Battle of the Gembloux Gap
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1) Define the subject: The battle of Gembloux
A) The French fought under the command of General Rene Prioux, part of General Gaston Billotte's First
Allied Army Group which were comprised of 2nd and 3rd DLM, The French Calvary Corp, and The
French Frist Army (Keiler, J.). The Germans Nazi fought under the command of General Walter von
Reichenau's German XVI Corp (Southjn).
B) The battle lasted 2 days starting on starting on May 14th and ending the 15th of 1940 (The Planetary
Knowledge Core)
C) The battle took place in Gembloux which is located in the Belgian province of Namur.
2) Setting the stage:
A) The cause of The battle of Gembloux:
The reason for this battle was the from the French High Commander expecting Eben Emael to last 5 day or
more so he would be able to prepare his forces to deal with the oncoming German army. When Eben
Emael feel in less than 24 hours it laid the way for the German XVI Corp to be at the Gembloux pass
quicker than the French could prepare.
This mission had two parts to it, the first being that they would draw the Allie forces northward away
from the main German forces, and the second being to break and defeat all forces in the area (Keiler J.).
This was also the first time a mechanized force used the Blitzkrieg tactic. The Germans would
envelopment the Allie force and over power them to capture that area (Kids A.)
B) Weather and Terrain:
1) I was unable to find any info on the weather for the days of the battle. From what I have
researched and photos from the battle it looks to be the weather was clear and sunny.
2) The terrain was perfect for the attack and being able to see long distances. The area was flat and
clear which made it very easy for the massive German force to advance (Keiler J.)
C) Compare Forces
1) The Germans had 2 Panzer divisions with almost 700 tanks total (The Planetary Knowledge Core),
and 3 Infantry divisions the total number of troops was not stated.
The French had 3 Motorised divisions that had 45 R35 machines that were tracked with a turret
and equipped with an AC 37 anti-tank gun, and 3 Infantry divisions and not total number of
troops that were attached (The Planetary Knowledge Core).
2) The Germans embraced technology. All of their tanks had radios (The Planetary Knowledge Core)
along with better ways to communicate with their higher up.
The French on the other hand, was still riding high of their win in World War 1, was still using
horses to transport messages to the troops. The higher commands were staying away from the
main battles. To add to this most of the French received commands that had no clear point to
operate from (over simplified)
3) As talked about earlier, the Germans operational movements and tactics was called Blitzkrieg
(Lightning War) (The Planetary Knowledge Core). This tactic was not to just flank your enemy but
to cut though the weak parts of the line, sound smaller areas of them, and repeat until you have
wont that area.
The tactics that the French used was everything they had learned from the 1 st World Wad. The
only down side to this was they did not have the man power not manufacturing to handle this
type of operation again. Plus, these tactics were to slow to compare to the German doctrine that
evolved using modern technology.
4) Looking in all information I can find it seemed that the Germans had their logistics system
running great. They knew the ranges they could operate in with what they had and the system
was able to keep up. On the flip side, the French were lacking all around. Even though they had
wheeled and tracked vehicles they still had horses to transport items. This slowed the system
way down possibly caused some of their short falls they found at Gembloux gap.
5)
The Germans were winning on the intelligence front also. They had plans that were fly
recognizances mission along with controlling the skies (Warfare History Network). This put the
French to where they were only able to react to what was going on. Rather than being able to
take proactive steps to counter the Germans moves.
6) The Germans were still running on highs from not being stopped and were a force that seemed
to not be able to be stopped. While the French was still trying to rebuild a nation and figure out a
way to deal with having a 1/3 less of its population (Warfare History Network). The French moral,
even though they were able to pull through the 1st World War and consider it a win, seemed to
be low.
7) This is the area that cause the Germans to gain as much as they did was the command, control
and communication. All ground forces, motorized forces and air force had radios and was able to
call higher with real time action of what was happing on the ground. As stated earlier the French
had not poured a whole lot into bettering their technology since the 1 st World War. This was
proven when commanders would send orders out on horseback. The orders never had true
clarity to them. They would also receive updated via the same method.
8) Both side had competent battle harden leadership. What separated them from a stand still was
the technology and how they used it.
D) Describe the Action
1) The opening moves took place 48 to 72 hours before the Germans reached Gembloux. The
Germans dropped the airborne into Eben Emael. After the taking of the area the flood gates
opened for the Germans to pour west ward to Gembloux Gap.
2) It was the French artillery and infantry that was coming to the rescue. Upon their arrival they
would find disappointment from the Belgium’s. The commanding general of the French had
stated were he wanted the line to be set, but upon arrival fount they were to the east (Warfare
History Network). The French First Army decided to move the division like to Namue-Brussels
rail road line. With its natural steep cliffs, and causeways it would slow the tanks to a crawl.
Buying them time to bring in more troops.
Despite intelligence the Germans had there panzer division found themselves in the middle of a
French ambush on the 14th of May. They tried to regroup on the west side of the rail road track
only to find themselves the targets artillery. A large portion of the panzers were taken out of the
fight as they tried to cross the embankment to close in on the French forces.
The fighting had been the same into the 15th of May. The only thing that was added was the
amount of fire power that was being exchanged. No one was taking any ground and no one was
losing any ground. It was at a stall. The German commander decided to pull back at this point
after all their loss that had been suffered.
3) This was one point that the French would win. It was a short lived victory.
E)
Asses the significance of the actions:
1) Expecting Eben Emael to stand longer than it did left the French venerable to the attack. The
battle would not have gotten so close the French and Belgians sent more troops and equipment
to hold the line.
Had the Germans kept with their Blitzkrieg method and pushed further south and surrounded
the French and Belgians rather than just trying to push west they would have lost far less troops
and equipment.
2) One of the main lessons I can see from here make sure all orders are clear. Never leave room for
someone else to do what you think would be tactically correct.
I would also say never expect one are to be your time cushion. If need be fall back further so you
have time to prepare when playing defiance. You will have far less loss of life and equipment.
Finally, technology is a great thing, but you have to know the area. The French had proven by still
using outdated technology and equipment but holding back the German forces.
Southjn, June 30 2014, The battle of Gembloux 1940, http://forum.worldoftanks.eu/index.php?/topic/406364battle-of-gembloux-1940/
Keiler, Jonathan F., The 1940 Battle of Gembloux, https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2015/11/17/the-1940battle-of-gembloux/
Kids, Academic, Battle of France, https://www.academickids.com/encyclopedia/index.php/Battle_of_France
The Planetary Knowledge Core, Battle of Gembloux (1940),
https://infogalactic.com/info/Battle_of_Gembloux_(1940)
Over Simplified, World War II Over Simplified, YouTube
Warfare History Network, How the French Won the Battle of Gembloux Against Hitler (But the Nazi Won the War),
April 19 2020, https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/how-french-won-battle-gembloux-against-hitler-nazigermany-won-war-145452