1. Chloe K, Quinn E, Emily C, Tèa K
Case Yellow,
Case Red,
Operation Dynamo,
and the Fall of France
Chloe K, Quinn E, Emily C, Tèa K

2. Thesis
After Hitler’s victory over Poland he grew anxious to advance in the West, launching Case Yellow, an attack on France and the Lower Countries. Through multiple German operations and strategic events, including the diversion around the Maginot line, the Battle of France led to the destruction of Paris and demolition of its army. Therefore making it an important victory for the Axis and altering the balance of power throughout Europe, ultimately bolstering German supremacy.

3. Timeline Operation Dynamo- 26 May 1940 Paris is Captured- 14 June 1940
Case Yellow-
10 May 1940
Case Red-
5 June 1940
Battle of France
Ends-25 June 1940

4. Maginot Line

5. Case Yellow— Fall Gelb
First phase of offensive against France & Low Countries -- 3 Groups
Group A- march through Ardennes
Group B- invade Low Countries
Group C- attack Maginot line
Originally “repeat of Schlieffen Plan” —worked well, British and French pushed back —ended with Mechelen Incident
Manstein Plan- alternative plan; avoid main Allied armies and go to English Channel
Blitzkrieg- “lightning war”; break through defense line with short, powerful attacks then encircling displaced enemies; added by Guderian to cut off French in South
Revised Plan- Group A through Ardennes then NW, Group B lured Allies to Belgium
Devastatingly successful- Allied ground forces cut in half, northern forces surrounded by Groups A and B -- Operation Dynamo

7. Erich von Manstein -- Erich von Lewinski
Chief of Staff in Army Group A
Served Russian & Western fronts in WWI --- Invasion of Poland WWII
Manstein Plan -- originally rejected, adopted by Hitler
Heinz Guderian
German general during the Nazi era.
An advocate of the "Blitzkrieg" doctrine,
He successfully led Panzer units during the Invasion of Poland and the Battle of France -- disobeyed orders and advanced to English Channel

8. The Mechelen Incident

9. Operation Dynamo — Dunkirk
With the capitulation of Belgium, British and French troops were left trapped between German forces
British government decides to launch Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) by sea from Dunkirk
German Air Force (Luftwaffe) raids had knocked out the port facilities
Evacuate with the help of local fisherman
198,000 British and 140,000 French and Belgian troops had been saved
Propagandized as a miracle for the Allies

11. Dunkirk’s Importance
German forces failed to press their attack on Dunkirk—largely thanks to grim defence of the Dunkirk perimeter by British and French troops, and the efforts of the much-depleted RAF.
For reasons still not clear, Hitler demanded a pause in the fighting, which gave the Allies enough opportunity to evacuate around 340,000 troops from Dunkirk and a further 220,000 from other French ports
Evacuees are used in French battles
Allies could have been easily defeated at this point allowing the Axis to win the war

12. Winston Churchill
Churchill, commented, 'wars are not won by evacuation', Dynamo was a victory of incalculable importance for the BEF. The return of the troops, even without much of their equipment, gave Britain a basis on which to rebuild the Army, sheltering behind the Navy and the RAF. It also strengthened the credibility of Churchill's insistence that Britain would fight on, thus influencing the neutral USA at a time when American aid was vital.

13. Case Red— Fall Rot
After Case Yellow success, 2nd phase of German conquest toward France started
Post Dunkirk, Churchill wanted to keep the French fighting
French had 65 divisions left to the Germans 142 divisions
Consisted of two sub-operations
Army group B initiated attack over Somme river aimed at the Seine river on west coast, followed by a strike south toward Paris
Army group A was sent to move around the Maginot line as to outsmart and capture French forces while Army group C attacked it straight on.
France fought hard causing Germany to rely on Luftwaffe to allow them to move forward
Germany had breakthrough near Abbeville= French line weakened
June 10 Paris was declared an open city, June 14 it fell to Germans

15. Hitler’s Jig https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bzziAv9o4w

16. Aftermath Effect on France/Capture of Paris:
Marshal Philippe Pétain became prime minister of France and immediately announced his intention to make a truce with the Germans which was signed June 22, ending the war on June 25.
France was divided into a German occupation zone in the north and west and a nominally independent state in the south, to be based in the town of Vichy. The new French state accepted its status as a defeated nation and attempted to buy favor with the Germans.
27,074 German soldiers were killed during the Battle of France while nearly 580,000 French army men lost their lives.

17. Aftermath Effect on Britain
German victory completely threw off the balance of power in Europe
Left the assumptions that Britain had planned to fight Hitler completely obsolete.
With France out of the equation, Britain's war for the next four years was fought in the air, at sea, and in the Mediterranean - but not on the Western Front. Not until D-Day, four years later, did a major British army return to France.

18. Henri-Philippe Pétain Charles de Gaulle
French general,who was a national hero for his victory at the Battle of Verdun in World War I
Later discredited as chief of state of the French government at Vichy in World War II.
He died under sentence in a prison fortress.
Charles de Gaulle rose went from French soldier in World War I to exiled leader
Created a French resistance during WWII
Eventually, president of the Fifth Republic.
He served as president from 1959 to 1969.

19. Works Cited
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Erich Von Manstein.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 26 July 2016,
3dhistory.co.uk/article/world-war-two/battle-of-france-fall-rot+.
Admin. “Case Red: The Collapse of France.” The History Network, 8 Jan. 2018, thehistorynetwork.org/case-red-the-collapse-of-france/.
“France.” France - New World Encyclopedia,
“English Heritage.” Operation Dynamo: Things You Need to Know about the Dunkirk Evacuation | English Heritage,
“The Manstein Plan vs. Case Yellow.” The Manstein Plan vs. Case Yellow | The Globe at War,
Sheffield, Dr Gary. “History - World Wars: The Fall of France.” BBC, BBC, 30 Mar. 2011,