Belgium's Dilemma

The Formation of the Belgian Defense Policy, 1932-1940

Inbunden, Engelska, 2014

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In Belgium’s Dilemma: The Formation of Belgian Defense Policy, 1932-1940, Jonathan Andrew Epstein presents, for the first time in English, a detailed examination of the formation of Belgian defense policy in the eight years leading up to the crucial World War II Blitzkrieg campaign in Western Europe. Belgium’s decision to renounce military ties with France in 1936 has been widely criticized as a fatal mistake but it was in fact a reasonable response to Belgium’s situation and was not a significant factor in the Allied defeat.Drawing on Belgian documents, Jonathan Andrew Epstein looks at the leaders and issues that shaped the Belgian army of 1940 and demonstrates that while mistakes were made, most of the decisions were sound.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2014-03-27
Mått155 x 235 x 23 mm
Vikt591 g
FormatInbunden
SpråkEngelska
SerieHistory of Warfare
Antal sidor288
FörlagBrill
ISBN9789004254671

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Acknowledgements…ixList of Figures…xiIntroduction...11 Belgium and World War I...12The Size of the Army Before World War I...13The Language Issue to World War I...13Deployment Controversies before World War I...19The Belgian Army in World War I...22The German Occupation of Belgium...25Belgium and the Peace Settlement...312 Belgium Looks for Allies...393 Belgian Defense Policy to the Great Depression... 51The Main Actors in Defense Policy ...51The Reduction of the Belgian Army ...55Plans for Defense Against a Threatening Germany ...58General Galet ...61The Language Issue between 1918 and 1932 ...64The Depression and the Belgian Military ...674 The Devèze Years ...70The Chasseurs ardennais ...77The Budget Controversy ...79Raoul van Overstraeten ...82Devèze v. Nuyten ...84Franco-Belgian Stafff Talks ...89The Motorization of the Cavalry Corps ...93The Debates over Coverage and Service Time...103The Reoccupation of the Rhineland...1105 The 1936 Mixed Commission...122The Language Issue from the Mixed Commission to the War...152Other Commissions...1626 ‘Independence’ and its Origins...1657 The Belgian Army to May 10, 1940...190The Development and Assessment of the Belgian Military...191Fortifĳications from 1938 to 1940...194Defense Against Aircraft...199The Sudeten Crisis and the Pied de Paix Renforce...200New Mobilization Plans...2088 Belgium to May 10, 1940...210Diplomacy...210Belgium and the Netherlands...217Mobilization...220Belgian Military Intelligence and Alerts...2269 The ‘Eighteen-Days’ Campaign’...236Conclusion...264Bibliography...274Index...282

Belgium’s defense policy between the world wars was to protect the country from any conflict involving its powerful neighbors. Epstein describes this goal as reasonable. His well-documented analysis segues smoothly among the domestic, diplomatic, linguistic, and military considerations shaping the strategy. He describes an army that in 1940 fought well against long odds that quickly became hopeless. And he demonstrates failure and incompetence are not always synonymous.Dennis Showalter, Professor of History, Colorado College