Case Red

The Collapse of France

De: Robert Forczyk

Narrado por: Christopher Ragland

Bloomsbury presents Case Red: The Collapse of France by Robert Forczyk, read by Christopher Ragland.

Case Red tells the often overlooked story of the fall of Metropolitan France from the evacuation of the BEF at Dunkirk through to the eventual collapse and armistice in June 1940.

Even after the legendary evacuation from Dunkirk in June 1940 there were still large British formations fighting the Germans alongside their French allies. After mounting a vigorous counterattack at Abbeville and then conducting a tough defence along the Somme, the British were forced to conduct a second evacuation from the ports of Le Havre, Cherbourg, Brest and St Nazaire. While France was in its death throes, politicians and soldiers debated what to do – flee to England or North Africa, or seek an armistice.

Case Red captures the drama of the final three weeks of military operations in France in June 1940, and explains the great impact it had on the course of relations between Britain and France during the remainder of the Second World War. It also addresses the military, political and human drama of France’s collapse in June 1940, and how the windfall of captured military equipment, fuel and industrial resources enhanced the Third Reich’s ability to attack its next foe – the Soviet Union.©2017 Robert Forczyk (P)2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Reseñas de la Crítica

The book constitutes an excellent summary of the conflict in the West from September 1939 to May 1940, the best for a long time.

This is a gem of a book on a relatively little-known element of the fighting in 1940.

Get the 2017 audiobook instead

This is the second audiobook version of Case Red. I would strongly advise buying the 2017 version from Tantor Audio, read by Michael Page, instead of this version. It is also currently available from Audible.

As to Forczyk's book, I'll start with the good. (1)This is the best analysis of the poor performance of the Armee de l'air in 1940 that I've read. (2) Forczyk doesn't settle for facile explanations centered on cowardice, low morale, defeatism, or the Maginot Line.

As to the bad or problematic: (1) Forczyk largely excuses or explains away most of the major flaws of French pre-war plans. (2) Forczyk is dismissive of valid criticisms about the poor performance of a high percentage of French officers in 1940, with so many instances of officers being unimaginative, overconfident, and far too slow to react. (3) Forczyk is too interested in narrating instances of locally successful French resistance that lacked strategic significance. (4) The title "Case Red" is somewhat misleading, as relatively little of the book is devoted to German planning, and only about 25-30% of the book is about the battles for the Weygand Line.