The Fall of France: Blitzkrieg in the West

Everyone expected a long war. The French had built the Maginot Line, an impressive chain of fortifications along the German border. They believed it was impregnable. The British sent their expeditionary force. The Dutch and Belgians prepared for a defensive struggle like the last war. But the Germans had other ideas. Their plan was audacious. Panzer divisions crashed through the Ardennes forest, which the French had considered impassable for tanks. They crossed the Meuse River at Sedan and raced for the English Channel. The Allied armies were cut in half. The best French and British troops were trapped in Belgium. The Germans reached the Channel in 10 days. The British evacuated from Dunkirk, a miracle of sorts, with civilian boats crossing to rescue the stranded soldiers. Over 300,000 men were saved. But France was lost. Paris fell on June 14. The French government surrendered. Hitler forced them to sign the armistice in the same railway car where Germany had surrendered in 1918. The humiliation was complete. France was divided. The north occupied by Germany, the south ruled by a puppet government in Vichy. The world watched in disbelief. The German army seemed unstoppable.