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In September 1939, the German war machine invaded Poland and World War II began. The fall of France and its Britain declared against Germany in 1939. The French army 1940 was in theory as strong as the Germany's. It had a vast Empire sudden and a sophisticated arms industryshocking. It French leaders believed that they had also established prepared for a series of fortifications along the eastern border of the country along potential war with Germany, known as the Maginot Lineand were well prepared. The Line was designed to keep German forces out of France. InitiallyTragically, France and Great Britain appeared to be a match for Germanythey were not. However, in a period Within months of weeks in the late spring and early summer of 1940German invasion, it became clear that that France was woefully unprepared for the German onslaughtcollapsed. Why did France suffered a humiliating defeat and was surrender so quickly occupied by Nazi Germany. ? Its failure was a result of a hopelessly divided French political elite, a paucity 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.

In September 1939, the German war machine invaded Poland, and World War II began. France and Britain declared against Germany in 1939. The French army was in theory as strong as Germany's. It had a vast Empire and a sophisticated arms industry. It had also established a series of fortifications along the country's eastern border 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. ====Background==What happened to France after World War One? ==

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 the hope of a genuine rapprochement between the two largest powers in continental Europe.

The French initially 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 greatest powers in continental Europe. However, the Great Depression and the rise of Hitler meant that the French were suddenly faced with a potentially aggressive regime in Germany. The French adopted a diplomatic policy of appeasement and sought to placate Hitler by offering him concessions, such as allowing him to re-militarize the Rhineland. The French Still, France took no chances and began to prepare their defenses.

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’'Phoney War. ' However, in the Spring of 1940, the Germans shifted their attention west and went on the 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 June 14th, after the virtual collapse of the French army. French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud resigned on June 16th during the catastrophe. His successor, Marshal Philippe Pétain, began negotiations to end the war. By June 25th, France was forced to surrender.  The German army suffered 157,000 casualties during the invasion of France, but the Allies' losses 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. offensiveThe 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 [[What was Blitzkrieg and Who Created it|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>  However, rather than advance on a broad front through Belgium, the Germans focused two-thirds of their forces, including most of their tanks, in the Ardennes region of Belgium. France and Belgium did reinforce the fortifications in this region because they assumed that the terrain was unsuitable for tanks. When the Germans attack came through the Ardennes, they caught the French and their British allies by surprise because the French believed it was impassable to tanks.  Having successfully made their way into France, German forces then employed a tactic known as the ‘sickle stroke’. Sweeping across the northern plains of France at great speed, they divided the French and British forces into two parts. The British army was left isolated in Belgium and the French were left to bear the brunt of the German forces. <ref>Blatt, Joel, <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EDY69LI/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00EDY69LI&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=98a5e102ae32052fa58ceb0d44dbe87b The French Defeat of 1940: Reassessments]</i> (Providence, RI, Berghahn, 1997), p. 111</ref> The German army was substantially better than the French and the British. Hitler had built up the German 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, which wreaked havoc on the allies.<ref> Blatt, p. 117</ref> The Germans placed a great deal of emphasis on mobile and 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. Even though the German army was superior to the French in many ways the Fall of France was not inevitable.

The Battle of == Was France lasted only 46 days, from prepared for the German invasion on the 10th of May to the surrender of France on the 25th of June 1940. Paris fell to the Germans on the 14th of June? ==[[File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_121-0412, after the virtual collapse of the French Army. French Prime Minister Paul Reynaud resigned on the 16 June during the catasptrophe. His successor_Frankreich, Marshal Philippe Pétain_Panzer_Somua_S35, began negotiations to end the war_Geschütz. The German army approximately suffered 157,000 casualties jpg|left|thumbnail|300px|Captured French Somua S35 tanks being used by Germany in 1940 after the invasion Fall of France. The Allies lost over twice as many men, with 360,000 casulaties. A further two million ]]French military tactics were captured. Some 300,000 British and French troops escaped the Germans after being evacuated by naval forces extremely outdated at Dunkirk. The Germans occupied the majority start of Francethe war. In They had failed to recognize that warfare had fundamentally changed since the south of France, the Vichy Regime established a semi-autonomous political entityFirst World War. Vichy maintained control They were over -reliant upon the majority of the French Colonies. <ref>BondMaginot Line, Brian, ''[https://www.amazonand they believed that this would stop any German invasion in its track.com/gp/product/0080377009/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0080377009&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=8c2293a2e966ba28b14946a14239a02d BritainSince they did not believe that could defeat Germany outright, France they hoped that the Maginot would drive up casualties and Belgium, 1939–1940]''Germany to the negotiating table. (London, Brassey's, 1990), pThey relied on defensive tactics and failed to grasp the impact of modern tanks and aircraft.178</ref>

====Superior German Army and tactics====[[File: Eric Von Manstein.jpg|thumbnail|300px|left|Eric Von Manstein.jpg 1940]]The German army developed the [[How Did the German Military Develop Blitzkrieg?|Blitzkrieg tactics]]. This was a tactic based on highover-speed and mobile attacks reliance on the enemy’s weak points and it proved devastating in France.<ref> Bond, pMaginot Line meant that they were too defensive. 111</ref> The German victory was founded on a plan developed by Maginot Line also failed to protect the great military strategies, General Erich von Mansteinentire French border. He adopted the Schlieffen Plan that was used so nearly successful in WW I.<ref> Bond, p. 117 </ref> However, rather than advance on a broad front through Belgium, the Germans focused two-thirds Instead of their forcesattacking France directly, including most of their tanks, in Germany avoided the Ardennes region of Maginot line by invading Belgium. This area was weakly French military planners have failed to plan for this contingency. The defensive line only partially defended, as they believed that France and indeed left the terrain was unsuitable for tankscountry open to an invasion via Belgium. When The French High Command also failed to launch an offensive against Germany after the Germans did attack through the Ardennes they caught the French and their British allies by surpriseGerman attacked Poland.

The French believed it was impassable army simply hid behind the Maginot Line and waited for the Germans to tanksattack. Having successfully made their way into France, German forces then employed a tactic known as When the ‘sickle stroke’. Sweeping across Germans finally did attack through the northern plains of France at great speedArdennes, they divided the French and British forces into two parts. The British army was left isolated trapped in bunkers, and its fortifications were immediately outflanked. Even when the Germans invaded Belgium and , the French General Staff continued with their cautious policy and were left slow to respond to bear the brunt of the German forces threat.<ref>BlattCooper, Joel, <i>M. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EDY69LI0517436108/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00EDY69LI0517436108&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=98a5e102ae32052fa58ceb0d44dbe87b 089457e8c42c04ed8e9d351e9727ad63 The French Defeat of 1940: ReassessmentsGerman Army 1933–1945, Its Political and Military Failure]</i> ''. (ProvidenceBriarcliff Manor, RINY: Stein and Day, Berghahn, 19971978), p. 111201 </ref>.

The German army was much superior to 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<dh-ad/ref>. The Germans placed a great deal of emphasis on mobile and armoured 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 the German army was superior to the French in many ways, that this did not mean that the Fall of France was inevitable.

====While the French Tactics army was large and Equipment were Poor====[[File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_121-0412had been well resourced,_Frankreich,_Panzer_Somua_S35,_Geschützit had not been modernized.jpg|left|thumbnail|300px|Captured French Somua S35 tanks being used by Germany in 1940.]]French military tactics were extremely outdated at It was still based on the start of idea that the next war. They had failed to recognize that warfare had fundamentally changed since would resemble the First World Great War. They were over-reliant upon As a result, the Maginot Line and they believed that this would stop any German invasion in its track. Since they French did not believe that could defeat any war with 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 be a mobile one, but rather a war of modern tanks and aircraftattrition. 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 develop tank tactics that took advantage 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 their tanks 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 outflankedcapabilities. <ref> Copper, p, 137</ref> Even when the Germans invaded BelgiumFrench did effective field equipment, such as the SOMUA S35 tanks, they were mismanaged by French General Staff continued with their cautious policy and were slow to respond to the German threat.<ref> Cooper, Mcavalry commanders. ''[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 Somua S35 tanks did not realize their true potential until German Army 1933–1945, Its Political commanders commandeered them and Military Failure]''utilized on the Eastern Front. (Briarcliff Manor, NY: Stein and Day, 1978), p. 201 </ref>

While the French army was large and had been well resourced, it had not been modernized. It was still based on the idea that the next war would resemble the Great War. As a result, the French did not believe that any war with Germany, would be a mobile one, but rather a war of attrition. This meant that they failed to develop tank tactics that took advantage of their tanks offensive capabilities.<ref> Copper, p, 137</ref> Even when the French did field effective equipment, such as the SOMUA S35 tanks, they were mismanaged by French calvary commanders. The Somua S35 tanks did not realize their true potential until they were commandeered by German commanders and utilized on the Eastern Front. During the invasion, German Panzer tanks quickly overcame the French defenses on the plains of Northern France. The French air forces were also not a no match for the Germans in aerial combat. The French army was unable to cope with the German Blitzkrieg tactics and was quickly defeated after only six weeks of fighting.<ref>Copper, p, 134</ref>

====Why did France have Poor Military and Political Leadership==? ==In 1940 , the French general staff was led by General Maurice Gamelan, an officer widely respected. A veteran and war hero of the First World War, he was credited with developing the strategy that led to the decisive French victory at the Marne in 1914. He had also tried unsuccessfully, to modernize the army. But Gamelin was suffering from a serious illness, whose symptoms included poor concentration levels, memory loss and other cognitive difficulties . Gamelin’s own memoirs, published after the war , showed symptoms of paranoia and delusions of grandeur.<ref>Jackson, Julian T. <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0192805509/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0192805509&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=aa6895f6029c163adf1d3e187d64e538 The Fall of France: The Nazi German Invasion of 1940]</i>. (Oxford UP, 2003), p. 234</ref> The military leadership below Gamelin was generally poor. They were slow to respond to the Germans , and there was a marked reluctance to take any initiative and go on the attack. The political leadership of France was also very poor. According to one French commentator during the war, they could not inspire the French people, they were more interested in fighting among themselves that the Germans.<ref>Jackson, p. 235</ref>

France was bitterly divided between the left and the right. This lack of unity in France was crippling at a crucial juncture in the war. The division also extended to the relationships between the military and political leadership of France. The French Generals were rights wing and distrusted the left -wing politicians who ran France. French ministers also did not trust the judgement judgment of their generals. The French officer corps was more worried about a Communist revolution than a German invasion. For example, General Weygand was more concerned with maintaining social stability in the wake of the German invasion than actually fighting the Germans. Many later accused some French Generals of being traitors. Perhaps the greatest weakness in the French leadership was that they did not have a true war leader, as one Frenchman stated in 1942, they ‘had no Churchill’. If France had a leader of the calibre of Clemenceau in 1940, perhaps the outcome of the Battle of France could have been different. <ref> Why Did the French Army Collapse So Quickly? – <i>Omnibooks Magazine</i>, (London July, 1942), p. 6</ref>

====Defeatism in France====France was a powerful country with a large army and a vast Empire that stretched around the globeFor example, but it General Weygand 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 concerned with maintaining social stability in the Communists or the extreme right hated the French government so virulently, their support wake of the French government be best described as half-hearted after the German invasionthan actually fighting the Germans. Many ordinary people were disgusted with the leaders later accused some French Generals of the Third Republic, who were widely seen as professional politicians who were both venal and corruptbeing traitors.<ref>Jackson, p.117</ref> Furthermore, defeatism was rampant at Perhaps the start of WW II. France had a low birth rate and many were convinced that greatest weakness in the country French leadership 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, they did not have a true war leader; as one Frenchman stated in the political and military elite believed that France could not defeat Germany and that any efforts to resist the Germans were pointless1942 they ‘had no Churchill’. Many people believed that If France was a nation in decline and that her greatest days had passed. This led to a spirit leader of defeatism in France in the Spring and Summer caliber of Clemenceau in 1940, that played an important role in perhaps the outcome of the Fall Battle of Francecould have been different. Despite <ref> Why Did 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. Army Collapse So Quickly? – <i>Omnibooks Magazine<ref/i>Copper, (London July, 1942), p, 144. 6</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 enitre country to fall. The reasons for the sudden defeat Fall 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 were 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.- What role did defeatism play? ==<div class="portal" style="'float:right; width:8535%;"'>

*[[How Did the German Military Develop What was Blitzkrieg?and Who Created it]]