2nd Armored Division (FRA)

## 2nd Amoured Division

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The French Revolutionary Army's 2nd Armored Division (French: *2e Division Blindée, 2e DB*) is a unit of in the amoured warfare branch of the FRA, it gained considerable fame during the war as the symbol of the French resurgent against Germany as it served as the amoured exploitation force of Army Group North during the Chrismas Strategic Counteroffensive. Formed from remant of the weakened 1st Mechanised Calvary Group, which have lost most of its tanks and reduced to near destruction during Operation Downfall that have managed to escape encirclement to withdrawn to the north.

## Formation

The division traces its linear back to the 14th Calvary (Mechanised) Regiment which formed part of the 1st Mechanised Calvary Group upon its mobilisation in April 1938 prior to the war and then assigned as part of the French Army Group North in the direction of Lieges during the first year of the war. When the German Ardenes offensive was detected, the 1st Calvary Group was pulled from its position on the Marat IV line to support Sedan under siege, however by the time the mechanised group reached its position, German armoured columns have penentrated 25km past Sedan, a plan for a counter offensive into the flank of the expanding German salient along with the British 1st Army from the South to cut off this offensive was carried out in hurry, however while the 1st Mechanised Group were able to advance into its flank, another developed German offensive have overran the 37th Infantry Division further north and led to the threat of encirclement of the Calvary Group itself. The order were made for the Calvary Group to withdraw with Germans in hot pursuit, when the Calvary Group finally finished its withdrawn behind a new front line supported by the 2nd Corps moving South from Belgium, it have lost nearly 90% of its amoured capacity and virtually returned to a light infantry corps. This was a disasterous situation that faced French Mechanised Calvary in the first years of the war as the largely light calvary/infantry forces and its support troops with often a single calvary tank battalion accompany it, which means while the calvary tanks are able to penetrate deep into the rear of static German infantry divisions, its supporting troops are largely incapable of providing support to the tanks upon facing hostile anti-tank or amoured oppositions.

Deemed unable to function as an independent manuever corps no longer, the 1st Calvary Corps was disbanded and the 14th Regiment incorporated into the 3rd Corps, Army Group North where the unit fought as reconnessaince and fire support elements until March 1941 where the plan for the reorganisation of all calvary regiments into amoured divisions were planed, the 14th Cavalry Regiment was began its reorganisation under the direction of Brigadier-General Guy Bresnier. It saw action effectively during the Christmas Counteroffensive and the Paris Strategic Defensive Operation and most distinguished itself during the Battle of Le Pere, which successfully created a gap within the German flank allowing the 3rd Corps to exploit and force the reduction of the German salient threatening Paris, it was elevated to the 2nd Cuirassée Division after the victory showing well the capacity of the new tank organisational reforms.

### The Path of Hope

From Le Pere, where the "Rendevouz of Hope" monument stands today as the beginning of the Liberation of the occupied territory, the Division particpated in the Advance to the Frontiers Campaign from the autumn of 1942, and then renamed officially as the 2nd Amoured Division in 1943, the Division was intrumental in the reduction of the German pocket at Dunkirk by the capture of the commune of Zuydcoote, which the Kaiserliche Marine have established a supply bridgehead. During this period, the Division was part of the 5th Army now under the command of the young General Pierre Brosolette, where it earned the title "Division du General Brosolette" although Brosolette himself was not in personal command of the division. The path of which the tanks of the division advance from the Le Pere to the recapture of the Marat I line near Lillie today marked by a series of special road markers bearing the insiginia of the Division, as the President of the Republic, Benoît Frachon made in the speech commemorating the 3rd year since the end of the war put it "From the further provinces, they have reached the rendevouz of all of our hope in the last war and along the roads of a nation, all those men, of Provencal, of Brittany, of Lille, have discovered at the end of the path, France."

As the front resumed its status quo ante belle, the French command redirected the Division to support the Offensive-Group in the Direction of Venice which although was liberated during the intitial Red Italian offensive, was recaptured by Austrian troops who by now have suffered considerable set back against the Franco-Italian defense-in-depth doctrines and culmulated in the decisive 2nd Battle of the River Piave, which saw the Austrian offensives attempting to destroy the Franco-Italian salient around the eastern side of the river, however effective defensive preparation and the amoured counter-offensive from the flank of the Austrian northern attack, which resulted in the rout on this flank forcing the attack from the south to aslo be called into retreat to avoid encirclement. The Division would then go on to participate in the remaining of the Venice Campaign against remnants of the Austrian Army Group in Italy until the conclusion of the evacuation of Venice.