Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation

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321
June 29th, 1940

Meknès
- The pilots of the Béarn air group begin training on Brewster B-339 and SBC-4 at the fighter school. Among them, a very young pilot, Yvon Lagadec, who had been appointed as a midshipman a few months earlier after passing his "landing qualification".
He had the joy of being released on a B-339.
"Of course, we immediately nicknamed these machines "Belgian Buffalo", which we owed to the understanding of the government of Outre-Quiévrain [1]. But we were delighted. Low-wing monoplane, steel construction, retractable landing gear and closed canopy... In short, real modern aircraft! Even kids like me could see the difference with the dusty biplanes or the parasol monoplane (Dewoitine 373 and 376) which were more like kites and with which the Aéronavale had to be satisfied for a long time. We forgot the terrible news that arrived every day from the front. With these planes, give up the fight (as a rumor had let fear, around June 12th) was no longer an option!"
(Above the Seven Seas - Memories of a Sailor of the Sky, by Rear Admiral Yvon Lagadec, Editions France-Empire)
Soon, thanks to the navalized Brewster B-339s that the Normandie has just landed in crates, the old Béarn will be able to return to the fleet, with a brand new air group.

[1] Remember that these aircraft were originally destined for Belgium. On June 20th, the 48 Brewster B-339 (equivalent of the F2A-2 Buffalo), ordered by Belgium at the end of 1939 and already delivered (to the United States) or being manufactured, were sold by Belgium to France. The French Navy indeed claimed that they could be used to equip its aircraft carrier (the naval groups of the Béarn had been sacrificed to the German advance in May 1940). Three examples, including the prototype, arrived at Bordeaux-Mérignac on May 28th, were evacuated to North Africa and started to be used as operational conversion aircraft for the Aéronavale pilots, while the Normandie transported the 40 other B-339s, refitted in the meantime by the US Navy and Brewster (the operation is very simple) and landed them on June 28th at Casablanca.
 
322
June 29th, 1940

Sardinia
- Bloch MB-210 based in Toulon, after having refueled in Corsica, bomb the grounds of the north of the island. An Italian report indicates that the island is now practically undefended from the air, that its garrison was too weak to seriously oppose an attack and that the only hope of saving the island in this case would be a naval victory. This report, carefully hidden from Mussolini, was not known until after the war.
On the evening of June 29th, the situation of the Sardinian Air Force was as follows (in brackets, the number of planes in count on June 10th):
Fighter (Fiat CR.32) 0 (28)
Ground attack (Breda 88) 3 (19)
Land bombardment (SM.79) 34 (55)
Maritime bombardment (Cant Z.506bis) 19 (24)
Maritime reconnaissance (Cant Z.501) 13 (21)
Maritime Reconnaissance (Cant Z.506bis) 4 (6)
Aerial observation (Ro.37) 6 (6)
A total of 79 aircraft, compared to 159 three weeks earlier.
 
323
June 29th, 1940

Sicily
- The LeO-451s continue their high speed and medium altitude raids; 27 attack Catania and 18 attack Comiso. Meanwhile, aircraft based in Malta and DB-7s based in Tunisia harass the airfields in the Trapani area.
 
324
June 29th, 1940

Eastern Mediterranean
- Covered by the Gladiators of Sqn 33 and 80, the Alexandria squadron bombards Bardia in broad daylight. British and French battleships are careful to ensure the accuracy of their fire without the slightest Italian interference.
In the Gulf of Sirte, a Martin 167 patrol from Malta intercepts two SM.82 used as transports and strafe both aircraft. One of them is shot down, the other one, heavily damaged, crashes on landing.
South-west of Crete, British destroyers HMS Dainty, Ilex, Decoy, Defender and Australian HMAS Voyager sink the Italian submarine Uebi Scebeli. The submarine's crew is captured.
In the Ionian Sea, Sunderland of Sqn 230 of the RAF sink the submarine Rubino, while the submarine was returning from a patrol in the Alexandria area.
 
325
June 29th, 1940

Alger
- In the evening, General de Gaulle, who had come to Algiers to meet the officers commanding operations on African soil, takes advantage of the occasion to talk to a group of senior officers about the upcoming operations. "Gentlemen, with the help of General Mittelhauser's troops, our British allies will go on the attack and invade Libya as of August 15th. Therefore, before considering our future actions in the Mediterranean, our forces must secure Tripoli, in order to force the Italian general staff to concentrate all its forces to the west, thus opening the door to the British attack. The offensive against Tripoli, set up by General Noguès and his staff, is commanded by General Blanc. It is to be Operation Scipio. This offensive combines two actions. On the one hand, probes and limited attacks will pin the enemy on the coastal road. On the other hand, a powerful mechanized thrust will be launched along the Jebel Nafousah, at the extreme south of the front, by the 61st and 65th Tank Battalions, equipped with D1 tanks, and the 62nd BCC, equipped with R-35 tanks. The three BCCs should not be divided in any way; they will be accompanied by the "cavalry tanks" of the 6th DLC and by all those that the Normandie is in the process of landing [1]. D-Day has been set for July 14th." As the General interrupted for a moment," recounts Jean Lacouture (De Gaulle, t.1, Le Guerrier), "an officer dared a remark: "It is a maneuver similar to the one the Germans carried out in May in Belgium and in the Ardennes, isn't it?
- Above all, it is a maneuver that conforms to the spirit of the use of armored forces as... some authors described it a few years ago
," replied De Gaulle in an icy voice.

"This operation, which involved a limited number of troops, engaged in the Tripolitan desert while the Motherland was caught in the throat, was nevertheless of importance. The evacuation of our forces from metropolitan France, which is being pursued by all means, requires that the French Army maintain an offensive posture wherever possible, simply to continue to justify its existence. Moreover, the elimination of the Italian forces from Africa will not only provide French Africa with the security it needs to become the starting point for the Reconquest, it will also allow for further action against Italian positions in the Mediterranean, putting Italy and the whole of the Rome-Berlin Axis in the line of fire." (Charles de Gaulle, Mémoires de Guerre, t.1, Le Sursaut)

[1] De Gaulle is a bit hasty: the American machines were not operational until mid-August, the time to be taken in hand by crews evacuated from Metropolitan France and transported to the front.
 
326
June 29th, 1940

Libya
- While Mussolini decides to replace Balbo with Marshal Graziani, the Armée de l'Air continues to bludgeon the ASI. French air activity was barely less than the previous day, with 468 offensive missions for the Armée de l'Air alone.
The Italian positions on the border are bombed, to support several attacks led by an infantry regiment supported by a company of D1 or FT-17 tanks. The Potez 63.11 accomplished 105 combat missions, the LN-401/11 fifteen and the nine SBC-4s, who saw their first offensive use, flew 18 missions (each aircraft took part in two organized raids). The dive bombers proved to be excellent ground support tools, destroying Italian fortified points.
Several groups of Martin 167s and DB-7s, covered by 24 Hawk H-75A3s, hit the fields around Tripoli. The raid against Mellaha is executed by 12 Martin escorted by six H-
75s; they come across Italian assault aircraft that had arrived the day before and were preparing to attack the French troops who were harassing the Italian positions on the border. Seven twin-engine Caproni 310bis and two single-engine Breda Ba.65 are destroyed by bombs or by the bullets of the fighters. Only one Breda is able to take off and immediately launches itself on the bombers, which it attacks from the front, damaging one of them. As he turns to engage a new group of bombers, hoping at least to hinder them, he is surprised by two H-75s. The ensuing battle is unbalanced, and very quickly the big machine, riddled with bullets, lands on its belly at the edge of the runway. From the burning wreckage, the ground crews narrowly extract the seriously wounded tenente Adriano Visconti, seriously injured. Evacuated two days later by an SM.82, Lieutenant Visconti will be awarded a Silver Medal for his courageous attempt to hinder the French attack and, more importantly for him, he was transferred to a fighter unit.
Benghazi is attacked by 18 LeO-451s, while the Farman 223.3s were once again going to chastise Tripoli, where the greatest disorder reigns.
In nine days, the French fly 4,174 offensive and 301 defensive combat missions. They lose 51 aircraft, 37 of them in combat.
At the end of the day, the French Air Force reported that "the Italian air force in the Tripoli sector had been significantly weakened. The enemy now has only 60 to 80 operational aircraft in Libya." This assessment is... very underestimated!
.........
On the ninth day of the offensive, the situation of the Regia Aeronautica in Libya is as follows (in parentheses the number of operational aircraft):
Fighter (Fiat CR.32) 5 (2)
Fighter (Fiat CR.42) 7 (3) [1]
Ground bombardment (SM.79) 14 (9)
Ground bombardment (SM.81) 15 (12) [2]
Reconnaissance (Ca.309) 11 (7)
Ground attack (Ca.310bis) 9 (6)
Ground attack (Ba.65) 5 (3)
Aerial observation (Ro.37bis) 8 (5)

In total, the Italians only have 74 aircraft left in Libya, 47 of which are operational, compared to 301, including 180 operational, ten days earlier.

[1] Including two that SM.82s just brought in, in pieces.
[2] Six of them are used as transports.
 
327
June 29th, 1940

Southern France
- The French withdrawal continues along the entire front, without any significant interference from the Wehrmacht, whose forces are in the process of being reorganized.

Rhone Valley - In order to limit the destruction inflicted on Lyon, the French combatants withdraw to the southern suburbs. General Hartung, military governor, offers the surrender of the city, while clashes still take place in the Corbas sector. The Germans occupy the "capital of the Gauls", but all its bridges are destroyed. In the evening, a German column heads towards the industrial area of Saint-Chamond. During the night, the French leave Saint-Etienne to entrench themselves solidly in the passes south of the city.

Southwest - The call to the Spaniards makes it possible to recruit more than 30 000 men, in the camps but especially in the Companies of Foreign Workers (CTE), in addition to ten thousand spontaneous enlistments from September 1939 to May 1940. Among these men, a certain number... of children, or rather teenagers who cheated on their age, and even some women! The battalions formed in a hurry are equipped with weapons from the factories of Chatellerault, Tulle, Hendaye, Bayonne... the artillery park of Poitiers and the munitions of the ERG Mun. of Thouars (not to mention the weapons of the Spanish Republicans themselves, sequestered upon their arrival in France). The first units of the Foreign Legion thus took up positions on the Charente and the Vienne. The last ones will occupy the defense line of the Dordogne, which is to cover Toulouse. Indeed, there are no illusions about the solidity of the line of defense defined on June 23rd.
The defenders of this first line of defense are reinforced by twelve battalions of Senegalese riflemen (in fact from all of French Black Africa) stationed at the Souge camp in Bordeaux. Eight other Senegalese battalions, stationed at Rivesaltes, join the Spaniards on the Dordogne line. These experienced units (22,000 men in all) are to be given 400 Boys anti-tank rifles supplied by the British and which were awaiting assignment in various depots, as well as several thousand Thompson machine guns. Their resistance enrages the Germans, who see it as a reason to amplify their exactions against their black prisoners (as well as against their white officers, "guilty" of defending their men).
 
328
June 29th, 1940

Cote d'Azur
- The Italian offensive in the Maritime Alps is renewed with even greater vigour: the 5th Cosseria ID is now supported by the 37th Modena ID, two battalions of Blackshirts and a large amount of artillery. The Italians advance in defiance of the losses caused by the French artillery, overrunning the advanced works (Pont Saint-Louis, la Coletta, Collet du Pila), which nevertheless continue to fight, even though they are overrun and surrounded.
The sections of scout-skiers, who fought magnificently and reached the limits of their physical resistance, have to be definitively withdrawn from the front lines and put at rest. There are no more troops in front of the main line of resistance, which is however nowhere in sight.
At the end of the day, the Italians reach the outskirts of Menton.
 
329
June 29th, 1940

North Africa

Organizing the Grand Déménagement - Arriving in North Africa


In North Africa as in mainland France, the ports were placed under the authority of the Navy. Under the authority of Vice-Admiral Eugène Rivet, Maritime Prefect of the IVth Maritime Region, an organization similar to that of the ports of departure was put in place: the ports, which were subject to martial law, were organized in order to receive the Déménagement.
The main criterion was the speed of unloading: ships had to stay in port as little time as possible before leaving to evacuate a new cargo of men and equipment. As in mainland France, the dockworkers worked under a military regime and unloaded ships in three shifts.
The three major ports of North Africa (Algiers, Oran and Casablanca) were the three main ports of disembarkation for the men and materials evacuated by the Grand Déménagement. Algiers mainly receives the fast ships (liners and banana boats) that cross the Mediterranean by direct route, as well as traffic from Corsica; Oran is the point of arrival for convoys from Marseille; Casablanca, in addition to receiving transatlantic traffic, welcomes English convoys from Sète or Port-Vendres.
Faced with the risk of congestion in these ports, as the weeks went by, more and more (small) ships were diverted to secondary ports (Bône, Arzew, Mostaganem, Bougie, Philippeville), which have a limited capacity but which provide valuable services. The ports of Tunisia (Tunis, Bizerte) are only used on a very occasional basis (for example when the cargo transported is essentially Navy equipment destined for the arsenals of Bizerte or reinforcements for the upcoming offensive against Libya).
The men disembarked and the equipment unloaded immediately left the ports to avoid unnecessary congestion: the soldiers went on foot to the sorting centers, the equipment was quickly shipped by train or truck to the depots where they are stored... In July and August, the trains in North Africa were largely monopolized by the movement of troops and equipment to the south of Tunisia for the preparation of the offensive against Libya; consequently, there is very little rail availability towards the east: on the other hand, on the way back to Morocco, these trains are used to transfer evacuees to the Oranais and Morocco.

The question of the reception of the evacuees then arises. More than 600,000 people were due to arrive in a month and a half! As soon as they arrived, the men were sent to sorting centers (improvised in the mobilization centers and barracks closest to the ports) where they will be counted and then directed to regrouping areas.
But if the Air Force personnel could be distributed on the military airfields of the 5th Air Region and if the sailors will be grouped in Bizerte (as well as in Casablanca and Oran), the reception of the men of the Army will be much more problematic. The barracks and other facilities of the African Army were quickly saturated (and reserved for the staff), it will be necessary to distribute the men in large improvised camps in the plains of the Algerois and Oranais regions, or even in Morocco or Tunisia (in the camps from where the units going up to the Libyan border were going). All of them will suffer during long weeks of deplorable living conditions, in terms of hygiene and supplies,
before the materials and food purchased in South America and the United States made it possible from August onwards, to reach more decent living conditions.
 
330
June 29th, 1940

Oran
- The last units of the French Expeditionary Corps in Norway arrive from England on board Belgian ships.
Other Belgian ships, the cargo ships Carlier, Egypte and Copacabana arrive from Marseille and disembark men, planes and artillery. Their chimneys, like those of the other Belgian ships in the Mediterranean, are painted orange to indicate their neutrality towards the the Italians. In fact, the three cargo ships carry only Belgian men and equipment.
 
331
June 29th, 1940

Netherlands
- In Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam and a few other cities, thousands of Dutch citizens gather to mark their attachment to the House of Orange by celebrating the birthday of Prince Bernhard, husband of Crown Princess Juliana, by wearing a carnation on their vests. The day will remain under the name of "Carnation Day" (Anjerdag).
This demonstration is not really in line with the spirit of the appeal to the people of the Netherlands launched on May 20th on the BBC by the Minister-President (Prime Minister), Dirk Jan de Geer.
The latter asked his compatriots to "show calm and order" and to "cooperate with the German authorities". So the number of carnation bearers would have been much lower if the French and Belgian governments had not given the example of firmness, despite their military defeat. But the Dutch believe that, if France and Belgium say "No" to the defeatists, the Netherlands can do the same.
The German occupation authorities do not appreciate the Anjerdag. On the orders of Seyss-Inquart, Reichskommissar for the Netherlands since May 29th (his administration
replaced that of the Wehrmacht, directed by General von Falkenhausen), General Henri Winkelman (former commander-in-chief of the Dutch forces) is deported to Germany and Mr. de Monchy, mayor of The Hague, is dismissed.
 
332
June 30th, 1940

Toulouse
- After several days (and nights) of debate, most parties are unable to decide whether or not they should participate in the Grand Déménagement. Only the SFIO - with how many ulterior motives - has decided on a common position (or almost). The Parliament has thus just demonstrated to which point the regime that it incarnates is at the end of its life...
However, the "Toulouse talks" have clarified the positions of all sides for the years to come. Now, the game is over, nothing goes anymore: an appointment is given to all the parliamentarians present, who must go to Marseille where they will embark in two days to North Africa.
Each one must make a decision in his soul and conscience. At least all the parliamentarians are aware that this choice will seal their fate in the France that will emerge from the war, whether it is defeated or victorious...
 
333
June 30th, 1940

Western Mediterranean
- French aircraft based in Corsica attack targets of opportunity in Sardinia and those based in Tunisia continue to harass Sicily.
Saphir-class mine-spotting submarines begin to lay offensive minefields in front of Naples, Livorno and La Spezia.
 
334
June 30th, 1940

Eastern Mediterranean
- Italian submarine Liuzzi attempts to attack a convoy going from Beirut to Alexandria. Spotted, it is forced to surface and sunk off Haifa by the British destroyers who had already defeated the Uebi Scebeli the day before.
The submarine Corridoni leaves Taranto for Tobruk with supplies for the Regia Aeronautica.
 
335
June 30th, 1940

Tunis
- General Staff meeting. Generals Blanc (Tunisia), Bessières (XIXth Corps), Poupinel (Army Corps "P"), Jurion and Gastin (Air Force) put the finishing touches to the plan for Operation Scipio, which is to drive the Italian forces out of Tripolitania.
In this context, the Army reactivates three batteries of heavy artillery on railroads (ALVF) stationed in Algeria and Tunisia. One of them has two 240 mm guns, the other two have two 194 mm TAZ (all azimuth) guns each.
 
336
June 30th, 1940

Libya (Tripolitania)
- The French planes based in NAF maintain their pressure, attacking airfields, supply depots and, of course, the ports of Tripoli and Benghazi, where the gunboat Dante De Lutti is sunk. They carry out 399 combat missions during the day.
 
337
June 30th, 1940

Libya (Cyrenaica)
- General Mario Berti, commander of the 10th Army, decides to relieve the siege of the oasis of Giarabub, skilfully defended by Colonel Salvatore Castagna, but where food and ammunition are running out. An operation is set up to re-establish communications with the fort. The relief column, motorized, includes various detachments, mainly from the 1st Libyan Division and the 4th Black Shirts III Gennaio Division.
 
338
June 30th, 1940

Southern France
- The stop line defined on June 23rd is reached by the German army. This line finally goes from the Charente estuary to the north of Valence, passing through Rochefort, Angoulême and Limoges. It crosses the Massif Central, passes south of Clermont, Saint-Etienne (which was occupied during the day) and Vienne, then continues to Grenoble and goes up towards
Geneva along the Rhône.
And, a temporary miracle, on the whole front, the most advanced points of the Heer troops are stopped by units that were often made up of bits and pieces of various units! The Germans pay the price of light logistics. Overwhelmed by the success of the Blitzkrieg, this logistics system is out of breath. Given the number of trucks available, it is impossible to supply substantial forces beyond the Burgundy threshold. The vanguards are few in number, even though they had advanced very far. The motorized reconnaissance units are severely lacking in ammunition and fuel. On several occasions, the German generals even have to order them to move back 25 to 50 km to avoid losing them. These units are too valuable to be engaged in marginal conditions.
Unable to supply its tanks and its self-propelled guns (its fleet of trucks is insufficient and the French rail network is partly destroyed), the Heer has to use its horse cavalry! Thus, south of Lyon, the enemy advance could be tracked (and slowed down) by the cavalrymen of the Jouffrault group.
The German high command, perhaps fearing a "new battle of the Marne", but especially aware of the state of exhaustion of the men and the equipment, aggravated by the intensity of the fighting of the previous two weeks, orders a one-week break.

English Channel - The first German troops land in Jersey and Guernsey.

Cote d'Azur - The Italians do not progress. Their first elements infiltrate Menton, but the city is evacuated by most of its inhabitants and by the French troops. The artillery can bombard the city without fear, where the attackers are only able to hold out for the duration of a somewhat premature victory announcement.
The idea of bypassing the line of resistance by a landing having been abandoned, the Italians are forced to attack it head-on. A first assault against the Gorbio is repulsed with heavy losses.
 
German advance in France as of June 30th, 1940
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All credit for the images go to 1940lafrancecontinue.org
 
339
July 1st, 1940

Rabat and Tunis
- The reality of the protectorates requires a dose of formalism, protocol and fiction - sometimes bordering on the surreal.
At the same time (11:00 in Rabat, 12:00 in Tunis), General Noguès and Marcel Peyrouton go to Sultan Mohamed Ben Youssef and Bey Ahmed II, respectively, to hand them a personal letter from Albert Lebrun. The presiden wrote, "in the name of France which fights and will not cease to fight that with the victory", announces to both sovereigns the government's desire, whatever happens, to continue the war and to withdraw to North Africa.
I take this opportunity,"
Lebrun adds, "to congratulate Your Majesty [Your Highness for the bey] for the indomitable courage and valor with which the Moroccan [Tunisian] soldiers who are fighting alongside their French comrades have shown and will show again, I am sure, on all occasions."
And he concludes: "I know, and all of France with me, that I can count in all circumstances on the fidelity and loyalty of Morocco [of Tunisia]."
 
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