Battle of Zeeland - 13 May

13 May

In the southwest, the Germans had almost reached Zeeland. In the Bathline, which was the closest to Noord-Brabant, the fourth day introduced the men to the rumbling sound of the ground war. The sound of German heavy artillery that would eventually reach Moerdijk caused the men of the Bathline to realize that their future opponents were closing in on their position. Frequent patrols were carried out; there was rising tension in the lines. A squad of railroad troops was given orders to destroy the track that crossed the Bathline. These were the same men that had worked to repair this same stretch of line after German bombs had damaged it a few days before.

German fighters attacked the Dutch airbase at Vlissingen. But an even bigger threat revealed itself. In the course of the day, panic broke out amongst the men when a rumor spread that German troops had reached the island and were heading for Vlissingen. People suddenly saw light signals from houses and secret marks were read from laundry that was waving on drying-lines. It wasn't until the evening that these rumors lost their effect.

The Luftwaffe was less active on the 13th over Zeeland. This was mostly due to the fact that many squadrons were assigned to the fierce battle that was raging around the island of Dordrecht. The bombers that had been active over Zeeland, were now raiding Dutch artillery and infantry positions in the south-front of "Fortress Holland". Direct support was also given to the tanks of the 9th Tank Division that were engaged on Dordrecht island.

During this time, the morale of the troops—particularly the Dutch—had begun to drop. More and more Dutch troops were retreating from the east, and Queen Wilhelmina had fled to Britain (although she did it unwillingly).