gashford Posted August 17, 2000 Share Posted August 17, 2000 A quick question for the WW2 historians among you and a request for information? After the French surrender to the German forces what happened to the French Army, did they continue to fight as Partisans or did they stop fighting all together? Did the Germans intern the remaining forces anywhere and after the success of the D-Day landing would have became public knowledge did they begin to fight again? Where there any major 'post surrender' victories for the French Forces. I understand that the French Navy was badly mauled by the Royal Navy after they surrendered somewhere but I cannot remember the name of the place. ANy information on this would be gratefully recieved, I am not too interested in Partisan efforts of the war in this question but primarily the French Armed Forces. Thanks for any replies, links to websites etc.... ------------------ Well, I thought if I owned the bullet with my name on it I wouldn't get shot, because I'm not going to shoot myself. Mores the pity.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mccooper Posted August 17, 2000 Share Posted August 17, 2000 Ok for your first questions - what happened to the French army after the surrender of France. Some escaped to Britain or were outside of France and formed the Free French which had little success until they had be properly organized in 42-43. French forces inside Vichy France ceased hostilites against the Germans and became more or less neutral (the Germans had a lot of influence). An number of French soldier returned to their civilain lives during the confusion and some of these men went on to fight as partisans. Question 2 I have no info on the internment of French forces after the surrender but I'm sure many were turned over to the Vichy - afterall the German tried to get Vichy to join their cause (as did the British). As for taking up arms after D-Day I'm certain a number of former soldiers did but I don't think Vichy actually declared war. Question 3 Post Surrender victories - none by the actual French Army. The Free French continued to fight on (including some battles against Vichy forces) and won a number of victories before the war was over. As for what remained of French army in the south after the evacuation of the Brits (and French) they were unable mount any sort of major attack due to the confusion and lose of men/material/supplies. As for the British attack on the French Fleet it was the harbour of Oran. Churchill found it a difficult decision but it had to be done especially considering the condition of the French leadership. British ships also had number of other minor engagements with Vichy ships. And lastly if you are looking for more information on the early yrs and defeat of France there are a number of books avail but in particular I would recommend Churchill's histroy of WWII. I believe volume 2 (of 6) is the one you want. ------------------ From Robert Jordan's FoH, "Dovie'andi se tovya sagain ... Time to roll the dice." Mark Cooper BBA, BAA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ncounio Posted August 17, 2000 Share Posted August 17, 2000 Well as frenchy let me give you a few more topics <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>After the French surrender to the German forces what happened to the French Army, did they continue to fight as Partisans or did they stop fighting all together? <HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Well the french army it self did not continue the fight, fact is that Petain, at that time as the Battle of Verdun "winner" had considerable respect from the troops and 99% of the soldiers followed his orders. Partisan activity (we call it "resistance") was not very active nor organized until 1941. A few frenchs fled over to england, civilans and military and began to organize themselves around Général De Gaulle. The first actions of the free french were to gain confidence of the allies and that was difficult as the allies looked at Vichy and Petain as the legitimate governement of France and also to federate french colonies around the world (Africa, Pacific) The first real military action was the seizure of Koufra (Tchad)from the Italians on Feb 28, 1941. The commanding officer was General Leclerc who will later lead the 2 armoured division "2ième DB" into Paris. <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Did the Germans intern the remaining forces anywhere and after the success of the D-Day landing would have became public knowledge did they begin to fight again?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Well part of the 1940 peace required that the french army (or what will remain of it) would be severely downsized. In 1942 the germa invaded south of France but kept Petain at the head of a Puppet State. No state = No army. So in 1944, the only way for french military to join the fight was to enlist in the free french troops. <BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Where there any major 'post surrender' victories for the French Forces. I understand that the French Navy was badly mauled by the Royal Navy after they surrendered somewhere but I cannot remember the name of the place.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE> Well no victory for the forces under Petain's rule. British Navy sank a great part of French Navy (which was controlled by Petain) at Mers El Kebir (which is part of the Oran Wilaya) in Algeria. The french admiral refused to join the allies or to sail to antillas in order to disarm the ships. Allies could not stand such a threat in the Mediterranean sea and therefore destriyed the fleet. The other part of the fleet was still in Toulon (S of France) and destroyed itself in 1942 when the nazis invaded south of France. Situation of the free french was rather complicated, they fought both in french only units and in british units (RAF or Commandos for example). Their main achievements in WWII includes the seizure of Koufra, Bir Hakeim, Liberation of Paris, Alsace liberation... ------------------ Nicolas http://perso.infonie.fr/nicolas.counio/combat_mission1.html "Deux intellectuels assis vont moins loin qu'une brute qui marche" Un Taxi Pour Tobrouk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Offwhite Posted August 17, 2000 Share Posted August 17, 2000 I just finished reading the section of Keegan's "Six Armies in Normandy" that deals with the French - according to that, Hitler allowed Vichy to maintain a 100,000-man army (as Versailles had limited the Reichswehr). Apparently a good number of French soldiers who ended up in Britain decided to go home after France fell, and a large portion (maybe even majority?) of troops who stayed with DeGaulle's Free French were from the African colonies or the Foreign Legion. Also according to Keegan, organized resistance activity in France wasn't very widespread until later in the war when forced-labor deportation to Germany began. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Tom Posted August 17, 2000 Share Posted August 17, 2000 Actually, most of the French P.O.W.'s remained so until the end of the war. In fact, the were only sucessful in sinking an old battleship, and possibly a destroyer or two. The major loss occurred at Toulon, when French forces in Africa sided with the Allies, then the Germans invaded the South of France, and confusion reigned. There was no real resistance, as, the French Army and Navy was just as suprised as the Germans regarding the Alliance with the Allies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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