Word: attack
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Dates: during 1940-1940
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...Schlieffen Plan, master design of Germany's attack in 1914, called for the German Armies swinging like a scythe pivoted from a point near Metz, to sweep in a wide circle through Belgium far to the westward around Paris and, still sweeping around, finally pin the French Armies against the Rhine and the Alps. Last week, they watched the execution of another plan, another swing, but a swing in the opposite direction. Pivoting at Antwerp, the scythe swept westward. Its point at Sedan swept onward to Rethel, Laon, St. Quentin. For a time it threatened to swing far enough...
Germany was known to have twelve divisions (400 each) of tanks of various sizes up to 20 tons, integrated into an Army of Attack organized by Lieut. General Heinz Guderian, 54, a general-staff officer in World War I, since 1938 Commanding General of Armored Forces, now Chief of Motorized Troops. For his juggernauts' work in Poland he received the Knight's Iron Cross and the panache...
...stood the tank situation last fortnight when one spearhead of the German Army of Attack darted across The Netherlands to Rotterdam. Three more lanced through above and below Liege, two more above and below Sedan. When General Guderian unleashed his Army, all Allied preconceptions of these columns' speed and power went overboard. As did their machines of the air, the Germans' land machines so overwhelmed the Allies that only courage and discipline saved "strategic retreat" from immediately becoming "rout...
Barrage. In place of the artillery barrage which used to precede tank attacks on strongly held positions, the air arm led the way. Attack-bombers swooping low (to 300 feet) in endless triads blasted forts and weaker defense positions. They sprayed the defenders and their gun crews with machine-gun fire, turned and dumped their bomb loads. Other planes laid smoke screens for tanks to charge under. Allied gun crews had to resort to plotted area fire...
Lorries carried the assault tanks to their scene of action, unloading and readying them for action in five minutes. Their function, following the breakthrough, was to fan out and attack troops in trenches, nests, pillboxes. Some were said to spew flames 70 yards into blockhouse ventilators and machine-gun nests...