May 1940

May

• 08

  • Key eventThe Norway DebateOn 7–8 May 1940 the Commons called the government to account for Norway. Chamberlain won the vote 281 to 200, but a Tory revolt sealed his fall.
• 10

  • Key eventGermany attacks in the WestOn 10 May 1940 the Wehrmacht struck the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. The Allies advanced into Belgium as Kleist's tanks entered the Ardennes.
  • Key eventChurchill becomes Prime MinisterOn 10 May 1940, the day of the German offensive in the West, Chamberlain resigned and the King asked Churchill to form a coalition government.
  • The British occupy IcelandOn 10 May 1940 some 750 Royal Marines occupied Reykjavík without a fight. An army brigade arrived on 17 May, and the marines soon sailed home.
  • The capture of Fort Eben-EmaelOn 10 May 1940 gliders carrying German parachute sappers landed on the roof of the Belgian Fort Eben-Emael. The garrison surrendered the next day.
  • The Battle for The HagueOn 10 May 1940 German airborne troops landed near The Hague to seize the Dutch Queen and government. By nightfall the Dutch had retaken three airfields.
• 11

  • Germany occupies LuxembourgOn 10 May 1940 Guderian's three panzer divisions crossed neutral Luxembourg. The Grand Duchess and government fled to France; by 11 May it was occupied.
• 12

  • The Battle of HannutOn 12 May 1940 the French Cavalry Corps clashed with Hoepner's tanks at Hannut. That day the Belgians were blowing Meuse bridges ahead of the Germans.
• 13

  • Queen Wilhelmina in LondonOn 13 May 1940 Queen Wilhelmina left the Netherlands aboard HMS Hereward and reached England. The de Geer government followed her the same day.
  • Key eventThe breakthrough at SedanOn 13 May 1940, after eight hours of bombing, Guderian’s infantry crossed the Meuse at Sedan and Rommel at Dinant. On 15 May they broke into open country.
  • “Blood, toil, tears and sweat”On 13 May 1940, in his first speech as prime minister, Churchill offered the Commons “blood, toil, tears and sweat”. The House backed him by 381 votes.
  • The battles of the Grebbeberg and the AfsluitdijkOn 13 May 1940 the Germans broke the Dutch Grebbe Line on the Grebbeberg. In the north the Kornwerderzand works on the Afsluitdijk held out to the end.
• 14

  • The Local Defence VolunteersOn 14 May 1940 Anthony Eden called on men aged 17–65 by radio to join the Local Defence Volunteers. Five days earlier conscription was extended to men up to 36.
  • Key eventThe bombing of RotterdamOn 14 May 1940 the Luftwaffe bombed Rotterdam during talks on its surrender. That evening the Netherlands laid down its arms, except Zeeland, which fought on.
• 15

  • The RAF begins bombing the RuhrOn 15 May 1940, the day after the destruction of Rotterdam, the British War Cabinet authorised raids on the Ruhr. That night 99 RAF bombers flew there.
• 16

  • Churchill in ParisOn 16 May 1940 Churchill flew to Paris. Gamelin admitted he had no reserve, archives burned at the Foreign Ministry and London agreed to send more fighters.
• 17

  • The Germans take Brussels and AntwerpOn 17 May 1940 the Germans entered Brussels, an open city, and on 18 May Antwerp. The Allies had left the Dyle Line after the breakthrough on the Meuse.
• 18

  • Weygand replaces GamelinOn 18 May 1940 Reynaud reshuffled his government and made Pétain deputy prime minister; on 19 May he dismissed Gamelin. The 73-year-old Weygand took command.
• 20

  • The Germans reach the English ChannelOn 20 May 1940 Guderian's tanks took Abbeville and that evening reached the sea at Noyelles. The Allied armies in Belgium and Flanders were cut off.
• 23

  • The internment of Oswald MosleyOn 23 May 1940 police detained Oswald Mosley and leading members of the British Union of Fascists. Churchill's government widened internment without trial.
• 24

  • The Allies decide to leave NorwayOn 24 May 1940 London decided, in secret from the Norwegians, to withdraw its troops from northern Norway. Defeat in France made the fight for Narvik pointless.
  • The halt order before DunkirkOn 24 May 1940 Hitler approved halting the tanks before Dunkirk. By 26 May the Allies had strengthened their defence, and the Germans took Boulogne and Calais.
• 25

  • The USSR accuses LithuaniaOn 25 May 1940 Molotov accused Lithuania of abducting soldiers from Soviet bases. The contrived dispute led to an ultimatum and the occupation in mid-June.
• 26

  • Key eventOperation DynamoOn 26 May 1940 the Admiralty began evacuating the troops trapped at Dunkirk. By 4 June warships and little ships had carried over 338,000 men to England.
• 27

  • The Vinkt massacreOn 27 May 1940 soldiers of the German 225th Infantry Division shot dozens of civilians at Vinkt and Meigem in Flanders. At least 86 people were murdered.
• 28

  • Belgium capitulatesAt 4 a.m. on 28 May 1940 the Belgian Army laid down its arms. Leopold III, defying his government, stayed as a prisoner; his ministers fought on from France.
  • The War Cabinet crisisOn 25–28 May 1940 Halifax wanted to sound out peace terms via Mussolini. Churchill, backed by Chamberlain and Labour, won the government over to fighting on.
• 31

  • The bombing of ChongqingFrom 18 May 1940, in Operation 101, Japanese aircraft bombed Chongqing, China's wartime capital, day after day to break Chiang Kai-shek's will to resist.