Panzer Grenadier: 1940 The Fall of France
Scenario Preview, Part Nine
By Mike Bennighof, Ph.D.
October 2022
We added so much good stuff to the Playbook edition of Panzer Grenadier: 1940 The Fall of France that it just wouldn’t all fit. To accommodate all that we’ve had to shift some scenarios to an upcoming book about the France’s tough Moroccan troops, and others to a new Campaign Study called 1940: The Last Days of May.
That’s made necessary by new scenarios and the new battle games that tie each chapter together. So our story in 1940: The Fall of France concludes with Chapter Seven. Let’s have a look at its scenarios:
Chapter Seven
The Escaut Sector
Usually known by its Flemish name, the Scheldt, the Escaut River formed the basis for the westernmost extension of the Maginot Line. One Maginot-style fortification, the Ouvrage Eth, was sited just south of the Belgian border and west of the fortress zone at Maubeuge. No more had been built before the Great Depression, which hit France later than most other countries, curtailed spending while the Belgian government grew alarmed that the French fortification program signaled a lack of will to defend Belgium against a German attack. The French built no more major forts in the sector, but the Belgians cancelled their alliance with France in 1936.
While the Maginot extension project went no further, the French Army built a series of casemates and blockhouses behind the Escaut and in the forest of Raisemes surrounding Valenciennes. By doing the work with Army engineers and from the regular budget, rather than by the private contractors who built the Maginot Line, the French hoped to ease Belgian fears but the alliance was not revived.
In May 1940, the French high command saw the Escaut position as the last hope of stopping the advancing panzers before they surged all the way to the sea. But by this point, they had only the remnants of their field forces and some decidedly second-line fortress troops left to hold them.
Scenario Thirty-Five
Moroccans at the Bridge
20 May 1940
Bouchain, France
Retreating westwards from Maubeuge and the Forest of Mormal, French units sought safety behind the Escaut (Schelde) River. The French High Command hoped to form a new line of defense between Denain and Cambrai and around Arras, making use of the pre-war fortifications along the Escaut. But the higher-level French headquarters had little control of gaining control of their shattered units at this point, and the retreating troops left some bridges across the Escaut unguarded. The advancing Germans swiftly occupied them, and it fell to the Moroccans to take them back.
Conclusion
Third Battalion of 2nd Régiment de Tirailleurs Marocains just barely escaped from the inferno at Gembloux and then marched 140 kilometers in three days to arrive at Bouchain. They immediately joined the defenders along the Escaut River line, and on May 20th they set out to retake the small bridge at Boucheneuil from the Germans. The Germans repulsed the initial attack, but that night the Moroccans attacked again with a Somua tank platoon in support. Pushing through mortar and heavy machinegun fire, they reached the bridge where their sappers mined it. But the demolition charges failed to destroy the bridge completely, and two Somuas were lost.
Notes
This is just a small one-board scenario, but the French get two companies of Moroccans to try to seize and blow up a bridge held by a German infantry company. It’s all about the bridge: blow it up, and the French win the game. Keep it up, and the Germans win. Don’t let the Germans win.
Scenario Thirty-Six
Puccinelli’s Attack
23 May 1940
Thulin, between Mons and Valenciennes, Belgium
Col. Sylvain André of the 12e Régiment d’Artillerie led the remnants of his own command and men from man different units out of Maubeuge, where the fortress was surrounded by the Germans, towards the west. The forward elements of the retreating Groupement André forced their way through Blaregnies, but the rest of the column got stuck there. The forward elements continued on toward Condé-sur-Escaut, but soon ran into units from the German 260th and 269th Infantry Divisions, second- and fourth-wave units of relatively poor quality.
Conclusion
On the outskirts of the village of Thulin, the small French motorcycle recon group came under German fire. Col. Pierre Puccinelli of the 158eme Infantry Regiment, the commander on the spot, immediately pushed forward and took the village along with several German prisoners. The French then moved on to the railway 600 meters north of Thulin where German troops had formed a defensive line. The French attacked with fixed bayonets and gained the upper hand, but then German reinforcements arrived along with artillery support. The courageous French troops kept fighting but were soon overwhelmed, with Puccinelli wounded twice and captured.
Notes
The French may be losing the war, but they’re still filled with that furia francese. The French have to seize several town hexes before a huge wave of German reinforcements shows up to try to drive them back out.
Scenario Thirty-Seven
The End of Groupement André
23 May 1940
Blaregnies, French border south of Mons, Belgium
Colonel Sylvain André of 12e Régiment d’Artillerie, the highest-ranking officer in Maubeuge Sector, took command even as the defense began to disintegrate. Madame Soixante-Quinze did her best to hold back the German advance so that other units could escape, but slowly Groupement André was forced to retreat as well. Abandoning the Boussois fort to its fate, he tried to get his troops across the Escaut River to relative safety. Unfortunately, the first leg of the way out led northward toward the Belgian border, and there he met the Germans again.
Conclusion
While entering Blaregnies the head of the French column encountered a German outpost, and with desperate energy the French pushed back the opposition and took the village. That night, Colonel André gave the order to escape to the west. Unfortunately, the German 1st Infantry had encircled Blaregnies in the darkness, and when the French encountered them, André ordered them to break out to the north and south. It was to no avail; André was killed at the head of his men, rifle in hand, in the initial encounter with the Germans. By 0600 the Germans were ready to counterattack. Four hours later, with no ammunition left, the remaining French troops launched a bayonet charge in an attempt to break out and reach Valenciennes. The stunned Germans gave way at first, but with German reinforcements on the way it didn’t matter. Only small groups of French troops escaped.
Notes
Andre’s groupement is in trouble: they’re out-numbered, have no off-board artillery support (and not much on the board), and except for a small band of die-hards have pretty bad morale. The Germans have numbers, artillery and excellent morale. The French can't do much, and fortunately they don't have to in order to win.
Scenario Thirty-Eight
The Swamps of Bouchain
24 May 1940
Bouchain, France
South-west of Valenciennes and the Escaut Line, the Germans had begun infiltrating into the marshy areas west of the Escaut River near Roeulx and Bouchain. On 21 May the French 4th Infantry Division took over defense of the Bouchain sector. French observers atop a high slag heap spotted the Roeulx incursion and stopped the Germans with mortar fire, but the swamps and woods around Bouchain afforded the invaders much more cover. The French infantry would have to go in and root them out.
Conclusion
Two German infantry companies had crossed the river in the morning mist, near the cement works bridge north of Bouchain. French and German patrols clashed shortly thereafter, with the French taking the worst of it and retreating. Poorly-coordinated German artillery support allowed the French to regroup, and they soon renewed their assault and prevented the Germans from expanding their bridgehead at Bouchain.
In the swamps to the south, the German 28th Infantry Division established a bridgehead but could not expand it due to French resistance. When substantial French reinforcements arrived around noon, the Germans suspended their assault and made plans to continue it the next day.
Notes
This is a big scenario, with the Germans advancing into swamp and forest against French defenders who almost equal them in numbers and firepower, though not in morale. The Germans have no armor support, while the French have a smidgen. This is going to be a long, tough battle for both sides.
Scenario Thirty-Nine
Highway to the Sea
25 May 1940
Bouchain, France
Route Nationale 43, the main road to the sea, ran straight through Bouchain. The German VIII Corps planned to crush French resistance there, and sent in the 43rd Infantry Regiment during the night to replace the exhausted 28th Regiment south of the town. With the artillery support problems finally resolved and some air support promised as well, 84th Infantry Regiment renewed the attack in the morning with the 43rd following behind.
Conclusion
South of the city, the German infantry made good progress through the marshes and had pushed as far as Marquette by 1300 hours. The French committed their reserves at that point, and after hard fighting and heavy losses on both sides the Germans had to fall back. To the north, French troops held out all day long on the Boucheneuil-Roeulx road near Mastaing, and elsewhere they prevented German engineers from bringing artillery across the river. On this day at least, the French held the field.
Notes
This time the Germans have lined up a huge array of artillery, including some extra-heavy batteries, plus air support to try again. But the French have poured in infantry reinforcements and now actually outnumber the attackers.
And that’s it for 1940: The Fall of France..
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Mike Bennighof is president of Avalanche Press and holds a doctorate in history from Emory University. A Fulbright Scholar and NASA Journalist in Space finalist, he has published a great many books, games and articles on historical subjects; people are saying that some of them are actually good.
He lives in Birmingham, Alabama with his wife, three children, and new puppy. He misses his lizard-hunting Iron Dog, Leopold.
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