0510_06: The Fall of Eben Emael - PzC 12 France '40

Fort Eben Emael, Belgium, on the Dutch border near Maastricht, 10th May 1940: Shortly before dawn on the 10th of May, four crack teams of German Sturm troopers landed by glider on the Belgian-Dutch border to secure a number of key objectives. One team, code named "Granite", was equipped with hollow-shaped charge weapons called Hobllandungs. These weapons were created with the intent to crack open Belgian Fort Eben Emael. With this fort and critical bridges over the Albert Canal held by the Sturm units, the 4th Panzer Division would follow up and slice through this sector of Holland to begin the drive into central Belgium. The threat of the 4th Panzer Division's rapid advance was a critical part of the German plan to draw the cream of the Franco-British army out of position in order to counter the German advance through the Low Countries and this would therefore allow the drive through the Ardennes to succeed. The surprise assault on Eben Emael would symbolize the birth of both Commandos and Paratroopers. [Size small]