military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/02/90)
Sunday, 12 May, 1940 The French 7th Army, having reached Breda in the Netherlands, is ordered to withdraw to the line of the River Scheldt in Belgium. Futher south, the east bank of the Meuse is abandoned to Germany, as troops begin digging in on the west bank. The Meuse bridges are demolished as the last of the light mechanized delaying force crosses. By day's end, German panzer forces have reached the east bank on a wide front from Dinant to Sedan. Two battalions of the French Foreign Legion land near Narvik. General Franco affirms Spain's policy of strict neutrality in the European war. Mussolini calls up an additional 1 million men into the military. In Britain, 3000 enemy aliens, and 11000 other aliens, are interned. London claims the move is necessary to avoid a repeat of fifth-column activity such as recently seen in Holland. All aliens are now subject to an 8:00 curfew within a "restricted area", which covers most of the east coast save London. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "For the second time in a quarter of a century Belgium, an honest neutral in her conduct, has been attacked by the German Reich, which treats with contempt the most solemn pledges." - King Leopold III of Belgium