June 1-9
Western Front, Norway
After Britain and France reveal to the Norwegians that they are to begin an evacuation, troops begin to withdraw on June 4. King Haakon and his government leave for Britain on the 7th, and 24,500 troops are evacuated. The king finally orders the Norwegians to stop fighting on June 9, after losing 1335 men in the campaign. Entire Allied losses include 5600 men, one carrier, two cruisers, nine destroyers plus other smaller craft, and 100 aircraft. German loses total 3692 men, 19 warships, and 242 aircraft.

June 3-4
Western Front, France
Operation Dynamo ends. The remarkable operation has rescued 338,226 men - two-thirds of them British - from the beaches of Dunkirk, although 243 vessels and 106 aircraft have been destroyed. General Lord Gort, the British Expeditionary Force's commander, leaves Lieutenant General Sir Harold Alexander in command after being evacuated on May 31. The Germans occupy Dunkirk on June 4 and capture 40,000 French troops.

German motorized units make rapid progress
during the Battle of France

June 5-12
Western Front, France
A German force of 119 divisions opens Operation Red, the conquest of France, with General Fedor von Bock's Army Group B attacking along the Somme River to reach the Seine River west of Paris by June 9. General Gerd von Rundstedt's Army Group A, moving toward the Moselle River in Front of the Maginot Line, launches an offensive east of Paris. Rundstedt's tanks, reinforced by Army Group B panzers, overcome resistance from the French Fourth Army to break through at Chalons-sur-Marne on the 12th.

France's response, the Weygand Line, stretching along the Somme and Aisne Rivers, aims to protect Paris and the interior. Some of France's 65 divisions fight determined actions, but many units lack manpower and equipment. Air attacks and logistical problems also undermine General Maxime Weygand's vulnerable forces.

June 8
Sea War, North Sea
The German battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sink three empty vessels while hunting for convoys from Norway. They then sink the British carrier Glorious and two destroyers. These losses are blamed on the British failure to provide sufficient naval escorts for the Norway convoys.

prev | next