This is the order of battle for the Battle of Belgium, a World War II battle between German and Western Allies in Belgium between 10–28 May 1940.
Allied armed forces[]
Belgian air service[]
The Belgian Air Service (Aéronautique Militaire Belge) comprised three main aerial regiments:[1]
- 1er Régiment d'Aéronautique (1st Air Regiment - Observation and Army Cooperation aircraft)
- 2e Régiment d'Aéronautique (2nd Air Regiment - Equipped with Fighter aircraft )
- 3e Régiment d'Aéronautique (3rd Air Regiment - Reconnaissance and Bombers aircraft)
The Aéronautique Militaire Belge was reinforced by the Royal Air Force:
- RAF Advanced Air Striking Force (Air Vice-Marshal P H L Playfair)
- No. 14 Group RAF (Group Captain P.F. Fullard)
Belgian Army[]
The strength of the Belgian Army extended to seven Corps:
- Belgian I Corps
- Belgian II Corps
- Belgian III Corps
- Belgian IV Corps
- Belgian V Corps
- Belgian VI Corps
- Belgian VII Corps
- Belgian Cavalry Corps [2]
Cavalry[]
- Brussels Cavalry Corps - which had the following:
Corps Staff
- 1st and 2nd Cavalry Divisions, both of which were partially motorized. Each with three Mixed Cavalry Regiments each of which had a Horse cavalry battalion, a motorcycle battalion, an armored car squadron, and a training squadron
- Corps Artillery Regiment
- Bicycle Pioneer battalion
Ardennes[]
- Chasseurs Ardennais - 1st and 2nd Chasseurs Ardennais, both of which were partially motorized.
French First Army Group[]
French 1st Army[]
- French Cavalry Corps
- 2nd Light Mechanized Division
- 3rd Light Mechanized Division
- French 3rd Corps
- French 4th Corps
- 32nd Infantry Division
- French 5th Corps
- Belgian VII Corps
French 2nd Army[]
- Direct reporting:
- 2nd Light Cavalry Division
- 5th Light Cavalry Division
- 1st Cavalry Brigade
- French 10th Corps
- French 18th Corps
French 7th Army[]
- Direct reporting:
- French 1st Corps
- French 16th Corps
French 9th Army[]
- Direct reporting:
- French 2nd Corps
- French 11th Corps
- French 41st Corps
- 61st Infantry Division
- 102nd Fortress Division
- 3rd Spahi Brigade
British Expeditionary Force[]
- Directly reporting:
- British I Corps - Lieutenant-General Michael Barker
- British II Corps - Lieutenant-General Alan Brooke
- British III Corps - Lieutenant-General Ronald Adam
German armed forces[]
German Army Group B[]
Commanded by Colonel General Fedor von Bock
- (Chief of Staff - Lt.Gen. Hans von Salmuth).
- German Sixth Army —Colonel General Walter von Reichenau
- (Chief of Staff - Maj.Gen. Friedrich Paulus).
- IV Corps - Gen.of Infantry Viktor von Schwedler
- 15th Infantry Division - Maj.Gen. Ernst-Eberhard Hell (reserve)[3]
- 205th Infantry Division - Lt.Gen. Ernst Richter
- XI Corps- Lt.Gen. Joachim von Kortzfleisch
- 7th Infantry Division - Maj.Gen. Eccard von Gablenz[4]
- 211th Infantry Division - Maj.Gen. Kurt Renner
- 253rd Infantry Division - Lt.Gen. Fritz Kuhne[5]
- IX Corps[6]
- XVI Corps
- XXVII Corps[8]
- German Eighteenth Army — Georg von Küchler
- Reserves
- 208th Infantry Division[9]
- 225th Infantry Division
- 526th Infantry Division
- SS "Verfügungstruppe" Division
- 7th Airborne Division[10]
- 22nd Air Landing Infantry Division
- 9th Panzer Division[11]
- 207th Infantry Division
- X Corps[6]
- SS "Adolf Hitler" Division
- 227th Infantry Division
- 1st Cavalry Division
- XXVI Corps[8]
- 256th Infantry Division
- 254th Infantry Division[5]
- SS "Der Führer" Division
- Reserves
Luftwaffe[]
The Luftwaffe order of battle for operations over Belgium:[12]
- IV. Fliegerkorps (General der Flieger, Generaloberst Alfred Keller)
- Lehrgeschwader 1 (Stab. I., II., III., IV. Düsseldorf)
- Kampfgeschwader 30 (Stab. I., II., at Oldenburg III. at Marx)
- Kampfgeschwader 27 (III. at Wunstorf)
- Jagdfliegerführer 2 (Oberst Kurt-Bertram von Döring)
- Jagdgeschwader 26 (Stab., II at Dortmund, III. at (Essen-Mühlheim).)
- Jagdgeschwader 3 (III. at Hopsten)
- Jagdgeschwader 51 (Stab. at Bönninghardt, I. at Krefeld)
- Jagdgeschwader 27 (II. Bönninghardt)
- Jagdgeschwader 20 (I. at Bönninghardt)
- VIII. Fliegerkorps (Generalmajor Wolfram von Richthofen)
- Jagdgeschwader 27 (Stab.,I.)
- Jagdgeschwader 21
- Jagdgeschwader 1 (I.)
- Sturzkampfgeschwader 76 (I.)
- Sturzkampfgeschwader 2 (Stab., I., III.)
- Sturzkampfgeschwader 77 (Stab., I, II.)
- Lehrgeschwader 1 (IV(St.))
- Lehrgeschwader 2 II.(Shl)
- Kampfgeschwader 77 (Stab., I., II., III.)
Citations[]
- ↑ Aéronautique Militaire Belge Order of Battle
- ↑ Belgian Cavalry Corps Order of Battle, 10 May 1940
- ↑ Mitcham 1985, p. 52.
- ↑ Mitcham 1985, p. 46.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Mitcham 1985, p. 185.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Mitcham 1995, p. 505.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Mitcham 1985, p. 352.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Mitcham 1995, p. 509.
- ↑ Mitcham 1985, p. 163.
- ↑ Mitcham 1985, p. 422.
- ↑ Mitcham 1985, p. 360.
- ↑ Hooton 2007, pp. 45-48.
References[]
- Mitcham, Samuel. Hitler's Legions: The German Army Order of Battle, World War II. Dorset Press, New York. 1985. ISBN 0-88029-214-8 (Formerly ISBN 0-8128-2992-1)
- Hooton, E.R. (2007). Luftwaffe at War; Blitzkrieg in the West. London: Chervron/Ian Allen. ISBN 978-1-85780-272-6.
- Gunsburg, Jeffrey A., 'The Battle of the Belgian Plain, 12–14 May 1940: The First Great Tank Battle', The Journal of Military History, Vol. 56, No. 2. (Apr., 1992), pp. 207–244.
- Belgian Cavalry Corps Order of Battle, 10 May 1940
- Aéronautique Militaire Belge Order of Battle
The original article can be found at Battle of Belgium order of battle and the edit history here.