Thank you for listening to the saga of World War II, a Cassus Belly project. In this episode,

we will cover Fall Gelb and the opening days of the Battle for France. I'm sorry I've been on

hiatus for so long, but I've been pretty busy lately. First, I was traveling on holiday for a couple of

weeks, and then I had to move. But now I'm finally settled and have a new episode ready for you.

I'm also in between jobs right now, so hopefully I'll be able to make it up to all of you

who waited so patiently by being able to push out new episodes on a more frequent basis.

At least until I get a new job and have to move again.

Anyway, let's begin episode 5, polish the shield, neglect the sword.

Frankly and definitely there is danger ahead.

Danger against which we shall fight. We shall defend our island, whatever the cross may be.

We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds.

We shall fight in the fields and in the streets.

We shall fight in the hills.

We shall never surrender. Before Hitler made his fateful moves to take Denmark and Norway in one fell swoop,

he'd been prepared to plunge his men deep into France.

At the outset of 1940, there were already two million men staring across the western frontier.

And had it not been for one fateful incident, the fall of France may have come far sooner, or perhaps not at all.

On January 10th, 1940, Major Helmut Reinhberger was to carry the Luftwaffe's secret invasion plans from Berlin to Cologne,

but he missed the train. What small inconvenience caused him to be late has been lost to history,

but one must wonder what seemingly insignificant events altered the fate of Europe.

Had he simply forgotten something, his watch perhaps, that Wednesday morning,

or maybe he tripped in a puddle and had to

...