Order of battle for the Battle of France

The order of battle for the Battle of France details the hierarchy of the major combatant forces in the Battle of France in May 1940.

Comparative ranks
French British German
Général d'armée General Generaloberst
Général de corps d'armée Lieutenant-General General der Infanterie/Kavallerie/Artillerie/Pioniere (branch specific)
Général de division Major-General Generalleutnant
Général de brigade Brigadier Generalmajor (lowest German general rank)
Colonel Colonel Oberst

Allies

The bulk of the forces of the Allies were French, although the United Kingdom (British Expeditionary Force), Netherlands, and Belgium had significant forces in the battle opposing Germany. Supreme Command was held by the French Commander-in-Chief Général d'armée Maurice Gamelin, his deputy Général d'armée Alphonse Joseph Georges was appointed Commander of the North Western Front.

French First Army Group

The First Army Group guarded the north-east frontier of France, ready to move into Belgium and the Netherlands to oppose any German invasion of those nations. The First controlled four French armies as well as the Belgian Army and the British Expeditionary Force. Général d'armée Gaston Billotte was Commander-in-Chief until his death in a car crash on 23 May 1940, Général d'armée Georges Maurice Jean Blanchard was appointed to succeed him.

  • First Army - Général d'armée Georges Maurice Jean Blanchard
  • Second Army - Général d'armée Charles Huntziger
    • Directly reporting: (dispositions north to south)
      • 5th Light Cavalry Division - Général de brigade Marie-Jacques-Henri Chanoine (to Neufchateau-Bastogne, vs Guderian 1st and 2nd Pz, evacuated Sedan)
      • 2nd Light Cavalry Division (to Habay La Neuve, Arlon Gap, vs 10th Pz Div)
      • 1st Cavalry Brigade
    • Directly reporting: (Reserves)
      • 4th Tank Battalion
      • 7th Tank Battalion
      • 205th Inf Regt
      • 213th Inf Regt - Lt Colonel Labarthé
    • 10th Corps - Général de corps d'armée Pierre-Paul-Jacques Grandsard
    • 18th Corps - Général de division Paul-André Doyen
  • Seventh Army - Général d'armée Henri Giraud
  • Ninth Army - Général d'armée André Corap
    • Directly reporting:
    • 2nd Corps Général de corps d'armée Jean-Gabriel Bouffet
      • 4th Light Cavalry Division - Général de division Paul-Louis-Arthur Barbe (deployed into the Ardennes, across the Meuse to the Ourthe, then Marche, vs 7th Pz Div)
      • 5th Motorized Division - Général de brigade Jean-Noël-Louis Boucher (Haut-le-Wastia, vs 7th Pz)
    • 11th Corps - Général de corps d'armée Julien-Françoise-René Martin
      • 1st Light Cavalry Division
      • 18th Infantry Division - Général de division Camille-Léon Duffet (on the Meuse at Houx, vs 7th Pz Div)
        • 66th Regt
        • 77th Regt
        • 125th Regt
      • 22nd Infantry Division - Général de brigade Joseph-Louis-Françoise Hassler (Givet on the Meuse, vs 7th Pz Div)
    • 41st Corps - Général de corps d'armée Emmanuel-Urbain Libaud
      • 61st Infantry Division - Général de brigade Arsène-Marie Paul Vauthier , N of Monthermé vs 8 Pz Div
      • 102nd Fortress Division - Général de division Françoise-Arthur Portzert (Monthermé, vs 6th Pz Div)
      • 3rd Spahi Brigade - Colonel Marc (La Horgue v 1st Pz)
  • French Armored Reserves (near Rheims to SW of breakthrough area)
    • 1st Armored Division - Général de brigade Marie-Germain-Christian Bruneau (deployed to Charleroi then to Flavion, arrived low on fuel or out of fuel, vs 7 Pz Div and then 5th Pz Div)
    • 2nd Armored Division - Général de brigade Albert-Charles-Émile Bruché (to Signy, deployed piecemeal, destroyed by Reinhardt's XLI Pz Corps)
    • 3rd Armored Division - Général de brigade Georges-Louis Brocard (to west of Stonne, versus Grossdeutschland Regt, 10th Pz Div, dispersed, small detachment attacked Stonne but driven off)
    • 3rd Motorized Division - Général de brigade Paul-Jean-Léon Bertin-Bossu (to west of Stonne, dispersed, attacked Stonne but driven off)
    • 4th Armored Division - Général de brigade Charles de Gaulle
  • British Expeditionary Force - General Lord Gort

Belgian Army

The Belgian Army field approximately 600,000 personnel in 22 divisions, backed by 1,338 artillery pieces, 10 tanks and 240 other combat vehicles. King Leopold III of Belgium had assumed personal command of the army upon mobilization. His principal military advisor was Lieutenant-general Raoul van Overstraeten, while General-major Oscar Michiels was Chief of the General Staff.

  • I Corps - Lieutenant-general Alexis van der Veken
  • II Corps - Lieutenant-general Victor Michem
    • 6th Infantry Division
    • 11th Reserve Infantry Division
    • 14th Reserve Infantry Division
  • III Corps - Lieutenant-general Joseph de Krahe
    • 2nd Infantry Division
    • 3rd Infantry Division
  • IV Corps - Lieutenant-general André Bogaerts
    • 12th Reserve Infantry Division
    • 15th Reserve Infantry Division
    • 18th Reserve Infantry Division
  • V Corps - Lieutenant-general Edouard Van den Bergen
    • 13th Reserve Infantry Division
    • 17th Reserve Infantry Division
  • VI Corps - Lieutenant-general Fernand Verstraete
    • 5th Infantry Division
    • 10th Reserve Infantry Division
  • VI Corps - Lieutenant-general Georges Deffontaine
  • Cavalry Corps - Lieutenant-general Maximilien de Neve de Roden
    • 1st Infantry Division
    • 14th Reserve Infantry Division
    • 2nd Cavalry Division
    • Motorized Cavalry Brigade
  • Group K - Lieutenant-general Maurice Keyaerts
    • 1st Cavalry Division
    • 1st Chasseurs Ardennais Division
  • 11th Reserve Infantry Division
  • 16th Reserve Infantry Division

French Second Army Group

The French 2nd Army Group was responsible for manning the bulk of the Maginot Line from Montmedy to south of Strasbourg, and controlled three armies. General de Armee Andre-Gaston Pretelat was Commander-in-Chief of the army group throughout its existence.

  • Third Army - General Charles-Marie Condé
    • Directly reporting:
      • 3rd Light Cavalry Division - General Petiet
      • 6th Infantry Division - General Lucien
      • 6th North African Infantry Division - General de Verdilhac
      • 6th Colonial Infantry Division - General Carles
      • 7th Infantry Division
      • 8th Infantry Division
    • French Colonial Corps
      • 2nd Infantry Division - General Klopfenstein
      • British 51st (Highland) Infantry Division - Major-General Victor Fortune
      • 56th Infantry Division
    • 6th Corps
      • 26th Infantry Division
      • 42nd Infantry Division
    • 24th Corps - General Fougère
      • 51st Infantry Division - General Boell
    • 42nd Corps - General Sivot
      • 20th Infantry Division - General Corbe
      • 58th Infantry Division - General Perraud
  • Fourth Army - General Edouard Réquin
    • Directly reporting:
      • Polish 1st Infantry Division - General Bronisław Duch
      • 45th Infantry division - General Roux
    • 9th Corps - General Laure
      • 11th Infantry Division - General Arlabosse
      • 47th Infantry Division - General Mendras
    • 20th Corps - General Hubert
      • 52nd Infantry Division
      • 82nd African Infantry Division
  • Fifth Army - General Victor Bourret
    • Directly reporting:
      • 44th Infantry Division
    • 8th Corps
      • 24th Infantry Division
      • 31st Infantry Division
    • 12th Corps
      • 16th Infantry Division
      • 35th Infantry Division
      • 70th Infantry Division
    • 17th Corps
      • 62nd Infantry Division
      • 103rd Infantry Division
    • 43rd Corps
      • 30th Infantry Division

French Third Army Group

The 3rd Army Group was responsible for manning the southern end of the Maginot Line, along the River Rhine and controlled one army. The army group's Commander-in-Chief was Général d'Armée Antoine-Marie-Benoit Besson.

  • Eighth Army - General Marcel Garchery
    • 7th Corps
      • 13th Infantry Division
      • 27th Infantry Division
    • 13th Corps
      • 19th Infantry Division
      • 54th Infantry Division
      • 104th Infantry Division
      • 105th Infantry Division
    • 44th Corps
      • 67th Infantry Division
    • 45th Corps
      • 57th Infantry Division
      • 63rd Infantry Division
      • Polish Second Infantry Fusiliers Division - Brigadier-General Bronisław Prugar-Ketling

Royal Netherlands Army

The Netherlands had four corps, one motorized division and a defense division deployed to begin the battle. Total strength was 240,000 personnel, equipped with 676 artillery pieces and 32 armoured cars. Generaal Henri Winkelman was Supreme Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army and Navy.

  • Field Army Command - Luitenant-generaal Godfried van Voorst tot Voorst
    • II Corps - Generaal-majoor Jacob Harberts
      • 2nd Division
      • 4th Division
    • III Corps - Generaal-majoor Adrianus van Nijnatten
      • 5th Division
      • 6th Division
      • Light Division (Attached)
      • Peel Division (Attached)
    • IV Corps - Generaal-majoor Adrianus van den Bent
      • 7th Division
      • 8th Division
    • A, B, G Brigades
  • I Corps - Generaal-majoor Nicolaas Carstens
    • 1st Division
    • 3rd Division

French army facing Italy
  • Armee des Alps Commanded by Général d'Armée René Olry
  • 3 infantry divisions of type B

14th Army Corps 15th Army Corps

    • Fortification sectors: Dauphiné, Savoie, Alpes Maritimes
    • Defence sectors: Rhône, Nice

Originally the French Sixth Army, the Army of the Alps was responsible for manning the southeast frontier with Italy. Overall, French forces in the region numbered about 35,000 soldiers.

French reserves

The French began the battle with three reserve corps positioned behind the army groups. The VII and XXIII Corps were stationed behind the 2nd and 3rd Army Groups.

British Expeditionary Force
Main article: British Expeditionary Force order of battle (1940)

Axis

The commander-in-chief of the Oberkommando des Heeres (OKH) was Generaloberst Walter von Brauchitsch. Initially the Axis forces consisted of the forces of the German army. They were joined in the conflict by the Italian army on 10 June.

OKH Reserve

German Army Group A

Commanded by Generaloberst Gerd von Rundstedt (Chief of Staff: Generalleutnant Georg von Sodenstern)

German Army Group B

Commanded by Generaloberst Fedor von Bock (Chief of Staff: Generalleutnant Hans von Salmuth)

German Army Group C

Commanded by Generaloberst Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb

Italian Army Group "West"

Commanded by Prince General Umberto di Savoia

Overall, the Italian forces numbered about 312,000 troops. However they had inadequate artillery and transport and most were not equipped for the cold Alpine environment.

Notes

    References
    1. http://www.diedeutschewehrmacht.de
    • "Generals from France". Generals of WWII. Steen Ammentorp. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
    • Horne, Alistair (1969). To Lose a Battle: France 1940. Boston: Little, Brown. OCLC 5258.
    • Dowden, P. "Situation at Sedan 1940". The War Tourist. Homestead. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
    • Lehman, David. "Battle of Flavion". Axis History Forum. phpBB. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
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