Whatif the French victory at Stonne had led to a counter-attack on the Meuse ?
This text is not mine. Is has been written by Eric Dennis on the ATF 1940 board.
I’ve translated it thanks to Babelfish; I had to translate by myself some oddities Babelfish invented (sigh…)
Stonne and Le Mont-Dieu are located only 15 km south of Sedan. After the German PzD crossed the Meuse on may 13th 1940, some units were send to Stonne and Le Mont-Dieu to enlarge the breach to the south.
The german tanks and infantry were repealed, beaten, and finally smashed by the B1bis tanks and the 6e GRDI. The village was devastated, it changed sides 6 times in three days!
Stonne was briefly known as the “1940 Verdun” and did not fall until late may.
Sadly the French HQ had no time to use Stonne as the starting point for a counter offensive on the German bridgehead on the Meuse.
But whatif this had happened ?
Thus let us return at May 13, 1940.
At this moment, the infantry of the 10. PzD has just created its bridgehead, in Floing-Gaulier towards 16:00; the bridgehead extended until Chémery.
Preceded by an air attack out of the commun run for the time, since more than 1.000 aircrafts of the Luftwaffe attacked the French positions of the sector, the AK Guderian does not meet too many difficulties to cross the Meuse. The germans begins the construction of a bridge of boats which will be usable by the tanks as of the 14 May in the morning.
The German general wisely makes install nearly 300 AAA guns in the sector, fearing rightly a allied air intervention.
On the French side, it is total panic. 55e DI took a beating, but the 7th BCC and 213e IH counterattack is not launched, : the French HQ awaits the 3rd DIM and the 3rd DCR which are on the way to arrive on the sector. The 1. and 2. PzD sink full west while the 10. PzD and Grossdeutschland advances towards Stonne and Le Mont Dieu.
The 14 at the evening, these two German units storm their objectives, and the dominant dimension is with the hands of Wehrmacht. The resistance of the 6th GRDI nevertheless prevents them from emerging, and the frontline thus stabilizes the 14 at the evening.
The day of May 15 is necessary to the French to gather their assets. The Germans having achieved their goals in the South,just mount some recons.
In the morning of the 16, the whole of the French troops, gathered vis-a-vis Stonne (3rd DCR, 7th BCC, 3rd DIM and 213e IH) are ready for their counterattack. The RAF, unlike OTL, engages the whole of its formations at the beginning of day on the German positions of Stonne. The units of Flak, concentrated on the passages of the Meuse are almost absent on the city, and the German units undergo a fierce bombing.
At 8:00, the combined artillery of the Great French Units open fire. A rain of 75 to 155 shells fall on the Wehrmacht, already damaged by the air raid. The French GQG, finally conscious of the danger represented by the crossing of the Meuse, entrusts in urgency to general Bertin-Boussu the command of the whole of the troops gathered for the counter-attack.
BB, trustful in the value of the troops put under its command, order a methodical action, having begin with a preparation from artillery involving every gun he has.
Fire rain on the german positions last more than one hour, and as soon as it ceases, when the German units leave the shelters to join their stations of combat, emerge ALL B1bis of the 3rd DCR, supported by the light tanks and the infantry of the 3rd DIM.
213e IH and the 7th BCC are maintained in reinforcement for a possible exploitation.
Information circulates quickly within the AK Guderian. Indeed, as soon as the B1bis attacked they literally butchered the 10. PzD armor, and this in spite of the presence of Grossdeutschland which notes that its 37 AC have no effect on the French tanks.
Stonne is quickly taken again in spite of significant tanks losses on the French side. The German lose nearly all their anti-tank device, plus a big number of soldiers. These soldiers have been initially struck by the effectiveness of artillery, then engaged by the tanks, and finally taken prisonier by the French infantry.
A first column of several hundreds of prisoners is thus formed by the French, and is transmitted at the rear of the front.
10. PzD, incompetent to face B1 (a), leaves in the battlefield a good part of its manpower.
A movement of panic then takes shape among Germans soldiers, who run down the hill and spread alarming news on the invincibility of the B1bis heavy tanks. Many of them saw the mastodons with the tricolour rosettes storming the German positions. The french did not hesitate to crush under their caterpillars the hearths of resistance.
After disaster stroke, Guderian recalls the 1. PzD, and wishes to place it in reserve in the bridgehead. But the 1.PzD which is already committed in its Western race full cannot be available before 24 to 48 hours.Guderian fears the continuity of the French action and orders the engagement of all the air forces available on the sector. He also gathers the artillery units he has in the West bank of the Meuse.
General Bertin-Boussu know he just won a battle, not full victory. Thus he orders the French troops to stop momently on Stonne and his immediate area.
He has to wait for the redeployment of the 42 E and 242 E Artillery Unit (motorized), as well as all anti-aircraft batteries available.
The German counterattack is imminent.
At this moment, the French Staff cannot know the importance of the German troops having already crossed the Meuse.
As a consequence the tanks are dispersed and camouflaged, and the infantry works with haste, to organize a defensive network. The anti-tank guns are loaded, the French gunners benefit from the position raised to shell several times every possible zones of attack.
The supply is organized, and the units can thus fill the tank with fuel and ammunition. The Luftwaffe attack in mass, and cause some losses on the French side. But the bombers are obstructed by the anti-aircraft guns, and do not affect French units morale made up of soldiers of active.
The German counter-attack formed by the remainders of the 10. PzD, Grossdeutschland, as well as the 2. ID (motorized division) breaks on French defenses.
Camouflaged B1bis acting with infantry repeal the attackers.
The 42e RA guns have been placed in the first line of defence to support the tank and infantry. French gunners fire at every movement they see on the German side.
Two hours later an exciting news spread among French soldiers : the Wermacht give up.
German losses increase further while moving back because of French heavy artillery, which since 48 hours fired several thousands of tons of ammunition (!)
Reconstituted “irregular forces” of the 3rd DIM are sent ahead at of the end of the counter-attack. They have to disturb German lines further.
The French commandos badger enemy positions with grenade and automatic weapons. German troops did not have time to strengthened their positions correctly.
French soldiers are everywhere and nowhere at the same time,giving Wermacht a feeling of permanent insecurity.
These raids are thus maintained all the night.
The French heavy artillery then lengthen its shootings and now directly shell the German bridgehead. Such shootings considerably disturb the passage of the German troops in the West bank of the Meuse. The arrival of the night does not stop the engagement of the French artillery, which carried out the adjustment of its weapons before the day felt.
The French observers easily locate the enemy guns, which are systematically blasted as soon as they open fire. The losses are heavy on the German side, while the supply ammunition is nearly impossible.
The French tactics mainly consist in concentrating shelling on the immediate outlets of the Meuse crossings poontoons, thus destroying a great number of enemy materials.
In the morning of the 16, the Germans are unable to locate the French positions precisely. The commandos played their role perfectly, and German feeling is something like “no one is safe from an attack”.
During the night, the French Staff send at Stone every unit available.
A new army division has been specially created. The unit is placed under the orders of general Bertin-Boussu, which has been promoted on the occasion, thanks to its success of the previous day. BB is conscious of the advantage that it with already acquired, and he organizes the continuity of its action.
First of all, he concentrates the various units of cavalry it has (6th GRDI, 12th G.R.C.A, 64e G.R.D.I., and the squadron motorcyclist of 93e G.R.D.I.) and sends them full North, in order to counter the possible retreat of 2 PzD launched to the West. Their mission consists in blocking the german units, in order to prevent them from joining the bridgehead.
Bertin-Boussu places the 5th DLC in reserve, slightly in the North-West of Stonne. During the night, all units of artillery available came to supplement the 42e and 242e RA. Now 400 guns shell the enemy positions.
Fire never ceased; in fact every gun brought to the front immediately open fire on the German troops!
Only Luftwaffe have some successes, by destroying some artillery batteries.
Because Guderian called them to the rescue, the 1. and 2. PzD make half-turn, thus saving the southern sector of 9th French Army, which can thus concentrate on the difficulties that it undergoes in North.
When the 1. and 2. PzD arrive at about thirty kilometers of the Meuse, they run up full whip against the deployed units of cavalry (the GR.); the French ambush them.
Bertin-Boussu is worried about the strength 2 PzD reprensents. He thus reinforce the GR (units of cavalry) with the 5th DLC, 7th BCC and 213e IH. This is enough to temporarily stop the big Germans tank divisions.
Now Bertin-Boussu plan two axes of attack from Stonne.
The first, made up mainly of the 2 BCC heavy tank group from the 3rd DCR,
Launch a head-on attack on the German bridgehead located on the west Meuse bank.
The second attack intercalates himself between the cavalry and the first axis, and thus definitively cuts the lines of communication of ventured German armor divisions to the West.
Those divisions thus are not supplied any more, whereas their movement in return obliged them to consume a good part of their fuel reserves. Inevitably, they quickly will be paralyzed.
In spite of heavy losses, the German bridgehead on the Meuse is smashed. The Germans led by Guderian himself have to give up all their heavy material on the battlefield, and hurrily cross the Meuse.
The line of fortifications bordering the river is re-occupied by the french, this time with experimented troops.
The French victory also relieve the 9th Army, which send tacke the German units located more at North, destroying their lines of communications.
Many Germans PzD are now trapped deep in French territory! They are short of ammo and fuel, cut of their communication lines. Hitler immediately order the Luftwaffe to supply these units.
But the Luftwaffe is unable to organize the massive supply of the whole of the units concerned (remember Stalingrad ?)
Some days later Hitler has lost no less than 7 PzD, with the motorized Infantry Division which accompanied them.
The French then had to stop the (other) two PzD leading the offensive in Belgium, but this is another story.
Btw the last PzD was in the Netherlands. Hitler only three PzD left!
On may 17th 1940, Hitler ordered the fast troops to stop (this is OTL).
Hitler already had ordered a stop on May 12. At the time German troops were on the verge to cross the Meuse, thus the order had been quietly ignored. Again, on may 14, and may 17, similar orders were ignored. In OTL Guderian famously ignored Hitler order to stop on may 17, pushing deeper and deeper within French territory.
But in this ATL, Hitler is very angered, saying “here what arrives when a soldier do not listen”. In this scenario Guderian just can’t ignore the fuhrer (!), having been miserably repealed on the Meuse…
Thus there is firm and final order to stop of the fast troops for consolidation on the line reached 17, and perhaps a bits farther but not as much as that.
Obviously, such order neither apply to Hoeppner and Heeresgruppe B nor Luftwaffe (as in Dunkirk)
but that nevertheless will give much, much more time to Giraud. Giraud endeavour being something like “mass every troop we have and organize a strong defensive line”.
Of course Giraud won’t be captured on may 19th.
Between 17 and 19th may 1940, Giraud will improvise a defensive line strong enough to held against a German offensive. GA-1 (French Army Group number one) will withdraw from the north “trap” much easily, having only one side being exposed.
Voila!