Fall Gelb: Documenting Equipment Losses During The 1940 German Invasion Of Luxembourg

The German invasion of Luxembourg commenced at 04:35 when three Panzer Divisions crossed the border into Luxembourg. Ramps and explosives were used to cross the Schuster Line's barricades. Apart from sporadic exchanges of fire, the Germans did not encounter any significant resistance as the majority of the Volunteer Corps remained confined to their barracks. A handful of German soldiers secured the bridge at Wormeldange and captured the two customs officers there, who had demanded that the Germans halt their advance. The partially destroyed bridge over the Sauer was quickly repaired by German engineers, allowing the crossing of Panzers further into Luxembourg.

Communications from border posts to the Gendarmerie and Volunteer Corps headquarters informed the Luxembourgish government and Grand Ducal court that the invasion had begun. At 06:30 the majority of the government evacuated the capital by motorcade to the border town of Esch. In Esch a group of 125 German soldiers had landed by Fi 156 Storchs to secure the area until the main invasion force arrived. A lone Gendarme confronted the 125 soldiers and demanded that they leave, but was taken prisoner instead. The government motorcade, along with the Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, managed to avoid capture in Esch by fleeing to France over countryside roads.

Luxembourgish Gendarmes pose in front of a barricade of the Schuster Line shortly before the invasion of Luxembourg. Though these Gendarmesare seen toting rifles, others some were armed with Model 1884 revolvers fitted with a tiny little spike bayonet.

At 08:00, elements of the French 3rd Light Cavalry Division supported by the 1st Spahi Brigade and the 5th Armoured Battalion, crossed the southern border into Luxembourg in a failed attempt to launch a probing attack on German forces. The Royal Air Force, impatient with the reluctance of the French Air Force to conduct sorties against the advancing Germans, ordered a flight of Fairey Battle light bombers from No. 226 Squadron that was stationed in France to engage German military columns. Above Luxembourg the aircraft encountered heavy anti-aircraft fire and most suffered light damage before managing to escape. One Fairey Battle was forced to make a crash landing near Hierzenhaff, resulting in the death of one of its crew and the imprisonment of the wounded two others.

 

In the meantime the Gendarmerie continued resisting the German troops to little avail; the capital city was occupied before noon. By the evening of the 10th May 1940, most of the country, with the exception of the south, was occupied by German forces. Total Luxembourgish casualties amounted to seven WIA (six gendarmes and one soldier), while the Wehrmacht suffered 36 KIA. On the 11th of May the Luxembourgish government reached Paris and installed itself in the Luxembourg legation. Fearing German aerial attacks, the government moved further south, first to Fontainebleau, and then Poitiers. It later moved to Portugal and the United Kingdom, before finally settling in Canada for the remainder of the war. In exile, the Grand Duchess Charlotte became an important symbol of national unity.

A list of the destroyed and captured equipment of both sides can be seen below. Horses are not included in this list. This list will be updated if additional evidence of equipment losses becomes available.

Luxembourg (Unknown)

Bicycles

• An Unknown Number of Government-Issued Bicycles: (A lot, captured)

France (0)

United Kingdom (1)

Aircraft (1, of which destroyed: 1)

• 1 Fairey Battle: (1, destroyed)