The French army has always been the most powerful army in Europe, with a total of 3 million troops before World War II, but it was defeated by Germany in just over a month. In the face of the German attack, he did not show his strength at all, the knife was still in the sheath, and the German knife had been cut on the head of the French.
Poland was partitioned
On September 1, 1939, a German coastal defense battleship, the Schleswig Holstein, suddenly opened fire at a Naval Base in Poland. The Luftwaffe then attacked the Polish air base. The first shots of World War II were fired on the European front.
Hitler's account of this was that Poland had invaded Germany and Germany had been forced to fight back. German troops quickly poured into the border and began a major offensive against Poland. Britain and France negotiated with Germany, and the response to Germany was to issue an ultimatum to Germany, demanding that Germany retreat immediately, otherwise Britain and France would declare war on Germany, and Hitler simply ignored the ultimatums of Britain and France, and directly when Britain and France were farting.
After Germany did not respond, the two countries declared war on Germany on September 3.
Prior to this air raid, Germany had already deployed 53 divisions in advance, including 6 tank divisions. Under the full command of Marshal von Brauchitsch, the Commander-in-Chief of the German Army, the Poles mobilized only 23 divisions, and the number of tanks was far inferior to that of the Germans, so Poland also mobilized a cavalry force that wanted to compete with German tanks.
In terms of the number of air forces, the Poles were also absolutely inferior. Germany has about 1600 modern aircraft, Poland has only more than 500, and it is still an old fighter that is about to be obsolete.
Whether it is in numbers or weapons and equipment, the German army has a huge advantage. German tank armored units soon divided and encircled the Polish army, and the Polish capital Warsaw was surrounded. On 28 September, the Germans occupied Warsaw.
When the Germans attacked Poland, Stalin was not idle. Soviet forces attacked Poland on 17 September, but at the end of September, Soviet forces occupied most of Poland in the east. The Soviets' claim is that they intervened to protect minorities in Belarus and Ukraine.
Britain and France declared war
The partition of the Soviet Union between the Soviet Union and Germany was an action made in accordance with the Soviet-German Non-Aggression Pact. The two countries divided Poland, and Britain and France decided to unite against Germany.
But from the declaration of war on Germany on September 3, Britain and France did not help Poland substantially, watching Poland be partitioned. The British plan to bomb the industrial areas of the Ruhr region of Germany was rejected by the British ministers on the grounds that the factories were private in nature and had nothing to do with german officials. France also made only a symbolic attack on the Western Front along the Saar River.
At that time, germany's near-point attack was on the eastern front, and the 53 divisions attacking Poland were already the entire German family. The French army did not seize the opportunity, took the opportunity to punch Germany, and has been making small fights and grinding on the Western Front.
Germany attacked France, and France surrendered
Before May 1940, there were no major battles on the Western Front. Hitler did not want to get into trouble with the attack on the Maginot Line. From 10 October to 28 May 1940, Hitler ordered the Second Main German Force to attack the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg, while containing many of the Anglo-French forces. German armored forces then advanced to the Ardennes, and the British and French allies were split in two by German armored forces.
On 13 May, the Germans launched a major attack on France. Germany crossed the Maas River on May 14 and reached the coastline on the 20th. The anglo-French generals were cut off, and the Germans surrounded France from the rear and began their attack on southern France along the Somme. In the face of this emergency, France did not even prepare reserves. The Germans pushed all the way through, and on June 14, the Germans entered Paris, and on the 16th, the French government fell.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill inspired the French to continue fighting, and the French chose to surrender on June 22. It was also at Compiègne Station, where Germany signed its instrument of surrender to France during World War I. This time it was France that surrendered, but it was Germany that was surrendered. Germany wanted to humiliate France.
When Germany invaded France, france still had a large army, and many soldiers surrendered without even firing a gun. The 3 million French Army did not show its proper combat effectiveness at all. On the other hand, the British army that withdrew from Dunkirk, insisted on fighting, and became a huge force in the later Normandy landings, which has to be said to be ironic.