French historian Marc Bloch witnessed the swift invasion of France by the Wehrmacht. He noted the Germans’ “embarrassing skill in appearing where they ought not to have appeared.” In 1939, the German ...

France surrendered on 22 June 1940 ... This became known as the Blitz, from the German Blitzkrieg. Its aim was to break morale and destroy industry to force Britain to surrender.

Even though millions of French troops were manning the defensive Maginot Line in early 1940, Hitler's brilliant blitzkrieg strategy caught the Allies by surprise, and Germany occupied France ...