All Battles

Battle of Sedan

1940 • Ardennen Durchbruch
"M108/9 14 May 1940 1st Panzer Regiment crosses pontoon bridge over the Meuse at Floing, near Sedan [Army film office, Spandau-Ruhleben]"

"M108/9 14 May 1940 1st Panzer Regiment crosses pontoon bridge over the Meuse at Floing, near Sedan [Army film office, Spandau-Ruhleben]"

Author: Unknown authorUnknown authorLicense:CC-BY-SA-4.0
Source

Historical Overview

The Battle of Sedan or Second Battle of Sedan took place in World War II during the Battle of France in 1940. It was part of the German Wehrmacht's operational plan codenamed Fall Gelb for an offensive through the hilly and forested Ardennes, to encircle the Allied armies in Belgium and north-eastern France. German Army Group A crossed the Meuse with the intention of capturing Sedan and pushing westwards towards the Channel coast, to trap the Allied forces that were advancing east into Belgium, as part of the Allied Dyle Plan.

Quick Facts

Outcome:Decisive German victory.

German Army

  • Commander: Heinz Guderian
  • Strength: ca. 60.000
  • Casualties: unbekannt

France

  • Commander: Charles Huntziger
  • Strength: ca. 50.000
  • Casualties: hoch

Strategic Context

Core of the Sichelschnitt plan to bypass the Maginot Line.

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