military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (06/02/90)
Friday, 10 May, 1940 At 5:35 a.m., German airborne forces land at key bridges throughout Holland and the Dutch fortress of Eben Emael. German land forces cross the borders of Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands, with some 77 divisions, 10 of which are armored. The latter are concentrated in 3 Panzerkorps striking through the Ardennes sector. The Netherlands responds by flooding key areas, and a German paratroop raid intended to capture Queen Wilhelmina is defeated. The government of Luxembourg relocates to France. The Luftwaffe begins at dawn with raids on Allied airfields in the Netherlands, Belgium, and northern France. Two Dutch liners are bombed and sunk at Rotterdam. German planes also mistakenly bomb the German town of Freiburg, killing 57, which act Goebbels blames on France. By 7:30, Allied troops are reacting per the Dyle plan; the French 7th Army and the BEF enter Belgium. 32 divisions are so committed, intending to link up with the 22 Belgian and 11 Dutch divisions. Fairey Battle bombers of the BEF attack panzer columns in Belgium, and 16 of 32 bombers are lost, the remainder damaged. Britain occupies Iceland, and together with France, the Dutch West Indies. The government in the Dutch East Indies siezes a number of German merchant ships in port there. Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain resigns; he is replaced by Winston Churchill, who asks all of Chamberlain's ministers to remain at their posts until he can reform the government. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@cbnews.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "Soldiers of the West Front ! The battle which is beginning today will decide the fate of the German nation for the next thousand years. Do your duty now ! " - Adolf Hitler, in his Order of the Day