Capítulo 186: Chapter 264 The French Doomsday (34)
King Leopold III, prepared to abandon resistance, summoned the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, openly expressing his decision. This decision was not solely for the safety of the Belgian people, the crucial point was that he had already sensed that Britain and France were fundamentally incapable of defeating the powerful Germany. Since the Anglo-French coalition was withdrawing, the Belgians saw no need to continue sacrificing blood for Britain and France.
However, Prime Minister Hubert Pierlot staunchly opposed this decision. "Your Majesty, absolutely not. Even though Belgium is in great danger now, we can retreat to France and establish an exile government. We will surely be able to counterattack in the future."
Unfortunately, Leopold III was a very stubborn person. No matter how others persuaded him, he remained unmoved. "Counterattack? So far, how many countries has Germany annexed? Czechoslovakia, Austria, Poland, Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, the Netherlands. Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands surrendered in just one day. Even the first land army and the first naval power in Europe have been defeated and are retreating step by step. What counterattack are we talking about?"
"Prime Minister Reynaud said the Royal Navy is preparing to rescue them, but do you think the Germans will allow them to succeed? Once this batch of British expeditionary forces is annihilated, then the British Empire will truly be in great danger."
"Now, we can establish an exile government in France. But what about after France is defeated? Go to England? If England is defeated again, where to next? The United States? Is this to show the world the pitiful sight of a family in ruins?"
However, Hubert Pierlot remained confident in Britain and France. The two argued for a long time without convincing each other. In the end, they could only compromise. It was decided that Hubert Pierlot would lead a group of government officials to Paris, France, to establish an exile government, while Leopold III would stay behind to surrender to the German forces.
Upon receiving the order to retreat, not only the Belgian army but also the British and French soldiers felt a sudden shock and confusion. After all, in the past few days of fighting, they felt they had performed quite well, resisting several "fierce" German attacks.
Just when they thought the situation would turn into a prolonged trench warfare like the last world war, they were suddenly told to retreat. If they didn't retreat, they would be surrounded by German forces. If they continued to hold their ground, it would be like sitting ducks.
However, obeying orders was the duty of a soldier. If they were ordered to retreat, then retreat they must. After all, this was Belgium, not their homeland. Abandoning it didn't matter much.
So, the emotions of the Anglo-French coalition remained relatively stable.
However, Belgian soldiers were furious. What happened to the pact of advancing and retreating together?! What happened to holding the line to the end?!
This was blatant betrayal!
Unfortunately, no matter how indignant they were, the coalition forces began to retreat.
As Gamelin had anticipated, the retreat of the coalition forces was not smooth. When the people saw the soldiers who had defended their homeland retreating like a tide, they fell into a state of tremendous panic. Rumors spread like a plague, claiming things like "hundreds of thousands of coalition forces completely annihilated" and "several hundred German tank divisions are advancing madly." Panic-stricken Belgian civilians, with their belongings and livestock, flooded the roads, desperately trying to escape, unwittingly obstructing the withdrawal of the military.
The Anglo-French coalition secretly withdrew on the night of July 9th. At 7 a.m. the next day, King Leopold III broadcasted an order for the entire army to surrender. In his view, he had done his best, considering that he had managed to buy the coalition forces an additional 12 hours.
Human hearts are dark, and the Belgian defenders, who despised the act of the Anglo-French coalition abandoning their allies without a fight, immediately laid down their weapons. Some even went as far as removing obstacles on the roads to facilitate the rapid advance of the German forces, eager to pursue those betrayers.
Upon hearing the news of King Leopold III's surrender on the broadcast, Prime Minister Reynaud was almost knocked unconscious. What happened to delaying the Germans as much as possible?
In a fit of rage, he immediately delivered a fiery broadcast, angrily condemning Leopold's surrender. Winston Churchill, the Prime Minister of Britain, also hysterically criticized Leopold's actions.
Belgium's Prime Minister, Hubert Pierlot, who had already flown to Paris, also made a broadcast, though in a more restrained tone. He told the Belgian people that the King's actions went against the unanimous opinion of the government, and by doing so, he had severed ties with the people. Leopold was no longer fit to continue ruling, and the Belgian exile government would continue the struggle.
This debate continued vehemently for a long time after the war. However, both domestically and internationally, there were many defenders of Leopold, who believed that he had done something correct and honorable by sharing the hardships with the Belgian military and civilians. They repeatedly claimed that he surrendered not as the head of state but as the overall commander of the Belgian army.
Regardless of King Leopold's explanations, General Bock ordered the entire army to attack and pursue the retreating Anglo-French coalition.
The Anglo-French coalition had originally planned to go to the nearest ports, either Antwerp or Zeebrugge. Zeebrugge, the second-largest Belgian port, was adjacent to the North Sea and closer to England than Antwerp. Compared to Dunkirk, which was 60 kilometers away, Zeebrugge was closer to the front lines of the Anglo-French coalition, making it more convenient for their escape.
However, at this time, General Georg von Küchler, who had long been ready in Dutch territory, commanding the 18th Army, began moving south.
As a result, the only port the Anglo-French coalition could go to was Dunkirk. The straight-line distance from Brussels to Dunkirk was no more than 140 kilometers, but this route became a death trap leading to hell.
Blocked by refugees in front and pursued by the German army from behind, the coalition forces had to reluctantly abandon various non-essential supplies and equipment. First, it was the 155mm heavy howitzers, followed by the Char B1 tanks, and even the trucks that ran out of fuel were recklessly abandoned in the fields. Initially, when the abandoned tanks were still within reach, the Anglo-French coalition would destroy them with hand grenades and explosives. Later, when there were too many to destroy, hand grenades became a scarce resource, so those tanks and armored vehicles were left intact, at most, disassembling some parts.
The German army closely followed the footsteps of the retreating Anglo-French coalition, so many pieces of equipment couldn't be destroyed in time and were reluctantly handed over to the advancing Germans. Rows of tanks were neatly parked by the roadside, with their engine compartments open, but the engines and other equipment were still inside.
Facing an extremely grim situation, Gamelin, with no other choice, could only make a bold decision, leaving behind some personnel to delay the pursuit of the German Army Group B. Unfortunately, without supplies and with low morale, they could not possibly match the well-equipped and high-spirited German forces. Sometimes, they couldn't even withstand a single assault, either breaking down or surrendering on the spot.
In London, after vehemently criticizing Leopold III in a broadcast, Churchill returned to his office and found First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Charles Forbes, and Vice Admiral Ramsay, Commander of Dover, waiting.
"What has happened?" Churchill felt a hint of unease in his heart. These two heads of the navy responsible for formulating Operation Dynamo must have brought him some difficulty.
Vice Admiral Ramsay spoke first. "Prime Minister, we need to requisition civilian ships, I mean all civilian ships, including fishing boats and private yachts—the more, the better."
Churchill frowned slightly. "Why?"
Vice Admiral Ramsay sighed. "Just a moment ago, German bombers bombed Calais and Dunkirk harbors. Although the losses were not severe, we believe the Germans will continue the bombing until all the docks are destroyed. By then, large ships won't be able to dock, and we'll have to evacuate from the beaches. This will require the participation of small-tonnage civilian vessels." Large ships weighing thousands of tons cannot approach the beaches directly, they can only be used for transportation through small boats weighing dozens or hundreds of tons, or simply transporting people back to England using small boats.
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