The Fall of Denmark (1940) - part of the Bretwalda Battles series

By Oliver Hayes

In 1940 Hitler’s Germany launched an unprovoked attack on little Denmark. The campaign was meticulously planned and over in hours. It saw the first ever use of paratroops in war, the first German amphibious landings of the war and the threat of terror bombing of cities and towns.

The Fall of Denmark is often overlooked by historians as the campaign was over in a matter of hours. But the campaign does repay study for it revealed the traditional German staff work at its finest. Every move in the campaign had been planned in advance with roads and bridges having been inspected to ensure they could carry the weight of panzers and artillery. The key targets in Denmark had been clearly identified and plans for their capture set out for the men who would undertake the operation.

The invasion of Denmark largely went like clockwork for the Germans, but there were some upsets when Danish resistance was stronger than expected and small Danish garrisons held out beyond the ceasefire, or sought safety in Sweden from where they could travel to Britain to continue the fight against the Nazis.

In this book author Oliver Hayes looks in detail at the Fall of Denmark. He explains why Hitler attacked, how the campaign was planned and how it worked in practice. He analyses the senior commanders and the weapons at their disposal. Using contemporary press accounts and the latest research, Hayes gives a thrilling and yet accurate account of the Fall of Denmark.

About the Author
Oliver Hayes is a student of military history who has written a number of books and articles on military subjects and has taken a particular interest in colonial wars of the 19th century.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Bretwalda Books
• Release date: Jun 19, 2012
• ISBN: 9781909099135

Oliver Hayes

Oliver Hayes studied the Dark Ages and early Medieval periods. He has since earned a living in publishing and is now writing freelance to bring some of his research to press in an entertaining and user-friendly format.

Book preview

Bretwalda Battles

The Second World War

The Fall of Denmark 1940

by

Oliver Hayes

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Published by Bretwalda Books at Smashwords

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First Published 2012

Copyright © Bretwalda Books 2012

ISBN 978-1-909099-13-5

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Contents

Chapter 1 - The Second World War

Chapter 2 - The Danish Problem

Chapter 3 - The Commanders

Chapter 4 - The Opposing Forces

Chapter 5 - The Fall of Denmark

Chapter 6 - The Aftermath

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Chapter 1

The Second World War

When war broke out in Europe in 1939 only four nations were involved: Poland, Britain and France were at war with Germany. At the time it seemed likely that the war would remain confined to those countries. Indeed, after the swift conquest of Poland by Germany many neutral observers thought that Britain and France would soon conclude a peace deal of some kind with Germany.

When that did not happen it became clear that the war would involve a major campaign in Western Europe between Germany on the one hand and Britain and France on the other. There was much speculation as to the form that campaign would take. Would Germany invade France directly as in 1870 or by way of Belgium as had happened in 1914? Or would France and Britain strike first by invading Germany. Whatever was going to happen, most observers were agreed that nothing much was going to happen during the winter, the big offensive would occur in the spring of 1940.

German dictator Adolf Hitler ordered the invasion of Poland in September 1939, thus starting the war that would lead some months later to the German invasion of Denmark.

Meanwhile, Britain and Germany became locked in a struggle for control of the shipping lanes. Indirectly, that naval campaign would lead to the German invasion of Denmark in 1940.

Germany was predominantly a land-based power. It was able to produce much of its wealth and in particular military equipment using raw materials found in Germany itself or in nearby neutral countries. So when Britain imposed a naval blockade on Germany, shutting off the Third Reich from resources outside Europe, the German government of Adolf