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That's the Explorers Podcast. Hello, everyone and welcome to History of the Second World War,

Episode 204, The Fall of France.

What about that Maginot thing?

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The Masjano line occupies an interesting place within the overall history of the

German invasion of France in 1940. It was built during the interwar years to act as a force multiplier

for the French defenders, to make up for the demographic, geographic, and industrial challenges

that the French knew that they would face in a war with Germany. I've covered, you know,

this topic in a whole episode, episode 61, if you don't remember, go check it out. Then, when the

German invasion actually started, the Germans did exactly what the French expected them to do.

They went around the Maginot Line to the north. Now, of course, the Germans did not go as far north

as the French expected, going through the Ardennes instead of through central Belgium, but they did go around the Maginot line like they were supposed to.

The complete disasters that then beset the French army have been well covered over the last few months of the podcast, and the collapse of the French resistance left all of the forces still manning the Maginot defenses

in an interesting position. They had been specially trained and prepared to occupy the Magno line

...