Sorry guys, but this is going to be a very short one.  Ran out of time.  Last two issues I explained why the French didn’t historically fight on in North Africa.  I also pointed out a point of divergence that will eventually lead to them fighting on there.  The idea was to build up General Giraud as a counterweight to the defeatist generals like Petain and to some extent Weygand.  The first part of the scenario did that by having him escape from near-certain capture by the Germans and then be built up into a national hero by the French propaganda machine.  Now that he’s a hero, he has to be in the right place to do something about the decisions that might or might not lead to France trying to fight on from North Africa.

As I mentioned last issue, Giraud is initially given the job of rebuilding a mobile and hopefully armored reserve for France, which is in the process of losing most of its mobile divisions.  He’s trying to keep the remnants of the mobile divisions that have been salvaged by evacuation from Dunkirk from being fed back into the battle in penny-packets.  Giraud has seen the blitzkrieg up close, and he knows how futile it is to throw small quantities of even very good tanks against the mass of the panzer divisions.

Giraud’s hope is that the hastily established Allied lines will hold in northern France long enough for decimated divisions to be rebuilt and reequipped.  In the longer term he plans to mobilize the manpower of North Africa to replace the divisions lost in Belgium.  He has already sent several divisions that are not likely to be trained and armed in time to make a difference in the coming battle to North Africa to act as cadres for the expanded force to be built there.

There is an inevitable conflict between Giraud’s new job and Weygand’s.  Giraud is trying to build for the long term.  Weygand has to hold a line against a numerically far superior army that is very good at breaking through line, and which mercilessly and efficiently exploits any breakthrough.  He needs every unit he can get his hands on, whether or not it is entirely ready for combat, and he needs every mobile unit as a reserve ‘fire brigade to keep small German penetrations from becoming breakthroughs.

As the Germans increase their pressure on French lines in early June of 1940, the conflict between those two missions becomes more acute, and the two men increasingly come into conflict.  Giraud becomes more and more frustrated as the units he is so painfully trying to rebuild are thrown into battle before they’re ready in futile efforts to stem German breakthroughs.  Giraud focuses increasingly on his attempts to rebuild the French army with North African resources.  He’s gradually becoming convinced that metropolitan France will not be held, and that North Africa may be France’s only hope for continued resistance.  He convinces Prime Minister Reynaud to relocate pilot trainees from French flight schools to North Africa, in spite of the disruption that causes in their flight training.  He also convinces Reynaud to begin selectively calling up parts of the next class of young men that will be going into the French army, with an eye to sending them to North Africa if necessary.

The French position deteriorates quickly, just as it did in our time-line.  Pressure for an armistice grows, even within Reynaud’s cabinet.  The bulk of French industry, including most of its tank manufacturing capability is centered around Paris, and Paris is becoming increasingly threatened.  At the same time, attempting to move factories and equipment would devastate much-needed production.  <<more next-time.>>