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CIE DES MESSAGERIES MARITIMES Queen's Bullding
a'f The
THE CHINA MAIL, TUESDAY, MAY 18, 1948.
The
Twenty-eighth Churchill's Memoirs
Instalment
GEN.
monso
"ennalise"
the
GAMELIN'S PLAN "D"
IL
Linc.
If the call is made in time will the Anglo-French troops enter
Belglum, but not to engage in an encounter battle. ¿ Among the recognised lines of defence are the line of the Scheldt and the line Meuse- Namur-Antwerp.
In the afterlight, the policy 1dlum were invaded by German? of the Maginot Line has often end they chose to come to her becn condemned: It certainly succour; or which they could engendered defensive
Q
men-occupy by a well-planned secret tality; yet it is always a wise and sudden scheme, if invited by precaution in defending a frou Belgium, iler of hundreds of miles to bar The first of these lines was off as much as possible by for what may be called the line of tifications, and thus economise the Scheldt. This was no great the use of troops In sedentary march from the French frontiere, fully equipped or armed for rolca
and
potential and Involved little serious risk. invasion.
At the worst it would do no Properly used in the French harm to hold it na a "false Neither in France nor In Bri-scheme of war,
At the best it might be Maginot front." tam nad there been any effee- Line would have been of Im-built-up according to events. tive comprehension of the con
service to France,
The second line was far more sequences of the new fact that could have been viewed as pre ambitious. It followed the Meuse
vehletes -armoured
could be
Givet, Dinant and made capable of withstanding Benting a long succession of it-through
valuable sally-ports, and above Namur by Louvain to Antwerp, artillery fire, and could advance all as blocking-off large sectors If this adventurous ine From 10 miles a day. An illuminat of the front as a means of ac-seized by the Allies and held in Tues-ng book on this subject, publish- cumulating the general reserves ed some years before by a Com or "mass of manoeuvre." mandant de Gaulle, had met
Indeed, it was extraordinary with no response.
that it should not have been The authority
aged
earrled forward at least alung Marshal Petain in the Consell the River Meuse. It could then Superleur de In Guerre had
have served as a welched heavily
trusty shield, upon French freeing a heavy, sharp, offensive military thought in closing
the French sword. door to new ideas, and especial-
But Marshal Petalu had 1 Ia discouraging what Bad
thia posed
extension. He held been quaintly called "offensive strongly that the Ardennes could weapons "
be ruled. out as a channel of Invasion OIL account of the nature ol the ground._Ruled. out accordingly it was.
The offensive
There were of course thrca me- through Switzerland This might turn the southern flank of the Maginot Line, but had many geo- graphical and strategic dificulties. Secondly: Invasion of France across the common frontler. This appeared unlikely, as the Ger
reply, the British Chiefs of man Army was not believed to
After considering the French Staff heavy attack on the Maginot submitted another paper to the Cabinet, which discussed the .And
thirdly: Invasion of alternative of an advance to the France, through Holland and Bel-Scheldt, but made no mention at
This glum.
would turn the all of the far larger commitments Maginot Line and would not en- of an advance to the Meuse- tall the losses likely to be Bus-Antwerp line. tained in a frontal attack against When this second report was was permanent fortifications. The presented to the Cabinet on Oct. Chiefs of Staff estimated that by the Chiefs of Staff, no re- ference was made by them to the nil-important alternative of Planı "D." It was therefore taken for granted by the War Cabinet that the views of the British Chiefs of Staff had been met and that no further, action or decision was required.
of the
every nerve to prevent it from succeeding because success would snatch Europe from her clutches.
rape
In
And
at
conceptions
up-
technicious, but enervating effect
factor
available of aircraft
were
even
on
Mr. Churchill discusses in this instalment the French and British bias to the defensive in 1939, and suggests that an offensive spirit could have made good use of the Maginot Line, He also shows the mistrust with which the Bri- tish Chiefs of Staff at first greeted Gen, Game- lin's Plan "D."
Poland some
which
ས
The
the
Mr.
ORGANISING WESTERN EUROPE
Never before has the pos- sibility of uniting Europe been so prominent in men's mind as it is today. the recent debate on day and Wednesday in the to the House of Commons Congress
Hague, everywhere the same issues are being canvassed. Not, it is true, from exactly the
I WDB
present ut both these same standpoint. There are
Cabinets, and was not aware that "whole-hoggers" some-the
any significant issue was still of Federation-who visualise
pending. During October, there for Western Europe a Con-
being no effective arrangement stitution like that of the
with the Belgians, it was assum- United States of America.
hard battles, the German right. for this attack Germany would ed that the advance was limited of handed swing of invasion would
to the Scheldt. require to bring from the East- Others may consider that
the Maginot Line were explain be heavily checked; and if their ern front 20 divisions
Meanwhile for the
General Gamelin, nd to me by General Giraud armies were proved inferior, initial phase, with 19 achelen ned negotiating secretly with the Bel- FROM HANOI VIA HAIPHONG both impossible and undesir
when I visited Metz in
1037. would be an admirable prelude behind, as reinforcements to her Belgian Army should be main- Jable, yet nevertheless think In 1947 only the economic They were, however, not carrito the entry and control of the troops already in the West.
glons, stipulated: First, that the it urgently necessary. alike motive counted. Russia Into effect, and the Llue not vital centre of Germans muni-
Such a movement could not be tained at full strength, and se- for defence and for prosper- showed no sign of invading only absorbed very large numtion production in the Buhr.
completed and the attack mount should be prepared on the more condly, that Belgian defences ity, that the free European other nations' territory save, bers of highly-trained reglar
ed with soldiers nations should enter into a
full artillery Support The British
Chiefs of as in the case of Greece, by exercised
Staff under three weeks, and its pro
line from Namur 16 advanced Committee estimated very close form of alliance. quislings. In 1948 it is quite both upon military strategy and Germins had by Sept, hamtheparation should be discernible by early November
Mr. Churchill's brilliant different. The
of national vigilance.
Dus a fortnight before the blow ilised at least 110 divisions of fell.
Belent was
on these points, and speech to the Congress cover- Czechoslovakia was the first The new air power was justly all classes, distributed ns fol-
from November We should of course try to re of conferences was held at Vin- to 14 a series ed all schools of thought im- of a series of events which teemed a revolutionary
lows: Western
42 divi- partially, and was a memor-suggested that she might be the comparatively small num.
all operations. Consideringsiona; Central Germany, 10 divifard the German movement from
east to west by air attack upon some of which, Ironside, Newall cennes and Lo Fere, at which, or front. 58 divisions. the communications able expression of the "good planning an aggressive war bers
sions; Eastern
and from enemy re-
con and Gort were present. European" outlook.
centration arens. Thus a pre- of the usual pattern. Look-either side at this time, its ef- We now know
fects
cords exaggerated,
that
this estimate was a liminary air battle to reduce o issued his Instruction No. 8, con- On Nov. 15 General Gamelin The subject has been cared at from that angle, the and were held in the main to most exactly correct. ried much farther into the fear is lest the changes which favour the defenalve by hamper-
It was thought by our officers attacks on airfields and aircraft arming the agreements of
eliminate the Allied air forces by practical sphere by the de- we have just been calling ing the concentrations and rom-
that when Germany had com-factories might,be expected, and 14th, whereby support would be velopments of the last ten rapid may not by the event once launched in attack.
munications of great armies pletely defeated the Polish Army
given to the Belgians "If circum- gland was concern-stances she would have to keep ed, would not be unwelcome.
Bo far as England
permitted" by
an ad- months. In response to the
be proved all too slow, The
These thoughts expressed by
15 divisions, Our next task Marshall offer sixteen Euro- danger that needs to
would be to vance to the line Meuse-Antwerp. be Air Chiefs followed correct lines,
Jarge
proportion deal with the German advance pean nations have gradually countered is not remote in and were justified in the later might be of low category. It
through the Low Cntries. We
Allied Supreme Council met in Paris on Nov. 17. had grown strength
Russian pact, machinery for co-ordinating materialises at all, is likely twenty-fold.
this total might At the outbreak
far forward as Holland, but # their economic efforts. The to do so in August or Sep- they were premature.
have to be increased to upwards would be in the Allied Interest Halifax, Lord Chatfield and Sir of 30 divisions in the East.
to stem It, If possible, in Belgium. that time reached the
Kingsley Wood. I had not starting-point was the need tember of this year, If the
On the least favourable
position to make American aid go as Russians wanted
(wrote the sumption Germany would there- Czecho- In my mind's-outlook. in the
Chiefs of Staff) that the French where I should be invited to ac- far as possible, which im- slovakia as a military jump-opening months of this Second divisions from the Eastern front,
fore be able to draw over
idea is that, provided the Bei- company the Prime Minister to theso meetings. The decision plied that each of the Euro-ling-off ground, they did not World War I did not dissent
100 divisions available
glans are still holding out on making vlew about pean
nations receiving it want it for jumping off In from the general
the Meuse, the French and Bri- was taken: and I believed for the West. By that time the
Given tish Armies should occupy the
the importance of must be ready to help itself 1950. We made that mis-that anti-tank obstacles and field French would have mobilised 72
line Givet-Namur, the British
holding the German forces as and help others on the basis take both before and after guns, cleverly posted and with divisions in France, in addition
far east as possible, it is essen- Expeditionary Force operating of a concerted plan. It was Munich, when our rearma-sultable ammunition, could frus-to fortress troops equivalent to
tial to make every endeavour the left. on the 14 divisions, and 12 or
there
to hold the line Meuse-Antwerp very soon seen that such a ment progress was calculat-trate or break-up tanka except
in the event of ar- would be 4 divisions of the Bri- in darkness or fog, real or
German in- plan could not be fixed once ed to give us strength in tificial.
tish Expeditionary Force.
vasion of Belgium. for all, but there must be a 1941.
In the problems which the Twelve French divisions would
Belgians for the occupation of Jain and M. Daladler insisted on At this meeting Mr. Chamber-. permanent organisation to The history of events fol Almighty sets his humble ser- be required to watch the Italian
this line in sufficient time be- the importance which they develop and apply andlowing the first rape
of vants things hardly ever happen frontier, making 78 against Ger-
the same way twice over, or if many. The enemy
my would
this modify it as time goes off. Czechoslovakia in 1939 is they seem to do so. there is have a superiority of four to three Such an organisation is now worth pondering in relation some varlant which stultifies over the Allies, and might also in being.
generalisation. The hú be expected to form additional to the second one this year, undue On the defence side the On March 21, 1939, Cham-man mind, except when gulded reserve divisions, bringing his by extraordinary genlus, cannot total up to 130 in the near future. movement has been less berlain proposed as a first surmount the established conclu- Against this the French had 14 rapid, but-in-view-of-the step against a possible policy sions amid which it has been additional divisions in North greater difficulties not less of German domination that, reared.
Africa, some of which could be
met in prepared positions on new addition to Plan "D ̧”~~-
there presently appeared the task remarkable. It is confined if Hitler took any threaten-months of inactivity on
Yet we are to see, after eight drawn upon, and whatever fur-
of a Seventh French Army. The both at the moment to five coun-
forces Great Britain could
idea of an advance of this army ing action, four leading sides, the Hiller inrush of a vast tries-Great Britain, France, Powers should
The subsequent history of this on the seaward fank of the Al- gradually supply. _mert____and [offensive, Jed by spearpoint
our Chiefs of important issue must be record- lied armies first come to light Belgium, Holland and consult about it. The Con-musses of cannon-proof or starte
estimated that Germany ed. It was brought before the early-in-November, 1930. Gen- | Luxembourg - which at tinent was not enthusiastic breaking up all defensive opposi
heavily-armoured veeles: could concentrate, after the des- War Cabinet on Sept. 20, and af- eral Giroud, who was restless Brussels formed an alliance for his proposal.
army around As Mr.tton, and for the first time for truction of Poland, over 2,000 ter a brief discussion was remit- with
bombers in the West as against El to the Supreme_War' Council. of the closest kind, with a
put in command. Rheims, was Vernon Bartlett wrote the Tecnturles, and even perhaps combined Franco-British total of In due course the Supreme War The object of this extension of General Staff
since the Invention of gunpowe50.* It common
next day: "Countries which der, making artillery for a while to
was, therefore Clear Counell Invited General Game-Plan "D" was to move into Hol- plan and direct a common are in daily fear of invasion almost impotent on the battle Poland, he would be far men said merely that the question of cupy some parts of the Dutch fo
that once Hitler had disposed of lin's comments.
land via Antwerp so as to help defence and to dispose of all are not much comforted by feld.
In his reply General Gamelin the Dutch, and secondly, to oc- five nations' forces to that the suggestion
the ground and that in the We are also to see that the in. powerful on
the air than the air
The
British and Plan "D" (ie, the advance to lands of Walcheren-and--Beve-. event of another act of actual
French combined There could the Meuse-Antwerp line) had land. This, it may be said, is a aggression all the signatories enabling the necessary ground to therefore be no question of been dealt with in a report by
(To Be Continued) limited affair concerning of the proposed declaration be held with very small
French offensive against Ger- the French Delegation. In this World Copyright reserved. only a single block of con- should
bereds of, men, thus offering.
many
What then were
the report
passage production, even partially, in any together."
far smaller human target. tiguous territories in West- This time we have gone be-
probabilities of a German offen- | Wast
' language, strictly prohibited. sive against France? ern Europe. But there is yond consultation; there is more in it than that. At to be a combined General |the Aliles could advance if Bel-strength at that date was 1,540, least four special features Staff and a combined plan. must be noted. First, it is But we have not heard of
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been impelled to set up a date: it is one which, if it years of the war, when the air she had any doubts about the could not meet their attack sochamberlain took with him Lord
end.
adherence of other
consult
cer-
defensive,
of fire-power crease
ten or
made the battles loss bloody by
num-
¤
•
14
There were two lines to which
not exclusive, but invites the any halt in the reduction of CARNIVAL
free British forces: still less any countries. Secondly, it is proposal to restore the Bri: favoured, not disapproved,tish period of military ser by the Dominion Govern- vice, which was cut down ments. Thirdly, American below the minimum require- practical support for it,ments of efficiency. 250-though as yet undefined, is In unofficial discussions not doubted. And fourthly, such as those organised at four of the five countries The Hague there is a carry with them the retain danger that practical. -200-
sources of important over-considerations like the fore- 240.
seas dependencies, including going may be thrown into by far the greater part of the background by debates 320,- Africa.
on theory; and a. further If one asks what has been danger lest the theorists may 350.the motive for these rapid frighten away States whose changes, the answer may be adhesion to the Alliance is 120.- given in single word: much needed. There
Russia. That is true not mains the parallel problem only on the defensive but of co-ordinating the policy also on the economic side. of the British Common- Why is the United States wealth.. . Mr............ Attice has pouring out its goods to pro-made thegratifying an mote European recovery at nouncement that he is try- a time when there is so Ing to arrange a full Com- strong demand for themmonwealth Conference, among its
people? though the terms in which Surely because, it realises he did so did not suggest that for Europe the alterna- any very strong belief that tive to recovery is a collapse it would meet. The real into Communism. Rusila obstacle presumably lies, as has been speculating 'on the it always has since the war, misery and weakness of a in the attitude of the Cana- post-war cuntinent_in_orderdian "Government; and... it tonki. Its peoples to her ought not to be allowed in- empire. For that reason she definitely to prevent the so persistently opposes, the other Governments from Marahil Plan and atrains meeting.
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By Dick Turner
COPE, 1PM JET NEA BERTIOL, ME T. IE 1000, NE NA PYTT, OPP.
"Of course you're worth more than you're getting, Hogs gins! Why else do you imagine I'm keeping you on here?!”
We understand
We consider it would be un- round to adopt this plan unless plans are concerted with the
fore the Germans
to tached
Unlore the-prsson; thereafter it, governed
at
at-
this resolution...and titude alters and plans can be This was, in fact, a decision in action prepared for early occupation
of the Givet-Namur falso call-favour of Flan "D," and it super- seded the arrangement hitherto ed Meuse-Antwerp) line, we accepted of the modest 'forward are strongly of opinion that the move to the Scheldt. German advance... should be
the French frontier.
the
operntivo
u reserve
RETURN ENGAGEMENT
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** A parcel from the Colonies, S&T
*** Canada? Australia ?".
"On the contrary, this is no
period pine, Sir, Small supplies
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The United States, Sir. I al in the shops. By cigilance and are not available ornasionally
overlook that unfortunate good
Declaration of 1776. There good fortune abiained this were faults on both sides.”
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