find a library or download libby an app by overdrive. View on the avenue foch when the germans enter paris. The third volume deals with organization and order of battle of fortress troops, maginot line formations, regioncorps, sectionfortress divisions. The panzer 2 hitler owed more to this tank than anyother of ww2. The order of battle for the battle of france details the hierarchy of the major combatant forces in the battle of france in may 1940. The first battle of the marne was one of the most pivotal battles in history. The french faced the german invasion with 4360 modern combat aircraft and with 790 new machines arriving from french and american factories each month. I dont care what anyone says,those 2 bozos who wrote panzerkrieg said the p3 and 4 won in france wrong. British expeditionary force order of battle 1940 this is the british expeditionary force order of battle on 9 may 1940, the day before the german forces initiated the battle of france contents. The french army, 19391940 organisation, order of battle, operational history 2.
France 1940 is the final book of alistair hornes trilogy, which includes the fall of paris and the price of glory and tells the story of the great crises of the rivalry between france and germany. The battle of france, 1940 cassell military paperbacks warner, philip on. For example, the decision to distinguish the two sides as france and allies and germany and allies may undermine the role britain, belgium, the netherlands and italy played in the battle. This is the british expeditionary force order of battle on 9 may 1940, the day before the german forces initiated the battle of france. The french army, 19391940 organisation, order of battle. France 1940 is the final book of alistair hornes trilogy, which. Luftflotte 3 targeted the west country, midlands, and northwest england, from bases a bit further north in france. Bef british expeditionary force vehicles france 1939 1940. May 30, 2015 as a result of this, when the second world war began in september 1939, the vast majority of the tanks available to the british army were light tanks. After the static winter of 193940, the bore war as it was known to wits the german blitzkrieg was unleashed in may 1940, with the invasion of france, belguim, holland and luxembourg. Luftflotte 2 was responsible for the bombing of southeast england and the london area and based in the pasdecalais area in france. On this day in 1940, british troops evacuate france in operation ariel, an exodus almost on the order of dunkirk. I am compiling a database of events for that period with a view to building a comprehensive web site for educational purposes. Ian ousby wrote widely on subjects both english and french.
However, it does not give any information on units below division level held in the general reserve nor on those overseas units which were not sent to mainland france during the campaign. Allies the bulk of the forces of the allies were french, although the united kingdom british expeditionary force, netherlands, and belgium had significant forces in the battle opposing germany. On may 10, 1940, hitler launched his war in the west, and. World war ii armed forces orders of battle and organizations. This orbat is incomplete and will be overhauled as soon as possible. Hitler at the eiffel tower, following the fall of france in 1940. Any price and availability information displayed on relevant amazon site s, as applicable at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product. However, the air force was not organized for battle.
The book, battle of france 1940, is the story of power and prestige trying to ignore inconvenient truths, even in the face of momentous disaster. When you examine the battle of poland and france what tank was the backbone of germanys blitzkrieg. Jul 25, 2009 the order of battle for the battle of france details the hierarchy of the major combatant forces in the battle of france in may 1940. German orders of battle battle of france ww2 weapons. After the successful german offensive on the somme, their breakthrough on the lys threatened ypres and the british hold on flanders and brought them close to. In six weeks from 10 may 1940, german forces defeated allied forces by. Get unlimited access to the best stories on medium and support writers while youre at it. This is a very good video and shows a lot of detail. Within hours, german panzer columns driving through the wooded ardennes hills according to the. British expeditionary force order of battle 1940 this is the british expeditionary force order of battle on 9 may 1940, the day before the german forces initiated the battle of france. Oct 30, 2019 product prices and availability are accurate as of the datetime indicated and are subject to change. Also the infantry formations and units, their organisation and details of equipment.
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