Chapitre 157: Chapter 235 The French Doomsday (5)
The previously calm and composed French High Command was truly in disarray this time. General Gamelin, gritting his teeth, ordered the court-martial of Major General Henri-Jean Lafontaine, the commander of the 55th Infantry Division.
Others in the room stared at the inconspicuous small city on the map with a solemn expression. Many felt a dangerously ominous premonition, as if the enemy had already foreseen everything, and their side was leaping headlong into a well-prepared trap!
However, Gamelin couldn't afford to worry about that now. "The most urgent task at hand is to recapture the Sédan Fortress. We must not let the German main force cross the Meuse River! The bridge over the river has been destroyed, and the Germans will undoubtedly use pontoon bridges to cross. Immediately dispatch bombers to block the German crossing!"
De Gaulle had to move around tirelessly, advocating his theories and refusing to give up until he achieved his goal. In 1934, he published a book titled "Formation of a Professional Army", which advocated the establishment of an independent armored tank force. Filled with confidence, he hoped to capture the attention of the military higher-ups.
However, he overestimated.
Unexpectedly, the book caused a significant stir in Germany, especially within military circles. De Gaulle became an outstanding technical expert in the eyes of German generals, thanks to this book.
Caught in this awkward situation, De Gaulle found it both amusing and frustrating. However, he became more anxious because, based on the theories in "Formation of a Professional Army", the German military had already started forming a large-scale armored corps.
The indifference of the French military leadership prompted him to rely on the power of public opinion to force them to yield. He sent the book to news agencies and frequently invited journalists to dinner, attempting to "sell" his theories to them. However, he faced unreasonable rejections, ridicule, and insults from most people.
He struggled like Don Quijote, persisting unwaveringly until the end.
Fortune favors the persistent. Some journalists found his tank theories intriguing and began promoting De Gaulle's ideas in newspapers, supporting the establishment of an armored tank force. To his relief, some knowledgeable figures, including generals and policymakers, joined the ranks supporting him, expressing their support through articles.
For the admirers of the "Maginot Line", this was undoubtedly a challenge. Leveraging official support, they launched a tit-for-tat "counterattack" in the media. Some pointed out tank weaknesses, some mocked De Gaulle, and some even believed that it was not surprising for Germany, with its aggressive tendencies, to have tank divisions, while peaceful France only needed defense, not tanks.
For a while, both sides engaged in a war of words in newspapers and magazines, unwilling to concede. What was initially an academic proposal turned into a mutual accusation battle. Instead of capturing the attention of the military higher-ups, it drew some societal groups into criticizing De Gaulle, labeling him a "speculator" and a "war-monger" who wanted to establish his own army.
At this time, Cabinet member Paul Reynaud strongly supported De Gaulle's ideas presented in "Formation of a Professional Army". In his view, the future of France lay in having an armored tank army. In the debates in the Lower House, Reynaud passionately spoke, and he achieved success.
Soon, a proposal to establish a special force consisting of seven mechanized divisions was sent to the Lower House Armed Forces Committee for review. Of course, as per tradition, the military's opinion needed to be sought, and the result was predictable – they disagreed. Simultaneously, the military leadership decided to "block" De Gaulle due to his disregard for military identity and his tendency to "stir up trouble" everywhere.
Fortunately, under Reynaud's mediation, De Gaulle was appointed as the commander of the 507th Tank Regiment and was promoted to the rank of colonel in December 1937. However, he was not pleased with this. In his eyes, establishing an independent armored tank force in France was now impossible, and with the war looming closer, he soberly realized the need to focus on training the troops to face the impending conflict.
As World War II erupted and Germany invaded Poland, De Gaulle's predictions proved correct. The Anglo-French coalition, huddled behind the "Maginot Line", indifferently watched as their allies were divided.
At this time, De Gaulle, appointed as the commander of the 5th Armored Corps, felt both happy and disappointed. He was pleased to see the superiority of independently using armored tank forces and the effectiveness of rapid assaults. However, he submitted a comprehensive report on the Polish campaign to the General Staff, hoping to draw attention and learn lessons, but it fell on deaf ears.
Gamelin knew that these two tank divisions were far from reaching the size of a division with 500 vehicles. Each division had just over a hundred tanks, equivalent to a tank regiment, and most were "outdated" tanks.
But the situation now left no room for regret about not heeding De Gaulle's advice. He ordered De Gaulle to lead these two under-strength tank divisions to intercept the German advance.
Silence fell among the group.
Currently, it was widely known that the performance of French fighter planes was inferior to that of the Germans. This wasn't a change brought about by Wilhelm's time travel, one had to trace it back to the previous World War.
During that time, according to the Schlieffen Plan, the Germans first occupied Belgium, invaded France from the north, and then headed straight for Paris, engaging in fierce battles with the Anglo-French coalition in the northeastern region of France. Unfortunately, the northeastern region was also France's industrial center, including the aviation industry. The prolonged and intense battles destroyed France's industrial foundation, and a large number of skilled workers perished in the war.
After the war, coinciding with a global economic crisis, France was not given any chance for its industrial recovery. In contrast, Germany, which had not experienced war on its own soil during World War I, preserved its industrial base, and most of its casualties were professional soldiers. The economy in the rear remained relatively healthy. The Treaty of Versailles originally did not allow Germany to have any air force, but through secret cooperation with the Soviet Union and using civilian aviation as a cover, Germany had been secretly researching and developing air force capabilities.
Moreover, France was traditionally a land power, with the air force always being subordinate to the army, mainly providing firepower support for the ground forces. The French never thought of the air force as an independent combat force that could influence the battlefield situation.
A few days ago, the bombers sent to block the German crossing of the Meuse River were entirely wiped out, and only a few of the accompanying fighters managed to escape. Sending aircraft again would be repeating the same mistake!
Sensing the concerns of those present, Gamelin confidently said, "Rest assured, this time we have the latest fighter planes from our allies joining us. We will surely defeat the German fighter planes!"
The group fell silent once again.
Currently, the English and French fighter planes were clearly at a disadvantage against the German Bf 109, and they hadn't even fully grasped the specific performance of the Bf 109. At this moment, the Germans had introduced a new type of fighter plane into service, and who knew how much better it was than the Bf 109.
Moreover, the Spitfire was still in the early stages of limited production, with only 30 fighter planes deployed to France. Originally, the plan was to send them to the front line in Brussels, Belgium.
Although he felt a bit uneasy, he couldn't speak such discouraging words to dampen the morale of his side. He could only smile and show that everything was under control.
After ordering the deployment of the air force, Ganmoren continued to shuffle his troops. "Are there any reinforcements near Sedan? Send all available forces to block the Germans!"
He couldn't afford any negligence now. Once the main German force crossed the Meuse River, the situation would deteriorate rapidly.
If the crossing German force turned northwest, they could weave an unprecedented huge net against the main forces of the Anglo-French coalition inside Belgium!
That would include almost all the elite forces of the French field army, plus more than 40 divisions of the entire British Expeditionary Force! Once these main forces were surrounded, the outcome of this war would be undoubtedly a loss.
"We must close this wide-open gate again!"
After some busy work, everyone was pleasantly surprised to find that there was an infantry division in Mezieres, about 30 kilometers southwest of Sedan, preparing to move south to defend the Meuse. As long as they could launch a counterattack, they should be able to buy precious time for their side, one or two days at least.
Moreover, there were two tank divisions in locations like Givet and Cambrai, serving as reserve forces. Additionally, one infantry division and one armored brigade of the newly landed British Expeditionary Force had reached the vicinity of Saint-Quentin and could join forces with those two tank divisions for a counteroffensive. Even if the German forces successfully crossed the river and turned northwest to cut off the rear of the main forces of the coalition, they could deliver a fierce blow to these isolated advancing enemy units on the flanks and establish a new defensive line.
Looking at the designations of these two tank divisions, Gamelin couldn't help but feel a thousand emotions. This was a mobile force established by de Gaulle's unwavering persistence, originally considered an extravagant item of no use. Unexpectedly, it had now become the only trump card capable of filling the gap in the sky.
Just like Churchill in the UK, Charles de Gaulle of France had been closely monitoring Germany's development after World War I. He proposed to establish an independent armored unit to save France from its "extremely precarious" situation.
However, the French government, which adhered to appeasement policies, continually "tolerated" Germany, while the conservative French military attempted to resist foreign aggression by relying on the "Maginot Line".
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
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