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What was Blitzkrieg. Where did it happen?
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What Was Blitzkrieg?
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Posted 08 June 2009 - 04:42 PM
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Posted 09 June 2009 - 03:48 PM
For the sake of factual accuracy, a few points.
Although the German Panzer Divisions (tank units) were motorised, most of the German infantry (foot soldiers) still had to march on foot and the German Army (the Wehrmacht) used large numbers of horses to move its artillery (big guns) and supplies during the Second World War.
British and French tanks were not necessarily inferior to (worse than) those of the Germans, but they were not usually used very effectively. The British Infantry Tank Mark II (the Matilda) proved almost unstoppable at the Battle of Arras in 1940.
Instead of sitting waiting to be attacked in May 1940, the British and French swiftly advanced into Belgium and the Netherlands, only to find themselves outflanked and cut off. The Allied commanders were not able to react quickly enough to cut off the German Panzers (tanks) which were very vulnerable. The Battle of Arras (1940) shows what could have happened if the generals had done a better job.
There were no cavalry units (soldiers on horseback) in the British Expeditionary Force (British Army) in France in 1940, although the French, and Germans, did have some.
The point of Blitzkreig was to attack by surprise whenever possible, attacking where the enemy was weak and where assaults were not being expected. If resistance proved too strong, then the attack was stopped and another attack was tried elsewhere. A lack of radar and early-warning organisation meant that the Polish, French and Belgian airforces were mostly destroyed on the ground, giving the Luftwaffe (German airforce) a free hand. The Luftwaffe had been designed specifically to help the land forces and proved very effective, until it failed to win the Battle of Britain.
Blitzkrieg was effective, but only in a short war. Once Germany failed to beat Russia in 1941 it was doomed to a long war and eventual defeat.
Although the German Panzer Divisions (tank units) were motorised, most of the German infantry (foot soldiers) still had to march on foot and the German Army (the Wehrmacht) used large numbers of horses to move its artillery (big guns) and supplies during the Second World War.
British and French tanks were not necessarily inferior to (worse than) those of the Germans, but they were not usually used very effectively. The British Infantry Tank Mark II (the Matilda) proved almost unstoppable at the Battle of Arras in 1940.
Instead of sitting waiting to be attacked in May 1940, the British and French swiftly advanced into Belgium and the Netherlands, only to find themselves outflanked and cut off. The Allied commanders were not able to react quickly enough to cut off the German Panzers (tanks) which were very vulnerable. The Battle of Arras (1940) shows what could have happened if the generals had done a better job.
There were no cavalry units (soldiers on horseback) in the British Expeditionary Force (British Army) in France in 1940, although the French, and Germans, did have some.
The point of Blitzkreig was to attack by surprise whenever possible, attacking where the enemy was weak and where assaults were not being expected. If resistance proved too strong, then the attack was stopped and another attack was tried elsewhere. A lack of radar and early-warning organisation meant that the Polish, French and Belgian airforces were mostly destroyed on the ground, giving the Luftwaffe (German airforce) a free hand. The Luftwaffe had been designed specifically to help the land forces and proved very effective, until it failed to win the Battle of Britain.
Blitzkrieg was effective, but only in a short war. Once Germany failed to beat Russia in 1941 it was doomed to a long war and eventual defeat.
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