Luftwaffe operations: 10 May During the evening of 9 May, the Belgian military attaché in Berlin intimated that the Germans intended to attack the following day. Offensive movements of enemy forces were detected on the border. At 00:10 on 10 May 1940 at general headquarters, an unspecified squadron in Brussels gave the alarm. A full state of alert was instigated at 01:30. Belgian forces took up their deployment positions. The Allied armies had enacted their Dyle Plan on the morning of 10 May, and were approaching the Belgian rear. The
Luftwaffe was to spearhead the
aerial battle in the Low Countries. Its first task was to eliminate the Belgian air contingent. Despite an overwhelming numerical superiority — 1,375 aircraft, 957 of which were serviceable — the air campaign in Belgium had limited success overall on the first day. At roughly 04:00, the first air raids were conducted against airfields and communication centres. It still had a tremendous impact on the AéMI, which had only 179 aircraft on 10 May. Much of the success achieved was down to Richthofen's subordinates, particularly
Kampfgeschwader 77 and its commander
Oberst , whose attachment to
VIII. Fliegerkorps was noted by
Generalmajor . He commented it "...was the result of the well-known tendency of the commanding general to conduct his own private war". Fisser's KG 77 destroyed the AéMI main bases, with help from KG 54. Fighters from
Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG 27) eliminated two Belgian squadrons at , and during the afternoon, I./St.G 2 destroyed nine of the 15 Fiat CR.42 fighters at . At
Schaffen-Diest, three Hawker Hurricanes of Escadrille 2/I/2 were destroyed and another six damaged when a wave of He 111s caught them as they were about to take off. A further two were lost in destroyed hangars. At
Nivelles airfield, 13 CR42s were destroyed. The only other success was KG 27s destruction of eight aircraft at Belsele. In aerial combat the battles were also one-sided. Two He 111s, two Do 17s and three
Messerschmitt Bf 109s were shot down by
Gloster Gladiators and Hurricanes. In return, eight Belgian Gladiators, five Fairey Foxes and one CR42 were shot down by JG 1, 21 and 27.
No. 18 Squadron RAF sent two
Bristol Blenheims on operations over the Belgian front, but lost both to Bf 109s. By the end of 10 May, the official German figures indicate claims for 30 Belgian aircraft destroyed on the ground, and 14 (plus the two RAF bombers) in the air for 10 losses. The victory claims are likely an undercount. A total of 83 Belgian machines–mostly trainers and "squadron hacks", were destroyed. The AéMI flew only 146 sorties in the first six days. Between 16 May and 28 May, the AéMI flew just 77 operations. It spent most of its time retreating and fuel withdrawing in the face of
Luftwaffe attacks.
10–11 May: Border battles pose for a photograph after the capture of Fort Eben-Emael. The German planners had recognised the need to eliminate Fort Eben-Emael if
their army was to break into the interior of Belgium. It decided to deploy airborne forces (
Fallschirmjäger) to land on top of the fortress using
Military gliders. Using
special explosives and
flamethrowers to disable the defences, the
Fallschirmjäger entered the fortress. In
the ensuing battle, German infantry overcame the defenders of the I Belgian Corps' 7th Infantry Division in 24 hours. The main Belgian defence line was breached and German infantry of the
18th Army rapidly passed through it. Moreover, German soldiers established bridgeheads across the Albert Canal before the British were able to reach it some 48 hours later. The
Chasseurs Ardennais further south, on the orders of their commander, withdrew behind the
Meuse, destroying some bridges in their wake. German airborne forces were assisted by
Junkers Ju 87 Stukas of III./
Sturzkampfgeschwader
2 (
StG 2) and I./
Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 (
StG 77) helped suppress the defences.
Henschel Hs 123s of II.(S)./
Lehrgeschwader 2 (LG 2) assisted in the capture of the bridges at
Vroenhoven and Veldwezelt in the immediate area. Further successful German airborne offensive operations were
carried out in Luxembourg, seizing five crossings and communication routes into central Belgium. The offensive, carried out by 125 volunteers of the
34th Infantry Division under the command of Wenner Hedderich, achieved their missions by flying to their objectives using
Fieseler Fi 156 Störche. The cost was the loss of five aircraft and 30 dead. With the fort breached, the Belgian 4th and 7th infantry divisions were confronted by the prospect of fighting an enemy on relatively sound terrain (for armour operations). The 7th Division, with its 2nd and 18th grenadier regiments and 2nd Carabineers, struggled to hold their positions and contain the German infantry on the west bank. The Belgian tactical units engaged in several counterattacks. At one point, at Briedgen, they succeeded in retaking the bridge and blowing it up. At the other points, Vroenhoven and Veldwezelt, the Germans had time to establish strong
bridgeheads and repulsed the attacks. , a German border region annexed by Belgium in the
Treaty of Versailles (1919) A little known third airborne operation,
Operation Niwi, was also conducted on 10 May in southern Belgium. The objective of this operation was to land two
companies of the 3rd
battalion Grossdeutschland Infantry Regiment by Fi 156 aircraft at Nives and Witry in the south of Belgium, in order to clear a path for the
1st and
2nd Panzer divisions which were advancing through the Belgian–Luxembourg
Ardennes. The original plan called for the use of Junkers Ju 52 transport aircraft, but the short landing capability of the Fi 156 (27 metres) saw 200 of these aircraft used in the assault. The operational mission was to: 1. Cut signal communications and message links on the
Neufchâteau–
Bastogne and Neufchâteau–Martelange roads. [Neufchâteau being the largest southernmost city in Belgium] 2. Prevent the approach of reserves from the Neufchâteau area 3. Facilitate the capture of pillboxes and the advance by exerting pressure against the line of pillboxes along the border from the rear. The German infantry were engaged by several Belgian patrols equipped with
T-15 armoured cars. Several Belgian counterattacks were repulsed, among them an attack by the 1st Light
Chasseurs Ardennais Division. Unsupported, the Germans faced a counterattack later in the evening by elements of the French 5th Cavalry Division, dispatched by General
Charles Huntziger from the
French 2nd Army, which had a significant tank strength. The Germans were forced to retreat. The French, however, failed to pursue the fleeing German units, stopping at a dummy barrier. By the next morning, the
2nd Panzer Division had reached the area, and the mission had largely been accomplished. From the German perspective, the operation hindered rather than helped
Heinz Guderian's Panzer Corps. The regiment had blocked the roads and, against the odds, prevented French reinforcements reaching the
Belgian–Franco-Luxembourg border, but it also destroyed Belgian telephone communications. This inadvertently prevented the Belgian field command recalling the units along the border. The 1st Belgian Light Infantry did not receive the signal to retreat and engaged in a severe fire-fight with the German armour, slowing down their advance. The failure of the Franco–Belgian forces to hold the Ardennes gap was fatal. The Belgians had withdrawn laterally upon the initial invasion and had demolished and blocked routes of advance, which held up the French 2nd Army units moving north toward
Namur and
Huy. Devoid of any centre of resistance, the German assault engineers had cleared the obstacles unchallenged. The delay that the Belgian Ardennes Light Infantry, considered to be an elite formation, could have inflicted upon the advancing German armour was proved by the fight for
Bodange, where the 1st Panzer Division was held up for a total of eight hours. This battle was a result of a breakdown in communications and ran contrary to the operational intentions of the Belgian Army. on 10 May Meanwhile, in the central Belgian sector, having failed to restore their front by means of ground attack, the Belgians attempted to bomb the bridges and positions that the Germans had captured intact and were holding on 11 May. Belgian Fairey Battles of 5/III/3 escorted by six Gloster Gladiators attacked the Albert Canal bridges. Bf 109s from I./
Jagdgeschwader 1 (JG 1) and I./JG 27 intercepted and JG 1 shot down four Gladiators and both units destroyed six Battles and heavily damaged the remaining three. Eight CR.42s were evacuated from Brustem to
Grimbergen near Brussels but seven Gladiators and the last remaining Hurricanes from 2/I/2
Escadrille were destroyed at
Beauvechain Air Base and
Le Culot by He 111s and I./JG 27 respectively. The RAF contributed to the effort to attack the bridges. The British dispatched Bristol Blenheims from
110 and
21 squadrons—the first squadron lost two, one to I./JG 27. 21 Squadron suffered damage to most of the bombers because of intense ground-fire. The French ''
Armée de l'air dispatched LeO 451s from GBI/12 and GBII/12 escorted by 18 Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 of GCIII/3 and GCII/6. The operation failed and one bomber was lost while four M.S.406s fell to I./JG 1. The French claimed five. Meanwhile, 114 Squadron lost six Blenheims destroyed when Dornier Do 17s of Kampfgeschwader'' 2 bombed their airfield at
Vraux. Another Battle of
No. 150 Squadron RAF was lost in another raid. The German counter-air operations were spearheaded by
Jagdgeschwader 26 (JG 26) under the command of Hans-Hugo Witt, which was responsible for 82 of the German claims in aerial combat between 11 and 13 May. Despite the apparent success of the German fighter units, the air battle was not one-sided. On the morning of 11 May ten Ju 87s of StG 2 were shot down attacking Belgian forces in the Namur–Dinant gap, despite the presence of two
Jagdgeschwader—
27 and
51. Nevertheless, the Germans reported a weakening in Allied air resistance in northern Belgium by 13 May. During the night of 11 May, the British
3rd Infantry Division under the command of General
Bernard Montgomery reached its position on the Dyle river at
Leuven. As it did so the Belgian
10th Infantry Division, occupying the position, mistook them for German parachutists and
fired on them. The Belgians refused to yield but Montgomery claimed to have got his way by placing himself under the command of the Belgian forces, knowing that when the Germans came within artillery range the Belgians would withdraw.
Alan Brooke, commander of the British II Corps sought to put the matter of cooperation right with
King Leopold. The King discussed the matter with Brooke, who felt a compromise could be reached. Van Overstraeten, the King's military aide, stepped in and said that the 10th Belgian Infantry Division could not be moved. Instead, the British should move further south and remain completely clear of Brussels. Brooke told the King that the 10th Belgian Division was on the wrong side of the Gamelin line and was exposed. Leopold deferred to his advisor and chief of staff. Brooke found Overstaeten to be ignorant of the situation and the dispositions of the
BEF. Given that the left flank of the BEF rested on its Belgian ally, the British were now unsure about Belgian military capabilities. The Allies had more serious grounds for complaint about the Belgian anti-tank defences along the Dyle line, that covered the
Namur–Perwez gap which was not protected by any natural obstacles. Only a few days before the attack, General Headquarters had discovered the Belgians had sited their anti-tank defences (
de Cointet defences) several miles east of the Dyle between Namur–Perwez. After holding onto the Albert Canal's west bank for nearly 36 hours, the 4th and 7th Belgian infantry divisions withdrew. The capture of Eben-Emael allowed the Germans to force through the Panzers of the 6th Army. The situation for the Belgian divisions was either to withdraw or be encircled. The Germans had advanced beyond
Tongeren and were now in a position to sweep south to Namur, which would threaten to envelop the entire Albert Canal and
Liège positions. Under the circumstances, both divisions withdrew. On the evening of 11 May, the Belgian command withdrew its forces behind the Namur–Antwerp line. The following day, the French 1st Army arrived at Gembloux, between Wavre and Namur, to cover the "Gembloux gap". It was a flat area, devoid of prepared or entrenched positions. The French 7th Army, on the northern flank of the Belgian line, protected the
Bruges–Ghent–Ostend axis and, covering the Channel ports, had advanced into Belgium and into the Netherlands with speed. It reached Breda in the Netherlands, on 11 May. But German parachute forces had seized the
Moerdijk bridge on the
Hollands Diep river, south of Rotterdam, making it impossible for the French to link up with the
Dutch Army. The Dutch Army withdrew north to
Rotterdam and
Amsterdam. The French 7th Army turned east and met the 9th Panzer Division about east of Breda at
Tilburg. The battle resulted in the French retiring, in the face of
Luftwaffe air assaults, to Antwerp. It would later help in the defence of the city. The
Luftwaffe had given priority to attacking the French 7th Army's spearhead into the Netherlands as it threatened the Moerdijk bridgehead.
Kampfgeschwader 40 and
54 supported by Ju 87s from
VIII. Fliegerkorps helped drive them back. Fears of Allied reinforcements reaching Antwerp forced the
Luftwaffe to cover the Scheldt estuary.
KG 30 bombed and sank two Dutch gunboats and three Dutch destroyers, as well as badly damaging two Royal Navy destroyers. Overall the bombing had a limited effect.
12–14 May: Battles of the central Belgian plain During the night of 11/12 May, the Belgians were fully engaged in withdrawing to the Dyle line, covered by a network of demolitions and rearguards astride Tongeren. During the morning of 12 May, King Leopold III, General
van Overstraeten,
Édouard Daladier, General Alphonse Georges (commander of the First Allied army Group, comprising the BEF, French 1st, 2nd, 7th and 9th armies), General
Billotte (coordinator of the Allied armies) and General
Henry Royds Pownall, Gort's chief of staff, met for a military conference near
Mons. It was agreed the Belgian Army would man the Antwerp–Leuven line, while its allies took up the responsibility of defending the extreme north and south of the country. The Belgian III Corps, and its 1st
Chasseurs Ardennais, 2nd Infantry and 3rd Infantry divisions had withdrawn from the
Liège fortifications to avoid being encircled. One regiment, the Liège Fortress Regiment, stayed behind to disrupt German communications. Further to the south, the
Namur fortress, manned by VI Corps' 5th Infantry Division and the 2nd
Chasseurs Ardennais with the 12th French Infantry Division, fought delaying actions and participated in a lot of demolition work while guarding the position. As far as the Belgians were concerned, they had accomplished the only independent mission assigned to it: to hold the Liège–Albert Canal line long enough for the Allied units to reach friendly forces occupying the Namur–Antwerp–Givet line. For the remainder of the campaign, the Belgians would execute their operations in accordance with the overall Allied plan. Belgian soldiers fought rearguard actions while other Belgian units already on the Dyle line worked tirelessly to organise better defensive positions in the Leuven–Antwerp gap. The 2nd Regiment of Guides and the 2nd Carabineers Cyclists of the 2nd Belgian Cavalry Division covered the
retreat of the 4th and 7th Belgian divisions and were particularly distinguished at the
Battle of Tirlemont and the
Battle of Halen. In support of Belgian forces in the area, the RAF and French flew air defence operations in the
Tirlemont and Louvain area. The 'RAF Advanced Air Striking Force' committed
3,
504,
79,
57,
59,
85,
87,
605, and
242 squadrons to battle. A series of air battles were fought with JG 1,
2, 26, 27 and 3.
Messerschmitt Bf 110s from
Zerstörergeschwader 26 (ZG 26), and bomber units LG 1, 2 and KG 27 were also involved. Over Belgium and France, the day was disastrous for the British: 27 Hurricanes were shot down. In light of the withdrawal to the main defensive line, which was now being supported by the British and French armies, King Leopold issued the following proclamation to improve morale after the defeats at the Albert Canal: Soldiers The Belgian Army, brutally assailed by an unparalleled surprise attack, grappling with forces that are better equipped and have the advantage of a formidable air force, has for three days carried out difficult operations, the success of which is of the utmost importance to the general conduct of the battle and to the result of war. These operations require from all of us – officers and men – exceptional efforts, sustained day and night, despite a moral tension tested to its limits by the sight of the devastation wrought by a pitiless invader. However severe the trial may be, you will come through it gallantly. Our position improves with every hour; our ranks are closing up. In the critical days that are ahead of us, you will summon up all your energies, you will make every sacrifice, to stem the invasion. Just as they did
in 1914 on the Yser, so now the French and British troops are counting on you: the safety and honour of the country are in your hands. Leopold. tanks in western Belgium, May 1940 To the Allies, the Belgian failure to hold onto its eastern frontiers (they were thought to be capable of holding out for two weeks), was a disappointment. The Allied chiefs of staff had sought to avoid an encounter mobile battle without any strong fixed defences to fall back on and hoped Belgian resistance would last long enough for a defensive line to be established. Nevertheless, a brief lull fell on the Dyle front on 11 May which enabled the Allied armies to get into position by the time the first major assault was launched the following day. Allied cavalry had moved into position and infantry and artillery were reaching the front more slowly, by rail. Although unaware of it, the First Allied Army Group and the Belgian Army outnumbered and outgunned
Walther von Reichenau's German 6th Army. On the morning of 12 May, in response to Belgian pressure and necessity, the Royal Air Force and the ''
Armée de l'Air'' undertook several air attacks on the German-held Maastricht and Meuse bridges to prevent German forces flowing into Belgium. Seventy-four sorties had been flown by the Allies since 10 May. On 12 May, eleven out of eighteen French
Breguet 693 bombers were shot down. The RAF Advanced Air Striking Force, which included the largest Allied bomber force, was reduced to 72 aircraft out of 135 by 12 May. For the next 24 hours, missions were postponed as the German anti-aircraft and fighter defences were too strong. The results of the bombing are difficult to determine. The German XIX Corps
war diary's situation summary at 20:00 on 14 May noted: The completion of the military bridge at Donchery had not yet been carried out owing to heavy flanking artillery fire and long bombing attacks on the bridging point ... Throughout the day all three divisions have had to endure constant air attack — especially at the crossing and bridging points. Our fighter cover is inadequate. Requests [for increased fighter protection] are still unsuccessful. The ''Luftwaffe's'' operations includes a note of "vigorous enemy fighter activity through which our close reconnaissance in particular is severely impeded". Nevertheless, inadequate protection was given to cover RAF bombers against the strength of German opposition over the target area. In all, out of 109 Battles and Blenheims which had attacked enemy columns and communications in the Sedan area, 45 had been lost. On 15 May, daylight bombing was significantly reduced. Of 23 aircraft employed, four failed to return. Equally, owing to the Allied fighter presence, the German XIX Corps War Diary states, "Corps no longer has at its disposal its own long-range reconnaissance ... [Reconnaissance squadrons] are no longer in a position to carry out vigorous, extensive reconnaissance, as, owing to casualties, more than half of their aircraft are not now available." commanded XVI Army Corps at the
Battle of Hannut and the Gembloux gap offensive The most serious combat to evolve on 12 May 1940 was the beginning of the
Battle of Hannut (12–14 May). While the German Army Group A advanced through the Belgian Ardennes, Army Group B's 6th Army launched an offensive operation toward the Gembloux gap. Gembloux occupied a position in the Belgian plain; it was an unfortified, untrenched space in the main Belgian defensive line. The gap stretched from the southern end of the Dyle line, from
Wavre in the north, to Namur in the south, to . After attacking out of the Maastricht bulge and defeating the Belgian defences at Liege, which compelled the
Belgian I Corps to retreat, the German 6th Army's XVI Panzer-Motorized Corps, under the command of General
Erich Hoepner and containing the 3rd and 4th Panzer divisions, launched an offensive in the area where the French mistakenly expected the main German thrust. The Gembloux gap was defended by the French 1st Army, with six elite divisions including the 2nd (2e Division Légère Mécanique, or 2e DLM) and 3rd light mechanized divisions. The Prioux Cavalry Corps, under the command of Prioux, was to advance beyond the line (east) to provide a screen for the move. The French 1st and 2nd armoured divisions were to be moved behind the French 1st Army to defend its main lines in depth. The Prioux Cavalry Corps was equal to a German Panzer corps and was to occupy a screening line on the
Tirlemont–Hannut–Huy axis. The operational plan called for the corps to delay the German advance on Gembloux and Hannut until the main elements of the French 1st Army had reached Gembloux and dug in. Hoepner's Panzer Corps and Prioux' cavalry clashed head-on near Hannut, Belgium, on 12 May. Contrary to popular belief, the Germans did not outnumber the French. Frequently, figures of 623 German and 415 French tanks are given. The German 3rd and 4th Panzer divisions numbered 280 and 343 respectively. The 2e DLM and 3e DLM numbered 176
Somuas and 239 Hotchkiss H35s. Added to this force were the considerable number of
Renault AMR-ZT-63s in the Cavalry Corps. The R35 was equal or superior to the Panzer I and Panzer IIs in armament terms. This applies all the more to the 90
Panhard 178 armoured cars of the French Army. Its 25 mm main gun could penetrate the armour of the Panzer IV. In terms of tanks that were capable of engaging and surviving a tank-vs-tank action, the Germans possessed just 73 Panzer IIIs and 52 Panzer IVs. The French had 176 SOMUA and 239 Hotchkisses. German tank units also contained 486 Panzer I and IIs, which were of dubious combat value given their losses in the
Polish Campaign. The German forces were able to communicate by radio during the battle and they could shift the point of the main effort unexpectedly. The Germans also practiced
combined arms tactics, while the French tactical deployment was a rigid and linear leftover from the First World War. French tanks did not possess radios and often the commanders had to dismount to issue orders. Despite the disadvantages experienced by the Germans in armour, they were able to gain the upper hand in the morning battle on 12 May, encircling several French battalions. The combat power of the French 2e DLM managed to defeat the German defences guarding the pockets and freeing the trapped units. Contrary to German reports, the French were victorious on that first day, preventing a Wehrmacht break-through to Gembloux or seizing Hannut. The result of the first day's battle was: The effect on the German light tanks was catastrophic. Virtually every French weapon from 25mm upward penetrated the 7-13mm of the Panzer I. Although the Panzer II fared somewhat better, especially those that had been up-armoured since the Polish Campaign, their losses were high. Such was the sheer frustration of the crews of these light Panzers in [the] face of heavier armoured French machines that some resorted to desperate expedients. One account speaks of a German Panzer commander attempting to climb on a Hotchkiss H-35 with a hammer, presumably to smash the machine's periscopes, but falling off and being crushed by the tank's tracks. Certainly by day's end, Prioux had reason to claim that his tanks had come off best. The battlefield around Hannut was littered with knocked-out tanks–the bulk of which were German Panzers–with by far and away the bulk of them being Panzer Is and IIs. The following day, 13 May, the French were undone by their poor tactical deployment. They strung their armour out in a thin line between Hannut and Huy, leaving no defence in depth, which was the point of sending the French armour to the Gembloux gap in the first place. This left Hoepner with a chance to mass against one of the French light divisions (the 3e DLM) and achieve a breakthrough in that sector. Moreover, with no reserves behind the front, the French denied themselves the chance of a counterattack. The victory saw the Panzer corps out-manoeuvre the 2e DLM on its left flank. The
Belgian III Corps, retreating from Liege, offered to support the French front held by the 3e DLM. This offer was rejected. On 12 and 13 May, 2e DLM lost no AFVs, but the 3e DLM lost 30 SOMUAs and 75 Hotchkisses. The French had disabled 160 German tanks. But as the poor linear deployment had allowed the Germans the chance of breaking through in one spot, the entire battlefield had to be abandoned, the Germans repaired nearly three-quarters of their tanks; 49 were destroyed and 111 were repaired. They had 60 men killed and another 80 wounded. In terms of battlefield casualties, the Hannut battle had resulted in the French knocking-out 160 German tanks, losing 105 themselves. Prioux had achieved his tactical mission and withdrew. on 16 May Hoepner now pursued the retreating French. Being impatient, he did not wait for his infantry divisions to catch up. Instead, he hoped to continue pushing the French back and not give them time to construct a coherent defence line. German formations pursued the enemy to Gembloux. The Panzer Corps ran into retreating French columns and inflicted heavy losses on them. The pursuit created severe problems for the French artillery. The combat was so closely fought that the danger of friendly fire incidents were very real. Nevertheless, the French, setting up new anti-tank screens and Hoepner, lacking infantry support, caused the Germans to attack positions head-on. During the following
Battle of Gembloux the two Panzer divisions reported heavy losses during 14 May and were forced to slow their pursuit. The German attempts to capture Gembloux were repulsed. Although suffering numerous tactical reverses, operationally the Germans diverted the Allied First Army Group from the lower Ardennes area. In the process his forces, along with the
Luftwaffe depleted Prioux' Cavalry Corps. When news of the German breakthrough at
Sedan reached Prioux, he withdrew from Gembloux. With the Gembloux gap breached, the German Panzer Corps, the 3rd and 4th Panzer divisions, were no longer required by Army Group B and were handed over to Army Group A. Army Group B would continue its own offensive to force the collapse of the Meuse front. The army group was in a position to advance westward to Mons, outflank the BEF and Belgian Army protecting the Dyle–Brussels sector, or turn south to outflank the French 9th Army. German losses had been heavy at Hannut and Gembloux. The 4th Panzer Division was down to 137 tanks on 16 May, including just four Panzer IVs. The 3rd Panzer Division was down by 20–25 percent of its operational force; for the 4th Panzer Division 45–50 percent of its tanks were not combat ready. Damaged tanks were quickly repaired, but its strength was initially greatly weakened. The French 1st Army had also taken a battering and despite winning several tactical defensive victories it was forced to retreat on 15 May owing to developments elsewhere, leaving its tanks on the battlefield, while the Germans were free to recover theirs.
15–21 May: Counterattacks and retreat to the coast anti-tank gun in western Belgium in May 1940 On the morning of 15 May, German Army Group A broke the defences at Sedan and was now free to drive for the English Channel. The Allies considered a wholesale withdrawal from the Belgian trap. The withdrawal would reflect three stages: the night of 16/17 May to the River
Senne, the night of 17/18 May to the river
Dendre and the night of 18/19 May to the river
Scheldt. The Belgians were reluctant to abandon Brussels and Leuven, especially as the Dyle line had withstood German pressure well. The Belgian Army, the BEF and the French 1st Army, in a domino effect, was ordered/forced to retire on 16 May to avoid their southern flanks from being turned by the German armoured forces advancing through the French Ardennes and the German 6th Army advancing through Gembloux. The Belgian Army was holding the German Fourteenth Army on the
KW-line, along with the French 7th and British armies. Had it not been for the collapse of the French 2nd Army at Sedan, the Belgians were confident that they could have checked the German advance. The situation called for the French and British to abandon the Antwerp–Namur line and strong positions in favour of improvised positions behind the Scheldt, without facing any real resistance. In the south, General Deffontaine of the
Belgian VII Corps retreated from the Namur and Liège regions, the Liège fortress region put up stiff resistance to the German 6th Army. In the north, the 7th Army was diverted to Antwerp after the surrender of the Dutch on 15 May, but was then diverted to support the French 1st Army. In the centre, the Belgian Army and the BEF suffered little German pressure. On 15 May, the only sector to really be tested was around Leuven, which was held by the British 3rd Division. The BEF was not pursued vigorously to the Scheldt. After the withdrawal of the French Army from the northern sector, the Belgians were left to guard the fortified city of Antwerp. Four infantry divisions (including the
13th and
17th reserve infantry divisions) engaged the German Eighteenth Army's
208th,
225th and
526th infantry divisions. The Belgians successfully defended the northern part of the city, delaying the German infantry forces while starting to withdraw from Antwerp on 16 May. The city fell on 18/19 May after considerable Belgian resistance. On 18 May the Belgians received word that Namur's Fort
Marchovelette had fallen; Suarlee fell on 19 May; St. Heribert and Malonne on 21 May; Dave, Maizeret and Andoy on 23 May. , knocked out during the Battle for Antwerp, 19 May 1940 Between 16 and 17 May, the British and French withdrew behind the
Willebroek Canal, as the volume of Allied forces in Belgium fell and moved toward the German armoured thrust from the Ardennes. The Belgian I Corps and
V Corps also retreated to what the Belgians called the Ghent bridgehead, behind the rivers
Dender and
Scheldt. The Belgian
Artillery Corps and its infantry support defeated attacks by the Eighteenth Army's infantry and in a communiqué from London, the British recognized the "Belgian Army has contributed largely toward the success of the defensive battle now being fought. Nevertheless, the now-outnumbered Belgians abandoned Brussels and the Government fled to Ostend. The city was occupied by the German Army on 17 May. The very next morning, Hoepner, the German XVI Corps commander, was ordered to release the 3rd and 4th Panzer Divisions to Army Group A. This left the 9th Panzer Division attached to the Eighteenth Army as the only armoured unit on the Belgian front. By 19 May, the Germans were hours away from reaching the French Channel coast. Gort had discovered the French had neither plan nor reserves and little hope for stopping the German thrust to the channel. He was concerned that the French 1st Army on its southern flank had been reduced to a disorganized mass of "
fag-ends", fearing that German armour might appear on their right flank at
Arras, or
Péronne, striking for the channel ports at Calais or
Boulogne or north west into the British flank. Their position in Belgium massively compromised, the BEF considered abandoning Belgium and retreating to Ostend, Bruges or
Dunkirk, the latter lying some to inside the French border. The proposal of a British strategic withdrawal from the continent was rejected by the
War Cabinet and the
Chief of the Imperial General Staff (CIGS). They dispatched
General Ironside to inform Gort of their decision and to order him to conduct an offensive to the south-west "through all opposition" to reach the "main French forces" in the south [the strongest French forces were actually in the north]. The Belgian Army was asked to conform to the plan, or should they choose, the British Royal Navy would evacuate what units they could. The British cabinet decided that even if the "Somme offensive" was carried out successfully, some units may still need to be evacuated, and ordered Admiral Ramsay to assemble a large number of vessels. This was the beginning of
Operation Dynamo. Ironside arrived at British General Headquarters at 06:00 am on 20 May, the same day that continental communications between France and Belgium was cut. When Ironside made his proposals known to Gort, Gort replied such an attack was impossible. Seven of his nine divisions were engaged on the Scheldt and even if it was possible to withdraw them, it would create a gap between the Belgians and British which the enemy could exploit and encircle the former. The BEF had been marching and fighting for nine days and was now running short of ammunition. The main effort had to be made by the French to the south. The Belgian position on any offensive move was made clear by Leopold III. As far as he was concerned, the Belgian Army could not conduct offensive operations as it lacked tanks and aircraft; it existed solely for defence. The King also made clear that in the rapidly shrinking area of Belgium still free, there was only enough food for two weeks. Leopold did not expect the BEF to jeopardize its own position in order to keep contact with the Belgian Army, but he warned the British that if it persisted with the southern offensive the Belgians would be overstretched and their army would collapse. King Leopold suggested the best recourse was to establish a beach-head covering Dunkirk and the Belgian channel ports. The will of the CIGS won out. Gort committed just two infantry battalions and the only armoured battalion in the BEF to the attack, which despite some initial tactical success, failed to break the German defensive line at the
Battle of Arras on 21 May. In the aftermath of this failure, the Belgians were asked to fall back to the
Yser river and protect the Allied left flank and rear areas. The King's aide, General Overstraten, said that such a move could not be made and would lead to the Belgian Army disintegrating. Another plan for further offensives was suggested. The French requested the Belgians withdraw to the
Leie and the British to the French frontier between
Maulde and
Halluin, the Belgians were then to extend their front to free further parts of the BEF for the attack. The French 1st Army would relieve two more divisions on the right flank. Leopold was reluctant to undertake such a move because it would abandon all but a small portion of Belgium. The Belgian Army was exhausted and it was an enormous technical task that would take too long to complete. At this time, the Belgians and the British concluded that the French were beaten and the Allied armies in the pocket on the Belgian–Franco border would be destroyed if action was not taken. The British, having lost confidence in their allies, decided to look to the survival of the BEF.
22–28 May: Last defensive battles The Belgian battle-front on the morning of 22 May extended some from north to south, beginning with the
Cavalry Corps, which checked its advance at
Terneuzen.
V,
II,
VI,
VII and
IV corps (all Belgian) were drawn up side by side. Two further signal corps were guarding the coast. These formations were then largely holding the eastern front as the BEF and French forces withdrew to the west to protect Dunkirk, which was vulnerable to German assault on 22 May. The eastern front remained intact, but the Belgians now occupied their last fortified position at Leie. The Belgian I Corps, with only two incomplete divisions, had been heavily engaged in the fighting and their line was wearing thin. On that day,
Winston Churchill visited the front and pressed for the French and British armies to break out from the north-east. He assumed that the Belgian Cavalry Corps could support the offensives' right flank. Churchill dispatched the following message to Gort: 1. That the Belgian Army should withdraw to the line of the Yser and stand there, the sluices being opened. 2. That the British Army and French 1st Army should attack south-west toward Bapaume and Cambrai at the earliest moment, certainly tomorrow, with about eight divisions, and with the Belgian Cavalry Corps on the right of the British. Such an order ignored the fact that the Belgian Army could not withdraw to the Yser, and there was little chance of any Belgian Cavalry joining in the attack. The plan for the Belgian withdrawal was sound; the Yser river covered Dunkirk to the east and south, while the La Bassée Canal covered it from the west. The ring of the Yser also dramatically shorted the Belgian Army's area of operations. Such a move would have abandoned
Passchendaele and
Ypres and would have certainly meant the capture of Ostend while further reducing the amount of Belgian territory still free by a few square miles. On 23 May, the French tried to conduct a series of offensives against the German defensive line on the Ardennes–Calais axis but failed to make any meaningful gains. Meanwhile, on the Belgian front, the Belgians, under pressure, retreated further, and the Germans captured Terneuzen and Ghent that day. The Belgians also had trouble moving the oil, food and ammunition that they had left. The
Luftwaffe had air superiority and made everyday life hazardous in
logistical terms. Air support could only be called in by "wireless" and the RAF was operating from bases in southern England which made communication more difficult. The French denied the use of the Dunkirk,
Bourbourg and
Gravelines bases to the Belgians, which had initially been placed at its disposal. The Belgians were forced to use the only harbours left to them, at
Nieuwpoort and Ostend. Churchill and
Maxime Weygand, who had taken over command from Gamelin, were still determined to break the German line and extricate their forces to the south. When they communicated their intentions to King Leopold and van Overstraten on 24 May, the latter was stunned. A dangerous gap was starting to open between the British and Belgians between Ypres and
Menen, which threatened what remained of the Belgian front. The Belgians could not cover it; such a move would have overstretched them. Without consulting the French or asking permission from his government, Gort immediately and decisively ordered the British
5th and
50th infantry divisions to plug the gap and abandon any offensive operations further south. On the afternoon of 24 May, Bock had thrown four divisions, of Reichenau's 6th Army, against the Belgian IV Corps position at the
Kortrijk area of the Leie during the
Battle of the Lys (1940). The Germans managed, against fierce resistance, to cross the river at night and force a one-mile penetration along a 13-mile front between
Wervik and Kortrijk. The Germans, with superior numbers and in command of the air, had won the bridgehead. Nevertheless, the Belgians had inflicted many casualties and several tactical defeats on the Germans. The
1st,
3rd,
9th and
10th infantry divisions, acting as reinforcements, had counterattacked several times and managed to capture 200 German prisoners. Belgian artillery and infantry were then heavily attacked by the
Luftwaffe, which forced their defeat. The Belgians blamed the French and British for not providing air cover. The German bridgehead dangerously exposed the eastern flank of the southward stretched BEF's 4th Infantry Division. Montgomery dispatched several units of the 3rd Infantry Division (including the heavy infantry of the 1st and 7th Middlesex battalions and the 99th Battery, 20th Anti-tank Regiment), as an improvised defence. A critical point of the "Weygand Plan" and the British government and French Army's argument for a thrust south, was the withdrawal of forces to see the offensive through which had left the Belgian Army over-extended and was instrumental in its collapse. It was forced to cover the areas held by the BEF in order to enable the latter to engage in the offensive. Such a collapse could have resulted in the loss of the Channel ports behind the Allied front, leading to a complete strategic encirclement. The BEF could have done more to counterattack Bock's left flank to relieve the Belgians as Bock attacked
across the fortified British position at Kortrijk. The Belgian High Command made at least five appeals for the British to attack the vulnerable left flank of the German divisions between the Scheldt and the Leie to avert disaster.
Admiral Sir Roger Keyes transmitted the following message to GHQ: Van Overstraten is desperately keen for strong British counterattack. Either north or south of Leie could help restore the situation. Belgians expect to be attacked on the Ghent front tomorrow. Germans already have a bridgehead over canal west of Eecloo. There can be no question of the Belgian withdrawal to Yser. One battalion on march NE of Ypres was practically wiped out today in attack by sixty aircraft. Withdrawal over open roads without adequate fighter support very costly. Whole of their supplies are east of Yser. They strongly represent attempt should be made to restore the situation on Leie by British counter-attack for which opportunity may last another few hours only. No such attack came. The Germans brought fresh reserves to cover the gap (Menen–Ypres). This nearly cut the Belgians off from the British. The
2nd,
6th and 10th cavalry divisions frustrated German attempts to exploit the gap in depth but the situation was still critical. On 26 May, Operation Dynamo officially commenced, in which large French and British contingents were to be evacuated to the United Kingdom. By that time, the Royal Navy had already withdrawn 28,000 British non-fighting troops. Boulogne had fallen and Calais was about to, leaving Dunkirk, Ostend and Zeebrugge as the only viable ports which could be used for evacuation. The advance of the 14th German Army would not leave Ostend available for much longer. To the west, the German Army Group A had reached Dunkirk and were from its centre on the morning of 27 May, bringing the port within artillery range. The situation on 27 May had changed considerably from just 24 hours earlier. The Belgian Army had been forced from the Leie line on 26 May, and
Nevele,
Vynckt,
Tielt and
Izegem had fallen on the western and central part of the Leie front. In the east, the Germans had reached the outskirts of Bruges, and captured
Ursel. In the west, the Menen–Ypres line had broken at Kortrijk and the Belgians were now using railway trucks to help form anti-tank defences on a line from Ypres–Passchendaele–
Roulers. Further to the west the BEF had been forced back, north of
Lille just over the French border and was now in danger of allowing a gap to develop between themselves and the Belgian southern flank on the Ypres–Lille axis. The danger in allowing a German advance to Dunkirk would mean the loss of the port which was now too great. The British withdrew to the port on 26 May. In doing so, they left the French 1st Army's north-eastern flank near Lille exposed. As the British moved out, the Germans moved in, encircling the bulk of the French Army. Both Gort and his chief of staff, General
Henry Pownall, accepted that their withdrawal would mean the destruction of the French 1st Army, and they would be blamed for it. The fighting of 26–27 May had brought the Belgian Army to the brink of collapse. The Belgians still held the Ypres–Roulers line to the west, and the Bruges–Thelt line to the east. However, on 27 May, the central front collapsed in the Izegem–Thelt sector. There was now nothing to prevent a German thrust to the east to take Ostend and Bruges, or west to take the ports at Nieuwpoort or
La Panne, deep in the Allied rear. The Belgians had practically exhausted all available means of resistance. The disintegration of the Belgian Army and its front caused many erroneous accusations by the British. In fact, on numerous occasions, the Belgians had held on after British withdrawals. One example was the taking over of the Scheldt line, where they relieved the British
44th Infantry Division, allowing it to retire through their ranks. Despite this, Gort and to a greater extent Pownall, showed anger at the Belgian king's decision to surrender on 28 May, considering it to undercut the war effort. . When it was inquired if any Belgians were to be evacuated, Pownall was reported to have replied, "We don't care a bugger what happens to the Belgians".
Belgian surrender The Belgian Army was stretched from
Cadzand south to Menen on the river Leie, and west, from Menin, to Bruges without any sort of reserves. With the exception of a few RAF sorties, the air was exclusively under the control of the
Luftwaffe, and the Belgians reported attacks against all targets considered an objective, with resulting casualties. No natural obstacles remained between the Belgians and the German Army; retreat was not feasible. The
Luftwaffe had destroyed most of the rail networks to Dunkirk, just three roads were left: Bruges–
Torhout–
Diksmuide, Bruges–
Gistel–Nieupoort and Bruges–Ostend–Nieuwpoort. Using such axes of retreat was impossible without losses owing to German
air supremacy (as opposed to
air superiority). Water supplies were damaged and cut off, gas and electricity supplies were also cut. Canals were drained and used as supply dumps for whatever ammunition and food-stuffs were left. The total remaining area covered just 1,700 km2, and compacted military and civilians alike, of which the latter numbered some 3 million people. Under these circumstances Leopold deemed further resistance useless. On the evening of 27 May, he requested an armistice. Churchill sent a message to Keyes the same day, and made clear what he thought of the request: Belgian Embassy here assumes from King's decision to remain that he regards the war as lost and contemplates [a] separate peace. It is in order to dissociate itself from this that the constitutional Belgian Government has reassembled on foreign soil. Even if present Belgian Army has to lay down its arms, there are 200,000 Belgians of military age in France, and greater resources than Belgium had in 1914 which to fight back. By present decision the King is dividing the Nation and delivering it into Hitler's protection. Please convey these considerations to the King, and impress upon him the disastrous consequences to the Allies and to Belgium of his present choice. The Royal Navy evacuated General Headquarters at
Middelkerke and
Sint-Andries, east of Bruges, during the night. Leopold III, and his mother
Queen Mother Elisabeth, stayed in Belgium to endure five years of self-imposed captivity. In response to the advice of his government to set up a government-in-exile Leopold said, "I have decided to stay. The cause of the Allies is lost." The Belgian surrender came into effect at 04:00 on 28 May. Recriminations abounded with the British and French claiming the Belgians had betrayed the alliance. In Paris, the French Premier
Paul Reynaud denounced Leopold's surrender, and the Belgian Premier
Hubert Pierlot informed the people that Leopold had taken action against the unanimous advice of the government. As a result, the king was no longer in a position to govern and the
Belgian government in exile that was located in Paris (later moved to London following the fall of France) would continue the struggle. The chief complaint was that the Belgians had not given any prior warning that their situation was so serious as to capitulate. Such claims were largely unjust. The Allies had known, and admitted it privately on 25 May through contact with the Belgians, that the latter were on the verge of collapse. Churchill's and the British response was officially restrained. This was due to the strong-willed defence of the Belgian defensive campaign presented to the cabinet by Sir Roger Keyes at 11:30 am 28 May. The French and Belgian ministers had referred to Leopold's actions as treasonous, but they were unaware of the true events: Leopold had not signed an agreement with Hitler in order to form a collaborative government, but an unconditional surrender as Commander-in-Chief of the
Belgian Armed Forces. ==Casualties==