The Battle of Hannut - The Matrix Games version of West Front

Hannut, Belgium: After securing the Maastricht bridges on 10 May, the first day of the German invasion in the west, German General Hoepner's 16 Panzer Corps immediately began driving west. His most important job, outside of eliminating Allied forces, was to strengthen the impression that the main German drive was in the north, similar to the German advance of World War I. In front of Hoepner's hard driving tanks, the French 1st Army was advancing into Belgium and establishing a strong blocking position on the River Dyle. In order to insure enough time to get the infantry divisions up to the Dyle River, Gen Prioux was ordered to advance his Cavalry Corps east to the area of Hannut, near the old battlefield of Ramilles. On May 12th, advance units of both forces met in vicious skirmishing and a French line developed stretching from Tinien, in the north southeastward to Huy, on the Meuse River. Over night of the 12th/13th the Germans were repelled numerous times as they tried to outflank the French left flank near Tinien. When morning broke on the 13th, both forces were still reinforcing and in the afternoon the Germans unleashed a full scale attack. This was the largest tank battle to occur during the French Campaign and all things considered, the Germans got the worst of the deal. They lost more tanks and were unable to break the French line. It was a fruitless attempt, however, by the French, to stop the blitzkrieg. That same day, the 13th, the main German blow fell on the French line, just to the south, along the Meuse River and it was not stopped. The Dyle River line was rendered useless.