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The underlying principle should be that thore should be no delay in the execution of orders.

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General Gamelin has replied as follows :-

I acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 17th inst.

I have always considered the British Expeditionary Corps in France as being directly undor my orders. I am, in effect, according to my lottor of instructions, Chief of the General Staff of the National Defence and Commander-in-Chief of the Land Forces, personally accredited for the purpose of settling all questions relating to the Allies and centralizing all our rolations with them.

It has novor boon in my mind to put the Expedition wy Corps under the orders of a Commandor of an Army Group.

It was merely understood in order to simplify mattors that Gonoral Gort could in all matters of routine service deal directly with General Georges, Commander-in-Chief of the French Forcos on the North-Eastorn Front, whose command as far as operations are concerned is analagous at the moment to that which Marshal Petain had at the end of the last War

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The past history of the case is as follows

In April, 1939. at the time of our Staff Conversations with the French, the Chiefs of Staff considered the question of the organisation of the Higher Command in France in war, and they submitted a Report on the subject to the Committee In this, they of Imperial Defence (Paper No. D.P.(P) 50). summarised the history of Allied Command in France during the late war, and arrived at the following recommendation:-

#12. We recommend that the arrangements for command of tho Field Force should be based on the subordination of its Commander to the French Commandor-in-Chief in Franco.

13. Under the present organisation, General Gamelin, as Supromo Commander-in-Chiof in War, would have under his command two separate Armies in France, besides the Army of North Africa, the French Air Force, and, in certain circumstances, the French Navy. It is possible that this system may be altered by the appointment of a Commander-

In either case, in-Chief of the Armies in Franco.

in

placing the British Field Force under the

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