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1.

ALEX 2.

ANGLO-FRENCH ALLIED MILITARY COMMITTEE.

SPMBER 1939, TO JUNE, 1940.

2.

As originally envisaged before the war, the Allied Military Committee was to consist of British and French officers of standing from their respective three Services, who would function as a military staff to the Supreme War Council. This inception did not envisage that they should be a separate General Staff who would be in a

War Council position to give direct advice to the Supreme, advice which might be contrary to that of the High Command. At the same time perhaps the idea had not been thought out fully, because that danger would have been present, particu- larly if the members of the Allied Military Committee were

Nevertheless, the of a specially forceful character. very title of the inviduals, Military Representative, inferred that they were each representative of their particular Chief of Staff, which pro-supposed that in collaborating together they would represent the established views of their respective Services, i.e. that they would be kept properly and sufficiently in the picture and briefed according to the subjects under discussion.

2.

It did not take long after the outbreak of war to make it quite apparent that such an Allied military staff

The conditions to the Supreme War Council was unnecessary, of the last war were different, and did not in practice set any precedent, even if it were thought desirable to follow a practice which had led to many difficulties. At the same time, 15 was equally evident at the cureak of the war that Shore was an enormous amount on the military plane to be discussed and resolved with the French. pre-war Anglo-French Conference had levelled the ground, but of necessity Allied policy for every sort of contingency was by no means finalised, and in any case ad hoc questions of military policy and high plane plans were inevitable.

war.

The

3.

The Allied Military Committee therefore apparently had

a definite function, which did not appear to be in any way really different from that which had been discussed, and agreed to between the two Prime Ministers, before the The idea of the British Representatives themselves was that the Allied Military Committee should be used as the body, representative of their respective High Commands, which would do all the necessary preliminary work in resolving high plane military difficulties, and in ventilating the High Commands views on policy etc., with the object of achieving common ground as far as possible before the High Commands themselves either met, or corresponded direct, came to their final collective

they would put to their decision on the recommendations

Apart from this sort of work, respective Governments. it was quite clear that the Allied Military Committee could do a great doal. So smooth out minor difficulties and, in fact, act very much on the lines of a grand liaison organisation for matters which affected more than one Service and with which all the Services should be kept in touch.

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