Char B1 (n° 309) “Rhône”: Scuttled in Beaumont

Source: Author's Collection

     What is left of No.309 “Rhône” in the streets of Beaumont, France. Built by Renault, this Char B1 bis was issued to the 37th. BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat; Combat Tank Battalion), 1st. Company on September 27, 1939. On May 16, 1940, remnants of the 37th. BCC retreated into Beaumont and were without fuel for their tanks and with no petrol forthcoming, it was decided to scuttle the unit’s tanks and to make for the French lines on foot. 

     “Rhône” was set ablaze and the subsequent explosion blew the turret off the tank. Unfortunately, the blaze from the tank spread to nearby homes, setting them aflame. It was not until the following day did the fires burn out. 

     “Rhône” had been commanded by Sub-Lieutenant André Marsais with the remainder of the crew being Master Corporal Emile Tourmetz (driver), Sergeant Jacques Tapol (radio operator), Private Defremy (gunner), and Private Feuillatre (mechanic).

Portrait: Chasseur Alpins Caporal, 1902

Source: Author's Collection

     At the thrift was this picture, measuring 14” x 16”, of a soldier. It looks to be heavily retouched and is on thick board. The only writing is the date, 1902, on the back. So, down the rabbit hole I went. My best, educated guess, is that the man is French and belongs to a chasseurs alpins (“Alpine Hunters”) unit. Formed in 1888, the chasseurs alpins are the French Army's mountain infantry, specifically trained to operate in mountainous terrain.

     My guesswork is based on a few things. The first is the tunic, which bears a resemblance to the French Army Modèle 1893 jacket. This one looks to have four front pockets, evidenced only by the flaps. Some searching shows the pocket count tended to vary but the overall cut was the same. It has the nine buttons as typical for the type. Now, chasseurs alpins enlisted jackets tended to have a broad lapel collar while officers usually had the collar as seen here. Of course, it is possible that this soldier had a jacket with a smaller lapel that could be upturned and closed at the throat. Now, the most telling evidence is the chevrons on the sleeves. They are dead ringers for the enlisted rank chevrons used by the chasseurs alpins. Although hard to see, this soldier has two stripes per sleeve, giving him the rank of “caporal” or Lance corporal. The final item that swayed my opinion is the mustache, a facial hair fashion readily worn by chasseurs alpins soldiers at the time.

     The visible handle and hilt of the bayonet appears to be that used with the French Berthier Modèle 1982 rifle.

French SOMUA S35 Cavalry Tank: Abandoned at the Beaches

     The Battle of Dunkirk that ran from May 26 to June 4, 1940 encompassed a series of engagements in which British and French forces battled the Germans with the goal to delay the Germans for as long as possible in order to allow as many troops to evacuate from the beaches of Dunkirk as possible. In fact, it was the French who battled to the end, permitting British forces to depart knowing they would be left behind. The hardest of the fighters was what remained of the 12e Division d'Infanterie Motorisée (DIM) whose lineage was traced back to the Napoleonic Wars of 1803-1815. Included in the combat was the 18e Régiment de Dragons (RD; Dragoon Armored Regiment) of the 1ère Division Légère Mécanique (DLM). The 1st. DLM was equipped with three main types of tanks, the Automitrailleuse de Reconnaissance Renault Modèle 35 (AMR 35) light cavalry tank, the Char Léger Modèle 1935 H (better known as the Hotchkiss H35) cavalry tank, and the SOMUA S35 cavalry tank. The S35 was more of a medium tank in comparison to the AMR 35 and H35 and thus the SOMUA (which stood for Société d'Outillage Mécanique et d'Usinage d'Artillerie) was assigned to the 18e RD, the photograph showing two of them abandoned in Dunkirk.

     The S35 stood up well to contemporary tanks of the day. It featured well sloped frontal armor with a maximum thickness of 47mm and had some 40mm thick armor around the sides and turret. It was armed with the potent 47mm SA 35 anti-tank gun that could penetrate 60mm of armor at 1,800ft. This was more than adequate to pierce the majority of German tanks in 1940, to include early makes of the Panzerkampfwagen IV. The S35 had a top off-road speed of 20mph which was good for a 19 ton tank (the lighter H35 at 11 tons could only muster 17mph off-road). A distinguishing feature of the S35 was the use of a methyl bromide automatic fire extinguishing system. The S35, though, was not devoid of problems. It was a difficult tank to maintain in the field due to a complex track and suspension system. The V-8 engine used was also mechanically unreliable and access to the engine was not conductive to ease of maintenance. Another issue was the fact that the cast upper hull was bolted down to the lower hull (chassis), leaving a clear seam between the two components. If an enemy round struck the seam, the result was that the S35 could literally be split in half due to the impact. Another flaw was the single-man turret in which the commander had to not only lead the tank but also act as loader and gunner for the SA 35 gun. Finally, the S35 carried a high price tag and the cast hull couldn't be produced rapidly and thus fewer S35 tanks were obtained. The S35 began to enter service in 1936. Despite the flaws, some consider the S35 to have been one of the best tanks in the world in the 1930s.

     Following the French defeat, the German army captured a little under 300 S35 tanks and would issue them to various units under the designation Panzerkampfwagen 35-S 739(f). Others were shipped off to German allies such as Bulgaria, Hungary, and Italy. Some of these tanks did see front line combat but most were used for anti-partisan duties where the risk of facing enemy armor was low. Some of the tanks had the upper hull removed and used as tank driver trainers at German armor schools. Still other tanks served in security forces.

     The gun seen in the foreground is a British Ordnance QF (Quick Firing) 25-pounder Mark I that entered service in 1940. Interestingly, this gun, in later makes, is still used today with the largest user being Pakistan with some 1,000 guns in service.

Char B1 (n° 463) “Davout”: Victim of the Luftwaffe

     The 28e BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat) was created from assets of the former 512e RCC (Régiment de Chars de Combat) on August 26, 1939 at Chalons-sur-Marne. The new unit’s motto was “Toujours Devant” which meant “Always in Front”. The Char B1 heavy tank “Davout” (n° 463) was assigned to 2e Compagnie (2nd. Company) and was commanded by Lieutenant Jean Lafforgue whose crew consisted of driver Caporal (Corporal) Lebris, gunner Caporal Meissonier, and radio operator Caporal Magaud. 

     On June 6, 1940, the 28e BCC along with the 25e BCC, were deploying towards the French town of Roye in order to shore up and clear the left flank of the 29e DI (Division d'Infanterie; other sources say it was the 24e DI) of any German combat forces. At approximately 10:30am, the unit came under fire from both anti-tank guns as well as artillery. “Davout” had its external radio apparatus destroyed and suffered damage to the left side running gear which was severe enough that Lebris could only drive the tank in 4th gear and even then, only in a snaking pattern. In the end, his efforts to drive the tank forwards ceased when the German Luftwaffe appeared in the skies. 

     A near miss from a bomb was enough to literally lift “Davout” off the ground and it came down into a deep ditch. None of the crew was injured (but certainly shook up) and quickly bailed out of the tank. A nearby Char B1, “Dassas”, was flagged down and the “Davout’s” crew hooked up tow chains to “Dassas” but as the attempt to pull “Davout” from the ditch commenced, the engine caught fire. The tow chains were hastily released and the fire spread, detonating some of the ammunition which buckled the left side hull. The fire burned itself out but now “Davout” was completely out of action and was abandoned, the crew being carried out of the battlefield by another Char B1 named “Kellerman” (n° 514).
 

Char B1 (n° 490) “Rivoli”: Abandoned Outside Milly-sur-Thérain

     On May 28, 1940, a two Char B1 tank element from 1ère Compagnie, 47e BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat) was a part of the combat known as the Battle of Abbeville which commenced on May 27, 1940 to June 4, 1940. The two tanks which made up the element were “Rivoli” (n° 490) and “Crouy” (n° 404). “Rivoli” was received by the 1st. Company on May 10, 1940 and not long after, was rolling into combat. The tank was commanded by Lieutenant Gazelle with the remainder of the crew being Sergent Miard (driver), Chassseur Guillot (gunner), and Chassseur Riedinger (radio operator). Without any infantry support, the two tanks along with other 47e BCC tanks proceeded towards the village of Huppy along the Doudelainville-Poultières-Huppy Road. No enemy was seen until machine-gun fire and strikes from 37mm anti-tank guns began to rattle off “Rivoli’s” armor. Lt. Gazelle steered his tank towards the direction of the enemy fire and began to fire the co-axial 7.5mm Châtellerault M1931 machine-gun but in short order, it jammed. Another B1, “Jeanne d’Arc”(“Joan of Arc”; n° 425), crushed a German PaK 36 37mm anti-tank gun position by running it over. Gazelle ordered the hull-mounted 75mm ABS SA 35 howitzer into action and he himself manned the turret mounted 47mm SA 34 gun. In short order, the Germans were routed, fleeing in the face of what appeared to be unstoppable tanks. At the time, Gazelle did not know it but his tanks had engaged two battalions from Infanterie-Regiment 217 (IR 217) who had nothing heavier than the ineffective PaK 36 with which to attempt to stop the B1 tanks and thus crumbled and fled when the only anti-armor weapons they had were seemingly useless. 

     As “Rivoli” continued on towards Huppy, Gazelle lost sight of “Crouy” as the tanks continued to be involved in mopping up pockets of resistance by the remains of IR 217. Around this time, Miard informed Gazelle that the oil for the complex Neader transmission was almost at zero which meant a leak. Gazelle ordered the tank to a halt and shut the engine down. Quickly, the crew attempted to locate the leak in an attempt to repair it for without the Neader transmission, the tank would become difficult to steer and also the aiming mechanism for the 75mm howitzer was tied into the transmission. Unfortunately, the leak could not be found and so not wanting to be a sitting target, Gazelle decided to risk making for Huppy. “Rivoli” arrived at a rally point north-east of Doudelainville and here, the leak was found as well as another leak near the engine’s carburetor. The issue with the co-axial machine-gun was also fixed, the stoppage having been caused by a round which swelled in the breech, preventing extraction. Repairs were effected and the tank went back into action but on June 5, 1940, “Rivoli” was abandoned due to further engine problems somewhere between Milly-sur-Thérain and the Vauroux. 

     As for “Crouy”, its remains were discovered near Croisettes, having been hit twice by 105mm shells, likely from a German 10.5 cm leFH 18 howitzer using direct fire. The commander, Lt. Bauche, was killed when the first round struck the tank’s turret. The driver, Sergent Rouille, was killed when the second shell crushed the driver’s side hull. The remainder of the crew, Chassseur Baumont and Chassseur Nacre, were severely injured. The other mentioned tank, “Jeanne d’Arc”, in just two hours of combat, was hit some 90 times and once its main guns were put out of action from the hail of anti-tank rounds, the tank simply ran through enemy positions. In all, “Jeanne d’Arc” destroyed 12 anti-tank guns and two German armored cars before the Char B1 was struck near Croisettes by a large caliber anti-tank round (at the time, believed to have been from a German 8.8cm gun) which set the engine on fire. The crew was able to abandon the vehicle with only minor wounds. 

Char B1 bis (n° 361) “Silvaner”: Knocked Out Near Pommery Farm

     From June 9-10, 1940, French forces were in action against German advances along the Asine and Retourne Rivers. In the effort to relieve beleaguered French troops in the town of Perthes, a two-pronged counter-attack to throw back the Germans was conducted. From the south, Lieutenant-Colonel Salanié led a mixed group of forces consisting of light tanks from the 45e BCC, elements of the 31e Régiment de Dragons Portés, and 1st. Company of the 41e BCC. The latter formation consisted of ten heavy Char B1bis tanks of which “Silvaner” was one. 

     The tank, built by AMX, was incorporated into the 1st. Company, 41e BCC on June 6, 1940, having started with the 3rd. Company, 49e BCC. At this time, the tank was commanded by Lieutenant Jean-Marc Dives and crewed by driver Sergeant Jean Rochet, radio operator Bocacci, and gunner Bois. On June 10, north of Juniville, the French force ran into elements of the 1st. Panzer Division and 2nd. Panzer Regiment. 1st. Company (commanded by Capitaine Billotte) rolled into action but was soon encircled by 2nd. Panzer Regiment forces near Pommery Farm. Surrounded and taking fire from German tanks, anti-tank guns, and even field guns using direct fire, the French tanks had little choice but to fight their way out and in so doing, lost four tanks in the skirmish of which “Silvaner” was one. 

     One shot went right into the driver’s cupola while another (not visible in this view) completely caved in the side armor around the driver’s compartment. Perhaps not surprisingly from such hits, Sergeant Rochet did not survive. The remainder of the crew was able to abandon the tank. All in all, the French launched the counter-attacks without the support of artillery or air support. The latter, due to the Luftwaffe having complete air superiority, allowed the Germans to bring French forces under fire and allow effective aerial reconnaissance which granted the Germans the ability to blunt and push back the French attacks.

de Bange 155mm Long Canon Modèle 1877: Service in Two World Wars

     A photograph taken from a Keystone View Company stereoscope card depicts a French gun crew manning a camouflage painted de Bange 155mm Long Canon Modèle 1877. As the date suggests, the 155 L de Bange (the short name for the gun) was by no means a new gun by the time World War One began in 1914. Development of the gun started in February 1874 by a committee made up of French artillerymen. The intent of the committee was to learn lessons from the Franco-Prussian War which took place between July 19, 1870 and January 28, 1871 and from these lessons, conceive of a new heavy caliber gun for siege purposes as well as equipping fortresses. Towards the close of April 1874, the caliber of 155mm was selected and three manufacturers produced their designs which were put to test beginning in 1876. The winner of the competition was Charles de Bange with his 155 L gun and the French military put in an order for 300 guns in November 1877.

     The 155 L de Bange featured a hooped steel construction style and the barrel utilized gain-twist rifling. This method utilized rifling that had an initial slower twist rate at the breech end of the barrel which got progressively faster as the shell traveled down the barrel. This accelerated the angular momentum of the projectile. This wasn't so much as to propel the shell faster but to spread the torque of the spinning shell, which causes stress on the barrel, to be spread across as much of the length of the barrel as possible. This, then, allowed wear of the barrel to be more distributed rather than being concentrated at the breech end. As the photograph shows, the 155 L de Bange had no recoil mechanism and instead, it relied on friction to slow the backwards motion of the box trail carriage. To reduce the recoil further, wooden wedges were put behind the wheels. When the gun fired, the carriage rode up the wedges which bled off momentum and the gun would roll back down the wedges to more or less the same position it started from. This also helped eliminate the need to manhandle the gun back into position after every shot. The loader is likely checking the breech lock, a round already loaded given the gunner is ready with the lanyard to fire the cannon. Once all was set, the loader would retreat away from the gun before firing as the recoil of the gun had the possibility of the carriage jumping the wedges or coming off them. This concern also accounts for the long length of the lanyard so the gunner could be as far away from the gun as possible. The gun fired a 100lb. high-explosive round to a maximum range of 8 miles and a competent crew could fire one round every minute. The gun had a very limited traverse of 4 degrees with a maximum depression of 10 degrees and a maximum elevation of 28 degrees. The combat weight of the gun as shown in the photograph was 7 tons and so it was by no means easily moved.

     When World War One began, the French had pinned their hopes on the excellent Canon de 75 Modèle 1897. Some 1,392 155 L de Bange guns were on inventory, either in depots or in fixed positions. The French quickly learned that the Germans used heavier caliber guns that outranged the 75mm French gun and they had no counter to them in the field. In short order, the French started dragging the 155 L de Bange guns out of mothballs as a quick means to even the odds. The wheels on the gun's carriage were updated by fitting them with Rotaie a Cingolo (“Caterpillar Track Rails”), or simply cingoli. These hinged plates had two purposes. The first was to spread the ground pressure of the gun across more surface area which permitted easier movement over soft ground. The second purpose was the plates provided an immediate firing platform without extensive preparation as two plates per wheel would always be flat upon the ground. It took ten horses to pull the 155 L de Bange though gun tractors were used as well. By the end of November 1914, 112 guns were in service and by August 1, 1916, 738 guns were in action with French heavy artillery regiments. The 155 L de Bange served as a standard artillery piece but was also used in the counter-battery role, using its range to destroy German heavy guns when they were located. As the war went on, newer heavy guns began to enter service and usually after 10,000 shots, 155 L de Bange guns were taken out of service. But this did not last long as production of the newer cannons could not keep up with demand and so new barrels for the 155 L de Bange were produced starting in 1916. One way to tell an original barrel from the 1916 barrels is the position of the lifting handle. An original barrel, shown in the photograph, had a lifting handle in-line with the barrel while the new barrels had the lifting handle across the barrel. Even by November 1918, each French Army Corps had a single heavy artillery battalion equipped with the 155 L de Bange.

     Following World War One, a number of 155 L de Bange guns were sent to Romania and the Soviet Union who put them to use with the Red Army during the Russian Civil War. In 1937, the Russians sent a number of the guns to the Spanish Republicans during the Spanish Civil War. As for the French, 305 of the guns remained in service, most once more situated in fortresses or placed along the Maginot Line. France donated 48 guns to Finland in 1940 but none arrived in time to see action during the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union which occurred from November 30, 1939 to March 13, 1940. They did, however, see combat under the designation 155 K/77 during the Continuation War which pitted Finland and Germany against the Soviet Union from June 25, 1941 to September 19, 1944. By this time, only 19 guns were left in service. Although the Germans captured some operational 15 L de Bange guns following the fall of France, they did not put them into service.

Char B1 (n° 238) “Hardi I”: Knocked Out Near Origny-Sainte-Benoite

     The Char B1 heavy tank, No.238, was built by Renault and delivered to the 508th. RCC (Régiment de Chars de Combat) in December 1938 where the unit was based in Lunéville, France. By September 1939, the tank was transferred to the 8th. BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat) where it was issued to the 3rd. Company. Named “Hardi I”, the tank was commanded by Sous-Lieutenant Gérard Bernard (a rank equivalent to a 2nd. Lieutenant on the U.S. Army), Caporal-Chef Longefay was assigned as the driver (his rank is Master Corporal), Caporal Martin served as the assistant driver/loader, and Sergent Robert Le Fleuve was the radio operator.

     On May 17, 1940, “Hardi I” was situated in the town of Origny-Sainte-Benoite which was located some 9 miles to the east of the city of Saint Quentin. Bernard had positioned his tank to overlook a bridge that crossed over the Sambre–Oise Canal as it was assumed that elements from German Heeresgruppe A (Army Group A) would attempt to seize the bridge in order to continue their advance without being delayed by having to construct their own crossings. Unfortunately, French forces were unable to hold the Germans at Sedan which opened the way into the Meuse region and resistance began to crumble in the area. Origny-Sainte-Benoite, being along the German advance as anticipated by the French, saw a very brief skirmish between elements of the 8th. BCC and German forces. “Hardi I” was taken under fire by German panzers and one of them was able to score a hit on the French tank. According to the available documentation, it would appear that the German infantry were close on the heels of the German tanks and before “Hardi I” started to burn with earnest, the crew bailed out. Unfortunately, Sous-Lieutenant Bernard was hit in the kidney area by German small arms fire and collapsed near the tank. The remainder of the crew was able to reach the retreating remains of the 8th. BCC forces in the town and were evacuated. Bernard, luckily, had survived the hit and was moved away from the tank by German infantrymen and given medical aid in the field before he was sent to the rear for further treatment. In time, he was sent to a prisoner-of-war camp.

     “Hardi I” was a tank that was photographed many times by the Germans. How long it remained where it was hit is not known but the photographic record show that over time, the left track was completely removed, the turret position changed, and the hull howitzer position was also changed. The latter two most likely occurred from curious German troops clambering inside and using the turret's manual traverse and messing around with the howitzer from within the tank. What eventually happened to “Hardi I” isn't known but it was likely scrapped at some point during the war or afterwards.

Char B1 (n° 326) “Dordogne”: Knocked Out Near Montfaucon

     The Char B1 heavy tank, No.326, and named “Dordogne” was originally assigned to the replacement battalion of the 41st. BCC ((Bataillon de Chars de Combat) on January 6, 1940. However, by May 10, 1940, the tank was transferred to the 2nd. Compagnie, 28th. BCC. The tank was commanded by Lieutenant Marcel Cousin, the driver was Adjutant-Chef (Chief Warrant Officer) Colombo, the radio operator was Sergeant Magne, and the gunner was Corporal Savrey. The 28th. BCC was part of the 1st. DCR (Divisions Cuirassées de Reserve) and on May 15, the unit was deployed to the north of Flavion, Belgium.

     On the morning of May 16, the German Panzer Regiment 25 ran into the 3rd. Compagnie of the 28th. BCC at approximately 8:30am. Soon, all three companies of the 28th. BCC were engaged with the German regiment. The German tankmen were unprepared to see their rounds bouncing off the thick armor of the B1 tanks, let alone the number of French heavy tanks encountered. As it turned out, Panzer Regiment 25 was not informed by Luftwaffe intelligence assets of the true strength of the French in the area. The German commanders decided that combat had to commence at close range in order to have a chance at eliminating the French tanks. Using the terrain to as much advantage as possible to mask their movements, Panzer Regiment 25 sought to flank the 28th. BCC and around 9:30am, the 2nd. Compagnie shifted from their position in order to stop the German advance. Unfortunately, the sporadic supply situation saw many of the company's tanks run out of fuel. The B1 tanks were struck dozens of times by German fire which put many of the tanks out of action. Those B1 tanks with fuel began to retreat but soon, the crews knew they wouldn't get far. So, instead, they used the last of their fuel to turn the tanks to bring the 75mm hull mounted gun to bear on the enemy. Once fuel was expended, the commanders used the turret mounted 47mm gun to continue the fight, often until the electric batteries died leaving only hand cranks to turn the turret. The combat was joined by Panzer Regiment 31 around 12:00pm and they too received a bloody nose by the tanks of the 28th. BCC. The German tanks began to run out of ammunition and their supply trains were still too far behind to offer any swift replenishment. By 2:00pm, the 28th. BCC still held their positions despite the punishment the unit received. At 6pm, the order was given to withdraw and what tanks of the 28th. BCC were still mobile and had enough fuel, commenced to retreat to either Beaumont or Chastre. Those tanks which could not retreat remained where they were, giving battle until they had nothing left. Abandoned tanks were blown up and their crews continued to fight on foot for a time before retreating from the field. All told, only three of the 28th. BCC tanks made it out of the battle.

     “Dordogne”, assuming the dates are correct, survived the battle but this would not last and on May 18, 1940, the tank was knocked out in combat with elements of the 2nd. Panzer Division near Montfaucon. The crew survived the hit and was taken prisoner by the Germans. Lt. Cousin suffered severe injuries and had his left arm amputated as a result of those wounds.

Char B1 (n° 226) “Toulouse”: Abandoned in Origny-Sainte-Benoite

     Built by Renault, Char B1 No.226 was delivered to the 510th. RCC (Régiment de Chars de Combat) early in 1938 where the unit was stationed in Nancy, France. In September 1939, the tank was transferred to the 15th. BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat) but by April 18, 1940, the tank was assigned to 1st. Compagnie, 8th. BCC. The tank, named “Toulouse”, was commanded by Lieutenant Jean Renevey and had a driver by the name of Sergent Lavaux. Who the remaining three crew members were remains unknown.

     The 8th. BCC was within the area of operations of the French 9th. Army commanded by Général d'Armée André Corap. It was Corap's troops that faced Heeresgruppe A (Army Group A) which was under the command of Generaloberst Gerd von Rundstedt. Included in this force was the 7th. Panzer Division led by Generalmajor Erwin Rommel. It was the task of Heeresgruppe A to break through the Ardennes into France and while Belgian and French forces were able to cause minor delays, they did not have the anti-tank capacity nor the available manpower to stem the flow of German forces. It was the poor roads in the region which was the main cause of German delays and the Armée de l'Air Française (French Air Force) failed to take advantage of bombing the long German traffic lines that were more or less at a standstill. As an example, Panzergruppe Kleist (the original name of 1. Panzerarmee) had over 40,000 vehicles jammed into four passable routes through the Ardennes. By May 12, 1940, elements of Heeresgruppe A reached the Meuse Line which was a series of French forts and emplacements some 31 miles long. The next day, Panzergruppe Kleist launched attacks to establish three bridgeheads through the Meuse Line in what became the Battle of Sedan. The Germans focused their airpower against a narrow portion of the Line and the Luftwaffe flew 3,940 bomber and dive-bomber sorties against the French in a non-stop, eight hour bombing. Although there was some French resistance, it crumbled underneath the relentless aerial bombardment and by midnight, the Germans were five miles behind the Meuse Line. The combat in and around Sedan was intense but by May 15, 1940, the Germans had succeeded in pushing through, cutting off Corap's 9th. Army along its southern flank and in short order, the isolated French forces collapsed and surrendered.

     The photograph depicts “Toulouse“ along Rue Pasteur in Origny-Sainte-Benoite. What exactly happened to it is not known but most likely, the tank either had mechanical problems or ran out of petrol on May 16, 1940. Interestingly, “Toulouse“ was photographed many times by German troops and one such photograph shows the tank with no damage at all with a German soldier standing beside it holding a shell for the hull mounted 75mm ABS SA 35 howitzer. Later photographs show the tank in the condition seen here and from this, it can be surmised that the tank was struck by a German tank gun whose crew was unaware the tank had already been abandoned. That the shot was was through the rear of “Toulouse“ lends some credence to this as the Char B1 was difficult to knock out from the front and when able, German tank crews tried to get side or rear shots into the B1. The damage does show the Char B1's 6-cylinder, 16.5 litre inline Renault engine and six gear transmission (5 forward gears and 1 reverse gear). The hit set the tank on fire and secondary explosions caused further damage to the tank, including lifting the turret up and off its turret ring. At some point, the wreckage around the tank had been cleaned up and the tank's tracks coiled up next to the hull. It can be presumed that “Toulouse“ was eventually scrapped.

     As a note, the town of Origny-Sainte-Benoite has a war memorial commemorating French troops who had come from the town that fought and died during the First World War as well as World War Two. It is located off E44 on a plaza bordered by Place Jean Mermoz.

The French Potez 390: Obsolescence in the Phoney War

Rear gun position of a French Potez 390 observation plane. From a press photograph. (Author's Collection)

     The headline for this press photo, affixed to the back of the photograph on a piece of paper, reads “The 'Stingers' of a Mighty Wasp” with instructions to use the photograph in connection with articles on the European crisis. As the date was unfortunately faded away, it is difficult to assess when the photograph was taken. However, the instructions suggest a date during the Drôle de Guerre, or Phoney War, which ran from September 3, 1939 to May 10, 1940. As for the aircraft, the most likely candidate is the Potez 390 A2 (Artillerie Biplace) observation aircraft and since the print on the photograph lists Paris as the location, this suggests it belonged to one of seven Escadron d'Observation units that was equipped with the type and operating near the "La Ville-Lumière" ("City of Light" as Paris is known). The Potez 390 was, by 1940, woefully obsolete yet the situation of the looming war kept them in service past their prime. They were retired from frontline service only in October 1939 but continued to serve as training aircraft until the defeat of France in June 1940. 

     The Potez 390 started out as the Potez 39 and design work had commenced in 1928 with the first flight occurring in January 1930. It was to replace the aging Breguet 19 and Potez 25 aircraft then in service. It was a two-seat, parasol monoplane that was of all-metal construction, a first for Potez. Power came from a single Hispano-Suiza 12H 12-cylinder, air-cooled V-engine that developed 580 horsepower that drove a 2-blade, fixed pitch propeller. This provided the aircraft with a maximum speed of 155mph at 11,483 feet.  Enough fuel was carried to give the aircraft an operational range of 500 miles. The maximum service ceiling was 23,000 feet and to attain its maximum speed altitude, it took the Potez 39 a total of nine minutes to achieve it. The Potez 39 was a fairly large plane, having a span of 52.6 feet, a length of 32.1 feet, and a height of 11.2 feet. The total wing area was 377 square feet and the combat weight of the aircraft was 5,842 pounds. The aircraft was accepted by the Armée de l'Air and put into production as the Potez 390 with the first deliveries starting in 1934.

     For weapons, the armament consisted of dual Darne-built Lewis Model 1915 machine-guns chambered for the standard British 7.7mm (.303 inch) cartridge and this is what we see in the photograph. The entire mount was of the Tourelles (Turret) TO 10 type. This is the rear firing gun position (manned by the observer) and movement of the guns was entirely manual. The round pan magazines (that held 47 or 97 rounds) that sat atop the weapons are not fitted here. Just behind the gun mount are canvas bags to catch the ejected brass so as not to pose a slipping hazard for the firer. Fitted into the nose of the Potez 390 was a single 7.5mm Darne machine-gun. If need be, a modest bomb load totaling 265 pounds could be carried on under-fuselage racks.

     By 1939, all seven units equipped with the Potez 390 were grouped under the 1st. Armée Aérienne and consisted of Groupe Aérien d'Observation (GAO) 504 (based at Chartres), GAO 511 (Nantes), GAO 510 (Rennes Saint-Jacques), GAO 505 (Epernay-Plivot), GAO 517 (Nancy-Essey), GAO 512 (Limoges), and GAO 513 (Montbéliard). Given the photograph mentions Paris, the two units nearest the city were GAO 504 and GAO 505 but without being able to see any insignia on the aircraft, we cannot say with any certainty what unit the Potez 390 belonged to. When the Germans invaded France on May 10, 1940, there were a total of 43 Potez 390 aircraft within France. Of this total, 29 were distributed amongst the active units with a total of 20 operational planes. Another 11 aircraft were assigned to training schools with 5 of them operational, while the remaining 3 aircraft had been retained for experimental purposes with all 3 in non-operational condition. By this time, the more modern Potez 63.11 twin-engine aircraft was the main equipment for French observation squadrons. No unit is known to have flown the Potez 390 in combat against the Germans.

     The only other user of the Potez 39 was the Peruvian Air Force that bought twelve Potez 391 aircraft. This was simply the Potez 390 but fitted with a Lorraine 12Hdr Pétrel supercharged, 12-cylinder, water-cooled V-engine that developed 500 horsepower at 2,300rpm. It also had a larger air intake than the Potez 390.

Canon de 32 Modèle 1870/84 à Glissement: Seeing Action in Two World Wars

(From a stereoscope card. Author's collection)

     Somewhere near the French city of Reims, a battery of French Canon de 32 Modèle 1870/84 à Glissement railway guns fire on German positions, likely during the Second Battle of the Marne which raged from July 15, 1918 to August 6, 1918. In 1915, thirty of these railway guns were constructed by the Schneider-Creusot company using former Canon de 32C Modèle 1870/84 coastal defense guns. The 320mm (32cm) gun was capable of firing a 855lb. high-explosive shell to a maximum range of 13 miles and a skilled crew could maintain a rate of fire of one round every four minutes. The carriage was designed by Schneider-Creusot to house the guns and consisted of a rectangular steel base on two, five-axle bogies. The gun used a sliding recoil system (Glissement) in which the gun cradle slid backward to absorb some of the recoil forces before having to be pushed back into battery. For firing, the gun could be elevated from 3 degrees to a maximum of 40 degrees. However, given the gun itself had no means of traverse, special curved track had to be constructed at the firing site in order to move the entire carriage along the track to obtain traverse. The curved track provided from 2 degrees of traverse up to 15 degrees. Any further angling risked instability when firing. To stabilize the carriage, once the firing position was selected, heavy wooden beams were used to reinforce the rail bed and then steel beams underneath the carriage were lowered onto the tracks and the carriage lifted onto jacks. The steel beams utilized friction between them and the track to further reduce the recoil effects. The apparatus on the back of the carriage was the shell hoist and the ammunition was in two parts, the projectile and the powder bag. The guns entered service in 1916 and served throughout the remainder of World War One and after the conflict ended, some were put into reserve.

     When World War Two began, eight Canon de 32 Modèle 1870/84 à Glissement railway guns were taken out of reserve and assigned to the 373e Regiment Artillerie Lourde sur Voie Ferrée (ALVF; Heavy Artillery on Railroad) with four guns placed with the 7e Bataillon ALVF and four with the 8e Bataillon AVLF. Both battalions were held in reserve at Seppois-le-Haut but in short order, the 7e Bataillon AVLF deployed to Hirtzbach while the 8e Bataillon AVLF was sent to Steinsoultz. Both of these locations were in the Alsace region of north-eastern France, near the German border. Following the German invasion, these guns plus one additional example were captured and put into German service under the designation 32 cm K(E) 657(f).

Char B1 (n° 269) “Tonnerre”: Standing Their Ground in Hannapes

 

     The remains of Char B1 (n° 269) "Tonnerre" lay abandoned along Rue d'Etreux in Hannapes, France. The tank, built by FCM, was delivered to the 508e RCC (Régiment de Chars de Combat) early in 1939. Later, in September 1939, the tank was transferred to the 2e Compagnie, 8e BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat). By mid-May 1940, the 14e RCC had been deployed to the Aisne region of France with orders to defend bridges which crossed the Oise River. One of these bridges was along Rue d' Etreux in the Aisne commune Hannapes. It was defended by the 13e RI (Régiment d’Infanterie) and elements of an artillery unit. "Tonnerre" was detached from the 8e BCC and provided to the 14e RCC to bolster the defender's strength in defense of the bridge. On May 18, 1940, elements from the German XIX Army Corps pushed on Hannapes and the situation quickly became untenable due to overwhelming German forces and the French units had no option but to retreat. The crew of "Tonnerre", however, refused to withdraw and stood their ground. "Tonnerre" was quickly surrounded by the Germans and brought under anti-tank gun fire at close range which knocked the tank out for good. However, before succumbing, the crew inflicted significant damage to the Germans who had the misfortune to have run up against the tank. Amazingly, despite the heavy damage to the tank, the crew was able to escape without serious injury and they sought to make their way back to the French lines. This would not happen as the French were unable to hold back the might of the XIX Army Corps and with much of the area quickly occupied by German forces, the crew were ultimately captured on May 23, 1940 in the vicinity of Tupigny.

     The soldier posing with the wreckage of "Tonnerre" holds the position of Hauptwachtmeister which is equivalent to the U.S. Army position of First Sergeant. This can be determined by the two rings of silver tress around his feldbluse's sleeves which had the nickname of "kolbenringe", or "piston rings". Another sign of this position would be the meldetasche (reporting pouch) that would be tucked into the front of the feldbluse. The pouch contained forms, duty rosters, and other documents needed for the position but in this photograph, he is not carrying it in the usual position. The Hauptwachtmeister was better known to troops as the "Spieß" ("Spear") or less commonly as the "Mutter der Kompanie" (Company Mother). This soldier belonged to a cavalry unit as denoted by the spurs on his boots and given the lack of equipment outside of the pistol holster and what could be a map case, this photograph was likely taken sometime after the action. It should be noted that the duty of the Hauptwachtmeister was solely at the squadron level for cavalry and was a position more of administration than combat and so such appointed men were not usually deployed into combat with the squadron.

The Phalange Africaine: The Afrika Korps' French Volunteer Legion

A captured Phalange Africaine soldier sometime in 1943. The helmet decal, unique to the unit, is described below.

     The Phalange Africaine (“African Phalanx”) was one of the shorter lived units of World War II. The formation of the unit was in response to Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of French North Africa which commenced on November 8, 1942. Invasion forces landed in Morocco and Algeria but originally, Tunis, Tunisia was to have been included as it represented the chance to interdict supply lines that supported the Afrika Korps. However, the relative close proximity of Luftwaffe forces in Sicily and Sardinia saw Tunis stricken from the plans. Instead, the Algeria landings and an overland push on Tunis had to suffice. Returning to the Phalange Africaine, the invasion saw the 6th. Congress of the French People's Party (6e Congrès du Parti Populaire Français) in Paris, France authorize the formation of the Phalange Africaine and a list of officers was drawn up. Originally, 60 officers were listed but it was cut down to only 15. In the end, only 6 officers arrived in Tunis on December 28, 1942. By this time, Tunis was no longer in Vichy French hands. Instead, the Germans, knowing there was little fight in the Vichy French forces, had pumped three German divisions, two Italian infantry divisions, and Luftwaffe assets into Tunis to contest the coming Allied attack on the city.

     The Phalange Africaine was led by Lieutenant-Colonel Pierre Simon Cristofini and with the approval of Heinrich Otto Abetz, the ambassador to Vichy France, Cristofini commenced recruitment. This was done by recruiting those soldiers still loyal to the Vichy cause, impressing Vichy troops from destroyed units, and enlisting French or native men into the unit. However, the unit failed to fill the ranks with men to the point that the majority of the Phalange Africaine was made up of native Tunisians. It is believed Cristofini was the cause of the lackluster recruitment drives and when he was injured in a training accident on January 23, 1943 and sent to Sicily to recover, recruiting improved. The number of recruits vary, source depending. Numbers from 130 men to as many as 450 men have been cited. What is known is that the unit was a mixture of the young, the old, and crippled (but who could still at least fight) as well as a mixture of soldiers and civilians. Most were sympathizers to the Vichy and collaborationist causes. The Germans, however, had other ideas for the Phalange Africaine. They cut the unit down to the size of one company, which would consist of around 200 men, under the command of Captain André Dupuis. The training was conducted under German oversight, the German cadre having all been veterans of combat on the Eastern Front. The Phalange Africaine troops learned to fight the German way, to include anti-tank and anti-aircraft battle techniques. The majority of the heavy weapons, anti-tank guns, and mortars were of French manufacture while German Gewehr k98 rifles made up the majority of the unit's small arms. On April 5, 1943, Generalmajor Friedrich Weber, commander of the 334. Infanteriedivision, felt the Phalange Africaine was ready for combat after observing the unit during training maneuvers. The unit formed a company within the 2.Bataillon, 754.Panzergrenadier Regiment, 334. Infanteriedivision. There, it had the nickname Franzosische Freiwilligen Legion (French Volunteer Legion). 

     The first engagement fought by the Phalange Africaine was against elements of the British 78th. Infantry Division near Medjez-El-Bab from April 8 through May 7, 1943. 170 men were on the front lines, the remainder in the rear to support supply operations. The Phalage Africaine acquitted itself well, with seven soldiers being decorated with the Iron Cross from Generalmajor Weber himself. However, throughout the combat, the Phalange Africaine had been pounded almost daily by British artillery and attacked by Royal Air Force fighters and fighter-bombers to the point that by May 7, 57 men were missing, 7 wounded, and 6 killed. May 7 also spelled the end of the Phalange Africaine's existence. With the inevitable capture of Tunis by the Allies, the Phalange Africaine was dissolved. Some of the men, mainly officers, evacuated to France while others made for Italy or Spain. Those unlucky enough to not have the means to escape the country sought to blend in with the populace but many were exposed and arrested. In all, some 200 former Phalange Africaine men were put on trial beginning in April 1944. Sentences varied depending on many factors. Those who were minors at the time of enlistment were simply sent home or served in work sites. Regular ex-soldiers of the Phalange Africaine were sent to Algerian or Moroccan regiments to serve out tours of duty. Former officers either suffered execution or hard labor. The very last Phalange Africaine soldier left prison in 1953.

     The uniform of the Phalange Africaine was that of the regular French infantry in the area. The only German issued items were helmets, mantel (great coat), and boots. The photograph of what is likely a captured Phalange Africaine soldier (judging by what appears to be a British soldier in the background) shows the helmet to good effect and the unique Phalange Africaine helmet emblem which consisted of the French flag colors of blue, white, and red with the entire border being white. However, the flag colors were reversed on the helmet, matching the original color positions of the French flag before 1794. On the other side of the helmet was a white double-headed ax on a black shield edged in white. Both the flag and the emblem were hand painted on each helmet. Phalange Africaine soldiers also wore a badge on their tunic which was much the same as the helmet badge except the ax and the edging was in yellow. This soldier holds a cheich in his hands, a traditional scarf used by French colonial forces.

 

Char B1 (n° 257) “Bourrasque”: The French Tank Terror

German soldiers pose beside "Bourrasque" after the crew surrendered to elements of Panzer-Abteilung I near Mortiers. (Author's Collection)

     The brief story of the Saint-Chamond constructed Char B1 “Bourrasque” (n° 257) practically steps out of a Hollywood war film. Originally, the tank was delivered to the 508e RCC (Régiment de Chars de Combat) early in 1939 but by September 1939, the tank had been transferred to the 15e BCC (Bataillon de Chars de Combat) and assigned to 1ère Compagnie. In charge of “Bourrasque” was Lieutenant Sauret and his crew consisted of Sergent Seguin (driver), Caporal Gentner (gunner), and Chasseur Mogrédien (radio operator). 

     On May 16, 1940, the day before what would become the Battle of Montcornet, four tanks plus “Bourrasque” were gathered together at a rally point. Each of them had some battle damage, some worse than others but the common problem all the tanks had was a lack of fuel. It was decided that two of the tanks (“Martinique” [n° 207] and “L’Aquitaine” [n° 213]) would have their fuel and ammunition removed and distributed to the other tanks and then the two tanks would be scuttled. “Bourrasque” would tow the remaining two tanks (“Toulon” [n° 235] and “Tempête” [n° 267]) towards the jump-off point in order to preserve as much fuel as possible. On March 17, the attack on Montcornet commenced at 4:14am and as the tanks moved towards the Germans, at around 6am, a German truck laden with infantry blundered into the path of the tanks. The alert French commanders quickly brought the 47mm turret guns into action and destroyed the truck and the surviving German soldiers scattered and fled in the face of the tanks’ machine-gun fire. The tanks continued on but soon “Bourrasque” was nearly empty of fuel and the convoy stopped. It was decided that the fuel tanks of “Toulon” and “Tempête” would be drained and transferred to “Bourrasque” and the tank would travel towards Pargny where it was believed resupply could be had. 

     “Bourrasque” reached Pargny but the hoped for fuel was nowhere to be found and so Lt. Sauret kept driving south in search of any French refueling point. On the way, the tank ran into motorcycle elements (likely Kradschützen-Battalion 1) of Kampfgruppe Nedwig which had been advancing on Mortiers. Lt. Sauret ordered the tank to drive right into and through the motorcycle column, firing every gun the tank had into the panicked German troops who were thrown into complete disarray. Word of a lone French tank reached the 1st. Panzer Division and the unit dispatched a full battalion of anti-tank gun and armor assets from Panzer-Abteilung I to deal with “Bourrasque”. 

     The Germans caught up with “Bourrasque” outside of Mortiers and took it under fire. Repeated hits by PaK 36 37mm guns and even the short barrel 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24 guns of Panzer III medium tanks failed to stop “Bourrasque” but both ammunition and fuel finally ran out for the French tank and at 11:15am on May 17, 1940, Lt. Sauret and his crew surrendered to the troops of Panzer-Abteilung I.

 

The Canon de 155 C Modèle 1917 Schneider: Still Seeing Service

(Author's Collection)

     A battery of Canon de 155 C modèle 1917 Schneider (abbreviated as C17S) sit at rest on the range, likely during a training exercise. That this is likely the case is that if at the front, such an exposed and tightly packed position would spell disaster if located by the enemy and counter-battery fire brought to bear. In addition, there appears to be a wooden rectangular area which each cannon is sitting within. Finally, having the limbers right up with the guns was something not often done when in combat. The crews seem to be gathered near the second to last gun, perhaps getting instruction or taking a break from firing practice.

     The 155mm caliber C17S was a development of the earlier Canon de 155 C modèle 1915 Schneider (C15S) with the only difference being the breech of the C17S was changed to use bagged propellant rather than a cased shell as used in the C15S. Schneider-Creusot developed the C17S starting in 1915 and the change in the breech was actually done for cost savings as it was cheaper to use bagged charges with the round instead of a cased round which contained both the round and the propellant. Production began in 1916 with the first examples reaching French artillery troops in 1917. Schneider-Creusot continued to build the gun into 1918. Over 3,000 examples were built, including C15S models being converted to C17S standards. In addition to equipping the French, the C17S was used by the U.S. (as the M1917/M1918), Portugal, Russia, Belgium, and Italy during World War One.

     By the start of World War Two, some 2,040 examples of the C17S were still in French service. Prior to the war, the U.S., due to the delay in the 155mm M1 howitzer reaching troops, modernized the stocks of M1917 and M1918 which were still in service by adding air-brakes, using metal wheels, and putting rubber tyres on the wheels. These weapons went to war with U.S. artillery forces until the M1 finally began replacing them in 1942. Surplus M1917/1918 were sent to Britain under the Lend-Lease program. The Russians purchased the gun prior to World War Two but also captured a number of them from Poland. It is believed the Russians re-barreled the cannons to fire 152mm rounds. The Germans, after defeating the French, came into a large number of captured C17S guns and put them into service as the 15.5cm sFH 414(f). These guns remained in France, being used by second-line troops as well as being emplaced along the Atlantic Wall. Captured Russian guns were given the German designation 15.2cm sFH 449(r). Poland had been another heavy user of the 155mm Haubica wz. 1917 prior to the war with 340 in service. Many of these also fell into German hands who used them under the designation 15.5cm sFH 17(p). Italy was another user, having obtained 8 during the Battle of the Alps (which ran from June 10 through June 25, 1940 as part of the invasion of France) and another 96 from the Greeks. In Italian service, they were designated the Obice da 155/14 PB but once Italy surrendered in 1943 and the Germans seized Italian military equipment, the howitzers were given a new name, the 15.5cm sFH 414(i). Yugoslavia had 36 C17S guns in service and Belgium had 134 C17S guns available at the outbreak of World War Two. When the Germans invaded both countries and captured the howitzers, they were designated 15.5cm H 427(j) and 15.5cm sFH 413(b) respectively. Thus, the Germans had some six different designations for what was basically the same gun. Other countries not mentioned that used the C17S were Finland, Argentina, Bolivia, the Philippines, Romania, and Spain. 

     A testament to the soundness of the design is that Finland and Argentina used the guns into the 1980s while Bolivia received enough of the guns from Argentina to equip two artillery regiments who still use a modernized version of the gun to this day.

 

The Loire-Nieuport LN.401: The French Stuka

 

The remains of a LN.401 that belonged to Aéronavale Escadrille AB2 being examined by curious German troops. From a photo album belonging to a unknown German soldier.

     While not the best quality photograph, it does present what some today call the “French Stuka”. The aircraft, almost certainly, is the Loire-Nieuport LN.401. If accurate, then the most likely unit for this aircraft would have been Escadrille AB2. This picture was one of many in a collection of a soldier’s personal photographs but who the soldier was and from what unit he was in isn’t known.

     The LN.401 was the continued evolution of the earlier LN.40 whose development began in 1936 for a single-seat naval dive bomber. The most notable feature of the LN.40 was its use of inverted gull wings, something the much more well known German Junkers Ju 87 “Stuka” dive bomber used as well and so accounts for the modern nickname for the LN.40 series. As a naval aircraft, the inverted gull wing offered several advantages. One, it allowed for better propeller clearance and this was a factor if using a large diameter propeller with a powerful engine but it also provided a buffer zone between the propeller and the carrier deck during landings in rough seas. Related to the need to accommodate landings in adverse conditions, using a inverted gull wing meant that the landing gear did not have to be tall in order to provide propeller clearance. By consequence, the landing gear could be made stronger to absorb rough landings. Another advantage was the ability to carry a large external bomb beneath the fuselage and finally, the overall wing design provided for drag reduction, easier wing folding, and more economical internal wing space. Like many dive bombers of the time, the center-line bomb was connected to a swing arm that ensured the bomb cleared the propeller upon release. The monocoque fuselage was derived from the LN.161, a fighter project that first flew in 1935, and for dive brakes, the LN.40 had a interesting split lower rudder in which the two halves opened up into the slipstream. The landing gear was not fully retractable and instead, was partially nestled into shallow, faired wheel wells. The first LN.40 was completed and flown for the first time on July 6, 1938 and by the close of the month, another four pre-production LN.40 aircraft were delivered for testing. The aircraft successfully conducted carrier trials on the French carrier Béarn but continued flight testing showed that the rudder dive brakes were ineffective and so when the aircraft entered production in 1939 as the LN.401, the dive brakes were eliminated and instead, the expedient method was to simply extend the landing gear doors as a makeshift air brake. Another obvious change in the LN.401 was the addition of vertical fins on the ends of the horizontal stabilizers to boost the surface area of the vertical tail surfaces. The French Aéronavale (French Naval Aviation) ordered an initial thirty-six LN.401 aircraft while the Armée de l’Air (French Air Force) ordered thirty-six of the LN.411. The LN.411 was the LN.401 without the naval additions such as the folding wings, arrestor hook, and emergency raft. As it happened, the Armée de l’Air decided that the LN.411 lacked the performance it desired in a dive bomber and so the LN.411 order was shifted to the Aéronavale.

     The LN.401 was powered by a single Type 76 Hispano-Suiza 12Xcrs 12-cylinder, water-cooled Vee engine that developed 690 horsepower at 13,000 feet. This provided a maximum speed at that same altitude of 240mph. The LN.401’s cruise speed was 186mph. All of the fuel was carried in the wing center section and this gave the aircraft an operational range of 750 miles. The maximum service ceiling was 31,200 feet. For armament, a single 20mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon was fitted between the engine’s cylinder banks and fired through the propeller hub while in each wing was a single 7.5mm Darne machine-gun. The center-line bomb capacity was either one 496 pound BEA M1938 bomb or a single 330 pound Type 12 bomb. Empty, the LN.401 weighed 4,945 pounds with a combat weight of 6,250 pounds.

     Aéronavale Escadrille AB2 and Escadrille AB4 were initially equipped with the LN.401 starting in November 1939 but in April 1940, Escadrille AB4 changed over to the LN.411 with AB2 receiving their some of their LN.401 aircraft. By May 10, 1940, AB2 was based at Berck while AB4 was at Cherbourg-Querqueville though AB4 very soon joined AB2 at Berck by mid-May. On May 19, 1940, both units combined put a total of 20 aircraft in the air to attack targets near Berlaimont, some 118 miles west of their Berck airfield. It was a disaster. The flight ran headlong into German flak (anti-aircraft fire) that riddled each and every aircraft. Flak crews claimed ten confirmed kills with the remaining ten aircraft limping back to Berck. So severe was the damage to the surviving aircraft that only three were operational. By May 21, 1940, only a single aircraft was left between the two units. A trickle of new aircraft and successful repairs of the existing planes raised the total to ten aircraft operational by the following day. However, both units moved to the southern coast of France, arriving in Hyères on June 4. From here, the units conducted reconnaissance operations and provided air cover for French Marine Nationale ships shelling Genoa, Italy during Operation Vado from June 13 to June 14, 1940. On June 23, 1940, both units (with a total of eight LN.411 aircraft) left Hyères and arrived in Bône (today Annaba), Algiers where both AB2 and AB4 traded the five LN.411 aircraft that survived the trip and converted to the twin-engine Martin 167 light bomber.

     The photograph shows a derelict LN.401 being examined by German soldiers. The likely location was either Berck or Hyères. Souvenir hunters have already cut away the Aéronavale roundel on the fuselage as well as the French state-owned manufacturer (SNCAO;Société Nationale des Constructions Aéronautiques de l’Ouest) and aircraft model stencil that would have been on the rudder. It is missing the landing gear doors and the bent propeller blades suggest it made a hard landing which damaged it and thus was abandoned after some parts were possibly cannibalized to service other aircraft. Both of the wings have been removed and lay on the ground on either side of the aircraft.

     As a side note, under German supervision, SNCAO completed twenty-four aircraft, a mixture of LN.401 and LN.411 using a combination of existing components as well as scavenged parts from aircraft that remained in France. All of them were flown to Hyères in March 1942 but were not incorporated into the Armée de l’Air de Vichy. Even so, some modern art pieces and models sometimes show the aircraft in Vichy colors. Twelve of the aircraft were seized by the Germans following Fall Anton (Case Anton) which was the German and Italian occupation of the French Zone Libre (Free Zone) that commenced on November 10, 1942. These aircraft, while put into German markings, were deployed only as airfield decoys and as such, a handful survived the war and saw a very brief service period in the post-war Armée de l’Air.

The Canon de 305 Modèle 1893/1896 TAZ: France’s “Colony” Railway Guns

 

A Canon de 305 Modèle 1893/1896 TAZ sending a round downrange. (Author’s Collection)

     In 1918, the French withdrew the eight Canon de 305 Modèle 1893/1896 TAZ (Tout-Azimuth) railway guns which had been in service since 1916 in order to refit them. The main reason for this was that the 305mm guns were simply too large a caliber for the carriages and so it was decided to replace them with a smaller gun. Chosen were eight Canon de 240 de Côte Modèle 1893 coastal defense guns that had originally been installed in French forts located in Dakar, Senegal and Saigon, Vietnam. The St. Chamond company, who constructed the 305mm railway gun carriage, handled the required modifications in order to fit the 240mm guns. The work was completed and in 1918, the Canon de 240 Modèle 1893/1896 TAZ railway guns were deployed and served out the remainder of World War One.

     The guns, sometimes nicknamed the “Colonies” due to them having been taken from French colonies, fired a 357lb. high-explosive shell to a maximum range of 15 miles. The shell used a separate powder charge and a trained crew could fire one round every three minutes. The gun sat on a turntable which could traverse 360 degrees but in practice, it was never traversed more than 10 degrees from either side of the centerline of the carriage due to instability caused by the recoil. When traversed, the gun had an elevation of 15 degrees up to 35 degrees but if the gun was parallel to the carriage, maximum elevation was only 29 degrees. Any higher and the breech would strike the carriage during recoil. The carriage, once a firing position was chosen, was ground anchored in place to help absorb some of the vertical forces created by firing. In addition, outriggers and screw jacks were used to create stability in the carriage. Finally, to lessen some of the recoil forces, there was a 4 degree elevated ramp the gun cradle rode up on before returning to battery. Loading the gun was accomplished by a elevated shell trolley at the rear of the carriage.

     The photograph depicts one of the Canon de 240 Modèle 1893/1896 TAZ guns, having just fired. Each of the gun crew visible are wearing the metal canister that held the Modèle 1917 Appareil Respiratoire Spécial (ARS 17) gas mask and so this can date the photograph to at least 1918 when the gun was in service or possibly in the immediate post-WW1 years as the ARS17 continued to be issued until it was replaced with the Modèle 1920 Appareil Respiratoire Spécial. This suggests that, despite the rather exposed firing position, the gun was in action rather than firing on a range. The crew has traversed the gun 90 degrees and has only deployed four of the eight outriggers. It is possible the powder charge was lessened to reduce the chance of the recoil tipping the carriage over or the crew was simply taking their chances. As was usual, none of the men remained on the carriage when the gun was fired. The man nearest the carriage was the gunner, having been the one who pulled the lanyard which fired the cannon. The box car held the powder and ammunition for the gun as well as other supplies. Wheelbarrows and railroad ties can be seen, the latter likely used during the construction of the ground anchors.

     When World War Two started, the eight guns were still in service with the 374e Regiment Artillerie Lourde sur Voie Ferrée (ALVF; Heavy Artillery on Railroad), four guns with the 10e Bataillon ALVF and four with the 11e Bataillon AVLF. These guns were situated in the south of France and all of them fell intact into German hands following a brief period of combat against Italian forces in June 1940. As was common practice for the Germans, they were pressed into service as the 24cm Kanone (E) 558 (f) and all eight were incorporated into the Atlantikwall (Atlantic Wall) coastal defenses that ran from the continental European coast all the way up through the Scandinavian coast. Four guns were positioned in Saint-Nazaire, France while the other four were sent to Narvik, Norway in 1942 before moving to Nærbø, Norway sometime in 1944.