Chapter 231 The French Doomsday (1)

Late at night, in the Ardennes Forest.

Thunderous snores echoed for miles, creating a symphony of exhaustion as they lay in various positions. They had been maneuvering through this rugged forest for over fifty hours, and everyone was beyond fatigued.

"General, why aren't you sleeping yet?!" The deputy who had just relieved himself and spotted Guderian smoking couldn't help but ask curiously.

Guderian smiled. "Just thinking about the expression on the faces of the French when they see us tomorrow. It excites me too much to sleep." In just over 10 kilometers, they would exit the Ardennes Forest and penetrate French territory!

"Yes." The deputy became enthusiastic at the thought. "That fool Gamelin moved all his main forces to Belgium. Didn't he realize that it left a huge gap in their homeland defense? I don't understand how this guy became the Supreme Commander of the Anglo-French coalition."

Guderian chuckled. "If he hadn't diverted those forces to Belgium, Belgium might have surrendered by now. Look, in just two days, General von Manstein's Sixth Army vanguard has reached the outskirts of Brussels. Without the Anglo-French coalition, the Belgians might have surrendered already. At that point, the British might have withdrawn to defend their homeland. After all, our navy is on par with theirs, and they would fear a sudden amphibious assault. Then, France would be left fighting alone, wouldn't that be a dead end?"

"You are right, General." The deputy's face revealed genuine admiration. They had also heard on the radio about the Crown Prince personally participating in the attack on the British fleet. "It's truly humbling."

Guderian deeply agreed. "Indeed, if we can't win this war with the Crown Prince leading by example, we wouldn't deserve to be called soldiers." He tossed away his cigarette. "Get some sleep, replenish your energy. Tomorrow, we'll break through Sedan!"

The next morning, Guderian woke up early. He went to a nearby spring to freshen up and had a quick breakfast of dry rations. "Send the order, have the entire army double-check their equipment one last time."

As tank crews busied themselves checking track tension, tank fire control systems, and engine statuses, a continuous roar of engines filled the sky.

Looking up through the branches, they saw a vast array of aircraft, including fighters, bombers, and attack planes—easily over a thousand in number.

The aircraft were heading toward Sedan.

On September 1, 1870, Sedan witnessed a world-renowned battle. In this battle, the French army of 120,000 was trapped in Sedan, and the fighting lasted from morning until evening. Eventually, a white flag rose over the walls of Sedan.

Later that evening, Napoleon III wrote his surrender letter to the King of Prussia.

The significance of this event was not merely a simple battle; it marked the cyclical return of the Second French Empire to history. Simultaneously, it signaled the complete unification of the Germanic people. The German Empire was officially established, standing independently and proudly among the nations of the world.

Despite the lessons of 1870, 70 years later, the French still did not consider Sedan a key defensive area. The famous Maginot Line ended about 12 kilometers east of Sedan. Despite the confidence of the French 2nd Army, tasked with protecting the left wing of the Maginot Line and engaging in operations within Belgian territory, most of Sedan's 103 fortifications were incomplete. The French had only deployed the 55th Infantry Division, a unit formed from conscripts called up after general mobilization, in this area. Naturally, this division lacked significant combat strength.

The commander of the 2nd Army was General Charles Léon Clément Huntziger. General Huntziger, often praised as "one of the most capable generals in the French army", was very popular among the French troops. Many even believed that he would be the next Commander-in-Chief of the French army. Officers of the 2nd Army spoke highly of him, saying, "There is no one more suitable than Huntziger to command the 2nd Army."

Unfortunately, this highly anticipated general made several fatal mistakes.

Keep in mind that making one fatal mistake can cost lives, and this general committed several in succession.

There's a famous saying, "Disdain your enemy strategically, but take him seriously tactically." However, General Huntziger made the bold move of underestimating the enemy both strategically and tactically. Just three days before the German offensive, he boldly stated, "I never considered the possibility of a German offensive in the Sedan area."

He said it, thought it, and did it that way.

On the day war broke out, this army comprised only five divisions, including one North African division (3rd North African Division), one colonial division from Senegal (3rd Colonial Division), and two second-rate infantry divisions (55th and 71st Infantry Divisions). The most potent division in the army, the 41st Infantry Division, was deployed on the far right.

Due to the easily defensible terrain near Sedan and the natural barrier of the Meuse River, the French only deployed one second-rate infantry division, the 55th Infantry Division, in this area. East of Sedan, at the western end of the extended segment of the Maginot Line, lay La Ferté Fortress. Between Sedan and La Ferté, the Muzon area was relatively unguarded, as the 2nd Army and the 10th Army concentrated most of their efforts on organizing the defense of this section.

Previously, German aerial reconnaissance indicated that the French defenses in the Sedan area seemed quite tight—fortifications filled the Malfosse Forest heights across the river, controlling the entire Sedan region. At this point, an Austrian engineer officer, skilled in interpreting aerial photographs, stunned the German high command with his conclusion—the French fortifications in the Malfosse Forest heights were mostly foundations dug into the ground, still far from being ready.

France also had insightful individuals who had long speculated that the real main attack direction of the Germans was at Sedan. They were deeply concerned about the chaotic state of the French defense preparations in the Sedan direction.

Ironically, it wasn't a military officer but rather the parliamentarian Pierre Titanche who reported the deplorable defensive conditions in Sedan to the then Minister of War, Édouard Daladier, and the French Commander-in-Chief, Gamelin. The report bluntly stated, "We are too hopeful that the Ardennes Forest and the Meuse River will protect Sedan. Our defense work in this area can no longer be described as simple, only crude."

Upon receiving this report, Gamelin forwarded it to General Georges, who requested a response from General Huntziger.

Unfortunately, General Huntziger completely disregarded this sensational prophecy-like report. Seeing that even their superior, General Huntziger, was indifferent, French troops across all units became less diligent in constructing fortifications.

More deadly than these disheartening firepower construction points was the inadequate deployment of minefields by the French. During World War II, the most effective defense tactic to slow down armored units' advance was a continuous minefield protected by intersecting anti-tank gun fires. Later, the German army faced the bitter consequences of this tactic when the Soviet Red Army employed it on the Eastern Front. The seemingly spectacular armored assaults by the German army were repeatedly thwarted by the hastily laid minefields and anti-tank gun positions of the Soviet army. Later, Rommel also adopted a similar tactic against Montgomery in Alam Halfa—setting up 500,000 mines on a 70-kilometer defensive line, a section that the British feared and called the "Devil's Garden".

However, in a defensive front also extending about 70 kilometers, the French 2nd Army only had a total of 16,000 mines. Only 2,000 mines were actually used in the defense of the Meuse River line, and when it came to the specific area of Sedan, the 55th Infantry Division had only laid out 422 anti-tank mines.

Even more bewildering was that the 55th Infantry Division, belonging to the second-rate infantry divisions, hadn't even completed the deployment of these modest 422 anti-tank mines. French officers and soldiers were too occupied with the never-ending construction of bunkers, hardly putting any effort into burying mines. Just before the German offensive, the French even removed some of the previously laid mines because they needed to apply lubricant to prevent them from being corroded by moisture. These mines were only found by the Germans in a dilapidated warehouse north of the Meuse River in 1941, and Guderian's armored forces basically encountered no minefields laid by the French.

Originally part of a second-rate infantry division, the 55th Infantry Division should have seized every available opportunity for combat training. Most soldiers in the division were over 30 years old, conscripts recalled after the outbreak of war, who had long forgotten the combat skills they learned during their earlier service. In response, General Huntziger's surprising strategy was to organize soldiers to participate more in sports activities to restore their physical strength. Even more unbelievably, the French even strictly prohibited soldiers and junior officers from conducting training privately. A lieutenant of the 147th Fortress Infantry Regiment was directly ordered to be confined for 15 days because he daringly organized a live-fire training session for a 25mm anti-tank gun crew.