Battle of Sedan (1940)

Battle of Sedan
Part of the Battle of France, Western Front of World War II
German troops with French prisoners crossing the Meuse on 15 May 1940 near Sedan
Date 12–15 May 1940 Location Sedan and the surrounding area, France 49°42′9″N 4°56′33″E / 49.70250°N 4.94250°E / 49.70250; 4.94250Coordinates: 49°42′9″N 4°56′33″E / 49.70250°N 4.94250°E / 49.70250; 4.94250 Result Decisive German victory
Belligerents
France United Kingdom	Germany
Commanders and leaders
Maurice Gamelin Charles Huntziger Henri Giraud Pierre Lafontaine Marcel Têtu Colonel Poncelet  † P H L Playfair	Gerd von Rundstedt Ewald von Kleist Heinz Guderian W. von Richthofen Bruno Loerzer Heinrich Krampf Karl Weisenberger Friedrich Kirchner Rudolf Veiel Ferdinand Schaal
Strength
20,000 men 300 tanks 174 artillery pieces 152 bombers 250 fighters	60,000 men 41,000 vehicles 771 tanks 1,470 aircraft 141 artillery pieces 96 rubber boats
Casualties and losses
manpower losses unknown artillery losses unknown tank losses unknown 167 aircraft	120 killed 400 wounded (12–14 May) 647 killed or wounded (15–17 May) at least 81 rubber boats

20,000 men
300 tanks
174 artillery pieces
152 bombers

The Battle of Sedan or Second Battle of Sedan (12–15 May 1940) was a Second World War battle fought during the French Campaign. The battle was part of the German Wehrmacht's operational plan codenamed Fall Gelb (Case Yellow) for an offensive through the hilly and heavily forested Ardennes, to encircle the Allied armies in Belgium and north-eastern France. German Army Group A crossed the Meuse river with the intention of capturing Sedan and pushing northwards towards the Channel coast, in order to entrap the Allied forces that were advancing east into Belgium, as part of the Allied Dyle Plan strategy.

Sedan was situated on the east bank of the Meuse River. Its capture would give the Germans a base from which to capture the Meuse bridges and cross the river. Should this occur, the German divisions could then advance across the open and undefended French countryside, beyond Sedan, and to the English Channel. On 12 May, Sedan was captured without resistance. In the following days, the Germans defeated the French defences surrounding Sedan on the west bank of the Meuse. This was largely achieved by the Luftwaffe. As a result of German bombing and low morale, the French defenders were unable to mount a coherent defence. The Germans captured the Meuse bridges at Sedan allowing them to pour forces including armour across the river. On 14 May, the Allied air forces, the Royal Air Force (RAF) and Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) tried to destroy the bridges, and prevent German reinforcements reaching the west bank. The Luftwaffe prevented them from doing so. In large air battles, the Allies suffered high losses which depleted Allied bomber strength in the campaign.

The crossing of the Meuse enabled the Germans to break into the strategic depths, or undefended rear, of the Allied front and to advance to the English Channel without significant opposition. The French attempted to launch counter-attacks against the German-held bridgeheads, from 15–17 May, but the offensives fell victim to delay and confusion. Five days after consolidating their bridgeheads at Sedan, on 20 May, the German Army reached the Channel. The victory at Sedan achieved the operational goal of Fall Gelb and encircled the strongest Allied armies, including the British Expeditionary Force. The resulting battles destroyed the remaining French army as an effective fighting force, and expelled the British Army from the continent, leading to the defeat of France in June 1940. The battle at Sedan was instrumental in the fall of France.

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