1940 Winter on the Maginot Line

British Newsreel. January 18, 1940. The Maginot Line, named after French minister of defense André Maginot, was a line of concrete fortifications, tank obstacles, artillery casemates, machine gun posts, and other defenses, which France constructed along its borders with Germany and Italy, in the light of experience from World War I, and in the run-up to World War II. Generally the term describes either the entire system or just the defenses facing Germany, while the Alpine Line is used for the Franco-Italian defenses.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Maginot
• Line
• French
• Army
• Defense
• World
• War
• II
• Pillboxes
• Casemates
• 1940
• Sitzkrieg
• Phony

[olivenstein]

Pauvres Poilus ! Les hivers 39/40, 41/42 et 44/45 ont ete particulairement froids....

[skoblinI]

tu as raison, mon ami .... mais l'hiver en Russie 41/42 était encore plus mauvais.

[Camarale]

@henerymag Read 1,3 million Free French Forces involved in Europe in 1945, on the first post, and not 1940, French fighters were not only Hollywood beret resistance craps.

[Camarale]

@henerymag Too many North Americans or Anglosaxons are totally brainwashed by Hollywood craps, and ignorant for the most part of real French involvment in WW2. They should read real history books, or at least Wikipedia. Their ignorance and cliches are boring, after a while.

[Camarale]

@henerymag

There were 3 French armored & 7 infantry divisions in Europe in 1945. The 2ND Leclerc armored division landed in Utah beach in August 1944,and participed at the Falaise pocket battle, destroying the 9TH Panzer unit. It's the Free French who broke German defenses in Monte Cassino, Italy, 1944. Total French WW2 casualties, military and civilians, 600000, were higher than all US losses of this war ,on all fronts, included 67000 French civilians, killed by allied bombings, mostly US.

[Camarale]

@henerymag

I remind you that the French lost 100000 killed during the 6 weeks of Blietzkrieg in May/June 1940,and inflicted 45000 killed and 111000 woundeds to Germans.It would have been funny to see US troops facing  blietzkrieg.Not pretty.US army was a joke in 1940. British were crushed in Belgium and France in 1940 and were saved by the sea.A new French army participed at most of the fights after 1942 from North Africa, until Germany.Free French Forces were 1,3 million in Europe in 1940.

[jondeare]

quite an inspiring clip. sure it had everyone's morale high.

[chwuwd]

"He who wants to defend everything, defends nothing." (Frederick II)

[henerymag]

What a joke. Germans went around and France surrendered. De Gaulle leaves only to return as a hero after Canada, Britain and USA said ' ok General, it's safe now"

[Mneutralcritic]

nimprte quoi vos commentaires, la ligne maginot a été abandonnée des que les allemands son arrivés, et les POILUS, C'ETAIT EN 1914-1918!

[olivenstein]

Eh oui...71 ans apres que l'Empereur ait eu la meme desastreuse experience.