June 10 Western Front, France Some 11,000 British and other French troops begin to evacuate from St. Valéry and Le Havre to Britain. June 10-11 Politics, Italy Italy declares war on France and Britain. Benito Mussolini, eager to capitalize on France's collapse, enters the war despite previous assertions that his nation will not have the capability to fight alongside Germany until 1942. Canada declares war on Italy on the 10th, as do Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa the following day. June 12-14 Sea War, Mediterranean Britain launches a naval bombardment against the Italian base of Tobruk, Libya, on the 12th. The French Navy bombards the ports of Genoa and Vado on the 14th. British air raids are also made on Turin and Genoa. Libyan and East African airfields are raided. June 13 Politics, United states President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs a $1.3 billion navy bill to improve the service. Shipments of arms also leave the country in response to Winston Churchill's request to Roosevelt for surplus weapons. June 13-25 Western Front, France Paris is declared an 'open city' in order to save it from destruction and all French forces withdraw south of the capital, leaving the Maginot Line isolated. German troops enter Paris on June 14 as thousands flee the capital. Germany's Army Group C, deployed from the Maginot Line to the Swiss border, breaks through French defenses. German forces advance in all directions, crossing the Rhine and Loire Rivers. All of the coastal ports between Cherbourg and St. Nazaire are soon captured. June 15-25 Western Front, France The evacuation of the remaining Allied troops in northwest France begins. Operation Ariel extends this to the Biscay ports from the 16th. Some 214,000 troops are saved during the evacuation, although 3000 perish when the liner Lancastria is sunk on the 17th. prev | next |