Belgian strategic objectives had to be taken to allow the advancing German 6th Army to pass un-hindered into Belgium and the main objective was the fortress of Eben Emael, a well situated, well armed and well defended strongpoint built into the side of the Albert canal with the natural defences on one side and an anti-tank ditch and barbed wire defences on the other. It was made up of large and small calibre artillery pieces and anti-aircraft guns all enclosed in thick concrete casemates, embrasures and pillboxes. Below ground tunnels and passageways connected all its galleries and it was manned by over 1000 Belgian soldiers and appeared a formidable obstacle. Its field of fire allowed its large calibre artillery to cover Maastricht to the north and Vise to the south as well as the bridges, which also had to be taken.

I just started wondering if the glider attack had failed. Did the Germans have other alternatives how to continue after that or would it have spoiled the whole plan ( fall gelb )?

__________________

Why do you ask this in "Information Requests" and not in "What if?".

However, I think the Germany would have soone or later taken Eben Emael, with higher losses. As the moral of the French was so low, they would have lost anyway, and the English... well, their escape would have been easier.

All in all I think, it's not a great deal.

__________________
If someone tries to remove the speck in your right eye, will you turn to him the other also?

KnightsMove,

yes, I thought about making it a "What if" but as I don´t have enough "ideas" or "data" what would happen without Eben Emael being taken I put it here. Yet to my knowledge this operation was the most important of any other operation of Fall Gelb and only after the gliders had landed and supposedly the Germans had taken it were other operations started.

__________________

If I get energetic I will post a map of Eben Emael tomorrow along with a detailed OOB. Anyway, the fort was doomed. The German effort to silence it was virtually certain to succeed. All the Germans really had to immediately do was destroy 2 artillery casemates (numbers 12 and 18 with their north facing 75mm guns) and 2 turrets (numbers 24 and 31 with their all-round 2 each 120 mm guns). Turret 31 also was the primary observation post for the fort's artillery batteries. With these four positions out of action the Fort was no longer a threat to the German forces crossing into Belgium.

That would be great, T.A.!!

As I see it Eben Emael would have at least caused quite alot of problems and men losses to Germans, and perhaps allowed the Belgians to fight back for a longer time as I´m sure the loss of Eben Emael was a big blow morally. I haven´t read that much on the Dutch and Belgian soldiers but the loss of Eben Emael seems to have changed the battle very much in favour of the Germans.

__________________

Good thread, anyway! 'Eben Emaël' is one of the greatest commando-raids of the war and one of the best examples of Hitler's military capacity.

Had the gliders attack failed, the German High Command would have got even more nervous than they already were. However, we have the example of Liège forts in WWI, when lieutenant general Erich von Ludendorff - among others - knocked all the mighty Belgian fortresses off in three days with heavy Howitzers... The Germans were not that stupid to try to assault the fort with infantry. The biggest problem I see here is an enormous loss of time - vital for the 'Sichelschnitt' plan - since the heavy artillery was mainly placed under colonel general Wilhelm von Leeb's Army Group C to smash the fortresses of the 'Maginot Line'. Heavy guns cannot be transported that easily nor that quickly. And a German lightning advance through Belgium couldn't be made with a huge fortress in an strategical point in the middle. It would have given the Allies time enough to reinforce their defences and their attacks in Belgium and the Neetherlands. No advance through the Ardennes could have been made and therefore, no German victory.

__________________
"War is less costly than servitude, the choice is always between Verdun and Dachau." - Jean Dutourd, French veteran of both world wars

"A mon fils: depuis que tes yeux sont fermes les miens n’ont cessé de pleurir." - Mère française, Verdun

I agree. If the Germans could not move ahead the trap would not be set in the north and the pincer in the south would not work.

Other opinions?

__________________

Guns were pointing in wrong direction once bypassed. A threat to rear communications if it was in direct line of traffic. It could have been bypassed and once the country surrenders, problem is solved. Fortresses were obsolete.

__________________

American by birth, TEXAN by the grace of GOD!

I am not sure I agree with PzJgr that the fortresses of Europe were obsolete. If they were then the Germans would not have taken such pains to eliminate them. They are not invulnerable. They can be bypassed at a cost. They are still dangerous and formidable enemies. I think that they are more like tanks. They are not effective if they are alone, they need infantry support and armor support to help cover their vulnerability.

Consider the small number of troops it took to capture the fort. If there had been any advance intelligence and only a few companies of infantry had been there the fort would not have fallen, this would have rendered a critical axis of advance denied to the Germans. If the fort held even if the bridges were captured the guns of the fortress could have destroyed them or caused great damage to the advancing columns.

__________________
PEOPLE SLEEP PEACEABLY IN THEIR BEDS AT NIGHT ONLY BECAUSE ROUGH MEN STAND READY TO DO VIOLENCE ON THEIR BEHALF. GEORGE ORWELL

Fortresses in general can be bypassed. Eban Emael could not because of the canals. So in this case, I stand corrected. This particular fortress needed to be taken.

__________________

American by birth, TEXAN by the grace of GOD!