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[[File:French Prisoners 1940.jpg|thumbnail|300px|left|French Prisoners,1940]]
In September 1939, the German war machine invaded Poland, and World War II began. France and its Britain declared against Germany in 1939. The French army was in theory as strong as Germanys. It had a vast Empire and a sophisticated arms industry. It had also established a series of fortifications along the eastern border of the country along with Germany, known as the Maginot Line. The Line was designed to keep German forces out of France. Initially, France and Great Britain appeared to be a match for Germany. However, in weeks in the late spring and early summer of 1940, it became clear that France was woefully unprepared for the German onslaught. France suffered a humiliating defeat and was quickly occupied by Germany. Its failure was a result of a hopelessly divided French political elite, a lack of quality military leadership, rudimentary French military tactics. On the battlefield, France faced a vastly more prepared German army that utilized both more advanced weapons and sophisticated tactics. It was a mismatch. ====BackgroundWhat happened to France after World War One?====
[[File:Stuka file.jpg|thumbnail|300px|left|Stuka dive bomber, 1940]]
France had been fearful of Germany ever since the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. In this war, the Prussians had quickly defeated the French and occupied much of the country. In World War I, The Germans had come very close to defeating the French , and without allied assistance , the country would have lost to Germany. Despite being among the victors in World War One , the French still dreaded a conflict with Germany. During the Versailles treaty negotiations after the collapse of Germany during World War, French negotiators were adamant Germany's military had to be neutralized. The French, led by Prime Minister Clemenceau, adopted a hard line towards the Germans in 1918-1919. There was a thaw in the Franco-German relationship in the mid-1920s, and there was hope of a genuine rapprochement between the two largest powers in continental Europe.
[[File:Hochwald_historic_photo.jpg|thumbnail|300px|left|Anti-tank turret at the Ouvrage Hochwald fortification on the Maginot Line in 1940]]
The French devoted a huge considerable amount of resources and capitial capital to the construction of the Maginot Line. This defensive line was named after a French Defence Minister. The French constructed a long line of fortifications along their eastern border with German. It stopped at the Belgian border. The French stationed all their forces behind the Maginot Line and adopted a defensive posture. ====When Did Germany Invade France?====In September 1939, the French with the British declared war on Germany after Hitler invaded Poland. For several months, there was little or no activity on the Western Front. This period was known as the ‘Phoney War’. However, in the Spring of 1940, the Germans shifted their attention west and went on the offensive. offensive The Battle of France started on the invasion on May 10th, 1940 and only lasted only 46 days. Paris fell to the Germans on the 14th of June, after the virtual collapse of the French Army. French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud resigned on the June 16th during the catastrophe. His successor, Marshal Philippe Pétain, began negotiations to end the war. By July 25th, France was forced to surrender. The German army suffered 157,000 casualties during the invasion of France, but the Allies's lost were considerably worse. The Allies lost over twice as many men and overall had 360,000 casualties. A further two million men were captured. Some 300,000 British and French troops escaped the Germans after being evacuated by naval forces at Dunkirk. The Germans occupied the majority of France. In the south of France, the Vichy Regime established a semi-autonomous political entity. Vichy maintained control over the majority of the French Colonies. <ref>Bond, Brian, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0080377009/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0080377009&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=8c2293a2e966ba28b14946a14239a02d Britain, France and Belgium, 1939–1940]''. (London, Brassey's, 1990), p.178</ref>{{Mediawiki:TabletAd1}} ====How did the German Army move so quickly through France?====[[File: Eric Von Manstein.jpg|thumbnail|300px|left|Eric Von Manstein 1940]]Between the world wars, the German army developed the [[How Did the German Military Develop Blitzkrieg?|Blitzkrieg tactics]]. This strategy was based on high-speed and mobile attacks on the enemy’s weak points, and it proved devastating in France.<ref> Bond, p. 111</ref> The German victory was founded on a plan developed by the great military strategies, General Erich von Manstein. He adopted the Schlieffen Plan that was almost successful in WW I.<ref> Bond, p. 117 </ref>
The German army was much superior to substantially better than the French and the British. Hitler had built up the Germany army and in particular the air force (Luftwaffe). The Germans had developed superior weapons. In particular, they had developed superior aircraft such as the Stuka dive bomber and the Messerschmitt ME fighter plane, that wreaked havoc on the allies <ref> Blatt, p. 117</ref>. The Germans placed a great deal of emphasis on mobile and armoured armored warfare. They had superior tanks, such as Panzer Mk iv, which easily overcame the allies in almost every tank engagement in the Battle of France. It must be remembered that although Even though the German army was superior to the French in many ways, that this did not mean that the Fall of France was not inevitable.
====French Tactics and Equipment were PoorWas France prepared for the German invasion?====[[File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_121-0412,_Frankreich,_Panzer_Somua_S35,_Geschütz.jpg|left|thumbnail|300px|Captured French Somua S35 tanks being used by Germany in 1940after the Fall of France.]]French military tactics were extremely outdated at the start of the war. They had failed to recognize that warfare had fundamentally changed since the First World War. They were over-reliant upon the Maginot Line , and they believed that this would stop any German invasion in its track. Since they did not believe that could defeat Germany outright, they hoped that the Maginot would drive up casualties and Germany to the negotiating table. They relied on defensive tactics and failed to grasp the impact of modern tanks and aircraft. This over-reliance on the Maginot Line meant that they were too defensive. The Maginot Line also failed to protect the entire French border. Instead of attacking France directly, Germany avoided the Maginot line by invading Belgium. French military planners has failed to plan for this contingency. The defensive line only partially defended France and indeed left the country open to an invasion via Belgium. The French High Command also failed to launch an offensive against Germany after the German attacked Poland. The French army simply hid behind the Maginot Line and waited for the Germans to attack. When the Germans finally did attack through the Ardennes the French army was trapped in bunkers and its fortifications were immediately outflanked. Even when the Germans invaded Belgium, the French General Staff continued with their cautious policy and were slow to respond to the German threat.<ref> Cooper, M. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0517436108/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0517436108&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=089457e8c42c04ed8e9d351e9727ad63 The German Army 1933–1945, Its Political and Military Failure]''. (Briarcliff Manor, NY: Stein and Day, 1978), p. 201 </ref>
====Defeatism in France====
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France was a powerful country with a large army and a vast Empire that stretched around the globe, but it was not cohesive. It had stark political conflicts, and many politicians were more loyal to their political party than their country. People on both the extreme Left such as the Communists or the extreme right hated the French government so virulently, their support of the French government could be best described as half-hearted after the German invasion.
Many ordinary people were disgusted with the leaders of the Third Republic, who were widely seen as professional politicians who were both venal and corrupt.<ref>Jackson, p.117</ref> Furthermore, defeatism was rampant at the start of WW II. France had a low birth rate, and many were convinced that the country was degenerating, based on ideas current at the time. <ref> Bloch, Marc, ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0393319113/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0393319113&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=b9916b35c01e23b2ac59f9ebb5e33d42 Strange Defeat: A Statement of Evidence Written in 1940]'' (New York, NY: Norton, 1946), p. 117</ref> The cultural pessimism in France meant that many, in the political and military elite believed that France could not defeat Germany and that any efforts to resist the Germans were pointless. Many people believed that France was a nation in decline and that her greatest days had passed. This led to a spirit of defeatism in France in the Spring and Summer of 1940, that played an important role in the Fall of France. Despite the valiant efforts of many French men against the German invasion, the French government and military were ill-equipped both politically and militarily to meaningfully contest Germany. <ref>Copper, p, 144</ref>
====Conclusion====
While France was protected by the Maginot Line and a fairly large army, it put up little resistance to Germany. It only took a few weeks for the entire country to fall. The reasons for the sudden defeat of France in 1940 were numerous and varied.
They included a failure of leadership, both at the military and the political level. The army of France was not only poorly led but had been equipped with inferior arms and equipment. Moreover, the Maginot Line not only failed to protect France, but it encouraged a defensive mentality that allowed the Germans to take the initiative at crucial points during the invasion. The French public was also bitterly divided.
These political divisions and incompetent leadership convinced many French citizens that their country could not defeat Germany. All these combined factors combined ensured a swift between May and June 1940.
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====References====
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[[Category:French History]] [[Category:Military History]][[Category:World War Two History]][[Category:European History]] [[Category:20th Century History]]
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Updated January 18, 2019