Fortifications and Preparations
Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 as part of plan Fall Gelb. They rapidly crossed two thin defence lines, the O-line and the Q-line which the Dutch had built to defend their three northern provinces.
The German 1. Kavalleriedivision—later reformed to the 24. Panzerdivision—had taken the last Dutch defences in front of the Afsluitdijk (Wonsline) on 12 May and was prepared for an assault to take the two lines of pillboxes or casemates of Fort Kornwerderzand (named after a hamlet near the dyke). The eastern line was for defence eastward, while the western line was just behind the first for threats from the rear. Altogether, 17 casemates had been built. They were designed to withstand 210 mm (8 in) rounds (indirect fire), and 280 mm (11 in) rounds (indirect fire). The three main casemates were made of 3 m (9.8 ft) of reinforced concrete. The casemates sheltered 230 men, twenty-one 7.9 mm (0.311 in) Schwazlose machine guns, three 50 mm (1.97 in) guns and a 50 mm shore-based naval gun. There were similar defences at the other end of the dyke.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of The Afsluitdijk
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“Whatever may be the reason, whether it was that Hitler thought he might get away with what he had got without fighting for it, or whether it was that after all the preparations were not sufficiently complete—however, one thing is certain: he missed the bus.”
—Neville Chamberlain (1869–1940)