Maneuver H

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The maneuvers H , according to sources other than the Bonjourbericht also plan H or operation Helvétie called, was a planned Swiss-French military cooperation during the Second World War . Under the name Plan H , there were already French plans to invade Switzerland during the First World War .

The "Maneuver H" was intended for a German attempt to bypass the Maginot Line over Swiss territory. The plan of operations, which included the invasion of Switzerland by French troops, the occupation of defensive positions prepared by Switzerland and a joint fight against the Wehrmacht, had been agreed with Switzerland and would have been implemented within hours of an attack by the Wehrmacht on Switzerland.

Since the German attack on France in May 1940 took place elsewhere, "Maneuver H" was not implemented.

Starting position

Political starting point

From 1933 onwards (“ seizure of power ” in Germany, “ parliamentary self-elimination ” in Austria), Switzerland was predominantly surrounded by neighboring countries with authoritarian forms of government (Italy had been ruled authoritarian since 1922 ). The only exceptions were France ( parliamentary democracy ) and Liechtenstein ( constitutional hereditary monarchy on a democratic-parliamentary basis ).

The equality of the terms “ people ” and “ nation ” of both the German and the Italian fascists meant that the German-speaking and Italian-speaking parts of Switzerland were assigned to the respective “people”. The threat to the integrity of Switzerland was confirmed with the "Anschluss" of Austria and the Sudeten crisis . From September 1938, German-speaking Switzerland was the only larger area in the west with a predominantly German-speaking population, alongside (French) Alsace, that was not part of National Socialist Germany.

From 1938 at the latest, France could be regarded as a de facto ally for Switzerland as the only major democracy still bordering on it and due to similar interests (threat to integrity when the German-speaking area was split off) .

Strategic starting position

Map of the Maginot Line in Alsace

The fortifications of the Maginot Line covered the French eastern border up to the Swiss border . A direct attack on the positions of this line would have been doomed to failure with the means available in 1939. An attack on France therefore had to bypass the Maginot Line.

A southern bypass of the Maginot Line was only possible through Swiss territory. It could have taken place on a small scale via Birstal / Col des Rangiers / Ajoie or on a large scale via Mittelland / passes of the Jura .

The fortifications of the Limmat position (line Sargans, Walensee, Zürichsee, Limmat, Bözberg, Farnsburg, Gempen) built in autumn / winter 1939/40 were designed to slow down an advance by the Wehrmacht through the Swiss Plateau. The high time pressure during construction meant that the soldiers gave the positions the nickname “Mag-I-No-Ko-Linie” (meaning: “Can I finish them on time?”).

The leadership of the Swiss Army expected to be able to hold the Limmat position for about a week before any hoped-for Allied help arrived. She had, however, in anticipation not oppose much of a small-scale evasion in northwest Switzerland, since these Swiss Plateau did not touch. It was in the strategic interest of both parties to prevent this small-scale bypassing.

Strategic importance of the Gempen plateau

The Rhine was the main obstacle for the small-scale bypassing. There were bridges suitable for mechanized associations in Basel and Rheinfelden. The crossing at the Augst hydropower station was only suitable for foot troops. Both bridgeheads of the Basel bridges are located on Swiss territory and within the city of Basel, a sweep of the bridges (before they were blown up) would have been difficult to achieve. In Rheinfelden, on the other hand, the state border runs in the middle of the river; such an approach would have been more successful here.

While the French artillery of the Secteur fortifié d'Altkirch covered the entire Basel city area, the other crossings on the Upper Rhine were beyond their reach. Even a pontoon bridge built upstream from Birsfelden could no longer have been shot at from France.

These areas could be covered by artillery positions built on the Gempen plateau . In addition, the batteries on the Gempenplateau were able to cover both the entrances to the Birs valley and those into the Ergolz valley . However, Switzerland lacked the troops and guns to occupy them.

Elaboration of the plan

After Hans Senn , the first informal contacts between Swiss and French officers began in 1936. Corps commander (and later general) Henri Guisan was involved in these contacts .

By October 1939 at the latest, the contacts and agreements were formal. This is also shown by the Swiss Army's Operation Order 2 “Fall Nord”, which moved large contingents of troops from the border with France to the border with Germany (and into the position on the Limmat to be built).

At the end of March 1940, maneuver H was fully worked out and ready for implementation.

In addition to the reinforcement of the Gempen Division of the Swiss Army by the 8th French Army , the plan also envisaged the deployment of the 6th French Army in the Olten / Zofingen area.

The plan itself was only known to the army command and to the Federal Councilor Rudolf Minger , who was responsible for the military department , which meant that it could be credibly denied, at least until the Germans later found the files.

Implementation of the plan

Fortification work in Switzerland

In 1939 the construction of bunkered field artillery positions began . The bunkers were built so that they were suitable for both Swiss and French artillery pieces. In addition to the artillery bunkers, numerous terrain armor obstacles ( Toblerone barriers ), infantry bunkers and artillery observation bunkers were created. Well-preserved (and now listed) examples of Toblerone barriers and infantry bunkers can be found in the area of ​​the Hülftenschanze barrier in the lower Ergolztal and in the Mayenfels area near Pratteln.

Gempen Division

The Gempen Division, set up ad hoc under Colonel Du Pasquier, had the following mandate according to Operation Order 4:

  • Securing the section of the Rhine between Pratteln (incl.) And Basel (incl.),
  • Relocation of the focus to the Gempen plateau, which must be kept under all circumstances,
  • Holding the western front line Münchenstein - Binningen - Allschwil ,
  • Blocking of the entrances to the Birs and Birsigtal on this front,
  • Locking of the bottleneck (Klus von Angenstein ) at Aesch with a battalion.

The main task of the Gempen division was to hold off the enemy as long as possible and thus cover the French invasion behind the line Münchenstein-Binningen-Allschwil. Liaison officers stood ready at the border to guide the French troops to their prepared positions.

Remarkably, the Gempen division had no heavy artillery whatsoever, with around 20,000 men (May 1940). The prepared bunkered artillery positions in the areas of Reinach (Bruderholz and Reinacherheide), Arlesheim (Ermitage), Liestal (sifter) and Nuglar-St. The Pantaleon were thus empty and ready for French 15 and 7.5 cm guns and crews.

With the exception of the division headquarters, the troops were not aware of the intended collaboration with the French army.

Further war development

French campaign

The course of case yellow
The French units standing by for “Maneuver H” are marked as “Swiss Group”.

The actual German attack on France took place from May 10, 1940, not by bypassing the Maginot Line in the south, but in the north. (" Fall Gelb ") Army Group C, which was available in southern Germany for a relief attack (" Fall Braun "), was still able to successfully simulate the Swiss and French military leadership that there was a danger of attack at the southern end of the Maginot Line and thus retain the French troops for a full week.

Only after the German troops broke through at Sedan on May 17, 1940, larger parts of the French troops standing by for maneuver H were withdrawn from their readiness area near the Swiss border and moved towards Somme . The XLV. French army corps remained in the Jura and was interned in Switzerland after the collapse of France.

Becoming aware of the plan

The Swiss General Staff destroyed its planning documents for Maneuver H after the fall of France.

The French documents were found on June 16, 1940 in a train parked on a siding at La Charité-sur-Loire station, along with other ministerial documents. Further documents were found in the barracks at Dampierre near Dijon . Essential excerpts from the files were known at the Fuehrer's headquarters by July 1940 at the latest . Because of their high propagandistic value (violation of the “absolute neutrality” of Switzerland) they were not made public by Germany and kept in reserve as a war reason for the implementation of the Tannenbaum operational plan . They also served (quite successfully) as a means of exerting pressure on the Swiss government and military leadership in order to force them to adopt a more Germany-friendly course in the years that followed.

Immediate political consequences in Switzerland

According to Edgar Bonjour's analysis, until the summer of 1940 the Federal Council was only aware of the existence of the plan to the head of the military department, Rudolf Minger . Federal Councilor Minger submitted his resignation at the end of the year on November 8, 1940, stating other reasons.

General Guisan also came under pressure from Germany-friendly officers (including Ulrich Wille junior ), but his popularity with the population and the move towards the reduit strategy ( Rütlirapport ) prevented his dismissal.

post war period

In 1961 the "loot files" were published. The publication prompted the Federal Council, after the authenticity of the documents had initially been questioned, to commission Edgar Bonjour in 1962 to write the multi-volume report on Switzerland's neutrality policy, which was published from 1965 onwards. The agreement was correct in terms of neutrality law because there was no automatic mechanism and the French troops would only have been put on the march after a German attack and a request from the Federal Council for help.

With the army reform 95 , large parts of the Swiss fortifications were put out of operation and declassified. It was now possible to map the previously secret positions and list their weapon effects and the actual scope of the structural preparations became apparent.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ "Plan H": The French plans to invade Switzerland, November 17, 1915
  2. ↑ Edgar Bonjour, History of Swiss Neutrality, Volume 5, page 31
  3. ↑ a b Edgar Bonjour, History of Swiss Neutrality, Volume 5, page 29
  4. ↑ Edgar Bonjour, History of Swiss Neutrality, Volume 5, page 31f.
  5. ↑ Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport (ed.): [1] Military monuments in the cantons of Solothurn, Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft (PDF; 7.5 MB)
  6. ↑ Archived copy ( memento of March 26, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) List, rules of engagement and orders of the Gempen division in accordance with operational order 4
  7. ↑ Edgar Bonjour, History of Swiss Neutrality, Volume 5, Page 13
  8. ^ Jean-Jacques Langendorf: Germany - The Third Reich - The Second World War. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  9. ↑ Edgar Bonjour, History of Swiss Neutrality, Volume 5, page 24ff.
  10. ↑ www.mingerruedi.ch with a complete letter of resignation
  11. ↑ Jürg Stüssi-Lauterburg : Free rock in brown surf. Speech on the 70th anniversary of the mobilization of war, Jegenstorf, September 2, 2009