The Saar Offensive — Gamelin at Vincennes
, 66, has commanded the whole of the French armed forces since 1935. The Franco-Polish alliance treaty of 19 May 1939 calls for a major French offensive against Germany no later than the fifteenth day after mobilisation, with "the bulk of the forces" — meaning some 35 to 40 divisions, according to the commitments Gamelin gave in Warsaw in May. French mobilisation is ordered on 1 September.
By 7 September, France can field about 85 divisions on the Western front, against some 22 German covering divisions (General 's ). The Wehrmacht has concentrated almost all of its forces in Poland. The modern French tanks (B1 bis, Somua S35) are superior to the Panzer I and II deployed in the west. French numerical and material superiority is overwhelming.
On the morning of 7 September, the partial offensive known as the "Saar Offensive" is launched: 11 divisions of General 's advance 32 km into the Saar salient, against 4 German covering divisions. There is no serious fighting: the Wehrmacht falls back gradually toward the Siegfried Line. Meanwhile Warsaw resists, Sucharski still holds at Westerplatte, and Beck cables Paris every day: where is the offensive?
Vincennes HQ, September 1939, you are General Gamelin: what to decide when the advance meets no German resistance?
Gamelin halts the advance and chooses to prepare methodically a larger operation for the spring of 1940. On 12 September, in a meeting of the Supreme War Council, he decides to halt the advance and to postpone the main offensive "to a later date". On 21 September, with the fall of Warsaw imminent, Gamelin orders the general withdrawal to the Maginot Line. By 4 October, every French division has returned to its starting positions. Not a single division-on-division engagement has taken place. French losses: 196 dead (over 14 days, mostly from mines and sporadic artillery). The French high command will justify the non-offensive by "awaiting the arrival of British reinforcements" and "the need to coordinate with RAF Bomber Command" — arguments rejected by every later historian. The Gamelin directive of 12 September is one of the most criticised decisions of the Phoney War. Beck will cable Paris on the 17th: "You have betrayed our alliance." Gamelin will be dismissed on 19 May 1940 after the collapse at Sedan.
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